Buenos Aires, Argentina wk 2
Our first week in reflection was a little hectic….this week we've been a little lazier. It's also been raining...
Isa and I started the week with a walking tour that we found on Airbnb. Yes, Airbnb has tours, lots and based on our experience today, they are pretty amazing. We spent the afternoon touring several neighbourhoods in BA. The tour relayed information about BA history throughout the centuries but also tango history during these times. Our guide argued that social history follows political history very closely. We learned a ton and got to see lots of little local secrets, like the mansion ontop of an apartment building and the San Telmo tight rope walker! BA's history is intense and it's very dark. It was amazing to us that people here are so lovely considering what happened during the dictatorship only decades ago. I would highly recommend you take any tour while in BA, but if possible, take ours. It had a unique feature, in the evening, our guides took us to a local milonga to watch tango dancing. You essentially are in a bar, hanging out with friends, only people get up and dance tango to their favorite songs or when asked by others. It was probably one of the most authentic experiences I have ever had while travelling.
The milonga didn't kickstart until 11pm and the band didn't come on until 1am. Nights in BA are known to start around midnight and last until 5 or 6am,
The next day we went in search of an Armenian bakery up in the barrio of Palermo. Palermo is the hipster neighbourhood, full of shopping, cafes and bars. We stopped at a pizza joint called 1893 and it was delicious.
Afterwards we found our Armenian bakery, loaded up on some goodies and hit up a park for the boys. Luke wanted to get home to watch the Boca/River soccer game, so Isa and I perused a market and headed home with the boys later. The soccer game ended up cancelled. In true Argentinian fashion, River fans attacked the Boca bus, injuring some of the players. The game was rescheduled for the next day, but in the end both teams felt unsafe and the game was played in Madrid a couple of weeks later. Luke had bought tickets to see a lower league game, but the Boca/River fiasco forced all games to be cancelled while they sorted things out.
We spent the next day perusing San Telmo and hitting up the market again for some empanadas. It was an easy day. We need those once in a while...
The weather decided to waork in our favor, so we took advantage and walked down to the barrio of La Boca. This is where the Boca Juniors soccer team is based, although the canceeld game was not at their stadium. La Boca is a bit rough in some areas and not a place you want to walk through at night. In the center of it is a tourist trap, but still worth visiting. The neibourhood is know for it's colorful buildings...even the sidewalks are colored.
That night, Luke and I snuck out solo for and awesome dinner at La Estancia. I had passed this place on my walking tour. They know how to market, they have a grill set up in the front window. The place is huge and we were prepared to drop some cash. To our surprise, they had an anniversary special. We were served meat empanadas, sausages and a grilled provolone, salad, bread, a grilled meat sampling of kidneys, half a chicken, ribs, pork chop, chinchulines, handcut fries, dessert and a bottles of wine for about 60$.
Our last day in BA was spent in our favorite barrio, San Telmo. We walked down to get some Vietnamese food at a joint we saw near the market. It was delicious! On our way back we stopped in at a joint I had passed on the walking tour called Beerlife. They have 40-50 beers on tap, all Argentinian. We had hit the jackpot and arrived for happy hour 2 for 1 beers.
Not pictured but worth a mention is a little joint a couple of blocks from us called Bonnie & Clyde. They have great house beers on tap, a decent happy hour special and tasty burgers. We ate there a couple of night in the last week.
Tomorrow the G20 comes to town just in time for us to get the heck out of town. It was already a nightmare trying to get a rental car because they are closing the airport in town to the public. Looking forward to lots of picadas in Tandil!!
Isa and I started the week with a walking tour that we found on Airbnb. Yes, Airbnb has tours, lots and based on our experience today, they are pretty amazing. We spent the afternoon touring several neighbourhoods in BA. The tour relayed information about BA history throughout the centuries but also tango history during these times. Our guide argued that social history follows political history very closely. We learned a ton and got to see lots of little local secrets, like the mansion ontop of an apartment building and the San Telmo tight rope walker! BA's history is intense and it's very dark. It was amazing to us that people here are so lovely considering what happened during the dictatorship only decades ago. I would highly recommend you take any tour while in BA, but if possible, take ours. It had a unique feature, in the evening, our guides took us to a local milonga to watch tango dancing. You essentially are in a bar, hanging out with friends, only people get up and dance tango to their favorite songs or when asked by others. It was probably one of the most authentic experiences I have ever had while travelling.
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| Smallest house in BA only 6ft x 13 ft |
The next day we went in search of an Armenian bakery up in the barrio of Palermo. Palermo is the hipster neighbourhood, full of shopping, cafes and bars. We stopped at a pizza joint called 1893 and it was delicious.
Afterwards we found our Armenian bakery, loaded up on some goodies and hit up a park for the boys. Luke wanted to get home to watch the Boca/River soccer game, so Isa and I perused a market and headed home with the boys later. The soccer game ended up cancelled. In true Argentinian fashion, River fans attacked the Boca bus, injuring some of the players. The game was rescheduled for the next day, but in the end both teams felt unsafe and the game was played in Madrid a couple of weeks later. Luke had bought tickets to see a lower league game, but the Boca/River fiasco forced all games to be cancelled while they sorted things out.
We spent the next day perusing San Telmo and hitting up the market again for some empanadas. It was an easy day. We need those once in a while...
The weather decided to waork in our favor, so we took advantage and walked down to the barrio of La Boca. This is where the Boca Juniors soccer team is based, although the canceeld game was not at their stadium. La Boca is a bit rough in some areas and not a place you want to walk through at night. In the center of it is a tourist trap, but still worth visiting. The neibourhood is know for it's colorful buildings...even the sidewalks are colored.
BA is know for it's murals and street art, but we found some of the best ones here in La Boca.
Our last day in BA was spent in our favorite barrio, San Telmo. We walked down to get some Vietnamese food at a joint we saw near the market. It was delicious! On our way back we stopped in at a joint I had passed on the walking tour called Beerlife. They have 40-50 beers on tap, all Argentinian. We had hit the jackpot and arrived for happy hour 2 for 1 beers.
We managed to distract the kids for a little bit with some fries, but then had to head home and let them loose in the park to blow up some steam. On our way home we passed a Bavarian style restaurant called Unterturkheim and vowed to make our way back once the kids were asleep. We succeeded and were rewarded with not just delicious beer, but some of the best picadas to date!
Tomorrow the G20 comes to town just in time for us to get the heck out of town. It was already a nightmare trying to get a rental car because they are closing the airport in town to the public. Looking forward to lots of picadas in Tandil!!
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