Puppies, Pigeons & Petrol

Today we had our grammar finals which means starting next week our classes don't start until 12:30 each day.  This means today was my last day of fighting the end of the morning rush hour. (I am smiling, you just can't see it)

So this blog post includes three things that I have been meaning to talk about, but don't really fit into any blog - so I'm going to write about them here.  I don't usually use the word petrol for gasoline, but I find alliteration amusing, so you'll have to bear with me. 

The first thing I would suggest is that people that love dogs be mentally prepared when they come to Buenos Aires.  Whether we are doing our walking tours, going to class or just headed out for a bite to eat there is almost always certainly some sort of stray dog around.  I have included the following pictures of some that I have been able to snap photos of, but rest assured that there are more out there.  If you are like me... you will find a reason to want to take all of them home.

John Doe Doggie #1

John Doe Doggie #2

John Doe Doggie #3

While we were doing the architectural walking tour I saw this sign for the first time:

I immediately though to myself... yeaaah... riiiiiiight.... (drawn out for emphasis), and as I turned around I saw this cute little guy running all around the park.

John Doe Doggie #4

He was wandering around freely until some teenage kid picked him up by the gruff and tossed him at some man laying down next to a bench in the park and then walked off.

Another thing that they do here, that is similar to other large cities - they have dog walkers.  I snapped this picture of one.  It really amazes me at how well behaved the dogs are... I'm pretty sure my puppies at home would have none of this.

The next animal that comes in no short supply in Buenos Aires is pigeons.  I snapped a couple photos of how they get when someone decides feeding them is a good idea.  

Pigeon side note:  I actually saw a pigeon fly into a tree the other day and flap it's wings to maintain its balance while it ate berries off the tree limbs.  It was pretty impressive acrobatics. 

Lastly I thought I would end with a math problem to show everyone what gas prices are here.  I don't know about you, but when I travel (even within the United States) I like to check out gas prices.

$6.289 Pesos per Liter of Petrol

Stick with me until the end... or just scroll to the bottom if you trust my math skills.

$6.289 Pesos per Liter

There are 3.78541178 liters in a gallon.

$6.289 ARS Pesos x 3.78541178 = $21.81 ARS Pesos per gallon

Current exchange rate: 1USD = 4.52 ARS Peso

$21.81 / 4.52 = US Equivalent per gallon

$5.269 U.S. Dollars per Gallon of Gasoline

Ciao,

Tim