Plaza de Mayo

We have arrived in Buenos Aires!  This will be home for Danny and me for the next four months.  Danny is doing part of his PhD project here and I couldn't resist coming along too.  It has been one week since we arrived and so far we are loving this place (except for the fact that my suitcase is missing …  fingers crossed the airline will find it soon).  After falling in love with Buenos Aires when I first visited four years ago, I am very excited to really get to know the city this time around.

In the heart of Buenos Aires is Plaza de Mayo.  This has been the stage of numerous political events and protests, including the May Revolution of 1810 that led to Argentina's independence from Spain.  I was taken aback to discover protesters currently camping in the plaza in a somewhat permanent state.  There is also an association of mothers who continue to assemble at the plaza in remembrance of their children who disappeared during the military dictatorship of the 1970s.  They are called 'Las Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo' and some of them are still looking for their lost children.

From a quick glance of the landmark buildings here, you could almost mistake yourself for being in Europe.  We walked past the grand headquarters of the Nación Bank and entered the impressive Metropolitan Cathedral.  Inside the cathedral lies the mausoleum of General San Martín (a big leader in South America's independence from the Spanish Empire) - you can't miss it, the General has at least two guards protecting his tomb at all times.  Last but not least, on the east side of the plaza is Casa Rosada, house of the executive and president - which I will share in the next blog post :)