Welcome! Welcome to ThroughTheTube.com! Here you'll find the latest news from South America, as well as cultural features and traveller's tales. When the smoke blocks out the sun or the store shelves are suddenly barren, this is the place to go for timely explanations. We're working with the Argentimes so you can make the best of your time here, whether you're staying awhile or are just passing through. We publish something new every weekday, so check back often!
Grape Expectations: Boutique Wine Reaches Buenos Aires
Anuva Vinos founder Daniel Karlin speaks of his first Malbec as if it were a high school kiss. “I fell in love with Doña Paula, a 2004 Malbec. Wow, it completely blew me away.” That experience moved the Portland native to start his own distribution company, providing limited production wines to the US, Europe and locals for the last two years.
Latin American Leaders Face Up to Global Food Crisis
In a recent statement, the United Nation’s World Food Programme (WFP) announced that skyrocketing food prices is putting unbearable pressure on the world’s poorest. With no respite to high prices in sight, the UN is cautioning that an additional 100m people are in danger of going hungry.
US News
Obama Claims Democratic Presidential NominationJust a few hours after making political history, Barack Obama returned to a hero’s welcome in Washington.
TWA. Up, Up and Away…. EventuallyLast year Americans wasted a total of 320 million hours waiting for their plane. And this year is predicted to be worse.
Charlie's Corner - UK News
International Terrorists - Robots in DisguiseAn airline passenger was threatened with arrest for wearing a T-shirt showing a cartoon robot brandishing a futuristic gun.
Incest and Moral Equivalency ExplainedA bishop is in hot water for claiming people who do not care about climate change are as bad as a notorious rapist who imprisoned his daughter for 24 years.
Argentina News Feed
Links open in new windowBUENOS AIRES, 17 June (IHT) – Thousands of Argentines poured into the streets Monday, banging pots and honking car horns to demand the government resume talks to end a 100-day farmers strike that has blocked grain exports and emptied supermarket shelves of food.
June 17 (Bloomberg) – Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said she will send a new export tax regime bill to Congress for debate and approval after the measure provoked three months of protests and food shortages.
BUENOS AIRES, 17 June (guardian.co.uk) – According to the Argentine Business Federation of Hotels and Restaurants the first three weeks of the blockades alone caused loses in the Argentine tourist industry of $24 million US. Thousands of jobs in the tourist industry are now at risk and many hotels and restaurants in Argentina face the [...]
June 16 (Bloomberg) – Argentine farmers intensified protests against higher export taxes, halting the flow of grains nationwide and threatening to prompt food shortages in supermarkets, after police arrested some of their leaders.
South America News
National Lampoon’s South American VacationIn a journey that would make the Griswalds proud, Diego Percivaldi piloted his family station wagon on a 47 day trip from Argentina to Dearborn, Michigan.
Education Minister Quits Over Falkland’s RowArgentina’s Education Minister Marta Torino quit after the publication of a school text book caused an outcry amongst war veterans.
New Accents for Argentine Internet UsersAfter more than a year in development, Argentines will now be able to use regional accents and dialects in their web addresses.
Birds in Paradise
It’s best not to talk, in fact, don’t make a sound. The only noise should be that of your paddle softly slicing the shallow, dark water. As your canoe forges onward along the swampy river it noiselessly parts the endless green mass of camalote. Bid farewell to civilisation and discover a world removed in the swamplands of Formosa.
Te quiero Barilo-ché
If you’re feeling restless in the city, and are looking for a cheeky week away from ‘Malas Aires’, or maybe an alternative investment opportunity in Argentina, why not try the Lake District?
Ladies and Gentleman, I present: Bariloche.
Yes Way José!
Thirty kilometers east of Punta del Este, the tiny hideaway of José Ignacio nestles in the sand dunes along the Atlantic coast of Uruguay. A coastal resort now favoured by those for whom Punta del Este has lost its allure and exclusivity, José Ignacio is overrun by the beautiful people from December to February: the author Martin Amis and the singer Shakira are said to have homes here, while stars of the fashion world Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Cambpell and Mario Testino have all frequented these Uruguayan shores.
Having experienced the beauty of José Ignacio over New Year, I was keen to return under less hectic circumstances and enjoy all that the fishing village had to offer.
