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Rooting for the Reds

CHLOE CORBIN

Football fans with full wallets were only watching one match this weekend – Boca Juniors vs River Plate.  But they were disappointed.  Rain suspended play after just 10 minutes, leaving around 50,000 people soaked and sullen at La Bombonera stadium.

Not an ardent football fan myself, I was oblivious to the mounting hype surrounding these two rivals.  Instead it was coincidence that kick-started my football ‘education’ on this particular weekend.

I was invited by a friend who has lived in Buenos Aires for years, to support his team the Argentinos Juniors as they confronted Tigre on home soil.  The fifth division match took me to La Paternal, a quiet barrio in the suburbs of the city.

Professional football was something I had always wanted to experience in Argentina.  But without fluent Spanish it can be impossible to successfully secure tickets from touts.  Many tourists pay tour operators hundreds of pesos to be taken safely to and from the matches.

No match is complete in Argentina without a good dose of security.  Riot police line the streets outside the stadiums and streams of guards are strategically placed amongst the crowds.

‘Home’ and ‘Away’ supporters are separated during the game and exit the grounds at staggered times.  This tactic is designed to prevent clashes. It meant we had to wait half an hour for Tigre supporters to leave after the match finished.

The atmosphere was electric throughout.  We stood amongst die-hard Argentinos Junior supporters in a sea of red flags and shirts.  They barely stopped to breathe as they chanted, jumped and spat their way through the game.

Tigre fans were grouped on the opposite side of the pitch.  They clutched a large blue flag which stretched itself territorially along the length of the seating area.  Both sides ferociously exchanged drum beats and crude catchphrases as the sun set and play began.

The result was a 1-1 draw, but possession was firmly held by Argentinos Juniors for the first half.  They were the first to score and appeared to be heading towards a win.  But their luck was soured in the second half, when their goal keeper received a red card and was sent off.

His substitute was injured almost immediately.  Nervous supporters jeered in shock and even the men selling coke and snacks paused to watch.  Medical teams swooped onto the pitch, but luckily he was able to continue.  Instantaneously, the food vendors disappeared into the crowd, their drink trays popping up momentarily as they were lifted above and around the jostling spectators.

For me, watching Argentinos Juniors and Tigre was as much a social observation as it was about the sport.  All sorts cram into the stadium – providing a visual feast of the ordinary and the absurd.  Old men chew on pipes, children play hide and seek, and grown men clamber frantically on top of each other to yell passionate abuse at the opposition’s manager.

Mar 22, 2010 | Categories: Entertainment, Sport | Tags: , , , , | 1 Comment »

Street Art Makes Sense

CHLOE CORBIN

Street art is bright and bold in Buenos Aires.  Few places escape its brush strokes, aerosol cans or stickers.  It is still legal to paint in public places – and this has encouraged a prolific art scene.  But far from destroying the heritage of the city, the pieces add intrigue and colour.

Personal, political and social commentaries play themselves out on the city’s walls, shutters and pavements.  Their rapid growth makes them easy to find, but hard to understand.  Artists collaborate, but often work alone or side by side.  The result in an amalgamation of vastly differing techniques.

Graffitimundo has capitalised on this by publicising the narratives behind the art.   The company was set up by Marina Charles and Jo Sharff and provided Buenos Aires with its first graffiti tour.  It now successfully promotes established and fledgling artists throughout the city.

The company’s close contact with the artists is invaluable.  Despite street art being conspicuous and subversive, its creators rarely self-publicise. Graffitimundo has changed that.  It has given street artists in Buenos Aires an organised forum to advertise and improve their visibility.

The effect is just as exciting for the outsider.  Graffitimundo’s explanations give credence and character to the pieces.  It is like being handed an audio guide in a gallery, the pictures suddenly make sense.  You leave the tour with a greater understanding not only of the artists’ individual visions – but of life and etiquette on the streets.

Whilst the majority respect each others work – some are territorial and wary of newcomers.  There are dramatic examples of large murals being painted over by opposing artists.  Similarly, the tour draws attention to the stark difference between tagging and street art and how the two co-exist.

The tours last around two and a half hours and are in English.  They start in Colegiales and wind their way through back streets, past shop fronts and into the heart of Palermo.

Then, camera weary and exhausted, everyone piles into a graffiti bar where more jaw-dropping pieces are on display and available to buy.

Graffitimundo has targeted a niche market and gone a long way to break the silence of the street artist.  It is a fluid and constantly changing world that will never be completely understood.

But, the tour closes that gap, leaving you with a heightened appreciation of the limitless graffiti which lines every street.

http://graffitimundo.com/en/

Mar 10, 2010 | Categories: Architecture, Entertainment, Graffiti Art, History, Tours | Tags: , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

A Biblical Disneyland

CHLOE CORBIN

I thought I had misheard my friend when she suggested visiting a religious theme park in Buenos Aires.  Speeding down water slides, screaming at haunted houses and eating buckets of popcorn, were rights of passage when I was a child.  But the experiences rarely included Christianity – in fact they usually meant missing church on Sundays.

Parque Tierra Santa or ‘Holy Land’, lies just outside Buenos Aires and is quite unique.  It was built in 2000 and was the world’s first religiously themed amusement park.  It attracts tens of thousands of pious and cynical observers each year.  From the minute you step through its gates, you leave behind Buenos Aires and enter Bethlehem.

The park does everything it can to re-create life as it was in the Bible.  Life-size donkeys and oxen line its walkways, and stories are documented by these statues at every corner.  Guides dressed as centurions pace the dusty streets and food and drink are served in local taverns by waitresses in traditional dress.

The park hosts a variety of shows and live performances which explain pivotal events in the Bible.  Most of them focus on the life of Jesus; his birth, The Last Supper, his Crucifixion – and in this case, his ‘half-hourly’ resurrection, which is marked by an emerging 18-metre statue.

My favourite show was Creation.  For this extravaganza, visitors pile into a musky cave in complete darkness.  Once seated, the narration begins and an emerald laser swirls out of the stage and into the crowd.

The spectacle reduces six days of God’s work into twenty minutes.  A rainforest full of animals, plants and running water comes alive as a deep Godly voice bellows from the darkness.

The models are all overtly artificial, but retain defining characteristics – the elephant’s ears move and the giraffe chews on leaves.  Then, as the sixth day is narrated, Adam and Eve join the scene.  They rise slowly from the bottom of the stage and turn to face the piercing beam – completing the creation of man.  The music crescendoes, the narration gathers pace and the audience applauds in unison.

Everything in the park, down to the exterior of its toilets has been built to represent life as it was in the Bible.  Even the beer is served in stone-like crucibles. An afternoon in Tierra Santa, is an afternoon removed from reality. The blazing heat, sandstone buildings and inevitable dehydration only compound this feeling.

It is certainly a novel way of illustrating the life and times of Jesus – and one that has proved extremely popular.  Whether you are religiously minded or not, Tierra Santa is a place designed to make you think.

Av. Rafael Obligado 5790

http://www.tierrasanta-bsas.com.ar/

Mar 04, 2010 | Categories: Entertainment, Food, History, Religion, Theme Parks | Tags: , , , , | 1 Comment »

Fancy a falafel?

falafel.jpg falafel image by brandonsales23

CHLOE CORBIN

What makes the perfect falafel wrap? Lashings of houmous, a mixture of pickles or is the secret in the dough? For avid falafel fans, it is probably a combination – and until last week, I was not sure myself. But now I can confidently say I am.

Confiteria Medio Oriente sits on the corner of Maladia and Jose Antonio Cabrera.  On Fridays it comes alive with falafel lovers. Workers from all over Palermo and the bustling Avenida Cordoba grab their tickets and wait in line.

Queues spill out of its steamy glass doorway and onto the street, with customers devouring their wraps at its entrance – but don’t be perturbed.  There is seating inside, but it is limited – so either join the locals outside or find a nearby plaza.

Inside, two large fridges packed full of fresh ingredients, safeguard pots of houmous, falafels, tabouli and various cheeses.  Shelves of popular dried goods also line the shops’ walls.  More importantly, its falafel ‘factory’ lies directly ahead as you enter.

Two people work busily next to a pile of freshly cooked pan.  The atmosphere is jovial.  The shops’ owners jest amongst themselves and with their customers.  Like everywhere in Buenos Aires, it seems that even if you have limited Spanish, you are encouraged into conversation and accepted.

So what goes into these wraps?  The secret is, not too much.  The bread is so fresh it is practically rising.  Across these perfect circles, a thin layer of houmous is spread.  They then add crunchy cooked onions, tomatoes, coriander, a sprinkle of picante and falafels.  These are all rolled together, placed in perfect paper pockets and topped off with a spoonful of creamy houmous.

The result is delicious and not to be missed.

The only catch is these falafel wraps (also available with meat) are only served on Fridays.  Frustrating, and yet as the queues testify, well worth the wait.

Feb 28, 2010 | Categories: Food | Tags: , , , | 2 Comments »

Cooking Up A Storm

CHLOE CORBIN

Rain and Argentina are two things I have never thought of as synonymous.  And yet, after this last week – I am starting to think there may be a connection.

This is the second time I have been stuck in my flat, unable to venture out because of the rain.  Umbrellas and boots are futile in this weather – it has been raining so hard, that even taxis and cyclists have been stranded.

More disturbingly, small fish have been found floating in the streets of Palermo, carried in from the sea and up through the city’s drains.  Printed in local papers, these bizarre images capture the chaos wreaked by even a momentary storm.

My flat’s balcony no longer resembles a habitable outside space.  It has been transformed into a man-made lake.  There must be about two inches of water stored within its walls.  As I peer outside, strong winds buffet the bright red seats of two deck chairs, and water swims frantically around their plastic legs.

There is something intriguing about the topsy-turvy nature of a storm’s aftermath.  It gives the feeling of things familiar, but not quite as they were.

It is this same concept that makes Mercado Amenabar in Palermo such a great eatery.

I discovered it after I got bored of queuing for another breakfast bar.  It has only been open for two months but already has a confident stream of customers.   Its owners have thrown together furniture and objects from varying periods of time, which give the cafe a curious and exciting feel.

The clever arrangement of tables and chairs create unique and private pockets within the cafe.  The effect is subtle, but transforms what could have been an ordinary space – into somebody’s home.  There is a sitting room, a kitchen, a dining room and even a study – and every ‘room’ is occupied.

While I was eating my eggs and bacon, a large family sat down to Sunday lunch around a dining room table at the back of the café.  To my right, a couple relaxed in armchairs reading to their children at a low coffee table.  Behind them, a man was perched over an ornate writing table, lost to his coffee and book.  Mismatched novels, lights and suitcases are carefully placed above a blackboard menu, which runs around the top of the room.

Like an Argentine storm, the objects in Mercado Amenabar have been thrown together in an unusual fashion.  Yet, there is a quiet order and purpose to this space. Old and new sit side-by-side – but in a calculated fusion that it is definitely worth leaving the comfort of your home for, even if it’s raining.

(Mercado Amenebar is situated on the corner of Amenabar and Dorrego in Palermo)

Feb 22, 2010 | Categories: Cafes, Food | Tags: , , , | Leave A Comment »

Marvel at Las Madres

CHLOE CORBIN

Foreign supermarkets are both a novelty and a challenge.  They can introduce you to new and exciting treats, but they can also leave you drowning under a mass of unknown vocabulary.

For me, this spells danger.  You know you are new to a country when you mistake butter for cream cheese.  I only discovered my error after consuming nearly a whole pot.  Two days earlier I had confidently grabbed what I believed to be queso. The packaging assured me it was ‘soft’, ‘light’ and ‘spreadable’, and it was sat next to the cheese counter.  But as my flatmate and I stared into its depleted contents, we soon discovered to our horror that it had in fact been butter all along.

The whole episode spurred me to leave behind packed-lunches. Instead I hit the streets of Buenos Aires in search of cuisine and culture.  I found both on a clammy Thursday afternoon at the Plaza de Mayo.

There you will see Las Madres – The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo.  On the same day each week they hold a peaceful vigil in memory of those kidnapped during Argentina’s military dictatorship.

Known as the ‘Dirty War’, it ran from 1976 to 1983.  Human rights groups say nearly 30,000 people were abducted and killed during that time.  Las Madres have sought justice for the ‘disappeared’ since 1977.

Their frail figures walk slowly round the Plaza de Mayo.  All of them wear matching headscarves embroidered with the names of their children.  These white dots bob up and down in front of the rosy walls of the Presidential Palace – the Casa Rosada.

United by tragedy, they march together in quiet conversation.  Some Argentines, used to this familiar scene, whistle past swinging their bags and chewing their sandwiches. Others pause respectfully and join the tourists to observe this weekly spectacle.

Dehydrated and thirsty for more information on Las Madres, I headed to their bookstore and café, just up the road on Hipólito Yrigoyen 1584.  Founded to keep the memory of the disappeared alive, it is run by volunteers and serves a wide range of food and drink.

The service is slow, but the food varied and good value.  Books, pamphlets, photos and posters line the walls.  It is a place full of history and intrigue.  If you are interested in human rights and want to pay tribute to a cause, you must visit Las Madres.

Feb 19, 2010 | Categories: Food, History, Human Rights | Tags: , , | Leave A Comment »

In Paris or Palermo?

CHLOE CORBIN

My new neighbour is a professional pianist.  He or she, I do not know – lives above me, and recites Mozart almost every minute of the day.   This musical medley has become the soundtrack to my first few days in Buenos Aires.   A hasty introduction into the world of classical tunes and the last thing I expected when offered to housesit a friend’s apartment.  Nor did I anticipate living in the heart of the city, in a beautiful flat complete with balcony.  Not a bad roof-top perch to begin my blog.

On first inspection, Buenos Aires is easy to mistake for a European city.  It’s a visual feast of iron balconies, peeling paint, wooden shutters and decorative doorways. Pot plants are a real obsession here and constantly drop unwanted water from great heights. But it’s the falling moisture from air-conditioning units (strapped to every building), which remind you that you are in hotter climes.

Modern apartment blocks, some seven stories – some towers, break up Buenos Aires’ ancient and faded architecture.  They create an eclectic skyline, softened by the slightly yellowing leaves of the Plane and Tipa trees, which line every street.  So loved, a blog has been dedicated to them: http://losarbolesdebuenosaires.blogspot.com/

My temporary home is in Palermo Hollywood.  It’s a central area or barrio in Buenos Aires and a fashionable hub that eludes much of the poverty in the city’s outskirts.  It is popular with tourists – and it’s easy to see why.  Life seems slower on these sidewalks.  If there was ever an example of café culture in abundance – this is it.  Rusty bikes lean languidly against walls and wooden vegetable crates lie disused on pavements or propped up as seats for talkative old age pensioners.

To fully enjoy the intimacy of Palermo, grab yourself a dulce de leche ice cream or helado (practically as famous as Argentine steak) and pace its buckled pavements.  You only have to walk a few blocks to hit the rush of large avenues such as Santa Fe, so it can be a relief to retreat temporarily.

Alternatively, step briefly into the world of Palermo’s privileged.  They can be found in Palermo Soho, which sits next to Hollywood.   There you will see leggy, tanned women, immaculately dressed, carrying bags of shopping along perfectly cobbled streets.  Crisp minimalist boutiques stretch deep into the bodies of old crumbling buildings.  Posh cupcake stores (Muma’s is a must) lie in wait of the vulnerable, and top-end stationary and furniture shops vie for attention.

The proximity of old and new in Soho is striking, but it can feel like you have stepped onto the set of the Truman Show.  The area feels so manicured, it risks losing its Argentine authenticities.  If you want to escape the dust and frenzy of city life, it’s definitely worth a visit.   But don’t hang around too long, or you will miss the city’s cultural gems and may as well be in Paris!

Feb 16, 2010 | Categories: Architecture, Food | Tags: , , | 2 Comments »