Tigre

Still a bit of this bug in me so I have been staying close to home these last few days. Last weekend, however, I went on a day trip to Tigre and the Parana river delta. The trip was organized by the South American Explorer's BA office. About 15 of us went on the trip. If you are traveling in and around South America, it might be worth it to join this organization. They are a good resource for the traveler in terms of providing assistance or information and they organize trips and events.

The Parana river delta and the city of Tigre remind me of bits of Amsterdam, Venice and the Everglades at the same time. Basically there are hundreds of lush channels on which summer houses are built on stilts. Some people do live here full time, and during the military dictatorship it was a refuge for those with different political views. Apparently there is also a strong gay population in the delta.

The houses are only accessible by boat. Vaporetto-type boats or private watercraft provide transport. Also some people motor their yachts up the channels for the day or weekend. Tigre is the only city in this area and is where the boats start and end. We traveled into the delta for 1.5 hours before stopping at a property owned by a club. There we hung out for the afternoon and ate a barbecue lunch. Very relaxing. The girls in the picture are my friends Justyna from Poland and Celine from France. While there, I strolled the property and noticed all the different plants and birds. So exciting to come across new flora and fauna. Since it is spring, some plants are blooming and smelling wonderful.