As part of my work on the Humans of Penn State project this past week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Ana, one of the kind people who clean Simmons. Ana moved to Pennsylvania from Peru when she was 17 years old, and as we got to talking about South America I mentioned that I was applying to study in Argentina next year. She promptly told me, “Don’t fall in love with any of those assholes there,” which made me laugh, though I can’t promise that I won’t fall in love with Buenos Aires itself. For my final post, I want to share with you some more about the beautiful city in which I hope to spend next spring semester. Buenos Aires is divided into 48 barrios (neighborhoods), but I’m going to focus on some of the ones that are well-recognized for their unique flair.
La Boca
Perhaps the most vibrant barrio in all of Argentina, the brilliant colors of La Boca reflect the diversity of its inhabitants. If you recall from my earlier post on the tango, La Boca is home to mainly working-class immigrants. It is located right on the water, so immigrants entering the country settled close to the ports that would provide many of them with work. The two most salient features of La Boca are La Bombonera and El Caminito.
El Caminito is a stretch that showcases the vibrant homes that adorn La Boca. Possibly, immigrants simply searched around shipyards for whatever paints they could find, hence the outrageous colors.
La Bombonera (or ‘chocolate box’ in English) is the home of Boca Juniors, one of BA’s clubes de fútbol and a part of the Argentine Primera División. Las hinchas (fans) have been known to get pretty intense, especially when playing cross-town rival River Plate.
Recoleta
Considered to be ‘Little Paris’ within Buenos Aires, Recoleta is the most posh barrio in the city. During a yellow fever epidemic in 1817, the wealthy of BA moved to this area due to its proximity to the cemetery. The cemetery is the most popular tourist attraction in this barrio, as it holds the tomb of Eva Perón.
Montserrat
Monserrat is the Capitol Hill of BA, as it is the domain of several government buildings, including the Casa Rosada, the home of the president.
In front of the Casa Rosada is the Plaza de Mayo, where one can find some of the most interesting inhabitants of BA, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo. In 1976, Argentina experienced a military coup that brought heavy political oppression. Up to 30,000 people ‘disappeared’, and the Madres convene in front of the president’s home weekly to demand answers. When the military government was disbanded, the offenders were granted amnesty, so the Madres seek justice for the children and grandchildren they lost.
Finally, the most commonly associated symbol of Buenos Aires: the obelisk of BA, which lies in the middle of 9 de Julio. Named after the Argentine Independence Day, 9 de Julio is the widest avenue in the world with 9 lanes of traffic plus pedestrian lanes.
I cannot wait to explore these and several of the other gems BA has to offer. Thanks for reading my posts every week. I hope you learned something new or at least enjoyed the photos. Hasta luego, amigos
References
http://www.buenosaireshabitat.com/buenos-aires-neighborhoods/recoleta.html
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/city-guides/buenos-aires-walking-tour-3/
http://wander-argentina.com/the-obelisk-yesterday-and-today/
Images
http://repensandolarealidad.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/caminito.jpg
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5y82mX71tjA/T-Mk0sxSdHI/AAAAAAAAAO4/tCHwH3XDcAY/s1600/images.jpg
http://www.visittangobuenosaires.com/images/Lindh%20photos/CasaRosada-MVC-329F.JPG
http://socialhistory.org/sites/default/files/plaza1.jpg
http://www.forodefotos.com/attachments/argentina/25431d1318961872-fotos-del-obelisco-en-buenos-aires-plaza-obelisco.jpg