Visiting new places

So, today is a national holiday in Argentina (the Day of the Immaculate Conception, I think). A couple others and I went to Lujan today, which was rumored to be a place of much activity for the holiday.

Getting there: local train to Moreno, then colectivo (bus) to Lujan. In all, about two hours for a 65km journey. 6 pesos, roundtrip.

The cathedral is Lujan is under renovation. I saw a picture that looked like part of it collapsed. Storm? Just a factor of poor contruction or old age? Dunno. There was a priest showering holy water over the procession inside the church and there was a service going on. I avoided the holy water shower... There was a woman crawling on her knees, with extreme sadness and pain on her face, through the procession. Other people held up various objects so they would be touched and blessed by the water. Some, religious icons and crucifixes, made sense. Others, soda bottles, did not.

We walked through a little of the town. Not much to see as it is a holiday and every effort is focused on the church and related activities. What looked to be a bazaar was really endless stands selling the same religious paraphenalia. Endlessly. A few restaurants were open, and they were unmemorable.

When we arrived, a massive downpour started. Of course, we did not have jackets or an umbrella. So, we went for me to eat lunch (they weren't hungry, because they'd had breakfast before the trip (I hadn't)). When I was finished eating and the rain abated, we walked to the cathedral. There was a little frog in the street, hopping about. We watched as it made it's way about halfway across a street. We didn't wait to see if it made it across or if it got ran over. Frogger anyone?

Friday, I leave for the previously mentioned trip to Colonia, Uruguay. The hotel has a pool. Yay! Though, I will put on sunblock every 20 minutes that I am next to it... My chest and shoulders are still peeling from the Iguazu burn two weeks ago...