Canal City: Tigre, Argentina

Have you been enjoying our virtual visits to the beautiful and historical canal cities of Europe and Scandinavia: If you missed last month’s trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, click here (https://www.hhhistory.com/2021/08/canal-city-st-petersburg-russia.html). Today, we’re going to make our way over eight thousand miles south across Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, and most of South America to Argentina to visit the city of Tigre. 

 

Located on an island forty-five miles outside the Argentine capital, Tigre is situated on the Paraná River delta, the fifth largest delta in the world and the only one that flows into freshwater rather than into the sea. Surrounded by thousands of small islands, bisected and isolated by reed and plant-line inlets, waterways, and canals, the city used to be inundated by the wealthy and well-to-do as an escape from the heat of Buenos Aires. 

 

Tigre was founded two hundred years ago after floods had destroyed other settlements in the area, and

the name is taken from the “tigres” or jaguars that used to roam there. The majority of original inhabitants were Europeans who came to farm the land, and the port developed as a place to bring fruit and wood from the Delta and ports upstream. After the 1877 yellow fever epidemic in Buenos Aires, visitors flocked to Tigre as a healthful retreat. 

 

In the center of town, Puerta de Frutas is the main port where the water taxis and boats leave from, and also where the visitor information center is located. A large open-air market offers a wide range of items from furniture to local fruit. The Museo De Arte is a gorgeous Belle Époque building filled with Argentine art, and quaint cafés line the streets. Yet there is a rural aspect to the island with grocery boats, medical boats, and school bus boats for the locals. 

 

Because of its European roots, British character is heavily evident in the city with Victorian houses and half-timbered mock Tudors. Colorful stilt-houses can be found along the canals and waterways as well as elegant vacation homes, ramshackle fishing huts, and camp-style resorts. Some of the waterways are wide enough for water taxis and private boats, while others thick with pussy willows and ceibo trees accommodate on a single skiff. 

 

Visitors can choose from local ferry buses used by islanders or more luxurious catamaran tours, but either ride will provide a unique experience in the labyrinthine network of canals, their iron railings and old-timey street lamps evoking the feeling of days gone by. 

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Linda Shenton Matchett writes about ordinary people who did extraordinary things in days gone by. A volunteer docent and archivist for the Wright Museum of WWII, Linda is a former trustee for her local public library. She is a native of Baltimore, Maryland and was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry. Linda has lived in historic places all her life, and is now located in central New Hampshire where her favorite activities include exploring historic sites and immersing herself in the imaginary worlds created by other authors. Learn more about Linda and her books at http://www.LindaShentonMatchett.com

A Family for Hazel:

Can a widowed preacher who must marry to keep his job and an alleged thief find true love? 

After the Civil War takes Hazel Markham’s father, and her mother dies of a broken heart, a friend of her parents hires Hazel as a companion. All is well until the woman’s lecherous son takes an interest in his mother’s assistant. When Hazel spurns his advances one too many times, the man frames her for theft, and she is fired. As a last resort she applies to be a mail-order bride, and to her dismay, her groom-to-be is a preacher. Will he believe her claims of innocence or reject her as unacceptable? 

 

Olav Kristensen has no plans to remarry after being widowed five years ago, but when the church elders give him an ultimatum to find a wife or lose his job, he advertises for a mail-order bride. The woman who arrives attests she was unjustly accused of robbery at her last job, but when his daughter’s heirloom locket goes missing, he is hesitant to believe his bride-to-be. Will he lose his church and a second chance at love?

Pre-order link: https://amzn.to/3ED726m

Canal City: Empuriabrava, Spain

 

I hope you’ve enjoyed our virtual visits to the beautiful and historical canal cities of Europe and Scandinavia. If you missed last month’s trip to Copenhagen, click here (https://www.hhhistory.com/2021/07/canal-city-copenhagen-denmark.html). Today we’re going to travel over 2,000 miles south across Europe to the city of Empuriabrava, Spain. 

 

Located on the Costa Brava in the municipality of Castelló d’Empúries in the province of Girona, Empuriabrava is the largest residential marina in Europe. The city has over twenty-four kilometers (15 miles) of canals and approximately 5,000 private jetties. The year-round population of 7,800 swells to more than 80,000 inhabitants during the summer season. With over seven miles of beaches and 300 days a year of sunshine, it is a popular tourist destination. 

 

Unlike the ancient canal cities of Europe, Empuriabrava was planned for

recreation rather than defense and has been in existence for less than fifty years. In the late 1960s, a group of visionaries presented a plan to city officials to transform the swampy area to a world-class resort. Construction began in 1968, and was completed in 1975. 

 

Castelló d’Empúries is a small medieval town with a history that stretches back to 1079 when it became the county’s capital in place of Sant Marti d’Empúries that was continually sacked by pirates. The town grew and developed over the next three centuries, until 1385 when it joined the Crown of Aragon (created when the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of Barcelona were united by marriage). 

 

Within the Crown, the Catalan counties adopted a common polity and developed its own institutional system. Mediterranean trade flourished. By 1640 Catalonia revolted against the large presence of the royal army, and for a short time, became a province of France. During the War of Spanish Succession, Catalonia sided against Philip V of Spain and was defeated. In 1714, a unifying administration was imposed across the country which suppressed Catalan institutions and rights. 

 

In the beginning of the nineteenth century, Catalonia was severely affected by the Napoleonic War, and in 1808 was occupied by French troops. The next one hundred and fifty years saw growth and industrialization mixed with rebellion and wars, until the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, when it entered a democratic state. 

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Linda Shenton Matchett writes about ordinary people who did extraordinary things in days gone by. A volunteer docent and archivist for the Wright Museum of WWII, Linda is a former trustee of her local public library. She is a native of Baltimore, Maryland and was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry. Linda has lived in historic places all her life, and is now located in central New Hampshire where her favorite activities include exploring historic sites and immersing herself in the imaginary worlds created by other authors. Learn more about Linda and her books at http://www.LindaShentonMatchett.com. 

 

Gold Rush Bride Caroline: 

She thinks he’s high-handed and out for her gold. He thinks she’s difficult and money-hungry. Will they discover that love is the true treasure? 

 

Scarred in a childhood accident, Caroline Vogel has yet to find a man willing to marry her, so she heads to the Pike’s Peak gold fields to pan enough ore to become a woman of means. When she and the handsome assistant trail boss hit it off, she begins to hope her future may not be spent alone. Then she catches wind of dark secrets from the man’s past, and she’s not sure what or who to believe. 

 

Orphaned as a teenager, Oliver Llewellyn stole to survive, then used his skills for the army during the war. Nowadays, he applies his knowledge to catch dangerous thieves for the Pinkerton Agency, so guarding a young woman during a wagon train journey should be easy. But he didn’t count on the fact she’d angered a man bent on revenge. He also didn’t count on losing his heart.

Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3eRQj3Y