Dear Buenos Aires, I love you.

Of all the cities I've visited, whether for vacation or gymnastics (which is the more likely case), nothing compares to Buenos Aires. To be fair, I must confess that apart from France, I have yet to explore all that Europe offers. Nevertheless, those of you with frequent flyer miles should add a trip to Argentina to your bucket list.

I arrived at on my hostel on Friday afternoon and immediately and with just one glance of my surroundings, I was in love. Every block was lined with rows of apartments, each one with a unique architecture and ornate balcony. On every other corner I saw a group of people enjoyed a cup of coffee and a medialuna ("half moon" - like a croissant). As my friend and I approached an area called La Boca ("the mouth), I was mesmerized by the bright colors of the buildings and the random couples dancing tango in the street. It was quite a departure from the unimpressive office buildings that line the main drag of Santiago.

From La Boca to Palermo to Recoleta, other neighborhoods, the atmosphere was completely different but equally exciting. I took pictures in front of the Casa Rosada (Pink House), Argentina's equivalent of the White House and the former home of the legendary Evita Peron. I had to restrain myself from audibly singing the lyrics to "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" as I stood in the Plaza de Mayo (I say "audibly" because I was definitely replaying the movie in my head).

I spent my last hours in Buenos Aires walking through the famous San Telmo market that fills with tourists every Sunday at 10:00am. Over the past few months, I have seen my fair share of markets, but this one was in a class of its own. Imagine a modest park filled to the brim with antique vendors and hand-crafted jewelry. Now imagine that as you walk by one of the booths, you see two old women dressed up as porcelain dolls...or a man pretending to have four arms, offering to take photos with passersby. At first, I was a bit turned off by the random scenes people set up to attract tourists, but then I just embraced it and started taking pictures. "When in Rome, do as the Romans do," right?

All in all, it was a fantastic trip. :)