Rays from the setting sun spill through the cracked windowpane of an open garage. The tiny dust particles catch in the soft light, swirling ethereally around cars used in the time of our great grandfathers. Phonographs, paraffin lanterns, antique water pitchers, wooden wheel barrels, time appears to have stopped long ago. However, its 2008 and one of Uruguay’s oldest estancias near the town of Carmelo is in its sixth year running as a refurbished luxury bed and breakfast.

Police in Mar del Plata, Argentina could never have expected the tale that would unravel after a seemingly routine drug bust. The story they found themselves part of after a 2 am arrest is still causing the lawmen to shake their heads in wonderment.

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The smoke that has blanketed Buenos Aires for the past week will continue through at least Wednesday, Servicio Meteorologico Nacional warned today. On Wednesday the wind patterns will provide a respite from the smoke choking the city, however the relief will be minor and short lived.

For city residents the negative health affects of living downwind from a 10,000-hectare grass fire are starting to take hold. Over 400 people have been admitted to hospitals for smoke related ailments, prompting the Ministry of Health to declare a yellow alert for hospitals, ophthalmologists and pediatricians. Authorities in La Plata have recommended people not leave their homes unless absolutely necessary.

UPDATE 4/21 03:45 : SMN is predicting that the winds will shift back to the south this morning, providing another smoky day in Capital. Slight clearing may occur by mid-afternoon. Residents are again warned to take precautions against the smoke.

Over 300 people have filed a $15 million lawsuit against farm owners, as well as the provincial and national governments for the damage caused by the fires and the smoke.

UPDATE 4/23 7:42 The dense cloud of smoke has returned to Buenos Aires, bringing with it a familiar smell and the expected round of transportation cuts. Visibility has dropped to 400m in the city and large sections of Rutas 9, 12 and 14 are all closed. Retiro bus station has stopped service to the northern part of Argentina as well as Brazil and Uruguay.

RELATED:
- No Respite From Smoke Until Wednesday
- State of Emergency: Highways to BsAs Closed
- BsAs Darkened By Smoke From Delta Grass Fires
UPDATE 4/18 17:42 The Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (SMN) is stating that winds from the north will continue through next Tuesday, bringing a steady stream of smoke into Buenos [...]

Smoke clouded the Buenos Aires skyline this afternoon, the result of island grass fires in the Parana Delta. Strong winds are driving the smoke down river, creating severe visibility problems on the highways and enveloping the city in an acrid odor. The fires are located 30 minutes north of Buenos Aires and provincial governments are proving unable to extinguish them.

Lorenzo Pepe, former Argentine Congressman and staunch Perón supporter, has called for the latest episode of The Simpsons to be censored because of a scene in which Juan Perón is referred to as a dictator.

In the past two weeks the Kirchners have launched an organized offensive against Clarin, the largest independent newspaper in Argentina. Although widely believed to be pro-Kirchner, Clarin drew the ire of Christina with a political cartoon criticizing her handling of the campo crisis.

The current housing crisis has caused people throughout Argentina to homestead in abandoned buildings. In Santa Fe a group of men have taken the squatting epidemic to a new level by seizing a community plaza and constructing a pair of houses on it.