Aventuras en Montserrat y San Telmo

Joaquín is spending the weekend in the country with his dad, so Elvira took me on a tour of our neighborhood yesterday, explaining the history behind all the old, colonial buildings. Although I'd seen most of these buildings in passing, I'd never really noticed how beautiful a lot of them are.

This was at the National Student Center, also the best high school in the country, according to Elvira. La Noche de los Lapices (Night of the Pencils) refers to a protest students carried out in 1976 demanding free bus passes. The military regime subsequently kidnapped and tortured a bunch of the student protestors.
This is me with some guards at the Buenos Aires municipal government/cultural center. I am so cool.
Cultural center again
The British bank
City Cathedral
La Casa Rosada (the president's house)
As you can tell, it was a gorgeous day.
This is a statue of San Martín, a national hero here, who liberated Argentina from the colonists
The national bank and a government ministry. I really like this corner.
Me and Elvira

Unfortunately, I failed to get a picture of the most interesting building, the site of the first Argentinian revolution against colonial powers. Although it was unsuccessful, it was, according to Elvira, very historically important in planting the seed of independence in Argentina. Expect photos of that later. In conclusion, my neighborhood is so cool!

That night at dinner, I had a fascinating conversation with Elvira. She asked me about my impressions of Argentina thus far, because most Americans expect a far less developed country than they find. I attempted to explain to her a vague idea I've been considering about the likeness between Argentina and France, particularly in terms of government and intellectual life, something I'll probably explain more fully on here when I can. We ended up talking about Argentinian democracy, education, and socialism, and the similarities and difference between Argentina and America.

It's also fascinating to be in a country where political violence and dictatorship is not just an abstract concept, but a very recent memory. I keep unwittingly stumbling upon the topic of the military regime in talking with Elvira, mostly because it's nearly impossible for her to talk about her life without mentioning it. Last night, for example, when we were on the topic of universities, I asked her where she went to school. She explained to me that the government shut down Universidad de Buenos Aires' Filosofía y Letras department, so she had to switch to a private school. Because I really didn't know what to say, I responded, "Es muy interesante." She replied, "No. Fue horrible."

After dinner, I met up with Bennet for drinks at a bar/restaurant in our neighborhood. It's so nice to have someone I really enjoy spending time with so close. Neither of us wanted to go far or stay out for long, so we just met up for about two hours. Although the neighborhood is supposed to be hopping on Saturday nights, it was 30 degrees out and pretty empty. I'm excited for the weather to warm up - I think it makes the city a lot more exciting and quite a bit safer.

In other news, if anyone knows how to make my pictures right side up, please tell me.

Hasta luego,
Chelsea