Recoleta Cemetary

I included a picture of Recoleta Cemetary in my last post, but I didn’t have time to talk about it.  It’s the oldest cemetery in Buenos Aires, established in 1822, and covered over 4 square blocks of area.  It’s filled with over 6400 mausoleums, and literally, is a mini-city of the dead.

The tombs are really packed tightly together in some places… some alleys weren’t wide enough to walk more than single-file through, and at times I felt sort of claustrophobic surrounded by tombs.  

It’s really beautiful though.  Some of Argentina’s most famous (and richest) people are buried here…. Presidents, generals, and other aristocrats… I recognized a lot of the names on the tombs, just because of the street names that I’ve been walking around on and passing.

Eva Peron is buried here also (Evita).  Her tomb was the only one where there was a constant crowd around--- people taking pictures and leaving flowers.

There are about 75 stray cats that live in the cemetery, and they were my favorite.  There is a group of women that feed and take care of them, so they must be the happiest cats in the world.  The whole place is a perfect cat playground--- and they hop and slink around and on top of the tombs.