Our last stop in Argentina before heading to the highly anticipated Colombia was Buenos Aires. We grabbed a colectivo from San Marcos Sierra to Córdoba and then a night bus to Buenos Aires. The bus was amazing - everyone basically had their own lazyboy chair, they played movies (though we listened to our Mysterious Universe podcast and an audiobook), served food and had blankets and pillows. Not too bad. We arrived in Buenos Aires in the morning and settled into our new home at Che Argentina Hostel in the San Telmo district. The reception guy at the hostel was very friendly and told us about places we should check out while we’re there. He advised that most places nearby were safe enough to walk around during the day, but that we should be very careful if carrying anything at all, like a camera. We took the advice but didn’t have that feeling at all while we were out. We took tons of photos and talked to people in the streets as they walked by. The people in Argentina are very open and friendly. We never had a sketchy vibe at all, but only later did we find out that Buenos Aires actually has one of the worst reputations for muggings in South America. Makes sense when you think about the messed up economy, I suppose.
one of the many awesome murals found in the Sal Telmo district
El Obelisco de Buenos Aires We wandered around the main downtown center, one of the most populated city centers in the world. It sure was crowded. We walked through a small protest at the City Hall where people were opposing some kind of new tax bill. And then we found the main drag where there was a gigantic obelisk (built in 1938 in just 31 days, to commemorate the fourth centenary of the first foundation of the city). The architecture of the huge old buildings was impressive, even for people like us who normally don’t really care too much for architecture. It was very European with French, Italian and Spanish influences in different areas. Even the Spanish spoken in Buenos Aires was a bit wilder, influenced by Italian and French port workers back in the day – maybe a bit like the New York City accent to us, but in Spanish.
We had lunch at a vegetarian restaurant that was run by an elderly couple. The food was ok, but one of the side dishes tasted terrible, like the veggies they put in it were evil and rotten. I told the waiter about it and got him to try it. He came back with a side of mashed potatoes instead and thanked me for pointing it out. I felt gross after just one bite of the stuff – it was like grilled zucchini and some other squash-like thing (I know, normally that would be delicious) – and an hour later I knew it wasn’t going to go away. I spent the rest of the day barfing and other, for the n’th time in the last six months.
The next day we took it easy. We went out wandering a little bit more and checked out the modern art museum (always entertaining).
We had lunch at a vegetarian restaurant that was run by an elderly couple. The food was ok, but one of the side dishes tasted terrible, like the veggies they put in it were evil and rotten. I told the waiter about it and got him to try it. He came back with a side of mashed potatoes instead and thanked me for pointing it out. I felt gross after just one bite of the stuff – it was like grilled zucchini and some other squash-like thing (I know, normally that would be delicious) – and an hour later I knew it wasn’t going to go away. I spent the rest of the day barfing and other, for the n’th time in the last six months.
The next day we took it easy. We went out wandering a little bit more and checked out the modern art museum (always entertaining).
 modern art? |  cat hair! |
Zanjón de Granados - surprise tunnels Later we explored some recommended streets in search of some lunch (I was feeling better but still a little afraid to eat too much). Along the way we were hoping to check out a site we’d read about called “Zanjón de Granados” (The Granados’ Ditch) that has a bunch of interesting underground tunnels. We couldn’t remember exactly where it was, but must have been walking around near it forever before we finally spotted it. We approached the huge wooden doors, which weren’t very inviting looking, and found out that it was closed for the day and we would have to wait two days for it to be open again on Monday. Of course we had no intention of waiting until Monday since we were flying out the next night. Just as we were about to thank the voice over the intercom and continue on our way, and older man opened the door to let the last couple of tourists out at the end of their tour. He quickly smiled and apologized for being closed, and we asked if we could just peek inside at the nice arches that we could see from the doorway. He was very friendly and let us in. A few moments later, he decided to let us have a free mini-tour right then and there! Wow!! I think it was partly because he likes Canadians (something about having some family in Calgary), and partly because we told him we were leaving the next evening and were happy to at least have this glance of the place that we had heard about. He went up to the office and sent down the tour guide who showed us around for half an hour, explaining a few areas. The museum has quite an interesting story...
The owner (the man who let us in) bought the property in 1985 with the idea of turning it into a fancy restaurant. As he was cleaning it out he noticed an area where the floor seemed to be sinking. After starting some excavations to fix the problem, he discovered that the floor opened up into what looked like a tunnel. Some more digging revealed a bunch of old brickwork and what looked like a large cistern. Archaeologists were called in, eventually exposing a series of underground tunnels extending far beyond his property. It turned out that these brick structures were part of a system of channels constructed in 1730 to help manage water. The channels were later covered to help combat the yellow fever epidemic, after which a large mansion was built. After the mansion’s owners moved away, the property was used as a tenement house, housing dozens families of immigrants who had come to Buenos Aires to work in the harbor.
Once learning about the rich history of his newly acquired property, the owner decided to abandon his restaurant idea and committed to excavating and preserving all that he could. It must have taken years and cost a fortune (really, a fortune) to do what this guy did. There were underground tunnels extending very far, and we walked through some of these on our short tour. The brickwork was very impressive and the arches were amazing. Everything had been cleaned up nicely, with gorgeous finishes, sound-absorbing panels and lighting added, along with information plaques. They now act as a museum, offering tours once a day at noon (that we missed), although most of their money is made in the hosting of weddings and corporate events. Such a cool place to find, and getting in for free was extra nice!
Once learning about the rich history of his newly acquired property, the owner decided to abandon his restaurant idea and committed to excavating and preserving all that he could. It must have taken years and cost a fortune (really, a fortune) to do what this guy did. There were underground tunnels extending very far, and we walked through some of these on our short tour. The brickwork was very impressive and the arches were amazing. Everything had been cleaned up nicely, with gorgeous finishes, sound-absorbing panels and lighting added, along with information plaques. They now act as a museum, offering tours once a day at noon (that we missed), although most of their money is made in the hosting of weddings and corporate events. Such a cool place to find, and getting in for free was extra nice!
Tango Show By mid afternoon I was still feeling mostly good and decided that I was up for something fun that evening. The next day was our first wedding anniversary, so we thought it would be nice to do something to celebrate. We decided to check out a dinner and Tango show! I searched online for information about getting tickets, and which shows were good, etc. and came across a very helpful website with information about everything in Buenos Aires – wish we’d found this two days ago! Pablo Piera, a friendly local and experienced tour guide now runs an awesome website and tourist info service. We booked a tango show through him (way cheaper than buying directly from the venue) and within a few minutes received an email saying that he would pick us up from our hostel at 7:30. We asked him if our lack of fancy clothes would be a problem and he said not to worry, so we put on our best (which unfortunately includes Mandrew’s man-yoga pants) and off we went.
The show was so much fun! When we arrived Pablo sat us down at our table, saying hello to everyone at the Theater in a way that implied that he knew the staff very well. Our server came by and filled our glasses with wine (we both chose red) and brought us some fresh bread and butter to snack on. We chose an appetizer, main and dessert from a short list of options and enjoyed the evening. I had cream of corn soup to start which was amazing, salmon and salad for dinner, yum! And something delicious (I forget now) for dessert, not to mention a few more glasses of wine. The food was great and the show was even better! There was a small orchestra playing on an elevated platform behind the stage, where dancers were spinning and tango-ing around for a couple of hours. It was very entertaining and well done. At the end of the show we were shown into a van and driven back home to our hostel. What an awesome way to spend a night in Buenos Aires!
During the ride to the Theater that night, Pablo explained a bunch of stuff about the city and pointed out some of the sights as we drove by. We told him that we only had one more day to spend there so he recommended a bunch of the best things we could do for our last day. Since we didn’t have a pen we took a video him explaining what to do:
The next day, we followed Pablo's recommendations and did everything except for the Boca Stadium and Caminito, mostly because we ran out of time but also because they’re in the pretty sketchy Boca neighborhood. We walked over to the cemetery and wandered around inside. It was huge and very fancy, with lots of nice benches and clean walkways between the ornate mausoleums. Next, we walked around a gorgeous park and through a small handicraft market – always fun to look at, especially in Argentina. We went to the El Ateneo bookstore next and Pablo was right, it was indeed impressive! An old theater turned into a bookstore, the original stage area is now a café and the balconies surrounding the main floor are filled with shelves of books. It sure was a sight to see. I couldn’t help but wonder how people in Portland would love something like this. We had a late lunch in a café beside the bookstore and started making our way back. We got back to the hostel in time to call a taxi for the airport, and off we went.
 La Recoleta Cemetery |  El Ateneo Bookstore |
As far as cities go, Buenos Aires seemed like a pretty ok one (and that's about the highest recommendation for a city you'll ever get out of me). If you are planning to go, check out Pablo's website for ideas of things to do or to book tours or a Tango Show. Pablo’s really friendly and so happy to show off his favourite city.
Well, we’re off to Colombia for the final leg of our trip! Keep bein' chili,
-Chelsea
Well, we’re off to Colombia for the final leg of our trip! Keep bein' chili,
-Chelsea
Photos from Buenos Aires
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