Our last stop in South America before heading home was Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina.
Every big city boasts a main square and this one has the Plaza de Mayo. You can feast your eyes on the impressive Casa Rosada or pink house, the presidential palace. The musical Evita springs to mind as I picture Eva Peron addressing the people from the balcony during her last days.
Diagonally across is the Metropolitan Cathedral with its many side altars, each with fancy carvings and designs. The current Pope Francis used to be the Bishop of this diocese. Being a simple man, he used public transport in to the city.
Buenos Aires is a beautiful and well-planned city with impressive French architecture. Its wide boulevards with multiple traffic lanes are flanked by parks, museums and monuments. The yellow and black taxis reminded me of the Mumbai taxis. The weather was pleasant at this time of the year.
It’s evident that this is a soccer/football-mad country. Billboards everywhere promote their favourite sport. Kingsize posters and #10 T-shirts of their Golden Ball winner – Lionel Messi – are on sale at most outlets.
Floralis Generica is a 23m high steel flower sculpture, electrically operated for the petals to open during the day and close at night.
Another thing that strikes you is that Argentinians love their meat. They are producers of the finest beef and boast some of the best ranches and steakhouses. Unfortunately we did not have time for a ranch visit to see the famous gauchos (cowboys).
Tango
Couples dance the tango with elegance and flair on some street corners. Think twice before accepting an invitation to dance or take a photo, as you will be required to part with a few pesos. For an evening’s entertainment, nothing can beat a tango show plus dinner, for fine dining and intricate dance moves supported by a brilliant orchestra.
If you’re staying downtown, visit the Galerias Pacifico Shopping Centre, not so much for the high-end shops but for its beautiful artworks and interior decor. The external facade is impressive and looks more like a fancy hotel.
You must visit La Boca and walk down the street named El Caminito.
It is cheerful and colourful with its brightly painted houses, statues of famous Argentinians, tango street dancers and little cafes. A great photo opportunity but be careful not to hang around after dark.
La Recoleta
I’m not a big fan of visiting burial grounds but La Recoleta is a Cemetery like no other! It will make you shudder! Not just because it’s a final resting-place. These mausoleums for the mega rich are worth more than your house … several times over! We saw one crypt that was worth $6m. Another one had a family wedding celebrated there!
Colonia del Sacramento
It’s the day before we fly home. We planned to take a catamaran across the Rio de la Plata (Silver River) to Uruguay, 50kms away. I expected it to be a sea vessel carrying 50-100 passengers so we were not prepared for a massive ferry (like Dover to Calais). Embarkation procedures and immigration formalities for both countries on either side took up a lot of time, which made us weary.
Colonia del Sacramento is a quaint old town which was historically occupied by the Portuguese. It has tiny cottages, cobbled streets, a lighthouse and a defunct bullfighting ring. The relaxed coastal lifestyle and seaside makes it a popular holiday retreat for the residents from the other side of Rio de la Plata.
Our South American sojourn has come to an end but it has been a month of enjoyment, education and new cultural experiences in this diverse continent. Adios Buenos Aires!
For my other destinations on this trip, see: Rio, Iguazu, Peru.
I visited Buenos Aires for the first time, thanks to you! As the old song went: “Ill bet an old castanet that you’ll never forget Argentina!”
Travelled visually with you to all these wonderful destinations….
Kerala being the only common place so far…?