nPosted on May 25, 2017
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nThe date: May 25, 1810.
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nThe place: Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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nThe event: The start of a revolution!
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Once upon a time there was a large region in South America known as the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata. It included land that is now carved up into four nations: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia.
Once upon a time there was a large region in South America known as the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata. It included land that is now carved up into four nations: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia. n
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nBuenos Aires was the capital of this Viceroyalty.
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nEver since the Viceroyalty was formed, in 1776, there was unrest and a growing desire by the people to rule themselves. This desire for independence came to a head in Buenos Aires, and the Viceroy was deposed. This was considered the first step to Argentine independence, and soon the country was embroiled in a war with Spain.
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Independence was declared in 1816, although the fighting continued until 1818.
Independence was declared in 1816, although the fighting continued until 1818.n
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nThe May Revolution was so important, the entire week is celebrated for all of the events that led up to May 25. It’s called Semana de Mayo (Week of May).
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nSpeaking of Buenos Aires….
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nThe current capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires is very beautiful:
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nCheck out this neighborhood, called Caminito, which is pretty much a street museum. Argentine artist Benito Quinquela Martín took an eyesore – an old railroad line that was becoming something of a landfill – and he slowly painted the area in a variety of pastel colors. Now local artists use the street as a great place to see their works.
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nOther neighborhoods in this city are famous for their street art and graffiti. There are even graffiti tours!
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nPeople in Buenos Aires love to drink mate, which is a hot beverage a bit like green tea, made from the yerba mate plant. People drink if through metal straws in silver-rimmed gourds.
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nThe Galarias Pacifico is a shopping mall that is housed in a building that has been used in many ways. There was a shopping area, an art museum, an office building for a railway company… And, from the late 1970s until the early 1980s, basement rooms in the building were used as a kind of torture chamber! That’s right, the military dictatorship that then ruled Argentina used to hold “interrogations” in the deep-down bowels of the mall!
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nIn 1945, the amazing cupola of the shopping mall were painted with frescoes by twelve different artists.
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nThis is surely one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world, if not THE most beautiful! The El Ateneo Gran Splendid is located in what used to be a gorgeous theatre. Most of the theatre seating has been removed and replaced with bookshelves, but the theatre boxes are still intact and can be used as reading nooks. There is a café on the back of what was the stage, but the red stage curtains remain!
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nAlso on this date:
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Anniversary of Hands Across America
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nAnniversary of John Scopes’s indictment
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nTap dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson’s birthday
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nGeek Pride Day
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nTowel Day
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nWriter Ralph Waldo Emerson’s birthday
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nPlan ahead:
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Check out my Pinterest boards for:
Check out my Pinterest boards for:
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nMay holidays
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nMay birthdays
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nHistorical anniversaries in May
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nAnd here are my Pinterest boards for:
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nJune holidays
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nJune birthdays
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nHistorical anniversaries in June
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