Monday, May 02, 2005

Rachel in MilanAirport Again

Monday now,onmy way home adhave some time to kill in Milan Airport. So I am sittingata funny little machine with a dradful keyboard - will edit this later! - and hope that it will stay working long enough for me to post a brief note. It has alrady spat my phonecard out once so maybe this will all be lost.

Anyway,had a nice enogh flight here,sitting next to a sweet young Belgian man on his way home frma month inBs As with his girlfriend. I made him promise to try the tango next timehe is over there. I have wandered around the airport and can confirm that it is rather dull and I still have a couple of hours before my flight to London. Long enough I suppose for the baggage handlers to rifle through my stuff and take out my fabulous new shoes... please God can the tiny tiny padlock scare them off!

I will write more about the last couple of days inBs As when I get to London but oddly enough I ended up back inSalon Canning both nights, even thogh tha had probably beenmy least favourite milonga. The concert I was rushing off to on Friday night was a real treat - it was the Buenos Aires Tango Orchestra playing in a splendid hall inside the Congresso building, and they wre joined by an old maestro whose ninety-first birthday it was; Carlo Garcia. The music was fantastic and it was a vry emotional occasion for a lot of the musicians. Aftr that Belen and her friend Gabriella andI wnt to a parilla on Corrientes, where I had my second steak of the day... what a life! We sat there chatting about everything and soon it was close to one in the morning. They reckoned that Canning was the best bet, despite my reservations, so off we went. Actually it was pretty much as I had experienced it whenI wnt alone: lots of cliques and not much room on the dance floor. We did stay for the exhibition dances, which wre much better than the previous lot, then went around the corner to the Armenian club, which was much better. I danced a few but we didn't stay long. It was a really lovely evening and different to have girly company.

Saturday was a running around day, not entirely successful butI did get a couple of small things to take back, and go to Flabella's in time to collect the shoes they'd made me. Funnily enogh, I bumped into American Francis at the Obelisk, who came with me to the shoe shop and then on to Tortoni for one last taste of their hot chocolate. That took up the only possible slack in my day so I neither packed nor got over to the Sofitel for Michael & Oswaldo. I had my last lesson with Romina and Carlos early evening, then went on out to Palrmo for dinner with Kikki, Francis and some Argentinian friends of theirs before heading - again - round toCanning for my last milonga. I think I have mentioned before that Saturday night is really for couples and that was indeed the case atCanning. However thatwas its redeeming point thatnight - you could actually see the floor and use it for more thanshuffling about. Being ina group, there was no problem withthe cliquiness either, so it was not a bad send-off.

I got home a little after three and started packing. It took long enough, even though I didn't have to spend time deciding what to take. Still, I managed a couple of hours of sleep and a good shower befor the landlord came at nine on Sunday to give me back my deposit and get his keys. This machine ismaking funny noses now,so I will sign off and publish this before it disappears! Mor later, R

Sunday, May 01, 2005

¿The Last Post?

Right, half past six Friday evening and I´ve arranged to meet Belen for a concert at seven, so time for a very quick catch-up, which may be the last thing I post in Buenos Aires. I can barely believe it but I am leaving on Sunday. Trying to think of raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens etc but nonetheless close to tears most of the time.

On Tuesday evening, my nap over-ran so severely that I woke at half past midnight and as the milonga I had planned to go to finished at one, I finished off my book and went back to bed. My foot was already playing up by then too, so I thought it best not to take it out and torture it.

On Wednesday, I did a small amount of limping around shoe shops and have ordere a pair to be made for me which I hope will be pretty fab. I bought some others but am happy to say have not gone mad with the shoe shopping, bearing in mind the great sack of shoes I have waiting for me at home. In the evening, I went to see The Producers in Spanish, which was interesting but not as good as I had hoped. It plays here as a Carry On farce and poor Ulla is reduced to Barbara WIndsor-type wiggling and pouting that is a bit of a shame. The line "Wait until they hear abouthtis in Argentina" is left in but the lover from the Argentine in Along Came Bialy isn´t. People laughed at completely different things than in London and the shock value was much diminished - maybe if it had been a musical about torturing students then drugging themn and dropping them out of aeroplanes into the Rio Plata it would have touched more of a nerve.

After that, I went to a Milonga at Nacional which was pretty ropey. Of all the venues I Have been to, that is the most lacklustre and it seemed that someone had been in with the ugly stick before I arrived. Anyway, I met a very nice young French woman who had just arrived and had the pleasure of being the old hand and passing on a bit of wisdom. The evening was also notable for my having a twenty minute conversation in Spanish with a Porteña lady who didn´t dance but was there with her brother. Phew!

By Thursday morning, my left foot was killing me so I went to a pharmacist across the road and explained my dilemma. Well, if I had known you could buy serious drugs here without prescription.... heaven knows what it is they sold me but it has worked a treat! Pain largely gone, swelling down to barely noticeable propertions. If I have time, I will go back tomorrow and see if they will sell me another packet to take home.

I had an unsuccessful souvenir hunt - such tat on offer! - then my class in the afternoon, followed by a return to Club Español, which has to be one of my favourite milongas here. No time for details but it was great til my feet just failed me. At the end, I went with Francis, an American, and Kikki, a Swede, to the splendid Cafe Tortoni for a heavenly hot chocolate.

Today I have been out to lunch and on a tour of La Boca with the parents of my landlord, which was very intreresting as they grew up in the neighbourhood in extreme poverty with immigrant parents.

I´m pretty much out of time now & must hop in a cab and get to this concert.

So I have just tomorrow left and so much to do. ...

Hasta la vista!