South America: Feb. 3 - Apr. 1, 2017. Part one: Buenos Aires

Our South American adventure was the longest holiday we've ever taken - 8 weeks in total! Preparations began more than a year before (December 2015), when we booked the cruise portion of the trip.  By August, 2016, over 90% of our details had been booked, deposits paid, and itineraries laid out.  All that remained on the eve of departure was the inevitable packing and repacking of our suitcases (oh will we ever be able to travel with just carry-on???).

Air Canada transported us to Buenos Aires (henceforth known as BA), Argentina, landing on February 4th.  It was strange for us to travel for 14 hours and still be in almost the same time zone.  It was a pleasure not to have to deal with jet lag.  When I checked my email in the BA airport, I had some warning messages from Robert and Suzanne, who were waiting for us at the hotel (Unique Art Madero) - "do not expect much, and be sure to ask for an upgraded room upon arrival".  Oh my, what a way to begin.  Yes, we did manage to get an upgrade (i.e. a room with working AC and no smell), but our stay (10 nights over the next two weeks) did not live up to our expectations.  During our stay, there was no hot food, yogurt, or fruit (not even bananas) at the breakfast buffet (that is, until a group of German tourists arrived and demanded something/anything fresh).  The hallways were never vacuumed (until I cornered a cleaner one morning), our keys worked occasionally, and the towels (when we got them) had holes in them.  Not quite a three-star hotel.  At least the location was fine, and the concierge recommended a terrific tango show.

Buenos Aires is a crumbling city.  Walking is difficult on the broken sidewalks.  Garbage everywhere (but not quite as bad as Peru).  Homeless families sleeping on the steps of the Cathedral (shame on you, Pope Francis, this is YOUR home).  Eclectic (mixture of neo-classical, French, and Italian) early 20th century buildings sorely in need of makeovers.  Shades of what might have been ... During its boom days, before wars and political upheaval, BA was the Americas' answer to Paris.  On the plus side, there are beautiful sycamore and bauhinia trees (love those Hong Kong orchids), wide boulevards (filled with bumper-to-bumper traffic), and lots of outdoor sculptures.  However, most of the sculptures are of political and military heroes on horseback.  A reflection of Argentina's difficult and complex history.  Chatting with several young Argentinians during our travels, it seemed as though the educated all want to leave Argentina.   When I mentioned that we were from Canada, their eyes brightened.  No, we haven't sponsored anyone yet.

As we always do, we explored the city by public transit and on foot.  Some days we travelled with Robert and Suzanne, and some days we were on our own.  We visited many museums (money well spent by the Argentine government).  All of the major galleries are known by acronyms - MALBA, MAMBA, etc.  They were a treat because we learned so much about South American art.  Much of it is politically inspired.  A far cry from Monet's water lilies and Cezanne's still lifes.  However, you can see Picasso's influence in the painting on the right.

The meticulously kept Japanese Garden (paid for by the Japanese government) is a beautiful serene space in the middle of the city.  We enjoyed it even more because of the Senior's discount!

The Recoleta Cemetery was mildly interesting:  a maze of narrow lanes with the tombs of most of the country's famous politicians, including Evita.  She was truly beloved.  Jeff is standing in front of the mausoleum where Luis Firpo is buried - unlike his "neighbours", he was not a statesman, but a world famous boxer whose nickname was "the wild bull of the pampas".

One of the best things about BA is its street art.  We went on a guided tour of the enormous murals in the middle class barrio of Coghlan.  One of the best afternoons of our entire trip, and an inspiration for us to seek out street art wherever we went in South America, and also back at home (e.g. Kensington Market).  The photo on the top represents a small section of an enormous surrealistic mural.  Our guide asked the group if we recognized the man sitting on the bench.  To Jeff and me, it looked exactly like Jack Benny!  Of course, it isn't - it's the artist himself.  (Not as famous in our opinion as good old Jack)

A funny (embarrassing) thing happened on our way to a tour of the Teatro Colon (opera house).  We had some time to kill before the tour, so we decided to locate the Templo Libertad (main synagogue), where we were scheduled to attend Shabbat services the following day.  We knew it was close by.  Anyhow, we noticed a huge colonial building with the 10 commandments (photo on the left) gracing its roof.  I naturally assumed that this was the synagogue.  Leaving Jeff on the steps leading up to the entrance, I marched up to the reception and asked if this is the correct entry door for the Shabbat services on Friday.  Blank responses.  So - I asked again, trying to make myself understood with a few Spanish words.  Again, no information.  Finally, someone told me that I was in the Court House, and that the synagogue was two blocks away.  We had a great chuckle over my mistake!!  You can see that the traditional-looking Temple (one the right) resembles many other Ashkenaz synagogues around the world.

The Teatro Colon, modelled after La Scala,  has recently been restored (as the website states) "to all its original glory".  Not only is it beautiful, but it also boasts excellent acoustics.  It is THE prime example of what BA used to look like in its early 20th-century days.

The four of us enjoyed a day away from the city.  We took a local commuter train to Tigre, situated on the Paraña Delta.  We amused ourselves on the slow catamaran ride, watching the 20-somethings across from us taking selfie after selfie, oblivious to the passing scenery.  The building on stilts is a convenience store!  The glassed-in house was the former residence of Domingo Sarmiento, the president of Argentina from 1868-1874.  Not sure what to make of the "hippie" in her boat.

After the boat ride, we had lunch at a local pub, and then took a very long walk (in the heat) to check out various places of interest, including the maté museum (closed), the art museum (we didn't go inside, but just admired the ornate palatial exterior), and the surprisingly good naval museum, which contained many interesting artifacts from various explorers' voyages.  We were introduced to Admiral William Brown, an Irish-born hero of Argentina's Independence War.  We had seen his tomb in the Recoleta, but didn't know how important he'd been in the country's history.  My dad would've loved the old airplanes in the garden!

When we returned from Tigre, we were whisked away to Homero Manzi, where we had a very good steak dinner and enjoyed a terrific tango show.  The live band on stage really set the mood, and in addition to the dancers, there were also two crooners.

Other highlights included a terrific day in La Boca, a very colourful (albeit touristy) part of town.  Lots of brightly painted buildings and street art.  Jeff and I walked over to the Boca Juniors football stadium (most famous local soccer team), and then had the BEST MEAL of the entire trip!  A choripán sandwich on the street.  Absolutely divine.  I don't even mind posting the photo with sausage in my teeth!

Confusing as it was to obtain tickets, we ended up having a good tour of the Casa Rosada, the pink presidential palace in the main square - Plaza de Mayo.  Standing on Evita's balcony was a thrill.  Hmm, if only I could get the chance to stand on the balcony at Buckingham Palace and wave to the crowd, now that would be a bucket list item fulfilled!

There's a lovely park in the Puerto Madera neighbourhood that is home to statues of Argentina's famous sports stars, including Messi, Manu, and Sabatini.  We were equally pleased to find a Canadian totem pole in the aptly named Plaza Canadá!  Reminded us of the totem pole in Kowloon Park in Hong Kong.  Canada's traditional gift to its friends.

Our favourite building in BA (thank you to Mike R. for the heads-up):  the totally over-the-top water pumping palace, Palacio de Aquas Corrientes.  Imagine having the audacity to commission such a wastefully extravagant waterworks building.  Of course, this is just another example of how very rich Buenos Aires was in the late 19th century.
This French Renaissance style building (replete with a beautiful mansard roof) is covered in over 300,000 glazed tiles imported from Royal Doulton.  It was designed by British engineers and completed in 1894.  At first I thought, "such an extravagance for a pumping station", but then I realized how very important fresh water is to the life of a big (or any) city.  And yet, this really is quite a sight to behold.  The first time we walked by, the museum was closed, so we ventured back on another day.  Glad to have enough time in BA to see all the famous and infamous places.


Now for the sobering side of Argentina.  It is impossible to visit this country without feeling extremely sad and angry about Los Desaparecidos (the Disappeared).  During Argentina's Dirty War (1974-83), tens of thousands of citizens (many of them young university-aged students) were murdered without a trace by the Junta.  Their mothers, who never learned the true fate of their children, began to march in protest in 1977, and have continued to march in the Plaza de Mayo every Thursday afternoon, still looking for closure.  It is an extremely emotional event to behold.  Jeff and I also noticed other homages to the Disappeared - plaques in the sidewalk outside a school where victims were abducted, and an homage to one of the founding "mothers" in a park in Puerto Madera.

BA has a tragic history of anti-Semitism.  I'm posting photos of the memorial to the victims of the bombing of the Israeli embassy in 1992, and the plaque that is mounted in the Cathedral commemorating the 20th anniversary of the bombing of AMIA, the Jewish community centre.  Jewish students were also targeted during the Junta.  Bronze tiles in the sidewalk opposite their college honour their memories.

What would a Dale vacation be without a visit to a bookshop or library?  We loved the El Atenea Grand Splendid bookstore, housed in an early 20th century theatre.  The National Library, which reminded me of OCAD, was less impressive.  A cold, boxy building, despite its unique setting.  The current director is Alberto Manguel, who is facing a difficult challenge in moving the library forward into the digital age.

I will end this blog with a photo from the wonderful tango mural we happened upon in San Telmo.  Tango, art, food, and music represent the best side of Argentina.