Wednesday was a busy but productive and educational day.
Our day began bright and early as Kate and I woke up early to do a WOG (half walk half jog) of the local area in search of some more American coffee. We finally located a McDonalds after looking in several other storefronts but not seeing much of anything. I ordered an espresso doble and was greeted to 8oz of straight espresso-coffee-ish deliciousness. I was surprised to see the employees wearing uniforms made of jeans and the McCafe attendees in very cute professional attire. IN South America the coffee stations are completely separate from the food counter and house a wide assortment of pastries and desserts and the areas finest coffee sensations. After we indulged in our treats we went back to the hotel to quickly shower and scarf down some breakfast. It was a bit of a walk from the hotel to Puerto Madeira where our meetings were held but I just adore this cute riverside community. The buildings and infrastructure in this area is all new, there are sailboats and yachts docked in the port, and fabulous restaurants and cafe's along all the streets. If I were to live in BA, I'd definitely want to live there!
Our first meeting was with Cargill's Argentina (BA) office. Cargill is the largest privately held (by the Cargill family) company in the US and the 34th largest company worldwide with over 131,000 employees worldwide and $107B in revenues. I was particularly interested in this meeting as Cargill is a big supplier of food and products for McDonald's and we are one of their largest customers. A global leader in food and agriculture Cargill has a long history of leveraging its ability to connect expertise around the world to various businesses. Beyond the business discussions we had with the CFO and 1st Manager of the Argentine office I was particularly interested in the economic and political discussions that we had with these candid people. My feelings about these topics were further reinforced when we met with Intel's VP of CSR for Argentina later in the afternoon. Intel, the worlds largest semiconductor manufacturer, generates over $43B in annual revenues and employs of 83,000 people worldwide. I was also rather pleased to learn that Mariana from Intel was a WF graduate who went there on a golf scholarship! Small world! Both of these companies portrayed the harsh realities of operating companies in a environment characterized by risk, uncertainty, and volitilty. I have many thoughts on this topic, but I am saving my full analysis of the Argentine economy and political atmosphere for when all our meetings are finished.
After our meetings Kate and I joined one of her contacts for High Tea at the Palace Hotel Alvear. What a treat this was! I'd always wanted to do a high tea and had not been able to squeeze it in during any of my travels. We enjoyed finger sandwiches, champagne, white tea, and lots of little dessert bites. It was definitely a fun girls day out event! For dinner last night we went to Bar Sur in the area of San Telmo where we sat in a quaint little bar and watched live Tango performances from professional dancers literally right in front of us. They had traditional tango music played by an in house set of musicians and an incredible singer. For anyone traveling to BA in the near future I highly recommend you make reservations for this show. During a few of the interludes the dancers would come out and pull audience members onto the floor and give them lessons. I was lucky enough to be one of these people, and despite my apparent inability to dance, I had a fabulous time trying! I must also note that I believe the Latin men have a liking for me as it seems like every event we go to I end up being dragged on stage and smothered with attention by charming Latin men... tough life! (sorry, Mark ;) I can't help it they adore me! Ha!) The concert pianist took a particular liking to me and proceeded to demand quite a bit of my attention for the rest of the night, VERY entertaining! After a late night of wine and the show we decided to return to the hotel to get some much needed sleep before a big day Thursday with meetings at CAEMe, the BA Stock Exchange, And Merval Economists.
Please enjoy the pictures I have posted with this entry and for those that want to see more I have many many more pictures posted up on my FB page.
Besos!
T
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