Last Updated on April 29, 2025 by Home in the World
After an almost 15-hour non-stop flight over the South Pole (well, not directly but flights between Australia and South America do fly over the outer edges of Antarctica, and some of the ice is actually visible from the plane – see picture below), I was glad to finally land in Buenos Aires (literally ‘fair winds’ or ‘good airs’, but with a population of over 13 million and traffic congestion to match, I’m not sure how ‘good’ the air actually is..).
Argentina is famous for its meat-loving culture, and what better way to recover from a long flight and jetlag than to top up the reserves with some hearty empanadas (essentially pastry pockets filled with beef) and a slab of juicy Argentinian steak.
*N.B. These were still the days when snapping arty food photos was not really a thing (I still don’t really do it much). I only took some quick shots for my own personal memory, not originally intended for any publication, hence the complete lack of any photographic effort.
The taste and quality of the food was consistently delicious throughout my stay in Buenos Aires. Not being a huge meat-eater, however, I had to give the steaks a rest after the second night. Shout out to the wonderful La Payuca restaurant (one of the many parrillas or ‘grills’ around the city), whose varied menu kept me more than content every single night.
With the iron reserves well and truly replenished, it was time to explore Argentina’s capital. Known as the ‘Paris of the South’, it does certainly does have a Parisian feel in parts, such as here along the popular shopping street Calle Florida.
But some may be surprised to know that one of the top tourist attractions in Buenos Aires is – somewhat morbidly, perhaps – actually a cemetery. Recoleta Cemetery, located in the district of the same name, is the burial site of numerous notable people, most famously Eva Perón (full name María Eva Duarte de Perón), a.k.a Evita, who was the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 to 1952. Her tomb continues to be the most visited at the cemetery today, consistently hung with fresh flower tributes.
Many of the other tombs are no less magnificent, each seemingly trying to outdo the other in size and grandeur in honour of the respective souls resting within.
Contrasting starkly with the tranquility of Recoleta is Avenida 9 de Julio – the widest avenue in the world. Named in honour of Argentina’s Independence Day (9 July 1816), it has up to seven lanes in each direction, plus parallel two-lane streets running along either side. Needless to say, the traffic is slightly chaotic, but there is actually a pedestrian crossing spanning the entire width. Daring to take that first step off the kerb is daunting, but once you commit, the drivers do generally give way. Phew!
Standing tall at one of the main junctions along this immense avenue is the Obelisco. Built in 1936 out of Cordoba white stone, it is one of the city’s top landmarks.
The oldest public square, and indeed the political and administrative centre, in Buenos Aires is the Plaza de Mayo, which has been the scene of numerous historic events and demonstrations. One such event was the Argentine Revolution of 25 May 1810, after which it is named. More recently, it has been known for the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo (‘Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo’), who first started congregating here in 1977 seeking information on their children who went missing during Argentina’s last military dictatorship. They continue to meet there to this day every Thursday.
At the other end of the square is the aptly named Casa Rosada (‘Pink House’), from whose balcony Eva Perón famously addressed the crowds below in the 1940s. Madonna herself was also granted permission by the Argentinian government to film a key scene from the 1996 movie Evita here. With its rosy hue and eclectic architecture, the Presidential Palace, designed by Italian architect Francisco Tamburini, certainly is a unique and eye-catching structure.
One of the more working-class but undoubtedly most frequently photographed areas of Buenos Aires is La Boca. I have lost count of the number of Buenos Aires travel guides I have seen featuring pictures of the district’s colourful shanties on their covers. It’s rough around the edges, but there is a distinctly European vibe here, no doubt the product of the district’s early Italian settlers. Al fresco dining, steakhouses, cobblestones, street artists and souvenir shops, not to mention the home stadium of the Boca Juniors football club, rightly make this barrio a tourist magnet. Given it is one of the poorer parts of the city, it can be dangerous if you stray too far off the beaten track. Sticking to main tourist areas, especially in the day, should not pose a problem. I visited during the day (as part of a group tour) and it was fine.
Aside from steak and Eva Perón, Argentina is perhaps best known for the emotional dance known as the tango. It actually originated in impoverished areas like La Boca in the 1880s, influenced by the various European immigrant and slave communities who lived there. La Boca has plenty of tango shows on offer, or, if you’re like me, you can enjoy a live, impromptu performance on the streets of San Telmo instead.
San Telmo is Buenos Aires’ oldest neighbourhood, and epitomises the city’s boho side. But for the passionate, staccato tones of a tango that will inevitably be in progress in one of the squares, you could be forgiven for thinking you had been teleported to Montmartre or the Mediterranean. Indeed one of the artisans there from whom I bought some handmade jewellery at a flea market was a French girl named Karen, who had fallen in love with the city and decided to call it home.
The cobbled streets and plazas, with their ornate lamps and jacaranda trees, are lined with antique shops, art galleries, bars and restaurants, while the colonial architecture reflects the city’s faded grandeur. I felt this barrio was kind of like the authentic Buenos Aires in a nutshell, a tranquil corner of shabby-chic flair just a few blocks from the hectic hustling and horn-blowing of Avenida 9 de Julio.
Geographically just a few blocks away, but with a very distinct feel is Puerto Madero, a dockside district where old red-brick buildings and warehouses have been converted into up-market restaurants, and the glass façades of modern high-rise blocks reflect the city’s future and progress.
When I was there in 2009, I felt the area was still a little soulless, though it was still in somewhat of a development stage, with cranes galore. I imagine it has become more established and vibrant now. The port is also the departure point for Buquebus services across the Río de la Plata to Uruguay (Colonia and Montevideo). This is one of the things I did not get around to doing, much to my regret!
Spanning the Río Darsena Sur at the port is the striking Puente de la Mujer (‘Woman’s Bridge’), designed by renowned Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. The sleek white structure, almost needle-like in shape, is a stylised representation of a couple dancing the tango. It was opened in 2001.
Some of the other noteworthy sights I snapped around the city included the Japanese Gardens (one of the largest of their kind outside of Japan)..
..the Flor Genérica, a giant metal structure located at the Plaza de las Naciones Unidas, designed to look like a generic flower, opening its petals in the day and closing them at night..
..the Galerías Pacífico shopping centre on Calle Florida, with its opulent ceiling..
…the Palermo neighbourhood, home to the Botanical Gardens and the trendy Palermo Soho enclave with its many restaurants and leafy streets…
…and the Retiro district, with its grand monuments like the statue of General San Martín and the Torre Monumental clock tower.
Another thing that struck me in Buenos Aires was the prevalence of urban dog-walkers. The picture below was a common sight across the city; clusters of canines of all shapes and sizes – from dachshunds to dobermans – shambling along the pavement (primarily in upscale neighbourhoods) and kept in check by professional paseadores de perros.
I would also like to make mention of the Argentinian people and their language. All of the porteños (as Buenos Aires locals are known) I met were absolutely lovely – warm, friendly and hospitable. English was hit and miss (at least in 2009), so any knowledge of Spanish will of course be useful. Those who have studied Castilian Spanish of Spain will find that the Spanish spoken in Argentina, and particularly in the capital, differs considerably in terms of accent and, in some cases, vocabulary.
I found the Argentinians to speak slower over all compared to the supersonic speeds of their Iberian counterparts, though with the lilting intonation of Italian (no surprise given the influx of Italians who arrived in Argentina between 1857 and 1940; up to 25 million Argentinians are said to have Italian heritage).
In terms of the city itself, I would say shabby-chic is a fair description. If I am completely honest, I was slightly underwhelmed – perhaps because I had such high expectations from everything I had heard and read. I certainly did not hate it; I have already mentioned the wonderful people, great food and atmospheric areas like San Telmo. But it felt to me like a city of past, rather than present, splendour – no doubt due largely to the decades of economic depression the country suffered off and on between 1974 and 2002.
There were many grand buildings and squares in need of maintenance, flags that should have been flying proudly on their poles were tattered and dirty, a number of footpaths were broken and piled with rubbish bags that never seemed to be cleared. Such is the shabby-chic dichotomy of Buenos Aires. And that is perhaps part of its character, part of what people love about it.
More than ten years on from my visit there, I would be interested to see how it has progressed and evolved. It is definitely a city with great potential. And Argentina as a country also has much more to offer. I most certainly intend to return one day to explore more of it.
Trip facts
When I visited: October 2009
Weather: I had 2 stays in Buenos Aires on this trip: The first week of October and the third week of October. Overall the weather was quite dry, with only 1-2 rainy days that I can recall. Temperatures during the first week (approx. 19°C / 66°F) were noticeably cooler than the third (approx. 27°C / 80°F) as the springtime wore on. It was a pleasant time of year to visit, though if you are wanting to see the city’s characteristic purple jacarandas in bloom, November is probably the better option.
Where I stayed: Ayres de Palermo
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