Mr Rocca

On the first day we arrived in Buenos Aires, we visited the Recoleta Cemetery in the late afternoon. This eternal city is unlike any cemetery I've seen (not that I make it a point to seek out cemetries). It’s the final resting place for the affluent, the decorated and the celebrated in Argentina. The cemetery is certainly impressive with its elegant mausoleums, ornate marble carvings and sheer decadence. A few stray cats loitered about.

In some tombs, coffins were visible, including small ones which could only be meant for children. Most tombs had a tiny spiral staircase leading under ground. It was beginning to get morbid.

After several minutes of wandering about and peering cautiously into the tombs, we noticed a small man with silver hair. He unobtrusively crept into our consciousness by quietly pointing into some tomb, indicating that we should look before walking off with his hands behind his back. We peered into the tomb and was rewarded with the sight of a particularly beautiful carving within.

Vincent was creepified. He asked if I saw the man to which I replied, what man?

Well we had to approach the man again as we couldn’t find Eva Peron’s tomb. We noticed that he had a kindly face with very blue eyes. He eagerly beckoned that we should follow him. He proceeded to show us more tombs and I became more excited as he illuminated the significance of the carvings. Vincent was still wary, keeping some distance in case this person decided to knock me out and drag me into the maze of tombs.

He struggled to communicate with us as he spoke only Spanish. It was a pity for this gentleman knew a lot about the significance of the symbols carved into the tombs. Our communication reminded me of Win, Lose or Draw! From time to time he stopped other visitors for help with translation.

We were of course very curious why someone would spend his time in the cemetery and was glad to learn that he was studying the carvings there, especially those belonging to the free masons. He pointed out a tomb belonging to the Rocca clan and told us that was his family. Ah, mystery man has a name.

Mr Rocca flaps his arms. Angels, I asked? Nope. He went in search of what he was trying to convey. Again he pointed. It was a carving of an hourglass between a pair of wings. Eureka - Mr Rocca was trying to say “time flies”. A lump formed in my throat. How true.

Mr Rocca pointed out poppy flowers, symbolic of opium to induce deep and pain-free slumber. There was also ivy but we couldn’t get the meaning of it, I would certainly Google later.
Mr Rocca also showed us the most expensive tomb in the cemetery - a USD2million piece of work. One could only hope that these families had been as generous to charities.

There was one of the boxer, a poignant one of a child, a general and a feuding couple who in death could not see eye to eye. Fascinating stuff.


Half an hour after being led around the maze of the cemetery, we arrived at Eva Peron’s tomb. It was part of her family’s tomb and looked no different from the rest, with the exception of more flowers left behind. Finally, Mr Rocca led us outside the cemetery to show us most enormous tree I’d ever seen. I later Googled and discovered that it was a rubber tree “known as the Gran Gomero, was planted in 1878 and was 50 metres wide.”

We wondered whether or not to tip Mr Rocca. Which was a worse offense? We didn’t know if he was a part-time guide and was expecting some remuneration for his time. He had made our visit to the Recoleta so much more meaningful we were happy to offer something, to which he declined. We thanked him with muchas gracias and shook his hands (which were nice and warm!).

If you ever visit Recoleta Cemetery, count yourself lucky if you encounter Mr Rocca. An apparition he is not, very kind he is.