AESTHETIC NOMADS, BUENOS AIRES

ILLUSTRIOUS BUENOS AIRES

You can tell the city used to indulge in its importance. Its luster shimmers through the daily bustle of the stately avenues. Even when busses are belching smoke, honking and accelerating as they see you cross the road. 

Buenos Aires is unashamed of its greatness, reflected in every facade, polished brass nameplate, and door handle. In the intricate wrought-iron gates of the mansions on San Martin or Alvear. In how elegant men in suits sip Malbec at 5 PM. 

“These are the porteños that you met; lively, beautiful and pragmatic.”

But greatness weighs on a metropolis of 15 million in a country that is—theoretically—bankrupt. Where people queue in front of food stores the day they get paid. Because rampant inflation pushes prices up by the time their next paycheque arrives. Where a kiosk on Avenida de Mayo sells more pesos than flowers. Home-delivered if you prefer. 

“This is Buenos Aires; worn out but elegantly persevering in spite of it all.”

And the porteños?

Those you met are lively, pragmatic and beautiful. They tackle yet another political or financial crisis with a shrug and ingenuity. Wondering candidly what on earth brought you to this city that has been dealt such a bad hand.

Why exactly did you come here when you could have gone anywhere you wanted?

So?

Maybe you've been dealt a few bad hands as well. Maybe you were seeking change, leaving the safety of your home in search of disentanglement. In search of beauty less obvious, less blatant, less ephemeral, and less superficial. 

Back home, you know for sure that you came to the right place.