Adventures, anecdotes and advice from three months exploring Buenos Aires
Immediately surrounding the Recoleta Cemetery, there are any number of restaurants with conspicuous English-language signs and inflated prices. Do yourself a favor and resist the bait. Instead, take a short five-minute walk to Restaurante El Sanjuanino on Calle Posadas, a classic in the area, with incredible food and excellent prices.
Allow me to introduce Juan Carlos Balvidares, the "Caminante Argentino", who's been around the world, sharing his music beyond the borders of his native land. We met him in front of the Recoleta Cemetery, where he was performing. Finding out that I'm from Germany, he told me that he's been there and also walked across the rest of the world, making money by playing his original songs on the streets. Usually, you can find him in front of the cemetery, but on Sundays you might run into him at the Antique Market in San Telmo. Visit his site to hear some of his music. And if you run into him on the streets, strike up a conversation! He's more than happy to share his stories.
One of San Telmo's most popular spots is Italian restaurant Amici Miei, where tourists and locals congregate in equal numbers to enjoy handmade pasta and a balcony view over Plaza Dorrego. We recently got to meet its owner and top chef, Sebastián Rivas.
One of the world's best opera houses is found in Buenos Aires. Built in 1908 at the height of the city's Golden Age, the Teatro Colón is a grandiose testament to the rivers of money that once flooded the Argentine capital.
"Hey, what do you feel like eating?" Every time I've been asked that, every single time during the course of my entire life, the answer has been "pizza". Even when it was 8am. Even when I was 18 months old. It's the only honest response: there are other things I should eat, things which might even taste better. But pizza is what I want to eat. Always.
"Revés" is Spanish for reverse and, if you say its syllables in reverse, you get vesre: a strange little word game that has worked its way into the normal speech of Buenos Aires.
Before we began our exploration of Once, we spent some time walking around the southern end of Balvanera, and happened upon the Basilica Santa Rosa de Lima, on Avenido Belgrano. Built in the Roman-Byzantine style in 1926, this church is most impressive for its mammoth cupola. Santa Rosa was a Peruvian catholic from the 16th century, who would become South America's first saint. She died a virgin at the age of 31, after having predicted the exact date of her death.
One of Buenos Aires' most beautiful neighborhoods is also one of its most exclusive. They won't let just anyone move in, so if you're looking for a new home here, there are a couple of inflexible prerequisites: you must be rich, and you must be dead. Being famous helps.
Finding an extended-stay accommodation in a city you've never visited can be frustrating, scary and dangerous. Without first-hand knowledge of the city, and unable to physically meet landlords or view apartments, putting money down for a security deposit is little more than a leap of faith. So finding people like Angela and John, who run San Telmo Loft, is a relief.
Our favorite mode of transportation in Buenos Aires is the bus. But we already mentioned that. This weekend, we took a late ride home on the #64, after an evening exploring Palermo Soho. I started taking pictures out the window, to make the time pass faster... and man, did that work! BsAs is interesting enough by day, but at night the city gets even stranger and more wonderful. The following pictures were all taken during that one bus ride home.
