ARGENTINA AND BRAZIL: OUR LONGEST/SHORTEST VACATION EVER, PART 3 (THE JOURNEY HOME)

March 13-14, 2020

On Thursday night (March 12), after we had gone back to our hotel and gone to bed, my brother Dave was contacted by the Church's legal counsel in Argentina. He said the government had drafted a proposal that would call for an mandatory 14-day quarantine of visitors to Argentina from high risk countries: China, Japan, Iran, South Korea, all of Europe, and the United States. The proposal could be formalized at any time, meaning that we would be in quarantine, unable to travel and possibly unable to leave the country. He advised that we get back across the border into Brazil as soon as possible and that we catch a flight from there back to the United States.

Major bummer.

Dave shared this information with us at breakfast, and while we sat at the table together, the Joneses and we booked one-way flights for later that day that would take us home. At over $1,200 a ticket, it was an expensive decision, and we doubted that we would be able to recoup any of our losses on three other flights we would no longer be able to take--to Buenos Aires, to Patagonia, and back to the USA.

The disappointment was immense, but our decision would turn out to be the right one.

Our incredibly patient, tolerant driver agreed to take the four of us back to Brazil, and then drive back to the Argentina side of the border to take Dave and Bonnie to the airport to travel to Buenos Aires on the flight we were supposed to join them on.

We said a tearful good-bye to Dave and Bonnie, the three Kenison siblings in tears (it's genetic), grateful for the very short time spent together and mourning the lost shared experiences that should have been ours during the next few days. We would have a great story to tell, but we would rather have had the trip we had planned.


For this last of four border crossings in about 38 hours, we had to get out of the car and present ourselves at a desk. Every little extra thing made me a bit nervous. Would Argentina allow us to leave? Would Brazil allow us to enter? The answer to both questions was a very nonchalant "yes." No one seemed especially concerned.

Our driver must have felt really sorry for us because he offered to drop us off at Parque das Aves, an Atlantic Rain Forest bird sanctuary located next door to the hotel we stayed in the first night we arrived.  He could give us an hour there, and then he would pick us up and take us to the airport before he left to pick up Dave and Bonnie in Argentina and take them to the airport.

It was another very hot day, but it was still morning, and we decided that anything was better than sitting in the airport.  We gratefully agreed to his kind offer. Tickets cost about $12 each, and it wasn't crowded.

At 40 acres, it's not too big to cover in an hour, although we couldn't stop long at any of the exhibits.

Every good zoo starts with a flamingo exhibit.

The Parque das Aves' flamingos are a very pale pink, and they share space with deep-coral-colored scarlet ibis.

One of the flamingos didn't look quite right.  That's a very interesting neck, don't you think? A sign somewhere down the trail said that 52% of the birds in the park were rescued from trafficking or mistreatment. Maybe this flamingo is one of them.

Demoiselle cranes:

Bare-faced curassow:

Pretty fancy hair-do, don't you think?

Some kind of tortoise:

A jacutinga (a bird I've never heard of, but which is quite striking):

Bananas. It was tempting . . .

The toco toucan is native to several countries in South America, but especially common in Brazil.

Bob had a couple of photos that are better than mine, so I borrowed them.

Scarlet ibis hanging out in the trees:

We saw a lot more than what is posted here, but many of my photographs are out of focus. It was super hot and humid, and I wonder if that had something to do with it.

The vegetation in the park was also interesting. The tree on the left looks like a giant churro, bent in two places:

 Imagine having a trash can devoted exclusively to coconut shells.

Even the restrooms keep to the jungle theme, and this one made me wish for a box of markers.

A high-rise apartment building for macaws:

I wouldn't stand under there if I were you.

This burrowing owl was keeping one eye on us and one eye on the ground, hoping a mouse might scurry by.

We were there, we were really there . . .

. . . and so were Chris and Stan!

All good things must come to an end, and it was time to fly home. 

Our driver met us in the parking lot and drove us the short distance to the airport. We were about eight hours early for our 8:00 PM flight. They wouldn't even let us check our bags for another four hours.

The Foz do Igaucu International Airport isn't exactly a shopping and dining mecca. In fact, in the part of the airport we were allowed to be in there was just one little coffee shop where we could sit/eat. We sat here five hours. The staff was very nice about it.

Bob tried one of their wrapped hot dogs and a ham and cheese sandwich, which were pretty ho-hum.

But my-oh-my, those cheese rolls on the left were absolutely fantastic, and the two kinds of tortes we had were pretty good as well.

 The REAL tummy pleaser were these Brazilian brigadeiros.  They were like eating sweetened condensed milk in solid form, but maybe even better.

Meanwhile, back in Argentina, Dave and Bonnie made it to Buenos Aires, but they sent us a photo of a sign announcing a 14-day quarantine for anyone who had recently arrived from China, South Korea, Japan, Iran, All of Europe, or the United States (EEUU). And that is whether or not you have symptoms. We had barely made it out in time.

The next day we heard from Dave that all incoming international flights would be suspended in Argentina beginning in 3 days and lasting for 30 days. That would create a serious shortage of flights leaving the country. On the day after we got home, the US Embassy sent us an email that said:

"Foreigners traveling from the affected countries, including the United States, all European countries, China, Japan, South Korea, and Iran, who arrived in Argentina in the last 14 days must continue to self-isolate and follow the required health measures.  Anyone who does not follow the mandatory quarantine and health measures may be subject to criminal penalties.  If specifically directed by Argentine authorities to remain in place, the travelers must comply.  The traveler will bear any costs associated with the 14-day quarantine period.

The government of Argentina has also determined that hotels may deny accommodation to tourists in accordance with their admission regulations.  We are aware that some hotels are not allowing travelers to leave within their 14-day quarantine period.

The U.S. Embassy advises U.S. citizens with plans to depart Argentina should strongly consider departing while able to do so.  The U.S. Embassy advises U.S. citizens to explore all options for departing via air, land or maritime routes while options remain.  

U.S. citizens with flights to the United States should contact their air carrier immediately to rebook their travel. If necessary, citizens should contact other airlines to see options available (through other countries) to arrive in the United States."

If we had stayed in Argentina, we would have run into serious problems. Subsequent emails from the US Embassy detailed problems with getting flights out, including increased fares, inability to access the website to make reservations, imminent flight suspensions, etc.

Just today (March 28, two weeks after our return) I got an email from the US Embassy with information about the LAST direct flight out of Argentina that they are aware of. It departs in three days. Part of the email reads:

"At this time, this is the only direct way to travel between Argentina and the United States.  If you need to leave Argentina, you should strongly consider booking this flight, otherwise you should be prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period. Under U.S. law, passengers on U.S. government-organized charter flights are responsible for paying the full cost of their ticket, which may be higher than standard fares."

In addition, within a day or two of our departure, Argentina closed all of its national parks, museums, and other tourist spots. (They were much more aggressive than Brazil, and as of March 28th, Argentina has only 589 cases of COVID-19 compared to Brazil's 2915.)

Our flight out of Brazil was delayed by almost two hours. He had a three-hour layover in Lima, but our delayed exit from Brazil was cutting into that time, so we were a little nervous. We just kept eating cheese bread and brigadeiros to calm our nerves. What else could we do?

I knew I was losing it when I couldn't stop laughing about this sign over the toilet in the restroom.  I felt a little better when I went back to take a picture and the American woman in front of me in line was also there to take a picture of the sign.

We finally took off a little before 10:00 PM, ten hours after having arrived at the airport. The flight from Iguazu to Lima is just over four hours with a two-hour time change, so we arrived around midnight.

As we walked off the plane, a man was there to meet Chris and Stan to let them know that their flight to Atlanta had been cancelled, and they had been booked on our flight to LAX. That worked out fine for us, except LATAM didn't get their bags on the LAX-bound plane. At some point in the journey home, they realized their luggage was still in Peru, and it took at least a day for it to arrive in Billings after they finally got home.

Anyway, it was strange to be back in the Lima airport just 2 1/2 days after our first trip through. So much had changed. At least they were still letting US citizens in the country, although that only lasted another day.

This sign, for example, was new:

So were the people in full hazmat gear: 

Sadly, we didn't have enough time for a repeat of our delicious dinner from our first trip through (although I did have time to buy a souvenir nativity from the gift shop). We boarded an LATAM jet with a 3-3-3 configuration. It was about one-third full. Everyone was spaced apart, but Chris and Stan had a third person on their row.  They were able to move into the empty row right in front of us.

Bob promptly fell asleep, and he totally missed the angst caused by the fact that we sat on the runway for two hours waiting "for permission to enter US airspace."  Seriously? After everything we'd already sacrificed and endured, we might be stuck in Peru? Luck was on our side. (THIS time.) We finally took off at 3:00 AM and made it to LAX in about 8 1/2 hours. 

I'm telling you, we were so excited to see this sign on Saturday morning!

But poor Chris and Stan had to catch another flight to Denver, where they hoped they could book a flight to Billings. They headed off to their next flight, and we headed off to get our luggage. 

The emptiness of the airport was so bizarre. 

Out of ten luggage belts, only the one that serviced our flight was moving and had people standing around it. Our luggage was waiting for us by the time we got there. That never happens at LAX.

No customs line. No one asked about symptoms we might have (and I had a fairly significant cough). The only questions we got were if we had something to declare and what countries had we visited. We were out in two minutes.

As a side note and just to include some added drama that reflects what COULD HAVE BEEN for us, I had emailed a friend whose husband is serving as the mission president in Lima telling them of our experience. They had friends from Texas who had come to visit them two days before, and I was concerned the quarantine was headed their way. On Saturday I emailed them and recommended they talk to the Church's legal counsel to see if he knew anything about a coming quarantine.  This was my friend's response: "Since I messaged you, we received word from SLC that our missionaries from Ecuador with 2 transfers or less to go have to go home tomorrow before Ecuador closes its borders Monday.   We are working like crazy to get 6 elders and sisters into the mission office by bus, taxi, and airplane from the south, and from Ayacucho by tomorrow morning at 7:00.  We have a team of 6 elders and a professional driver working on it throughout the night!!!! We know the church legal counsel and will call him first thing in the morning.   YIKES." 

On Sunday, I got this follow-up message: "Borders closed.  15 days mandatory quarantine in rooms."   That included my friends, all the missionaries for the LDS Church serving in Peru, and my friends' guests from Texas. My daughter has the family of one of those missionaries in her ward. She emailed me today that the mom of that missionary told her the quarantine has been extended to April 13, so it may be a little longer than expected.  However, the missionaries should be able to leave during the next few days. Our friends will stay in Lima to work with the local missionaries.

The people from Texas who were visiting our friends had to stay for the full quarantine. They left Lima for the US last night.

Anyway, on our way home from LAX we stopped at the grocery store to pick up fresh produce and milk. We felt like we were well-stocked for everything else.  Toilet paper and hand sanitizer had already flown off the shelves before we left, but judging by this list stuck to the counter by the cash register, things had gotten worse:

And speaking of worse, my cough definitely got worse over the next few days. However, I had no other symptoms, and I was confident it wasn't COVID-19, but I didn't want Bob to get it, so I pulled out one of the masks we bought last year to wear on the plane when we travel (BOB is usually the one who gets a cold on the plane). It's been two weeks since we got home, and I'm still coughing just a little. Bob never caught it.

So far we haven't been able to get in touch with LATAM Airlines about refunds, even though THEY ultimately cancelled our flight home. (Luckily we weren't counting on it to get us home.)  Travelocity, where we booked the flights, has been equally impossible to get in touch with. However, Hotels.com has been awesome. Bob was able to talk to a real person on the phone, and she was able to get full or partial refunds for most of our hotels. 

Even my brother and his wife had to return home last week. When they got back to Buenos Aires, they were put in quarantine because they had been outside the country. Then they were notified by the Church that all senior missionaries were being sent home, and they were given a flight plan. It was touch-and-go for a bit as their flights kept being cancelled, but they eventually made it. They had already spent five days in quarantine in their apartment in Buenos Aires, so they had nine days to go in Utah. As I write this, I think they have two more days until they can hug their grandchildren again.

This trip is definitely the most bizarre trip we've ever taken, and dollars/day, by far the most expensive. I hope things settle down soon, but even if they do, it is going to be a long time until the world pulls itself together again. Who knows when our next trip will be?