You know when you hear people mention something, say a kind of fruit, that you had no idea existed? That’s what happened to me with cuaresmillos, the Shangri-La of candied fruit for me. I had heard family members praise these little peaches but never seen or eaten them until recently. I was visiting historic buildings…
What do vanilla wafers and the Colón Opera House have in common? Opera! Teatro Colón (Colón Opera Hoouse) is Argentina’s leading opera house, opened in 1908. Opera is also a popular brand of vanilla wafers made by a company called Bagley. They were launched in 1906 under a different name but the manufacturer decided to change…
Read more Guided visit to the Colón Opera House in Buenos Aires
A potted history of Córdoba first What happens when a subordinate disobeys the Viceroy’s orders? A new city is founded. Or, at any rate, that’s what happened with Córdoba. In 1673, the Viceroy of Perú, the head of one of the administrative units of the Spanish colonies in South America, commanded Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera…
Read more Historic Church and Convent of San Francisco – Córdoba [Argentina]
Plaza Barrancas de Belgrano is a leafy public park located in the eponymous neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. Its downward slope (barranca) towards the river gave it its name and makes it unique in the city. Or rather, it slopes down to where the river Plate used to be before the wetlands were dredged and filled…
– Go straight on, at the roundabout take the exit to Tanti and continue on that road. You’ll drive past Lo de Daniel, a popular steakhouse. Keep climbing until after the tarmac ends. There’s only one way up, you can’t miss it. With these directions, we set out to Los Gigantes range in Córdoba (Argentina)…
The road winds uphill among lush green spruce and pine. At the end is Villa General Belgrano, a German village smack in the middle of the sierras cordobesas (the hills of Córdoba in central Argentina). It’s lunchtime and I’m salivating at the thought of all the German dishes we’re about to eat: sauerkraut, leberwurst (and…
The second installment in this series explores the history of one of the most popular sports in Argentina today: football. It can be said that the railway plays a key role here too since many clubs were founded by railway workers in the late 1800s. Alexander Watson Hutton (10 June, 1853 – 9 March, 1936)…
On my recent trip to England I realised that some areas or buildings reminded me of my own country, Argentina. Even my Argentinean friends, who were on holiday in London, too, made similar remarks. One of the aspects that caught my attention was the architecture of railway stations. Waterloo Station put me in mind of…
The view of the basilica, with its looming spires, never fails to impress. It’s Luján, Argentina’s epicentre of Catholic faith, where miracles are prayed for and where thousands go on pilgrimage every year hoping that Our Lady of Luján will hear their pleas. This time round we skipped the basilica and headed to the History…
An alfajor is a sweet treat similar to a sandwich cookie. Depending on the regional recipe, the cookie can be more or less moist, like cake, or harder like a biscuit. The filling ranges from dulce de leche to fruit preserve to meringue and they’re covered in chocolate or icing or dusted with confectioner’s sugar.…
