Day 246 to 250 Argentina, Buenos Aries.

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Hey Party People,



Buenos Aires is literally a city that never sleeps! It is also expensive along with the rest of Argentina. We were lucky enough to be offered a room from the couch surfing website for a total of 6 nights by this lovely couple (Romina and Pablo) who are in their mid-30’s. When we arrived into BA airport, Pablo had offered to pick us up from the airport, which is a good 1h30 from their house! When we arrived to their place in Lomas de Zamora they gave us a whole house to stay in by ourselves-amazing! They have their own house at the front, which is divided with the house they gave us by a small garden and swimming pool. That night they cooked us a traditional Argentinean BBQ with wine that we bought with us.



As we arrived on a Monday, each day we were left to our own devises as Romina and Pablo both worked until about 5pm. The couple had given us maps and many suggestions for sites to see throughout the week, so we had a rough plan for each day. They also gave us their tube card so we could easily top up our journeys at a lower price, and they gave us their free bike passes for the city bikes that are dotted around.



We had a few lie-ins each morning, which also meant we missed the rush our train traffic. Most mornings we caught the 15p/25-minute train into the Centre of BA, which was about a 10-minute walk from their house. We then took the subway to our chosen site; the subway is about 30p for any single journey. So on the whole the small journeys around the city are cheap but long journeys (Iguassu and Uruguay ferry journeys are expensive). Also food is roughly the same price compared to across the rest of Argentina (slightly more than England).



Throughout the week, we visited the following sites:



Plaza de Mayo: This street offers several tourist attractions that are all worth seeing, especially as they are all so close together. We saw the raising of the flag at Casa Rosada, home to the president offices and where Evita Peron preached to thousands back on Mayday in 1952. We paid to go in the Cabildo museum that is an 18^th century town hall building, we went to this museum with Romina and Pablo on Saturday, exploring some of the sites together. We went inside the beautiful Cathedral Metropolitana that contains the tomb of General Jose de San Martin who is Argentina’s most honored hero. Outside the Cathedral, the flame is still lit to keep his spirit alive.



Teatro Colón: We didn’t pay to go inside as it is fairly expensive and there was a huge queue, but we have been told this luxurious seven-story building and world-class facility for opera, ballet and classical is definitely worth a look in. Maybe a visit next time for us.



Florida Street: We walked up this street twice as it holds many shops, including the spectacular Galerías Pacific mall. We didn’t buy anything though as clothes here in Argentina are ridiculously expensive. We’re saving our clothes buying for North America.



Museo Fortabat: Neil and I visited this free art museum (free to students) after we had walked around the Puerto Madero Park. The park would have been much better and quicker on bikes but we couldn’t find any of the yellow city bikes in the area. The art museum showed some stunning artwork as well as an exhibit of some bazar gay willy sketches. It was worth a look in though.



Manzana de las Luces: This comprises of several 18^th century buildings including an elite secondary school and BA’s oldest church. There are also guided tours in Spanish, but this would have been wasted on us.



Cerenterio de la Recoleta: This huge cemetery is where generations of Argentinian elite rest in ornate splendor. This popular tourist site is a mini city in its self of huge tombs and statuesthat contain the past presidents, military heros, influential politicians and the rich and famous.



Palermo: We walked through many of the parks here (German, Chilean, Argentinian) but the Japanese park has an entrance fee of 50 pesos. One evening we went out for drinks with Romina and Pablo, and two of their friends in Palermo Soho, which has many trendy bars and restaurants. It took over 1h30 to get into the city from their house by car, which is crazy as its so much cheaper and quicker on the trains! It was a good night though, they were all so lovely to just speak English so we could understand, even when they were talking about work, they kept it all in English so we weren’t left out! We had a bit of food here and shared wine one night at a bar here. Another evening we went out in this area too with our couch surf couple to Tango lessons. It started at 10.30pm but as it takes so long to get into the centre when driving we didn’t get there until 11pm. We had a good hour lesson though in this bar/hall, with many, many couples all trying to get the steps right. Neil and I weren’t great, and he kept shouting at me for leading him and stepping to wide (he also had issues). It was a good night but very busy with locals.



San Telmo- We went here on Saturday when Romi and Pablo had the day off, they drove in so it was easier to get around San Telmo and La Boca instead of going by subway. San Telmo was my favourite place in the city; it’s very elegant, probably the second most expensive place to live, after Palermo and is home to many antique shops.



La Boca- Again we visited here by car with Romi and Pablo, it’s the best way as it’s the poorest area, and not particularly safe. It is however a huge tourist attraction where people can see tango dancers for photo opportunities, the football stadium, street paintings, and bright coloured metal houses.



We had a fantastic week in BA, mainly because of our couch surf hosts, who were so generous! Thank you Romina and Pablo



Love V&N xxxxx

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