Almagro!

Well, damas and caballeros of the internets, I am still sick, which means you get another blog post! This one was not written at 2:20 in the morning, so hopefully it'll be a bit more coherent. I was feeling a bit better today, so I took a walk around the block (yep, that's as far as I made it. Reality check- still sick) and was reminded of what a nice neighborhood I have. Since it doesn't show up in most guidebooks or sites about Buenos Aires and wouldn't show up on your radar otherwise, here are ten things I've come to know and love about my barrio, Almagro.

1. No tourists. Don't get me wrong, I love to practice my Portuguese and watch people act conspicuous and snap pictures as much as the next gal. But sometimes it's nice to come home to a place where people are going about their everyday lives: grocery shopping, taking the kids to school, walking the dog, not bothering to clean up after the dog...you get the picture.



2. Dia. Technically, this chain isn't just in Almagro, but since there are 3 stores within an impressively close radius of the seminary, I'll include it. Dia is the Dollar Tree of grocery stores- disorganized, sketchy, but inexpensive. I've also had some of my most random conversations while waiting in the super long lines. The closest Dia to me (4 blocks) has been closed for refurbishing this past month, so I have to admit that my heart may have skipped a beat when I saw that it will reopen on Thursday. Yessss.

3. Cars that just might actually stop for pedestrians. This is not a guarantee, but it does happen. Sometimes.

See the hobbit-hole? It's almost as pretty as the ad!

4. Parque Centenario. It doesn't get as much hype as it deserves, because it's one of the nicest and cleanest green spaces around. Besides the typical park stuff (carrousel, benches, flowers, people drinking mate), it has a lake with ducks, a mound that looks like a giant hobbit hole, and a used book stand. On a good day, it's not unlike Epcot. It's nice for running too...just not on the weekends, when the outskirts turn into Almagro's garage sale. And I don't care what Diego and Raúl may claim, it can NOT be run in 5 minutes.

5. Durand. I've done my share of bellyaching about the hospitals here, but having a public hospital just on the other side of Centenario is pretty convenient. Or, well, as convenient as such things can be. There's an old lady who sits outside the front gate every day and makes me want to sing 'Feed the Birds' every time I pass her.

6. Rivadavia. Avenida Rivadavia is our "main street" of sorts, and one of the longest avenues in Buenos Aires (or so I've been told). If you can't find what you're looking for here, you haven't asked.

7. Asking for directions/bus routes. It's considered a normal/native part of life here, so don't be surprised when you get asked, too. Here are some useful phrases for directions that I haven't found in a Spanish book:
   ¿A qué altura?          What block # is it?
    Derecho                   Straight...not to be confused with 'derecha', which is 'right' 
    Doblá en...               Turn at...

8. Los Chinos. For reasons yet unknown, most grocery stores around here are owned and operated by people from China. You can find about anything you need: mate, toilet paper, an aisle of crackers/cookies...the essentials. Since there are so many of these stores, don't be surprised if you're told to go to the 'chino on the corner', the 'chino next door' or the 'chino across the way'. Yes, I know which is which.

Las Violetas- a fancy and literary
cafe/bakery

9. Bakeries. From 'La Francesa' on the corner (which, incidentally, is across the street from the 'chino on the corner') that donates their day-old pastries for us to distribute, to the fancy Las Violetas, there's nothing quite as nice as the smell of freshly baked bread wafting down the street early in the morning.

Mitre- on money!

10. Bartolomé Mitre and other streets named for famous people. Every now and again I run into some bit of Argentine history and it rings a bell. "Oh, so-and-so! He has a street named after him!" It makes me- and Almagro- feel important somehow. Mitre, btw, was the president of Argentina roughly the same time as Lincoln was president of the US. Now ya know.

So, those are some things about Almagro. What do you know and love about your barrio or town?