seth from buenos aires

buenos aires had just fallen asleep when i arrived sunday morning five weeks ago.  the city celebrates life deep into the night and hardly steps outside on sundays.  the empty streets did not prepare me for buenos aires on a working day.

argentina´s capital is a busy, sprawling metropolis of 13 million people.  the streets are choked with people, cars, taxis, buses, bicycles, and motorbikes:  your shadow even feels crowded.  the pace of life will run you over if you stop to find out what just dripped on your head (it was water from an air conditioning unit).

you can escape the hustle and bustle by relaxing next to the lake in one of palermo´s parks or find a cafe on a quiet san telmo cobblestone street.  san telmo is a tourist and tango center.  you can learn the famous dance at one of many milongas throughout the city.  if you have money to spend there are tango dinner shows where professionals show you how it is done.

north of san telmo is the city center, dominated by the pedestrian streets of lavalle and florida that are lined with parrilladas (steakhouses) and stores.  in between the center and san telmo is the political heart of buenos aires, plaza de mayo.  the presidential residence, casa rosada, is at one end of the plaza.  there are numerous banners hung on fencing protesting different issues and the mothers of the plaza de mayo demonstrate here every thursday at 3.30pm, demanding answers on the fate of their children (los desaparecidos) that went missing during the dirty war under the military junta.

buenos aires has three posh neighborhoods where shopping, dining, and clubbing are popular.  recoleta is highlighted by the cemetery, a city within the city notable as the resting place of eva peron.  the cemetery has its own streets lights and some of the tombs are mini-cathedrals.  palermo has overtaken recoleta as the place to have an 11pm dinner, 1am cocktail, and a 3pm stop at a club.  puerto madero is home of new buildings occupied by multinational corporations (microsoft, for example) and restuarants such as tgi fridays (seriously).

for me, buenos aires is all about tango and soccer, making la boca the cultural heart of the city.  boca was originally inhabited by italian immigrants from genoa who made tango their own and formed the fabled soccer club boca juniors, who make their home at la bombanera.  the barrio was noted for its brightly-colored tin shacks but nowadays they comprise roughly one city block and is heavily touristy.  guidebooks say boca is the roughest barrio in buenos aires but i had no probem walking the neighborhood during the day.

the part of town i spent most of my time, balvanera, is mainly residential and allowed me to experience the daily life of porteños.  i stayed with a host family for threes weeks in this neighborhood, which is near argentina´s seat of parliament.

when i first arrived, my host mother greeted me with a pan full of empanadas.  this south american staple comes in many varieties but usually they are filled with minced meat, onions, olives, and other fillings.  i was fed very well during my homestay, eating typical argentine food such as milanesa (breaded veal) or homemade pizza.  highlights of the stay include my host father yelling, ¨dengue, dengue¨when i killed a mosquito and my host mother´s reaction when i told her i ate super dulce de leche ice cream (she loves dulce de leche but cannot have it anymore due to her diet).

on top of the nightly feasts my family prepared, i was fortunate to experience two great family events.  one evening after returning from my course spanish course i was greeted by a dining room full of extended family.  i had forgetten that the day was my host father´s birthday (63 years old and an accountant, just like my father).  the family invited me to the table and kept their conversation going as if i was just a late arriving family member.  the spread was an variety of argentine cuisine:  empanadas, olives, wine, beer, and many other dishes of which i cannot remember the names.  my host father actually made the pizza himself (his birthday present?).  the dessert was an amazing cake of chocolate and dulce de leche.

the second family event was much smaller but just as good.  my final spanish class was on a friday and the following saturday my host mother and father prepared a traditional argentine parrilla that consisted of bife de chorizo (rump steak), salchicas (sausages), pork chops, pollo (chicken), potatoes, and sweet potatoes.  we washed it down with argentine red wine from mendoza.  after the meal, my host father and i drank mate and discussed topics ranging from jesuits in south america to the itaipu dam on the paraguay/brazil border to my host father´s love of fishing, hunting, and life on the argentine pampas.

in the end, i spent most of my time in buenos aires with my host family not because buenos aires is a polluted, cramped city but rather because it offered me a much more authentic experience.

Tags: Argentina, backpacking, Boca Juniors, Buenos Aires, football, futbol, latin america, soccer, South America, tango, travel