Buenos Aires 2

Like I was saying before, we were in Spanish classes for the morning and in the afternoons were free to roam the city. One of the afternoons we spent at the Recoleta Cemetery. It may seem a little morbid for a tourist activity, but this was the most fantastic cemetery I have ever visited. The cemetery was inaugurated in 1822. It contains 4800 vaults, and they are all such elaborate creations of marble and stone. To have a vault here, you had to really be one of Buenos Aire's elite in the late 19th or early 20th century. There are politicians (many of the former Presidents of Argentina), writers, high-ranking soldiers, and other influential members of society buried here. It was really quite an experience, very tranquil walking through the alleys, contemplating life and death. You know, regular Wednesday afternoon stuff.





















It's a little mind-blowing to think how rich these people were, and how grand they wanted their final resting place to be



Gazing down the rows of vaults






Plus there were kitties all over! This one was just taking a lazy snooze on the nice warm marble






A rather famous vault to visit is that of the Family Duarte, where Evita's remains lay. I talked about her last blog, she was the First Lady of Argentina and still lives on in the hearts and minds of many Argentinians.

















The first people to be buried in Recoleta were laid to rest in 1822




Some views of great buildings on our walk to school each morning.








This is actually from Palermo, the second neighbourhood we stayed in. It was not as historic as Recoleta, but definitely a really cool place.




Another afternoon we headed to MALBA, a museum of contemporary art. I probably should have learned my lesson about taking Jared to contemporary art museums in Santiago. A lot of the art there was related to penises, and it was the same story here. Not really sure what has artists so enamoured with them........So it was kind of painful dragging him around the whole time with him complaining about 'all the dicks.'







The longer you look at the paintings the more bizarre it gets




There was even a room that had a warning. Apparently the nudity on all the other walls was ok, but this one needed a sign.




We did walk home though the embassy district, which is usually the most beautiful part of the city, no matter where you are.





Until Next Time!