After unpacking and settling in, cracked open some cold beers that our host had graciously provided us and sat on the balcony
went to Western Union to exchange some currency and to the nearby market to pick up provisions.
Less than $3!!!
Dropped our stuff off and got some empanadas.
Walked to Tres Monos (on my list from researching Best Cocktails In Bs As), but the google had incorrectly listed their hours.
Searched on the google maps for "Tavern Near Me Open Now", and were led to a total gem, "Backroom Bar".
Had two spectacular cocktails each
And got some recommendations for things to do in town from Leo the bartender.
Went back home
This isn't our apartment. The photo just ended up after those words.
to chill for a little bit, then went out for supper at Burger Couple.
Back home, organized my evening supplements, did some hand laundry, took a shower and wound down. Ended up going to bed around 8:30 PM, after having been awake for 39 hours.
Day 2 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Woke at 6:30 after a solid 10 hours of sleep.
Had a leisurely morning with some coffee and eggs.
Aimed for the coast via the botanical garden.
Groot bombilla!
Saw an interesting building (El Muelle) and walked towards it,
but it didn't open for another hour, so we decided to go home.
Tried and failed to find the bus stop to our barrio.
By this time, El Muelle was almost open, so walked back there for a little something to eat and drink.
Treated ourselves to an Uber home to regroup for a bit
We weren't the only ones
Then to Backroom Bar to continue our quest to try every single cocktail on the menu.
From there, we wanted to go to Oddity Music Shop to maybe buy guitar picks but mostly to ask about venues that might feature the kind of music that we enjoy.
However, the bus we boarded was going in the opposite direction, so we decided to hop off in Chinatown for a quick looky loo.
Took a bus going in the correct direction to get to Oddity.
It felt like it took forever, and by the time we got there, we had run out of steam. A couple of the employees were gracious enough to give us some hints about where to find good live music.
Bhob's blood sugar had gotten pretty low, so we took another Uber home so he could rest for a bit before we went out in search of supper.
Walked home, wound down and got to bed around 10:30.
Day 3 Buenos Aires, Argentina
The plan for the morning was to check out Caminito, which we'd learned about from Atlas Obscura. It sounded like a nifty arts/mural corridor similar to Batman Alley in São Paulo.
Got out the door around 8:45 AM and caught a very crowded bus that was supposed to get us within a 9 minute walk away.
After standing and riding for about 35 minutes, we finally got a seat, but soon after, everyone got off and the driver came to tell us that it was the end of the line, which left us with another 40 minutes to walk.
We stopped at the pharmacy to get some sunscreen for me and some Dramamine for Bhob, and made our way to our destination. It was already pretty warm and sunny, so we sought shade wherever we could.
When we got near to the google maps pin, we walked the perimeter first.
After that, we turned onto the actual street and OH MY GODS IT WAS A TOTAL TOURIST NIGHTMARE!!!!
I'm glad we saw it for ourselves so we could be free of regrets, but man, we couldn't get out of there fast enough.
Took a bus back to our neighborhood. During the ride, we decided that we could either spend the rest of our trip trying to see many various parts of the city, or double down and commit to getting to know every single block of our own barrio.
We chose the latter.
Got off the bus near the botanical garden
and walked to our favorite bar for refreshments and lunch.
On the way home, stopped at the liquor store and bought their last bottle of Hesperedina, an Argentine orange liqueur.
Mastelenos will recognize the benefits of this beverage
Dropped it off at home, cranked up the AC, grabbed some USDs and shopping bags, exchanged more cash at Western Union and picked up more groceries.
The forecast for the following day was for thunderstorms all morning, so we wanted to make sure we had everything we needed for a cozy day at home.
Earlier in the day, I emailed the band that the Oddity Music Guy told us about, Psicosfera. One of the members got back to me and gave me the great news that they were playing 5 days later at a venue with no cover charge that wasn't horribly far away.
Woohoo!!!🤘
Took a fabulous shower and washed my hair (Note to Self: Don't use Vampire Red Manic Panic right before traveling to a place where you might be using white towels).
Mixed up some Hesperedina and fizzy water and had a little TV Party, logging into the youtubes under a previous guest's premium subscription, completely messing up her algorithm with Black Metal, Steven Colbert and dog grooming.
Lo siento, Karina Montenegro :/
Walked a couple of blocks to La Cañita for supper.
I Can't Believe It's Vegan!
Got home just before the rain started, and watched some TV before going to bed.
We did our meta thing of watching the episode of Anthony Bourdain "Parts Unknown" that features Buenos Aires, and it really laid bare just how little time he spends in each destination; in fewer than 3 full days, we had been to almost every place in the show without even trying.
Day 4 Buenos Aires, Argentina
We had expected thunderstorms all morning, but with no rain by 8:30, we took our chances, picked a record store as a random destination in a direction we hadn't walked yet and ventured out.
When we passed the record store, it wasn't open yet so we kept walking.
Turned up one street and down another and stumbled across a sweet linear park
It was almost time for our favorite bar to open, so we headed in that direction.
We had misunderstood their hours, and it still wasn't open when we got there, so we spent the next hour wandering around the area and found all kinds of cool looking spots.
THIS area was way more like the Batman Alley experience we'd been hoping for in Caminito
Plaza Serrano reminded me a lot of the area in Roma, CDMX with the mural of Frida The Wonder Dog.
By the time we returned to our bar, we had been walking for 2 1/2 hours nonstop and were ready for some thirst quenching and forcing the bartender to listen to me sing the national anthem.
Came home, cooked up some leftovers for lunch
And lounged around to escape what had turned into a warm, humid, sunny day.
Watched some youtubes, then walked back to the Colegiales barrio to pick up supper.
The dressing I chose tasted like melted passion fruit sorbet, which was not necessarily a bad thing.
Went around the corner to check out Soler Street Bar. Very pleasant!!
Day 5 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tried to get an earlier start to get some walking in before it got too hot. Left about 8:20 and aimed for a park to the south, in a direction we hadn't been yet.
It was only 70°F, but about 78% humidity and really sunny, so we tried to keep to the shady side.
Got to the park, which was full of vendors offering various wares.
Kept walking and stumbled upon the cemetery that we'd wanted to go to that day, but the google maps said was closed to the public on weekends.
It was open!
Walked around until we got tired of being chewed up by mosquitoes.
There were several trade organizations (?) that had group mausoleums going down 4 levels
Your value burial option
Got some ice cold beers and two pieces of very cheesy, very bready pizza.
Walked towards our favorite bar
No thanks. Maybe later
That Johnny Depp, he make-a me cry
via Plaza Serrano.
It was still closed, so we found a place that was open and had two refreshing beverages.
At a certain point, the heat caught up with me and I felt a bit poozly, so we walked home and rested in the AC.
Watched youtubes and amazon prime until it was time for Soler Street Bar to open at 7 PM for some supper.
Day 6 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Spent the night tossing and turning with GI discomfort. The fatigue of the previous day turned out to be not heat related, but some sort of food poisoning. I can't say for certain, but my prime suspect was the Big Salad.
I typically have an iron gut, so this was not familiar territory for me. Between my condition, the high temperature and humidity (83°F and 96%) and rainy forecast, we spent the entire day in the apartment.
We did make one foray to the Carrefour around the corner to re-up on essentials.
Luckily, my beloved life and travel partner likes nothing more than sitting inside watching TV even on a beautiful day, so he was in heaven. Watched Behind The Music: Mötley Crüe
About 9 PM it started to pour, which lasted several hours.
Day 7 Buenos Aires, Argentina
The rain was expected to continue until 9 AM, so we let ourselves sleep in. I felt much better and we left around 10:30, aiming for Palermo Chico. The temperature was about 26° cooler than the day before 😀
Took the long way round to our favorite bar to order the last 4 drinks on the menu that we hadn't tried yet.
Took the bus to the shuttle station to buy our tickets to the airport for Saturday, then aimed for a bookstore that used to be a theater.
I had to use the bathroom, and we ducked into the Hotel Grand Briza. It was really nice so we stayed for a Fernandito
On the way, saw what looked like it might be a smaller version of Galeria do Rock in São Paulo.
It was!!!
Stopped into bookstore that was pretty much Bhob's dream come true.
He dropped about half a mortgage payment on books and a poster (which I encouraged, because if he hadn't, I know he would have been haunted and insist that we fly back to Bs As at our next opportunity)
We were so captivated by this video window at a record store that we crossed the street to gaze at it
Stayed up and watched the youtubes, including Behind the Music: Duran Duran, as we were trying to push our bedtime out a bit so we wouldn't be dying at the metal show that started at 10:30 PM the following night.
Day 8 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Didn't manage to sleep in. Oh well.
Aimed for the San Telmo barrio via a clever/gimmicky café para llevar shop.
.
My hair can tell you more about the humidity than any weather app
Walked around, trying to find a place to re-up our transit card.
Gave up.
Made a bathroom/Negroni stop
Walked some more
"We don't have strawberry anything!"
Went to a Subte station to re-up our card and took the D train home.
Hoped to get sleepy enough to override the nearby construction noise take a nap.
This did not happen.
Made supper and sat on the patio for awhile.
Walked to Verne Club for some pre-show drinks and food. We were completely blown away!
Don't be fooled by the simplicity. The efforts are all put into the flavors.
It was an absolutely gorgeous day and it seemed like the entire city was out enjoying it
over to see if the Back Room bartender and Lonely Planet were correct in insisting that it is free to get in.
It wasn't.
So we took the long way home, through the area we'd been to the night before so we could see it in the daytime.
"No, no, no, you don't want to go to that other blue and yellow home furnishings store! This store better! Muuuuch better!"
We started getting hungry and put on our empanada goggles. Nothing presented itself (it was a holiday, after all), so we had to google "empanadas near me open now" and found a little place that also had some nice looking quiche.
Got home around 6, sat on the balcony, watched some youtubes, then went out for a walk to take our recyclables to a bin and picked up some groceries.
Came home, watched more youtubes, including Behind the Music: The Bangles, read a little bit and went to bed around 11:30.
Day 10 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Left the apartment around 10 AM, aiming for the Almagro barrio to the southeast.
First stop was a record store
Then wandered to a park, and the area on the other side of the train tracks.
Passed Don Ignacio, which caught our eye. It was just opening up, so we stopped for a beer.
It was like a museum!
Had some gelato for lunch
Because we're grownups
Aimed for a different music store so Bhob could shop for a guitar strap, then headed for one last trip to our favorite bar.
Walked home and rested while we weighed our dinner options: a traditional steak house 3 minutes away, or the hip, creative place recommended by our (new) bartender at Back Room, a 30-minute walk away 🤔
We opted for the 3-minute walk, as the temperature was dropping, the wind was 18 mph and we were pretty hungry.
At Grill Dandy we split a steak, potato and salad and got completely stuffed.
Went home and had TV Party, including Behind the Music: Milli Vanilli, Stairway to Stardom and Axe-Assassin Albertson.
Day 11 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Our last full day in town :(
We planned to return to the botanical garden that we visited at the beginning of the trip.
It was 47°F when we woke up, so we took our time getting out the door until it was a few degrees higher.
We had passed Eco Parque several times on our way to someplace else and it always closed. Because we had putzed until 11 AM, when we passed the entrance, this time it was open!
Bhob never got tired of looking at the Mara(s?)
Ended up spending about 3 hours there, including a crepe lunch. It was a gorgeous out, with a clear sky and around 55°F (though a bit chilly in the shade).
ate some sauteed lettuce and chilled until it was time to walk to Verne Club.
We got Pear to Pear
We got Shadow of Nut, Steel & Steam and Quince (which won the night)
Their ice game is strong
Took an Uber home, watched Behind the Music: TLC and went to bed around 11 PM.
Day 12 Departure
today There was no one checking in to our apartment, so our host graciously allowed us to stay past the usual check out time 😀
Cleaned and packed, dumped our trash and recycling, then took a little walk.
We didn't want to stray too far from home, so we returned to the linear park that we'd seen at the beginning of the trip.
It was a Saturday, so it was absolutely packed with dogs and the occasional human.
Went a bit farther south so we could go home on a street that we hadn't been on yet.
Got home, used the bathroom, then googled "burgers near me open now", which led us to TMT Burger.
It was great!
Went home, showered, finished packing and waited about 45 minutes for our host to come and pick up the keys.
The bus to the shuttle station was really, really late, so we ordered an Uber. It turned out to be a wise choice, because even taking a speedy car, we arrived with only 5 minutes to spare.
On the shuttle, we were blessed with another Depeche Mode song, this time Strangelove.
Random Observations
Initially, I failed to comprehend that Buenos Aires is as close to the equator as Tulsa and Nashville, and that early autumn still requires total coverage with sunscreen :/
Many of the buses had a "Stop Requested" button that made a sound like a One Cheek Sneak.
¡Muchos, muchos, muchos perros domésticos!
Dog walking seemed to be the most popular activity everywhere we went.
Most popular breeds seemed to be Dachshunds, French Bulldogs and Poodles.
We probably saw 4 cats the entire time.
Every so often there'd be a wooden, single-family home wedged between two much taller buildings. Which came first?🤔
I never quite warmed up to the traditional Buenos Aires font/motif. It reminded me of a painted wagon selling old timey tonic.
At some point, we decided that the most effective pickpocket would be an 80-something woman, with a big bag, appearing to be unsteady; she falls against you, clutches your clothing, grabs your valuables and slips them into her bag while you help to hold her up. With a "Gracias, mi amor", she hobbles away, chuckling "¡Bobo!" to herself.
When you discover your loss, do you dare to suspect or accuse the abuela?
FAQs
So, it was a
good trip?
It was a great trip!
Having zero expectations* really paid off.
*During the winter leading up to the trip, whenever conversation turned to travel logistics, Bhob would ask "And remind me, why are we going there?"
OK, Why WERE you going there?
Short answer:
Honestly, we'd wanted to return to São Paulo, but for that time of year, weather forced our hand. São Paulo was too rainy in March, so we looked farther south.
Long answer:
A few years ago, I was listening to Always by Erasure, and when I got to 2:50, I thought "Wow, an a capella group could do something really cool with those harmonies!"
I searched the youtubes, found a lot of attempts, but no one nailed it.
After all of the half-assed, uninspired college choirs, it stopped me in my tracks, and I had to watch all of their videos. It turned out they were based in Buenos Aires and sometimes played with a B.A. Depeche Mode tribute!
We knew it was a long shot to plan a trip a year in advance and expect to see either tribute, but a girl can dream,can't she?
To our frustration, the DM tribute did end up playing with a different Erasure tribute during our stay, but it was a 75 minute drive away, so imagine taking an Uber from St Paul to St Cloud for a show, and then back again at midnight. We could have gone, but I think we would have been too fried to enjoy it.
How was the
weather?
Good!
The first week was a little too warm for us. While it never got above 77°F, the humidity was typically well over 70%, so while the inside of my nose was happy, we were rather sweaty a lot of the time.
The second week was spectacular, with highs in the 60s and much lower humidity. There was one overnight low of 47°F.
It only rained once, halfway through the trip, after we were home for the evening.
What time of
year did you go?
Early Spring, 2025 (early Autumn for them)
What’s the
time difference?
2 hours ahead of the Central time zone
How were
your flights?
Great!
MSP-ATL
Airbus 350-900
About 2 hours
Departure delayed about 45 minutes , landed about 30 minutes late, but we still had enough time to check out the lunchbox display.
ATL-EZE
Airbus 330-900
On-time departure
9.5 hours
There was a feisty young kid in front of us (4 years old?), whose own mother refused to sit next to him, which didn't bode well for our overnight flight, but he slept through most of it.
EZE-ATL
Airbus 330-900
9 hours, 32 minutes
On time departure (although everyone's bags were searched at the gate for liquids, and whatever else the United States doesn't trust the Argentine TSA to root out)
Landed early
Passport control at ATL was the fastest we've ever experienced! We waited for maybe 30 seconds.
ATL-MSP
Airbus 321(N)
2 hours 38 minutes
A little bit late de
parting
Landed on time
What did you
watch on the airplane?
MSP-ATL
Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat
Betty White hosting SNL
ATL-EZE
Betty White hosting SNL
Coded
North By Northwest
Scott Pilgrim Vs The World
3 episodes of Schitt's Creek
EZE-ATL
5 episodes of Schitt's Creek
12 episodes of The Office, Season 3
ATL-MSP
4 episodes of The Office
2 episodes of Schitt's Creek
How big is Buenos Aires?
The entire metro area is 1837 square miles versus the Twin Cities metro area's 8120 square miles
Metro area population 16,025,000 versus Twin Cities 3,690,261
City proper population 3,120,612 versus Twin Cities 2,650,890
Population density 39,810/square mile versus Twin Cities 2,594.3/square mile
Did you
learn Spanish?
No
Do most
people speak English?
Some did, but mostly no. Everyone was very patient with us, and willing to use their phone's translation app.
Did you
learn the National Anthem?
Yes! It's a good one :)
Apparently, the original was written right after gaining independence from Spain, and was really, really long, with several verses that were essentially "F*** You, Spain!"
After relations between the countries had warmed up a bit, they dropped the contentious verses.
I'd found several different versions online, and when I asked our Airbnb host if I should learn the longer one, he replied "No!!! The shortest. The long one lasted over 20 minutes and boring! haha... I stopped listening over 100 years ago"
In the short version that I chose, several of the lines are repeated, so it was easy to learn, and the Big Finish is really fun to sing.
To skip the intro, fast forward to 1:15
How did you
get around ?
Mostly walking, some buses, a few Ubers and a couple of subways.
The subway lines seemed more geared towards going from a cluster around the Microcenter to the outskirts.
Traveling within and between barrios was better served by the buses.
We took way more Ubers on this trip than we typically do, as they were pretty cheap (between $3-7).
How are the
motorists?
Mostly courteous.
There must be stiff fines for zipping through yellow lights, because we rarely saw it happen.
Is it bike
and pedestrian friendly?
It's pedestrian friendly in that it's pretty flat, and motorists honor red lights. There are ramps at most intersections, but a lot of the pavement is often uneven and you have to be vigilant about dog poo.
There are a surprising number of intersections with no stop signs, so it's a tense tango of who gets to move (although you never, EVER play chicken with a bus, because the bus wins every time).
Most major streets have bike lanes and some have bike traffic signals.
Did you hear
any interesting music?
Sure!
There was someone playing an accordion on our first metro ride, and every day we heard the usual recorded music in shops, bars and vehicles. Argentine rock and pop* was popular, as was cumbia.
We were lucky enough to catch a free show with some extreme metal bands at a venue about the size of the 7th Street Entry.
Before the trip, we looked at Bandsintown and found some other metal bands playing gigs when we were there, but when we previewed them on YouTube one of them had a mosh pit that was more like a terrifying capoeira pit, and another band that looked like it might be promising had a ticket price of $65 and we were just not prepared to make that kind of investment.
A few days into the trip, we randomly clicked on the map and found a club that was a 30 minute walk away. We looked at their schedule and found out that an Iron Maiden tribute band was playing at that exact moment 😔
*Our ongoing joke was that every rock song we heard sung in Spanish was Soda Stereo, since that's the only Argentine rock band we know. Occasionally, Shazam would prove us to be correct!
Did you learn how to tango?
No
Did you try
any interesting foods or drinks?
Yes!
Empanadas were everywhere and all the ones we had were great.
We really enjoyed the Hesperedina, a bitter orange liqueur.
The bottle includes a helpful recipe for Hesperedina and Ice. It calls for Hesperedina and Ice.
Did you drink mate?
No.
The first time I tried it in 1992, it made me feel absolutely crazy in a not very fun way, and I haven't touched it since.
Did you
drink the water?
I did at first, but switched to bottled after awhile because it tasted like a swimming pool.
Any
highlights?
Friendly people
Beautiful architecture and wrought iron (I had to stop taking pictures of it after awhile)
Our apartment and its location were ideal
Club Cultural BULA, Verne Club and Back Room Bar
Making it through the entire trip without stepping in dog poo
Any lowlights?
We underestimated how warm mid-70s with high humidity would feel in our winter-acclimated bodies
Having to spend too much walking-and-gawking time scanning the sidewalk for dog poo.
Finding out too late about a couple of venues and shows (Pentagram, Iron Maiden tribute). We have learned for future trips not to assume that Bandsintown has all of the info.
Any
surprises?
Fernet!
We knew it was sort of popular there, but hadn't realized how ubiquitous.
Actually, everything was a surprise because we had no expectations.
Is it safe?
We never felt unsafe.
The poster was telling the truth; there were beat cops everywhere
What was the
exchange rate?
According to XE, as of April 1, $1 US was worth 1073 Argentine Pesos, or 1000 Pesos were worth 93¢, though it seemed to drop during our stay. The shuttle rides that cost $17.43 on March 25 cost $17.16 on March 31.
Each time we exchanged currency, we got a few more pesos for our dollars.
We brought $100 bills and used Western Union because we had read ahead of time on TripAdvisor Forum that many ATMs were charging service fees of $30.
Did you see any evidence of the inflation crisis of 2022-2024?
Hard to say without knowing how things were before.
There was a lot of construction and road repair.
We saw very few vacant storefronts, and there was no shortage of people enjoying coffee and pastries at the numerous shops on every block.
Lots of independent businesses offered a 10% cash discount.
We saw some people sleeping on the sidewalk, but no more than in downtown St Paul.
However, we were staying in a bougie neighborhood, so I'm sure things were tougher in more marginal areas.
How much did
it cost?
Some things were inexpensive, others were closer to US prices.
Eggs were $3.50 per dozen, excellent craft cocktails were $10, but tiny cups of yogurt were $2, and gas (if I calculated and converted correctly) was around $4.50 a gallon.
The amounts below (other than flights and lodging) are approximate; notifications for credit card purchases gave us amounts in US dollars that were much lower than the XE app calculated.
For 2
people, 12 days
Flights $3316.60
Travel Insurance $265.32
Lodging $1227.27
Ground
transportation* $83.11
Food:
Groceries $116.04
Restaurants* $671.16
Coffee,
booze and treats* $473.17
Pharmacy items $17.14
Total $6169.81
Total “on
the ground” (not including airfare and lodging) $1360.62
Total per person, per day $257.08
Total “on
the ground” per person, per day $56.69
To save for
a trip like this, you’d need to save $8.45 per day for a year
*Includes generous tip, usually 30%
Who should
visit?
Anyone who would like to visit a city that has all of the beauty of Paris, but is less expensive, with friendlier people and more palm trees
