This post inaugurates a new category – On the bus – an occasional series of anecdotes from travels on the city buses.
Country Music
Growing up in a small town outside Nashville I often heard country music playing somewhere almost every day. No surprise that in Buenos Aires I’ve rarely heard country music. But today as I hopped aboard the #17 bus in Recoleta the driver was playing country music on the radio. I didn’t even know there was a country music radio station in Buenos Aires. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the traditional country sounds of George Jones or the edgier, hardly country, Johnny Cash but the twang of Brooks & Dunn or some other modern, commercialized country music act.
Empty then full
The #17 starts somewhere around Plaza Francia, so there’s hardly any riders as it passes through Barrio Norte. But the bus fills up as it passes through downtown on the way to the southern parts of the city. Ultimately, the bus becomes jam packed as all those who must ride standing grasp the overhead rail.
January 30th, 2007 at 10:56 am
I don´t know how interested you are in country music but there is a scene. Back in early Oct I found the annual San Pedro Country Music Festival. It was a three day event and was free. A friend and I went up for the day and it was amazing. I think we saw about 12 bands that represented all kinds of country. There was a country/indie rock band, Los Alamos, that are getting really famous around Buenos Aires, blue grass, Creedence Clear Water Rival cover bands, motorbike country, shania twain, etc, etc, etc.
The best thing about the festival was that all the bands were from Argentina.
January 30th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
Hi Lizzz, thanks for tip about the country music scene! Maybe I’ll check out the San Pedro festival.
January 30th, 2007 at 8:31 pm
[…] “This post inaugurates a new category – On the bus – an occasional series of anecdotes from travels on the city buses.” Buenos Aires-based Jeffy Barry starts the new series with tales from bus #17. David Sasaki […]
February 1st, 2007 at 3:54 pm
Ive beent to over 40 coutries, never been to one where the busses made this much pollution, roared like an airplane, up and down each street. one bus behind another. absolutely no govt. control at all. a free for all of pollution choked streets and rattling apartments. the quality of living in argentina is much lower than in some other countries for just this type of government neglect and indifference. Im sure in africa, its worse but that doesnt make it any easier to live here.
February 1st, 2007 at 6:06 pm
Hey jerry – I’ve never been to another place where the public bus network is so damn good – well connected, frequent, cheap, and 24 hours a day.
That alone sure as hell makes it easier to live here 🙂
Nice post jeff… looking forward to the rest in the series.
Alan
February 1st, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Jerry – sure the buses are noisy and cause a lot of pollution. It´s annoying and a health risk but I have to agree with Alan that the public bus system works incredibly well otherwise. Besides walking, the buses are my primary means of transportation.
Maybe the noise and pollution will get better as the bus companies slowly upgrade their buses. I noticed just this month that there is at least one brand new 39 bus on the route…quiet and pollution-free.
Alan – glad you liked the post and thanks for the comment.
February 5th, 2007 at 11:33 am
Hola, soy Lidoro de La Plata. He visitado tu blog y me pareciò muy interesante. Te ofrezco visitar el mio, acerca de la ciudad donde vivo y que es ¿maravillosa!
Un abrazo cordial, Lidoro
February 6th, 2007 at 8:21 pm
[…] Riding the bus in Buenos Aires, when it’s not too busy, is something I usually enjoy doing. Jeff evidently thinks so too, at least enough to start a blog post series called “On the Bus in Buenos Aires“ […]
February 7th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
estimado señor:soy escritor de poesias,no se si llego a poeta.
Pero tengo una muy linda sobre Bs.As. que me gustaria saber si ud quiere compartir.
un abrazo
Oscar
March 17th, 2007 at 10:17 pm
Jeff, I grew up in Franklin. Where are you from?
March 20th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
I have a friend back in the USA who is a country music DJ. He’d really like a report on the country music “scene” in Buenos Aires. Any suggestions?
Ken
March 21st, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Hi Mark, I’m from the other side of Nashville…up in Sumner country, the small town of Portland on the Kentucky state line.
Ken – other than hearing country music on the bus, I’ve not heard it elsewhere….