Teatro Colón: Not to Be Missed (But We Missed It)

Over a four-month period, Husband and/or I went the world-renowned Teatro Colón eight times. Well, we went to the ticket office or stood outside locked doors eight times. I am sorry to say that we did not make it inside for a performance or to tour the recently renovated facility. It was not for lack of trying.

Shortly after arriving in Buenos Aires, we began plotting our visit to the Teatro Colón. One of the world's top five opera houses for its near-perfect acoustics and stately elegance, the theater was built in 1889 but not opened until 1908 (in large part because the lead architect and the chief financier died and another architect was murdered). The Teatro Colón has more than 2,500 red-velvet seats in La Sala plus a standing-room only area, El Paraiso, for another 500 people.

Discussion about the theatre is popular among tourists and short-term expats because it recently reopened after a major renovation and refurbishment. In 2006, performances ceased for four years so a much needed $100-million dollar investment could occur, inside and out. The initial plan called for 18 months, but that quickly evolved to three years. The theater was then scheduled to reopen in May 2008 but because of delays did not reopen until May 24, 2010, which was just in time to be included in Argentina's bicentennial celebration.

We set our hopes on attending a performance with visiting family in early November. Since our group included sophisticated New Yorkers and audiophiles from Los Angeles and Indianapolis, we decided to splurge on good seats to get the most from the experience.

We visited the Teatro Colón website numerous times and decided that we should go to the ticket office in order to look at the seating chart when buying the tickets. Each trip to the theatre comprised a 60-minute-roundtrip subte ride to Tribunales and standing in line for 20 minutes or more.

Ticket-attempt timeline:

August: told that we could not buy tickets until October, no specific date given
1. Early October: ticket office inexplicably closed
October 18: told that tickets were not available for sale until October 20
October 20: told that the only tickets available were standing-room only
October 21: after consultation with family, returned to buy standing-room only tickets
2. November 4: Performance scheduled for 8 pm! Pre-performance posh nosh: high tea at Alvear Palace. Told by hotel concierge upon leaving for the theater that there was a strike and all performances were cancelled (for the rest of the month and, likely, the year).
November 9: Husband unsuccessfully attempts to get refund for tickets but could not because the purchase was made with my credit card.
November 10: I get ticket refund.

At this point we gave up hoping to see a performance in the Teatro Colón. It was unclear when the strike would end and I just couldn't take the rejection or waste any more valuable time. 

Even though we could not attend a performance, I had hoped that we could at least tour the building to learn more about its history and the splendor of the design, which features European marble, a Parisian stained-glass dome, a Venetian-tiled mosaic floor, and a French Baroque-style auditorium. Vast rehearsal spaces and studios lie underneath the building and the broad Avenida 9 de Julio, as does a costume shop that holds more than 22,000 pairs of shoes.

I was told different things at different times. The last time I was there, I was told that guided tours would be available again "sometime in 2011."  

So we were shut out...denied. Bummer.

Hello, We Must Be Going: A Day in Uruguay

Argentine tourist visas expire after 90 days. So before three months was up, we had to leave the country in order to remain in the country. Well covered in online expat discussion boards, we decided that our best option was to take a ferry across the Rio de la Plata to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. It was a pleasant day, but it all seemed kind of ridiculous.

We were fortunate to have a spectacularly beautiful weather -- sunny and in the 60s. The ferry takes about an hour each way. The Rio de la Plata is muddy, brown, and not much to see. Going through customs and having our visas stamped took less than 20 minutes. Some people turn right around and return to Buenos Aires without leaving the ferry terminal. We decided to make the most of being in a new country, so we ventured into town for the day.

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, Colonia was founded by Portuguese settlers from Brazil in 1680 and was an important port for smuggling British goods across the Rio de la Plata into Spanish colonies during the 17th Century. The Barrio Historico is picturesque, well maintained, and quite interesting.

Because our kids were wild that day, we did not take a historic tour, visit the many museums, or climb the 108 stairs to the top of the old lighthouse (kids must be eight years old to do the climb). 

Our ride for the day

Instead, we rented a golf cart and toured a wider area, including the Mercado Artesanal and Playa Ferrando. You can see these areas without a car or golf cart, but it would be extremely difficult with young children. (Bikes and cars are also available for rent. Taxis are available as well.) 


The golf cart did not have seatbelts, so we had to hold onto the kids to keep them from bouncing out of the cart, which they thought was great fun.

We were glad that we had not bothered to take the stroller since it would have been useless on the cobblestoned streets.

In the end, it cost more than $500 to renew our tourist visas. Here is a breakdown:

• Buquebus ferry tickets: $100 per adult, $77 per child in "turista" class
• coffee and snacks on the ferry: $10
• Thrifty golf-cart rental: $50
• lunch in Barrio Historico: $50
• souvenirs at the Mercardo Artesanal: $25
• duty-free shopping (Tanqueray and m&m's) on the ferry: $26

Call me cynical, but it seems ridiculous that Argentina forces you to leave and spend money elsewhere for a day. In a sense, it reflects the country's willingness, for better and worse, to let economic opportunities go unexploited -- witness the many Argentines who travel simply to purchase duty-free goods (especially liquor, makeup, perfume, and cigarettes). 


You can ignore or choose not to renew your visa, but I have read that there is a fine upon leaving the country and they may give you a hard time or not let you in if you try to return to Argentina.

Bastion de San Miguel

Bastion de San Miguel

Barrio Historico, near the port

Playa Ferrando

Purpleness

Plaza Belgrano

Buenos Aires is awash in purpleness with the blooming of the jacarandas, which are artfully placed in parks and line many major avenues. The spring bloom is quite dramatic. They started blooming in early November and peaked last week. The trees are now dropping their flowers, creating purple carpets below. 

Jacarandas are simply lovely to an Ohioan who cannot help but think about the November starkness back home.

Plaza Italia, Jardin Botanico

Plaza Italia, Jardin Zoologia

Plaza Belgrano

Paseadore = Dogwalker

Paseadores are "professional" dog walkers in Buenos Aires. We see them everyday, especially in the mornings in Belgrano and Palermo Chico. It is quite a site.  

If the paseadore is walking a group of large dogs, it looks like he is being carried on their backs since he is completely surrounded and his legs are not visible. It always reminds me of stage divers being passed overhead by the crowd at a concert.

Paseadores walk to and from the parks where they tie their charges to a tree or fence or let them loose in enclosed dog runs. Sometimes the dogs are all one or similar breed(s), color, or the same size. I have seen groups of retrievers, labs, beagles/hounds, and Jack Russell terriers as well as groups of mostly white, brown, or blonde dogs. 

Although they bark their head off in the park, the dogs seem happy and well behaved on the streets and sidewalks. They do not fight or attack each other. 

The one thing that the dogs do do (pun intended) is their business anywhere. Paseadores do not clean up after them, which is completely disgusting. I have witnessed responsible individuals cleaning up after their own dogs. 

Boy and Girl know to look for "land mines" as we walk around the city or try to find a place to picnic in the park. I spent the morning of my 40th birthday cleaning dog shit off of Girl's shoe -- it was a pretty shitty (again, pun intended) start to my fourth decade.

Having a breed appears to be a status symbol in Belgrano, Palermo, and Recoleta, as does having a dog walker. For some people it is a way to show their neighbors what they can afford. 

I read somewhere that paseadores are supposed to have a license and not to walk more than 10 dogs at a time. I suppose their is a penalty for noncompliance, but I see guys with 15 or so dogs everyday. 

I also read that paseadores are paid around $100 AR a month per dog. If they have enough dogs in their care, it can rival an Argentine teacher's salary.

A Surprising Vehicle for Beautiful Design

Beautiful design and public transportation are not usually mentioned in the same sentence, but it is apparent here when you see the city busses (collectivos). The bus lines each have a similar but distinct look with the same colors and overall designs so that you can recognize the different lines from a distance without even having to see the number of the bus. For example, we have a choice of two different busses to ride between Belgrano and Palermo: the 60 is mustard yellow with red and black accents and the 118 is red, white, and blue. 

A beautiful feature on almost all of the busses is filete or filetado. A Porteno art form, this decorative painting style was popularized here in the late 19th Century. It is characterized by ornamental scrollwork and florid garlands, often incorporating the blue and white bands from the Argentine flag. The military government banned the use of filete from 1976 to 1983 in favor of straight lines and right angles. This typography is now used gloriously on city busses as well as on some store signs and in public areas.

Although I have seen a few plain interiors, most reflect the driver's personality. Some are totally tricked out with black lights, curtains (to block the sun), decorative mirrors, pictorial shrines of Jesus or family members, music, disco balls, and more. It makes stepping onto the bus interesting because you never know what you will see.

Using public transportation is essential for getting around this enormous city. Although the busses are privatized (so no crosstown connections), they are subsidized by the government so it is extremely inexpensive -- between $1.10 to $1.25 AR or around 30 cents USD -- to ride the bus.

The fare machine on the bus says "Indicate your destination" (in Spanish, of course), which I took to mean that I was supposed to tell the driver where I wanted off the bus. After some confusing moments, I listened to what other people told the driver, which is the amount they think they should pay. 

So now I tell the driver "uno veinte" ($1.20 AR) then put my change in the machine. (The machine does not take dollars, so we always have to carry change.) Then the machine spits out a little ticket that looks similar to the paper in a fortune cookie. No one has ever asked to see the ticket, but I keep it in my pocket just in case.

People are incredibly gracious when the children are with me. They insist that I board first and someone always offers their seat so I can sit with Boy/Girl on my lap. Boy and Girl enjoy riding the bus, which is fortunate because we ride it home from school every day. Children under three ride free, but they seldom charge us for Boy even though he is five.

Although the busses are generally clean, a few have been nasty. I have had a few occasions where I have had to move seats because I was nauseated by the smell of urine, and wasn't sure if it was my seat mate or the seat itself.

Besides being inexpensive, busses are also very efficient on the road. The drivers go ridiculously fast when not stuck in traffic, sometimes barely stopping for riders to get on or off. The busses are almost as fast as taking a taxi -- their sheer size and aggressive driving allows them to rule the road. I feel safer on the bus than I do in a taxi.

Here are some pics, mostly taken at our terminus, Barrancas de Belgrano, on a sunny Sunday morning. It was a fun excursion with Boy (who is still obsessed with transportation) and we didn't have to inhale all of the awful exhaust because the busses were parked and not running.