Buenos Aires didn’t turn out to be the experience I expected mostly because in the end I didn’t experience a lot of local entertainment and night life as I thought I would, yet our few days in the capital were enjoyable.
We took our time to rest and visit the city wandering through a few of its 48 neighbourhoods. We enjoyed a free guided bike tour (offered by BA tourism – all the information about free guided tours and activities in town on the city’s website: turismo.buenosaires.gob.ar) through the touristic neighbourhood of La boca, walked around the newly chic developed harbour neighbourhood of Puerto Madero and its uninteresting ecological park, loved San Telmo and the area around the 25 de Mayo Plaza, where the architecture is similar to the French one, and walked a bit in Palermo in between parks and streets. On Sunday I enjoyed very much strolling through the San Telmo Feria, a local market where artisans sell their home made products of all varieties (should it be clothes, food, toys, pictures), others sell regular clothing products we find everywhere on other markets, and where artists take the time to play music or a little show in the streets. All of that within a street where the architecture is a treat for the eye. |
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I enjoyed a lot how the central area is similar to Paris in its architecture; this part of the city is very enjoyable to walk around without feeling any stress or rapid life style that we could feel in Paris. There was a certain type of good vibe in the air. Yet the city being very big, some other neighbourhoods have less interest and the public transportation being badly done you quickly lose a lot of time getting across the city.
All in all Buenos Aires was a nice stop of our Argentinian journey, yet I believe it is a place to see and experience for people who like big cities. |
La boca
My pone having broken down I lost all my notes about La Boca, one of the most touristic places of Buenos Aires. If I remember well the neighbourhood was left aside to rot, but in … an Italian immigrant fell in love with the place and invested his time in reinstating life in it, especially through colourful building and the arts, hence all the paintings. It is in La Boca that was born the so famous dance El Tango, a dance that was initially a way from men to seduce prostitutes before getting into business. Make sense now right? :) |
Transportation: a roughly 20 hour bus ride from Puerto Madryn drove us straight into the capita for a cost of ARS 1’300 (about 80€).
Accommodation: another Couchsurfing experience, and this time even 2 due to a last minute cancellation from another couchsurfer, forcing us to find a last minute solution within a few hours…! The first one, Marcelo is a 38 year old Argentinian having travelled in over 43 countries and being thus no more surprised by anything. We slept in his living room two nights and moved to Nahuel’s place. Nahuel, 20 years old, lives with his parents who welcomed us very well shared many very interesting discussions about travels, France, Argentina, politics, lifestyle etc; and sharing delicious meals (homemade French crepes and pizzas!!!).
F&B: Pizzas, Pizzas, Empanadas, Pizzas and meat. Some say they have tasted the best pizzas every in BA. I wasn’t able to compare, but I do have to say the pizzas we had were delicious and cheap for Argentina (between 70 to 150 pesos compared to 200-250 in the south!!). Overall empanadas and pizzas were cheaper and better than elsewhere in Argentina. We also tasted the Asado, different type of grilled meat; always a treat especially for about 12-15€ per person including side dishes.
Travellers’ tips: within BA one cannot take any public transportation without having the SUBE card, just like in Bariloche. A bus ticket costs about 6,5 pesos and the subway about 7,5 pesos.
Accommodation: another Couchsurfing experience, and this time even 2 due to a last minute cancellation from another couchsurfer, forcing us to find a last minute solution within a few hours…! The first one, Marcelo is a 38 year old Argentinian having travelled in over 43 countries and being thus no more surprised by anything. We slept in his living room two nights and moved to Nahuel’s place. Nahuel, 20 years old, lives with his parents who welcomed us very well shared many very interesting discussions about travels, France, Argentina, politics, lifestyle etc; and sharing delicious meals (homemade French crepes and pizzas!!!).
F&B: Pizzas, Pizzas, Empanadas, Pizzas and meat. Some say they have tasted the best pizzas every in BA. I wasn’t able to compare, but I do have to say the pizzas we had were delicious and cheap for Argentina (between 70 to 150 pesos compared to 200-250 in the south!!). Overall empanadas and pizzas were cheaper and better than elsewhere in Argentina. We also tasted the Asado, different type of grilled meat; always a treat especially for about 12-15€ per person including side dishes.
Travellers’ tips: within BA one cannot take any public transportation without having the SUBE card, just like in Bariloche. A bus ticket costs about 6,5 pesos and the subway about 7,5 pesos.
Gracias a Stéphanie Vallet para las bellas fotos!