Palermo Viejo & Puerto Madero

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Buenos dias!!

Last entry for this part of my trip, as it is, yes, my final day in Buenos Aires before I head off to Rio de Janeiro!! As stated earlier, the Brazilian Consulate continues to be a nightmare, and I'm heading off to Rio a day late, as the Consulate stuffed up the approval for my visa. This, culminating with the face, that I could not extend my stay at the apartment i had rented, has meant that I had to book a hotel in Centro (NH Lancaster - nice, check it out - they were having opening deals as they had only reopened in September after refurbishment). This basically meant that I had to waste a day organising accomodation in a rush, move all my stuff, check-out of my apartment, rebook flights..... grrr it goes on. Eh well, I suppose I'm really only just chillin in Buenos Aires anyway.....

Checked out Palermo Viejo, which is another mammoth walk from where I was staying in Recoleta (but closer to Retiro). This revitalised suburb of 'Old Palermo', has now become a haven for the designer and foodie set of Buenos Aires. Walking around in the afternoon till early evening, albeit in the middle of the week, it has that feel of relaxed living, almost suburban, but with pockets of street malls with boutique local designer stores and art 'espacios', and hole in the wall cafe's and bars. At night when the area awakens, it sure would've been a great place to visit, however it still feels like certain places are quite pretentious in the 'seen to be seen' type of way. Maybe when I get back to BsAs with my tour group, we might check Palermo Viejo out a bit more, felt a bit self-conscious entering pretentious places on my own with my trekking pants.

Puerto Madero, as I may have eluded to before, is VERY reminiscent of Southbank/Docklands (for those who know Melbourne). Redeveloped docks, along a very brown looking river.... not the most glamorous places to visit, unless you want that business lunch, as there are plenty of restaurants lining the banks, with alfresco dining, of course. Otherwise, there's a mad development of glass encased high-rises on each bank, which behind the south bank lies a conservation estuary type area that only keen birdwatchers flock to (sorry about the pun - but I love puns). Juxtaposed with all the new buildings, are the derelict townhouses and silos reminiscent of the old docks that used to stand there before all the city planning was put into effect. Puerto Madero, however, will ultimately, given time, probably do better than the Melbourne equivalent, given it's proximity to the city, and the fact that it represents space, which the rest of central Buenos Aires simply doesn't have.

So as I am about to settle into my final night at BsAs, the whole experience here was pretty much as I expected. European type feel, interesting neighbourhoods (for the most part), a very cosmopolitan city, something I feel I will miss when I head to the sun & the sand & the heat in Rio. Then again, I think I'll be concentrating on different things when I get to Rio. Hehehe.

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