Wednesday
24th February
Staying
in a different hotel, First Pallermo, in Pallermo Soho which is supposed to be
the “in” place. The hotel is brilliant, just round the corner from Serrano
Square, the centre of Pallermo Soho and I’ve got a huge, fantastic room.
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| Big enough for a Party |
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| Landing cum Lounge |
In
the evening, walked round the corner to Plaza Serrano which really comes alive
at night, totally transformed. During the day it is rather disappointing but now
I can see the attraction of the area, the
bars, cafes and restaurants are lit up and there
are throngs of people out for the evening. Had an excellent burger at a
burger place, with a not so good beer. It may be artesanal but that doesn't
necessarily mean it's good. The really happening place was Sheldon where there
was a good singer but it was very crowded with nowhere to sit and not even a
bar to lean against. Left when the singer finished and looked for two places I
had read about. Magdalena's didn't look very lively; like most of the bars it
serves food and it was still in restaurant, not party, mood. Another place was
closed.
Thursday
25th February
Fairly
good breakfast, the usual ham, cheese, bread with addition of salami. Went to
San Telmo by combination of walking and Subte; one downside of Pallermo Soho is
that it’s about ten blocks walk from the nearest station. In San Telmo I went
to the El Zanjon museum where I discovered I'd lost my wallet on Sunday. Different guy on
the door so didn't get a chance to say thanks to the guy who was so helpful
then. Arrived just in time for a tour in English led by a very informative
woman. It's a large house, built in about 1830 for a wealthy family, which they
sold in the late 19th century, when it
was divided up and rented out to 23 immigrant families who shared just one
kitchen and two "bathrooms", latrines emptying into a cesspool. It
remained occupied like that until it was
condemned in the 1960's, whereupon it lay empty and derelict for about 20 years until the current
owner bought it with the intention of creating a restaurant. As he began
removing the debris, he realised the significance of the house and arranged for
an archaeologist to investigate. It is now fully renovated to reveal old water
cisterns and the course of a stream that flowed beneath the house and was
enclosed in a tunnel. OK, it’s not going to compete with Athens or Rome but the
guide was very informative in describing the development of Buenos Aires around the house.
http://www.elzanjon.com.ar
Had lunch at nearby Medio y Media, a “chivito” which Google translates as
"goat" but is actually a beef and ham sandwich. More bread!
Afterwards, walked through Plaza de Mayo and the commercial area of Calle Florida to El Ateneo, a bookshop I read about in the in-flight magazine
coming back from Cordoba. It was previously a theatre which has been beautifully
restored and, according to the Guardian in 2008, it is the second most beautiful
bookshop in the world. The stage is now a cafe so I couldn't
resist having a coffee and a piece of cheese cake. Pity almost all the books
are in Spanish.
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| Plaza de Mayo in the Afternoon Sunshine |
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| Coffee and Cheesecake at El Ateneo |
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| El Ateneo |
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| El Ateneo |
In
the evening looked at Sheldon again but people were queuing to get in so had
dinner nearby, a pastrami sandwich which was only average and quite expensive,
not as good as the hamburger last night. Had another look at Magdalena's and an
Irish bar but neither of them appealed. Maybe I am just 40 years too old. Think
the average age in the bars is 25.
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