restoration on diagonal norte

April 30, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

I couldn’t resist writing about one more building on Diagonal Norte. There’s been a lot of restoration over the past couple years: one of the Bencich Hermanos domes has been painted, the building across the street just got a facelift, & further up the block a new hotel opened… while keeping the original structure intact. It’s refreshing to see.
The Instituto Italo-Argentino de Seguros Generales has been vacant for as long as I can remember. From a distance, it may look a little plain. But like almost every building on this avenue, looking closely reveals a lot of detail. From what I can tell the interior is being gutted & a pinker coat of paint is being applied. I preferred the original yellow tone, but no one consulted me

Beneath the single row of balconies are a series of panels… scenes depicting factory work, fishing, & of course the all-important […]

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Café Aroma: Why?

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Why would anyone choose to go to his place? We have a ton of beautiful, authentic, old, new, cafes why would you choose this one?

Their coffee is ok I have to admit, but…

1. Service.

What´s the point in going to a cafe when you have to ask for the coffee at the counter? You are probably thinking “this diva doesn´t understand the concept of fast food” You are wrong! I do understand that concept, but this place is not like MCdonalds where food is fast for real. There were 3 people behind eh counter. The cashier who was also in charge of putting the croissants, cakes, whatever in you tray, then the coffee maker girl, who was operating a machine that could make 5 coffees at the same time but apparently she didn´t know how to prepare more than 1 at a time, and a guy scratching his private parts […]

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Teaching English in Argentina: A Learning Experience

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Many people who travel to Buenos Aires want more than just a simple vacation. It’s easy to fall in love with the city, the people, the culture, and the lifestyle. But when your money runs low, and you realize you must work to extend your stay, there are few options for an English-speaking foreigner. One of those options is teaching English. In fact, for many English-speaking expats, it’s the only option.

English teaching jobs in Buenos Aires usually require little more than being a native-tongue English speaker. Meaning, that if you were born and raised in an English speaking country, you qualify for the job. The demand for English teachers is high as well. International businesses, hotels, restaurants, tour guides, and major shopping centers need English speaking employees to accommodate their clientèle. While there are many native Argentines who can teach the language, having a native speaker is clearly a […]

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edificio antonio pini

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Just across from the building mentioned in yesterday’s post about Diagonal Norte sits the Edificio Antonio Pini. Who was Antonio Pini? Ni idea. But this is another example of a building with a more or less simple façade highlighted with wonderful touches of decoration. Also on a triangular lot like the previous building, its most distinguishing feature is a row of decorative freizes. In an rarely seen fusion of Neoromanesque & Art Deco, there are religious scenes, mythical creatures, & eagles attacking lions:

Three entrances line Diagonal Norte, each with distinct decoration. More mythology & fancy capitals, along with the odd dragon:

Naturally each entrance has a unique wrought-iron door. Everyone misses the door handles… the best part of the building. Besides the dragon-ish handle shown below, another one is some sort of sea monkey. Now that’s attention to detail:

The corner of the building hides a pair of condors underneath the row […]

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Tired of Mate, Meat, and Milongas? What do You Miss Most from Your Hometown?

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Expat blogger Shanie from Living in Patagonia posts a great question today on her site. What do you miss most from your home country. For many expats who have made the leap and committed to living in Argentina, homesickness is common. It can be fleeting and short-lived, but it’s natural to miss things that remind you of where your from. Sure, the prices are cheaper here, the tango is tantalizing, and the meat is better. But there are still little creature comforts that only home can provide.
Most often, people miss food. Food from home often reminds us of distinct memories or friends and family. For Shanie, it’s Thai food and skiing at California’s Squaw Valley. For others, it’s the conveniences that they miss most. Not waiting on line, no farm strikes, 24-hour stores, and customer service are biggies for many Americans living here. For others, it could range anywhere from weather, […]

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Buenos Aires maps from 1912 & 1916

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

One of my librarian friends back in the U.S. sent me a link to a project by the University of Chicago library: Late 19th- and Early 20th-Century Latin American Cities. Included are digital copies of 2 maps of Buenos Aires held by the University of Chicago Library’s Map Collection.
Like all good online maps these days, these feature that nice zoom-and-pan tool.
Buenos Aires, 1912

This map shows two barrios, Villa Alvear and Villa Malcolm, that have since been re-named as parts of Palermo. Personally, I like the older names.
Since tango is not a part of my Buenos Aires experience (and I don’t really wander around this part of the city too much), I didn’t realize that there is a tango joint called Villa Malcom. And here’s some video of tango dancing at Villa Malcom.
Map of Buenos Aires, 1916

Colorful isn’t it? Plaza Colón looked very nice back in 1916.
The […]

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Weekend miscellanea

April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Picture, web and blog updates…
After I posted a couple of portraits using a simulation of the film technique known as split toning, I was asked to write a tutorial, an idea I’d had for some time. So I went back to my website (which I’d neglected) and wrote this split toning tutorial for the GIMP (in Spanish). I need to expand it to cover other uses of split toning… and I need another tutorial for cross processing.

Last Saturday I went with the Rosarigasinos to the Flag Memorial. We took the elevator and went up to the top of the tower to take pictures of the city. It was just a while before sunset, and there was a noticeable amount of smoke from the island fires in the air, so I got interesting results.

I joined a couple of atheist groups on Flickr, which somehow I had overlooked all this time. How […]

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Back at the Britanico

April 28, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

I find myself at Bar Britanico a lot lately and blogging about its occasional celebrity clientele or El Hipopotamo across the street. But I’ve realized from Google that many people still find my June 2006 posting about the closing of Bar Britanico, which I forgot to update to reflect the re-opening of Britanico….oops.
…A later afternoon photo taken from the window of Bar Britanico, looking out on the intersection of Brasil and Defensa streets.

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attention to detail

April 28, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

Many people wax poetic about Avenida de Mayo, but I can’t say it’s one of the streets I like best in Buenos Aires. Call me crazy… or whatever you like.
It has several remarkable buildings, lots of history & certain blocks are breathtaking. I appreciate that. But it has been so chopped up & so mangled, that I find it more sad than anything else. Looking at the HSBC headquarters & several blah offices built between majestic remnants of the past makes me sigh. Of course, if it still looked like the following postcard from 1900 then I’d have nothing but praise:

I think the fact that I know what it was once like hinders me from enjoying it today. Hard to say. But an avenue which has maintained its architectural heritage (much to everyone’s surprise) is Diagonal Norte… just a few blocks away from Avenida de Mayo. I really, really love […]

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Drinking Liberally in Buenos Aires

April 27, 2008 | Filed Under Argentina | No Comments

It’s here! If you’re a political junkie, you’ve noticed a certain prominent logo on some of your favorite blogs touting this fine group of people that has begun to expand internationally. Well, La Argentina has joined that worldwide network as well.
Drinking Liberally is a really great concept. Unlike other “societies”, DL makes it a point to gather someplace not only affordable …but more distinctively, at the SAME place, at the SAME time, EVERY WEEK.
No need to wonder if Drinking Liberally is meeting this week… they always are.
No need to wonder what day Drinking Liberally is meeting… it’s always Thursday.
No need to wonder what time Drinking Liberally is meeting… it’s always at 7pm.
No need to wonder where Drinking Liberally is gonna be… it’s always at Sir Will, 678 San Martín, in Retiro near Microcentro.
No need to wonder if you belong. No need to wonder if you’re a […]

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