4 nights in Buenos Aires
Trip Start
Aug 12, 2008
1
16
26
Trip End
Nov 21, 2008
Buenos Aires,
Capital Federal District,
Argentina
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Palermo Soho:
This is the neighborhood of backpackers in BA (1 of many). It´s a hip sort of place, parties at the bars don´t start till around 1 or 2am, and last until the wee hours of the morning (friends of ours were at afterparties starting at 10am)! There are tons of live music places, and the artesan center, Plaza Serrano, was a cool place to just browse around and have a beer and tapas in the sun. Right away, we knew Argentina was gonna be a lot of walking. It is, especially for a tourist.
Recoleta:
On the weekends, a vast park in this place turns into a "feria", literally fair, where artists, vendors, backpackers, and families alike come out to get their fill of whatever´s out there. Tons of mini bands were setting up their instruments in random places, and starting a full jam and dance scene. Guys had ropes tied to trees and were performing tight-rope walking stunts. It was a really cool scene, we spent the day there, and ended it with a guitar festival performance. Over 30 different musicians came up for 1 song each, and strummed their best in latin roots.
Microcentro:
Downtown is fun. You take subways to get there, and walk out into a street of massive long blocks and plazas symmetrically placed at the streets´ end. We kept having flashbacks to Spain, and although there are obvious and huge differences visually, the Spanish-influenced architecture downtown presents a recurring resemblance to Madrid. We got lost in the streets and stopped off in cafes here and there. Just vagabonding our way through the streets of BA. Perfect way to get acquainted.
The steaks in Argentina are notorious worlwide for their naturally incredible taste, and for good reason - they are amazing!!! Their wine is also on the up and up, reds especially, so to go out for dinner, I´m happy at almost any restaurant. We´ve had some amazing finds out here. In Palermo, we went to a recommended place and for less than 25 dollars we each had full meals (my steak was one of the best I´ve ever had), and a bottle of wine. This became the normal price. After dinner (around midnight) we had to try the helado (ice cream), and although we had not heard of it before, it is just as impressive as the steaks or wine. Probably more impressive. Argentina has a huge Italian influence in both their cuisine and gelato. This stuff is what dreams are made of. We´ve got some everyday since.
There´s too much to say about this city. All in all we had just under a week, and after Iguazu Falls and Rosario, decided to get some more in. Buenos Aires is just too much fun...
