Buenos Aires

 Foreword

I have been to Buenos Aires, Argentina from 29^th/December/2000 until 2^nd/January/2001, to celebrate the New Year. I hope my experience to be useful to you and that it allows you to seize better your stay in the capital of Argentina.

Buenos Aires's architecture was inspired in European capitals. It reminds the buildings found in Paris, Brussels and Madrid, therefore, according to an European point of view, it is not an exotic city. Nevertheless, it is very beautiful and worth a visit. Back in 2000 their currency (Peso Argentino) had an even parity with the American Dollar (that is to say, 1 Peso = US$ 1), the prices are higher than in the rest of Latin America. The city has a lot of open public places, with yards, where people go to lay down on the grass and sometimes they even bring snacks and have a picnic.

Buenos Aires has 4 lines of subway (called "subte") and the ticket costs 0,60 cents of Peso. There are no tourist or weekly tickets, the passenger must pay every time he takes the subway. The subway ticket is not exactly a ticket, is a kind of coin. Buses cross the entire city and the fare depends on the destination. Must often it costs 0,70 cents of Peso.

Buenos Aires is not an inexpensive city, much on the contrary. When I say bellow something is cheap it means that it is cheap for the Buenos Aires' standards.

Ps : Click on the pictures to see them enlarged.

What to See and Where to Go

Avenida 9 de Julio Þ Argentineans say it is the largest avenue in the world. The cheapest hotels are located in this avenue, even though it is not cheap to eat nearby.

Obelisco Þ It is a monument to celebrate the foundation of the city. It is located at Avenida 9 de Julio. The monument itself is ordinary, but it is a milestone of the city.

Calle Florida Þ It is one of the most famous streets in Buenos Aires, almost every folder mentions it. It has restaurants, cinemas, shops but it is expensive since a lot of tourists go there. In the end of Calle Florida there is Plaza San Martín (see remarks bellow).

Calle Lavalle Þ Just like Calle Florida. It is a famous street as well, with good restaurants, cinemas, shops and fast food establishments.

Casa Rosada Þ It is the office of the President of The Republic. Nice construction. Visitors are allowed to enter some of its rooms for free.

Plaza de Mayo Þ It is a square located in front of Casa Rosada. It is a place where Argentineans go where they protest against government. The most famous manifestation is made by the "Madres de la Plaza de Mayo" (Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo) who go there on Thursdays to remember and complain to the authorities about their sons that disappeared during the military regime in the 1970’s.

Catedral Metropolitana Þ It is a church (cathedral) located at Plaza de Mayo with beautiful paintings inside. There is a wood sculpture of The Lord made to order by two football players that Argentineans say it impresses for its realism. I actually do not think so. Inside the Cathedral there is the coffin with the body of José de San Martín, an important person in the process of the Independence of Argentina from Spain. There is a torch outside the cathedral that is always burning.

Cabildo Þ It is a building also located at the Plaza de Mayo where the independence of Argentina was proclaimed. In the picture bellow, it is the small white building on the right.

Plaza Colón Þ Colón (Columbus) was the discoverer of the American continent. Every major city in the American continent has a monument to him. In Buenos Aires the Plaza Colón is located in the back of the Casa Rosada. It has an impressive statue in a high pedestal.

Puerto Madero Þ It is a deactivated harbour that had its stores transformed into restaurants and bars. The construction of Puerto Madero transformed an area that was a unprofitable harbour into a touristic spot. The restaurants there are elegant and expensive. A walk by the harbour provides a good sightseeing.

Casino Buenos Aires Þ It is a casino built on a ship. It has a huge parking lot. If the visitor arrives on foot there is one of those golf cars to pick up him and drop in front of the ship (the ride is for free). To enter the Casino each person must show at the entrance that possess US$300 (300 Pesos), but is not obliged to spend any money in there. Even if you don not want to bet, it is a pleasing place to go. Argentineans say it is dangerous to go there at night by foot, but I went there at 23:00, there was no other soul in the streets and nothing happened. Once in the Casino, try the plate "Lomo Completo" (bellow there is a description of Argentinean food). It costs 7 pesos (which is a good price to pay in Buenos Aires) and it is very tasteful. As a matter of fact, it was one of the best meals I ever had. The staff is very polite and well trained. I ate in the 2^nd floor of the casino, and the bar attendants Leonardo (Leo) and Eloy entertained us with good conversation. The only problem is that they know nothing about football (imagine that they consider Maradona the best player ever, simply ultrageous). Anyway, I strongly recommend a visit to the casino and to stop by the bar on the 2^nd floor. Due to the fact the Casino is a boat it can change its location in the harbour. I was told it did it once. When I have been there it was located close to the 1^st peer, next to the district of San Telmo. Surely it is not so big as the casinos in Las Vegas or in Monaco, but it is a nice spot for spending some time either a professional gambler (just to say he has bet even in Buenos Aires) or for a common visitor.

San Telmo Þ Is a district with a free market of antiques. It also has street artists playing and dancing typical music. There some restaurants in San Telmo, but do not eat there (see bellow things not do).

La Boca Þ It is a district where poor people live. The walls of the houses are not made of bricks, they are made of zinc (a kind of metal). Because of this, the houses turn to be very cold in the winter and very hot in the summer. It has a football stadium that belongs to the club Boca Juniors, which is the team of Diego Maradona, the best Argentinean football player ever. There is a street called "El Caminito", that is colorful and has houses with zinc walls. It is cheap to eat and to buy souvenirs at La Boca.

El Caminito Þ See La Boca.

Palermo Þ It is an elegant district in the northern part of Buenos Aires. Like other cities in Latin America, in the beginning of XX century the city was overwhelmed by diseases related to the lack of a public system to handle the waste generated by the population. The rich citizens came back to Europe and the middle class migrated to the north of Buenos Aires. That is the reason why nowadays Palermo (and Recoleta) are still the districts where mid and high classes live.

Palermo has stylish restaurants and many open public places, with extensive pleasing yards where couples date and families make picnics. Walking by the streets of Palermo gives an unique opportunity to admire the fine architecture of the mansions occupied by the various embassies. There are many bus lines that stop at Plaza Italia and there is also a subway station. Take a walk from from Plaza Italia to Monumento de los Españoles by Avenida Sarmiento and enjoy the landscape. The entrance to the Botanic Garden and to the Zoo is in the beginning of this Avenue, close to Plaza Italia.

In the end of Avenida Sarmiento, close to the Monumento de los Españoles and to the Monumento al General Urquiza, is located the Jardín Japonés (Japanese Garden). It is a park maintained by the Japanese-Argentinean Society with Japanese style gardens, bonzais, carpes (that colorful Japanese fish), and Japanese bridges. The entrance to the park costs 2 Pesos (US$ 2). Even though it is not a typical Argentinean place I strongly suggest a to visit there. Its official name is Fundación Cultural Argentino Japonesa.

Also in Palermo there is a park called Rosedal, which is public and for free as well. It is possible to rent bicycles and ride around Rosedal, but it is not allowed to get in the park by bicycle. The rent costs 3 Pesos (US$ 3) for 30 minutes and 5 Pesos (US$ 5) for 1 hour. I suggest to rent a bike for half an hour, ride around the park (there is a lagoon in the middle) and then walk inside Rosedal. It is also possible to rent Venetian Bibycles (small boats to paddle) to ride by the lagoon, but it only work after 14:30 hr.

Recoleta Þ Like Palermo, it is a district where mid and high class people live. It is an exotic district for it has a cemetery in the middle of a bohemian part of the city. In this cemetery the most famous, important and rich members of Argentinean society are buried, most remarkably Eva Perón.

Next to the cemetery, there is a church called Iglesia del Pilar. There is a sign in front of the church promoting a visit in the reserved parts of the church ("Claustros del Pilar"). They charge 1 Peso to get in, but nothing there worths a picture. There are only old birth, marriage and bapthism books, old priest clothing and a view to the cemitery. The good part is that this fare is intended to help keeping the church.

The cemetery is sorrounded by night clubs, restaurants, pizzerias and a shopping center (inside this shopping center there is a Hooters bar). Nearby there is also the Buenos Aires Hard Rock Café, for those who like it. There is also various gardens were couples dates and youngsters chat.

Recoleta tends to be an expensive place to eat. Except from Mac Donalds and Hooters (Hooters is Hooters) restaurants there are overpriced. If you are in Palermo nerver eat at the Restaurant Loire Bistrot (see "Thinks I Advise Not To Do" bellow)

Jardín Japonés Þ See Palermo.

Tierra Santa Þ It is a park that pictures the life in Israel at the time of Jesus. The entrance costs 7 Pesos (US$ 7) and ministers of any religion are allowed to enter for free. It is located in the banks of Rio de la Plata (Plata River). The river is not really beautiful, but it is good to take a look and see how Argentineans "go to the beach". Restaurants there are expensive for it is a remote location and there are not many option nearby. Food inside the park is usually cheaper. It is a place to go if you have special interest in Christian religion, but it is definitely not a park you will remember for the rest of your life. Their address is Av. Rafael Obligado 5790 - Costanera Norte, Buenos Aires. They also have a homepage : http://www.tierrasanta-bsas.com.ar.

Rosedal Þ See Palermo.

Plaza Italia Þ See Palermo

Jardín Botánico Þ It is the Botanic Garden. See Palermo.

Jardín Zoológico Þ It is the Zoo, as you can infere by the name. See Palermo.

Plaza San Martín Þ It is another beautiful square, with extensive gardens where people go to "seize the day". There is a monument in honour to the Argentinean soldiers who died in the Falklands War (Guerra de Islas Malvinas e Atlántico Sur) won by the United Kingdom. From this plaza the Torres de los Ingleses (Tower of the Englishmen) can be seen.

A.A. Libertad Þ It is an old war ship of the Argentinean navy that stays in Dársena Norte, close to the peer number 4 of Puerto Madero. Nowadays it is a musem and the entrance is for free.

Torre de los Ingleses Þ See Plaza San Martín.

Iglesia del Pilar Þ See Recoleta.

Claustros del Pilar Þ See Recoleta.

Tigre Þ It is a city in the Province (suburbs) of Buenos Aires famous for the houses built on artificial islands of the River Tigre and other tiny rivers nearby. It is interesting to see how the human beings can construct, alter and live in so many different environments. In this city there market-boats, police-boats, ambulance-boats, and so on. I paid 36 Pesos (US$ 36 ) for the trip (including transportation from the center of Buenos Aires and a ride on the River Tigre). I personally think the trip is interesting but it does not worth that kind of money. Despite the waters are muddy, Argentineans say they are clean, they even bath in it.

 What I Strongly Suggest

Do not leave Argentina without trying the dish "Bife de Lomo". This is a tasteful and very tender beef steak (I mean VERY TENDER). It is so tender it can be cut with the fork ! The first time I heard about it I doubted it could be cut with the fork, but it indeed can ! Be aware that when you read on the menu "Bife de Lomo" it only includes the steak itself. The majority of the restaurants charge 7 Pesos (US$ 7) for a steak. However, some of them charge the same 7 Pesos for a "Bife de Lomo Completo" (Complete Bife de Lomo) which is the steak accompanied by other things. The best restaurants I have been to (considering price and quality) were the restaurant of Casino Buenos Aires (charged 7 Pesos for the "Bife de Lomo Completo") and Don Peperone ( Calle Lavalle 876, not far from the corner with Av 9 de Julio). Don Peperone charges 6 Pesos for a "Bife de Lomo Completo", 2 Pesos for a soft drink (Coca-Cola) and 3 Pesos for a natural fruit juice and it does not charge the service. Other restaurants usually charge 1 Peso per person for the service. This restaurant has a fine decoration, the only problem of Don Peperone is that it has no division of smokers and non-smokers.

Do not miss the Casino Buenos Aires ! It is a very elegant casino, with stylish decoration in a relaxing but at the same time exciting environment. Once in there, go to the 2^nd floor bar and enjoy a meal. Bar attendants Leonardo and Eloy are very polite and have a very good conversation. They just do not know much about football, but nobody is perfect (they think Maradona is the best player ever, like every other Argentinean). If you are not a football fan, do not be afraid, they speak about other subjects as well. Beware that the entrance is at the 2^nd floor, not at the 1^st.

The cheapest restaurants to eat are the so called "Tenedor Libre" or "Parrilla Libre". You just pay once and eat as much as you can. These restaurants, however, do not have the Lomo. Besides the Parrillada (a typical Argentinean barbecue) these restaurants also have salads, vegetables and even pizza.

Visit La Boca to see how poor Argentineans live and construc their houses. The restaurants at the district La Boca tend to be cheap for its a poor district. However, since a lot of turists go there there are policemen nearby, at least during the day when I was there. It is also cheap to buy souvenirs there.

San Telmo is worth to buy post cards (the cheapest in the town) and to watch street artists, mainly dancers. I have only seen artists dancing Tango, though there is also another popular rythm called Milonga. Never eat there (see bellow the "Thinks I Strongly Advise Not To Do" section).

Visit the Jardín Japonés (Japanese Garden). Its atmosphere is really very relaxing and it is fun to see how accustomed the fishes are to humans. The 2 Pesos ( US$ 2) they charge to let you in is one of the things in the city you feel it is fare to pay.

There is a typical candy called Alfajor. They are really tasty. There are a lot of brands, I had Terrabusi, and it was very good.

Argentina is known for its good quality bovine herds. Therefore, in addition to good meat, they have good leather clothing. They are not exactly cheap, but is cheaper than everywhere else I know. I paid 99 Pesos (US$ 99) in a good leather jacket, I could even order to make to more pockets without charge. I strobgly suggest the estalishment Uru Sweaters - Fabrica de Ropa de Cuero. They have good leather clothing for a good price. The customer can also see the factory bellow the shop and she how the fabricate the gears. Best of all, they change American Dollars for Pesos (only US$ 100 bills) without charge. I mean, you give them US$100 and they return you 100 Pesos, as a form to promote their business. In a bank you would be charged, for instance you would give US$100 and had back 98 Pesos. Uru Sweaters is located at the street Suipacha 978, close to Plaza San Martín. They deliver the clothes to the hotels, without charge, so the tourist can walk through the city without worring to drag a lot of bags.

If I were to visit Buenos Aires again I would try to rent a bicycle to ride by the river banks. There are bicycle roads from La Boca (southern Buenos Aires) up to Costa Nera (northern Buenos Aires), not to mention the various parks all over the city.

Things I Strongly Advise Not To Do

This part dedicated to the stupid businessmen who thing they can deceive every turist they find. Read this and avoid falling into traps I have fallen in.

In Recoleta, never ever eat at he restaurant Loire Bistrot (it is in the street Vicente Lopez 2158). They charge the service (1 Peso = US$1 per person), a mug of beer costs 2 Pesos, 1 Bife de Chorizo (another kind of beef) costs 7 Pesos (US$ 7 Dollars for just a pice of meat), and a porion of French Fries costs 3 Pesos. The problem is not even the price, is the quality. The beef I was served was very tough. There is no use complaining about it because if you do, you never know what they are going to do with your food. I told the waitress the beef was tough and she just shrunk her shoulders. The fact is that that piece of meat was already baked hen I got in the restaurant, they just heatened it abd served, that is the reason it was so hard. It is also important to aware that the restaurant faces the Recoleta cemetery walls.

The restaurants in San Telmo are simply disgusting. I have been to the restaurant El Balón (located in the street Humberto I , number 461), in Plaza Dorrego. There are employees of the retaurants of the neighbourhood distributing panflects in the sidewalk and promoting the restaurants. They are all but the same, I just chose one of them and got in. The Parrillada (barbecue) costs 7 Pesos as it is announced in the panflects, but when you sit down and ask something to drink you discover how they profit. A mere glass of soft drink (Coca-Cola) costs 4 Pesos (US$ 4 for a glass of Coke !!!!) and the Parrillada is salty, oh yes it is pretty salty. There is also a bath tube inside the restaurant from here customers can pick peanuts for free (and then they get really thirsty). They charge 1 Peso per person for the service, but the service is VERY slow. I was waiting so long I decided to stand up and go ask the waitress if she could serve the table. In the panflect they say there is a non-stop tango show, but during my lunch the stage was empty. The waitress did not tell the Parrilla was to be served in two trays. She brought the first one and left. When I was going to pay the bill she said there was a second tray, but I already had my drink. The first tray is served with the worst parts of the cow (Molleja, Chinchulin and Morcilla). The second tray has the good parts of the animal (Asado). After I paid the bill, I asked to go to the last floor so I could at least take a good picture of the square bellow (Plaza Dorrego). Then I had the opportunity to see how they cook the food. Believe me, it reminded me of Winstin Churchill when he said one should never know how politics are sausage are made. I had this bad experience at El Balón, but as far as I could see all restaurants in San Telmo are like this one.

Buenos Aires has a lot of cabs (taxis). I was told, nervertheless, that some of then are "pirate" cabs. Some time after you get into cab, the drivers stops the car (on purpose) and to let muggers get into the vehicle and rob the passenger. According to the tourist guide, the safe cabs to take are the ones that have a yeloow round seal on the chunk. It does not mean, however, that all the cabs that do not have this seal is driven by bandits.

 Curiosities

At Don Peperone (Calle Lavalle 876, not far from the corner with Av 9 de Julio), they translated "Lomo" as "Loin" in the menu, but I do not know how accurate this translation is. The best description I can give is that "Bife de Lomo" is a very tender beef steak, so tender it can be cut with the fork. The dish called Lomo Montevideano was translated in Don Peperone's menu as Lomo (Loin), Lechuga (Lettuce), Tomate (Tomato), Jamón (Ham), Panceta (Bacon), Choclo (Corn), Huevo Frito (Fried Egg) y Papas Fritas (and French Fries). The dish called Lomo Canadiense had Lomo, Lechuga, Tomate, Pepino (Cucumber), Huevo Duro (Boiled Egg), Muzzarella (a kind of cheese) y Papas Fritas.

The abbreviation of Buenos Aires is Bs. As.

In Argentina exists a soft drink with the flavour of grape fruit (Pomelo = Grape Fruit).

What they call "asado" is the ribs of the cow. It is tasty.

 The establishments called "Hotel de Parellas", also called "Alojamientos", are hotels where couples go to have sex. One of them is Sinclair Hotel (Sinclair 3072, Palermo) that charges from 24 Pesos up to 60 Pesos depending on the room and on the day of the week.

I was accommodated in Gran Hotel Argentino (street Carlos Pellegrini 37 - http://www.hotel-argentino.com.ar), room number 822. Frankly speaking, I was advised the hotel was simple, but I expected something more. For me the room can even be simple but the breakfast must be VERY good. Other turists in the hotel found the breakfast satisfactory, but I think they could have ham and cheese. They have just breads, jams, butters, fruits, yogurts, milk, coffee, industrial orange juice and powder chocolate. They have no refrigerators in the rooms, so you cannot expect to buy anything outsode and keep in the room.They have no airconditioning, just a kind of fan built in the wall that is turned on and off in the reception, That means that if the client wants to turn it on or off, he must call the reception and ask them to press the button. By the way, the device is very noisy. It did not disturb be because I always returned very tired to the hotel and slept like a stone, but light sleeper may have trouble.

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