Buenos Aires (Argentina)
20 August 2012
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This barrio is so engaging for what it offers visually but stumbling off the traditional tourist path and venturing into the 'apparently' intimidating and crime infested back streets of the barrio was just the tonic that I needed to dissolve what I saw as being all too concocted and formulaic. I'm always amazed by the tourist 'advice' offered in guidebooks about where you should and shouldn't venture in certain cities, I mean if you followed all of the advice on offer you'd end up drinking coffee at a Starbucks, staying in your generic Hilton hotel and witnessing the delights of another city via the top deck of a double decker bus.Guidebooks and advisories should really harden the hell up and become realistic rather than provide advice that's all candy cane and fairy floss.
Historically La Boca was an Italian dominated neighbourhood whose natural economic support stemmed from the nearby docks. In turn the specific nature and color scheme of the buildings in the area has its origins derived from the ships that would make port there. It was said that quite frequently the dock workers of Boca would either ask or quite surreptitiously obtain any leftover paint that the ships had brought in,utilising their offerings in a patchwork quilt style manner that has now become synonymous with the barrio.
As I cruised the backstreets of Boca I found my way to the famous La Bombonera, (the Chocolate Box), and the home ground of Boca Juniors. This is one of the'footballing' grounds of the world that I had always wanted to visit. In my mind it had always had a type of mythical allure, accentuated by Diego Maradona's stint in the 'Swedish' team colors but cemented by memories of grainy images of games from La Bombenera that I would occasionally get to see on SBS's 'The World Game' on Saturday afternoons in the very early 80's. In the memories that I have of those games I recall a stadium that would always be full of the voice and song of the Boca Juniors faithful, but more than that, and much more so than any other ground that I could remember, the atmosphere was always confronting, intimidating, passionate, fierce and in some ways disarming. It was also so very different to any other football match that I had witnessed at that stage of my existence. My only live game experience up until that point in my life had been those that I had watched with my dad at the infamous 'Gabbie stadium' in Seven Hills supporting the mighty Blacktown City Demons as they played in the league known then as the NSL. I mean that was pretty cool too and it was the only time that my Serbian father would ever allow me to have a good 'ole pie with sauce, which to me was also a highlight, but it was no La Bombonera now was it? So my visit to The Chocolate Box was going to be just a touch on the exciting side.
As the tour was winding up I thought to myself 'how cool it would be to actually see a game here' but considering it was midweek I didn't think there would be another opportunity until the weekend and unfortunately I was due to fly north on the coming Sunday. Somehow however a question that I asked our guide was fabulously and fortunately misinterpreted by her and she dropped the critical information that I was craving, that being that Boca Juniors actually had a mid-week game at home in two days time and tickets were still available. That my friends was the only invitation that I needed! Obviously I was going to be there!!!!
After the tour I walked back down to the docks and found myself a bus to take me up to Puerto Madero, a waterfront barrio of BA occupying a significant portion of the Rio de la Plata riverbank. Over the years this area of docks and warehouses had fallen into disrepair and was a well known area for squatters. During the 90's however quite a substantial amount of money was poured into regenerating Puerto Madero and now it stands as an area filled with fantastic restaurants, clubs, hotels and some high rise residential blocks.
I walked around Puerto Madero for a while, observing the oddity that is the city development of BA, being that the city has kind of 'turned its back' on the Rio de la Plata and only utilises it as an afterthought. Most of city is built away from the banks of the river and it feels somewhat strange that there was a conscious decision by planners to ignore a significant geographical feature.
20 August 2012
Now tell me if this line makes sense to you, '...it's a place where time and space are consumed but only coffee is found on the bill'? Alright, so you can't actually make sense of that line unless I provide you with a dose of context. What I'm referring to here is the 'Viennese coffee house experience' and I guess from what I know, the line appears to be a rather contrived and all too kitsch way of describing an apparent cultural cornerstone of the Viennese way of life. Now I don't have it in me to be too critical of the Viennese and their extraordinary coffee house experience, partly because I'm 25%-50% Austrian (yes I'm still uncertain as it depends on your point of view) and of the 25% that is unequivocal, the grandfather that I'm referring to was born and bred in Vienna, but.....but....I ask you this,was it a wise decision for the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage to accept and ratify the nomination of 'The Experience' into the list of intangible cultural treasures that require safeguarding and preservation? I mean I've been to Vienna, they certainly don't have the best coffee on earth and whilst the argument that has been made is that the rituals, social practices and elegance makes for a unique experience, I say to them, 'You went with what now!?'. You're telling me that your claim to intangible fame, your pride and your interest in cultural heritage ,and your request for defence and protection relates to where you can acquire a Vienna coffee and consume time and space free of charge? Guys to me it seems that the time and space that you've been consuming has been in the coffee houses of Amsterdam and forever since then you've been searching for the holy grail of the White Castle slider!
If you've stuck with me up until this point and you're wondering what sort of tenuous line of reasoning that I'm going to use in order to draw a parallel between Vienna and Buenos Aires then check out the long bow I'm about to draw and let me hit you with my own dose of commonality. The common thread here is the tango, that most passionate and seductive of dances, that now, along with Viennese coffee house culture, is included as an item warranting protection on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list. You see what I did there? I managed to make my way from Vienna to Buenos Aires within a sentence, and better still, if you'll let me indulge you a little further, I'll narrow down my sphere of discussion to where I actually ventured on this day, that being to one of the poorest barrios in the city, La Boca.
Tango in La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
Tango in La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
The tango in its modern form originated in the lower class barrios of Buenos Aires with it's metaphorical heart beating proudly, both then and now, in La Boca. Now from what I've heard originally,it was a dance engaged in by men solely, practiced in the vicinity of bordellos prior to the time that the manly Portenos headed on up the creaky stairs of their 'local' and 'got jiggy wit it'. That representation of its early origins may be an urban myth or perhaps at the very least, clouded within elements of truth, much in the same way that I heard that bulls blood was utilised to paint the Casa Rosada,but,as an intangible cultural item that needs to be preserved? Well that is something that I can totally understand. I readily admit that until recently the tango didn't move me at all, in fact the only dance that 'I got' to this point in my life was the salsa. But after stumbling by a few cafes and halls and allowing myself to be swept up in the intense persona and atmosphere of this dance and it's very own rituals I came to realize very quickly that there is something quite unique about it. The tango imparts an electric vibe that feels completely representative of the Latin spirit but also tips a hat to its European influences. I believe that previously I either hadn't allowed myself to feel its power or perhaps deliberately dismissed it because dancing has never been my thing, but this time it caught me squarely on the jaw and now I'm absolutely a convert.
El Caminito - La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca isn't just tango heartland, it's also famous for the colorful houses that are pervasive in the area, especially in the pedestrian street of Caminito. Back in 2010 I came down here for an afternoon but managed to do a mighty idiotic thing by not charging my camera battery prior to my visit, such a rookie mistake if there ever was one! So after having jumped a train down to Constitucion and then practicing my Spanish during a short cab ride I was back onto the 'Little Walkway' in La Boca a couple of years removed from my first Boca experience.
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
This barrio is so engaging for what it offers visually but stumbling off the traditional tourist path and venturing into the 'apparently' intimidating and crime infested back streets of the barrio was just the tonic that I needed to dissolve what I saw as being all too concocted and formulaic. I'm always amazed by the tourist 'advice' offered in guidebooks about where you should and shouldn't venture in certain cities, I mean if you followed all of the advice on offer you'd end up drinking coffee at a Starbucks, staying in your generic Hilton hotel and witnessing the delights of another city via the top deck of a double decker bus.Guidebooks and advisories should really harden the hell up and become realistic rather than provide advice that's all candy cane and fairy floss.
The colours of La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
The colours of La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
The colours of La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
An empanada lunch! Thank you!!
Historically La Boca was an Italian dominated neighbourhood whose natural economic support stemmed from the nearby docks. In turn the specific nature and color scheme of the buildings in the area has its origins derived from the ships that would make port there. It was said that quite frequently the dock workers of Boca would either ask or quite surreptitiously obtain any leftover paint that the ships had brought in,utilising their offerings in a patchwork quilt style manner that has now become synonymous with the barrio.
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
As I cruised the backstreets of Boca I found my way to the famous La Bombonera, (the Chocolate Box), and the home ground of Boca Juniors. This is one of the'footballing' grounds of the world that I had always wanted to visit. In my mind it had always had a type of mythical allure, accentuated by Diego Maradona's stint in the 'Swedish' team colors but cemented by memories of grainy images of games from La Bombenera that I would occasionally get to see on SBS's 'The World Game' on Saturday afternoons in the very early 80's. In the memories that I have of those games I recall a stadium that would always be full of the voice and song of the Boca Juniors faithful, but more than that, and much more so than any other ground that I could remember, the atmosphere was always confronting, intimidating, passionate, fierce and in some ways disarming. It was also so very different to any other football match that I had witnessed at that stage of my existence. My only live game experience up until that point in my life had been those that I had watched with my dad at the infamous 'Gabbie stadium' in Seven Hills supporting the mighty Blacktown City Demons as they played in the league known then as the NSL. I mean that was pretty cool too and it was the only time that my Serbian father would ever allow me to have a good 'ole pie with sauce, which to me was also a highlight, but it was no La Bombonera now was it? So my visit to The Chocolate Box was going to be just a touch on the exciting side.
The famous #10 of its most famous of sons
La Bombonera - La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
All Boca - all the time!
I did the standard tour of the stadium and I absolutely loved it! It's obviously a 'built for purpose' football stadium, meaning that there's no running track circling the pitch, the stands being so steeply terraced that from pitch level it would certainly feel that the crowd was sitting on top of you and the first row of seats commence no more than 2mtrs from the pitch markings. On game day , with it's 49,000 person capacity, this place would be an absolute cauldron of passion and weighty with atmosphere. What I also love about this ground is its location. It's a typical neighbourhood ground located in the heart of Boca, right across the street are residential buildings, small convenience stores and 'Ma and Pa' style restaurants that you could only assume cater to pre and post match crowds. It's kind of gritty in a sense but you what you also realise is that the sanctity of this place in the minds of the local community and the place that the team has in the DNA of its local supporters is what acts as the very glue that bonds this very proud corner of what is an amazingly beautiful city.
La Bombonera - La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Bombonera - La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Bombonera - La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
As the tour was winding up I thought to myself 'how cool it would be to actually see a game here' but considering it was midweek I didn't think there would be another opportunity until the weekend and unfortunately I was due to fly north on the coming Sunday. Somehow however a question that I asked our guide was fabulously and fortunately misinterpreted by her and she dropped the critical information that I was craving, that being that Boca Juniors actually had a mid-week game at home in two days time and tickets were still available. That my friends was the only invitation that I needed! Obviously I was going to be there!!!!
Back streets of Boca -La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
La Boca - Buenos Aires - Argentina
After the tour I walked back down to the docks and found myself a bus to take me up to Puerto Madero, a waterfront barrio of BA occupying a significant portion of the Rio de la Plata riverbank. Over the years this area of docks and warehouses had fallen into disrepair and was a well known area for squatters. During the 90's however quite a substantial amount of money was poured into regenerating Puerto Madero and now it stands as an area filled with fantastic restaurants, clubs, hotels and some high rise residential blocks.
I walked around Puerto Madero for a while, observing the oddity that is the city development of BA, being that the city has kind of 'turned its back' on the Rio de la Plata and only utilises it as an afterthought. Most of city is built away from the banks of the river and it feels somewhat strange that there was a conscious decision by planners to ignore a significant geographical feature.
Puerto Madero - Buenos Aires - Argentina
Punta de la mujer - Puerto Madero - Buenos Aires - Argentina
Punta de la mujer - Puerto Madero - Buenos Aires - Argentina
Puerto Madero - Buenos Aires - Argentina
As the sun dropped over the city I wandered back to San Telmo and completely crashed out when I got to the hostel, it was 5:30pm - the next thing I knew the sun was coming up and it was 5:30am. Twelve hours removed and ready to go at it again!
