BsAs

Tourists dont come to BsAs for sightseeing. There's Evita made famous Casa Rosada "Don't cry for me Argentina", and her resting place in Recoleta's cemetery, the world famous Teatro Colon, and the vibrant and colorful Caminito in La Boca. Then there's the San Telmo, the birthplace of Tango, with colonial houses and cobblestone streets illuminated by iron lanterns, and the hip Palermo, but there isnt really any specific place to visit there. People come to BsAs to shop. Leather goods are affordable and plenty. I like them here because they come in a variety of colors, like blue, green, pink, orange, yellow and purple, that we dont find back home. Walking the Calle Florida pedestrian street filled with shops expensive and cheap, was a rare pleasure. Beef is fantastik here because of the Welsh and German estancias. We had Parilla (famous grill) and meat empanadas that were out of this world in this place called Parilla de Puerto Maduro, in the Maduro district, on the bank of the rio de Plata, close to the Puente de Mujeres. I walked here all alone 10 years ago. We did the touristy thing of waiting in line to get in the Cafe Tortoni on Avenida de Mayo. Inside the 90 year old coffee shop, the walls were filled with pictures of famous patrons and the china was exquisite. I bought some. The world renowned Teatro Colon was all wrapped up and closed for rennovations. I had wanted to go to an opera there. Couldnt even get a picture of its façade. Sigh. Last time I bought 2 handbags in Casa López and M saw one in the Gallerias so I took her to the one in Plaza San Martin. 10 years ago I stayed in the hotel Crillon close to the plaza and this time we found the store again. M and I taxi'd to La Boca and did what all tourists must do in BsAs which was to walk the Caminito and photograph the brightly painted houses. Free Tango shows just about every corner. Compared to the cheap and stingy Brazilian hotels, the hotel Reconquista Plaza in BsAs had ESPN and free internet. But the breakfast was continental and lousy. No matter, the city itself made up for it. The Parilla and the empanadas and the shopping made up for everything. After a disappointing Rio, gosh I love Argentina!

Cathedral Metropolitano

Video of Tango in El Caminito, La Boca [4.0M]