Buenos Aires is a city reminiscent of a handsome, aging star. Amidst the narrow streets of San Telmo with its dilapidated buildings, streets littered with desecrated garbage, there are signs of the grandeur from another era. The black diesel exhaust spewed by speeding buses rises above Romanesque vaults, arches and columns lining up narrow cobblestone pathways, classic balconies overlooking the antique shops and murals honoring the greats, past and present.
The spirit of Buenos Aires is exhilarating, with lively music, great food and wine all over the city. Dinner plans usually come together around 10. After midnight people meet in Palermo or San Telmo or Villa Crespo for drinks, then around 2 the fiesta kicks in until dawn. Sleep is a commodity in Buenos Aires. There is a bohemian feel around the landscape reminiscent of New York in the 70s and 80s. After a while, the elements become normal. The café cortado is delicious, the tango performers around Plaza Dorrego still transcend all others and everything at the corner bakery is sensational. All of this in a place where the dollar still has plenty of muscle, making everything accessible.
Every day life in Buenos Aires exudes passion, none greater than the converging fervor that descends upon the city’s barrios every week-end. In the aging stadiums of this aging city, the greatest spectacle on the planet usually takes place on the ground’s terraces, rather than on the field. The colors, the flares, the impact of the songs delivered in unison by a sea of bouncing bodies, the tribalism, the camaraderie, the love, the sacrifice, the pride, the identity, the hatred, the loyalty – all packed into a single punch and delivered continually over the course of a few splendidly volatile hours. Others in Latin America and Europe have tried to imitate and replicate, but there is really nothing like it elsewhere in the world.
This spirit is best experienced live, but below are some sensational moments from November 21, 2009, at the Stadio el Duco, Buenos Aires, Argentina, where San Lorenzo met ultimate rival Huracan. Enjoy and share!
Visiting San Lorenzo supporters came in strength and made themselves heard.
Huracan supporters returned the greetings from the other end of the stadium.
Spectacular celebration at the end of the match, fiesta at the San Lorenzo end.
