Puerto Madero

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Happy New Year from Buenos Aires!

Welcome 2021 — we’re glad you’re finally here!

A group of us did our usual picnic down at the riverside area known as Puerto Madero. There weren’t as many people there as usual, but enough to make it feel like the fiesta we all desperately needed.

At the beginning we were just four people – Cecilia, Liana, Venetia and me. A friendly Italian stopped to chat, wish us Happy New Year and give us extravagant compliments. So while he was there, Cecilia asked him to take our photograph. He took quite a lot and most of them were out of focus! But this one survived the cut.

Later on, after midnight, Vivi turned up with some family members who were visiting her, which completed our party.

And finally, here is Venetia’s video of the fireworks that traditionally welcome in the New Year.

In Argentina instead of the full expression Feliz Año Nuevo, most people say Feliz Año. I don’t know if this is on purpose, but I always like that because it seems to offer good wishes for the whole year and not just when it’s new. So in that spirit, I wish you Feliz Año, and my best wishes for a wonderful 2021!

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Las Chicas in Puerto Madero!

When I told my friends in our WhatsApp group about my outing to Puerto Madero last week, one by one they all said, “Let’s go on Sunday!” So we did.

Venetia walked from her place in Palermo to my place and then we took a taxi. It was another bright sunny winter day and as you can see, we were all well wrapped up. This is the first time we’ve all been together since March — albeit illegally! We actually had problems recognizing each other wearing masks! Thanks to Venetia for once again talking the photo, which unfortunately meant she couldn’t be in it — nobody was passing to take it for us.

There is a market cafe where we met, and we all picked up sandwiches and coffee for lunch, which we ate sitting socially distanced on some benches looking out on the water and talked ourselves hoarse!

The only fly in the ointment was that there were no washrooms available! The one in the cafe was closed to the public because of quarantine and the Hilton Hotel, where we usually go to the washroom during our New Year celebrations down there, was closed like all the other hotels. That posed a bit of a problem and led to us leaving a bit sooner than planned!

All in all, though, it was great and there was general agreement we’ll do it again soon.