The Farewell

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  Buenos Aires, Argentina
Saturday, February 18, 2006

I had the immense privilege to grow up knowing what travelling is like. I was born in Buenos Aires but my dad's career in the oil business moved us around the world. I came back to live in Argentina when I was 17, having lived all of my childhood and teenage years abroad. I lived 1 year in Mexico City, Mexico, 3 years in Caracas, Venezuela, 4 years in Singapore, and 4 years in Jakarta, Indonesia. After having lived in these countries and having travelled through most of Europe and some of Asia, Australia and America at a very young age, when I came back to Buenos Aires I was mesmerized. This city is unlike any other. I wish I could say what it was and pin-point the characteristics which make it so unique, yet I can't find them. It's just a comfortable feeling that makes you sympathize instantly with the surroundings. As the years went by (ten already!) as in any passionate relationship, the magic between Buenos Aires and myself started fading away, and it was forgotten and taken for granted

01-Bus Ride to Puerto Madero

.
Like we had agreed, Eduardo and I went out to get sushi for lunch today, and since it was such a beautiful day we decided to scrape some cash from our wallets and go to Puerto Madero which is the docking area of Buenos Aires. After our amazing beer and sushi lunch, we pulled our heavy bodies out from the restaurant chairs and decided to walk all the way home, which is a good 60 blocks. As we walked I realized what a great city I lived in. And I suddenly remembered the spark that I had felt the when I first came back. When tourist come here they always speak marvels of the city and its' people....I've even met some that fell in love with her and moved here for good. And as I walked I started to see the attractiveness this concrete oasis could bring to tourists.
I'm aware this comes to me all of a sudden because I know I'll be leaving soon. Maybe it's the nostalgia in me that reminds me of the uncertainty of meeting again and when. It's a new-found love and respect for the city that has kept me these last 10 years, and when you've lived in a city so long, and you're still able to appreciate its beauty, then you can consider yourself lucky. It's a relationship that will never end.
On the other hand, I also became aware that there was so much of it I never got to know. The laziness of being a local here sometimes deprives you of such treats

02-Eduardo at Sushi Club overlooking the dike.

. There are millions of places and corners I have never seen before and never really cared to either. So who's to say you can't be a tourist in your own city? For the next three months I have left in Buenos Aires, I will visit all those little spots that I've always wanted to visit but never actually got around to doing. I want to enjoy the time I have left with her and get to know her like I should.
For example, there are so many green spaces in this city. Buenos Aires has amazing plazas and parks, lagoons, and even a natural reserve. I live right in front of one which I only got to know only about a year ago. It's also filled with museums and cultural events to go to some of which are free. And I've never actually seen a live tango show, or walked down the streets of La Boca.
But for today, I was content with admiring and taking pictures of the scenery on our way home as if we were tourists. I did discover a part I had never seen before: there's a beautiful very european-looking park that's partly hidden away from the main avenue (Ave. Del Libertador) which was complete with a french 19th century staircase, an huge equestrian statue, and great landscape artistry (See picture). Next we moved on to the National Library which I had never seen up close. The person who designed it is Clorindo Testa, a renowned argentine architect. The design of the building is very 50's - 60's and screams out what the Modern Age has done to architecture

03-After lunch

. It's a massive concrete block standing on huge pillars upon a small hill. I had studied it a bit in college, but never been so close. From there we stepped inside the Museum of Decorative Art, we didn't actually go inside the museum, we just peeped inside the courtyard where there was the most beautiful pond/fountain I had ever seen. Sea turtles (which I adore) on both sides were spewing water from their wide open mouths and a small baby crocodile sat in the center. There was a cafe with iron garden tables arranged all around the fountain. I took a few pictures of Eduardo sitting on the ledge, but I will be sure to come back and have a cup of tea at my new fountain...(yes, it's mine, I found it). After that we walked through yet another park, larger in size but not as attractive, where we saw a man with the smallest hand I'd ever seen, or even think possible....it was smaller than a new born baby's. Yet the man was in the process of nimbly putting on his running shoes, preparing for an afternoon jog which was admirable.
After 60 blocks of walking in flip-flops, I am a bit tired yet I had to come and write about our lunch and upload the pictures. It feels so nice to rediscover something, and if it's your home city, more so, even if you know it's a farewell.

Post your own travel photos for friends and family More Pictures

04-Distracted	05-A corner of Puerto Madero	06-Oasis	07-The English Clock Tower
08-Monument of the fallen in Malvinas War	09-My street	10-National Museum of Fine Arts	11-Pretty park picture
12-A Clearing.....	13-Staircase	14-It was so hot...	15-Secret Park
16-The National Library	17-Gates	18-National Museum of Decorative Arts	19-My baby and my fountain.

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