3. They have the coolest trees that look like the stuff of fairy tales.

4. Wearing a nice bag, jewelry or anything fancy in public is very foolish.

I wore my nice bag this afternoon only and learned I'm extremely lucky it wasn't stolen. Theft is a big problem here, where thieves go around with knives to cut your bag off your arm, rip your necklace off your neck or force you to go to the bank to withdrawl your money from the ATM.

When I learned that, I started carrying a smaller bag stocked with nothing but tampons, pads and liners hoping someone would steal it from me so I could laugh evilly as they scurried away with their stolen treasure. I was sorely disappointed when no one even attempted to take it.

5. The best things to buy in Argentina is silver, leather and cow hides. I went crazy on shoes. Did I mention that yet? I'll do a round up of my favourite shops including this one (Juanita a go go) in my next post.

6. They love tourists. And not just because we're excellent theft targets. Traveling musicians and sales people selling everything from blankets to strange plastic tomatoes that splat when you throw them know where to find you.

7. "Claro" is not only their favourite word, it is also a telephone company and the sponsor of many streets in Buenos Aires. Have you ever seen street signs with sponsors? Have you ever seen a street sign this banged up?

Claro! means 'Of course!', and locals find a way to incorporate that in nearly every sentence. It was the first word I started using in my feeble attempts to speak Spanish and I plan to keep using it with my regular vocabulary since it's fun to say.

8. The architecture is incredible. It's like all the best parts of Europe... but unfortunately also the worst. You'll see stunning ancient buildings immaculately preserved on one street and slums on the next.

The poverty was hard to witness. It's not just the shanty towns. I saw children begging, seniors opening taxi cab doors for tips and the most heart breaking; a little kid, maybe 10 years old holding a baby begging in the middle of Avenue de Florida (a major pedestrian only shopping street). Here there are not enough programs to help everyone. Here, most people beg because if they don't they will starve. At the same time if you whip out your wallet on the street there is likely someone watching to see what pocket it came from, so I recommend carrying money for the homeless in a separate pocket.

This is a fresh squeezed lemonade with mint and orange extract. Despite the look of it, it was heavenly.

My half cornish hen at El Clan, a lavish restaurant in Puerto Madero with crystal chandeliers dripping from every corner.

10. Puerto Madero is the safest place for tourists in Buenos Aires. It is heavily patrolled by police and is filled with cafes, restaurants and luxury condos.

On our last day it was about 40 Celsius and we sat under an umbrella hiding from the sun and drinking cold beverages when this clown happened by.

11. I am extremely lactose intolerant here and these people sure do like cheese. Canadian cheese doesn't bother me at all but here it makes me very ill.

These are Argentinian nachos at TGIF.

This is what I scraped off of my portion. Just my portion.

12. The driving here is terrifying. They're good drivers but they squeeze their cars into spaces you'd never think possible. Most cars are old diesel clunkers with big plumes of black smoke following them. My lungs and throat had a hard time with that.

We hired a cab for a day to take us to the mountains in Cordoba and here the driver is installing his one seat belt in the back seat. This is at our request because we were nervous to be on the highway winding through the mountains without a seat belt. Wouldn't you be?