Trip to Bernal

 (5 nov 2014 ) Today, I took a trip from Capital Federal to Bernal in the Province of Buenos Aires. After learning how to get there early in the morning, I went to the Retiro terminal area, specifically where the local bus stops are located. There, I found Line 22, which was the one that would take me.
Line 22 briefly covers the route Retiro-Microcentro-Avellaneda-Wilde-Bernal-Quilmes. Its buses are light green. When I arrived, there was a small queue boarding one of the buses, so I decided to wait for the next one, which arrived immediately and was soon boarding.

To read a brief historical review of this line, you can visit this link: www.loscolectivos.com.ar/22.htm

Since it wasn't a sightseeing trip, I didn't take photos, but I couldn't stop observing from the bus, and it occurred to me that I could comment on the route—at least what I remember—using Google Maps screenshots instead of photos.

The first thing you see leaving Capital and entering Avellaneda is a gigantic iron structure rising in front of the Riachuelo. The work is called "Coloso de Avellaneda" (Colossus of Avellaneda), and it is a monument located on the Pueyrredón Bridge paying homage to "the shirtless (descamisados) of the 21st century." The work was created by artists Alejandro Marmo and Daniel Santoro, and the figure represents a 15-meter-tall shirtless man holding a picture of Evita under his arm. It is located crossing the Riachuelo. It was inaugurated in 2013.www.perfil.com/politica/Un-descamisado-de-15-metros-se-levanta-en-Avellaneda-20130508-0028.html As seen in the image, Google Maps blurred the monument's face so that it wouldn't be recognized.

The bus takes a long time to complete the route until leaving Capital; after that, it speeds up since it travels almost entirely along routes and highways—less traffic and higher speed make the journey faster.

I don't remember if it passes along Mitre Ave. in front of Plaza Alsina on the way there, but I know it does on the return route. In Plaza Alsina, you can find the monument to Nicolás Avellaneda, a 1913 work created by the sculptor Lola Mora. Nicolás Avellaneda was President of the Argentine Nation from 1874 to 1880, and Adolfo Alsina was Minister of War during part of Avellaneda's presidency, from 1874 to 1878. The monument is made of Carrara marble with a granite base and stands 10.5 meters high. To learn more about this work, you can visit this webpage with abundant information: www.lolamorawine.com.ar/historia/obras/laindependenciaobra/194-monumento-avellaneda.html

A few blocks from Plaza Alsina, but on another avenue, Belgrano Ave., is the "Dr. Pedro Fiorito" General Interzonal Acute Care Hospital. I don't have much to say about this hospital. I've heard its name a lot, mostly in the media, but nothing more than that.

The bus continues and reaches the intersection of Belgrano Ave. and General Paz Ave., still in Avellaneda. At this intersection, the first thing we see is a colorful municipal water tank. They certainly brought joy and visibility to the boring grays or whites as they are usually seen. There are no major additional references.

In front of the Water Tank, practically on the corner of what appears to be a very small boulevard (though its name is not indicated, and I doubt whether it is closed to traffic at the end or if it just can't be seen, as no vehicles are seen driving through and even the Google Maps car didn't enter), there is a small monument that also cannot be identified. It seems to be a figure with indigenous features—at least in the way it is presented. Only the face is visible, and I couldn't identify the material it's made of—whether it is wood, cement, or something else. It is brown and looks like wood, but I cannot confirm it.

In this second photograph, you can better see the features of the small monument. It is something relatively recent because I searched on Google Maps and it appears, but searching on Panoramio, I found that a few years ago it wasn't there, and in that same place or very nearby, there was another monument that is no longer there.

Indeed, on Panoramio, user Tintapixel.com.ar uploaded a photo in 2007 as a documentary record of that other white monument representing a female figure. Who knows if it had a name and/or author, or if it was just another standard decorative piece like any of those sold to decorate gardens. www.panoramio.com/user/246378http://www.panoramio.com/photo/2110242

Back around 2007–2008, comments on that photo (which can still be seen on the web) mentioned some small pieces of wood barely visible in the photo, stuck to the wall with something written on them. Apparently, some bus passed by there, and an observant passenger saw the wooden pieces on the wall but couldn't read their text. Today, they are no longer there.

Crossing General Paz Ave., still along Belgrano Ave., is Plaza Lolita Torres, where you can see a sort of Owl, or something similar, fairly rudimentary, but with clearly marked eyes and beak, as well as the top of its head.

Some plaques can also be seen along the plaza path, impossible to read from the bus.

Reaching Castelli Street on Mitre Ave., right on that corner enclosed by a wall, rises a sort of brick chimney that gives the impression of being very old. Indeed, it is a sewer ventilation pipe—a ventilation chimney for the main sewer trunk, built as a National Health and Sanitation work at the end of the 19th century.

One block further, you spot a red metallic bridge. There is more than one of these; they are viaducts belonging to the Bullrich Circuit of the General Roca Line. This particular bridge is located right before reaching Aquino Street. Crossing this viaduct, we enter what is known as Crucesita or Crucecita. How is it spelled? Crucesita or Crucecita? Depending on what you read on the web, it appears both ways; the RAE dictionary has no definition for either. I will call it Crucecita. It is a neighborhood in the Avellaneda Municipality.

The bus continues all along Mitre Ave., the main avenue in Avellaneda. It passes Sarandí Station, Villa Domínico, Wilde, and Bernal before reaching Quilmes. Once in Sarandí, on Mitre Ave. at the intersection with Supisiche, there is a small monument, apparently from a Rotary Club, identified by the cogwheel emblem that marks Rotary clubs.

Further ahead, at Mitre Ave. and Gral. Chenault, we find the figure of a mother holding a child in her arms with another by her side. It has no plaque, so it's impossible to know what it is, what it represents, or who it honors. Someone uploaded a photo of the same monument on Panoramio titled "Monumento a la Madre" (Monument to the Mother), but is that really it? There is no plaque indicating it. Apparently, it is the "Monumento a la Madre" by Vergottini, installed in 1962 in the Paseo Almirante Brown park in Crucecita (Avellaneda). In that green space, the first "To the Mother" monument was erected, surrounded by a small tiled fountain. The statue was later moved to Domínico Park, according to a blog.
In the previous block, along the boulevard, there is also a bust, but it's impossible to tell whose it is. It stands in a small plaza named "Combatientes de Malvinas."

The bus continues its route; there isn't much to see—just streets and houses. And trees. Some have a kind of green fruit—could they be avocados? Truth is, I don't know. Perhaps it's a different plant. There are also many aloe vera plants, as well as silk floss trees (palos borrachos), jacarandas, and even a cockspur coral tree (ceibo) that I managed to spot. It reaches the corner of Mitre Ave. and Pierres. On one side begins Presidente Sarmiento Park. On the opposite corner is another small Rotary monument. This time it's clear: Rotary Domínico. We are in the middle of Villa Domínico. A few blocks further, and we pass into Wilde.

Although we haven't strictly entered Bernal yet, we are quite close, leaving Wilde. We are now in what is known as the Triángulo de Bernal (Bernal Triangle). There is a monument to a mate—it would be the Monumento al Mate. Behind it, a flagpole with the Argentine flag. According to what I read online, someone wrote in 2012 (quoted verbatim): "The famous mate monument was originally an advertisement for a yerba brand, I think Amanda, and later they declared it a 'monumento'."  foursquare.com/user/20479227 

Another comment from someone going by the nickname Tía Nela, from 2007, tells a similar story (quoted verbatim): "Coming from Capital, on the right-hand side next to the bridge, I remember there was a monument on a pillar consisting of a hand holding a mate. It was all made of cement, except the bombilla which was iron. If I remember correctly, it was an ad for 'Nobleza Gaucha' yerba mate—that ad was over 2 meters tall! Over time the hand broke, neighbors cleaned it up and reattached only the mate, then the bombilla disappeared, and a few years ago the cement mate vanished too. Only the half-crumbled pillar remains, if that. A shame, because even after the paint wore off the cement, it had become the mate monument and served as a landmark—people would tell you: 'When you're on the bus and see the mate, get off." https://ar.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071205195425AAmBcQj

On Los Quilmes Ave., right around the corner from the mate, is this bridge. It has no street crossing over it; it's a dead bridge, standing alone with grass on both sides. Next to it is a sort of tower—what is it? I don't know. Regarding the bridge, I found a comment by someone nicknamed Tía Nela from back in 2007, which I transcribe in full: "That bridge dates back to around the 1950s! The original Access Sudeste highway was supposed to continue across that bridge. They said they were going to open a road all the way to Ezeiza Airport, serving as a quick connection to Gral. Belgrano roads, Hipólito Yrigoyen Ave. (in Témperley), and Route 4 (or Camino de Cintura, which starts in San Isidro, circles Capital, and ends in Florencio Varela). In the end, I think the project came to nothing because the Bs. As.-Ezeiza highway was built inside Capital. When I was a girl, west of the bridge was completely unpopulated—houses only went a couple of blocks in from Calchaquí Ave., and beyond that was all brushland and puddles... later those areas were occupied, and building started, even along the future route of this road. And toward what is now Access Sudeste, there was a shantytown that the military removed; it eventually moved to what is now the longest shantytown in Argentina, starting in Avellaneda and ending near Berazategui along the Bs. As.-La Plata highway". ar.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071205195425AAmBcQj

When the bus turns onto Pilcomayo Street, there's a pedestrian crossing with a novel structure—I have no idea what it could be. There is a flagpole with the flag, and in front, a triangle that could well refer to the Bernal Triangle, but that's just speculation. At the end, there's a light blue circle with a wave underneath. What is it, what does it mean, or what does it represent? I don't know. I could guess it's a "Q" for Quilmes, but that might be a stretch—who knows.

Now in Bernal, the last thing we see at the intersection of Dardo Rocha Ave. and Cerrito is the Plazoleta Eslovenia (Slovenia Small Plaza). You can see the vandalism it suffered from local graffiti artists and the neglect by responsible authorities—broken brick pieces lying around, grass where it shouldn't be, lack of gardens, and rusty signs with peeling paint.

Approaching the station, another small plaza whose name I don't know. It's painted in bright colors, with a few benches and children's playground equipment. There's also a bust of someone without identification—it looks like Alberdi, but I wouldn't dare confirm it.

In the same plaza as above, steps away from the Station on one side, stands the next monument: a small obelisk with what appears to be religious images on two of its sides. It looks like it carries the Papal flag on one side.

Bernal Station, located in the Quilmes Municipality. Inaugurated in 1878. It features two platforms and an underground pedestrian crossing leading from one side of the tracks to the other.

At the end of the route, right at the entrance of Bernal Station—next to the Line 22 bus stop for the trip back to Retiro—there is a bust of a military figure. Unrecognizable, with no plaque or name. What is clearly visible is its poor state, neglect, grime, dirt, empty flower planters filled with trash where plants should be, and poster papers glued everywhere, with broken planter sections and ugly graffiti in the background. Yet, someone from history was honored there, only to be left forgotten and disregarded.