(The most) Buenos (of all) Aires

Tango, Jorge Luis Borges and the tenderest of steaks have claimed it as their home. After only a few days in Buenos Aires, I'm burning to call this city the same.

There is the steaming mate (tea-- but so much more) that is constantly being passed around. The artsy neighborhoods, sources of great local pride. Those grand Colonial-era buildings that infuse the city with charm of another time. The Italian touch, from last names to pizzerias, that remains a testament to their waves of emigration. But also those distinct, more Latin, qualities. Like the lovely twenty minutes you sometimes spend awaiting your waiter, your food and your bill. The frequent and vociferous complaints about politicians (well, perhaps that's universal. But definitely amplified, and more humorous, in the Southern Hemisphere). And, of course, an unparalleled devotion to futbol.

Buenos Aires, as the country in general, is extremely hard to place culturally. Today, I saw Peruvian immigrants playing flute in the street for a few pesos. Walking by were busy workers streaming by with briefcase in hand, possibly heading to one of the many skyscrapers that line the city's horizon. Here are a few snaps of this varied, thrilling place.





From Plaza de Mayo.



People cross a street (newsflash, I know) of the famed Boca neighborhood.



Plaza de Mayo.



A bus in the Boca neighborhood.



The modern district-- Puerto Madero at sunset.

Overheard in Buenos Aires

Waitor in a vegetarian restaurant, trying to justify why he began to eat meat once more: "Being vegetarian in Argentina is a capital sin."

Futbol. What else?

Argentina's past is strongly anchored in fervent Roman Catholicism. But the country's past, present and --undoubtedly-- future thrives on fervent football fanaticism. Granted, soccer fever has infected the entire world at this point. But in Argentina, the contamination knows no bounds. The front page of the main financial newspaper now features Lionel Messi as much as it does bond swaps. During broadcast of other games, say Uruguay-France, there are frequent interruptions as segments of Argentina's best goals are shown, to the detriment of whatever other team is playing (because, truly, who cares?). And, everywhere, blue and white reigns. Flags decorate taxis, employees head to the office proudly displaying their patriotism on their painted cheeks and streets of the capital were swamped on Thursday following the country's win. An editorial in one of the country's leading newspaper, La Nacion, summed it up this way: "Que Dios sigue siendo argentino"-- May God continue being Argentine.




Argentine patriotism for sale at the Plaza de Mayo.



"Your mind will spend all 24 hours in South Africa. We will too."



Even the dogs have been converted.

The writing is on the wall

Scrawls cover walls all over the city, making Buenos Aires one of the best known centers for graffiti. A few from the neighborhood of San Telmo:



"Now is when."



"Art for art" (This one wasn't so hard to translate...)



"Against the coup in Honduras."

Vocabulario

Argentine slang is so absurdly unique, creative and extensive that one should dedicate an entire blog solely to the local jerga. But, so far, a few favourites.

BOLUDO-- You cannot miss this one. It's the prized local insult, which can loosely be translated as 'jerk'. Your tease your best buddy with it, you scream it to football players when they miss a goal, you mutter it as you inhale and exhale, it echoes in your dreams. Que boludo...
BACKAPEAR-- As seen in a computer store. Take a stab at deciphering it? It's roots are definitely not Argentine-- think 'to back up' in English. Nothing like a little Latin flavour to glamorize terse technological jargon.
MOTOCHORRO-- Two sneaky devils on a motorbike who creep up to steal your bag, wallet, cellphone. One hops off the vehicle, grabs whatever he desires, hops back on, and the two speed away.
CHE-- Rendered famous by El Che, the word 'che' is a ubiquitous interjection in Argentine speech. "Che, que tal?" and so forth.

Overheard in Buenos Aires

Cab driver disgruntled with national politics: "This country goes forward on automatic pilot."

I assume this is a particularly vehement insult in taxi-land.

El Ateneo

Do you fancy books? Have a thing for theatre? If so, best swing by El Ateneo, an old, charming theater that has been converted into a sprawling bookstore in the center of the city. You can stroll onto the former stage, now a cafe or peruse the mounds of novels on sale in what were the prized balcony seats. It's so Buenos Aires-- cultural, intellectual and, of course, stylish.

Futbol. What else?

The controversial Diego Maradona is hopping, shouting and dribbling on the sidelines of South African soccer fields at the moment. But El Diego is so worshipped here that it barely seems he is away. Local television appears devoted to his every press conference, his face is drawn onto the walls of his former neighborhood of Boca and one man cultivates his look in exchange for a few coins from tourists (he may be the only one. Though I absolutely mean no disrespect to Diego-- don't want to risk deportation either-- he hasn't exactly been known for his good looks recently).



Boca colours, Boca hero.



Apologies for the poor image-- I didn't want "Maradona" to see me snapping his picture and demand payment.



El diez. Now also Lionel Messi's number.

The writing is on the wall

"Burn all the prisons" (better in Spanish)



"Neither houses without people nor people without houses. No more evictions!

Boca football club

Argentina is mad about football. A number of Argentines are mad about Diego Maradona. A similarly high number are mad about Boca Juniors, the club where Maradona thrived. Should I have therefore been surprised that this fervor culminates at Boca's Bombonera stadium and its aptly named "Museum of Boca passion"? This is a rare case where the word 'passion' fails to properly convey the devotion to the club. From trophies of the team's many victories to old jerseys from the start of the 20th century, the museum has it all. But the highlight of the visit? A group of obnoxious Brazilian tourists, all decked out in a bright yellow national jersey with Pele's name on it, loudly taking pictures. It seems Argentine-Brazilian rivalry is equally legendary.



Museum of Boca passion.



Bombonera stadium.




Diego Maradona and a lovely afro, taken when he first joined the club.



This is priceless. "A name resonates throughout Africa: Mandela is liberated. In Asia, the Gulf War breaks out. Another name resonates throughout America: BOCA, the continental champion, who won the 'Recopa' and 'Clausura'." Just to put Mandela's freedom in context, you know.



Collection of football jerseys.

Lost in translation

In a Spanish/English restaurant menu: "Tarta del dia."

Which one would assume translates as 'pie of the day.'

Wrong.

"CAKE DAY", read the awesome menu's translation.

The writing is on the wall

"Celebrating 200 years of state crimes." (Argentina was founded in 1810).



"We're here to protect you."



"Uniforms deform men and make them go crazy."



"No to mandatory heterosexuality."



"If the earth shakes, no one will be able to save themselves."

Tango

Tango seems to be honoured every day in Buenos Aires, but according to this year's annual Tango Festival's slogan: "August is tango." Well, now we know. The event kicked off this week and offers classes for klutzy beginners (ahem, I may have a personal testimony coming soon) and displays of the best gliders in town. On Sunday night, I attended a powerful, mournful concert of tango music. Unfortunately, there was no dancing to gawk at, but the plain looking man in a suit (See below) was a wonderful singer.



"August is tango." Great drawing of Carlos Gardel, Argentina's most famous tango singer.



The scene on Sunday night.



Tango chords.

Vocabulario

NI LOCO/A-- Would you skydive? Will you vote for X presidential candidate? Are you wearing that tonight? "Ni loco/a," is a most appropriate, and possibly recommended, answer to all of these questions in Argentina. As you may have guessed thanks to Ricky Martin's hit, 'la vida loca,' the word means crazy. So not even crazy would I vote for X presidential candidate.

MANZANA-- Apple, as we learned in the first week of Spanish class. But also, cutely, the way to describe a neighborhood block.

The writing is on the wall

"I don't want your compliments, I want your respect."



"We have memory; we have future."



"Rural Society-- creator of poverty." Argentina's Rural Society, which groups large agriculture producers, has been criticized for hurting small farmers.




"Drink/ take conscience." ('Tomar' in Spanish means can mean both drink or take, so the original version is funnier).



"Love, light and truth."

Graffiti tour-- the city's top walls

A three-hour guided tour of Buenos' Aires best and brightest street art? I nearly fainted of excitement when I heard that such a gem existed. And I was not disapointed by the incredible creativity and spunk of the underground (or, better said, overwall) art scene plastered around Palermo neighborhood. I haven't been able to recall/find the names of each artist, so apologies for the lack of attribution. You'll just have to visit Argentina to find out.



A house painted by artist Gaulicho that is apparently up for sale. Hint.



Friendly giant and passenger.



Outside a new restaurant.



Compelling face, mix of genres.



Dog not painted.

Overheard in Buenos Aires

My poor neighbor, whose flat keeps getting flooded due to faulty pipes, being incredibly positive: "The water just keeps dripping from the ceiling... I'm pretending its holy water now, falling down to bless me."

Graffiti tour-- Urban pitfalls are my friends

Neither fences nor fuseboxes are barriers for street artists. To the contrary, I was amazed at how the artists are able to use urbanity to better their creations. A few exmaples:



Fishing on a street corner. Not sure about the comfort level, but this sweet piece is one of my favourites.



Gridlock.



Drawn tree mirrors real tree. Too cool.



Leopards and giraffes, oh my. But from the angle this picture is taken, they seem to be fenced-in zoo animals. Though of course, that's just faulty human viewpoint...



A rather rectangular robot.

Graffiti tour-- Let me spray a political statement

It's hard to understate how much Argentines love thrashing, praising or just merrily dissecting political life in their country. I was therefore a little surprised that the street art I saw wasn't fiercely opinionated. Granted, it's a little harder to convey a nuanced argument with a spray can (I think?). But here are a few of the themes that made it onto Palermo walls.



Poverty as a neighbor of this luxury store.



The anonymous prisoner.



Swines too need protection from their flu.



The 'Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo' are a group formed by women searching for their children disappeared during Argentina's military dictatorship. They cover their hair with scarves that often have the name of their child stitched on. These emblematic scarves are floating above a playground, seemingly still searching for their sons and daughters.