Half way through our stay, we wanted to ditch the guidebook and do our own thing. The barrio of Barracas isn’t mentioned in the Lonely Planet – isn’t on the tourist radar at all, as far as I can tell, which seemed good enough reason to go for a walk there and to go with the flow. Once a wealthy barrio, Barracas was hit by … Continue reading Barracas.
My sister once said to me that Ricky Martin was sex on legs. I think tango is sex on four legs. Smouldering. Sensual. Sophisticated. Sex with a capital S. Our first milonga was at Salon Marabu. ‘Oh, that’s a bit,’ … said Cynthia, as she held her nose in the air. We didn’t know it then, but it was. Women dressed to the nines. Killer … Continue reading Tango: Sex with a capital ‘S’.
At first sight this plaza didn’t float my boat. No character, I thought. Just a big space with a lot of grandiose buildings. The Casa Rosada presidential palace, the Catedral Metropolitana and the Cabildo to name but a few. Lonely Planet touts it as the city’s historic heart. I couldn’t feel it. But we went back. And then we went again. With each visit we … Continue reading Plaza de Mayo.
I got quite excited when I heard about the Buenos Aries ‘cafe notables’. There are over seventy of them. Historic places recognised for their tradition, architectural value, local relevance and cultural significance. I love a theme, I love a challenge, and while I knew I probably wouldn’t make it to all seventy, it never hurts to have a dream. San Telmo has five classic corner … Continue reading The Notables.
San Telmo is great. But we didn’t come to Buenos Aries only to sit on Plaza Dorrego. Our thoughts turned to getting around the city. The buses – collectivos or bondis in the local parlance – seemed to be the way to go. They are loud, rough around the edges, but reasonably reliable, dirt cheap, and ferry six-and-a-half million passengers a day. We bought Sube … Continue reading The Collectivos.
On Sundays San Telmo goes for broke. For one day a week it’s the place everyone wants to be. The feria began in 1970 with just a handful of stalls, an attempt to save the area from re-development. Now the antique market takes over Plaza Dorrego and artisan stalls the surrounding cobble-stone streets, for several blocks. Bandoneon players, tarot-card readers, simit sellers, orange-juice and sugared-peanut … Continue reading San Telmo: The Sunday Feria.
We flew for 12 hours, but I feel like we’ve come to a different planet…. We begin to settle in. We’ve been here for almost two weeks now and the apartment feels like home. We are at least getting used to its quirks. We meet some of our neighbours. The magician who lives on the other half of the ground floor with his girlfriend and … Continue reading San Telmo: Our ‘Barrio’.
That’s how I think of our walks. They are not very challenging or very long but they are marvellous. We always stop half way round for lunch and a look. A sandwich always tastes better outdoors. Especially with views like these. Continue reading Pyrenean Mountain Walking for Dummies.
We go to the mountains whenever we can. And we try to find at least one new walk everytime we’re here. That was why we went to Bareges. Once a quaint mountain village, now an ugly resort. ‘I thought it would be buzzing’, said Jim. ‘I’d hoped we’d at least get a cup of coffee’. But Bareges was a ghost town, waiting for snow and … Continue reading A Walk. A Pick-me-up for the Soul.
Mist hung low in the valley. It came towards me in great swirls. The village only became visible when I reached the big house on the left. But I saw the parked van in the field above straight away, and immediately afterwards the man in the high vis. vest, glowing eerily orange, a gun slung nonchalantly over his shoulder, a wiry terrier trotting along by … Continue reading Not so idyllic.
Wondering Woman 