Getting to the end of the earth takes a couple of hoops and hops! First, we had to pack carefully. There will be no shops to stop in and buy whatever we forgot. No pharmacies. No Amazon. For this reason, we packed a First Aid bag that has all the remedies from our shelves including Band-Aides, Tylenol, personal meds, and even Scopolamine (in case we need it.) Even at this and with a few extra books and jackets, our suitcases are both full, but well underweight.

With that thought out ahead of time and done a few days ago, the next step was following directions to secure a negative PCR test. This was a tough one because the rules said that the window for the test was 48 hours before departure. What we didn’t know was that the turnaround for test results is usually longer than that! Oops. After having our test on Thursday morning, we were startled not to have results by Friday morning, our day of departure. John’s idea was to go to the airport hours early, just in case. I called the emergency number. There was silence after I explained, then a big breath. “You’ll have to get a rapid test at the airport if there’s time.” That’s about when panic set it.

I immediately called the taxi company and changed the order by two hours. We had to leave now. John finished his packing. We wolfed down a plate of eggs and bing bong, our ride arrived. All the way there, we tried to make reservations for a rapid test, but no reservations were available today. We were switching into “what if” mode. Without a negative test report, we would not be able to board the plane in LA because Argentina would not let us in the country. 

Luckily, we had built an extra day into the itinerary, just in case. If we had to change everything to Saturday, we’d still be in place by Sunday when we needed to muster for the charter. 

At the airport, we asked to be dropped off at the yellow umbrellas, the pop-up test station. There, we found out that a one-hour test was not an option. They could only offer 3–5-hour tests. With a flight at 2:50 and it was now 9:30, a 3-hour test would work. A 4-hour test might be too tight. We gave our details and stood in the short line. At the window, I explained our predicament. John did too. The woman understood but could make no promises. John noticed that after his test, someone from the back collected all the samples. A good sign?

I called the travel agent. He was set to change everything to Saturday, if needed—both flights, the driver in BA, and the hotel. After that, we weren’t very chatty. We found a place at the Bradly Airport to sit. John closed his eyes and tried to calm himself. I wrote and read. Then we talked it over again. Then he started reading his novel. The hours passed. We had lunch. Then just after the last bite of sandwich, John’s phone buzzed. It was the report of our results. To mash a quote from Dickens, “The spirits did it all in three hours!” With that news, we were hugs and happiness and off to check in and check our luggage. The very next thing we did was to go back to the test center and thank them. They were terrific, but we think the very slow airport traffic might have figured in. Anyway, away we go!  Ho Ho!

Later the same day:

We are safely ensconced in our hotel room at the Hilton in Buenos Aires. Our driver was fabulous. Knowing that we will get to do very little here (it is recommended that spend the whole time in our room!), he gave us a mini tour of the city showing us the Eva Peron building (she smiles on the side facing the poor and shouts on the other side facing the rich neighborhood), the obelisk, the statue of St. Martin, The Pink House (where the president works), and the suspension bridge and tall ship across the river from the Hilton.  The hotel is fabulous, by the way. What a terrific lobby— and our room is quite comfortable.

Following the firm warning from Viking to stay indoors away from people, or (if we did go out) to stay in the open air, we chose to venture out. This might be our only outing while in BA, which is fine. We walked (with masks on) along a very lightly populated promenade to an iconic suspension bridge and across to see the square rigger, the President Sarmiento. It’s in rough shape, as most things are here, but interesting. On our way there, I caught several shots of a teenager on the sidewalk being made into a princess. Later, John and I took a shortcut back to the hotel through a wide Breezeway between two buildings. All the windows were reflective glass, and the day was warm and bright, so several girl troops were out making use of the reflection and the weather, practicing dance moves!  It was quite a show!

Back indoors, we bought lunch at the shop and sat in our own little sports bar, eating and watching both amateur golf of the Americas and a NASCAR rally sponsored by Bass Fish shops!  Ha! A very lovely day indeed. It’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow, making it easy to stay in.