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| Entrance to Recoleta Cemetary |
Monday, October 30 - Recoleta, Buenos Aires
We made a stop in the Recoleta area to visit the Recoleta Cemetery. Michael and I had stayed in this area for 5 days about a decade ago when he attended a conference for the NIAAA. I had already spent 2 days photographing the cemetery on that trip, but it was nice to see it again. Recoleta Cemetery is where the elite of Buenos Aires and Argentina are buried, including the country’s former presidents, Eva Peron and even one of Napoleon’s granddaughters. The cemetery was established in 1822 and contains more than 4,500 above ground vaults, of which 94 have been declared national monuments. Families lease their area for the vaults with a 99 year contract.
Our group headed to see the vault of Eva Peron - who’s family name is Duarte. She is famous in the US for the play and movie “Evita”. In Argentina, she was and still is a somewhat controversial figure. She was married to President Peron, who was elected to the presidency three separate times. Interestingly, after she died in 1952, her body was lost for decades. It was recovered in Milan, Italy in 1972 and brought back to Buenos Aires for internment in her family’s vault in Recoleta.
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| The family vaults are arranged along "streets" and neighborhoods |
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| The statues are especially evocative |
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| The Duerte family vault (Eva Peron's family) always has flowers |
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| Evita Peron is buried 8 feet under the bottom of the vault, so that her body isn't stolen again |
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| These two statues reminded me of Harry Potter dementors |
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| Poinsettia tree with its beautiful scarlet leaves |
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