Rain

An impressionist moment on a rainy day.

"The Olympics are more than the Games..."

Far from the busy center of Rio, in the Barra neighborhood, the "Barra Olympic Park" is nearing completion. The park was closed off. So the pictures had to be taken from outside the fence. I loved the very imaginative architecture, that made me think of outer space, flying saucers and mushrooms at the same time. Good to look at.





The bright Tennis stadium...





On the left of the tennis stadium is the Velodrome; the flying saucer that has just landed.






Behind the velodrome are some "galactic mushrooms"; the "Carioca Arenas".





Next to the Velodrome is the  "Rio Olympic Arena"





Beneath you can just see the Olympic peninsula on the left sticking out into the "Lagoa de Jacarepaguá" (...... the Bay of Crocodiles !!! - don't worry.. no Olympic swimming in there)



From this place the Olympic city is (growing) more or less behind my back.



This statement that the Olympics are more than the games.....  Sure... it will become true in Rio.

The Barra Olympic Park is just one of the Olympic locations. For more see the Olympic site.





The start and final of the marathon will be in the city at the renovated Sobrodomo (the famous Carnaval stadium).

 And when you say Football!! Then there is the Olympic stadium.



  .
 But don't forget the renovated Maracana Stadium.

Impressions from the Casa Rosada.

Visiting the Casa Rosada is mentally going back in time. Not such a long period though. Entering this Palace by the Plaza de Mayo means you already were confronted by the Crazy Mothers. 

Inside the palace itself, for people of a certain age, there is still the ghost of the junta that ruled from 1976 to 1983. There are no artifacts as such to remind us, but the feeling is there. It is good to see the portrait of Allende among other portraits of more classical freedom fighters like Sucre and Martin.

There is a possibility to take a guided tour through the building. The group was rather large and we had to go single file in some places. So it was difficult to hear all that the guide told us. 

I tried to find just a few things that would give an impression of this building.

The most famous person that was here is of course Eva Peron, Evita. Her desk with her picture....

The balcony from where she spoke to the Argentinian people.

The mirrors in this large room.

There is a gallery of more Argentinians that are famous. Like Maradonna, Piazzolla, Gabriela Sabatini....

The Casa Rosada contains many paintings. Of the different landscapes of Argentina, but also very abstract ones. I could only take details.....

 

It was an interesting visit. That ended with a quick look at the rooms of the president Cristina Kirchner. But: No fotos......

(I made this blog on my I-pad. Hope everything is all right....)