Estancias, Comme il Faut

A Day At The Estancia

Sunday we went to an estancia (ranch) about an hour and a half outside of the city.  It was just like being in Oklahoma, my friends!  We were shown around by some friendly gauchos, rode horses, met some nice dogs, ate food that was all made on the ranch (except for the wine), and some photos are here.

A visit to Comme il Faut

Every woman who dances tango knows about Comme il Faut, probably the most popular (and expensive) brand of tango shoes there is.  I’ve fallen in love with the various pairs that I’ve seen on other dancers, and have long been curious to try a pair on.  I hear a wide spectrum of reviews.  Some people say “Oh, that’s just for tourists” or “the heels are too high” and others say “It’s the best brand you can buy” and “they last longer than any other shoe” – so my thought is that it’s just best to find out for myself and form my own opinion.

Comme il Faut is a rather exclusive brand – you won’t find a website with pictures and there isn’t any catalog either; people who sell Comme il Faut at milongas outside of Argentina have to agree not to publish any photographs of the shoes.  You might wonder why they don’t advertise more, but I guess the shoes speak for themselves – as does word of mouth.  Not much advertising, yet they are a famous and longed-for brand.  They must be on to something.

I walked all the way from the new apartment (more on that later) in Congreso, down Entre Rios until it became Callao, and eventually I found Arenales, where the Comme il Faut shop is located.  The shop itself was a little hard to find but once I walked in, I knew I was in a good place.

I sat myself down on one of the leopard print benches and looked around.  There weren´t really any shoes on display.  This would be interesting.  A young woman asked me my size, and if I had any preferences (high heel, color, etc.), and once I gave her my size, she disappeared into another room for a few minutes.  While waiting, I noticed that the woman sitting next to me was Italian, so I started up a conversation with her, which was nice – it was great to know that I still speak Italian, especially after all the Spanish and English this month.

The gal reappeared with four or five boxes and set them down in front of me.  I had no idea what kinds of shoes would be in the boxes… it was like assorted chocolates.  Well, one pair at a time.  With each box I opened, I felt like sayng, “ooh, candy…”, as I was truly the little girl in the candy store.  I tried on various colors and styles, coming up with a word to describe each pair.  There was a pair that I kept coming back to – purple suede with a silver strap and silver heel.  Just divine.  This pair made me think of the word ¨Princess.¨ Definitely Princess shoes.  I was told before that within the first 5 pairs, you just “know” which one you want, but I had to try on more, just to see.

 It was a little overwheming but a blast.  I wound up getting the Princess pair of shoes and went on my merry little way, humming ¨Happy Birthday¨to myself, even though my birthday is not until September.