Buenos Aires – October 2019 – La Chacarita Cemetery

While Buenos Aires is home to the famed Recoleta Cemetery, it is by no means the only impressive cemetery in town.

We went on a tour of La Chacarita Cemetery with Pablo, an interesting person with a vast amount of knowledge of the history of the city.

While it has some similarities to Recoleta, it is much larger.

There are many massive tombs that were used for societies, as this one dedicated to, and for the use of people of the Spanish immigrants society.

Chacarita has more famous Argentinians than Recoleta, including Jorge Newberry. Jorge lead a very interesting, if short, life as an early aviator.

One of the two airports for Buenos Aires is named after Jorge. He died in an early attempt to fly over the Andes Mountains. The plaques on the wall are dedications to him from other groups.

While most of the crypts are well kept, some are in need of repair.

Carlos Gadel was a singer, songwriter and actor. It is said he gave Sinatra pointers on how to become a more polished performer.

People often leave lit cigarettes in his right hand for good luck.

More scenes of Chacarita…

But there is more to Chacarita than the large crypts, much much more. Built in the brutalist style there is a massive underground area.

It is an unreal sight with over 1/4 million people entombed below.

Beyond this area is an area dedicated to famous Argentina performers. These are not just statues, the performers are actually buried here.

Beyond that area is a massive ‘common grounds’

The crematorium is in the center of the cemetery. The place is so large taxi’s troll through looking for fares.

One urban legend says to never take a taxi in the cemetery – if you look in the mirror the driver will not have a reflection.

Additional monuments are scattered throughout.

Another stunning sight is the perimeter wall – it is lined with more crypts. In all there are well over a million people in the cemetery.

For the most part the cemetery is in nice shape, however there are portions that need some repair, as shown below.

We spent over 2 hours wandering about La Chacarita Cemetery. It was an amazing, and visually stunning experience.

When in Buenos Aires look up Pablo, under Walks with Pablo. He is an excellent guide.