Wow, where to start! What a place...Buenos is officially my favourite place I´ve ever been to as a tourist...be it Newquay, Grand Canyon or whatever...it´s amazing!

So...Sunday morning was spent in San Telmo, the oldest part of town. There was a traditionally arts and crafts market (think Covent garden style) with traditional music...and people dancing tango in the street! It was brilliant, San Telmo is just sooo pleasent, it´s cobbled streets, traditionally frenmch/italian style buildings, plazas, cafes etc... Got lots of pics, especially of the "fileteado" special sort of Argentine artwork (see here: http://www.conozcasantelmo.com.ar/filete/filete_calle.jpg ) and an amazing wall painting of Che Guevara (hes an icon here more so as he was from ARgentina).

Then for the afternoon I had a bike tour of the northern part of the city, the richest and wealthest districts. It was fun, not least because we were riding on the main 8 lane roads amongst Argentine drivers (probably as dangerous as swimming with sharks!)...but the northern parts are incredible...you have Puerto Madero, a recently renovated South Bank style area with apartment blovks similar to those big sky scrapers in Dubai. We then went to Recoleta, another posh area of town, with amazing posh french style building (hundred years ago or so the argentine aristocracy wanted to copy Paris, as most of these aristocrats came from France)...the stree lights are painted gold, theres no graffiti and streets are very clean, and freshly painted, its the most luxurious place I´ve ever been to. BA is very european, and you struggle to believe you are still in Argentine and South America at times. However, such is this contentinet, extremes...lots of wealth in places, lots of poverty in others. We finished our tour up at the Plaza de Mayo, the government square where the presidencial building sits La Casa Roasada (the pink house), their equivalent of the White House. Saw the balcony where Evita dressed her crowds etc...

Also, just 8 years ago (to the day, December 2001), Argentina was in the midst of a finiancial melt down, and the government blocked people from withdrawing money from ATMS, and the currency went from being equivalent to US$1 to US$0.25. Bacially everyone lost moneys, employment sored to 25% of the population. So, upto a million people stormed the streets of Buenos AIres and seiged the building, the president had to resign and had to flee in a helicopter.

Spent the evening with some people I met at the hostel at a bar opposite the Obelisc for dinner. There was an event on that nights and there were lots of people around and musci booming out over the streets. Quite special, had good vibes.

& thats Sunday. Will update on Mon - Thurs when I get round to it!