Buenos Aires: a City with Style to Spare
The few days I spent in Buenos Aires during my summer break (wintertime for those Northern Hemisphere saps) were some of the most relaxing times that I had in my 5 weeks of travel. The city is eminently walkable, or with tens of thousands of cabs to pick you up if your desire is to be less pedestrian... The architecture and European-flaired boulevards were absolutely lovely, with a gorgeous emphasis on street art that made every streetside experience pop.
One of the most significant highlights of the trip was food (not surprising if you know me) particularly my introduction to the classic Argentine street food "Choripan" (literally chorizo+pan) is a chimichurri sausage sandwich on a baguette that is near-endlessly customizable and stems from the cowboy "gaucho" era of the mid to late 1800's.
One of the multitudes of pizza parlors throughout the city- El Cuartito ("The Bedroom") has been around since 1934, is adjacent to the "Broadway" of B.A, has hosted Maradona himself and boasts a chic standing lunch counter for those grabbing a quick slice- and on top of all that, has massive Pizza pies for $5- the fugazzeta con jamon was insane.
Continuing on the sweets train, another fantastic experience- was Ice Cream, aka: helado. These are everywhere, but two of the best I experienced were thematic opposites- HeladerÃa Scannapieco (est. 1938) had a Spumone that was dark, creamy and deeply chocolate-y that made me want to dive into a literal pool of the stuff.
Because of my propensity for a sweet tooth, Scannapieco was not the only Heladeria we visited- Alchemy Ice Cream shop was on the opposite end of the spectrum from the classics- Ice cream flavors here included roquefort, wasabi and pear, and some boozy delights- Pina Colada and Cucumber G&T were a couple of standouts.
One of the most memorable experiences was visiting the El Ateneo Theater bookstore. As a fiend for all things print (and photo-worthy) this bookstore checked all the boxes. Despite being packed to the brim with tourists and book browsers, it was hard to deny the delicate detail and artistry of the building itself. Books just hit different when the setting is pristine, ya know? In an age where you never have to leave your home or even touch a, you know, actual book, it's nice to see a place dedicated to the pomp and circumstance of being a physical book seller.
But one of the greatest experiences in Buenos Aires was perhaps the least lively place you can think of- the cemetery. The La Recoleta cemetery is one of the most picturesque and peaceful parts of Buenos Aires, and for an admission fee of $2 (half price for kids under 12) you too can explore 14-acres of a cemetary referred to by CNN as"one of the most beautiful cemetaries in the world".
Other highlights of the mini-vacation in Buenos Aires included the Participatory Science Museum for Children- the motto here is "Prohibido no tocar en casa"- ("you can't not touch in this place") my kids are science fiends and this hands-on museum allows you to experiement with sound, light, electricity, gravity, and in a multitude of other engineering and aeronautic ways- Growing up in Oregon, I always had OMSI- the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry- and this is like the Argentine equivalent. So cool.
Maybe I didn't go on enough about food? Ceviche and Pisco Sour reign supreme here, so be prepared to have a mouth completely scorched by citric acid. Pain never tasted so good.
Since my family and I were there right around New Year's, many places were on holiday- and thus I will have to go back to experience the majesty that are Argentine steakhouses- as well as take in a tango show, as one has to when in B.A. After my initial experience, this is definitely one of the places I am most excited to revisit in South America!