Recoleta Cemetary and San Telmo

ihana.com - big trip - diary - argentina - february 2003

Sunday 19 - Wednesday 8 February

The cemetary in Recoleta is where the super rich of BsAs are buried. A plot here costs more than most porteños (residents of BsAs) houses in the city. While most people visit to see the tomb of Eva Peron (Evita), many of the other tombs are more interesting. Some are like mini cathedrals while others are decayed and rotting, perhaps with a wheelbarrow or some pots of paint stored inside.

T was having a solo tour around the cemetary taking extra photos when he came across a tomb which had a gas stove and kettle on the altar. Thinking it was worth a quick snap, he powered up the digi camera and as the lens whirred into place he almost had a heart attack when a voice issued up from inside the tomb! An old man had is face jammed against the wrought ironwork door and was screaming obscenities. Thought tombs only had dead people in them...well this one was in a major rage and came yelling out of the tomb in just his trousers and started throwing stone tiles from a handy pile nearby. Laughing and trying to dodge the tiles, T slipped and fell over, managed to stand again and throw one of the tiles back which made the old man scuttle back into his tomb before T could get a quick pic of him.

At the moment in BsAs its the height of summer and 42C is enough for any man. Our apartment doesn't have air conditioning and the ceiling fans don't have much effect. Occasionally though, big thunderstorms bring down the heat to more agreeable levels. The landy is itching to get on the road again after a superb month in San Telmo. Tango rapidly lost any appeal, the music is dull and the dancing not much better, although its popular in these parts we'd rather be watching some wiggly salsa instead. 'Lads' headed back to europe a changed man after an eye-opening first visit to latino-land where the cost of living is low and the natives are friendly.

Our laptop now has a serious problem with the screen - it will only work with an external monitor. We managed to borrow one for a couple of days to download the pictures and write some diary pages but we have to return the laptop to the repair shop where it may be for another 10 days. In order to not lose too much time we're off along the coast to the beach at Pinamar, which has had record numbers of people visiting it this year. The economic problems mean that average Argentines can't afford to go to the traditionally cheaper resort of Punta del Este in Uruguay, which is now more expensive. Once the laptop is fixed we'll come back to BsAs to pick it up, then its south for Ushuaia.

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