Buenos Aires - Part 1

Wednesday 13th April 2011
We arrived at our hostel at 8:30, left our bags and went to the lounge area to gather our thoughts for the day. About 5 minutes later we were joined by a couple of Irish chaps who'd just got in from their night out and were intent on making out with a couple of local girls next to us. At this point we decided we needed a cafe.

It's worth pointing out that our hostel is the America del Sur in San Telmo, sister hostel of our place in El Calafate. So arriving here had an air of familiarity, especially when we saw the chap from the Calafate hostel in the office.


Change for a million?



After our coffee we headed to the cathedral, only to find that they have a dress code, i.e. no shorts. So instead we headed to the Museo Historico Dr Arturo Jauretche. This was a really interesting place, showing the history of banking and money in Argentina. The best part was seeing the 1 million peso note that was produced at the height of their financial issues. It was surprising to see just how many times they've devalued their currency.

Christmas come early.

Next we went to the Museo de la Cuidad. This had great old photos of the city, with a particularly interesting series showing the demolition of a huge church to build a diagonal road. The second half of the museum, rather bizarrely, had an enjoyable toy collection, including classics such as ludo, toy soldiers and scary looking dolls. One very interesting display was of Snow White and the Dwarfs, made in England and used to promote the original film in Argentina. The building itself was magnificent, as you would expect for a place that was a 5 star hotel and was frequented by only the richest families.

A crane.

Many boats.

After a small siesta, we wandered over to Puerto Madero, a modernised port area with loads of posh/expensive restaurants. What was once the main port in BA now services the office workers as they finish a hard day's work. It's nicely done, with cranes still in place and it was pleasant to grab a drink and watch the rollerbladers pass for the umpteenth time.

For dinner we went to a huge and packed parrilla in San Telmo. It was great watching the waiters work and a random bloke who was sweeping various tables for half finished drinks.

Thursday 14th April 2011

How big!

Today we decided to pound the streets and do a walking tour suggested in our guidebook. This took us through the shopping district, including a shopping mall with frescos on the ceiling. This area was very busy and had street sellers trying to sell us either tango shows or change every few steps. Next up we crossed the Avenida 9 de Julio. It's about 14 lanes wide and said to be, according to a local cabbie, the widest street in the world. It is not an easy or quick thing to cross. Continuing past government buildings and theatres, we eventually made it to the end and the ice cream shop, our first in BA. It's true what they say, the ice cream here is good being softer than our traditional ices. James is particularly keen on the Dulce de Leche flavour. In fact, he's so taken with this spread that a jar will be purchased on our return.

Yum!

Observation: People here walk quickly. Probably no quicker than parts of cities in the UK but much quicker than anywhere else in Argentina. Coupled with small pavements, it makes a day's walking a more tiring experience than we have been used to on the trip.

Friday 15th April 2011
Palermo
We headed for the metro to catch a train to the trendy area of Palermo, north west of the centre. It struck us as more residential than San Telmo and the green spaces would make it a nice place to live. It's full of bars, cafes and exclusive shops. We ducked into a couple and definitely felt scruffy.

Man's best friend(s).

On our walk we saw a couple of dog walkers. Although given the number of dogs (maybe a dozen) and their size, maybe the men were being walked.

After a nice lunch we headed to the Eva Peron museum, Museo Evita. Knowing relatively little about her, it was a fascinating walk through her life, with video clips, photographs and an impressive display of her clothes.

Around 10pm we headed back to Palermo to meet Stephanie and go to Salon Canning, a dance hall recommended by our friends Diana and Francis. From 11pm, locals turn up with their tango shoes to dance at a milonga. Some have partners, some don't. Some old, some young. Some smart, some scruffy. The whole affair is quite relaxed though we read that you can't strut any kind of stuff on the dance floor; you may be asked to leave. We remained firmly at our table supping beer (we were practically the only ones as everyone else drank water). It was interesting to see how with a wink and a nod across the room, partnerships were formed. It was so different to see people spending their Friday nights this way.

After a couple of hours we went to a local plaza and had a couple of beers. When we left at 3:30am you felt that for the locals, the night was just starting.

For further study: We want to read more about Eva Peron and her story, particularly the part where her body ended up buried in Milan until the 1970's.

Saturday 16th April 2011
We realised we'd not really ventured into San Telmo and so we did, having a lovely lunch in a little courtyard. We were quite taken by the area's atmosphere and architecture.

Urban vs. rural.

Walking from San Telmo, through Puerto Madero, we reached the ecological reserve, a huge space free and open to the public. It's a popular place with cyclists and runners, although the chap at the gate doing exercises half naked seemed to be slightly over the top. We spent a few hours wandering the area in the sun, enjoying the scenery and catching the odd glimpse of the city in the distance.

Late in the evening, after stepping out of a restaurant, we found it was raining. Having had so much sunshine it was, in a strange way, nice to be out in the rain. It's probably a sign of things to come for us back home.

Sunday 17th April 2011
Today was the footy day, the day James had been waiting for in BA.

Memorial to the merchant navy.

With kickoff at 4pm, we had time to walk the weekly flea market in San Telmo. There were loads of arts, crafts and tat on offer here. Possibly our funniest moment of the day was hearing an Aussie chap say "Although it's spelled 'pollo' it's not pronounced 'pollo'. It's insane!". He obviously doesn't understand the intricacies of English pronunciation.

The flea market.

San Telmo market.

We retuned to the hostel, waiting to be piced up for the match at La Bombanera, Boca Juniors vs Tigre. It's difficult to get tickets here unless you know a member. We don't, so we went for a tour option which is basically a friendly racket. It's completely overpriced but still  acceptable for a one-off event.

A sunny day.

Great fans.

We were in the ground early and  found a spot on the terraces under a roof. This was  important as the away fans were above us who have a reputation for throwing things at the home crowd. Although covered, the sun was on us throughout and it was one of the hottest games we've experienced. The stadium filled quickly and with no on pitch warmups, the match was underway. It was a bit of a thriller. Tigre went 2-0 up only for Boca to equalise on the stroke of half time. Then a pen in the 2nd half put Tigre ahead before the final goal equalised it at 3-3. It was a really interesting game and, according to James, one of the best atmospheres going although neither team cared about defending. The stand bounced during the celebrations, girls screamed and men punched the floor. The roof came in useful as through the 2nd half the fans above chucked whatever liquid they could find or produce onto the fans below.

One thing the Premier League could take from the game here is the ref's can of foam. He used it to mark the 10 yard line at free kicks and this seemed like a good idea.

After the final whistle, we were kept in for an hour to allow the away fans to leave. Everyone seemed amazingly patient with this.

Our 'package' included some beer and pizza post match. With three bus loads of people to please, the pizza never made it to the back, with vultures circling at all times. We dread to think what it would be like if people were genuinely starving. We managed to get three slices between us and some beers. (James's height was a real bonus.)

Not full from the pizza, we grabbed a Chinese for dinner and prepared ourselves for an early start the next day.