This past January I was lucky enough to accompany a university travel course trip to Brazil and Argentina. Our first stop was Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Then off to Iguazu Falls on the border of Brazil and Argentina and finally ending up in Buenos Aires. For those of you with bad geography, here is a map. South America – it’s that large continent that hangs down below Panama. It was interesting to note that the airplane ride from Buenos Aires back to America took considerably more time – because it’s all up hill.

It’s really all up hill!

We take for granted many things in America such as the organization of public utilities. In Rio and Buenos Aires things are not always organized. Safety and simplicity are often not the norm. When cable TV came to these cities, wires were strung everywhere. Check out some of this mess.

So much for one wire for the entire block.

Install a metal sign attached to a metal awning inches from the electric wires – no problem.

Need a cable connection? Just shoot a wire from building top to building top. It’s a spider web up there.

Buenos Aires is a large, clean and, fun city with a population of about 13 million. I really enjoyed Buenos Aires. The city is generally a safe place with hard working good spirited people. As you can see from the photos, Buenos Aires has a large middle class. I spotted hundred of swimming pools as we landed. The city is a lot cleaner than Rio with excellent food, and entertainment. I would like to revisit Buenos Aires and a considerable amount of time there. It is called the Paris of South America and after my stay in France a couple of years ago, I believe it. The architecture, the wide boulevards, along with may parks makes this city one of the most inviting I have visited. I shall return – except this time with a little more Spanish under my belt.

Middle class communities.

It’s flat, flat, flat.

Notice all of the pools.

13 million people eh.

One of the many walking only shopping streets.

Another shopping street.

At night.

Next stop Buenos Aires, Argentina.

More geographically challenged help.

As we flew into Argentina I took these shots of some of the varying landscapes that appeared from the plane. It was a little hazy so the photos are a little thin.

Eva Peron was an iconic figure in Argentine history here rise and subsequent fall from power was illustrated in the Broadway show and movie “Evita.” The pink house in the photos is the place where she stood on the balcony and did her famous “Don’t cry for me Argentina.” speech. There is still graffiti on spray painted on walls supporting her. They love their Evita in Argentina.

Can’t believe this show is still playing there.

Her “Pink House.”

Grave site.

Grave plaque.

Had to get Madonna in the post somehow.

This is the way meat should be cooked. On our last night in Buenos Aires, we had the steaks of our lives. The largest slabs of meat I have ever seen. And we ate it all.

Whole animals on the spit.

Broasted chickens.

That’s steak in my belly.

Argentina is the Tango capital of the world and of course we had to see some world class Tango. We went to “Senor Tango” which was a history of the Tango from the early slave days all the way to modern times. It featured three orchestras – yes three, guest musicians, thirty dancers, singers, horses, lighting, smoke, moving stages, you name it and it was in this show. There were a lot of locals at the show so it wasn’t totally a tourist trap. This was very stylized Tango and beyond any Tango most Americans have ever seen. The choreography was sexy, violent, and sensual – all at the same time. It was too much for me. As one local Tango dancer told me, the object of Tango is to move across the dance floor and not get kicked. I’ll stick with swing dancing and the two-step. All of these photos were taken from the “Senor Tango” web site. They wouldn’t allow photos.

I thought I would take a moment to ask forgiveness for my evil ways, but in the midst of my solitude and introspection, I was raided by the Devil himself – Mark.

You will go to Hell for that Mark.

La Boca means “the mouth” and is a neighborhood in Buenos Aires at the mouth of the river. It was the section of the city where new immigrants first stayed crammed many into small rooms. Since it originally was a poor area, and near where the cargo ships were repaired, the locals would get the left over paint from the ships and use it on their homes. Since it was free, it came in many colors. This is what has made La Boca a colorful area of the city. It was also an old red-light district and thus the sensual dance Tango originated here. It reminded me of the funkiness of the French Quarter in New Orleans.

Colorful buildings.

Art markets.

Homage to the Tango.

Tango art.

Historical building for new immigrants.

More houses.

Even more.

Shops.

The famous Caminito Havanna corner building.

Dining.

Carnival icons from every balcony.

Got some laundry?

Pipi room anyone?

New Orleans all the way.

Homage to Tango.

Since Tango is the dance of love, I couldn’t miss a chance get wrapped up with a street Tango dancer. This was in the La Boca area of Buenos Aires.

Headlines: “Tourist get arrested in Buenos Aires.”

I swear I didn’t catch anything from her.

Alright, I did get a Tango kiss.

We were walking in Buenos Aires and discussing what Tango show we wanted to attend. I saw this billboard and said “Hey what about this show?” Further investigation revealed there were no women in this show.

The second billboard I spotted was even more crazy. “Dialogue with a prostitute and her client.” NOOOOOOOOO!!!

This is Tang-O.

Is that a guy on his shoulders?

The cloisters is a famous old church in Buenos Aires that houses beautiful golden sculptures of biblical events. Behind it is the graveyard that houses the crypts of the rich and famous of Argentina.

This graveyard in central Buenos Aires housed the upper-crust of the Argentine social structure. These crypts housed the families of the rich and famous. Eve Peron is buried in this graveyard to name just one. Unlike some cities like New Orleans, the crypts were above ground to keep the bodies out of the swamp. These were monuments to the glory of these families and each had to out do the other. When you looked into the crypts, they each had stairs that led to a lower level room that had shelves lining the walls. Great place for e Halloween party.

A mini-cathedral.

Door into a crypt.

Who dat crypt keeper?

It looked like a mini-city.

I caught these guards marching from their duty of guarding the royal palace. They were the equivalent of the British guards. I think they were looking for a Starbucks after their standing at attention session.

Argentine guards.

British guards.

Argentina has had a problem of not enough coins in circulation. Store people are reluctant to give you coins as change if they can avoid it. This one shop did not have the proper amount of change in coins to give me, so they gave me change in candy.

In some countries this is worth more than coins.

Here are some of the historical places in Buenos Aires.

The Obelisk in the middle of the largest avenue in the world is the main focus of Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires. The obelisk was built in 1936 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first founding of the city.

More Obelisk.

Secretariat of Communication.

Some guy on a horse. It looked cool against the sky.

National Cathedral.

More Cathedral.

During the brutal military government of thirty years ago, 30,000 people – mainly young men, were rounded up, tortured, and “disappeared.” Generally this was done by helicoptering them out to sea and pushing them out the door to their deaths – and no potential discovery of the body. These were the “Disappeared.” An example of this brutality, a group of 16 year olds were protesting the hike in bus fares and since they were “trouble makers,” the military government arrested then, tortured them and “disappeared” them. The government henchmen were trained by CIA agents from America in the best ways of torture and how to “disappear” people. Because, the military dictatorship was anti-communist and America supported any means to be anti-communist in those days.

The protests that ensued were by the mothers of these youths who every day for many years gathered at the square and walked around and around. They wore head scarves and painted the scarf emblem on the square in protest. The protests ended after a democratic government tool over, but the memory of their struggle remains in the square.

Argentine mothers protesting.

Notice the painted headscarf on the bricks.

Headscarf.

Sign read “Assisins.”

More protest photos.

Photos of the “disappeared” that were posted in the square. Notice they are all young people.

I have searched for years to find this place. This is the infamous “Green Door.” Unfortunately it was locked so I was not able to see what was “Behind the Green Door.” It was across the street from our hotel in Buenos Aires so I had frequent opportunities to wait and see if Marilyn Chambers would eventually appear. She didn’t – my life..

Come out come out Marilyn where ever you are.

I don’t know what this store was selling, “butt” they sure had an interesting window sign.

Maybe there’s a green door behind the red one.

I found this kid asleep at a Buenos Aires street market. His parents were selling drums and shirts.

Dreaming of playing soccer.

There is an interesting area near the airport that has been taken over by poor people. It initially was a large empty field. Poor people came in and began building ramshackle housing out of any materials they could find. Once the land was completely filled, they started building up with unreinforced brick apartment complexes. Because of the recent (30 years ago) heavy-handed and oppressive military government, the current government will not forcibly remove them. The only leverage the government had was to limit the amount of building materials that were available. But as you know, people find a way to survive. These slums are in the heart of the city and cast a onerous spell on the middle-class communities surrounding them.

We took a trip to an Estancia about an hour and a half outside Buenos Aires. This was out on the playa where the Gauchos do their stuff. We were entertained by a wonderful dance and music revue giving a history of Argentine dance as well as a Gaucho show. We also rode horses and had a very tranquil afternoon. Check out the Gaucho show video.

These boys know how to ride.

Mr. Tucan doesn’t live on the playa, but was fun to look at up close.

Former horse stables now a hotel.

On the trail.

My view riding the horse as we poked along on autopilot.

Gaucho dance revue.

For lunch we were treated to a traditional historic dance show.

Dancing with the Argentinian stars.

Gaucho with a microphone – how ironic.

Showoffs.