This past weekend, I went with my friend Sam to Buenos Aires from Friday until Monday.The trip involved a 9 hour overnight bus ride in "cama" (bed seats). We arrived in Bs As at 8:00 in the morning on Saturday. The neighborhood that the bus terminal is located in was not the safest place to be so we booked it to the nearest Starbucks to start the day. After changing, having the cafe del dia and talking with locals to figure out where we were, we tracked our route to our hostel and began the 30 minute walk there. The hostel that we stayed in was called the Downtown B.A. Hostel and was located in the center of the city close to the Plaza de San Martin. We stopped at the Plaza to take our first photos of the trip. 
It was unfortunately pouring the entire day on Saturday and was cold. The city tour that we had planned to take was a 3 hour walking tour, so we decided to book a bus tour through the hostel. We began our tour at 2:00 and saw many historical sites, the different barrios of Buenos Aires, and numerous interesting locations and monuments, including the $5 million flower sculpture that is new to Bs As. We visted the Plaza de Mayo, the famous square that the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo march each Thursday. And, the Casa Rosada (like the white house of Argentina, but it's pink) We also visited the barrio "La Boca" which is a famous neighborhood close to the Rio de la Plata. This barrio is very colorful and shows the character of the original Tango and European influences in Buenos Aires.
On Sunday, Samantha and I visited two museums and a famous cemetery. The first museum was called La Malba and had numerous works of art from around the world. There was an entire floor devoted to art from the United States which was called "Bye Bye American Pie". I would take back the word "devoted" to U.S. art and change it to "defaming" U.S. art. The way the United States was portrayed by this exhibit was disappointing and unfortunate. It portrayed Americans as teenage drug abusing prostitutes who condone bestiality and are racists. Highlighting the lowest point in American culture, the 70's. After the visit to La Malba, we went to the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. I did not take photos at this museum, but it was absolutely amazing. I could have spent all day there staring at the different paintings and sculptures. I don't know if I will ever visit as place as amazing or captivating at this museum. Each room had a theme and a different color on the wall to highlight the beauty of the paintings in that room. The sculptures were by far my favorite part as I was awed by the possibility that a piece of wood, ceramic, or stone could be transformed into a human with flexed muscles and skin crevices. 
The final stop of the day was to the Cemeterio de la Recoleta, a cemetary in the barrio of Recoleta that houses the tombs of Argentina's most famous and most influencial. The tomb of Eva Peron (Evita) and many presidents were located in this cemetary. The interesting thing is that all of the tombs are above ground and houses in individual building that look like houses. From a far, the cemetary looks like a community, or a city street. It's not until you are in front of one of the tombs and can see the casket inside that you realize it isn't. Sam and I were perplexed to see an abundance of cats in this cemetary because we have only seen stray dogs in all of Argentina. I learned in class today that the cemetary is famous for the cats that are fostered there. There are many legends about these cats and my professor said that cats are not fearful of the supernatural, but that dogs are and that is the explanation for the feline phenonmenon. The statues located on top of each of the tombs were amazing and beautiful as well, in a very eerie way. After leaving the cemetery, we went to the feria and looked at each of the street shops for a bit before heading back to the hostel to pick up our belongings. We then found a McDonalds and indulged in some french fries, made our way back to the Starbuck's from the first day, and got ready to head back to Cordoba. I'm looking forward to traveling again as my next journey will be with Jacob to Iguazu Falls!
Chau,
Alex
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