Buenos Aires highlights
Today was all about exploring Buenos Aires. I jumped on a city tour in the morning, as a quick way to see a lot in a short period of time. Getting there was interesting, as I got to experience Buenos Aires’s subway system at rush hour. Anyone who has ever complained about Montreal’s packed metro cars needs to count their blessings. At least our metro is somewhat ventilated, and there are a few places to hold on. Here in BA, everyone just jams in and bounces around like a concert mosh pit every time the antiquated subway cars jerk to a sudden stop. By the time I reached my stop, I felt like I’d been on a roller-coaster ride.
The city tour started off from Calle Florida, past the Plaza San Martin, and headed north to the ritzier parts of Buenos Aires. Beginning at the United Nations Park, we saw the city’s giant metal flower, a landmark of sorts that is part art, part folly. It opens each morning and closes each night, and nobody really knows what the point is, but it gets photographed a lot.
We drove through the green leafy avenues of Palermo, watching the dog walkers and the people out for a stroll, though on a Thursday morning, they were few. On the weekends, Palermo is packed full of people out enjoying the day, so much so that they close the roads through the parks to vehicles and only allow pedestrians.
Next, we drove to the Recoleta neighbourhood. Recoleta is famous for its giant mansions, European-style architecture, and the Recoleta Cemetary, where all of the city’s famous and rich are buried. The city’s former wealth is very evident in Recoleta and Palermo, with giant mansions that are now mostly museums and government buildings, but which used to belong to single families.
City centre
We drove along Aveninda 9 de Julio, one of the widest streets in the world, and one of the craziest, traffic-wise. We passed by the Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires’s famous opera house and theatre, which has been closed for renovations since 2006. They keep delaying the date that it is supposed to re-open. Then, onto the Obelisk, which, mysteriously, is a major symbol of Buenos Aires despite having no real significance that anyone can discern.
The next stop on the city tour was the Plaza de Mayo, the city’s main square and home to the Casa Rosada, the Pink House. Kind of like the White House, but, well, pink. The Plaza de Mayo is surrounded by government buildings, museums, and the city’s cathedral. On the way out of the Plaza de Mayo, we noticed black smoke coming from a nearby building. One of the city buildings had caught fire.
La Boca
From there, we headed south to La Boca, one of Buenos Aires’s most famous neighbourhoods. Though it’s a very poor area, it is famous for its bright, colourful buildings, and of course, for its soccer team, the Boca Juniors. Sure enough, our first stop was the Boca Juniors stadium, where we could appreciate the passion that is Argentinian futbol close up. Boca Junior is one of the two main clubs in BA, the other being River Plate. Wearing the wrong colours in the wrong place at the wrong time could get you maimed or worse. Even Coca-Cola, the stadium’s principal sponsor, had to change its colours to black and white because the Boca club wouldn’t allow red – River Plate’s colour – anywhere on the stadium.
The colourful houses are most notably viewed in Caminito, an open-air museum with the preserved heritage buildings, surrounded by shops and restaurants and street artists and all that is touristy. La Boca isn’t considered very tourist-friendly by night, but by day, it is certainly overrun. The houses were originally built by the city’s Italian immigrant community, and many have been preserved.
At the time, people lived crowded several families into a house. These days, it’s not much better, or might even be worse, as we passed by one of the city’s most run-down shantytowns on the way past the Old Port back to the centre. What a contrast between the sprawling European-style mansions and luxury of the northern part of the city and the abject poverty visible in the south. Argentina’s economic collapse at the beginning of the decade took its toll, to be sure.
The not-so-picturesque waterfront
The Old Port isn’t much used anymore. The new port, Puerto Madero, is much more up to date, and is in Retiro, the centre of the city. That’s where the city tour ended. I had lunch at Puerto Madero, overlooking the port and the dirty brown water. Interestingly enough, this waterfront is a really happening spot in Buenos Aires, full of restaurants and shops. You might think it was pretty. Well, it’s not, but I guess they make do with what they have.
Protesters and pigeons
In the afternoon I went back to Plaza de Mayo to people-watch a bit more. There was no sign of the earlier fire, so I guess it had been put out. The plaza is the main spot for various protesters to hang out, and that day was no exception. Notably, the Mothers of the Disappeared held their weekly vigil, which they have been doing every Thursday like clockwork for the past three decades, fighting to learn the fate of the approximately 30,000 people who “disappeared” during the Argentinian military dictatorship of 1976-1983. They gathered and set up a table with literature and information, and then walked around the plaza, with many people looking on. There were also several noisier protests, including one that seemed to be about a teacher’s strike, and another that looked like it had something to do with the construction of the aforementioned Colon Theatre. And plenty of people just out enjoying the day, including lunching office workers, and a bunch of children playing with the many pigeons.
Then, back to the hostel for a short siesta, which was much needed by that point. It’s not ridiculously hot here, but it’s very humid, so it feels worse than it is. All of that walking around was exhausting. One thing about travel, you definitely learn to appreciate little luxuries like air conditioning.
Tango, anyone?
Finally, it wouldn’t be a trip to Buenos Aires without taking in the cheesiest of tourist attractions: A tango show. These shows take place nightly all over Buenos Aires, but particularly in San Telmo, where I’m staying. The one I went to included a beginner tango lesson before the show. Basically, it consisted of a big group of backpackers stepping on each other’s feet to tango music for a half hour. I didn’t learn much of anything, but I had a good time.
The show itself was very lively, with great dancing, lavish costumes, and a live four-piece orchestra and singing. There seemed to be a plot of some sort, though my Spanish was certainly inadequate to follow it. I don’t think it mattered much, though, since it was really all about the dancing.
A few observations
Needless to say, it was quite a busy day. Buenos Aires is an amazing city! It does, however, have a few quirks. For one thing, it’s virtually impossible to get change, anywhere. Nevermind the hundred-peso notes (around $30) that bank machines love to spit out; nobody will touch those with a ten-foot pole. But even smaller notes are frowned upon. I tried to pay a $6.55 grocery total with $7, and got yelled at for not having the correct change. Sheesh! Also, Portenos – as the people from Buenos Aires like to be called – don’t like to wait in line. They push, they shove, they elbow, but they don’t wait. All that said, this is a great city full of history and culture, and it’s easy to see why people love it so much.
Early start tomorrow for a daytrip to Colonia. The trip’s almost over, sadly. Gotta make the most of the last couple of days.