Here I was, going through some
old books, written 200 years ago by English travelers in Portugal, when I kept
reading about Buenos Aires. Isn't that
in Argentina???????
No, it seems that in Lisbon there
was a Buenos Aires as well, late 18th to
early 19th centuries.
Baillie, Kinsey, Crocker, etc,
all stayed there and have written about it.
I cannot tell you the origin of
the name of this place (perhaps I'll research that later), or why it is in
Spanish and not Portuguese, or how the
hotel(s) in which the British travelers and officers would stay looked like,
but I can give you the different examples I found and some "modern"
images of the place, that has since then been "absorbed" by the
city's growth and become one of the most coveted places to live. Back in the
day it was right next to the old "sailor and fishermen's quarters" and
seems to always have been popular amongst the English.
It is right behind the Estrela
Basilica, which was built late 17 hundreds by Queen Mary the 1st.
The gardens before the basilica
where built later, after the Portuguese civil war, so none of the mentioned
travelers or even troops would have known such.
Here's a link to another blog of
someone who cares about writing about Lisbon's old streets and which contains
some of the images of that place.
Enjoy!
- Marianne Baillie, from Reeve's hotel, writes her 5 first letters from Buenos Aires to her mother, before she travels on to Sintra and then again letters 25 to 28 in the 1st volume of the two publications of her letters.
Marianne Baillie; Lisbon in the years 1821, 1822, 1823; pub. 1824; vol. I; letter 3; pages 1 to 3
- Richard Crocker, from William's English hotel, writes to his friend in 1780 (letter 23) from Buenos Aires, right before Christmas that year.
Richard Crocker; Travels through several Provinces of Spain and Portugal; 1799; pages 265 and 269 to 271
- A.P.D.G. (that is the only way this author is known), from Reeve's hotel, writes about Buenos Aires in his "Sketches of Portuguese life. A book I recommend, not only because it has several funny caricatures, but also because it makes a wonderful description of Portuguese manner of the time and in not as a negative way.
A.P.D.G.; Sketches of Portuguese Life; 1823; chapter V; pages 69 to 71
- William Morgan Kinsey (Reverend), in his 3rd letter writes about his stay at Buenos Aires, although he doesn't mention which hotel.
William Morgan Kinsey; Portugal Illustrated; 1829; pg 54
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