...but Sunday was brilliant! Danger´s post below brought back all the great memories, what an awesome day :)
Today there is the sort of cool breaze in the air that you would expect to feel on the edge of the water - not right in the middle of Palermo. After sleeping in a bit, trying to sort out Punky´s luggage issues (still not arrived), we had a leisurely breakfast at our corner coffee shop (the rest of the crew is downtown, we´re in Palermo). We were there yesterday morning... and last night, on our brief walk back from the Tango festival nearby at Plaza Italia. We stopped in for the long-promised sugar-dose Punky requires on a daily basis!
We had spent the afternoon in San Telmo, as described in fantastic detail by Miss Danger below. Punky and I were there a few hours earlier while the crew checked in and settled in upon arrival into town. Of course I took a million photos - in the streets, of the stunning architecture, and interesting graffiti of all sorts. My most favourite photo is of three young boys playing football just past the artisan booths of a sidestreet, with a mural of Che Guevera in the background. When I sort out how to get photos on here, it´ll be one of the first posted - along with a few of the tamtams and spontaneous salsa parade along av. Defensa.
Miss Danger was a bit conservative on the vino descriptions... we had first a malbec, then a cab sauv at our first stop... and then a malbec based blend at dinner (Norton, who we will visit next week). Of course, understandable to have overlooked the broad categories as her and Punky were picking up each specific flavour or aroma they picked up ... vanille, red berries, chocolate, wood, and many more I can´t recall.
Our motorcade cabride from San Telmo through to Palermo was great bc we had a fantastic introduction to the city and how varying the architecture can be. You can easily tell when the neighbourhood changes bc suddenly the pervasive architecture changes. There is always a mix of types of building, it´s always quite random, but when the norm changes from one style to the next you know it´s a new area. We also got a quick view of some of the huge and amazing parks found in the Recoleta area.
It was amazing to finally meet up with everyone! Fun times and small incidents already, you know that was just day one of many more adventures to come! It was really funny to see when it was realized, usually on the second or third take, that there are in fact six of us! We had a few fans although all were, from what we could understand, harmless and friendly. Not sure what the rest of the day has in store, but tomorrow we take it on the water and head over to Colonia in Uruguay. Apparently, there are all sorts of preparations for our arrival already taking place!!! Ole!
Monday, March 5, 2007
Less than 24 hours in Buenos Aires, and I've already danced a tango. And salsa'd in the cobblestone streets of San Telmo. This city seems to be just my style. Any city that treats music and dance as akin to life will easily catch my heart.
As Miss Bling wrote, Trouble has definetely arrived. 6 of the Magnificent 7 met up on the streets of San Telmo (directions to our meeting place instructed us to look for the "hot cops on the corner") and the fantastic Sunday antiques market that took over the square. Right next to it, in a white-washed parking garage, was the design feria, with clothes and handbags that could only be described as uber-cool (a word I hate with a passion, but it fits in this case). Resisting temptation to load down our luggage on our first day of the trip, we pulled up a table at a sidewalk bar and cracked open our first bottle of Malbec while actually in Argentina. People-watching here is fascinating- a really interesting mix of the young, old, trendy, laid-back, tourists and locals.
Wandering around, we came across people drumming, clapping and dancing the salsa in the square. They paused to light a fire, thus warming up the skins of their drums in anticipation of the explosion of life to come, and then the night took on an air of spontaneity that one can only find in a Latin country. As we joined the parade of frenzied musicians and dancers through the streets of San Telmo, I wondered why I lived in England? I could easily do this on a regular basis- dance under the stars to the beat of the drums next to me.
Dinner involved more Malbec, and our first taste of Argentinian beef. God must do something special to the cows in this country, because I have never tasted beef quite so succulent or tender. A bottle of wine too, and all it cost was 6 quid!
All the tango lessons paid off as I joined the milonga with an Argentine partner at the Buenos Aires Tango Festival. I couldn't believe I was doing a tango in the city where it was invented. The older peole were wonderful to watch, and the amount of young people sliding across the floor showed that this most passionate of dances will never be a dying art.
As Miss Bling wrote, Trouble has definetely arrived. 6 of the Magnificent 7 met up on the streets of San Telmo (directions to our meeting place instructed us to look for the "hot cops on the corner") and the fantastic Sunday antiques market that took over the square. Right next to it, in a white-washed parking garage, was the design feria, with clothes and handbags that could only be described as uber-cool (a word I hate with a passion, but it fits in this case). Resisting temptation to load down our luggage on our first day of the trip, we pulled up a table at a sidewalk bar and cracked open our first bottle of Malbec while actually in Argentina. People-watching here is fascinating- a really interesting mix of the young, old, trendy, laid-back, tourists and locals.
Wandering around, we came across people drumming, clapping and dancing the salsa in the square. They paused to light a fire, thus warming up the skins of their drums in anticipation of the explosion of life to come, and then the night took on an air of spontaneity that one can only find in a Latin country. As we joined the parade of frenzied musicians and dancers through the streets of San Telmo, I wondered why I lived in England? I could easily do this on a regular basis- dance under the stars to the beat of the drums next to me.
Dinner involved more Malbec, and our first taste of Argentinian beef. God must do something special to the cows in this country, because I have never tasted beef quite so succulent or tender. A bottle of wine too, and all it cost was 6 quid!
All the tango lessons paid off as I joined the milonga with an Argentine partner at the Buenos Aires Tango Festival. I couldn't believe I was doing a tango in the city where it was invented. The older peole were wonderful to watch, and the amount of young people sliding across the floor showed that this most passionate of dances will never be a dying art.
Sunday, March 4, 2007
The eagles have landed... aka Trouble has arrived.
Punky arrived finally this morning, without luggage, and the terrible twins and friends have also arrived. We will meet up with them later once Punky´s luggage gets here. (should be soon)
We just went for medialunas and cappucino at the corner cafe we always hang out at. We hope to hit the San Telmo Sunday market and then the last night of the tango festival.
Yesterday it was quite cool and mostly overcast. Today it is cool (probably 17 C or so) with a breeze and sun. Palermo Soho was mad busy with ppl walking around and then we went to a street called Cordoba which has lots of outlets and stores - pretty great shopping, although I´ll save that moreso for the end of the trip when we aren´t traveling about on ferries and small planes all over the place. Don´t need any more to carry around!
Shoutout to the Facebook peeps! No, I´m still not playing along but am considering it. It sounds like crack though...not sure I need an addictive habit! Ok that´s it for now!!!
Punky should be posting our winery visit schedule soon... Still ambitious but not as much as originally intended. We are now looking into cycling from one winery to another... not sure wine and bikes go together but there is only one way to find out for sure! Hoping to do about three per day, and save an afternoon to visit this amazing canyon that we don´t actually know the name of but is supposed to be outstanding!!!
Well that´s about it! Hopefully the luggage will have arrived and we can head out. Chau chau!
The Perfect Mixtape
Free advertising in exchange for a free copy of the final project!!!
Hello Family and Friends, I am in need of everyone and anyones help for an artistic project I am trying to get off the ground. I am in search of audio mixtapes (good condition perferably). It does not have to be of any particular genre it just needs to be a mixtape that you might have put together back in the day. If you have one or more tapes you would like to share or can merely pass this email on it would be greatly appreciated. They can either email me at this address or at mixtapecollector8@gmail.com Thank you in advance and hope to hear from alot of you soon. Cheers, Parvez
Hello Family and Friends, I am in need of everyone and anyones help for an artistic project I am trying to get off the ground. I am in search of audio mixtapes (good condition perferably). It does not have to be of any particular genre it just needs to be a mixtape that you might have put together back in the day. If you have one or more tapes you would like to share or can merely pass this email on it would be greatly appreciated. They can either email me at this address or at mixtapecollector8@gmail.com Thank you in advance and hope to hear from alot of you soon. Cheers, Parvez
Saturday, March 3, 2007
SOHO, oyo and ole!
An afternoon in SOHO is about as good as it gets. Great boutiques of all sorts, from trendy clothing stores and design shops, to small more boho-chic spots, and market stalls with artisanal jewelry and the like. It´s a little bit like Notting Hill although less polished, but the idea of low structures, some quite colourful, cool cafes and terrasses, trendy restos or lounges, and plenty of peoplewatching to be done. Definitely designed for the excessively fabulous.
At night we went to Belgrano to Monica´s for dinner and it was a fun, if late, night. She has an amazing huge terrasse that gets sun from every angle but South, which here is the one which the sun doesn´t come from. Another area that I really want to explore more, we will do an afternoon and maybe dinner there once the full crew is in town (and probably after we return from Mendoza et al.) It´s a little less developped in terms of being a chichi hotspot although there is fantastic shopping to be done there - but less highend and trendy than Soho. A lot more residential and local than Soho and Palermo Viejo in general which has a strong expat population as well as being a must-see for tourists moreso than Belgrano. But one of the most famous restaurants is there, so hopefully we manage to get in to check out the hype! (sucre)
Punky´s flight was in fact delayed significantly out of Montreal and she arrived too late to make her connection at JFK and is currently en route, leaving to Miami shortly, then BA tonight. She´ll arrive here quite early tomorrow morning although who knows about her luggage! For those of you who don´t know my maxim - never travel on a Friday if you plan on having any sort of a weekend in your destination. a) you´re always a bit tired your first night and b) if your flight gets mucked up, you´ve missed the weekend! Always fly on a Thursday (or earlier).
The rest of the rock stars also arrive tomorrow and I´m hoping we will get to check out San Telmo. They are known for their Sunday antique market, and there are some interesting things to check out - notably a small museum dedicated to Argentine fashion since 1850! (museo del traje). And then finish off the Sunday with the closing night of the annual Tango festival! Bueno... that´s it, chau chau.
At night we went to Belgrano to Monica´s for dinner and it was a fun, if late, night. She has an amazing huge terrasse that gets sun from every angle but South, which here is the one which the sun doesn´t come from. Another area that I really want to explore more, we will do an afternoon and maybe dinner there once the full crew is in town (and probably after we return from Mendoza et al.) It´s a little less developped in terms of being a chichi hotspot although there is fantastic shopping to be done there - but less highend and trendy than Soho. A lot more residential and local than Soho and Palermo Viejo in general which has a strong expat population as well as being a must-see for tourists moreso than Belgrano. But one of the most famous restaurants is there, so hopefully we manage to get in to check out the hype! (sucre)
Punky´s flight was in fact delayed significantly out of Montreal and she arrived too late to make her connection at JFK and is currently en route, leaving to Miami shortly, then BA tonight. She´ll arrive here quite early tomorrow morning although who knows about her luggage! For those of you who don´t know my maxim - never travel on a Friday if you plan on having any sort of a weekend in your destination. a) you´re always a bit tired your first night and b) if your flight gets mucked up, you´ve missed the weekend! Always fly on a Thursday (or earlier).
The rest of the rock stars also arrive tomorrow and I´m hoping we will get to check out San Telmo. They are known for their Sunday antique market, and there are some interesting things to check out - notably a small museum dedicated to Argentine fashion since 1850! (museo del traje). And then finish off the Sunday with the closing night of the annual Tango festival! Bueno... that´s it, chau chau.
Friday, March 2, 2007
Clear skies - in Buenos Aires, at least
Last night I went for a proper asado (asada?) dinner with my dad. It was great! Had amazing steak and lamb. Was also great to have one of my fave wines for a fraction of the Canadian cost. Late dinner of course, here.
Today has been a relaxed day, figuring out the millions of functions on my camera. Talked with Punky ealier who is hopefully soon to be en route although a lot of flights have been cancelled. Hers to JFK is still on - for now. Yikes. About to head off to Palermo SOHO area with my mom to shop a bit and grab a coffee. Lots of stopping for coffee here... I was hoping to get one ¨to go¨for the walk since I havent had any yet (the espresso is amazing although I´m partial to cafe con leche) and my mom looked at me like I was crazy. Tonight we are going to dinner at a family friend here.. although arent sure what to expect. She´s an IP lawyer and generally eats out so we arent sure she can actually cook.... ´
The weather today is PERFECT!!!!!!!!! It is cool, 20ish, not humid, and totally sunny. WOOHOO! Have lots planned for tomorrow and Sunday, and starting to have the city, metro (subte) figured out. Chau chau
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Rain Day
Rainy day!
Rain here means business although it cleared up by mid-afternoon. By business, I mean I thought I might drown if I stepped out (and so, in keeping with my dislike of rain, I did not). To quantify this a little further, by business, I mean 94% humidity. It´s quite cool, being about 20 celcius.
It´s tough to point out all that I´ve seen but I will say that only now am I starting to get a real appreciation for how big this city is. Lots of interesting areas to be discovered. Yesterday I was in the port area, which has some really nice restaurants and cafes along the water, with high-end newly constructed condos on top. Yachts and such on the water nearby. Also nearby, one of many kind of sketchy areas where you definitely want to keep your eyes open and your valuables close. Theft is a major issue here and of course I would like to avoid experiencing it!
The tango festival is on and I might stop in before the whole crew arrives on Sunday and we catch the last night of it. Gotta jet -- Ole!
Rain here means business although it cleared up by mid-afternoon. By business, I mean I thought I might drown if I stepped out (and so, in keeping with my dislike of rain, I did not). To quantify this a little further, by business, I mean 94% humidity. It´s quite cool, being about 20 celcius.
It´s tough to point out all that I´ve seen but I will say that only now am I starting to get a real appreciation for how big this city is. Lots of interesting areas to be discovered. Yesterday I was in the port area, which has some really nice restaurants and cafes along the water, with high-end newly constructed condos on top. Yachts and such on the water nearby. Also nearby, one of many kind of sketchy areas where you definitely want to keep your eyes open and your valuables close. Theft is a major issue here and of course I would like to avoid experiencing it!
The tango festival is on and I might stop in before the whole crew arrives on Sunday and we catch the last night of it. Gotta jet -- Ole!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)