Where in the world is Lani?

Buenos Tardez!

Today has been our first full day in Argentina and we have made the most of it! We started early after a good sleep in (only until 9.30!) before hitting the streets and heading into Buenos Aires Central which is just down the end of our street. We started by visiting the Metropolitan Cathedral which is inspiring. I´m not a particularly religious person, but walking the halls of this massive cathedral is enough to make the hairs stand up on the back of anyones neck! We saw tens of people lining up for confession (which was held in the open, not in the little booths you normally see) and I donated some pesos which will hopefully reach those who need them.

Afterwards we walked to Casa Rosada - made famous by the film Evita - think of the scene from the movie where she makes her famous speeches. Ang and I sang "Don´t cry for me Argentina" in the street like dorks, though unfortunately the front facade of the building is undergoing maintenance at present so its covered with scaffolding!

On to our next haunt, we took our first ride on the subtle (subway) here which costs 0.70 pesos ($US1 = 3 pesos) which is cheap as fritas (chips) to the main station and then walked to Racoleta Graveyard in the suburbs. On the way we stumbled on the most amazing cultural centre which showcases local art, like a really funky, minimalist gallery. They were featuring installations from all over Argentina, and most importantly, it was air conditioned and free, so we spent an hour there.

We finally made it to the cemetary which is one of the most spectacular sights i have ever seen. Its like a mini suburb full of vaults which start as big as your average garden shed and go to as big as a small house. Many house coffins, remains and shrines for 6 or 7 members of wealthy or famous Argentinian families at once, and Ang and i were amazed at how close you can get to the inside of these very private areas. 

We spent about 2 hours walking round, and found the grave of Eva Peron, nestled amongst all the others. This was an iconic spot. We stood and gazed (in the heat of the Buenos Aires sun) for a good 20 minutes, reflecting on Evita´s love for her country and what an amazing person she must have been.

We spent another hour wandering the beautiful parklands around the cemetary before hopping on our first bus in Argentina to come back home. Tonight we are meeting our mates from La Serena (Chile) for our first official parilla (bbq) of Argentinian steak! How exciting. Supposedly its the best steak place in Buenos Aires - http://www.sigalavaca.com/site/index_ing.htm and we feel it would be an insult to the Argentinians not to eat their steak.....

Anyway, more adventures tomorrow -

Until then, i´ll have mine medium rare

Lani