Tango Time in Buenos Aires

Taking a time-out on the streets of Buenos Aires

“Keep your eyes down or you’ll get asked to dance.”

My eyes stayed plastered to the floor and sometimes, just to mix it up, on the table. I was NOT going to Tango and no one was going to catch my eye.

That’s the danger in the local dance halls in Buenos Aires. Like the one my friends Maria and Jennie dragged me to in the capital of Argentina. A sparse dance hall, there were a multitude of tables and chairs that emptied to fill the rectangular dance floor when the band resumed.

It was a freakish and yet amazing site to see hundreds suddenly move en masse. But Tango is not the only draw to Argentina. Nor is South America the only continent you can visit from here.

Nope! What about the frozen continent? What about Antarctica? What about taking it with Tauck World Discovery and do it in luxury?

Route for Antarctica

The best part? From select American cities the airfare to Buenos Aires is only $890 per person and, AND… if you are a repeat customer you get two nights free in a hotel at the beginning or end of the trip. If you are a new customer you get one free night!

And what does the trip include? Good question. Two days in Buenos Aires before flying to the southern tip of Argentina.  A visit to the Terra del Fuego National park? Some Penguins? Some Glaciers? Sign me up.

Or perhaps you want to wander where the Incas did? Well prior to the Spanish decided to enter South America. Tauck also has a 13-day tour for you too. It’s $4,655 per person and includes Peru and Bolivia. But who can forget Machu Picchu? Well Tauck can’t and you won’t.

Peru and Bolivia

Finish you Inca trail with La Paz, which was founded in 1548 by Spaniards. The highest capital city in the world above sea level, La Paz is also home to the highest golf course on Earth; in the thin air, a good tee shot will travel an amazing distance! Venture just outside the city to explore the lunar-like badlands dubbed the Valle De La Luna (Valley of the Moon), a stone landscape of deep gullies and bizarre rock formations, before heading to La Paz’s city center to soak up some local color in the bustling Indian Market.

OR maybe you’re look for something to do with the family? Something for the kids for Christmas? What about visiting the Christmas markets in Europe?

For 8 days and $1,990 per person Tauck’s new Christmas Market river cruise along the Danube from Vienna to Nürnberg aboard ms Swiss Jewel offers a new approach to discovering the magic of the Christmas Markets in Germany and Austria… a 700-year holiday tradition!

And remember Tauck’s Tours can all be booked through CTravel and are subject to the extra night or two hotel stays for free! Contact CTravel for more details.

Take your chances in Chile?

Patagonia, Chile

I landed in Santiago, Chile after almost 38 hours on planes and sitting in airports such as Singapore, Tokyo and Dallas. Actually Dallas included an unintended stay-over when I slept through my departure AT the gate. Should that have told me something? Yes. I needed more sleep.

Luckily I got it in a Dallas airport hotel and the next day flew to my intended first-stop in South America – ever – Santiago. Chile. I don’t speak Spanish and I didn’t have a guidebook, but I did have the name of my hostel and a taxi service.

Golden. But where was I going to go? Chile’s long and thin and difficult to navigate by land. Especially when I landed there in their spring (late September).

Eeny, meeny….miny….moe: Patagonia. Best decision I ever made as I witnessed glaciers for the first time in my life and the most spectacular scenery at the end of the world. Well almost.

I couldn’t quite make it to Ushuaia, which names itself the most Southern city in the world, thanks to bus schedules. So I stayed in Punta Arenas and almost made it to the tip of the world. But don’t let that stop you!

Punta Arenas in Patagonia, Chile

Why not combine spa with adventure and a chance to visit tuxed-out non-flying birds? Why not spend New Years’ Eve in the luxury of a high-end cruise that will depart from Ushuaia (in Argentina) deliver you to some glaciers, cross the straight of Magellan and visit Magdela Island where 120,000 penguins await?

If that’s not your cup of tea, Chile by Sportstour, which you can book through CTravel, also offers New Years Eve in Chile’s desert and the highest in the world – the Atacama Desert. With moon-like landscapes that will mystify why not try it? Make the New Years resolution.

New Years Eve may seem miles away as we enter August, but if you’re looking for a deal in December you need to book with Windstar Cruises for their 2-for-1 deals. Take a 15-day cruise to:St. Barts, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Curacao, Aruba
Transit Panama Canal, Isla de Coiba, Quepos, Tortuga Island.

If you book by August 14 (i.e. only nine days away) one person can sail for 15-days for :$3,575 pp. It was originally $7,149 per person. Can’t think of a nicer place to be spending Christmas!

Varanasi/Robyn Skinner

Or maybe you want something sooner? Something for September? Why not travel on the only Riverboat along the Ganges between Kolkata and Varanasi, India?

The next trip for the 56-person Bengal Pandaw river cruise is September 27th. There are only ten cruises a year! Each one is 11 days, but the entire trip includes stays in Kolkata for a night and Varanasi (the holiest city in India) for two.

For more information on the Bengal Pandaw Riverboat contact Carl Paiva, CEO of CTravel at 292-3033 and for the other deals check CTravel’s website or give them a call.

And as always: check the Travel Deals’ Page for more advice.