read a good poem: travelling

"secret spot," versailles park

***

Travelling

This is the spot:—how mildly does the sun
Shine in between the fading leaves! the air
In the habitual silence of this wood
Is more than silent: and this bed of heath,
Where shall we find so sweet a resting-place?
Come!—let me see thee sink into a dream
Of quiet thoughts,—protracted till thine eye
Be calm as water when the winds are gone
And no one can tell whither.—my sweet friend!
We two have had such happy hours together
That my heart melts in me to think of it.

--William Wordsworth via poets.org

the dream of spring and summer

and...

the park at versailles

may 20, 2011

paris postcard: jardin du luxembourg

pretty city: love, this afternoon

madison square park, 6:44pm

© anita aguilar

paris postcard: versailles, the color white (day 2)

before the firestorm

i personally cannot complain about the christmas weekend blizzard.

i don't have a car.

i don't need the subway or bus to get to work.

i wasn't stranded anywhere.

and: we have the best team at our condo--by 10am on monday they'd shoveled clean the widest swath of sidewalk in all of murray hill.

but it's hard not to be outraged after reading and hearing about conditions in other parts of the city, as a result of misjudgment and inaction at the local level.

(meanwhile, jersey knew what to do.)

***

here are a few shots from the very first afternoon, before the city got all stomped on and sloppy, and well before the effect of bloomberg & co's snafu was fully evident.

it was pretty, especially in madison square park...

all photos from december 27, 2010.

© anita aguilar

mad (square) color

april 22, 2010. all photos © anita aguilar

pretty city: ba, recoleta and palermo

on avenida pueyrredon

on avenida vicente lopez/junin

on avenida vicente lopez/junin

at a cafe, across from la recoleta

in the park, la recoleta

the courtyard, in front of the basilica

under the trees at the feria plaza francia

take 2. under the canopy, near the trees where the boys were playing in the feria plaza francia

at the feria plaza francia

at the feria plaza francia

at the feria plaza francia

real hippie hair, at the feria plaza francia

and a guy on stilts. where else but the feria plaza francia...

***

on avenida presidente figueroa alcorta

on avenida presidente figueroa alcorta

avenida del libertador

at the plaza del lector...

all photos ©anita aguilar

AMO the ARG: 'neath the gran gomero (day 5--parte dos)

as the week went on and we got a better sense of BA and its different neighborhoods, zovig and i would sit and discuss our favorites. each had its merits--there were little things about each one that i loved, except for san nicholas. i didn't like much of anything there--but what if you were to visit for an extended period, or settle long-term (which she was keen to do at first)?

she was sweet on palermo soho and its boutiques and trendy eateries from the get go (understandably)--and then seduced by shiny puerto madero (which i think is fun for a night but not to stay)--but went back to her first love.

the time i spent in san telmo gave me a nice buzz--i loved that it was gritty and refined, antique and trendy, historic and "green"--but only to spend the day, and to take photos. it's a place for big eyes (which you must also keep on your belongings)...

recoleta seemed to be more my every day speed: wide views, park life, quaint cafes, lots of art and architecture escapes. and it seems to be the center of things--everywhere is easy to get to from there.

lots of ground to cover in recoleta, and i have photos to match.

but i'll start things off with the park...this park shares space with the recoleta cemetery, a historic church (basilica nuestra sra. del pilar), the buenos aires design center, and several upscale hotels. even though there's clearly tourist traffic here, it seemed possible to find a quiet space here and there...

this is not an exceptional shot, but it's the widest i have of this famous tree: the gran gomero (rubber tree). it's over one hundred years old.

they've built supports for its crazy branches

in turn, the tree supports a healthy little social scene...

i met arturito, and his (shy) nurse. he told me he was a famous film star back in the day (no comment from nurse).
i sat with him for a little while. he liked the photos that i took of him.

nice nap time...

all photos ©anita aguilar