FREEDOM LOST

OCTOBER 24

I have journeyed for six months. Traveling by motorbike freed me from other people’s schedules. I decided my own route and my own timetable. I found agreeable hotels at each halt, rose and went to bed at the hour of my choosing, ate when and where and what I wished…an utterly self-centered existence.

Store the Honda in Ushuaia, farewell to freedom. I must suffer the sadistic clutches of Aerlineas Argentina and Air Madrid.

First I have five days in Buenos Aires. I have a reservation at the Grand Hotel Espana off Avenida de Mayo (80 Tacuari). I was due to arrive in the early evening. I will now arrive closer to 11 p.m. I call from Rio Grande and beg the manager to hold my room.