The neighborhood (or the barrio)

We really do live in an awesome part of Buenos Aires.

Our apartment is marked by the yellow pin on this Google Earth map (thanks Uncle Stephen).

Someone remarked 'what is that big parking lot near you?' Well, it is a parking lot...sort of. It is the famous Recoleta cemetary, where Eva Peron is buried. The green space between us and the cemetary, is where the 'Hippy Market' sets up every weekend. There are a couple of hundred stalls selling everything you can imagine (jewelry, art, clothing, carvings, food, footwear).....

If you go out the front door of our apartment and turn left, you would hit the Valentino store...the 1925 address marker is actually the address for our 'backdoor' - where deliveries are made to our apartment building.......

Next to Valentino's is Louis Vuitton. A store that I have never seen anyone in, except for the 5 or 6 staff that work there. I guess you only have to make one big sale and you are good for another month of standing around......
If you go out the door and turn right - viola - it's the Hermes store......

Across the street is the Alvear Palace - a classic hotel (but I am shying away from ordering the Hamberguesa Alvear for awhile).....

Down the street is the Santa Sede, the Vatican's 'embassy'....

Next to it is the the Park Hyatt, a good place to go for tapas (and English) when we need a fix of it....

And next door to the Park Hyatt is where the Munsters go for a vacation. This place looks like an abandoned mansion. Apparently the owners do 'winter' there because it is too hot to live there in the summer because they havent added air conditioning. The place looks pretty creepy but has such possibilities!! And yes, those are palm trees.....

Around the corner is the French Embassy...The flower seller....and right behind her is the Carlos Pellegrini memorial (Argentine president 1890-92)...no, the water is Pellegrino. Carlos was also the founder of the Jockey Club, a posh club across the road from his statue.

And here is Louisa, our portera - she (and Antonio) look after the building, the sidewalk and if she is at the door when we come home, she helps get us on the elevator!

B.