Casa Saltshaker

We were lucky enough to go to Argentina while our very dear friends were living there.  Not only did they know the best places to go visit and eat, they babysat for us while we did it.  Whoohoooo!  One of their recommendations was a closed- door restaurant called Casa Saltshaker.  I had never heard of something like this before and really wanted to try it out.  Apparently closed-door restaurants are literally restaurants that are closed to the public unless you get an invitation or make a reservation by hearing about it through a friend.  The one we attended was held at a chef's home in Buenos Aires.


our dinner menu with wine pairings



http://www.casasaltshaker.com/indexen.htm



Casa Saltshaker was like attending a dinner party with a bunch of people you don't know and eating seriously good food.  Sounds intimidating at first, but everyone there was really interesting and fun.  My husband and I had a blast.  The menu that evening was inspired by Moroccan Independence Day.  Each course was paired with FABULOUS wine so I can not remember exactly everything we ate so I posted the menu below.  On the website there is a link for the recipes too.  YUM! 

http://youtu.be/FgKz8QgYSMk



I am also linking a video which explains more about the concept of secret restaurants and it features our chef.

El Ombú estancia in San Antonio de Areco

I have not posted in a while. My grandfather passed away while we were on vacation:( We tried to get flights home, but the soonest we could get home was Thursday afternoon and the funeral was Thursday morning. Let's just say we needed to get away somewhere to relax and reflect. We packed our bags and headed out with some good friends to an estancia two hours outside of the city. An estancia is a real working farm with available rooms for you to stay in and enjoy lots of good food.



View of the lunch feast tables and horses



 

We were not sure what to expect. Let's just say my expectations were more than exceeded. After a two hour bus ride, we landed in what I perceived to be the closest thing to heaven. We were greeted and shown to our ADORABLE rooms. From there it only got better. I love food. All of our trips and vacations revolve around food. This was the place to be! For lunch, aka the feast, there were tables set up on the lawn of the old mansion that overlooked the farm. All of the tables had bottles of wine, salads, empanadas, and fresh bread to greet us. I had to give applause where they were due.... although I may have embarrassed my family with all of the squealing and hand clapping. Next came, hot off the asado (grill/smoker), chicken,steak, sausage, and ribs with such flavor that my mouth is watering just typing this. Did I mention dessert?



One of the many puppies on the estancia

Where my heaven has lots of food, my girls' heaven has lots of doggies. There were dogs everywhere. Those dogs probably never had so much attention in their lives. My girls were all over them. They ran and played and had a ball.

After a long nap, we took a carriage ride around the property. We had tea and alfajores (cookies with caramel in the middle) followed by a beer in honor of my Papaw. The day was just magical.

If you are traveling in Argentina with children, an estancia is definitely worth checking out.  El Ombú estancia in San Antonio de Areco gets my two thumbs up.





Colonia de Sacramento, Uruguay

One of the highlights of our trip so far was hopping on a boat (aka buquebus) and heading to the sleepy and historical town of Colonia de Sacramento in Uruguay. The kids loved it so much that when it was time to leave, the oldest cried. We definitely could have spent several more days there since there was plenty to see and..... eat.

We stayed in the historic district of the town at a quaint little hotel called El Capullo. It was so adorable and had the warmest people working there. We were greeted and promptly introduced to the toy chest. The girls were in heaven. I loved the giant orange tree growing in the back neighbors garden that hung over the fence.

Walking around the town you felt such a sense of history. The town had been founded by the Portuguese and, several back and forth battles later, settled by the Spanish. We took a guided tour after being there a few days and learned quite a bit of interesting information. One interesting tidbit was the Portuguese had used tiles on their roofs that were made by placing the clay over the top part of a slave's leg. Because no slave had the same size muscle, the tiles were all different sizes. You could see this on many of the original buildings. Colonia de Sacramento also had the oldest church in all of Uruguay that we were able to go into and tour.

One of the things that the girls truly loved was renting a golf car and driving around the town. It was a little scary for Mommy and Daddy because we were on the same road as many other cars, but the gorgeous view of the coast along the way made it worth it. Word to the wise- make sure you get a golf cart with seat belts.

We drove our little golf cart out to Playa Ferrando, a lovely little beach about 2 km from town. The girls enjoyed putting their toes in the water. Apparently you could walk out for 100 meters and still not have the water go above your knees. We did not test that theory though. We stopped at a local shipwreck museum. It was quite interesting to learn of all of the ships that had sunk right around the port of the town. We also drove out to a dilapidated bull ring. Apparently the bull ring was built in 1910 but bull fighting was made illegal in 1912. LOL

Drinking mate (pronounced matay) is a way of life if not an obsession in Uruguay. You would see everyone walking around with their little hollowed out gourds sipping mate tea through a bombilla (a metal straw). The guide on our tour mentioned the average person there drinks roughly 4 liters of mate a day. Whoa!!!!

Steak in Uruguay is a source of pride. According to our guide, there are three cows to every person there. We thought we would help them control the cow population by eating at the local parillas. El Porton is the one to eat at if you ever get the chance. Uh....yum!!!!

Life was relaxing in Colonia. I can still hear the bell from the church tolling while drum beats from a local drum parade marched by my window. Ahhhh....

Ferias

Every weekend in Buenos Aires there is an arts fair where local artists can sell their handmade goods. On Saturday we hit the one in Recoleta which is referred to as the Feria Hippy. Score!!!! There was so much stuff there. Because of the exchange rate, prices are super favorable too. I found some pretty great stuff. There was everything from leather purses, clothing, jewelry to little handmade toys. Did I mention there's a little park right in the middle of the fair so your hubby can take the kids to burn off some steam while you shop?

On Sunday we hit the San Telmo fair. There are booths of handmade goods that go on for maybe 10 blocks. There was plenty of entertainment out on the streets too. The kids had a blast watching a puppet show. Albeit the man was working a marionette of a little drunk guy trying to walk down a little tiny street. The kids had no idea. Mommy had fun because she found really cool leather hair clips for $5 us. Yahoo!!!!

Food and the City

Being this is our second time to Argentina we knew what to expect as far as what the kids would enjoy to do and eat. If you have never been to Buenos Aires, it is probably not what you expected. It is not called "The Paris of the South" for nothing. It is quite a large city with tall buildings, somewhat like New York, but with a lot of French influence in the parks, gardens, and older buildings. The food is beyond delicious. I believe I had read 70 percent of the surnames here are Italian so one would be right in expecting some of the best homemade pasta outside of Italia can be found here. As with any big city there will be people will be kids. Buenos Aires seems to be super kid friendly. Even the nicest restaurant will welcome children and have a baby seat available. I love the fact that many of the restaurants will serve the children first and pretty immediately which keeps a hungry kiddo from getting loud and grumpy.

The main fare here is meat at a parilla (steak house) , pasta, and pizza. The people here are quite proud of the food and for good reason. Everything is fresh from the farm. You see trucks coming in daily with fresh vegetables, fruits, meat, milk, and eggs. The beef is from grass fed cows that actually get to roam around on the Pampas. Because of the climate and size of the country, fresh fruits and vegetables are available year round.

My kids love the handmade pasta that is available everywhere. Since we have been here they have lived on toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, pasta, alfajores (two cookies with caramel... aka dulce de leche inside), and of course gelato. I have been living off of milanesas (breaded veal), steak, pizza, gnocchi, choripan (sausage inside a homemade bun with chimichuri sauce),amazing cheeses, and the list goes on and on. When we travel it is all about the food. Thank goodness for all of the walking, huh? Enough with the food talk. I am pretty hungry and suddenly dreaming about hitting a local parilla for a good steak and bottle of wine.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Forgive me for it has been over a week since my last entry. Traveling with kids is exhausting. What's more exhausting is navigating around a big bustling city and constantly getting lost. I love the fact that Buenos Aires is a walking city. You walk every where you want to go. If it is too far for two little ones, you can take a taxi (which scares me since the drivers LOVE to talk to you while making eye contact). Did I mention they are driving...with my children in the car? Although taking a taxi is fairly cheap ($6us for an in town 15 minute ride), we decided to try out the buses, trains, and subways.

The last time we were in Buenos Aires we used the subway system called the subte. I really liked taking the subte with the exception of rush hour. The subte was jammed packed full of people trying to make their way home at that time. I have found that if you travel with children any where you will be assured a seat. There is a wonderful etiquette here about allowing people with children and elderly ladies to have priority seating. People are generally nicer to you too when you have two cute little girls with you. This is no exaggeration. When I make a run to the store, people appear distant and busy, but that is not so when I have the girls with me. Everyone wants to stop and chat.

We decided to take the train out to an area called Tigre. This seemed easy enough when we went with friends. Although we must have lucked out because the second time we tried to go we took the wrong train and did not realize it until an hour into the train ride. We ended up in Suarez. There was a super nice guy sitting behind us who told us we had to go all the way back to the train station and board the next train out. Yikes! The train station is quite confusing but a really cheap ($0.25 us and interesting alternative to taxis or remises. And by interesting there is no shortage of on board entertainment from the buskers. Make sure to bring a few pesos to give to these guys. On our last train ride to San Isidro there was a man playing a harp. He rocked it too!

Buenos Aires, Argentina

We have been here for a few days now. I have been stuffing myself with media lunas, empanadas, and seriously good wine. I wish my pics could be better, but it is so much easier to upload pics from my phone than my camera. Better pics to come later, I promise.

As much as I tried to plan for this trip, there are several things that I forgot and a few things I will have to remember for next time. Here is a sample:

- You would think that an umbrella would be something that I would think of packing considering every time I travel it rains, and I need to go hunt one down to purchase. Well... unless you are in Rome, where the street vendors magically appear with a ton of cheap umbrellas for a not so cheap price as soon as the first drop hits.

-I learned on the plane that dum dum suckers are dumb dumb. Instead of sucking them to help their ears, the ate them in three bites. Tootsie roll pops of even Blow pops would have worked a lot better.

-I also did not pack enough stickers. The kids LOVED playing with stickers on the plane. When the little one would get fussy, I would bust out the stickers, and she would sit there quietly peeling and sticking. Needless to say, I need more sticker for the ride home.

-Another airplane mishap was cream and milk are not the same thing in other countries. I ordered coffee after dinner on the plane. The lady asked how I took my coffee. I responded, "Crema. No azucar por favor." She looked at me like I had requested baby's blood or something. Then after she poured the lovely coffee and what I consider cream in the gentleman's coffee beside me, she handed me a packet of dried creamer. YUCK!!!! Apparently I should have asked for leche (milk) and not crema (dried crap). I just started drinking coffee in general so I had never ordered coffee internationally. LESSON LEARNED LADY!!!!!

-Upon leaving the airport I decided to stop by the tourist kiosk. Sooooo worth it!!! They had so many free guide books, maps, and a ton of knowledge.

- Wash cloth!!!! I really enjoy using a wash cloth to wash my face and although it is not a necessity for me it sure is important to have one for the kiddos. Do other countries use them? I have not encountered one in my travels at the hotels or apartments. I will pack a few next time.

- Entry fees!!! Last year when we had traveled to Argentina we were not required to pay an entry fee. The U.S. charges entrance fees to Argentinians visiting to the U.S. so Argentina implemented a reciprocal fee to U.S. citizens. Whoa! It was $140 per person. On the upside it is good for ten years, Downside is we are a family of four and that stinks :( We will have to make it up with lots of steak dinners since the exchange rate is so amazing.

Last but not least.... If your child runs around your house all day dressed in a princess dress at home, you better pack it. Trust me! This is all I am hearing about from my 2 year old. I am truly regretting not packing the dag gone "princess dress".

Here We Go!

It has been a long few days with all of the packing and organizing for the trip. What really helped the most was making a list several days ago for each individual person's suitcase. As I would think of something, for instance nail clippers for the kids, I would write it down. Today as I was putting everything into the suitcases, I did not have to think about what needed to go in. I simply looked off of my list. That saved my sanity as well as a ton of time.

Traveling with kids is a learning experience. I have learned to make take a few toys and books for when we get to our destination as well as a few activities for the plane. Packing a few snacks and a couple of suckers for take off and landing has been helpful as their little ears tend to hurt. Sounds simple enough, but I have actually not done this on a few trips past and suffered. My oldest who was 6 months old at the time was hurting so badly one time, she head butted me in the nose. Ouch!

Quick tip: If you are traveling with car seats, cover them with a large plastic lawn bag before checking them on the plane. This will keep them clean.

If you have a computer savvy hubby like me, you can take your Vonage box with you to Argentina and still receive and make calls without incurring international calling rates. Whoohoo!

Last year when we were in Argentina, the three year old was fighting over the stroller with the one year old. Thank you Craigslist... I went online and found a Sit and Stand stroller so everyone will have a spot to sit and.... it was only $40. Sweet!

I am sure there are a ton of grammar and spelling errors, but the taxi is almost here. So.... gotta run! Next time we meet, I will be in Argentina :)

Just a Little Shopping

I am soooo tired!!!! Slowly but surely I have accumulated things as I am out and about. Today my mother-in-law came over so my hubby and I could check off everything from our list and do a major shopping spree. Remember how I mentioned I am a procrastinator? This is when the self- loathing begins. Why or why did I wait 5 days out to gather all of this stuff?

Stores hit today:
*Wolf Camera- twice (bought something and returned it. Highly inefficient.)
*Walgreens- medicine for kids and adults
*Costco- ended up getting a few things for the trip and a lot of crap (excuse my language) that we do not need for the trip
*Lowes-wanted patio furniture covers but all they had was Christmas decorations...it is not even Halloween people
*Wal-mart- for essentials like hairspray because it was fairly expensive when we were in Argentina last and snacks for the plane. Also for suckers because they help with the girls' ears on the plane and keep them both quiet. Win- win!
*Aveda store and Cigar store-get some stuff for friends who are in Argentina.

Shew..... Of course I forgot to buy bottle liners for my child (who is way too old to take a bottle, buuuuut it helps her sleep so I do it anyway because at the end of the night I am exhausted....don't judge me) while I was at Wal-Mart. Doah!!!!

After editing this blog I am going to have to check my bank account and make sure everything is in order. Then I am turning on the T.V. and vegging out. Tomorrow is a long day at the zoo... literally.

The Countdown Begins

I cannot believe we are leaving the country for a month with two little kids in less than 10 days. It seemed like we had all of the time in the world, and now I am feeling the pressure. (Insert screeeaaaaaaam!)

We have started to make a list of things we need to pack, get, and/or prepare for the trip. I put a piece of paper out on the counter and every time an idea popped in our heads, we wrote it down. The serious list has yet to be made. Hmmmm... maybe I should do that today.

I started seriously working out a few weeks ago. The Argentines are serious about looking good. I had read somewhere that boob jobs were covered by private insurance plans. Not sure if it is true, but the women there were in fabulous shape. I should have started working out a long time ago. Oh well. With all of the walking we will be doing I am sure I will burn a calorie or two. Did I mention I would be walking to places that had creamy gelato, beautiful steaks, decadent wine, and handmade fresh pasta? I may not burn calories, but maybe I can break even???

A few things from my list:

*Make sure care for dog is arranged (food, leash, vet info)

*Refill precriptions before we leave

*Cancel and reschedule doctor/dentist appointments

*Put together an emergency medicine pack for kids (they may not have exactly the stuff you are used to using)

*Pack Always tampons and pads (TMI but trust me from experience, you want the good stuff)

*Pay bills ahead of time if you can

*Go to airline website to enter passport info

It is Spring in Argentina right now which makes packing early so much easier. We are not wearing Spring clothes right now since it is Fall here so we can easily pack weeks ahead of time. Added bonus: More use out of clothes for the girls that otherwise would not get anymore wear.

Tying Up Loose Ends

There is so much to do when you are preparing to go anywhere with kids. Even going to the grocery store seems to take 30 minutes of prep just to get out the door, and inevitably there is something I've forgotten.

Preparing to go on vacation takes preparation well in advance. As I am writing this I am giggling because preparation is not my strong suit. Some of the things you absolutely have to do is check your passport. If it is within 6 months of expiration, you must have it renewed or you will not be permitted to go abroad. Also when getting passports for children there are specific steps you need to follow. One of those I found out the hard way.

We went all the way downtown to the main post office with all of the documentation for the kids to get their passports only to be told we needed the long form birth certificate, and we had the short form. No one ever told me I had a choice, and apparently the short form is the default form. Did I mention as we were at the passport office we were considering putting a rush order on the passports because we were worried they would not come before we were to leave on our trip? Now we had to obtain a long form birth certificate in addition to applying for the passports. Like I said before, I am not one for preparation. LOL

Getting your airplane tickets in advance will save you lots of money. If you have a lap baby, call the airline once you have purchased your ticket online to give them all of the info on the child. If not, it may delay you once you get to the airport. Unfortunately my youngest will be passed the lap baby age. She gets her own big girl ticket. Almost forgot.... we got a night time flight so the kids will sleep. (You can't see this, but I am crossing my fingers.)

We FINALLY heard back from the apartment rental place this morning. They told us we are officially confirmed for our apartment as well as our transport from the airport. I think we may have waited a little too long this time making reservations for apartments. It seemed that every apartment we had inquired about had already been rented out. AAAARRRRRGGGG! After much searching and back and forth calls and emails with the rental place we eventually got exactly what we wanted and in the location we wanted. Whoohoo....

This seems to have been the big stuff we had to take care of. Thank goodness Argentina does not require a visa for U.S. citizens. That is one less thing to prepare.

About this Blog

Traveling is so much fun! I never did it much as a kid. My first plane ride was an NJROTC trip in high school. Did I mention I joined NJROTC to get to go on the trip? Once I got old enough to get a job and a passport.... faaaagetaaboutit...I wanted to travel as much as I could.

First comes love, then come marriage, well you know the rest. I was not about to let kiddos slow me down, and since they are so stinkin' cute I never wanted to leave them behind. Needless to say my little ones are well traveled and have a passport picture that makes even the meanest customs guy smile.

Traveling with kids is not the easiest or most relaxing, but it is a lot of fun. I had so many questions when I first started traveling with the first baby. You definitely learn from experience. Now I feel like a seasoned pro.... well sort of.

My purpose for starting this blog is to start documenting our travels as well as share tips on what you need to have, do, bring, be when traveling with kiddos.

Our next trip is a little more than a month away. Excitement is building around the house. Last year we went to Buenos Aires, Argentina for two weeks. My oldest was three and the youngest was one..... and not yet walking. We had such an amazing time because Buenos Aires was so kid friendly and the exchange rate made it very economical compared to Europe. Since there were so many parts of Argentina and near by countries that we did not get to see, we decided to go back this year. The exchange rate is still pretty good so we decided to make our trip this year one month long. Shew... Wish us luck.

And so this begins our journey........