We have a maid? We have a maid.

I've never had a maid before (though I suppose there was a time when I thought my mother was assigned that role) and neither has Sherry. Early in January we were actually surprised to learn that weekly maid service was part of our contract with our rental apartment. (Apparently it pays to read the fine print.) There wasn't any additional charge; it was covered in our rental agreement.

I thought maid service meant general cleaning around our small apartment and was surprised to find that she, or he, had actually washed all the dishes we left out one day. And... had done the laundry of a pile of clothing we left on the floor. And, this person, our maid, was deciding where things should go. In those early days it became a guessing game to discover where the salt shaker, or my tooth paste, or the power adapter for the computer had been placed by our maid. Over time we figured out the logic.



Our maid is a wonderfully nice woman named Vilma (pronounced Beel-mah). We met her, by accident as it turned out, very early in our BA experience. She doesn't speak English, and at the time our Argentine Spanish wasn't quite up to the high level it is today. On that day voice levels increased dramatically, as if talking louder improved understanding.

This morning we met with Vilma again, and this time for the last time. Our Spanish, or perhaps Sherry's, was much better and Vilma was used to the two Canadians at Sinclair 3177. At least I hope she thinks we are Canadian and not the other thing.

There were thank yous, and hugs, and if I'm not mistaken,
an invitation to return to Vilma's nation anytime.
We will miss our apartment in BA. We will miss the maid service.
We will miss Vilma.

Autumn

We have been in Buenos Aires just over two months. We arrived at the height of summer. Temperatures approached forty degrees and we saw the sun for over fourteen hours each day. The nights were hot and humid. It is now cooler, especially  in the evenings. The days are still hot enough; around twenty-five. Daylight hours have shortened; we now get just under thirteen hours of sun, and even though BA days are noticeably shorter, they are much better than the four hours, or less, of indirect sunlight we saw during our last few weeks in the Yukon just a few months ago.

Our street looks much the same as when we arrived, though there is a new crispness in the morning air and a dustiness to the sky. Some trees are shedding leaves, but not significantly, and we don't see much colour in the leaves. Still, it feels and smells like fall.

School started last week. Where once the school playgrounds were empty and the bells silent, they are full again. The distinctive orange school buses, in a variety of sizes and styles and called escolares, run throughout the city. It reminds me of the first few days after Labour Day in Canada.



Autumn: the shadows, the dusty fragrance, the early evenings; that time between summer and winter. When we return to Canada in a few weeks, we will have seen two autumns in six months. And we will enjoy yet another six months later.

California Dreaming

This could be a great candidate for Jeem's Used Car Emporium.

Note the license plate.

Note too how it is parked: not quite on the street, and not completely blocking 

the sidewalk either.

IKEA comes to La Boca

Walking through La Boca, the poorest neighbourhood in BA, one is startled to come upon the familiar colours of  IKEA. But there they are: the unmistakable yellow and blue of the iconic brand, here in Buenos Aires!






Yes, it appears IKEA has come to South America with a gigantic, multi-level operation. All 12,000 products from the company, the third largest consumer of wood on the planet, are showcased at this new facility. Apparently the building can handle over 40,000 customers at any given time.







The building has restaurants on every level serving up that funny tasting coffee and lots of those world famous meatballs. Efforts are now underway to meet minimum standards for the actual meat content in the meatballs, but that's another story mainly of interest in Europe.





On the right, an artist's image of the new IKEA uniforms to be worn by staff around the world. The new attire, again in the recognisable blue and yellow colours, will be rolled out this summer in the northern hemisphere.

La Boca

La Boca is a barrio in Buenos Aires on the riverfront, at the mouth of the Rio Plate. It is most definitely a working class neighbourhood and a highly popular tourist destination.



Walking through the barrio, which is not accessible by subway, presents a rougher side of town; not the nicest part of the city, yet still very much a neighbourhood. Some guidebooks suggest ignoring Boca all together, others say it is unsafe at night. One source mentioned that police are there during the day to watch over the tourists; when they leave at sunset, so do the police. Somehow it doesn't seem quite that bad.

As one gets closer to the waterfront the barrio's homes and businesses become more colourful. There is a certain element of fun, and there is lots of noise and colour.

Souvenir shops and overpriced bars and poor restaurants appear as one gets to the centre of the barrio, a street called Caminito (immortalized by the tango of the same name). English and Portuguese become the most widely heard languages and tourists are everywhere.

Side streets offer a place for local artists to set up stalls and these are well worth the visit. The artists seem genuinely happy to talk with people and present their works.

Boca is a neighbourhood. Somewhat touristy in the daytime. Vibrant and colourful, and full of life, with or without the tourists and the Policia.

Photos by Jim Murray. Copyright 2013.