I had wanted to go to Argentina ever since I read Labyrinths by Jorge Luis Borges. If you have read it, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, be warned that once you do you will have no choice but to buy a ticket to Buenos Aires.

Obviously, Argentina is in South America. You know this because you got on a plane in North America and flew south for a really, really long time. Buenos Aires, however, has a very different feel to it than most other cities in Latin America. This description may be a cliché’, but it feels much more like a European city. Due to historical reasons that separate them from the bulk of Latin America, 86% of the country’s population identifies themselves as having direct European descent (mostly Italian and Spanish), rather than a Native or mixed background.

OK, too much information. Now forget all that. Buenos Aires is a really cool place; Café society, ornate Spanish colonial buildings on tree-lined streets, tango music, bright colors, really good food (especially if you like steak), and fantastic wine.  I don’t remember having Malbec before I went to Argentina. Now it’s the first thing I look for when I am shopping for wine. You’ll see.

There is great shopping in Buenos Aires; leather, handcrafts, antiques. The tour of the city took us shopping in La Boca, famous for its multi-colored housing. It seems the poorer inhabitants of La Boca could not afford paint for their houses so they used whatever was left over from the nearby shipyards, thereby creating a patchwork (hodgepodge?) of color. I think they still do it for tourists, as it is a great place to buy local art. Don’t go there at night.

We also had a chance to see the weekly march of the “Mothers of the Disappeared” around the main square in front of the government buildings. It is a reminder of the very sad history of Argentina, as the aging mothers continue their slow silent march asking the government what happened to their sons and daughters who disappeared during military rule in the 1970’s. They used to march every day, but as they age, and their numbers dwindle, they now walk their vigil once a week, rain or shine, holding pictures of vanished children.

These government buildings, by the way, are where Evita made her famous last speech, and no tour would be complete without a visit to her family plot in La Recoleta, the city cemetery. A mausoleum in Recoleta can cost as much as a home in the city, and they are large, well maintained, and in some cases, way, way over the top. People still leave flowers for Evita and there are all sorts of stories about what happened to her body after her death. The government was afraid the poor would make it into a shrine and so they hid the body in Spain for many years. People made a shrine anyway.

Our DMC partner, Faus Incentives, did a fantastic job, as they always do, introducing us to the highlights of the city, as well as taking us up to Iguazu Falls and to Bariloche in the Lake District where the Pampas meets the Andes.

I have sometimes wondered who decides what the wonders of the world are. Is there a committee? If you have been to the Grand Canyon you know the feeling you got when you first saw it. You were driving along through the High Desert, landscape a little boring, and you were thinking, hmm, wonder what the big deal is, and then… the Canyon. After you recover from the initial wow impact, you automatically know why it’s on the list. Iguazu Falls is like that.

We took the 90-minute flight the night before from Buenos Aires, and stayed at the Iguazu Grand, one of the two luxury properties there (the Cataretas Hotel on the Brazil side of the border was under major renovation by Orient-Express at the time and is now complete).

The next morning we walked through the jungle, over a series of pontoon bridges crossing swamps and tributaries, to the big river. It was a very interesting hike with all sorts of birds, lizards, and turtles. What you would expect, but certainly not “wow” material. The only thing that made it different from any jungle trek was a sound, like a roar, that became louder the more we hiked. And then… Oh, this is why Iguazu Falls is one of the wonders of the world.

Nothing I could say would do it justice. Iguazu is actually over 200 separate waterfalls in an S-shape, huge volumes of water pouring down hundreds of feet, disappearing into the mist. Out of that mist, tropical birds, parrots, an occasional toucan, and hundreds of butterflies. Downright hypnotizing.

After taking in the panorama from the top, we backtracked and hiked down through several ecological zones, stopping every so often to sip our mate’, the national drink that depending on who you talk to, may or may not contain natural stimulants. Once we reached the bottom we got on a big, fast, rubber boat and headed directly into and behind some of the falls. Surprisingly, we got really wet. Felt good.

We then raced downriver between Brazil and Argentina, and came to a stop at a beach covered in all kinds of colorful butterflies. Tropical birds sang to (or yelled at) us as we were transported back through the jungle and our 5-Star hotel for an excellent dinner, with Malbec.  A good day.

Picture this. Riding horses on the Pampas, the vast expanse of rolling grasslands coming smack up against the sudden rise of the snow covered Andes. But not trail riding. They do things differently in countries without too many lawyers, and who have the philosophy of, well, live it up because your life is in God’s hands. Essentially you get on the horse, and well, let’s go. Good horses, breathtaking scenery, and a feeling of freedom on a crystal clear day with snow covered mountains and deep, deep blue skies as a backdrop. And to top it all off, when we returned to the ranch house, a delicious barbeque was waiting with, of course, Malbec. Nice.

We stayed in the El Casco Art Hotel on Lake Nahuel Huapi. Managed by an art gallery owner from the city, each room is dedicated to a different artist, and everything was for sale. With sculpture everywhere, it was like staying in an art gallery, except with beautiful views, great service and gourmet food. We also visited the Grande Dame hotel of the area, the Llao Llao. It’s definitely a grande wow, built high up on the mountain with 360-degree views of the Andes and the lakes below. A bit out of the way and really windy when we were there, but it is definitely a place like no other.

One curious thing about the Lake District is that many people of German and Swiss descent settled here because it reminded them of home. Kind of looks like Switzerland or Bavaria; the landscape, architecture, the food… all have that feel about them.

We were dining in one of the popular restaurants there, lots of people talking and laughing. The room suddenly became noticeably quieter. I looked over and a group of very tall, blonde, blue-eyed folks had entered and were being seated. Our guide leaned over and said under his breath, “The Germans.” His nod, and the way he said it… these were the descendents of “those Germans,” and apparently no one wanted to mess with them. Is it safe?

I can’t wait to go back to Argentina and visit the rest of the country. There is so much to do, it’s very inexpensive, has a modern infrastructure, safe drinking water, and is a great incentive destination. It’s also perfect for meetings when your attendees are coming from Latin America. They love to visit. It’s about an 8.5 hours flight from Miami to Buenos Aires, and there are also non-stops from New York, Houston, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and many European cities.

Trust me on this one. You’ll like it. Ask me for details.

For pictures of my visit to Argentina, please visit the Cramer Collection fan page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thecramercollection and click on photos.