South American Journal

Admirers of tango legend Carlos Gardel, assembling at his Buenos Aires tomb. Photo by Robert Wright.

Robert Wright, an American expatriate living in Buenos Aires, writes about the 70th anniversary of the death of Carlos Gardel, on June 23. He describes the man and his following:

"Before he died in a plane accident in Colombia 70 years ago today, Carlos Gardel brought tango to the world. A shining star in the 1920s & 30s, Gardel was a globetrotter, a ladies' man, a gambler, & a bon vivant... he knew how to live well so his inopportune death only served to fuel his legendary status.

There was a decent crowd throughout the day at Chacarita cemetery where he's buried. This is the only time his tomb is open to the public, & I couldn't pass that up. The guy in the photo was making sure that Gardel's statue always had a lit cigarette in his hand. How nice."

Statue of Carlos Gardel. Note the lit cigarette. Photo by Robert Wright.

Robert's blog, Line of Sight, is a treat. Besides his usual posts on life in Buenos Aires, it features some great and candid travel commentary from his recent trip to Morocco and Spain.