Half-assed Europe

Maybe it wasn't a great idea to come to Buenos Aires on a Monday. The party capital of the continent unfortunately wasn't exactly in the mood on Monday from what I saw. I stayed at a hostel in Palermo for its wide range of bars. but I'll get to that later.

The city. It's hard to say anything about this city. It's apparently the most European city in all of South America. But from my opinion after mere 3 days, it was like Paris without the Eiffel Tower, like London without the Big Ben, like Rome that was not the capital of the Roman Empire. Maybe I'm just ignorant. It's true, I hadn't taken a history course of South America like Europe or Asia. But monuments like the Eiffel Tower and the Colisseum have been overused in movies and TV shows that they are blatantly recognizable.

Not the same for Buenos Aires (or BA). Its famous sites are...the cemetery in Recoleta or...maybe the giant metal flower in the UN park? The phallic obelisk on Avenida 9 de Julio? And I even had a half Argentinian girlfriend! Having just come from London, Brussels, and Amsterdam, this city just did not compare.






But! Reasons why I'm being unfair:

1. It was only 3 days
2. I still miss my friends
3. For a party city, I came on the wrong days of the week

It wasn't all bad though. I enjoyed walking through Calle Calminito with its brightly colored houses. According to my ex, Boca area has been historically been the poorest neighborhood, and decades ago, people decided to paint these run-down houses really brightly colored as to mask the wear and tear. But now, it's too touristy.




And on Tuesday night, with some Aussies I had met at the hostel, I went out to a club, where I partied until 4 or 5 am. That was good times though my jacket was taken.

Oh yeah, and my little backpack was stolen on my way to Cordoba at the metro station. Apparently it's a century-old trick. Some guy sprayed some paint thing on my back and told me that I had shit on my back. Flustered from catching my bus and lack of Spanish, I put my little backpack down to clean myself at the station. And before I realized it, the guy (presumably with my bag) was gone. On a positive note, all I lost were some socks, boxers, and some shirts.

But in the words of Eminem, “If I ever saw him again, I'd probably knock him out.”

What really pisses me off is not the petty things that he stole, but the fact that he freakin fooled me! But I guess it's all about the learning process.

Oh yeah, and it's FREEEEEEEEEEEZING here!

- Ryoji