Yesterday, we ventured south-east to a very interesting area in Buenos Aires called La Boca (the mouth) located near the city's port. It retains a strong European flavour, with many of its early settlers being from the Italian city of Genoa. La Boca is a popular destination for tourists visiting Argentina, with its colourful houses and main street, the Caminito. We walked from shop to shop, admired all the multi-couloured buildings, listened to music coming from the open-air bars, and watched tango in its abundance throughout the streets. La Boca, is also known throughout the sporting world as the home of Boca Juniors, one of South America's top football clubs. The large yellow stadium lies just a few blocks from the Caminito. We made our way home late in the afternoon and picked up some fresh pasta for dinner.Sunday, 2 March 2008
La Boca
Yesterday, we ventured south-east to a very interesting area in Buenos Aires called La Boca (the mouth) located near the city's port. It retains a strong European flavour, with many of its early settlers being from the Italian city of Genoa. La Boca is a popular destination for tourists visiting Argentina, with its colourful houses and main street, the Caminito. We walked from shop to shop, admired all the multi-couloured buildings, listened to music coming from the open-air bars, and watched tango in its abundance throughout the streets. La Boca, is also known throughout the sporting world as the home of Boca Juniors, one of South America's top football clubs. The large yellow stadium lies just a few blocks from the Caminito. We made our way home late in the afternoon and picked up some fresh pasta for dinner.Tango
Our plan on Friday night was to find some live Jazz for the evening. So we checked the old guidebook and headed to Café Tortoni, the oldest café in Buenos Aires. When we got there we were told that Jazz was off and a tango show was starting in 30 minutes. So we jumped on the opportunity and settled into our front row seats for a night of tango (watching). It was a very entertaining show, that took the form of a dancing musical, with a traditional drumming act thrown in the middle. One of our favourite parts was the live band that played passionately throughout the whole evening. And of course, the amazing footwork and emotion of the tango, beautiful! Recoleta and Palermo
Our days here in Buenos Aires seem to start off slowly, as it is impossible to go to bed before 2AM. However, it stays light until 9ish at night, so we have lots of daylight to walk around and see the sights. We had one of these days on Thursday. In the early afternoon we jumped on the subway and headed for an area called Recoleta, which is the wealthiest neighbourhood here, and is known for elegant cafes, unique boutiques, and the Recoleta cemetery where the wealthy and famous people of BA are buried, including Evita. After strolling around the elaborate sarcophagi, we made our way to the Museo National de Bellas Arts, to see an amazing collection of classical and modern Argentinian art. Next it was off to a huge metal flower sculpture, that actually opens and closes. At this point it was about 6:30PM, so we decided to head up to Palermo, a nearby neighbourhood, where we were planning to have an Argentina Steak dinner, at a famous grill. I was feeling a little under dressed, so we popped into a salon for a haircut and a boutique for a little black dress. Now, all dolled up, I was ready for my fancy steak dinner!! We got to La Cabera Restuarant at 8:15PM and the place was completely empty, but it turend out they had reservations for every table starting at 8:30PM. So we were directed down the street to the second La Cabera, opened to deal with this overflow issue. We sat down at 8:30PM, and within minutes the whole second restaurant was packed. And completely understandably, this meal was absolutely outstanding. The best example is perhaps Phil's Argentina Steak dinner, that cost around $45 pesos, expensive for us, but included 3, yes three (including bacon), of the best steaks Phil has ever had, and about 20 little salads and condiments to dress the steak. Essentially every bite could be different. I never thought I would be going on about steaks like this!! But to tell you the truth, and to reassure you that it is me writing this, my favourite part was the condiment/salad tray. Once again, we ate and drank the night away, caught a late night bus home and were in bed by 2, I think...The Clan House Bed & Breakfast
We have moved locations, yet again, in Buenos Aires and have relocated at the following bed & breakfast. It is quiet, clean, and we get to fry our own eggs in the morning.The Clan House Bed & Breakfast
Alsina 917 - Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tel. (54 11) 4331 4448
Friday, 29 February 2008
Graffiti Tour
Although Buenos Aires is a masivo city, we have been mostly exploring by foot, wondering the busy streets and the different communities. At first we didn't know where to start, so Phil suggested a graffiti tour, which involves just walking from one piece of wall art to the next. Pretty simple, but truly elaberate and plentiful here. However, our day did not start out as simple as this open air art museum tour sounds. We, actually, spent the morning on another type of tour, a where-are-we-going-to-sleep-tomorrow-night tour. Before Buenos Aires, it was easy to find hotel rooms and it was common for menus to be waved in our faces as we passed by virtually empty restuarants. But here, we are experiencing quite the opposite. It is difficult to find a room in a hostel or a table at a restuarant, which although is not convenient when you are carrying your belongings on your back, but it is great for this metropolis (and the people watching). So anyway, we spent the whole morning looking for a new hostel, walking back and forth between our current one and new ones, trying to coordinate prices and dates. We eventally found one that we will be quite happy in, without breaking the bank (which is another new experience here in BA). Thursday, 28 February 2008
Ayres Porteños Hostel, San Telmo
We are currently residing at the following brightly-coloured hostel in the heart of San Telmo.Ayres Porteños HOSTEL
Peru 708, San Telmo
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tel. +(54-11) 4300-7314
Wednesday, 27 February 2008
Hostal Tango Suites, San Telmo
Upon arriving in Buenos Aires, we wondered around the streets of the San Telmo district and found the following hostal. We remained here for two days to recuperate.HOSTAL TANGO SUITES
Chacabuco 747 - San Telmo
Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
República Argentina
Tel. +54 (011) 4300 - 2420
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