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The
main gateway to this fascinating country is the city of Buenos
Aires, capital of Argentina, covering an area of 202 Km2 and
housing eleven million inhabitants (incorporating the suburbs
known as Greater Buenos Aires) whereby it ranks as one of
the ten most highly populated urban centres in the world
Horacio Ferrer, a well-known poet, wrote the lyrics of a famous
tango which was set to music by Astor Piazzola and began by
saying "There's something about the streets of Buenos
Aires...have you noticed?"
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Tourists
love Buenos Aires and its many different "looks":
melancholic, fun, traditional, modern, passionate and delightful
but above all, its pleasant manner and fraternity
The climate in Buenos Aires - oceanic temperate - is mild
all year round. There is no frost in winter (between June
21 and September 20).
Average temperature is 10 ºC. So please dress warmly!The
heaviest rainfall occurs during autumn and spring.
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There is a very close relationship between our neighbourhoods
and literature, so you can get to know most neighbourhoods
through some of our great Argentine writers. Jorge Luis Borges,
Leopoldo Marechal, Julio Cortázar, Osvaldo Soriano
and Roberto Arlt, have related some of these neighbourhood
peculiarities and secrets hidden in dark corners. One of the
clearest examples is San Telmo, one of the oldest areas of
the city, home of poets, artists, antique shops and Bohemians
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Caminito
Street, La Boca |
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City
"Neighbourhoods"
La Boca, with its brightly coloured houses, hosts the stadium
of the most popular football team where Maradona, the famous
Argentine (and international) football player, took his
first steps in this sport. You can take a walk around classy,
noble Recoleta to appreciate its attractive contrasts. Beneath
the sunny winter sky (which is not as harsh as it is in
the Northern hemisphere), you can sit under the trees, next
to the lake at Palermo Park. A visit to the Rio de la Plata
riverside is a must, offering a wide variety of dining options
and an incredible nightlife. You should also include the
banking and business district in the city centre. There
are several shopping arcades and options in each neighbourhood.
Currently the rate of exchange is extremely favourable for
foreign visitors and you will be able to buy handicrafts
and antiques as well as modern and exclusive products at
very affordable prices
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Buenos
Aires has always been known for its cultural life. There are
innumerable options for entertainment through visits to museums,
cinemas, theatres and different shows. Currently there are
175 theatres and 200 cinemas.
The
Buenos Aires Philharmonic Orchestra and the National Symphony
Orchestra offer free concerts. Famous local and foreign artists
perform at recitals that are frequently organized at one of
our football stadiums. |
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Museums
and art galleries are open to the public most days for several
hours. There are over 100 including private and public entities.
One of the most outstanding ones is the internationally famous
Fine Arts Museum where admission is free almost every day.
Other traditional Museums include the Decorative Art, Spanish
American Art, Isaac Fernandez Blanco, and Modern Art Museums.
The newest museum is MALBA (Buenos Aires Latin American Art
Museum), whose doors opened in 2000.
Craft fairs are one of the most picturesque proposals. Caminito
street museum, where 62 plastic arts artists exhibit their
work outdoors, is one of the best of its kind worldwide.
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Malba
Museum |
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As
you will get to know Buenos Aires, a fine thread that connects
the city's history and daily life slowly emerges. You can
enjoy a "cortado" (coffee with a dash of milk) at
one of the many cafés, which are meeting places where
bohemian mysteries and dreams lie hidden, while listening
to a tango being played in the background. For many foreigners,
Buenos Aires "is" tango, a melancholic, sensual
music that will captivate you and incite you to dance (even
if you don't exactly know the right steps...).
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Habits and food
"Asado" (‘barbecue’) is the traditional
local meal and preparing it is a real ritual. Many people
find the classic flavour of the "bife de chorizo"
(special beef cut similar to strip sirloin or entrecote)
or the special "achuras" (spicy sausage, tripe,
sweetbread, etc.) irresistible.
Argentines
share food, coffee and mate (a tea made with mate leaves,
a devotion shared with our Uruguayan neighbours) while they
talk about a bit of everything: politics, economy, "popular
saints" such as Gardel, Evita or Maradona who reappear
in stories past, present and future. Most of all, however,
they talk about football (soccer), the sport that gathers
crowds together and sparks off colour, fun and passion.
Argentines are also internationally famous as polo, tennis
and hockey players.
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Courtesy and respect standards are mostly informal. Both men
and women greet each other with a kiss on the cheek. Smiles,
hugs, closeness when talking and gestures are common and friendly
communication skills.
The most distinctive language features are the use of the
pronoun "vos" instead of "tú" as
the informal form of address for "you" and "che"
(approximately equivalent to "hey, you") to speak
to another person.
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Only
a few kilometres away from Buenos Aires you can find the "pampa",
with its "estancias" (farms) where "gauchos"
are breaking in horses. There you can enjoy peace and flat
landscapes as well as horseback riding, local music, dancing
and songs.
We are sure this will be an unforgettable Congress, not only
because we trust our professional abilities and we love our
city but also because we want to welcome linguistic mediators
from all over the world, for them to feel happy that this
meeting is being held in this country of generous and educated
people and outstanding natural beauty. |
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What is "tango"?
Tango is Buenos Aires’ authentic and unique cultural
product with origins dating back to the end of the 19th century.
Poets like Celedonio Flores, Enrique Cadícamo, Homero
Manzi and Enrique Santos Discépolo wrote lines describing
their lives and dreams. Musicians like Aníbal Troilo,
Osvaldo Pugliese and Juan D’Arienzo shaped orchestras
to their personal style for the delight of dancers who followed
its rhythm in clubs and tearooms. Major singers like Carlos
Gardel (undoubtedly the best known of all), Alberto Castillo,
Floreal Ruiz, Alberto Morán and so many others were
the voice of people for whom Buenos Aires was the place in
the world, and tango its cosmovision.
Years later, the talent of Astor Piazzola and the irresistible
seduction of major dancers like Juan Carlos Copes, Virulazo
or Miguel Angel Zotto catapulted tango to the world and set
free a contagious passion that goes beyond frontiers and languages
but recognizes Buenos Aires as the tango’s world capital.
Presently, tango is heard and played all over the world, but
it is mostly danced. Fervently, thousands of fans practice
on dance floors to grasp those steps that seem "walks
in couples".
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With an attractive history and a vital present, this city
welcomes its librarian friends. And there aren’t many
differences between its history and that of the tango. Corrientes
Avenue, the traditional bars of Avenida de Mayo, the Colon
Theatre, the streets of Borges and Cortazar, La Boca, San
Telmo and Recoleta. Every corner of Buenos Aires holds an
anecdote, a legend or a building connected to the tango. And
above all, the porteño quality that confirms tango
is a culture, despite its artistic nature. A culture alive
in records and stages, but also in books and the plastic arts,
the cadence of our steps, an intonation, the gesture of a
greeting…
This culture makes Buenos Aires vibrant and renewed, day after
day, night after night, while its music seems to be lingering
around every corner like a warm invitation.
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Perhaps tango is just that: the best excuse for those coming
from afar to feel the city’s embrace and warmth.
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