A way to revive the spirit!

My negativity of hours ago has vanished. It is amazing how a small, somewhat everyday experience can do for your confidence...

 for your mood...

 for your soul....

While being in the big city we have found it hard to find quality fruit and vegetables, so this afternoon we made it our mission, and oh how I wish I took the camera. Words can't describe our first ride on the 'Subte' on a wonderful old train with its original wooden fittings, similar to the Melbourne City Circle tram, though without the buff and polish, and on an underground line.

Nor can words describe the sight of wonderful fruit and vegetable stands at Del Progreso Mercado, or the sight of the near full moon rising above the city as we emerged from the Subte on the way back to our hostel after a very successful shopping trip.

The real confidence booster was being able to buy train tickets, get off at the right station, sit down for a drink at a cafe, buy a whole lot of yummy delights, all without any difficulties. 

And then to cook this up into a delicious dinner to share with my favourite, most wonderful James.

Life is good.

What to do, oh dear what to do...

We are having the time of our lives, there is no doubt about it. But there is also no doubt that this is one of the hardest things I have ever done... I run the risk of sounding whinging, sounding like I'm not loving it, sounding like a spoiled brat, but it is time to have a little vent...

There have been a whole stack of challenges already and we have only been here 2 weeks. Much of what you see is impossible to get used to. There is so much homelessness, not like in Melbourne where its mostly men who are few and far between, but on every street corner there are families, often with 4 or 5 children, living on cardboard boxes, or a mattress if they are lucky. It is devastating and I'm ashamed of the way I cross the street and pretend not to notice them, its heart breaking and I don't know how else to respond, I feel guilty and disgusted by the injustice of it all... Its the guilts of the rich I guess... and a clear reminder of how lucky we are in Australia, somehow many problems of the last year or two seem quite insignificant  in retrospect, also the problems and the challenges that we are facing in the here and now. I had a mini tantrum a couple of days ago when we couldn't find the right place to catch the bus. This coincided with me walking past a young man about my age, whose friends were trying to revive him... I don't think they did.... I saw an ambulance and police there as we drove past on the bus that we managed to find....

It puts our problems into perspective, but somehow it doesn't make them easier to cope with. That we couldn't tell the man at the laundromat that we would prefer to pick up our clothes tomorrow morning, that there are no spoons in the hostel kitchen, that our plans for the next month have fallen through and we have to decide what to do... They still all make my guts rumble a little, make me a little bit angry that its so hard to do the simplest things.

Our spanish lessons are going well, though again I assumed that after a day or two I would be able to speak fluently, again, I was mistaken. Communication is something I have thought a lot about over the years, when working with kids who aren't able to communicate easily... But its never been me, I've never been the one who couldn't tell someone what I wan't, who couldn't explain that no we only want one bread roll and not two, and who couldn't understand when I was asked a simple question. The frustration builds each time I say the wrong word, or I don't understand what a shop keeper is asking me, or I want a healthy meal but can't read the menu to figure out what is what. I can begin to understand some of the tantrums and the aggression that I have seen... At least for me it isn't too hard to figure it out, I can get out my phrase book or translator, ask for a menu in english, mime and draw and describe. 

Despite my negativity here in this post, we are having a great time, we are learning and seeing and being challenged which was the whole point of this trip. We are loving each others company and not tiring of each other at all and we are looking forward to all of the amazing things we will see.

So... after Monday the horizon is looking clear, we have no plans, no set destination, no one to welcome us anywhere.... It is unnerving and liberating at the same time. We both can't wait to get out of the city, breath some fresh air, see the horizon, though I expect the trouble we have been having communicating will be even more extreme if we head somewhere out of the way. The possibilities are endless, to Patagonia? To Iguassu Falls? To Mendoza? Cordoba? Rosaria? Even to Chili or Uruguay? 

Where do you think we should go???

La Boca

Today we went to 'La Boca'... la tourismo central, si si! Just a couple of photos for now, perhaps a full blog later.

 Yesterday we awoke to the sounds of car horns and sirens. We had fallen asleep talking about the amazing protests the day before and naturally we thought that perhaps they were continuing. When we ventured out of the hostel our little laneway was banked up, police on each corner directing traffic and all of the roads to the left blocked off to all vehicle traffic. We saw these police bikes on one of the side streets, heading towards the main road, that was blocked off. All of the police were inside an "Open 25 hrs" shop (similar to a 7/11 back home!)

 We kept going and saw the entire main drag blocked off, fenced off and, hundreds of police milling around in groups of 10 to 20 on every corner. At the end of the road, in front of the Congress, we saw a big crowd. We chatted to a local who told us that the first of March is the only day of the year that the President enters Congress. The crowds were in support of the president, and the road was blocked for her safety. To make the traffic matters worse the 'Subte' was closed, the train drivers on strike.

 The gap between rich and poor here is so apparent when just walking down the street, it is so confronting to see young families with four or five children living on the street. This is a view of Av Callao, towards the wealthy end. Just before this we had walked past a lady sleeping on the street, her daughter sitting with her, about 7 years old, spoke to us, and grinned like a cheshire cat when we told here we didn't understand Spanish. She smiled and waved, we smiled back but I felt a bit sick in my stomach for hours afterwards, there are so many kids on the street here, I would love to bundle them up and give them the best but it seems impossible...

Though it wasn't impossible for Evita Peron, each street kid she came across, she bundled them up and gave them only the best in her own home for 10 days, before taking them to a group home where they were given food, clothing, education and love.

Evita Peron is a national hero, a little like robin hood, loved by most but hated by some... She is entombed at Recoletta Cemetery, after her body was retrieved from a fake grave in Italy 20 years after her death. It is a place where no expense is spared by the rich to ensure that their status is not forgotten long after their deaths...

 We spent a good few hours wandering around the amazing monuments and crypts at the cemetery, but despite the grandeur and the riches, everyone who resides there does not leave their air tight metal box within their casket. Each crypt has one or two basements, with up to nine bodies laid in each. Many of the crypts have fallen into disrepair and the coffins are clearly visible down the stairs to the basements. When the crypt gets full the family removes the oldest bodies and cremates them, so the next generation can fit in too.

 These plots are quite literally prime real estate, families can sell the plots, crypts and all, but must remove the bodies which are then cremated. The costs vary depending on the size, location, and beauty of  the ornamentation. A basic plot costs around $45 thousand US dollars.









I found this particular monument quite moving... A statue of an Italian migrant stepping off the boat, the name on the boat 'Ayudate' (pronounced "Ay-ju-dar-tey") meaning to help yourself, be alone and stand on your own two feet, have no one to rely on...





Many of the crypts have beautiful stained glass windows, plaques and artworks depicting important moments of the occupants life and religious symbols to help guide the spirit. Here are some more photos of amazing sights around the cemetery...

   

In other news...

After coming close to having a panic attack yesterday while trying to buy some sausages for dinner, we have booked into a 5 day Spanish course next week! 

Constitucion building of Congress. A very impressive and imposing structure. All parts were imported from Europe for it to be built.
Don't piss these guys off, they mean business!!!!! Policia Federal Argentina.

WHERES WALLY????? A street graffiti stencil.

This is my first blog since I have been in Sth America. Buenos Aires is a wonderful, crazy, magic, surprising, weird city. It has huge apartment buildings. Today, we saw a house on top of one. Yes, a house. It was at least twenty stories up on the roof. The reason why? Because a rich business owner in the past wanted to have his siesta close by to where he worked. 'So hey, lets put it up here' he said. And they did.

It is very different to Melbourne. For instance, people don't use bins, they just throw their rubbish on the ground. This is because the bins are already overflowing with rubbish. I saw a rat last night, and it was the biggest rat I've seen.

The free city tours have been great, learning the history of some of Argentina's most powerful people. I can't remember the names as there are so many. Argentinian's are very patriotic people. On every building there is a flag and in every shop there are flags. On cars there are flags. some checkout attendants even have flags on their uniforms. It is a lot different from what I'm used to.

It is that difference that I am enjoying the most. Being able to see something that I'm not used to is, honestly, a little nerve racking, but it is exciting and an adventure at the same time. The food, culture, language, they are all new to me and I'm loving it. I had a 'Super Pancho' today. It's a hotdog with mayonaise, salad and then....chips. Potato chips on top as a garnish. I don't know who invented it, but they certainly weren't thinking of cardio-vascular disease at the time!!!!

How do they taste? Great!!!!!

I will go now, and try to upload some photos of today's tour, and try to remember their names.

Bye for now, James.

Some photos

Land at last!

Some sights we have seen on a city tour with bafreetours.com. Sol was a wonderful tour guide!

The pace of life in the city. A professional Dog Walker.

A view down 9 de Jullio Av. to the Obeliske

Recoletta church.

Dinner with a fellow Aussie on his last night in South America.

The atmosphere at dinner

And a little taste of our hostel...

The stairs at our hotel... What with the hours of walking we have done and the up and down these stairs multiple times we are likely to get fit quick!

A gorgeous mural, as seen from the balcony outside our room.