Inkin, While in BA, do not just hang out in Recoleta and Centro. You have to go walk around Palermo Soho and Palermo Viejo hoods (I would take a taxi from center to Plaza Cortazar - mere 10-12 pesos I believe - and start from there). Those are up and coming "bohemian" parts, sort of like Williamsburg in Brkln - with galleries, shops and cute bars/restaurants. While there, step in "Cabernet" restaurant on Jorge L. Borges 1757 couple of blocks from Plaza Cortazar (http://www.buenosaires-argentina.com/restaurants/cabernet-restaurant.html). Last year we had to return there - yum. San Telmo hood (close to center) also has quite a bit of old BA atmosphere: some small tango cafes, old restaurants and art galleries selling some local artist stuff (Defensa is sort of the central promenade there from where you can take dives into smaller side streets). La Boca - slums with one or two turisty areas in the middle with painted tin shacks allegedly built by poor italian imigrants who worked at the warfs. Would not really make visiting it my priority if time-constrained. Unless you want to go to Boca Juniors soccer game there which is quite crazy an experience. The fans are ferocious :). If you'd like to see some portenos do tango in a classical lush backdrop of old colonial building, go to "Confiteria Ideal" (http://www.confiteriaideal.com/) but not before midnight - don't think anything is stirring around there any earlier. Recoleta and Centro are all modern part of the city like you can find anywere else with shopping malls, boutiques etc. Puerto Madero I didn't like - it's a renovated row of warehouses made into restaurants on this strip of water/canal - totally lacking any atmosphere (even though one of the best and widely recommended steak houses "Cabana Las Lilas" is located there. The restaurant is remarkable for raising (and killing) their own cows whose meet is considered the best beef in Argentina). Hope you get this on time and some of the tips prove helpful. Have a nice trip!
Also, the famous La Recoleta cemetery. Slippery slope: not everyone is a big cemetery fan (including myself - I'd rather my remains be eaten by beasts of night somewhere in patagonia and forgotten for good:) But it's quite impressive indeed and worth taking a look. Basically a mini city built of wall to wall, elaborate, fancy-shmancy mausoleums none of which looks like its neighbour.
hey solnce, spasibo bol'shoe za recommendacii:)i'm actually staying in the Palermo area - a friend is landing his apartment:) many thanks for the neighborhood recommendations - this is exactly the kind of info i was looking for.
btw, since your LJ is so anonymous, i have no idea who you are:)
While in BA, do not just hang out in Recoleta and Centro.
You have to go walk around Palermo Soho and Palermo Viejo hoods (I would take a taxi from center to Plaza Cortazar - mere 10-12 pesos I believe - and start from there). Those are up and coming "bohemian" parts, sort of like Williamsburg in Brkln - with galleries, shops and cute bars/restaurants. While there, step in "Cabernet" restaurant on Jorge L. Borges 1757 couple of blocks from Plaza Cortazar (http://www.buenosaires-argentina.com/restaurants/cabernet-restaurant.html). Last year we had to return there - yum.
San Telmo hood (close to center) also has quite a bit of old BA atmosphere: some small tango cafes, old restaurants and art galleries selling some local artist stuff (Defensa is sort of the central promenade there from where you can take dives into smaller side streets).
La Boca - slums with one or two turisty areas in the middle with painted tin shacks allegedly built by poor italian imigrants who worked at the warfs. Would not really make visiting it my priority if time-constrained. Unless you want to go to Boca Juniors soccer game there which is quite crazy an experience. The fans are ferocious :).
If you'd like to see some portenos do tango in a classical lush backdrop of old colonial building, go to "Confiteria Ideal" (http://www.confiteriaideal.com/) but not before midnight - don't think anything is stirring around there any earlier.
Recoleta and Centro are all modern part of the city like you can find anywere else with shopping malls, boutiques etc.
Puerto Madero I didn't like - it's a renovated row of warehouses made into restaurants on this strip of water/canal - totally lacking any atmosphere (even though one of the best and widely recommended steak houses "Cabana Las Lilas" is located there. The restaurant is remarkable for raising (and killing) their own cows whose meet is considered the best beef in Argentina).
Hope you get this on time and some of the tips prove helpful.
Have a nice trip!
Reply
Slippery slope: not everyone is a big cemetery fan (including myself - I'd rather my remains be eaten by beasts of night somewhere in patagonia and forgotten for good:) But it's quite impressive indeed and worth taking a look. Basically a mini city built of wall to wall, elaborate, fancy-shmancy mausoleums none of which looks like its neighbour.
Reply
btw, since your LJ is so anonymous, i have no idea who you are:)
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