If you’ve completely lost faith in the ever-declining value of the American dollar—this is the destination. After traveling to Paris and having to cough up $7 for a cup of tea, I had almost resigned to falling in love with domestic travel. Although I used to make yearly pilgrimages to India annually, enjoying the 45 rupee to a dollar exchange rate (back in ’06), after an onslaught of health issues, as is par for the course when traveling there, my immune system begged me to stop.
B.A. has been toted as the Paris of South America, and although it deserves such comparison in terms of its café life and fabulous shops, it also deserves its own status. It’s truly unique in a myriad of ways and the people are unbelievably warm and charming. They dress to the nines, and say exactly what’s on their mind, no censorship! – so refreshing!
Famous for cheap plastic surgery and Botox, but what might be less well known, is that it’s a Mecca for psychoanalysis. They take their Lacanian analysis very seriously. It’s actually fashionable to be in analysis the way it was in New York City in the 60’s, when great artists like Martha Graham swore by their analytic experience in fostering their creative self-actualization. Especially in the trendy district called the Palermo, (their equivalent of Nolita or Williamsburg) brimming with emerging young designers and artists, there is a strong buzz around Lacanian analysis—an interesting branch of psychoanalysis where the analyst can decide to end the session whenever he or she feels the analysand needs to be interrupted, even after only 5 minutes if he feels it will wake the person up or shake the process up. Can’t say I agree with such extreme measures, but it’s fascinating to me that it’s become so popular there.
Highlights of B.A.:
The Recoletta Cemetery: a dream setting for the next GBD DVD—I wonder how many music videos have been shot there?
It’s gorgeous, sacred, dark and eerie at the same time despite the throngs of tourists.
Lingerie shopping at Las Oreiros in the Palermo—what you imagine
naughty Argentinean princesses wore. They even wrap up your prized
possessions in a satin hatbox. Sigh.
High Tea at the Alvear Palace Hotel in the Recoletta
Day of Beauty at any of the notable spas. You can get pampered for an entire day including facials, body scrubs, mani/pedis, reflexology etc for under $200, something that would cost a small fortune in the city. And the aestheticians are amazing there!
Dinner at the Café Tortoni. The best grilled cheese (or jamon y queso if you’re not veg) and hot chocolate in the city!
Shopping in the Barrio Norte. I snagged some of the most amazing vintage Swarovski crystal costume jewelry at a store called Faroma. For shoes: Mishika; and for handbags, Own. They will soon be selling their pieces of art at Barney’s, but in B.A. you can get creations that would cost you upwards in the thousands for under a $100. Crazy! I sound like a materialist mama gone mad! It happens there with so much affordable beauty! Watch out!
Pastries or fresh orange juice at Francesca’s in Patio Bullrich in the Recoletta. Their version of a mall is like a palace compared to some of our corporate-fueled mega-monstrosities. It’s tiny and only filled with magical little shops and cafes. No screaming children, and you’re not left with that feeling of nausea after .002 seconds of entering.
The art museums are fantastic: Bellas Artes is my favorite.
Perhaps it is just my current state of misery that makes me think summer this year in NYC is worse than last summer. Day after day of wretched, stifling humidity and high temperatures is making me very cranky. Yes, I know the weather situation is much worse in places like Miami, but that is why I don't live in Miami. Some friends of mine love this warm, humid weather. I think they pretend to love it just to aggravate me. And why does the entire county of Queens get such a horrible smell in the air when the weather is like this? Actually, I probably don't want to know the answer to that question. 
Oh, and the fact that I am shortly going on vacation to the cool, dry Rocky Mountains also cheers me up!
Pat and Denis of the band Pangia, performed at RAK this year. They were promoting there new CD. The new CD has photographs by me on it. This CD has some really wonderful taxsims. This cd is different from their earlier releases because it is the first that has no lyrics. This feature is wonderful since you never have to worry what the words are saying. I am always nervous to pick songs with lyrics because it always requires translation, and relying on others to get that right. (and of course the have the best photography on the cover ) 
