BA - "Quiero regresar!!"

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From Mendoza we got the overnight bus to the big BA. - Buenos Aires and groggly tried to find to find ourselves a hostel. Shuffled from our 1st choice to this modern, stylish, white-everything 5 storey palace, with friendly staff and a resident (psychotic) cat, 'Ostinatta' was to be our home for the next week or so. We were located right in the middle of historic San Telmo, the old tango district of BA. There was no way Greg would get out of a tango lesson now!

Our first day was spent finishing job applications and getting an impromptu Spanish lesson from the waitor at a nearby cafe - "Muy rico, delicioso" and "Quiero regresar!" (I want to return!). By next morning we were ready to explore La Ciudad- but approaching the widest road in the world, Avenida 9 de Julio, everything was deserted! We walked straight out onto the 16 lanes, not a bit of traffic in sight. We had managed to arrive just in time for the 25 de Mayo celebrations and thought we may as well join in on the parade. While some folks were letting off great firecrackers up in the air, others selling their Argentinian flags and riff-raff on the streets, the bulk were hearded towards a great plaza with some high-profile musicians cranking out tunes for their country.

>>G
It was all a bit unexpected for us and we didn´t really know what to think of the whole parade, until our hostel staff people gave us the inside scoop.
From what I could grasp, it turns out that the whole thing is a big fat publicity/propaganda stunt put on by the President and has little to do with National Independence. As a result, most people from BA don´t go and so bus-loads of people have to be shipped in from rural areas and given a free feed, which is the main reason they come in the first place. Typical huh?

>>C
OK but it was still a momentous day, with many a rowdy happy crowd-goer to dodge past. We wandered around amongst the blue and white streamers until it was time to check out a Catalán band called 'Whiskyn's' at the Centro Cultural uptown. It was strange sitting down in a small theatre to watch the free concert, but the reggae-type support band still managed to get the crowd going. We left as a solo guitarrist was crooning Catalán poetry- too deep for us! More fantastic music awaited us back at the hostel, as right next door was a wonderful tiny space called 'Narcisa' that could hold maybe 20 people, and about to start were the talented trio of 'chicas con guitarras', 'Intikillawara'. Having no idea what their name meant or what they were singing did not stop us from enjoying immensely their magical harmonies, theatrical lyrics (their friends in the crowd were laughing and singing along) and inventive percussion. It felt like we were intruding on a very personal gig, but they didn't seem to mind and we left with an uplifting experience at the end of our mammoth day.

Viernes, day 2 of BA (they were all so jam-packed, so there's lots more to go folks!) began with a ride on the ancient metro system, complete with Victorian style lanterns in the rickety old trains. Very fitting for our upcoming tour of the regal Teatro Colón, one of the top 5 theatres in the world for opera, ballet and classical music. Our tour was a few pesos less because the Grand Auditorium was in darkness for an orchestra rehearsal, but we thought it added to the magnificence of the experience, like we were at an actual concert. We were shown to a box seat, just like the President's box over near the stage that is always kept free for himself and his family. I liked the idea of 'heavenly voices' that could be heard from high above in a special level right near the huge chandelier. After seeing the outward beauty of the theatre, we were taken down to the basement where we could watch the costume-makers at work and see the piles of shoes and wigs from previous performances, and even witness a professional ballet rehearsal (I was so thrilled at that! Wanted to stay all day).

We had the least greasy meal in all of Argentina at a vegetarian buffet called La Huerta del Sol, and it was a welcome change, especially for just 9.50 pesos! Tonight was our first tango lesson, gratuita, and it ended up being just us with our lovely teacher Adriana. Well, it’s just as difficult as it looks folks, at least for us. After starting with balance and walking exercises, we tried a few steps, and managed to get a nervous rythym going. Not helped by me always trying to take the lead - unfortunately it’s supposed to be up the guy to run the show, c’mon Greg, take charge! After our second lesson on Saturday we were slightly more confident. Adriana recommended a ‘milonga’ for us to go to that very evening.

The Milonga experience was sublime, while we got there unfashionably early - at 12:30am - we were able to bare witness to the whole affair. It's basically a traditional Tango dance, an opportunity for anyone willing; to have a drink, meet some people and scoot their boots. There are no barriers with who you can dance with - we saw this old chap spin a teenage girl like madman, what moves he had. This game is not without its rules, for instance giving extended eye contact to the ladies could see you arm in arm doing the tango before you know it - my single greatest fear. As cultural observers we'd had enough by 2am but they would keep stepping till about 5.

Then it was time to see a dance at the other end of the spectrum, at a crazy nightclub on the trendy(we think? the crowds certainly thought so) Calle Sarmiento. 20 pesos for the boys, 15 for girls (thankyou very much -c) and we were in with the sweaty crowds and the thumping latin beat. Wandering around in the intimate upstairs section it seemed pretty tame, until they broke out the moves onstage downstairs. This one was definitely for the ladies, as 5 shirtless guys with fairly uncoordinated moves grooved it for half an hour. Maybe if we knew the dance moves, as quite a few on the dancefloor were exhibiting, we might have gotten into it, but for us weak foreigners it was off to bed at 3.30!

Sabados, we went to see some rich folks' graves. The ritzy suburb of Recoleta is home to a mini-city of marble tombs, for the filthy rich families of Buenos Aires, and including the gravestone of Eva Peròn, 'Evita'. This place is seriously creepy, with some of the crypts so broken down you can almost see inside the rotting coffins...not to mention the huge wasps that like to make their nests in the old buildings. But overall a very regal place to rest in peace, if you like to share your space with 500 other dead people, 200 cats and be ogled at by tourists every day....

That night we went to 'El Desnivel' a parrilla i.e. a Steak-house. The steak was superbly succulent and worth every peso, but our waiter stole the show no doubt about it.

Sweating from his brow and balding head, zipping around with stacatto like movements this guy ran on pure adrenaline. You could hear him coming by the sound of cutlery, plates and bottles being sporadically scooped up, slammed down, popped, fizzed, banged. This guy wasn't a waiter he was a conductor, performing the greatest orchestra on earth, we and the bread baskets were both his instruments and his audience. It didn´t matter what you wanted, he was already getting it, no he´d already done that and was back slapping a bottle of wine on your table, ripping the menu from your hands and throwing it to the new instruments sitting over there. No one had time to be offended by his bluntness, he had no time and was making things happen where there was none. I´ve never seen such athleticism, such energy and such determination from a non-fictional character. To this guy, this mad guy, I take off my hat.

Next stop La Boca (a surburb of BA) for more tango, markets and art. It's over-the-top touristic but manages to retain some authentic charm just the same. Some of the houses in the area have been painted up real colourful like, bold colours that can pop your eyes out if your'e not too careful. Our experience included an unenthusiastic young tango couple outside a cafe, dawdling around then putting on the moves when the big boss comes out - quite humorous to watch. Still, they did some poses for us when we got all touristy with our cameras. The real show was over the road with the spectacular tango dancing family - mum, dad, teenage son and daughter and little 7-yr-old girl who was the obvious star of the show. Will she ever be the little showoff when she grows up!

We caught even more music at a park back in San Telmo, some groovers getting right into it. An elderly lady and a jolly dancing man were stealing the dance-pavement with gusto. The gig seemed to be MC-ed by this old homeless guy "Feather-head", a self-appointed Lord of the Park we believe! It is refreshing to see people of all ages getting into the beat - showing they haven't lost their enthusiasm and their love of life.

So that was our Buenos Aires experience, and may there be many more! Now onto more of this crazy country, and especially the World Cup - "Vamos Argentina!"

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Photos

25 de Mayo march
Notice the banner of Evita, forever a symbol of the working-class striving for their rights

Greg, the wily chess king
My chess playing abilities were probably not helped by the consumption of half a bottle of Mendoza's finest rosé -c

Oil paintings at La Boca
Greg was very taken with the red one in the middle, it's a shame oil doesn't travel too well

A moment with the view
Looking out over the port of La Boca (The Mouth)

More sweets
This icecream was smothered in the national sweet delicacy, 'dulce de leche'. My mouth stuck together with this stuff, not a good time to get a laughing attack!

Comments

[justme]

it's seem like you two had lots of fun here in the city where i live. it's funny cause i got here because of intikillawara, my friends' band and i'm glad you enjoyed listening to them. hope you came back, you will be very welcome.