(Buenos Aires, Argentina)
After being part of a group for most of the past week, it was time for us to do some exploring on our own.
As it was a Sunday, we decided to visit the famous street market in the San Telmo district. I’m not sure exactly how much of Calle Defensa was closed off and filled with vendors, but it must have gone on for at least fifteen blocks. There were additional vendors on side streets and in adjacent malls and flea markets. Street performers were there too, primarily around Plaza Dorrego. The emphasis was on antiques and souvenirs.
We walked the entire length of the market. Despite being intrigued by many things, the only thing we ended up buying was lunch at an Italian restaurant! Well, for us it was more about the experience than anything else. Buenos Aires is a long way from home and we weren’t going to buy anything unless it truly spoke to us. As much as possible, we try to make travel about experiences rather than things.
After we finished with the market, we found ourselves in the Plaza de Mayo. This is the location of many important buildings, including the Casa Rosada, It is the executive mansion and office of the President of Argentina and, as the name suggests, it is indeed pink (see photo at the top of this post). This was apparently a compromise between groups who were represented by white and red respectively when Argentina was still a very young country.
It was from the balcony of the Casa Rosada that Eva Peron made impassioned speeches to her dedicated followers. It remains a charged place today, as demonstrations often occur here. Perhaps as a result, there was a very prominent police presence. Alas, we were unable to go inside the Casa Rosada, as the very limited tour tickets are only available online a certain number of days beforehand.
As we continued back to our hotel, we stumbled across a festival to commemorate the (relatively) nearby country of Paraguay. There are a lot of Paraguayans in Buenos Aires and they put on a lengthy programme of performances.
For dinner, we had received a recommendation for the restaurant next door to La Cholita (the one we ate at last night). La Cumana was run by the same family as La Cholita but it focused on non-BBQ Argentinian cuisine. I ended up having locro: an Andean stew featuring corn, meat and vegetables that is typically eaten in winter. I thought I ordered a glass of Argentinian red wine but it turned out to be half a bottle. At the equivalent of $4 Canadian (US$3) including taxes, it was one of the cheapest wines I’ve ever had in a restaurant. As you can see from the pictures, La Cumana also had crayons!
Imported items are expensive in Argentina but locally produced goods are generally quite affordable for visitors. The above price estimate is based on the official exchange rate. However, if you were to change money at the “blue market” rate, it would be even cheaper. We never tried to deal with any of the money changers on the street but it was not for a lack of opportunity. They were everywhere, muttering “cambio” at every person who looked like they might have U.S. dollars.
Stay tuned for our final day in BA!