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BUENOS AIRES
Downtown Buenos Aires is as sophisticated as any
European city, with its wide avenues, fine colonial
architecture and rows of pavement cafes. The city was
built by French, Italian and Spanish immigrants and the
Porteņos (locals) still regard themselves as more
European than South American. Travellers walking through
the leafy parks and boulevards could be forgiven for
thinking they were in Madrid, Paris or Milan.
Buenos Aires was founded on the shores of the Rio de la
Plata in 1570 and was named after the patron saint of
sailors for the good wind or buen aire. The city
remained a colonial backwater for 200 years while the
Spanish concentrated their attentions on wealthier Peru.
During this time Buenos Aires became a thriving centre
for smuggling between South America and Europe.
Dissatisfaction with Spanish economic and political
dominance escalated to boiling point and culminated in
the revolution of May 1810 and finally to independence
in 1816. Its history since then has been dogged by
military coups and political mismanagement; the
consequences of which are growing disaffection with the
government and widespread poverty, as is evident in the
sprawling shantytowns on the city's outskirts.
This turbulent history has not managed to stifle the
indomitable spirit of the Porteņos whose passion, charm
and vibrancy have forged this great city, a place in
which the fire of Evita's soul and the allure of the
tango endure. |
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