Aviso Virus, #1, City Bus Terminal, Mendoza, Argentina, 2020
Well, after five months “in exile” (but with family, thankfully!) we finally made a dash for it… it seemed as if it was the lull before the storm in Argentina, and things in Barcelona were looking reasonable as the restrictions were being rolled back.
So, we opted for a three-stage option:
1st Stage – Bus from Mendoza to Ezeiza Airport (EZE) in Buenos Aires (1100km/684 miles), organized by the Spanish Consulate in Mendoza.
2nd Stage – 12-hour flight on Aerolíneas Argentinas to Madrid (the latter’s airport identifier, “MAD”, perhaps a good description of the very idea of this trip).
3rd Stage – A short connection in MAD to catch the flight over to Barcelona.
How did it go?
Well, it was… uh… strenuous… but we made it as programmed, and here are some details (with iPhone photos) for anyone contemplating a similar “escape” during this pandemic…
The Documents
There is no going anywhere internationally without documents, of course. More so in this crazy, confused COVID-19 era. And given that things can change from week-to-week, day-to-day, and even hour-to-hour, I would recommend keeping an eye on your country’s embassy website. We registered as in-country nationals/residents with both the US Embassy in Buenos Aires (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program) and with the Spanish Consulate in Mendoza (they put us on an email listing of Spanish expats wanting to return). Doing that kept us in the loop with travel advisories and updated repatriation flight information both for returning to Spain and to the USA (we were looking at both options).
On the US Embassy site, we found good information on exactly what paperwork was required in order to go overland (no flights until Sept 1) from Mendoza to Buenos Aires, and then fly back to Spain (or to the USA, as the case may be). With the many police controls on the highways between provinces, this was critical info.
Here is what we eventually had in our “document binder” with plastic insert pages:
—Passports, naturally. For my wife, both US and Spanish passports, plus a temporary Spanish Passport since hers had expired while in-country (three trips to the Consulate to get this).
–My Spanish NIE (Número de Identificación de Extranjero) and her Spanish DNI (Documento Nacional de Identidad).
–Receipts and boarding passes for the Aerolíneas Argentinas flight from Buenos Aires – Ezeiza (EZE) to Madrid (MAD). Purchasing the tickets was quite a chore–no one answered phones at Aerolíneas, their response to WhatsApp questions was slow, and their website showed all flights out of Argentina cancelled until September 1. Our July 15th EZE-MAD flight, announced by the Consulate, was not listed for purchase.
We finally found a suggestion on a Facebook page for Spanish expats stranded in Argentina: “Just keep clicking on the Aerolíneas web page for that particular date, over-and-over again, until the flight appears,” someone said. Sure enough, it eventually worked. No idea why.
We couldn’t proceed with the rest of the documentation without proof that we had these airline tickets in hand, so getting those was a major Step 1.
Then….
—Ministry Letter (From the Argentine Ministry of Tourism and Sports, in Castellano, for overland travel to Ezeiza Airport; downloadable on US Embassy website).
—Embassy Letter (From US Embassy, in Castellano, for US citizens traveling overland to Ezeiza Airport; downloadable on US Embassy website).
—Overland Itinerary Letter (For US citizens traveling overland to Ezeiza, in Castellano, with specifics on vehicle, driver, routing, et cetera; template for request found on US Embassy website.
–A hotel reservation in Buenos Aires. Necessary in case the flight were to be cancelled at the last minute. With 90% of the Buenos Aires hotels closed, this was not so easy to get. The US Embassy website, thankfully, listed four hotels they knew were still operating. We reserved a room at the Hilton that we were able to cancel at the last minute once we knew the flight was a “go” (thankfully, we could cancel… they were damn expensive).
–Individual letters for my wife and I from the Spanish Consulate in Mendoza granting permission to ride their bus from Mendoza to Ezeiza.
–Individual letters (a form letter, really) for my wife and I from the Spanish Consulate in Mendoza that states we have airline tickets, valid passports, and we are COVID-free.
—QR code of our health status. This is a new requirement for entering Spain. Prior to your arrival in Spain, you can fill out the required information online (2022 Update: site no longer active) within 48 hours of your departure and a QR code is sent to your email address.
–Yuuuge wads of cash… 8,000 Argentina pesos each for the bus fare to Ezeiza. That’s 16,000 pesos for the two of us, or about $223.00 US using the official rate of exchange (or $128.00 in “dollar blue” terms). We paid in 100 peso notes–that is definitely a large wad o’ bills.
[NOTE: Since I am a resident of Spain and a citizen of the US, and my wife is a dual citizen of both, we worked the documentation from both countries, just in case.]
The Bus (MDZ to EZE)
Well… so much for all that paperwork. At the bus station, they did a little roll call just like in 3rd grade, we raised our hands, and that was it. Hmmm… well, maybe they did quickly check our passports/NIE/DNI, but nothing more. There were no personal documentation checks by police during the 1100km drive from Mendoza to Ezeiza–although we were stopped many times (see Bus Appendix below). It did appear that the bus driver may have had to show his pax list and/or overland driving permission at these controls, but often it just seemed like friendly chit-chat. (“Che, ¿cómo va?” “Bien, ¿y vos? “¿Tu familia?“, and so on.)
Aviso Virus, #2, Mendoza, Argentina, 2020 (At the Mendoza Bus Terminal.)
We had the foresight to pick up a couple of blankets, which made the trip bearable, if not completely comfortable. We also had loads of food (“triples!“) and water as none was provided on the bus, they said nothing was open at Ezeiza, and even on the flight to Madrid, they wouldn’t be serving the usual in-flight meals.
The total cost of the bus was split between those traveling–11 passengers on a 42-pax bus, with two drivers. That came to 8,000 pesos each, significantly more expensive than the same trip under normal conditions (maybe 6-10x more costly?).
I had counted some 30 folks in the waiting room at the Bus Terminal, so was a bit concerned about virus spacing on board, but it turned out most were actually family members saying adios. With only 11 of us, we were able to spread out a bit. Phew!
The Bus, #1, Mendoza, Argentina, 2020 (Loading the luggage.)
The Bus, #2, Mendoza, Argentina, 2020 (Only 11 actual pax–but almost 20 relatives saying goodbye.)
We departed the recently upgraded Mendoza Bus Terminal at 4:44p.m. on July 14th and arrived at Ezeiza at 8:51a.m. on the 15th. So that’s over 16 hours for what might normally be a 12-hour trip.
The Bus, #3, Mendoza, Argentina, 2020 (Watching the arid land roll by… not unlike parts of Texas.)
Our big Punto Viajes autobús came to a stop some 25 times for various reasons (again, see the Bus Appendix below for details), but only once could we get out to stretch the gams. (Yes, Mother, there was a bathroom on board!) The twenty minutes in the cold midnight air (winter down here in July, you know) at the Vicuña McKenna truck stop was welcome.
The Truck Stop, #1, Vicuña McKenna, Córdoba, Argentina, 2020 (Midnight stretching o’ the legs.)
The Bathroom, #1, Vicuña McKenna, Córdoba, Argentina, 2020 (Clean “no-touch” automatic bathrooms!)
The Province of San Luis was by far the most controlled area, with multiple check points. Through most of the Province we were required to travel at a whopping 60kph and “encapsulado“, meaning basically in a convoy with a police car leading and another at the rear. They obviously wanted no one going into towns or stopping at roadside vendors or stores. Truckers in their big rigs, though, seemed to be excepted from the convoy requirement and regularly passed us by at near warp speed on the double lane sections.
The Bus, #4, San Luis, Argentina, 2020 (Blue police light ahead; our driver behind his plastic curtain.)
The Bus, #5, San Luis, Argentina, 2020 (The night drags on… we disassociate… we sleep a bit.)
Traffic in Gran Buenos Aires (17 million+ human souls in the metro area) was extremely heavy, and very stop-n-go much of the time. Perhaps it was our morning rush hour arrival, but I expected a lot less activity in a city that had recently become Argentina’s corona virus crown jewel. It certainly looked a lot like business as usual… except for the extra police at the toll stations and at bus stops, the masks, and the many signs attempting to educate the public about the virus.
Aviso Virus, #3, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (“Stop the virus–maintain your distance.”)
Aviso Virus, #4, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (“Don’t touch your face with your hands… Use mask and gloves.)
Public Bus Health Controls, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (Waiting to check passengers on the buses for their authorization to be out and about.)
Police Control at Toll Station, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
The International Flight (EZE to MAD)
The purpose of this flight was actually to go to Spain to pick up and return Argentines who had found themselves stuck there due to COVID-19. Rather than fly to Spain empty, though, Spanish officials arranged for the airline to repatriate Spanish citizens and residents who were stuck in Argentina. From the messaging that came through our email box, there seemed to be maybe two such flights scheduled per month since April. For this one, departing July 15, we saw that they were limiting it to 125 passengers, so we decided the time was right to make a break for it.
Which leads to a major bone pickin’ we had: although advertised that only 125 seats would be sold, they in fact filled the Airbus to capacity. Demand, I guess. Fingers crossed no one aboard is contagious…
With the bus pulling up at Ezeiza just before 9a.m., we had quite a wait until our flight was scheduled to depart (that night, at 11:50p.m.!). Luckily, we found chairs, a table, a place to recharge our electronics, and plenty of space away from others in a closed dining area. Nothing was open save a small kiosk selling candy, gum, mate, ice cream, feminine products, alfajores, and so on, but nothing substantial and no water. So, we ate from our food bags…
Toll Entrance, Ezieza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (A near ghost town…)
Arrival at Terminal C, Ezieza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
Upon entering the terminal, a camera takes your picture and temparture, then automatically displays the information on a monitor. Apparently an alarm sounds if you exceed 37.5 degrees Celcius. The stats on the monitor later that morning said 19,901 folks had passed through the doors (maybe over the past week or two???) and only ten temperatures were above the limit. No one who entered while we were there set off the alarm. Dang! I wanted to see what would have happened… sirens and alarms, red flashing lights, PPE-ed police bursting forth from the woodwork to wrap the violator in plastic, perhaps?
Thermal Cam Monitor, Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (My temps above: 36.2 and 36 degrees C)
At 1930 hours we starting forming up, with proper virus spacing, to check-in at the Aerolíneas desk. Everyone was masked up, the stickers on the floor set up our spacing, and plexiglass shields were mounted on the counters to protect the Aerolineas folks (and us!). The process was actually quite efficient and went quickly. I guess when it is the only flight leaving for the day, the airlines can really nail it with customer service, and they did.
Ezeiza, #1, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (The line.)
Passing through security and customs was also fairly quick. There was no comment at all that we had overstayed our tourist limit (normally 90 days, extended to 120 days currently for viral reasons). Normally, an overstay would prompt a fine.
Ezeiza, #3, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (Airport info board… three flights today, but two were cancelled.)
Ezeiza, #2, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020 (Just our flight today. And… who flies from Buenos Aires to Cancún during a pandemic?)
Aviso Virus, #6, Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
Aviso Virus, #7, Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
By 2200 hours we were sitting at the boarding gate, along with some 250 others. Strange to be waiting in an empty airport…
Ezeiza, #4, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
The Domestic Flight (MAD to BCN)
OK, here is where we almost went off the rails. We had two hours and forty minutes to get off the plane from Buenos Aires, make our way through Customs, pick up our bag, and find our way to a completely different terminal–the farthest one away, thank you Murphy (Terminal 1 to Terminal 4). A flight attendant told me she thought the connection would be no problem given how few folks were traveling these days. Well…
Showing our QR code for the health check and getting through passport control took mere minutes. Great! Looking good! But, alas, there must have been just one very unmotivated baggage dude/dudette unloading the plane because our bags took about 40 minutes to finally materialize. Now I’m getting nervous.
We find the shuttle bus stop, but the every-ten-minute buses are running only every 40 minutes… and the e-sign says ours is 12 minutes away. The 12 minutes turned into closer to 20 minutes. Now we are both nervous. Then, once on the bus, the driver sits there idling for a good ten minutes before putting the beast in gear… Let’s go, already!!!
We end up running (yes, literally) in to Terminal 4 and to the Aerolíneas desk (at the far, far end of the galaxy… thanks again, Murphy) only to find that they had just closed out the flight… just 30 minutes to departure now. Our only option was to run (again, literally) to the gate and have them check our bag there. Getting through security was maddening–they showed no empathy whatsoever to our fate, the bastards. (Security guard mantra: “Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on our part… and, we have seen it all before a million times.”)
We made the gate just as they were boarding the last half of the passengers–so, time to spare!
Had we missed the flight, we would have had to stay the night in Madrid and wait for the morn to exit stage east to Catalunya. So, word to the wise, count on three hours minimum for any kind of international to domestic connection–I keep learning this damn lesson over and over.
And, once home, our cat was still alive and did indeed recognize us (after playing the ignoring/aloofness card for a few minutes) after five months away.
Boira, the 17-year-old cat. Barcelona.
The “Bus Appendix”
For those interested, and for the sake of history (!), here is a detailed account of our overland trip from Mendoza to Ezeiza Airport, in note form:
–Departed Mendoza at 1644 hours.
Stop 1: At 1728-1732 hours, police checkpoint, KM984.
Stop 2: At 1830 hours, toll, Estación La Paz; At 1854 hours a “control sanitario” but didn’t stop.
Stop 3: At 1855-1910 hours, waiting in line of trucks, Desaguadero/La Paz/Mendoza, police checkpoint, driver spoke maybe two minutes with officer.
Stop 4: At 1912-1921 hours at about KM865, police checkpoint, officer talked with driver & assistent driver went outside–possible baggage inspection?
Stop 5: At 1923, toll at KM864-863 or so.
Stop 6: At 1925 hours, “control sanitario” at KM862 but just there a few seconds.
Stop 7: At 1958-2021 hours, 22km west of San Luis City (Balde?); first “encapsulamiento” (cop ahead and cop behind our convoy), we wait as vehicles form up.
Stop 8: At 2021-2024, San Luis City, stopped to reconstitute our “encapsulamiento”, perhaps? We are 6-12 vehicles, regular truckers permitted to pass us (4-lane) but we chug along at about 60km/hour.
Stop 9: At 2040-2056… to reconstitute the convoy again?
Stop 10: At 2108 hours, La Cumbre, toll, very brief stop
Stop 11: At 2150-2204 hours, 18km west of Villa Mercedes, reconstituting the convoy again?; watched opposite direction convoy form with maybe 15 vehicles.
Stop 12: At 2215 hours, near Villa Mercedes, San Luis Province intersection, small police checkpoint, barely stopped.
Stop 13: At 2256-2258 hours, toll, barely stopped there, then stopped immediately again to reconstitute convoy. Off again at 2258.
Stop 14: At 2304-2308 hours, police control, end of “encapsulamientos” (escorted convoys).
Stop 15: At 2353-2356 hours, toll at Vicuña McKenna, Córdoba Province.
Stop 16: At 2400-0022 hours, just past toll, we stop for 22-minute stretch/bathroom break at huge truck stop.
–We pass KM525 (halfway mark) at 0110 hours.
Stop 17: At 0135-0136 to change drivers, I think (I’m tired!).
–At 0441 hours and KM230 we hit a “zona de obras”, lots of dust and a fingernail Moon hanging above us to the east.
–At 0508 hours sign says Buenos Aires is 201km distant.
–At 055 hours, more construction–an almost-finished four-lane, but we are still on two lanes.
Stop 18: At 0608 hours, about 42km from Luján, driver stops to take a leak, now on nice four-lane, Venus and Orion rising.
Stop 19: At 0628 hours, toll, now about 87km to Buenos Aires.
Stop 20: At 0649 hours, toll, Estación Luján, Buenos Aires Province.
Stop 21: At 0710-0743 hours, first light of dawn, in heavy stop-n-go traffic on a six-lane, then eight-lane. Opposite traffic is light. Delays due to toll station.
Stop 22: At 0747-0818 hours, stop-n-go traffic, must be in Buenos Aires metro area, we exit autopista maybe going south now.
–At about 0815 hours, sunrise over the city and the traffic.
–VW, Citroën, Dacia, BMW, Toyota, Ford, Honda, Chevrolet, Jeep, Audi, Fiat, Peugeot, Fiat, etc… all inching along.
–Finally moving better at 0819 hours…
–At 0825 hours, another exit, now headed west on the Autopista Ezeiza-Cañuelas.
Stop 23: At 0826-0829 hours, line for the toll station, police checking cars–maybe for the right to drive on this day of the week?
Stop 24: At 0839-0840 hours, Ezeiza Airport toll entrance.
Stop 25: At 0844-0845 hours, parked at a very NOT busy Terminal A… oops, wrong terminal.
Stop 26: 0851 hours, exited and re-entered to go to Terminal C. Parked to unload.
–16 hours and 16 minutes on the bus.
–At 0900 hours, inside the terminal for another long, ass-flattening, wait.
Phew!
Some Bonus Monochrome iPhone Images – Human Structures Along The Way
Structures, #1 (Flagpole), Vicuña McKenna, Córdoba, Argentina, 2020
Structures, #2 (An Ad For Nothing), Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
Structures, #3 (Lights Still On), Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
Structures, #4 (Terminal Building), Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
Structures, #6 (Terminal Building), Ezeiza Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2020
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