Finally after more than three long years the Colon Theatre has reopened.To
take a tour
I
would recommend that you reserve in advance. The tour involves a lot of
walking and several flight of stairs, so if you have mobility problems, you
won´t be able to do it.
The tour takes you all through various workshops of the artists and
supporting groups (scenery, wardrobe etc.), so it´s very interesting. One
caution, the people are off work at either 2 or 3, so if you take the 3pm
tour like I did, you will not be able to see the folks at work. There is a
1:00 tour and maybe another even earlier.
However, it stil is an interesting HUGE tour.
Enjoy!
ITINERARY
Suggested itinerary:
1- Recoleta area and the cemetery.
2-San Martin Park ( small but beautiful green area surrounded by cattle
baron mansions and the Falkland Memorial )
3-May avenue (this boulevard is quite similar to Madrid's Gran Via)
4-Cafe Tortoni (The oldest cafe in the city dating back to 1858) On our
way to Tortoni Cafe . we may also take a short ride on the oldest
underground trolley in South America dating back to 1913.
5-The pink palace or government building (Juan Peron and Evita gave
memorable speeches from its balcony.
6-Touristy but colorful La Boca (birth place of tango ).
By 1900 Buenos Aires was one of the twelve world capitals with finest
architecture. In
terms of growth, Buenos Aires was the third behind Hamburg and Chicago.
Throughout these years the ever-growing sophisticated architecture aimed
to symbolize the country’s prestige and greatness. Public buildings such
as the National Mail Postal.
Office building were designed by the same French architect in charge of
designing the New York Postal Office.
Architectural experts who have studied Buenos Aires buildings concur in
describing the city’s architecture not as mere copies of the European
designs, but as an authentic view of major world trends that were brought
to Buenos Aires transgressing the Old World’s hard and austere lines. This
is a very special and unique feature, for most European architects working
in BA projects “felt freer to innovate, adapt, adorn and leave their
personal signature”.
The American Utopia in terms of architecture arrived to the new continent
through two main port-side cities: New York and Buenos Aires.
From 1880 to 1930, the city of Buenos Aires went through a major makeover
–unparalleled elsewhere-. There are over 200 buildings and sculptured
monuments, including parks and avenues, included in the World’s patrimony
list.
