Day Four -- The Mother of all Cemeteries

Friday the 6th we moved upstairs from our sweltering, steamy room into a little apartment with WINDOWS--hooray! Our first stop of the day was the amazing Recoleta Cemetery. I’ve never seen anything like it--it was like walking into a city full of tiny churches. Most of the crypts are like little chapels where the coffins sit on pedestals surrounded by altars, kneelers, chandeliers, stained glass, etc. Many of the insides of the crypts were visible through glass windows and doors, while others had broken windows or gates so that there was nothing separating you from the coffins. Most of the crypts had a “downstairs” to them that you could also see through the glass. It seems whole families are interred together- we counted up to 13 coffins/boxes of cremated remains in one little building. The very rich, famous and infamous are buried here--one of the highlights was seeing Evita’s grave (though it wasn't as ornate as this one).

Later we walked through a nice park and looked at more impressive architecture, but at 95 degrees it was too hot to stay outdoors. The weather turned stormy later in the evening, as did our dinner in the Puerto Madero barrio. Note to all you husbands out there: no matter how well-meaning you are, don’t tell your wife that she should “take it easy on the bread.” After dinner we decided to stay in and watch movies on TV for a much-needed break from the endless sight-seeing and late nights.

--Elva