Camper van!!!

Oh yes! Three nights so far!! It is great... just as long as the weather is good and not wet... (crossing our fingers). It is a great van with a kitchen in the back and a fold out madras in the middle which means that we are sleeping very good... with real sheets and covers. Not that cold either...

Yesterday I made a "McGyver"-mosquito-net to keep the mosquitos out of the "sleeping-area" while we were cooking dinner.
We have left Auckland and snorkled by the Goat Island... got to see nice fishes and cray-fish(not that common!!). Then we went to see big trees in Kauri forest and ended up on a lovely camping-ground just by a nice lake.

Yesterday we moved quickly over the landscape... and I drove for the first time!! It wasn't that hard actually! Today we are in Waitomo caves and we did the black-water rafting looking at Glow-worms!! It was amazing... floating down the caves on a tube with no lights... soooo coool!!! The worms were glowing in the ceeling... a bit cold but the hot shower after got us warm.
So... we are now heading to the smelly town Rotorua, but before that we need to find somewhere to spend the night. Since sun goes down by 19 we need to plan and cook dinner before that... then we go to bed around nine... But we rise early! And mom... thanks for the "pann-lampa" idea.. it is brilliant in the van!!!
Miss you all a lot...
Pictures soon... I hope... not that easy to load them up... but soon...
Cheers mate!
/Tina

Auckland

We have now arrived in Auckland, and things couldn't be better! Well, aside from Tinas allergic attack (don't worry, she's fine now ...). The flight from Santiago （12 hours）was easier than expected. We left at 10 PM and after a meal and a movie it wasn't that hard to get to sleep (for me). Tina had to struggle a little bit more. A couple of days earlier, she had got this small rashes. looking like small mosquito bites. The itched a little but it wasn't that bad ... But during the last afternoon in Santiago and especially during the flight to New Zealand, the rashes really got more aggressive and we're really itching like crazy! So at 4 AM (local time) we landed in Auckland and took the first cab to the Auckland city hospital. They advised us to go to another hospital since they could see/treat her right away and since the other hospital was less expensive. Another 10 minutes in taxi and we finally got to see a (quite sleepy) doctor, who told us that it probably was a allergic reaction to something . We got a prescription for medicine, but the pharmacies didn't open for another two hours ... So Tina had to bare with it a little bit longer ... We grabbed an early (6 AM) breakfast at a McDonalds cafe (second this day, surprisingly good)! We then went down to the city center and picked up the medicine. It didn't worked right away but during the day it finally (and thankfully) started to get better ...

At 8 AM, we left our backpacks at the hostal, and wondered down to the harbor ... We wanted to check out the time schedules for the ferries out the islands in the Auckland bay. We planned to go there the next day. But we wanted to visit two islands; Rangitoto (volcano) and Waiheke (beaches, wineries and art exhibitions). We suddenly realized realized that it would more or less be impossible to the both islands in one day. Therefore, we took a really fast and spontaneous decision to catch the next ferry to Rangitoto (leaving in 3 minutes). We made it ... =) and well on the island we started to walk up to the summit/crater (1 hour). Compared to the previous walks, this was really a walk in the park (literary as well, we we're walking through a thick forest=)! The weather was great and the view from the summit was fantastic (especially the view of the city skyline)!!! We went back to the city center and grabbed a fantastic lunch at an Asian food court! We spent the afternoon in Auckland domains, a huge, calm, green park in the middle of Auckland. We almost fell asleep lying down in the grass (for us, it still felt like 3 AM in the morning).

The next day (yesterday), we took an early ferry out to Waiheke. After a nice breakfast on a bench next the ocean, we walked up the biggest town on the island, Oneroa. Instead of walking on the road, we (of course) took the scenic, lowland route through a calm forest (spotting some odd birds on the way). The tourist info advised us to visit a nearby vineyard called Mudrick. It was located on a small hill, and was only a 20 minutes stroll away. When approaching the vineyard, we were amazed by the great views and the stunning location!!! It looked like a small paradise! And of course, the had plenty of weddings all year long. =) We tried six of their wines (great whites, not so good reds) and had a rest to enjoy the fantastic scenery ... For a bit too long, sadly ... We realized that we were about to miss the buss to the next winery, and ran back down to the bus stop in Oneroa (Tina even enjoyed it, too much energy ...). More wine tasting on the next winery (Goldwater Estate) and then we continued to on of the great beaches on the island - Onetangi. It was so beautiful and calm (we're almost alone). An hour on the beach was just what we needed! The water wasn't too bad either, a bit cold at first but really clear and turquoise.

At the evening, we had reserved a table at the Orbit restaurant, situated 192 m above the ground in the Auckland Skytower (the tallest building on the southern hemisphere, 300 something). From there, you had a fantastic 360 degree view (the restaurant rotated) over Auckland and its surroundings. And the food was probably the best we have had on this trip so far. I had a steak and some mash potatoes and Tina has a red snapper (fish) and veggies. For the dessert, we tried the Swedish cheese cake with figs and ice cream. It was almost like the Swedish cheese cake we get at home (think Froedinge), but not quite. Still great!!! All in all, a(nother) great day on our trip. Life can be harder ... =)

Today, we'll pick up hour camper van and start our trip around the North and South islands of New Zealand. We can't wait to get started!!! Take care, all!

Ciao!

Last days in Chile!

Well, we are today leaving Chile! On the way to New Zealand we will loose one day... the 24th of March(sorry Bruna.. I still wish you a happy birthday!!). The last days has been hectic... we came to Santiago and were surprised by the cleaniness and freshness of the city. We had been told by some people that Santiago was not much to see so we were gladly suprised.
We spent two days strolling the streets... the first day it was not a fast strolling since my legs and toes were so sore...
The weather was warm and we followed the Lonely Planet walk around the city. Found some great places to eat and got to see the "Slumdog Millionare", a really good movie!!
Friday we left the city real early for a small town 3 hours away called Talca. There we got to visit a winery and got to a National park for a 4 hour walk. My toes were still sore so we did not climd the entire mountain.. but got to see some fantastic views of the mountains.
Late saturday night we got back to Santiago and slept for a few hours before we took an early bus to Baños Molinas Sunday morning. It was high mineral hot springs in the middle of the mountains.. when we got there we felt peckished to go for a small walk in the national park... but since we just brought our sandals... we were recommended not to. So, we got to continue our "Vändâtta" competition with a beer and an empanada before we got into the "hot" spring. It was amazing to sit in the yellow water in the middle of the mountains... and the sun was so warm and nice... I loved it.

So, today we are leaving Chile and it has been a pleasure!! More pictures soon... promise!!
So long dude!
/T

Impressions of Chile

- a bit more americanized/europized than Argentina.
- cleaner
- by the sea there is actually cold breeze...
- buses are more modern.
- not that friendly atmosphere as in Argentina... of course we met some very nice people in Chile.
- a lot of coins... 10 000 chilean pesos are 150 SEK, then you can imagine how many coins they have since they have a "one peso" coin... madness.
- PISCO SOUR!! Delicious drink!
- a very nice picant tomatoe-salsa served to bread before dinner.
- no actual trends... that I have noticed. The "hockey-hairdue" is long gone...
- they like paper-work... it took us 2 hours to cross the border to Chile, and we filled in 3 different notes that needed stamps from two different cues. When we got to the bank to get money, they filled in a lot of papers... and then we needed to go to another cue to get all those papers stamped several times.
- they have plastic-stands on the streets... they actually plast stuff... books, cards... etc.
- natural juices!! Oh man... they are so good made from the freshest fruit... mix chirimoya and raspberry and you have like a desert... slurp.

a few days left in Chile to find out more stuff....

Valpo, Viña and a little walk

To continue where Tina finshed in the previous post ... Yes, I was "at home" watching Liverpool completely humiliate Real Madrid in the 4-0 win at Anfield! And since then, we (Liverpool) have also enjoyed a comfortable win over our fierce rivals Man U at their home soil (ended 4-1 after some spectacular goals by Torres and Aurélio). But that's history, enough about football ...

Since our last post (from San Rafael), we have left Argentina and headed over to neighbouring Chile. We left San Rafael early in the morning (5.30 AM) and switched bus in Mendoza to cross the Andes to our final destination in Chile - the costal town named Valparaiso ("Valpo"). The bus drive wasn´t that bad at all (3 + 8 hours), but that border crossing could have been easier - we spent two hours in the customs ... A LOT of paper work to be done (seem to be a common denominator for Arg). And when you think your finally done, there is always another queue to stand in (also very Argentinian) ... But we had read about it earlier so it was expected ...

We arrived late afternoon in Valpo and (after having spent the whole day on the bus) we decided to walk the 2 km to our hostal. The city of Valpo in located on and around a number of small hills (each like 100 m high), and there´s a funicular up to each of the hills. Our hostal was on Cerro ("hill") Constitución. Since we didn´t had any change yet (only 10000 peso bills (like 15 Euro)), we decided to (instead of taking a funicular) walk up a street to get to our hostal. In was that a hard "climb", but in those conditions (heavy backpack, warm sun, too much clothes) we were really happy when we found the hostel ... On the evening we went the restaurant recommended by LonelyPanet (LP) - "Pasta y Vino". The specialized on just that, and nothing else! Since we both love both pasta and wine, it wasn´t a bad choice :-) And the whole experience was fantastic - superb food, excellent wine, cosy interior and friendly service! The only downside was probably the cost - well over budget at 50 Euro (for Chile that's really expensive) but if was worth every penny of it!!!

The next two days we walk around all the Cerros and Barrios (neighbourhoods), looking at all the exta-ordinary architecture and wall-paintings. That´s pretty much all there's to do in Valpo, and although it´s indeed a really nice city, two days are more than enough. Hence, the next morning we catched the "collectivo" (like a small bus) to nearby (10 minutes) city of Viña del Mar. We were told that the train/metro was a safer option (than collectivo), but why play it safe ... I want to go local!!! (Sorry mom!)

Valparaiso

Viña is much cleaner, safer and richer that Valpo! It´s like night and day! Some people don´t like Valpo at all and continue to Viña right away, but I really appreciated Valpo just as much! You just have to know what to expect! In Viña we checked to must-see tourist attractions, like "reloj de flores" (a huge clock made of flowers), some castles and a great park! We (Tina especially) also got to swim in the Pacific Ocean!!! It was quite cold though (18 degrees Celsius I would guess), and when I asked the life guard if it was dangerous to take a swim, he said "5 metros bien, 10 metros no bien". Hence, we didn´t really take a swim, just tipped to toes in the cold water. But we got to work on our fading tan at least, which was nice!

After two days in Viña, we took an early train in-lands to the village of Limache. From there, we catched a "collectivo" to the nearby village of Olmue. Next to Olmue is a natural park containing the 1890 m high montain called La Campana. I´d read that the walk/hike up this montain should be really nice, through green forrests and with rewarding views at the top. The LP stated that if you don´t go in sandals, you should have to trouble doing the walk (up and down) in about 7 hours. It sounds like a long and quite hard walk (7 km to the top, +1000 m altitude), but I figured we had the whole day so we didn't have to stress. We found a nice cabaña (cabbin) right away, changed clothes, dropped off our backpacks and catched another collectivo to the park entrance. We signed in and paid the park entrance fee. The ranger told us that it normally takes 4,5 hours to the top, and another 3 hours back down. Still not knowing what waited, we eagerly started the hike at 10 AM ... After some two hours walking in the (partly shaded) forrest in a pretty steep trail, we arrived at a sign telling us that we only had another 1,8 km to the top, but that 1,8 km would take another 2 hours to complete ... We looked up at the summit (which felt really close but at the same time the trail seemed to disappear or at least it looked much steep now. We hadn't expected another 2 hours to the summit (since we had been walking quite fast), but we decided to take it in small steps, and take a decision later on whether to abort and return back down or to continue. The trails did continue, although it was much steeper now and sometimes it felt more like climbing than walking. We paused often and discussed whether to continue or not. We didn´t had that much water either ... The sun was burning and we started to get really tired. Obviously, this "hike" was much harder than we had expected! It felt like the summit was so far away, and it was mentally hard not knowing how close (or far) we were to the summit. After quite a lot of swearing (from both of us) and after a final suger kick from some snacks, we could finally see the a glimse of the sign declaring the top of the mountain! What a relief! And what an achievement!!! We were tired, happy, proud, all at the same time! The 360 degree view was breath-taking! In the west, you could see the Andes and Aconcagua and in the east, you could (if you really tried hard) see the Pacific Ocean! We snapped some pictures, entered our names in the log book, and put a card deck card (with a swedish flag on the back side) with our names and the date on it next to a rock.

However, we were very aware that we had the hardest part left - the decent! We knew that a small mistake could be really dangerous. So we decided to take it really careful on the way down. That we did, some 4 hours later (at 6 PM) we finally returned to the ranger station, just in time to "sign out" before they closed. Even more tired, with dust all over us and with several aiking chafes ... But still happy and if possible even more proud over our selves! We made it!!! We looked up at the summit from the ranger station ... It we would have seen that sight that same morning, I don't think we would have started the hike at all ... =) A memory for life!!!

San Rafael

We have now been in San Rafael for two days! One day of wineyards and one day of visiting the great canyon; Atuel! It was a nice day today... the sun was shining and we got picked up at 9.30. We went for some nice views in the canyon and a good lunch. By afternoon it was time for river rafting! I was a bit shaky since I have never done it before... and the guide did not speak any word of english... When he said something about "no lo haces... NUNCA"...(don´t EVER do this) I did hope it was nothing serious.
Although it was a calm rafting and we just got wet as hell... our guide played some laughs and threw us in the water from time to time... but it was a blast.. and what a view.. to just cruise down the river in such a canyon.
Promise to post pictures as soon as I get to a computer that can recognize my camera.
Tomorrow we are heading for Chile.. can not believe Argentina is done... Well, I loved it.. and look forward to the weeks in Chile.
Jacob says hi... he is at the hotel, cheering for Liverpool... and I guess they beat Real Madrid!! Perfect!
Good night, and see you in Chile!
/Tina

Chile, here we actually come!
(This is taken from top of Alta Montaña en Argentina... on the border to Chile)

Mendoza and Alta Montaña

Yes, a couple of days has gone by. We spent them in Mendoza. Took the night-bus from Buenos Aires the 3rd of march. The bus was ok, good possibilities of sleeping if it weren´t for the bumpy roads... and we got wine!!!

Well in Mendoza in the morning of the 4th we got to our hostel and just re-packed and got out to Maipú, a nearby village for some wineyards. We rented some bikes... but maybe we should have checked them out a bit more before we headed off since Jacobs bike got loose in the handlebars. Although we got to see 3 wineyards with tastings and one olive- farm and one Chocolaterie. The weather was perfect and we got on the bus back by 6.

Jacob by our bikes!

The other days of Mendoza went by with some calm activity by the streets and parks. We got to be a part of the harvest fiesta in Mendoza by standing in a long line for pizza. Also we got to a cool place called "The Vines", a tasting house with just tastings of different wines. And finally I got to taste some sparkling wine!!

The last day we made a mence by going to Alta Montaña. We had some hard time deciding if we would go with an agency or by ourselves. The choice were in the end easy since we decided to go on the saturday an no agency went that day due to the harvest fiesta in Mendoza.

Ok.. so, we took the regular bus to Las Cuevas(40pesos each for going there and back). The bus took nearly 5 hours. We started at 7.00 in the morning.

By Las cuevas we had a plan of hiking the 8 km to the top where the piece statue Christo is placed(on the border between Argentina and Chile). But, a guide advised us to go by bus up there and then hike another trail which was more fun and not by the road. So we took the bus to the top by the antique road that was between Chile and Argentina.

On the way to the top we had a great view of the mountains and Aconcagua in the back. On the top it was freezing cold and the wind was hard. But we got to see the statue, took some fotos and headed down again by 1.15.

We grabbed a hamburger by a place at Las Cuevas and headed for our own hike. And I say... we were on our own. It was only us and the mountains... We hiked upwards for 1,5 hours and it was hard since the air is thick at 3500 meters altitude.

By 16.15 we were back down and took the bus to Las lagunas de Horocones and walked the tour there... then we took the road down to Puente del Inca and landed there at 18.45. We ate a brilliant soup of lentils and a hamburger, took a beer and was so pleased with the day.

The bus home took only 3 hours(can you imagine the speed down since it took 5 hours up... thought I wouldn´t survive..). Save and sound we were at our hostel at 24.00... tired but oh so happy. What a day!

Today, we are at San Rafael.. heading for some steak and tomorrow hopefully visiting some bodegas and on tuesday rafting on Rio Atuel. Take care all of you, we miss you!!

/Tina and Jacob

...fler intryck av Argentina...

- bussarna för ett jäkla väsen... o dom kör som dârar... trodde jag skulle dö igâr.
- barnvagnar köps inte förrän barnen är ca 2 âr... innan dess blir de burna ÖVERALLT!! Argentinska mödrar är starka...
- hockeyfrillan är extremt trendig... gärna med en syntar-tofs längst ner... underbart!
- toapapper är inte självklart...
- röd öl är gott!
- kött är gott!
- Apple är inte introducerat i Argentina... helt omöligt att hitta laddare till Podden...

1st of March, according to me

I woke up by the alarm at 7.45 AM, surprisingly "pigg" (meaning not tired at all). Tina wasn´t at all awake so I let her sleep a little bit longer while I checked how my friend Patrik was doing in Vasaloppet (http://www.vasaloppet.se/, it started almost three hours ago). He was doing well, he had gone really fast the first leg to Maangsbodarna actually! He continued in the same great pace and crossed the finish line later that day. A fantastic achievement, congratulations Patrik!!!

When I checked back on Tina, she was barely awake ... The night before, we enjoyed a great steak in rustic neighbourhood of Palermo. After the late dinner, we were really tired after all the walking during the day (and we´re still not adjusted to these late dinners, quite tiring in themselves ...). Therefore, we decided to take the metro (or "Subte", as it´s called here) back to our hostel in San Telmo. To our surprise, the metro stopped running at 10 PM. Since walking back was out of the question, we catched a taxi and (after some late night (web-)surfing) tucked in at around 1 o'clock.

The reason why we had to get up early today was that we needed to get in line to get tickets to the big soccer game taking place this evening. Boca Juniors played "en casa" (home) against Huracan. Apparently, Boca had started the "liga" rather poor and really needed a win tonight. We had asked around quite a lot for how to get tickets to the game, and we had also spent hours on the Internet trying to find out how to get tickets (on your own vs from agency), which sections to prefer ("platea", i.e. seated), what to bring (barely anything), and how to get to the stadium (walking was said to be too dangerous (the Boca neighbourhood is generally not safe, not even for locals), so bus or taxi was suggested). After all research, we now knew our options pretty well. Buying a ticket from an agency was too expensive (50-60 Euro), and buying a ticket on the black market felt risky (we had no way of telling if it was a false one). So, we decided to go the stadium on the match day and try to buy a ticket in the official way, from the club itself. Locals had told us that the ticket offices opened at 10 AM, but there would be a huge "cola" (queue) by then and that it might be sold out if you arrive too late. Hence, we tried to get up early and catch a taxi to the stadium asap.

When we arrived at the stadium at 9.15 AM, it was indeed a long queue, but it could have been longer ... We got in line and soon realized that we´re up for a challenge, for two reasons. Firstly, the ticket offices didn´t open until 12 AM (since it was an evening game (starts 7.30 PM), normally they open at 10 AM ...). Secondly, with a clear blue sky, the sun was burning at over 30 degrees C. After some consideration, we decided to stay in the queue after all. We argueed that if we didn´t, we might not get a ticket. And all the locals stayed as well, only some tourists left the queue. (To our regret, in turned out that we probably could have gotten a ticket later after all). We we're well equipped with plenty of water, sun-block ... and a card deck! =) We played a couple of rounds of "Vänd-aatta"! (I won 4-2 =) Around 11 AM, the sun was really starting to get to us and Tina could barely stand it ... Finally, at 12.10 AM, the offices open and at 12.15 AM we had two tickets in our hands. It was stand tickets right in the middle of the local fan section, but we got them!!! And they were quite cheap as well; I paid 7 Euro and Tina 6. The next actions were not hard to decide on, we marched right down to the resto/pub street and enjoyed a cold Quilmes (the "national" beer). Boy, did it taste good!!! =)

We spent the remaining afternoon on the San Telmo Sunday market. We had heard and read a lot of positive things about it, but in my mind it is just another atiques market. It started to rain heavily, and we rapidly find our way into market-hall, situated right next to the market place. More antiques on sale but also fresh fruits, cheeses and cured meats. We found a small cafè making their own pirogs (filled with chicken or corn) and also a delicious-looking apple cake. It was!!! =)

After a quick shower at the hostel, we jumped on the local bus taking us out to "La Bombonera" (Boca stadium). People seemed to arrive from everywhere, all dressed in blue and yellow, the colors of Boca Juniors. We bought a nice fan hat (which would shown to come in handy) and munched on a delicious "churri" (hot dog) before getting in line to get into the stadium. We we're a bit worried that we wouldn't be situated next to each other during the game, since we had tickets for different sections, but that was no problem at all! When we got our first view of the pitch, we also realized that our section was almost full already, even though we arrived more than an hour before the game started. We pushed our way down the crowd and finally found a pretty good spot with a surprisingly good view of the pitch (taking aside the huge fan flag right in front of us). The fans soon started to sing and we joined in (as good as we could, we picked up the lyrics rather fast, actually) ... The athmosphere was great! Half an hour before the game, it started to rain ... Where we stand, there was no roof ... At first, it only drizzled but soon it was pouring down! It was still warm enough in the air, so that was no problem (at first). The rain didn´t interrupt the fans though, the kept singing (if not even harder/higher) as if nothing has happened. Then the game started ... We barely noticed it, we (and all the fans around us) where to busy singing, jumping, waving their flags and smiling!!! The athmosphere was different than the one in Brasil, it felt more genuine, more positive and more alive. The fact that we were actually standing right in the middle of the hardcore fans this time can have something to do with it ... =)

The game then ... Both teams started positive with lots of attacks from both sides ... The control of the ball was better compared to the Brasilian game and it was a delight to finally see Riquelme (Boca superstar) in action. He really is a genius on the pitch. He's always one step ahead of the other players (even his team mates, which often lead to a lot of "missed" passes from his side) and he always know what to do when he gets the ball (it feels like he has decided what do do before he even gets the ball). And he so strong with the ball as well, he didn't loose the ball once even though he was "attacked" brutually several times. In my opinion, there's no one else in the world with such a control on the pitch! That's his ofensive skills, on the defensive side there's plenty to improve (he barely ran in the defense). Dispite that, it was a amazing experience (for me, a soccer junky) to see him play!

The first half ended within any goals made, and Boca could not be pleased with their performance. Huracan have had some great chances to score, and lead on "points". To our great surprise, the fans went completely quiet in the break, they looked almost tired and you wondered if they would cheer/sing at all in the second half. But as soon as the (Boca) players entered the pitch again, the songs started again, now harder/stronger than ever! What perhaps amazes me most about the whole Argentinian fan experience is the multitude of songs sang. Not once did they sang a song twice. Sure, they sang the chorus like 100 times but once the song was "over", they always started on a completely new song! We must a sang at least 25 different songs during the game! Impressive!

Boca started the second half strong and had several good chances to score but no luck yet. We were afraid of a 0-0 game but then, in about the 70 minute (we could't see the score board from our position), Boca scored and the stadium "lifted". We were all jumping up and down and screaming out loud! But then, rather quickly, the "score" cheering ended and the fans continued with their songs again. Apparently, some of the fans weren't that interested in the game. They were there for the fans experience only, it seemed! Odd ... But lovely! But I must say that I liked brasilian way of celebrating a goal better, it was wilder and pure happiness!

The rain had poured down on us continuously during the game and we were now soaking wet and started to get pretty cold. Like 10 minutes before the game ended we decided to leave. Unfortunately, the security would not let us (and many other fans) leave the stadium. They blocked us just before the stairs. At first, we couldn´t understand why, but than it came to us; we were standing on the hardcode fan section and in order to avoid fights etc. they wanted to let the visitor fans out first (in Europe, they let the home team fans out first). At least now we weren't standing in the rain ... But the majority of the fans were and once the game was over (it ended 3-1 for Boca, we missed three goals standing in the stairs ... =(), they started pushing really hard to get out (presumably to get out of the cold and still pouring rain, and not to fight) and after 10 more minutes the security could stand the (physical?) pressure of the crowd and they let us out. We stopped for another great "churri" outside the stadium and then followed the crowds safely home to our hostel. Completely exhausted, we fell asleep in like two seconds ... What a day!!!

1st of March, according to me

When we were in Natal the possibility of going to a football game in Buenos Aires came up. Jacob found out that the football team Boca Junior were playing at the BA arena Sunday the 1st of March! Excellent! Look, I like football a lot and I was happy to being able to see football in Argentina, but Jacob was just a bit more enthusiastic about it.
He did the job with googeling forums about how to get the tickets and how it all works. He found out that they sold tickets the same day as the match by the stadium... we just had to be there some time before they opened to get in line.
The hostel informed us the day before that they only had stand-tickets left and that they where sold at 12.00 the same day as the match.

Although we had got the "12.00 information" our alarm went off at 7.45... I was in some sort of a coma and woke up slowly to a jiggling Jacob. The first thing I remember is that he told me something about Patrik´s progress in Vasaloppet...
With my not best morning-temper we had some delay and got off after breakfast at 9.15(I still didn´t really understand why we needed to go that early, since I heard 12.00 somewhere... but I trusted the football expert).
We took a radio-taxi to the Stadium because the hostel-personell did not recommend us to walk there... it was not safe.
When we got there there was already quite a long line for the tickets... we got in the line, and my hopes were that they would open at 10.00. We asked people in line when they would open and some said 10 some said 12.
Since the sun were burning right in our faces I made a small suggestion to go for a coffee or something and come back if they opened at 12. I did not get a positive respons on that, and I started to prepare myself for 2,5 hours of burning sun and no wind... hm... how was I going to make it?
At 10.15 it was obvious that they did not open at 10. So... two more hours.... hm... HOW??
And of course I left my Ipod at the hostel so it wouldn´t get lost in case of robbery, so I could not listen to my book or music...
Gladly I left my deck of cards in the bag so me and Jacob started to play some "Vändâtta". I must say... it was quite surreal... I did not feel like the avarege tourist sitting in a big line with all argentines with Boca Junior sweaters playing "Vändâtta".
At 11.00 I was not far from giving up... the heat was unbearable... the sweat was flowing... "Vändâtta" was not funny anymore(since Jacob won like 4 times in a row... I do not like loosing..).
I tried to think positive... and I really hoped the damn football was worth it.
The last hour I counted minutes and looked at the watch every five minutes. Jacob did a great job cheering me up... I just don´t think I responded to it that well. Look... I AM NOT GOOD WITH HEAT ok!!? Hate sauna and need a pool or ocean to cool of in when on the beach...

Finally it was 12.00 and they opened!! Now it was quite fast and when we were to buy the tickets it turned out that I got to buy my ticket at a special desk since I am a "Dama". So I got my ticket a bit cheaper as well(I still think I was deceived, I paid 25pesos but it said 15 on the ticket... still it is not more than 60sek).
Next stop was in Boca where we got a beer in the shadow... I was back to life!! And I made it... but I still wondered if the football was worth it...

At 16.00 we were at the hostel for a quick shower and rest. I was knocked out and slept for an hour... Jacob on the other hand had some extra energy and was exiting over the football-tickets and again Patrik´s progress in "Vasaloppet". He spent that hour by the computer....
When he woke me up I was... how shall I put it... not that eager to go to the big football-stadium in the not so safe neighbourhood and where the hostel-personell advised us to NOT bring anything else than a small amount of money...
On top of this, Jacob told me that a guy in the hostel just got robbed outside the hostel... he had ran to the hostel before they got to take anything but still. I just wanted to go back to sleep.
But... a cold shower, the tickets and some money in my bra and we were off. We took the bus 29 to the stadium. There were some fans on the bus and we went off were they went off. When we got to the stadium, the sun was shining, there was a fabolous spirit in the air.. as it always is when all these people are coming to see their team play... I thought; It was worth it.

Celebrating this good feeling, I bought a Boca Junior hat!!
Also we got a "Churri", a spicy hot-dog in "fralla"(bread) with some spicy salsa... jummy!
A was a little worried that they would seperate me and Jacob since we got tickets on different sides of the stadium.. but they just let us in without checking the tickets for numbering... I guess it was because we had stand-tickets.

We found some "seats" by the fans and I felt the football-spirit in the air... The sun were shining and my worries were taking off. It was like 50 minutes before the game started but it was so nice sitting there with the love of my life... just consuming the spirit!!
Before the players came out on the field the "main" supporters made their entrance with flags and samba songs... and I say songs, it was not cheers... it was songs and the stadium felt like a big samba floor(oj oj oj, vad det svängde!!!). We all stood up and just danced!
The game started and the fans just kept on singing... song after song.. and it was not even once the same song. It was a new song every 10 minutes.. amazing! Although, with this engagement it was not that many fans actually watching the game. And with a lot of flags and people dancing I can´t say I saw that much of the actual game.
It felt like it couldn´t get better... then... the dark clouds came... and also the rain!!!
I mean, the sky opened up.. and it just poured. We were all soaking wet by just minutes... At first it was not that big of deal... it was water and we were cheering and dancing. But after the first half of the game the wind started blowing and in the break I was sooo cold with only a soaking wet t-shirt on.
Ok... I beared out the sun earlier... I will ignore the rain and bear the rain out! Even more rain came... ok... 45 minutes left... I can do it!!
The rain stopped for like 15 minutes during the last half and with all the cheering and dancing I got the heat up again... Then the goal came!! Finally... Boca Juniors famous player Palermo did the first one and the fans were exstatic!!
And the rain started again... also the shivering... was it actually worth it??
With just minutes left of the game and Boca Junior leading the game with 1-0 we followed some locals out since the rain went from some minor drops to drops like buckets. But, we could not get out.. since we were fans we needed to wait until the game was over and also that the visitors had left the arena. At least we were under roof... During the 10 minutes under roof Boca Junior did two more goal and also the visitors. The game ended 3-1.
With a lot of wet and irritated Argentines in a small narrow area it got tight.. and they tried to push through the police-barrier. I was really cold and did not want to be there!
Finally they let us out in the pouring rain... by this time I was so wet it did not matter.
We followed the fan-croud out of the stadium area and got home safe. Some dry clothes on and we enjoyed a take-way pizza and some beers at the hostel.

In the end... the day was crazy... warm and cold... but absolutely worth it! I mean, these are the days we remember!! And we would not have done it if it wasn´t for Jacob... thank you Honey(ok... maybe not for the 2,5 hours in the sun... but still...)!!
I just wish I had some pictures of it all... I hope our stories about it gives you your own pictures.
Go Boca!

Impressions continued ...

- havainas are good for rain-floods...
- another trend; piercing in some colour just above or under the mouth.. both on girls and guys.
- EVERYBODY smokes!!!
- still a LOT of cheese on the pizza.
- people here likes photocopied flyers promoting anything they want to sell.
- you do not say "vale"... you say something like "chó" (lite som "tjo" pa svenska vilket gor det hela lite kuligare...)
- we will stay another night....

First impressions of Buenos Aires

- Extremly wide streets, the widest one so far had 13 lanes in one direction!!
- Water dripping on the sidewalk from air-conditions above.
- Bumby sidewalks with holes everywhere, somewhere they tried to fix them with concrete but someone has walked all over the concrete making yet another hole... Since there is a lot to see on the streets we are stumbling our way across BA sidewalks...
- Grass-green is a trendy colour in BA... and purple. Green on girls, purple on guys.
- Metro closes at 22.00!! In this big city!!
- Ice-cream here is a dream!(Thank´s Adriana for "Dulche de leche con brownie"!)
- Trash on the streets... everywhere!
- Extremly long streets... numbers start at 100 and ends at 10000!!!
- Friendly people!!
- Everybody wears Havaianas.
- Beer on 1 litre bottles!
- I love it!!