Viva La Buenos Aires y Sudamerica!

Buenos Aires, Argentina (March 8-21)
Evita Peron, and to a lesser extent her dearly-departed husband Juan, haunts the city of Buenos Aires. You can find her proudly beaming down at "her people" from the side of a skyscraper along the Carlos Pellegrini Avenue, which,at 20 lanes,is reputed to be the widest avenue in the world. Or you can visit her bones at the Duarte family's vault in the magnificently ornate Cemetario Recoleta. But perhaps best (or worst for those who hate all things Andrew Lloyd Webber) you can simply take a stroll down the main pedestrian thoroughfare of Florida Street and hear the familiar ear-worm melody of "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina" being sung en Espanol or en Ingles. The one thing you canNOT do in Buenos Aires, however, is AVOID her!

Buenos Aires clearly has its famous heroes. In addition to Peron, we have the likes of Carlos Gardel, the "King of Tango," Mr. "Hand of God" himself, Diego Maradona, and the face which launched adorns a million university student t-shirts, Ernesto "Che" Guevara. But I really dig the fact that Argentines are so unabashed in their worship, for lack of a better word, of these home-grown celebrities. After all, the USA is pretty much guilty of doing the same!

When I first arrived in this behemoth of a city, I was overwhelmed and even a little bit disgusted. The reason being was that I had spent most of the past 2 months in small towns surrounded by great natural beauty. So going straight from the relatively quiet and tranquil San Ignacio to the incredibly hectic, slightly pungent and crowded streets of downtown Buenos Aires where it is difficult to walk side-by side with a friend or hand-in-hand with a romantic partner (Though many still annoyingly try!) due to the proximity of so many pedestrians was like being smacked in the back of the head with a sledge hammer or prodded with an electric cattle prong! I was very stressed out as a result and it took a few days for my heart and mind to settle down. However, once I had grown accustomed to being in such an urban playground, I began to understand why so many travelers I have met love the place and rank it at/near the top of their list of favorite cities of South America.

So what's to love about Buenos Aires? Well...how about its neighborhoods?! San Telmo, for one, is littered with antique shops, eclectic boutiques, and is the perfect place to go on a Sunday afternoon or evening to indulge in people-watching or to try your hand foot at tango dancing (And before you ask, "No!" I did not attempt to learn how to tango as I figured it would take a hell of a lot more than 1 or 2 lessons to even begin to master its most basic steps). Another nice neighborhood worthy of visiting in order to do some damage to your credit card balance is Palermo. But I must warn those of you who may feel a bit nervous around strange dogs for Palermo happens to be the Dog Capital of the Universe. In the Plaza Indentente Seeber in Palermo, I was drawn by the thunderous sound of more than 50 dogs barking. Apparently many of the city's numerous dog walkers let their dogs loose there or simply keep them tethered and then skedaddle off for a coffee. If you don't believe me or suspect I am exaggerating, I have the video to prove it!

But for me, the most fantabulous of the fantastic places I visited while in B.A. was La Recoleta Cemetery. I loved this place so much that I went there twice! The first time was with my traveling companion, Sonia, the day before she, sniff sniff, departed back to Romania. We arrived there at 4 PM on Monday, March 12, about an hour before the cemetery closed and the sky was ominously dark with clouds practically bursting at the seams with precipitation, which lent the place an incredibly gothic air. I snapped as many B & W/Sepia photos as I could before the storm hit and boy oh boy did it ever piss down! We're talking sheets upon sheets of torrential rain and even some heartily (huge) hail! Sonia and I did our best to find "shelter from the storm" (TM Bob Dylan) by standing on the top steps of various tombs which had roofs that protruded slightly, but it was largely for nought as we were completely drenched by the time we made it back to our hostel that evening. Never mind squishy shoes and soggy socks!

I returned to the cemetery for second helpings on Thursday,March 15 (Ooh err, the Ides of March!!) at 11 AM, in time to go on the English-speaking tour they provide free of charge (there is also a free tour at the same time every Tuesday). There were shitloads of tourists there for the tour so I did my best to stick like Elmer's Glue to the guide, otherwise I would have been unable to hear the interesting information she was sharing with us. Here are a few things I learned about the historical cemetery:

*The site, which consists of 4,691 vaults, is completely filled; there are "No Vacancies" I'm afraid! However, sometimes a tomb becomes available when a family chooses to sell off their prime "real estate", cough cough. The average vault can then sell for around $45,000!

*Many notable political and military figures are entombed there including Eva Peron, Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, and Carlos Maria de Alvear. The majority of those buried there are Christian, but there are a few Jewish tombs as well.

*The cemetery is home to some 40 cats which are well looked after compared to other strays. Every day at about 5 PM, some local women stop by with bags full of dry cat food, but apparently it is prohibited to adopt one of the cats and the police will stop you if you try! On the count of 3 everybody...1...2...3...Awwwww!

*There is a lovely, lonely ghost who supposedly walks the cemetery at night named Rufina Cambaceres. She died in 1902 at the ripe old age of 19 but the exact time of her death is somewhat uncertain. You see Argentinians believe in burying the dead as quickly as possible and in poor Rufina's case, it is believed that she may have been placed in the family tomb prematurely! A few days after her burial, cemetery keepers found the coffin had fallen. Her family was notified and when they opened the coffin, claimed her body was covered in bruises and scratches! So how did she get these marks, hmmm? Was it because she, upon waking up and finding herself trapped inside the coffin, tried to claw her way out?! Only the shadow knows....

*Evita's corpse went missing soon after her husband's forced ouster by military coup in 1955 and was not found until 1971 when the military at long last revealed her final secret resting place in, Milan, Italy, of all places. Eventually her bones were returned to her homeland and placed in the Duarte Family vault in the Recoleta cemetery in 1974.

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A few last bits and bobs about Buenos Aires are in order before I sign off...I was pleasantly surprised to find Starbucks on many a street corner and therefore enjoyed an almost daily chai tea latte. Yes, that is rather pathetic of me but I JUST DON'T CARE. So sue me or bite me, whichever you prefer! :)

Oh and it was somewhat disconcerting and yet cool to discover that there are people there known as "cartoneros" who regularly go through trash bins in order to collect any/all recyclable materials they may find. Apparently they subsist on the meager income this provides and the fact that at least some recycling is being done in Buenos Aires as a result is good news to me.

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My time in Buenos Aires drew to a dramatic close with yet another huge storm replete with lightning and hail the size of golf balls! I had never seen hail of that size before but apparently it isn't all that uncommon. I prefer to think, however, that it was simply the Gods sobbing over my impending departure.

After more than 5 months and 6 countries, I am leaving a land which has blessed me with countless precious moments!

I am leaving this continent feeling forever changed.

I am leaving but really. don't. want. to.

Viva La Sudamerica!!!