Part Time President of Argentina

There's been quite a stir in the local media recently about the new Argentinian president Cristina Kirchner's lack of time on the job. She swans into the office at lunchtime and apparently jets off to private social functions by 5pm.

I find the latter hard to believe as I have yet to go to a social function here that started earlier then 10pm. I reckon she must be going home for a badly needed siesta as the country is renknowned for it's late night culture with dinner starting at 11pm, bars empty until midnight and clubs only getting going at 2am.

(Warning - now going off on a tangent as I usually do!)
I first visited this city on a Tuesday night ten years ago. My brother and I, and a very short stocky Aussie lad who went by the name of 'Stretch' (apparently nicknamed by his friends after the kids toy Stretch Armstrong) headed out to discover the infamous Argetinian nightlife at 8pm only to be severely disappointed. 9pm, 10pm, 11pm, 12am came and went and barely a sinner was to be seen in the bars. We eventually mustered up our collective awful Spanish ("errr....emmmm...uh...un bar con chicas, err....muchas chicas?") and were directed to a not so nearby bar called 'JOBS' with three floors of pool tables and wait for it.....archery! (not your typical safe sport where alcohol is involved but this is gaucho country!). We got there at 1am and it was wall to wall packed and yes thankfully there 'muchas chicas'. I'm not going to go even more off track so you'll have to click on this link to find out who I met that fateful night (albeit one word i.e. I met the ?) as I don't like to repeat myself (..and now back on track to Cristina - she can't be going to social events at 5pm - proof above!


But she does seem to be living the life of Reilly and has also been accused of receiving sponsorship (US$800,000 in a briefcase) for her pre election political campaigning from Hugo Chavez, that was intercepted by Argentinian customs. Relations with the US are at an all time low as Condaleezza Rice

just snubbed her on her South American visit aparently because of her leftist alliances (not that I blame Cristina for distancing herself from the Bush administration!). In contrast, her husband Nestor, the previous president, immediately visited 'significant' heads of state around the world (including Bush) after being elected but our Cristina has been more concerned with wining and dining influential people like Naomi Campbell and Antonio Banderas among others?!! More details here. At the moment she's better known for her supposed sense of fashion than her political astuteness.

7 comments:

  1. sure we have the same problem in Ireland what with half the government jet off to exotic locations for St Patrick's Day in the name of public relations.
    WOW - So you met yer wife in a pool hall on your first day in Argentina!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well you live and learn! I never knew you had a female president. And I'd rather have dinner with Antonio Banderas than George Bush any day!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anon: I think the Argies politicians learned everything they know from the Irish!

    Baino: Yep - Women Leaders seems to be a trend - Good on them, I say (as my wife watches over my shoulder!)

    ReplyDelete
  4. God, just goes to show you they're all the bloody same!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Queenie: yep, they may speak different languages but their basically the same the world over.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The fact that her husband was busy meeting all the imporant world leaders in the UK, France, US, etc his first hundred days...and she has hosted whom??? Naomi Cambell and Antonio Banderas?

    That alone speaks volumes.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Longhorn: Apparently she's off to the UK to ask for the return of the Malvinas islands - she must have finally got motivated after reading my blog! :-)

    ReplyDelete

PLEASE enter a made up NAME/URL e.g. "Bob99" instead of Anonymous - it makes it easier for me to answer your question and you do want to make my life easier right?

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.