BSR

I love Palermo Soho! I stayed in Montserrat for 3 months because it was close to my language school, but I spent most of my free time in Palermo Soho. Super gay-friendly, chic yet unpretentious (my take), it’s a fantastic neighborhood. If you’re a coffee-lover, ask a local to recommend a good café because most coffee in Buenos Aires ranges from mediocre to downright awful. On weekends I went to Vive Cafe, “next door” in Palermo Hollywood, a Colombian coffee shop where they do coffee right. Most tourists do a tour of La Boca, but I didn’t like it at all: it has an interesting history but way too touristy for me. I would recommend a tour of the Plaza de Mayo that covers the history of the widows and mothers of los desaparecidos, a profoundly sad period of Argentina’s history but critical to understanding the country. If the weather’s nice, I would definitely visit the beautiful Japanese Garden. I would also walk around Palermo Chico, the fanciest BA neighborhood where all the embassies are. If you haven’t already picked your hotel, I would stay at the St. George in Puerto Iguazú, 20-25 minutes from the Falls: modern rooms, great pool, terrific breakfast buffet included. If you want to stay inside the national parks (plural because both the Brazilian and Argentine sides are national parks for their respective country), be prepared to pay megabucks. The Melia on the Argentine side was sorely in need of a renovation yet was literally 10x the price of the St. George. The Belmond on the Brazilian side is more like 12x the St. George, but at least it’s beautifully maintained. I preferred the Brazilian side (a panoramic view of the entire Falls) over the Argentine side (walkways that are almost right on top of the Falls), but you gotta do both. I highly recommend the boat ride along and under the Falls. Just bring a change of dry clothes because you’ll get soaked. I wish I could remember the place in Puerto Iguazú that serves 1-kilo ribeyes for just $50 (at the exchange rate then) because it lived up to all expectations for Argentine beef. Since steakhouses were a lot more expensive in BA, I did an asado Airbnb experience. Besides being less expensive, you learned about all the customs and traditions of an Argentine asado. This might seem like a silly tip to Southern Hemisphereans like @mike carey and @José Soplanucas, but remember that the sun passes through the north sky, not the south. My first day walking around, I checked Google Maps for the route to my destination, checked where the sun was, and started walking. 10 minutes later, I was baffled that I was walking in the wrong, opposite direction. Duh! the sun does the opposite in the Southern Hemisphere.

Chaz Bono’s mother is richer than the Sultan of Brunei (OK, slight exaggeration), yet he passes the hat to pay for his wedding?? Sorry, but that is so damn tacky. in the NYC area, it is apparently standard operating procedure to throw an engagement party, even several, where the expectation is that the guests give money to help pay for the wedding. Then at the wedding, the gift the couple wants more than anything else, unless bride or groom needs a kidney, is more $$. I didn’t know getting married was so lucrative.

Not nights really, more afternoons (“la tarde” in Spain is 2pm to 8pm, not noon to 6pm like on this side of the Atlantic). The chaperos (escorts) start coming in at 3pm and start leaving at 8pm. Wednesday is a great day to go because the admission fee is slightly lower, 20.50€ instead of 23€. Because both clients and chaperos take advantage of the discount (yes, chaperos have to pay the entry fee), the Sauna is usually hopping.

Times change — remember when lawyers didn’t advertise at all? I have no problem with the YT advertising, but I think he should have dressed a little better and filmed in a more professional-looking setting.

I lived in the West Village from 1984-87, when it had already become very much a gayborhood. At that time it was safe to walk around in the far west (Greenwich St. onward) part, but I don’t know if I would’ve felt safe doing so in the wee hours. My uncle, also gay and whose apartment I was subletting, told me how much safer the area was vs. 10 years prior. That’s what I meant by “almost” old enough.

Ever since the Lindbergh baby, kidnapping has captured Americans’ interest in a way you just don’t see in other countries. In Mexico and parts of Latin America, kidnappings are so common they barely make the news unless the hostage is a notable figure. In Europe, a case might make headlines, but with far less intensity and duration, like Madeleine McCann. American heightened concern with kidnapping started long before reality TV and crime serials — think John Paul Getty III and Patty Hearst in the 1970s. Much of the firestorm stems from the hostages’ status as heirs of ultra-wealthy families, plus gory details like Getty’s ear being cut off and sent to the family. In the Hearst case, America was riveted to the drama: her being Stockholm’d (so claimed her defense team) into joining her captors in a bank robbery. My theory is that the sensationalism of those two truth-is-crazier-than-fiction kidnappings sparked a fascination in the US that persists to this day.

No idea what Musetti’s doing on the right, but I like it! https://x.com/atphotness/status/2029313323481612556?s=46

Café sidewalk sign: “Come in and try the worst coffee one woman on Trip Advisor ever had in her life”

Me too, Single A *sadtrombone*

Team USA won the men’s hockey gold exactly 46 years to the day after winning gold in Lake Placid. I don’t follow hockey at all, don’t really have a dog in this fight, but I’m happy that the Americans were able to honor their late teammate Johnny Gaudreau and include his children in their celebration. It meant the world to his family.

Greg's mom sent him a link to a Christian dating site for Christmas. Tyler wrapped it in a frame and hung it in their bedroom. The one they share. Because there's only one bedroom. https://www.facebook.com/share/17zNHEMyjK/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Johnny Gaudreau, who played for Team USA in a number of international competitions, was killed by a drunk driver in August 2024. His teammates honored him by bringing his two kids on the ice for the team photo, a beautiful but heartbreaking moment …

The Spanish restaurants here serve Vietnamese coffee, espresso with condensed milk, but call it a Spanish latte (a marketing gimmick because Vietnamese coffee isn’t really a thing in Spain). Vietnamese coffee can be served hot or iced, delicious either way. Of course, I always have it iced, sticking with the theme of cold liquid desserts replacing my morning brew. Sheesh, I really need to kick this addiction!

Wow, the Team USA beat Canada for the men’s hockey gold medal! First the US women beat Canada, then the men, a disheartening 1-2 punch for our northern neighbor. Interesting coincidence, both games were decided 2-1 in overtime.

For those unfamiliar, there is a sad but beautiful story behind this photo. The dog is Eli, trained to detect IEDs, with his Marine handler, 20yo Colton Rusk. When Colton was fatally shot by a Taliban sniper in Afghanistan, Eli tried to protect his fallen handler by crawling on top of his body. The panicked Labrador retriever wouldn’t even allow fellow Marines near and bit some who were trying to rescue their comrade. Colton had taken this photo and sent it to his parents, along with stories of how much he loved Eli. The two spent every waking and even sleeping moment together (Colton let Eli sleep at the foot of his mattress). Knowing the bond between the two, a fellow handler reached out to Rusk’s parents and encouraged them to adopt Eli. Even though military working dogs are not adopted out until retirement (Eli was only 4yo, plenty more years of IED detection in him), the family succeeded in getting a special exception. After adoption, Eli always accompanied Kathy Rusk to visit her son’s grave several times a week. Eli remained part of the Rusk family for more than a decade after Colton’s death. R.I.P. Colton & Eli.

I got “video unavailable” on my browser. What movie are you referring to?

Palermo is a huge neighborhood that is divided up into sub-neighborhoods. If I went back to BA, I would stay in Palermo SoHo, the most artsy/trendy of the Palermo divisions, might also be the gayest (although many areas of BA are very gay-friendly). If you’re looking for that upscale Recoleta vibe, I would actually stay in Palermo Chico, where most of the embassies are. Airbnb offers a few asado experiences, where you not only enjoy some of Argentina’s legendary beef but also learn proper asado technique and some of the history/tradition. Also, go ahead and see a tango show if you’re a fan. Sure, they’re for tourists, but the one I went to was fantastic. Last tip: try a medialuna (shaped like a croissant but made with brioche dough) with dulce de leche (a milk caramel spread). I still have dreams about it. Wait, one more: ask a local where to find good coffee, because most of the coffee in BA is shockingly bad.

Van Der Beek & family had been renting the ranch since 2020, but shortly before he died, with the help from friends for the down payment, he purchased it. So it sounds like the family has very little equity in the property. James said that even with insurance, fighting cancer was extremely expensive, which is sadly all too true in America. My guess is that the medical bills wiped out most of his liquid net worth, and the family is left with only the ranch (with little equity) and the $2.3 million raised in the GoFundMe. His widow & 6 kids didn’t exactly make out like bandits. They’ve secured a stable housing situation but will never own the ranch outright. Thanks to the GoFundMe, they have enough money for the near- and medium-term but are far from set for life. I wish them all the best.