And so children and adults went out to the sidewalks to build enormous snowmen like they had never built before. And so the most daring improvised skis and sleds to launch themselves from the Plaza de las Banderas, down Avenida Argentina, or from the highest places without worrying about the rolls, falls or bumps. Was there anything more important than Snowfall of the Century?
From one day to the next, Neuquén changed its appearance in an extreme way. The late fall colors disappeared. Only the white of the purest snow of the parks and the fences and the gray of the streets dominated. The heartbeat of the city had dropped in frequency to an unusual minimum level. The noises of daily hustle and bustle had disappeared.
Even with the difficulties to travel and the institutional paralysis due to all the inconveniences that the snowfall had caused in the center and in the neighborhoods, The shops were packed during the three days that the storm lasted because Father’s Day was celebrated on Sunday.
With their skids on the frozen sidewalks, with their hands purple from the cold, but without leaving the emotion before the postcards that were repeated in every corner of the city, thousands of people filled the streets, went out to buy gifts and took refuge in each coffee or confectionery to warm up the body, regain strength and continue with the consumption routine.
The snow covered much more than the city
Gone was the bitter pill for the Malvinas that no one wanted to swallow, even with the injustices and pain of war and the indifference to so many heroes and martyrs. Autumn was also left behind to give way to a harsh winter like the one that was beginning to appear.
That June 16 would be recorded on the calendar as the day that it snowed like it had never snowed in the history of the city of Neuquén; that day when feelings capriciously mixed with the weather, with everyday life, with the most dramatic events.
#Argentina
