hollisandbeyond2015: Modern Buenos Aires

The newest area of Buenos Aires is Puerto Modera which is located beside the Plata River. On Friday, we took the subway to Plaza de Mayo, the nearest station to this neighbourhood, then walked from there. Before leaving Plaza de Mayo, however, we checked out the interior of the cathedral noted in an earlier post as Pope Francis' home church, but it is also the resting place of Argentina's favourite hero, José de San Martín whose eternal flame burns on the exterior of the cathedral. We had visited a plaza in Retiro named in his honour (mentioned in a previous post). I was lucky to snap a photo of some soldiers in ceremonial dress who guard both San Martin's tomb and the entrance to the Casa Rosado. Walking by the Casa Rosado on the way to the Puerto, we saw a large flag of Argentina blowing in the wind. This was the first flag in mint condition we have seen, as many have appeared somewhat ragged and faded. We crossed many streets before finding the pedestrian bridge across the canal at the Puerto Modero. Its design is said to resemble a harp, a fishhook or tango dancers. Take your pick. The frigate, the Presidente Sarmiento is docked in the canal. This was a training ship which made 37 voyages round the world between 1899 and 1938 to educate young people about other cultures. This was the brainchild of Domingo Sarmiento, a former teacher who became president of Argentina. The ship actually travelled to Halifax during its 1904 voyage. Later on our walk we visited an art gallery built by a wealthy Buenos Aires woman, Amelia Lacroze de Fortabat, to house her personal collection. The design of the gallery is quite unique as it has a glass roof with shades that move to screen the direct sun from the works of art, but still allow the viewer to look out. Apparently the founder wanted to be able to see the stars and her paintings at the same time.