Tigre con catamarane

My last outing from Buenos Aires was to Tigre, this time I had company; Steve who was here on a tango holiday joined me for the day. We travelled to Tigre on the Tren de la Costa, the more expensive tourist train. We got off the train for a quick look round San Isidro, which is on the Rio de la Plata, but half an hour was not long enough to find the coast and historical centre.

From Tigre we went on a 2 hr trip on a catamaran, we sat upstairs to get a good view of the amazing houses. We travelled up the Rio Sarmiento, past the Museo Sarmiento. We then travelled along the Rio San Antonio and Canal Vinculacion, this area was completely different.  There were no houses, the river was very wide surrounded by vegetation, quite shallow along the edge with reeds growing in the water. Amazing views of Buenos Aires in the distance from the Rio San Antonio.

Catamarane

Rio Sarmiento

Rio San Antonio

Rio San Antonio

Lots of boats on the Canal Vinculacion

Bike Tour – from San Telmo to the south of Buenos Aires

This seemed a good way of experiencing cycling in Buenos Aires both on the busy main roads and on the many protected cycle ways. The bike was comfortable and suitable for the rough terrain. 

First stop La Boca, I was apprehensive about visiting here by myself as it is a fairly poor neighbourhood that has had many regular occurrences of petty crime. We stopped on Caminito to see the colourful houses and the works of art painted on the walls in 1960 by the local La Boca artist Benito Quinquela Martín.

Caminito

Clavel del aire,  Luis Perlotti (1890 - 1969)

 

Home of the famous Boca Juniors Football Club

There were tango artists entertaining people eating in the many restaurants.

We then cycled to the Reserva Ecologia Costanera Sur so this time I

had the opportunity to see the reserve by bike, it was packed with people on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

Our next stop was Puerto Madero, an area which was regenerated in the 1990 and is now an area of expensive hotels, restaurants and offices.

ARA Uruguay rescue ship for the Swedish Antarctic Expedition in 1903

Our final stop was the Plaza de Mayo, now the political centre of Buenos Aires where people come to campaign for human rights.  Its origins can be traced back to Juan de Garay's foundation of Buenos Aires in 1580.

Overlooking the Plaza de Mayo is the Catedral Metropolitana de Buenos Aires, the main Catholic church in Buenos Aires.

Recoleta

Recoleta, is in the Barrio Norte, the most affluent part of Buenos Aires, it is also the cultural centre and popular with tourists, runners and cyclists. I headed down Av. Austria through the various Plazas to Plaza Naciones Unidas to see the Floralis Genérica.

Los Arboles de Buenos Aires are now at their best; the Jacaranda has been in bloom with an abundance of purple flower since late October.  The Tipa (Rosewood) is covered in yellow flowers from late November.  Sr. Carlos Thays planted these native trees throughout the city, lining many of the avenues.

Jacaranda mimosifolia Bignoniaceae

Tipa (Tipuana tipu) Fabaceae

Flor de sada (Calliandra paevifolia) Fabaceae

Floralis Genérica is a sculpture made of steel and aluminum located in Plaza de las Naciones Unidas, created by architect Eduardo Catalano in 2002.  The sculpture was designed to move, closing its petals in the evening and opening them in the morning, however this mechanism is currently disabled.  

Next, I headed for the main tourist attraction, the Recoleta Cemetery. The mortal remains of many figures in Argentine history are found here, including  the tomb of Eva Perón.  I recognised some of the names from the streets that have beee named after them.

One of the best museums for fine arts is nearby, The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes.  It holds a large collection of European Art from the 12th to 19th century but also a small collection of 19th century Argentine Art.

Invernada del Ejercito Oriental 1866

Cándido López (1840 -1902)

Un alto en el campo, 1861
Prilidiano Pueyrredón (1823-1870)

I visited the El Ateneo bookshop again to add to my collection of books on 100 species of Argentine native wildlife