Q is for Quilmes

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The extinct native Indian tribe "Quilmes" (Kilmes) has given its name to a city in the Province of Buenos Aires, a village, and a beer brand in Argentina. Nowadays, when people speak of Quilmes they mostly mean the brew. It is the leading brand when it comes to beer in Argentina. Furthermore, Quilmes is sort of a national Argentine symbol and was one of the country's biggest assets. During the last economic crisis in 2001/2002 the brewery got into turmoil and, thus, had to be turned over to foreign investor-owned corporations. Since then the Brazilian company AmBev has gradually acquired the majority of shares.

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Old Facade in Decay in San Telmo

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San Telmo is the smallest but probably the most picturesque and historic part of Buenos Aires. Here you will find a large number of old buildings dating from colonial times. Some of them are in a pretty good condition while others are going to seed. The barrio was once the city's upper-class district but yellow fever had driven away most of the former denizens in 1871. Some of the old mansions can tell you stories of a time long gone just by the fading elegance of their facades. I love this old building in the picture in particular for its decaying charm and fading beauty.

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Buenos Aires, the White City

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You are overlooking Buenos Aires or the White City, as I call it. From atop the roofs you get the impression that the city has been covered with white powder. Wherever you turn, from afar the whole city seems white-washed and pristine. The barrios you are looking at are Monserrat and San Telmo. Almost every building, every structure, every surface, even the sidewalks appear white.

There are more bird's eye views on Buenos Aires Perception:
Buenos Aires Concrete
Mind Blowing View Over Buenos Aires

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Shooting Strangers Unintendedly

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Don't worry, he is still alive and so am I. Photographing strangers can admittedly be tough at times. You always have to be prepared for their reactions. Sometimes I ask them for permission, sometimes not. It depends on the situation, my mood, and the picture I'm going to shoot. Either I frame a photo carefully or I just shoot from the hip and hope for the best. The latter was the case with this snapshot. The unknown gentleman, however, ran straight into the picture without asking my permission. *g* I decided the grim look on his face was caused by the sun shining into his eyes.

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Live Elvis Presley Painting to Rock ’n’ Roll Music

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Sundays in San Telmo are for repeating the same ritual over and over again. It's Feria de San Telmo - a colorful bazaar with a lot of crafts and entertaining artists like the guy in the picture. He used a black man-sized sheet as a canvas to paint on it wildly with his fingers while a ghetto blaster was screaming Jailhouse Rock. Gradually, he turned his blank canvas into something that I could recognize as the portrait of the King of Rock 'n' Roll.

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H is for Happy Graffiti Scene

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Street art is all around in Buenos Aires. The scene is very vibrant and has some very gifted artists. Although not everyone is happy with graffiti in public places, the majority here seems to be easy-going when it comes to urban street art. Even the police have a laissez-faire position towards graffiti as long as it is not offensive, rude or contains any kind of slurs. Some even say you can paint the wall of a police station without getting into real trouble. Probably that's why private property is usually respected in Buenos Aires. Moreover, the creative output is mostly on a high level of quality and expression. The cheerful wall painting in the picture is to be found in San Telmo and was done by an artist called LOUIS aka GROLOU.

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Cine Sí - Mainstream No

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This unobtrusive backlit sign indicates the location of a specialty shop of supreme interest for movie fanatics, cine-lovers and those who live to the cinema. Cine Sí is a store in San Telmo that is completely dedicated to cinema and visual arts. It has a highly specialized non-standard variety of international and local movies, magazines, books and other printed material. The movie selection available to buy and rent is rather limited but assorted with love and enthusiasm by a team of young people. They even rent equipment for film-making and photography.

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Selling Burnt Almonds

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I like these street scenes telling you a story of the city. The guy in the red jacket was waiting, maybe for his wife, his kid, or Godot, to come out of the polyclinic right behind him. While doing so, he observed the world around him; once in a while he small talked with the guy beside him who had a stand with pistachios and burnt almonds to sell to passer-bys. Obviously his business went so slow this morning that he decided to become his own best customer. The pack he was just about to open was for himself. I caught him in the act.

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Weird Snake Wall Painting in San Telmo

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I chanced upon this mural while walking through the barrio of San Telmo and was wondering what's up with that weird image. It appeared pretty grim to me and not as cheerful as others I have seen in the past. I don't think there are any hidden metaphors here that are too deep, however, it remains a bit hard to grasp.
By the way, can you spot the telephone distribution box?

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Revitalizing Buenos Aires

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The city administration of Buenos Aires pushes a wave of street constructions and renovations since last spring. Everywhere in the city, construction sites are shooting up like mushrooms. These guys are working on the revitalization of Defensa Street in San Telmo. They replace old pipes and repair the sewer system in general. Well, then. Haciendo Buenos Aires!

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Large Assortment of Nostalgic Phones with a Past

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If I happened to be a movie production designer or a set decorator and I had to recreate an illusion of Buenos Aires back in its glory days, I knew where to go first. I would start my search for particular items for the set in San Telmo, which is full of these vintage collectible and antique stores. I really like to browse these stores because you'll find so many things that were already outdated several decades before I was born. It's just fun to see these gorgeous items. Sometimes I wonder what people will think about our state-of-the-art tech and gadgets such as the iPhone, the XBox or Netbooks in about a hundred years from now. Psychic abilities, anyone?

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Dorrego Square in Winter

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San Telmo is covering a relatively small geographic area of Buenos Aires and the Plaza Dorrego is its focal point for tourists. Because there aren't many tourists in winter, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery freely. On this chilly morning, there were only a few locals on the square, offering odds and ends while sharing gossip and socializing.

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Street Tango Corazon

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The tango belongs to Argentina such as gauchos (Argentine cowboys), asado (Argentinean barbecue), mate or soccer. Some say dancing the Argentine tango is good to begin with when it comes to learn ballroom dances. I guess this is what tango teachers tell you. But before hitting the tango schools I would suggest you start from scratch by simply watching others dancing the tango in the streets of the city. There is a very high chance of watching locals dancing the tango somewhere in Buenos Aires.
What do you think is the best dance for starters?

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Typical Buenos Aires Fruit and Vegetables Store

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This is a picture of a very typical Fruteria and Verduleria in Buenos Aires with a sidewalk display of fruits and vegetables. Many small business owners use the space in front of their stores to offer all kinds of assorted goods. I really like the fact that the fruits and vegetables are mostly sorted by color which makes it a typically eye-catching display.

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Buenos Aires Street Singer

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Today is Sunday and it is Fería in San Telmo. This weekly ritual entices loads of tourists and there is hardly a spot on the streets around Plaza Dorrego that is not occupied by musicians, street vendors or spectators. The tango singer in the pictures performs her version of "Acuarela del Río" very passionately, you would never belief that during weekdays she is trying to attract customers by distributing flyers for a newly opened restobar.

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Little Laundrette in San Telmo

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Doing the laundry yourself? Not in Buenos Aires. There are plenty of these small wash salons where you bring in your dirty laundry in the morning and collect it in the evening. Just say how you want it done. The stuff in this little wash salon located at Avenida Independencía is ever so lovely. Getting your laundry done is kind of cheap in Buenos Aires.

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Still Life With Sun Umbrellas

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The four sunny umbrellas belong to a café in the lovely Pasaje de la Defensa upstairs in the second patio. You'll find the colonial building at 1179 Calle Defensa in San Telmo. Whether it is a coffee break or shopping break, enjoy the historic building.

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Noisy Buenos Aires

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The heavy traffic makes Buenos Aires one of the noisiest cities on earth. The 25 de Mayo Highway in the picture goes straight through some residential districts like San Telmo. The sound of the roaring traffic can really become a nightmare. It's constantly present, day and night. So if you live close to the city center or along a highway get yourself some ear plugs for a good night's sleep!

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Buenos Aires Park Scene

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Calling Buenos Aires a City of Green is kind of daring. Nonetheless, it is a fairly green city with many urban green spaces and public parks within its city boundaries. One of the smaller ones is the Parque Lezama in San Telmo. Porteños relaxing under some shady trees is a quite common city picture.

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Bohemian Antique Shop

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The "Pasaje de la Defensa" is a wonderful place for a stroll. In the traditional house at Defensa 1179 you can delve in a variety of shops and find antique furniture, old times attires, a lot of handicraft, souvenirs and gifts. It is like a dip into the history of San Telmo.

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