adios...forever?: Turista

Although I have quite the independent streak and usually detest any sort of help, I decided that maybe I'd get a little more out of the city if I hired a professional. So after reading her blog (Bitch Tours link on the right) I decided to hire my guide and, even though she claims to be no professional, I thought she did a pretty good job at satisfying my craving to see something a little less touristy in BA.

We spent the first part of our afternoon in Barracas which anyone here will tell you is not the usual tourist destination. After my first subte ride and my first train ride (from the beautiful central station), we arrived at the small southern barrio known primarily for it's warehouses. Apparently artists, etc are starting to buy up the cheap space for studios...Sound familiar Miami?

First stop was Centro Metropolitano de Diseno. A program orchestrated by the government, CMD helps entrepreneurs build businesses by providing training, equipment and office space. I was very jealous since it seems so often that I have wonderful ideas but never the skill or money to pursue them. The guy there said there were similar programs in the US but I have yet to see any. As we were only the second visitors since the place opened in 2003, we got tons of books. I love, love, love free shit!

Next we stopped in a social club, which is where the older men gather to play cards, drink and just talk shit I guess. The one we stopped at was pretty empty on that Monday afternoon but the walls were covered with yellowed River Plate paraphernalia and pictures of Peron seated around it's tables when they used to host huge parties in the 1940s.

After that we wandered around the barrio a bit and she pointed out an ice cream factory that, at first glance, seemed a little nondescript. My guide then told me the story of how the workers took over the factory following the 2001 crash. Since the economic crash took place a few days before Christmas and many companies, including this factory, owed workers back pay and refused to hand it over, the workers of the factory gathered their little money to buy ingredients and got a permit to resume work without the company owners. They did so well that now the workers actually own the factory in equal parts and its still in operation. It made me think how amazing people can be when faced with adversity and that hopefully one day if I am faced with the same I'll have the guts and ingenuity to keep things going rather than just give up as so many did at the time.

The rest of our walk took us by a neighborhood who's houses were re-designed by a local artists with beautiful colored mosaics of tile and glass then we caught a colectivo (a bus...again, a first) back to the center of the city.

Sorry there are no pictures of the tour so far...I am a horrible tourista!

I went to the top of a beautiful old building and snapped a few pictures (above) then we stopped by the bookstore of the Madres (that march every Thursday afternoon at Plaza de Mayo) and saw the capital building (where the congress meets?).