We had threatened to do it for years….leave before 6am on a driving trip. We finally did it today as we left Austin. That is also why I was having breakfast at Mel’s Diner in Giddings while my bride was sleeping in the car in the parking lot. The car was easy to spot as it was the only one in the parking lot. The other twelve vehicles were pick-ups. The sign said, “MEL’S DINER FINE FOOD”. Note the emphasis on FINE. It was written just like that. I knew right off that this was the right place to be at this time on a Wednesday morning.

A nice lady I will call “Mel” was in charge. Not sure if she was really “Mel” but she was clearly in charge: took the orders, brought the food, greeted the customers, brought them used newspapers, poured coffee refills, knew everybody, and ran the register. Occasionally, in the background the cook shouted, “Order up!“… a very clear means of communication between the kitchen and the waitstaff. The waitstaff (Mel) could hear the kitchen (the cook) because she was about 6 feet away.

Eggs over easy, sausage, hash browns, biscuits, gravy, butter, strawberry jam, and the big surprise was that the coffee was really good. I am one raised on Texas truck stop coffee that generally was either weaker than tea or it had boiled down to a burnt concentrate. I am a recovering coffee snob and I was impressed.

Go to Mel’s in the event you’ve forgotten what real Texans are like.

Austin. Although it is home to the arch-enemy of the fightin’ Texas Aggies, I still love this city. The common motto is “Keep Austin Weird”. The residents are doing a fine job of that. I must tell you that any place that has a public statue memorializing Stevie Ray Vaughan has my respect. They know something special when they see it. The live music here is among the best anywhere.

Eclectic food. Perhaps unrivaled in the number of trailer restaurants, Austin delivers a tasty variety very affordably. Although “Frank” is not a trailer restaurant it has a niche offering.

http://www.hotdogscoldbeer.com/eats.html

Here’s what I had this afternoon.

Pearl beer. I didn’t think they made it anymore. It claims to be Texas’ oldest beer. Pearl was a much maligned beer by Texans I grew up with, but I must say this is a pretty good drink for $1.00. (We waited 15 minutes for happy hour to kick in.)

My dog. I elected the “pork it” option for my Chicago Dog. That means they split the Vienna beef dog, stuff it with white American cheese, wrap it in bacon and deep fry it. Then, they build the Chicago Dog which consists of a poppy seed bun, the Vienna beef dog (prepared as described), pickle, tomato, onion, day-glo relish, sport peppers (those “sporty” yellow things on top), celery salt, and mustard. About 965 calories a bite.

My girl, Cici, went for the plain dog with sauerkraut and onions. (The healthy option). It looked great but how could I have missed out stuffing a hot dog with cheese, wrapping it in bacon and deep-frying it? I might not get that opportunity again.

1. Don’t count Argentina out. In my post “Turn out the lights…” I said it looked like Argentina was out of World Cup 2010. I was wrong. Subsequently, Argentina played Peru  in Buenos Aires and El Milagro de San Palermo (the miracle of Saint Palermo) occurred. Argentina coach, Diego Maradona, came up with this phrase. The game was tied 1-1 near the end of the first half. There was lightning and a torrential rain when right before half-time a crazy goal was scored by Palermo, one of the Argentina forwards. The storm was so bad, the game was declared over by the officials. Consequently, Argentina has now qualified for the World Cup.

2. Pizza tastes better if eaten at a place that’s been in business continuously for more than 50 years. All eight of the places in our Tour de Pizza were more than 50 years old. Here was our last leg of the Tour:

El Fortin is the favorite place of Velez fans. The Velez soccer stadium is nearby. I would put any of the eight places we visited up against any I have been to in the states. I have never been to a pizza place in the states that was over 50 years old.

3. Hospitality can change the world for the better. People ask me why I love Argentina. It is the people I have met and the hospitality and kindness they have shown me. It has been overwhelming every time I have been there. Sure, it is an exciting, beautiful place with great food, awesome resources, well-educated, warm people, an intriguing history, and a promising future….but it has its problems like everywhere else. Other people’s experiences in Argentina may be different, but I love it and the people I have met there.

Hebrews 13:2 says: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.” Notice to those in Argentina who have shown us kindness and hospitality: we are not angels in disguise. However, my sincere hope for you is that angels will visit you and that the One they serve will touch your lives.

It is common knowledge that the transition from a foreign environment to one’s native environment requires some form of decompression. For example, anyone who ever watched Seahunt knows that if you come up too quickly from scuba-diving in the depths of the ocean you can get the bends. Without proper decompression you can croak….and that’s bad.

Coming back from Argentina we needed such decompression. We stopped in Dulles airport (Washington, DC) at 6:30 am for 10 hours. When you fly on points sometimes you get to enjoy longer layovers. In our case this was literally true. It was the perfect decompression for us. We got to visit our long-time friends, the Sheas, in nearby Falls Church, VA.

Eggs for breakfast…a simple thing that does not happen in restaurants in Argentina other than on an exception-basis. Cecily and Lance served us this tasty egg casserole and mimosas. Yum and amen. (Check out the cool stove).

This is Lance. He knows all about elephants. He knows how to find wine values. (Thanks to Lance, years ago I got a Screwpull wine opener way before they became widely popular.) He grills experts about environmental and pharmaceutical issues. He knocks heads with big time lawyers. He knows how to host a US presidential inauguration overnighter. He plays guitar. He shoots skeet. He sings…and he knows about fixing up old houses…and, more importantly, he is married to Cecily.

You examine every little knob and faucet and delayed-drawer-closer in their home and you experience delight. This is well-done.

This is Cecily and her daughter, Kallen, helping Cynthia decompress. Cecily and Lance are originally from Scottsdale. Cecily gave Cynthia the lay of the land before we moved to Scottsdale in the early 90s and made our original entry a good one.

Today, Cecily is hangin with the big dogs in DC. She is connected. She knows people.

One key to our decompression was Thai spice and heat. The Sheas sensed this and took us to the right place. Finally, after 10 weeks, I got food that made me sweat. It is commonly known that if you’re eating Thai food and it doesn’t make you sweat you should ask whether you’re really eating Thai food. It did the trick.

I did not get the bends. I did not croak.

Later in the evening, back in Scottsdale, my grandson Colin was holding my hand, leading me around showing me my house.

Forest Gump said, “Jennie, you’re my girl”.

This is my girl. Cici…Cynthia. We have been shacking up in a dorm-sized room for 10 weeks in Argentina, studying Spanish, skipping haircuts, looking for work, and dreaming our dreams….and we’ve been married 32 years.

Cynthia has many looks. Her penguin-observing, “I’m going to stay warm” look.

Her dolphin-watching “where is my face?” look.
Her “I have an eager mind to learn Spanish” look…(Eugenia, our wonderful Spanish teacher, makes our minds eager to learn Spanish.)

Her “I can’t help it if kids love me” look.

Her 1 am, milonga-watching, “I can do that” look. There are many other looks. She is quite entertaining.

Friday night we went out at midnight to listen to music downtown. At Cynthia’s request, we rode the bus. Got to bed at about 3:30. She’s a cool chick. She’s my best friend. She left her employment, students and comforts to join me on this adventure. How cool is that?

Today, we head back to AZ.

Alex (Alejandra) Ferrara.

She writes books. This is a good read in English available in the US.

She writes screen plays. She just got back from a second award trip for best short story. She does the subtitles for movies and TV shows.

She swims with whales.

She writes, sings and records songs.

She is an expert in Asian studies. Her interest started with this ivory bridge she had when she was a child.

She has been doing  Tai Chi since way before it became popular.

And….. she cooks. She cooked dinner for us Thursday night. She made a delicious salad with an asian dressing on it. I wanted to drink it straight. Chicken milanesa. Strawberries and cream. Perfect. Sorry, I was too busy eating to take pictures.

The roses are in bloom in the park in Palermo. Thousands of them. This rose bush won one of the international  rose-growing competitions here.

Staring at you is Sarmiento, founder of the educational system of Argentina. He recruited 57 teachers from Boston to move to Argentina to get it all started. There is a plaque honoring him in Boston also.

You may remember Luciano Bongarra from his picture in the Congressional building. When he is not doing that he is a great asador (one who cooks asados). In the picture with him is his brother, Juan Pablo. Juan Pablo is the pastor of La Puerta Abierta church and is the host of a TV program seen on cable outside of Buenos Aires. He broadcasts a live call-in program 5 nights a week at 10pm.

Juan Pablo’s wife, Noemi, is a wonderful cook. When you match what she prepares with the asado cooked by Luciano, it is a beautiful thing.

A tradition Juan Pablo and I have whether we are in Scottsdale, New York or Buenos Aires is to sing together around a piano. Broadway tunes, Sinatra and old hymns. I love it.

Juan Pablo interviewing Carlos Annacondia for one hour Tuesday night and broadcasting live. The phone lines were flooded with calls. Carlos is a very special man. His website:

http://www.reachingsouls.com/

 

We are overwhelmed by the kind hospitality extended to us here. It makes such a difference in a visitor’s impression of a place or country. We love it here.

These are our gracious hosts, John, along with his wife, Ana. They are the two looking at you in the picture below. There are some better pictures of them in earlier posts.

Ana served us this. Carbonada. Argentina soul food. Delicious. Veggies, carne, and peaches. It was kind of cold outside…Great food…particularly for this weather. This was a wonderful night in John’s and Ana’s home.

Dinner started about 9pm. We were there until  2am. This group of long-time friends (there were a total of twelve at the dinner) don’t necessarily agree on political issues. My Spanish ability quickly fell short when they began to discuss politics. It was a lively discussion. Once again one common denominator of this group is that they are all friends of Jorge Sabate.

Jorge is in a major motion picture titled El Corredor Nocturno (http://www.elcorredornocturno.com). It opens in theaters tomorrow in Buenos Aires.

You may recognize these two from previous blogs, Alicia and Julio.

All of these run wild and free in Villa Pehuenia.