First three days in Buenos Aires and the SUBE card adventure.

Buenos Aires is very relaxed for such a huge city, with friendly low-key people. We've been wandering the streets in Recoleta (where we live), along with Palermo yesterday, and today the hop on hop off bus all over town.

Here we are getting ready to hit the streets. Perfect early fall weather!

We needed to stop at one of many Italian gelato shops.

And get a rotisserie chicken to take home. Not sure why it's called Crazy Cheese!

Crazy Cheese does a brisk bicycle delivery business!

This morning we went first to the most beautiful bookstore in the world - so they say - located just two blocks from our apartment. It's called El Ateño and is housed inside a former theater. There are bookshelves everywhere and a cafe on the stage. Gorgeous!

A few random shots from our neighborhood and the hop on pop bus. The yin and yang of architecture is very apparent, with many buildings creating BA's reputation of Paris of South America and others just modern/kinda ugly.

The street signs (final photo) are some of the best I've seen in any city. Easy to read, on every corner, indicate one-way or two-way street and the address numbers in each block. Very helpful.

Also, taxis are plentiful and inexpensive. Which is a good thing because we have yet to be able to purchase a SUBE card, the card used in the subway and on buses. There's a huge shortage due to problems getting the chips. You can't ride the subway at all without one; on the bus you can stand there and look helpless and someone will scan their card for you and you give them cash. We've looked in half a dozen subway stations, any number of lottery kiosks and corner stores, and even the Retiro train station where we were directed by someone on the BA Expats Forum. No dice. Google it - it's pretty wacky!

Tonight we will wander our neighborhood to find a "happy hour" dinner at 8:00pm. And tomorrow the famed San Telmo food market.