Rojo Tango

On Thursday night I went to my third dinner and tango show in a week. This time I was down at the Faena Hotel + Universe for the show at Rojo Tango, considered one of the best shows in the city. This was the third show in week that I was going to see which was considered one of the best in the city, so while I was excited, it also had a lot to live up to. It was clear from the moment I walked into the hotel, though, that this was top notch quality and deserving of a title.

Of course I got there on time and had to wait a half hour for my friend to show up, so I walked around the hotel briefly, though with limited access because of private functions. The hotel was built in the El Porteño building in Puerto Madero, in a very trendy and stylish part of the city that reminds me of the Baltimore Seaport. The hotel was cast in a dim, red light, and I couldn't tell where the hotel actually began between the three restaurants, pool, and night club.

After my friend showed up we headed into the club for our dinner. The meal was great, albeit with small portions. Together we shared a couple of appetizers, steak and raviolis, plus champagne and white wine. As I've said, this was the third tango show I'd seen in a week, and the service at all of these clubs has been terrific. Only through my profession have I been able to score these tickets, because otherwise two tickets to dinner and a show would run about the total of my monthly salary.

As dinner and conversation went on, the lights suddenly dimmed, smoke filled the tiny room, and the show started. We were close to the back of the room and right in front of the band wearing all white, but still only about 25 feet from the stage. This was to be an intimate show. Rojo Tango takes you through the history of tango, with different period dresses and styles. Ultimately, this performance is a bit more modern, and different from the other two I'd seen at El Viejo Almacén and Esquina Carlos Gardel. Maybe it's because I was tired after a long day, or because my guest was getting restless, or because it was the third show in a week, but I was getting a bit bored halfway through the show.

It's not that it wasn't good, but with more drawn out songs than dancing, my attention started to wander. The band was excellent, as were the singers. But maybe you're only supposed to take in a fancy tango show like that once in a while. The show took a sudden turn when two dancers started undressing, and eventually the female dancer took off her top. The crowd seemed stunned, but I had already heard about this and therefore wasn't too surprised. Still, it's not the kind of thing you'd expect from a tango show.

So if you're curious to know what my final thoughts are on the three tango shows, here they are. El Viejo Almacén had the best show, yet the worst food. Well, I don't want to say worst, but it was simply not the best of the three. It was still an excellent meal. Esquina Carlos Gardel had the best food, though I was unimpressed with the performance mainly because I had just heard that my friend's brother passed away. So I'm calling that one a scrub for obvious reasons. In my heart, I know it was still an impressive show, though the venue was less intimate. Rojo Tango certainly had charm and class, but the show itself just left me a little bored. The food was great, and I'll suggest that it had the rotten luck of being third on my list of shows.

So if you come to Buenos Aires and can afford to spring for it, try going to one of these shows. You won't be disappointed either way. And of course, always try to find a milonga (tango club, real people) or watch street performers, who are undoubtedly less talented, but hey, it's free.

Tigre and Tango

On Saturday morning I woke up early to meet up with my friends Valerie, Dan, and Alaina to go for a river boat tour of the Tigre Delta. Tigre is a city about 35 kilometers (16 miles) north of Buenos Aires. It once was a weekend retreat for the wealthy upper class of the city, and though it no longer carries that image, it's definitely a place where the wealthy can show off their sailboats, jet skis, and speedboats. This is a place for water sports, for sure. We took Sturla Viajes on a two hour tour up the Río de la Plata and into the Tigre Delta's muddy and dark waters.

As the city faded away, the landscape changed pretty quickly, and once we got near Tigre it was subtropical. The day started off overcast, but soon the sun broke through and it was a warm and clear day. Houses on stilts presented themselves as boats zoomed past with weekend retreaters. Once we got to Tigre we disembarked and walked through the quiet town to the Fruit Market, which is known for having all kinds of goods to buy. Tigre also has Argentina's largest theme park, which seemed almost out of place with large roller coasters in the distance.

Throw in the random waffle houses and Swiss architecture, and Tigre seemed like a pretty eclectic city. It was clear that it was peaceful and would make a night or two away from the city very relaxing. To truly make use of the fun in Tigre, though, you must have some kind of boat access. Tigre gets its name from the jaguars that once inhabited the region, yet now all you'll find are the friendly locals and tourists coming in. As the boats pass by, everyone waves. Dan said it reminded him of his image of the bayou in Louisiana or somewhere in the south, and I agreed that it reminded me of the Florida Keys.

We got on the 4 pm boat back through the delta and the Río de la Plata, all while dodging heavy boat traffic. There was literally a navy of sailboats to get through, along with kayakers, jet skiers, windsurfers, tubers, and on and on. I don't know how there wasn't an accident, but at one point a catamaran cut in front of our boat and we nearly hit them. Sitting on the back deck of the boat, the sun burn continued and by the time we reached Puerto Madero I was a lobster.

I had to rush home because I had tickets to for dinner and a tango show at Esquina Carlos Gardel, a famous tango show in the Abasto neighborhood. This tango show is a bit more traditional, and in a large theater which holds more guests, making it less intimate than the experience in El Viejo Almacén. Nonetheless, the dinner was delicious, and my steak went well with the read wine and flan with dulce de leche for dessert. I had a booth on the upper floor, which gave a good view of the stage and band which hovered above the dancers.

Unfortunately, just before leaving I heard some bad news. My good friend Lauren from my volunteer time in Cuenca, had rushed home to be at her brother's side because he was ill with swine flu and pneumonia. On Friday night, Chris Patterson lost his battle and passed away. Though I never knew him, it affected me just the same, and I was in no mood for a tango show. So while everyone was cheering and getting into the show, I was elsewhere. Even with my mind on other things, I could still attest that it was a good show and worth seeing if you are in the city.

After the show I met up with my friend Kristian, who will be returning home to Norway this week, and we went out to celebrate. Following up with a lack of solid sleep, I went to La Casa Rosada (the presidential palace) today for a free tour of the inside. I can honestly say that it's pretty unimpressive on the inside, and you can see paint chipping off the walls, drab colors, and over the top rooms designed to look like European castles. It's a lot nicer from the outside, for sure. So another weekend went by, but I was able to take full advantage of it and do some touristic things. Up for next week, another tango show and possibly a bike tour.

Dedicated to Chris Patterson

Above: Photos of the Tigre River Delta, Esquina Carlos Gardel, Casa Rosada

Dancing Some Tango

Last night was my friend Kristine's final night in Argentina, and we tried to send her off the right way. In the hostel she was staying in free Tango lessons were offered, and since I had been over there so many times recently and the staff was so friendly, they let me participate as well. Starting late (of course) after 10 pm, 6 people plus the teacher stood around a small room upstairs, which in the mornings serves as the breakfast nook.

The lesson started out with some relaxing exercise, just walking around in a circle in different speeds, trying to think about how you walk. The next phase was trying to move in a rhythm to the music while walking. Tango is all about feeling the music and moving with the beat, but you're basically always walking in one way or another. Differing from Salsa or Merengue, you don't really move your hips much or do many steps. That made it pretty confusing for me once we finally got a partner and I was basically dancing Salsa. It became necessary to try to forget all of the Salsa I had learned in the year spent in Ecuador. Tango isn't even that popular really. It's not like in Ecuador or Colombia where everyone dances Salsa and it's important to do the same. Only about 10% of Argentinians dance Tango.

Changing partners and getting a bit more advanced throughout the hour lesson, we also heard different styles of Tango music. It was a bit hard for me to hear the beats that we were supposed to move to, especially since you could just make it up yourself as you wanted. You also had to be mindful of the other dancers, who also didn't exactly know what they were doing. One of the hardest parts was simply getting the partner to follow your lead. In Tango, the partner has to totally trust the leader, and if they don't they will start to make their own movements and both dancers will be off step. This happened to me several times, but then again, my own movements were often off the mark.

Once the hour was up, we went along with the instructor to a Milonga, or Tango dance hall. There you can choose to dance it up if you want or simply sit in the back and watch or talk with friends. I had no intention of trying to dance, so I just sat and watched for a bit, also talking with other guests from the hostel and the instructor. It was soon past 1 am and Kristine and I were tired. She had to wake up early to catch her flight back to Ecuador, so we headed out. Now Kristine is gone and I'm on my own again. But on Monday I'll be starting my new job and keeping plenty busy. But in all of the activities that I do, I really don't think I'll be doing all that much Tango dancing. I'll leave that to the professionals.

A Send Off For a Friend

Today is Kristine's last day here in Argentina. Tomorrow she will fly away to Quito via Panama, but you can't really count that as a day since she's going to the airport early in the morning. We've pretty much covered all of the bases here in Buenos Aires, mostly because so many museums are closed either for repairs or due to Swine Flu. Yet we still have some things to do.

She was going to surprise me with a gift, but she wanted to know what kind of Mate gourd I would like, so now we have to go in search of one. Mate is the typical tea everyone drinks here, and though it's bitter and hot the first few tries, eventually you get used to it. I was planning on buying my own eventually, but Kristine insists on getting me something. We walked around a while yesterday trying to find the right one, but all we found were touristy ones with intricate designs, and I just want a regular one that locals have.

After talking to some people we were advised to go to Once, the neighborhood that my mother once lived in, to find a regular Mate gourd. So this morning we will head to Once and try our luck. After that we'll come back to my apartment so she can pick up the rest of her luggage, drop that off at her hostel, and then get some work done. By work done, I mean Kristine will go to a beauty salon for an hour or so and I'll get a 5 minute hair cut, then sit around.

Other plans for the day include meeting up with her boyfriends' sister, who lives in Buenos Aires, to bring some things back to Ecuador with her. We also want to try eating at a restaurant called Siga La Vaca, which is an all you can eat steak house where they also serve you a liter of wine, beer, or soda. It might be a little expensive by our standards here, but after all, you get all you can eat Argentinian steak and wine. Not too bad.

Three things we had planned on doing constantly on this trip were eating steak, drinking wine, and watching or dancing Tango. The first two were done very well, but we never found a Tango show. Kristine's hostel actually gives free lessons on Thursdays, so we're going to participate in that tonight, then head out with the hostel group to a Milonga, a place where you can see a Tango show and then dance too. So without trying to get all of the last sites crammed in, we're simply going to have a nice little day together and then go our separate ways. I'm going to be sad to see her go.