Buenos Aires is often referred to as "the Paris of South
America," but it's so much more than that. It's like Paris and
Vienna, Rome and Barcelona, Havana and San Juan, Miami and Los
Angeles, Rio and London ... and yet unlike any of them or any
other city in the world. Buenos Aires stands alone, a sprawling
metropolis of over 12 million, located well below the Equator
(closer to Antarctica, in fact) at the upper-east quadrant of
Argentina. Anyone who has seen the stage or movie version of
"Evita" has some small idea of the recent colorful history of
the city. Buenos Aires (which, roughly translated, means "fresh
air") was founded originally in 1536, but the Spaniards sent to
colonize the mouth of the Rio de la Plata were forced away by
the native indigenous population. A second, more successful
attempt was made in 1580, and it wasn't until the early 1800's
that the city and then the country emancipated themselves from
the Spanish crown, becoming the Republic of Argentina. One might
think that planning by the