Tuesday, 8 January 2008

The City of Buenos Aires: Part 3 (i´m feeling politically correct today)

From the 9th July Avenue to the south there are a series of parks, this time within the micro centro and they lead down to the main train and coach station, the Retiro. At the first square, San Martin, I was caught unawares by an official guide. I declined his offer to show me around but then he flogged a few charities to donate to. We had some light banter in Spanglish during which he dashed my hopes of seeing Boca Juniors playing at home as the football season had just ended, he told me.




Plaza San Martin


Further down there is a memorial site for the Malvinas (or Falklands) War. I witnessed an all female guard change. By the way, this war was painful not just for national prestige but for the unnecessary lives lost as most Argentinians that went to battle were barely 18 years old and from the poorer parts of the north. In my opinion this war was stupid and was waged by brutal leaders (both in Argentina and the UK) paranoid about losing popularity at home. Ironically, on the other side of the boulevard cutting through this park land, is a clock tower which was a gift from the UK to Argentina many decades ago. It is protected by a fence but that has not stopped numerous graffiti assaults. I took photos of the graffiti but you will have to wait until I fix my dodgy memory card. One message that I remember the most is: "Malvinas: Nosotros volveremos" (Malvinas: We will return).



The Malvinas Cenotaph



Hmmm.....

Even though the graffiti is just prankster stuff, I sense a future diplomatic spat bubbling up about these islands especially if there are going to be any discoveries of mineral resources in the south Atlantic and Antarctica. Brits will be pleased to hear that in the mind of mapmakers here, Malvinas and big chunks of the Antarctic belong to Argentina. Heehee. Argentina got a really bad deal with Chile years ago, with Chile winning a dispute over the Tierra del Fuego and getting the full strait of Magellan. All in all a country has a right to make a claim but no more wars please.



Tierra del Fuego (the southern tip of South America)





Those sensitive parts....


My first Monday in BA was the inauguration day for the new president Cristina Kirchner, and a "Fiesta de la Democracia" was thrown at the "Plaza de 25 Mayo". It seemed quite a patriotic day of celebrating the right of people to choose their leaders though I´m not sure whether some are hiding their cynicism towards this new dynastic leadership (Cristina took over from her hubbie, Nestor), which by the way is still a worldwide trend even in countries that advocate democracy. For example, if Hilary Clinton becomes the next US president the US presidency will look nothing more than a royal swap between the house of Clinton and house of Bush. Democracy leading to kleptocracy?

Looking at the current situation of my home country, Kenya, flaws in democracy are clear when voting goes smoothly but then irregularities in the counting process brings new challenges to the authority of the government in the form of near breakdown of the social fabric. Hopefully mediation will bring things back to normal but before people (especially the US govt....can´t get enough of US bashing!) go on about the bullet proof virtues of democracy they should look at the flaws in application in certain countries. I thought I´d let that bit of steam off!!




The Bombonero





Big A$$ Gramophone in San Telmo

Back to BA! La Boca is quite a special place even though it tends to be a dangerous place to hang out at night. The main entertainment thoroughfare reminds me of pictures I've seen of New Orleans (before Hurricane Katrina of course). One can have a drink at a bar and then have a Tango spin with the professionals. Of course, La Boca is well known for Boca Juniors and I will soon be visiting their home, the "the Bombonero" (translation...big sweetshop?) stadium and museum. San Telmo is another arty part of town and it seems to be the place where the Tango enthusiasts of old hang their boots, so to speak. Being one of the oldest districts in BA, it has some very old and famous cafes.
K.

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