city of the dead


in the heart of buenos aires lies a favorite place where locals love to visit, take an afternoon stroll through the small winding streets......

......but this place is not a neighborhood -- at least for the living. 


it is a cemetery. 
visitors entering recoleta cemetery - note the 'orb' visible on the women at left!

recoleta cemetery is one of the most unique places i've visited. on any given afternoon, stylish buenos aireans can be seen entering through the massive gateway and into what could be best explained as a maze of tiny streets and alleyways winding through a series of grave monuments that at times resemble tiny houses.

one of the most famous residents of recoleta is eva peron. as our guide said, she would probably roll over in her grave knowing she was buried in what is the elite cemetery of buenos aires, but she is probably at peace knowing that her body is finally staying put in one place (a story for a future planned post!)


you could wander forever, alongside the eternal souls who most certainly do, among these elaborately carved monuments.

some monuments consist of actual tiny chapels - our guide is reflected in the glass door.







this sculpture adorns the grave of a young woman who died on her honeymoon. a member of a prominent family, a statue of her was commissioned to match the bronze sculpture of her beloved pet dog (which she, an artist, had sculpted previously.) reportedly the dog fell dead at home in argentina the same moment his master was swallowed in an avalanche in the alps.

if you ever visit buenos aires, be sure to save some time to stroll through recoleta cemetery. it is strangely peaceful to walk among the markers in this city of the dead, all the time seeing the skyscrapers of the living hovering in the distance  

(and be sure to watch for the orbs!)

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