South America is highly underrated. Buenos Aires is one of my favorite cities in the world. To be honest, I didn't have very many expectations before going there, but as soon as I arrived I was immediately in awe of this place. I fell in love with every aspect of this city: the food, the culture, and it's people. Most travelers just use Buenos Aires as a pit stop before making the trek through Patagonia, but I would urge anyone making the trip down there to spend a day or two in the capital city.
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| Plaza de Mayo |
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Florida Street
Pedestrian street with every type of store you can think of. There are oftentimes musicians playing on the street, and always people yelling out "cambio" for you to exchange your US Dollars
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| Empanadas all day, every day |
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| View from Hotel Pulitzer's rooftop Sky Bar |
Neighborhoods
Recoleta
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| Cultural Center |
La Recoleta Cemetery is located in a central area of the city. It is notably the final resting place of Argentinian presidents, Nobel Peace Prize winners, Napoleon's granddaughter and Eva Duarte Perón.
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"We expect the Lord"
Inside the entrance of Recoleta Cemetery |
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| Duarte Family Tomb |
Eva (Evita) Duarte de Perón was the wife of Argentinian President Juan Perón. She was an opera singer, but is more famously known for aiding the suffragist movement in Argentina by creating the Female Peronist Party. All of this work ultimately elected her husband as president of Argentina in 1951. Evita had her sights on joining the ticket as vice-president, but in the end decided against it. It is speculated that her ambitions did not change, but the growing pressure from her husband, military officials, and Argentinian upper class made her decide against running for office. She is a beloved member of Argentinian history. The Duarte family tomb is often adorned with flowers from people paying their respects to Eva.
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| Floralis Generica |
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El Ateneo Grand Splendid
Opera house turned book store |
Palermo
Palermo is described as the hipster neighborhood of Buenos Aires. There's a lot of new restaurants and shops popping up in the area, including a lot of US based companies opening up shops there (Nike, Kiehls, Apple). It is also prolific with street art. Often times store owners will commission street artists to paint their store fronts.
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Decata - cafe
This little hidden oasis in Palermo has a cafe, tea shop (Tealosophy by Ines Berton) and home goods store (Paul French Gallery) |
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| Cafe con leche and cinnamon bun from Decata |
San Telmo
Every Sunday there is an Antiques Fair in San Telmo. Booths with handmade crafts, leather goods and artwork line the pedestrian street that goes on for a couple miles. This is my favorite place to pick up souvenirs. It's always bustling with a big crowd, and if you're lucky, you can see some people dancing to Tango music in the streets.
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Patio Ezeiza
Antiques shops on the bottom floor. Cafes and kids playing football up top. |
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| Cafe con leche is always a good choice |
Graffiti Tour
The highlight of my trip was taking a Graffiti Tour with Graffitimundo. Not only did I get to see all of the amazing street art, but our tour guide told us about the artists, as well as the political and cultural history of Buenos Aires that the graffiti movement grew from. The tour is mostly on foot, with a couple short drives in their minibus to and from different neighborhoods. They have 3 different tours, Street Art Walking Tour, Street Art Origins Tour, and Urban Art & Activism Tour. I did the Street Art Origins Tour, but I'm sure the other two are just as good.
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"Teta and Salta"
Made and named in honor of two young boys that died in the neighborhood |
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Field workers paying homage to Mother Earth
Artist : Evers |
Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo
Asociación Madres de Plaza de Mayo
In 1977, the Association of Argentine Mothers began protesting at Plaza de Mayo in front of the presidential palace. During the military dictatorship between 1976 and 1983, thousands of people "disappeared" for their public opposition to the state terrorism of the military dictatorship. They were completely erased from public record and no arrest information could be found. Their bodies were often disposed of in unmarked graves around the city, or thrown in the ocean. Often times these people were of college age. The Madres came together as they started questioning what happened to their children. They began protesting at Plaza de Mayo, but public protests were not allowed. Police told them if they stood and protested, they would be arrested. There was a law prohibiting public congregation of more than three people so the mothers would walk in pairs around Pirámide de Mayo, the monument in the middle of Plaza de Mayo.
The white head scarves are used as a symbol of the Madres. They brought local and international attention to this human rights violation. White head scarves adorn the ground of the monument in honor of the Madres, seen above. The white head scarves are painted over the play ground on the left, symbolizing the Madres always watching over Argentina's children.
Hollywood in Cambodia was our final stop of the Graffiti Tour. It was an art gallery hidden behind a burger joint/bar with their roof top a collection of almost all of the famous street artists in Argentina.
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