Shabby chic of Buenos Aires

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We couldn't have had a better place to end our trip. Buenos Aires is a fantastic city - it has all the culture, history and energy of a capital city plus we could take advantage of all the great shopping seeing as we wouldn't be carrying our backpacks any further!

The city has really distinct sections, all with it's own attractions. Unusually a cemetery is one of the main tourist destinations in the city based in the Recoleta area. It is also in the most expensive area to live although it is rumoured that it costs more to live in the area when you are dead than alive! The cemetery is like a town within the city, housing all of Argentina's elite in huge elaborately decorated mausoleums. It is where Eva Peron is buried (it was so packed you couldn't get anywhere near it), along with presidents and rich prestigious families.

We went to the San Telmo area to see the Sunday antiques fair - a huge collection of absolutely everything, although I'm not sure that everything could be described as antique!

No trip to here would be complete without seeing a Tango show and we enjoyed our first one so much that we went back to a second, (that's not to say that we are going to be taking it up ourselves any time soon!) but it was a delight to watch it be performed by professionals with such passion in the country where it was born. It started in the area of Buenos Aires called La Boca (the mouth, as it is on the mouth of the river) - it was a bit like Argentina's dirty secret, only danced by the Italian immigrants and working class people in and around the brothels of the port area. It wasn't until other countries became interested in it that the rest of Argentina recognised it and began to enjoy it too. The dance is about the struggle of power of men over women and that really shows in the performances - it's like theatre as they act out Tango through the ages, how it is has changed and the impact it has made on society. I have included a few photos for all of those Strictly Come Dancing fans out there - I know there is quite a few of you!

These days La Boca is a bit of an open air museum - it is still one of the poorer areas in the city and wandering off the few tourist streets isn't advisable (it says something when you get in the taxi and the driver locks all the doors!). People come here to see the brightly coloured houses which are famous as people took whatever paint they could get their hands on from the boats, giving the area a very distinct look. There are also tango demonstrations in the street as well as Maradona look a-likes offering to have their pictures taken with you. Unfortunately we missed out on going to see a football match but it will be a good excuse to come back in the future.

We stayed in a really nice hotel in the Palermo Viejo area - a cool leafy suburb with boutique shops, cafes and delis. It had a great night scene too, centered around a little plaza, perfect for out door dining, especially when it is a warm 35 degrees.

So after lots of shopping and pampering at the spa (unfortunately I don't have a picture of Sam with his green face-pack on!), we are headed home. After 23 countries (sorry, I had to get that in somewhere), we are looking forward to our next adventure........

We have actually been home for 3 days now..and so far so good - although if you ask us in a month or so you may get a different answer! It's been fantastic seeing everyone so far, but for those of you who we are not going to see until next year hope you have a great Christmas and looking forward to seeing you all in 2008!

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Photos

Cheers!
Can't wait to see you all soon!

Flower art
It even closes at night like a real flower

No longer a backpacker!
Champagne, that's more like it.

Comments

[Ralph Whitehouse]

Back Home!
Glad to see you are settling into the swing of things back home. We are renting an apartment in Palermo with a pool on the roof of the 13th floor overlooking the whole of B.A! Have a good Xmas. Ralph and Marina