Jim & Barbara Burton Travel: Buenos Aires, Argentina Part 1

Buenos Aires Part 1

We arrived in Buenos Aires on the morning of December 22nd, 2013 and settled in to the Poetry Building in the Recoleta District. Recoleta has quite a French flair and is a very comfortable neighbourhood in which to stay. We got settled in our large studio apartment and changed some American Dollars to Pesos (you cannot exchange for Argentinian Pesos outside of the country). The commercial rate of exchange is about 6.25 but on the street you can exchange for around 10. Hotels and restaurants will usually give you between 8 - 9, which is safer, as you avoid being given counterfeit bills. It was extremely hot when we arrived and not knowing any differently thought that it was seasonal temperatures. The sky was cobalt blue without a hint of a cloud and the sun shone brightly. Then we were told this was not seasonal temperatures and that the residents were suffering in over 35C heat.

We walked around the block to the small but well stocked supermercado (supermarket) where we purchased everything we needed. Milk is expensive and wine is cheap so now we put wine in our morning tea instead of milk. Just kidding!!!! On the roof here is a nice plunge pool and seating area, very welcome in this kind of heat. The Poetry Building was once the home of a famous Buenos Aires aristocratic family, "Peralta Ramos". The building has been lovingly restored into 18 eclectic apartments with old world charm and modern conveniences. The staff here are really wonderful people. Nothing is too much trouble They speak fluent English and will arrange anything you need, including Christmas dinner. We had a traditional Argentine Christmas dinner which was prepared for us by the Panaderia a few doors down. It was scrumptious to say the least.

On Monday we had planned to do the City Walking Tour from the Obelisk, but after starting a bit late and getting a little lost on the way, diverted by some intellectuals, we missed them. Not to be deterred we started our own tour. From the Obelisk we crossed the road and found a nice coffee shop. After rejuvenating ourselves in the air conditioned facility we set forth for Plaza de Mayo.

Plaza de Mayo - May Square - is the main square in the Monserrat district and home to Casa Rosada the Presidential Palace. The entire square is flanked by impressive architecture. It is home to the magnificent Metropolitan Cathedral, the Secretariat of Intelligence, The Bank of the Nation, The Hacienda Palace, City Hall, The Cabildo and the Mayo Pyramid. In the park there is a memorial to those who lost their lives in the Falklands/Las Malvinas conflict. In Argentina there are many protest marches, at least one a week and they all seem to culminate in the Plaza de Mayo. It is a very vibrant, colourful place, rich with history. The Cabildo is the oldest building completed in 1610 and was the original seat of government. It fell into ruin, but has since been restored and is now a museum.

Torre de los Ingleses (Tower of the English), and renamed Torre Monumental after the Falklands conflict is in the Retiro district and was a gift by the local British community to commemorate the centennial of the 1810 May Revolution, completed in 1912. It was damaged by activists after the war but has since been restored and occasionally suffers the indignity of graffitiists. However, there is an indeterminate amount of buildings in Buenos Aires that are defaced with graffiti so it is not being singled out as a target.

We had Christmas Dinner on the roof terrace on Christmas Eve which is the tradition for Argentina. Not eating on roof terraces but partaking Christmas Dinner on Christmas Eve. We were joined by Ken who works here at Poetry as he was on duty. We had great food and pleasant company. Fireworks started around midnight.

Christmas Day was very quiet on the streets of this bustling city. We walked to Puerto Madero, where we will embark on our cruise ship January 5th, 2014,.The old docks have been refurbished and the warehouses converted to numerous restuarants. It was once again extremely hot so we stopped for Cafe con Leche in "The Cabana". This was a very nice restaurant but as we were only having coffee and water we were seated in a little corner where there was a wall of fame (photos) behind us. We sat between Pavarotti on one side and Sarah Ferguson the other.

Christmas Night we went to "El Querandi" for dinner and a traditional Tango Show. The food was good and the performance excellent. El Querandi was originally an old colonial house with beautiful ebony woodwork, constructed in 1867. It has been a Tango venue since 1920. They have a subtle unintrusive video before the show depicting the history of Tango with the old photographs and text. They also provide free transportation to and from your hotel.

Our next epistle will be the Recoleta Cemetery and Eva Peron - stay tuned..............................