Backpacking South America

Buenos Aires is an incredible city that abounds with places to see and things to do no matter the time of day.  It is a huge city.  The closest thing we have in the States to compare it to is New York City, but Buenos Aires seems to be even more alive. It’s true that it is noisy, polluted, and massively populated, but it can also be very calm, beautiful, and you’re never alone.  It would definitely go into our list of the top places in the world to visit.  As we’ve moved on from Buenos Aires, we wanted to share some of our favorite things to do (in no particular order). 

1. Casa de Lili (aka living with a local) 

Some of our best memories were living with our hostess.  While not in the trendy or touristy neighborboods, we were able to enjoy and peek into the life of real porteño life.  From unforgettable, simple meals, late night conversations and afternoon mate with friends and family, our stay would not have been the same without our time with Lili. 

2. MALBA

A great introduction to the history and minds of great Latin American artists.  This museum was inspiring and captivating.  With a collection that is large enough to stretch your mind, but not so large that you feel rushed or overwhelmed. 

3. La Boca

While existing on the extremes of hopelessly touristy and extremely dangerous, La Boca was a surprisingly enjoyable visit.  While we can only recommend that visitors stay within the tourist areas or travel with local advice, it was fun to see the brightly painted buildings, the home of the Boca Juniors futbol club, and two wonderful museums (PROA and Belles Artes).

4. The Culture and People of Buenos Aires

As mentioned in our previous post, we love empanadas.  This traditional argentine food embodies the spirit of the country.  Warm, many flavors and a little bit spicy.  Likewise, the people truly are one of kind.  Most Argentineans we’ve met have been so kind.  This culture is influenced and comprised of an assortment of people from various other countries like Spain, Italy, Germany and even the Arab community, hence the empanada.  Argentineans are extremely talkative and it is true that they are also very animated and talk a lot with their hands.  They’re beginning to rub off.  Needless to say, we have learned how to prepare a meal.

5. Jardin Japones

Located within the vast park area of Palermo, Jardin Japones is a calm relaxing place to spend an afternoon contemplating life or just resting in hard to find peace and quiet (except for the occasional airplane taking off at the nearby airport).  It is one of many green spaces in the city, all of which are very important to the life of the people of Buenos Aires.

6. Parillas

So far, some of the best meat we’ve eaten in Argentina hasn’t beat the tender, juicy meats we’ve had in Buenos Aires. 

7. Daily Protests

While sitting in class one day we heard a loud “BOOM!”  We all looked up and asked the teacher “Que paso?” (What happened?)  She simply replied, “Es normal.”  We soon came to learn these protests occurred every day.  It was incredible to see the massive crowds of people, protesting something different almost every day near Plaza de Mayo.  Talk about passion. 

8.  San Telmo Sunday Market

We were overwhelmed and surprised by the size of the market and the number of people strolling down the streets of the San Telmo Sunday Market. 

9. Recoleta Cemetery

While clearly marked in every tourist book, the Recoleta cemetery truly is unique and well worth a visit. Wandering down the wide walkways and narrow alleyways between the extravagant mausoleums, I bounced between feelings of wonder and disbelief. 

10. Academia Buenos Aires

We have truly received the best instruction from Academia Buenos Aires.  We miss our professor, Maru and our small intimate class talking about applicable life experiences.  We learned so much in four weeks and we are convinced it was primarily because the instructions of the professors at this academy.  Maru was very intelligent and she took the time to get to know us, our interests and applied them to her teaching style.  Every day class was fun and the day flew by so quickly.