BARRIO PICHINCHA

The district of Pichincha and its low colonial houses reminds a little of the San Telmo of Buenos Aires. The name Pichincha refers to the battle of the same name, in 1822, during the Spanish-American wars of independence, at the foot of the Pichincha volcano in Ecuador. This neighborhood is gradually becoming a fashionable place and trendy bars are settling there. There are now also antique dealers and craftsmen. Pichincha is now the cultural centre of the city of Rosario. But the soul of this district comes from its history. From the end of the 19th century until the 1930s, when Rosario was nicknamed the "Argentine Chicago" (for its grain port and numerous mafias, such as the Zwi Migdal), the neighborhood was famous for its brothels - one of the largest prostitution districts in Latin America - and for the "white slave trade" that took place there. Women from all over Europe are exploited in this very powerful prostitution network. So it will come as no surprise to learn that in the Argentinean Pigalle there was a Moulin Rouge! One can admire the facade of this former brothel now converted into a retirement home at 2025 rue Jujuy. And why not pass in front of the Petit Trianon, at n° 57, 61 and 73 of Riccheri street, where the mistress "Rita la Sauvage" reigned? The beautiful building of the former "brothel of Madame Safó" (Ricchieri, between Brown and Güemes) with its beautifully decorated corridors now serves as a telo.