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Saying goodbye to Buenos Aires

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During our last few days in Buenos Aires, there were a few things we had to check off of our BA bucket list. This included seeing a show that everyone in town was talking about called Fuerza Bruta. It is a very creative, almost Cirque du Soleil style show which includes drums, dramatic acting scenes, high flying aerial shows and even a full size, shallow pool of water suspended over the audience to watch the performers swim and dance overhead. The audience stays standing the whole time and literally becomes part of the show – it was happening all around us. Our jaws hit the floor and stayed there the whole time. We even got soaked with water at several points during the night.


  

And don’t think we’d leave Buenos Aires without immersing ourselves in some tango culture! We found an awesome “milonga” – an Argentine tango dance hall, which offered tango lessons before the actual milonga started. We were among a group of about 12 beginners also learning tango for the first time. We learned some basic moves, just enough to be able to show our stuff on the dance floor during the milonga afterwards with the pros who knew what they were doing. We had a great time and the atmosphere was very welcoming. Check out these pics from inside the milonga. It’s called La Catedral and is inside of a giant old warehouse with really rustic, funky decor.



Here are a few pics during the milonga – there was even a performer at one point who sang and played the guitar.


A city we’d definitely visit again, Buenos Aires has something for everyone. There’s so much more to see and do that we didn’t have time for, but it’s time to move along on our journey. Next, we head inland towards the Andes mountains to Mendoza, a region known for its fabulous wines…

Trying Out the Gaucho Lifestyle

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One of the highlights of Buenos Aires has to be our day trip to a small town called San Antonio de Areco. This city, located on the Areco River, was founded in 1730 and is the center for gaucho (Argentina’s cowboy) culture.

The day started out with a driver, Cesar, picking us up from our apartment and driving about an hour and a half outside of Buenos Aires. He proceeded to tell us of some gaucho culture history and how this area became ground zero for how good beef became a staple here in Argentina.

When we got to town, we were met by our awesome guide Laura. We introduced ourselves over a delicious cup of coffee. She proceeded to take us on a walk through “downtown” and showed us a few interesting places. One of the points she wanted to stress and was very passionate about was the craftsmanship and skill that the people of San Antonio possess.

We visited a silversmith, leather maker, jeweler and a chocolate shop. Everything that they make is by hand. The talent that they have in order to make all their goods is amazing! They pride themselves on their artistry as it’s been passed down from generation to generation.

The next stop was our favorite part of the day – the well known estancia (ranch) named Ombu. This ranch used to be a working ranch but is now a place primarily for tourism. We got to spend time with real gauchos during our horseback ride, had a flavorful lunch (a traditional gaucho style “asado” which is a selection of barbecued meats) and finished with a show by the gauchos. They displayed traditional gaucho methods that were actually taught by the natives of these lands. They use a less aggressive technique which is based on gaining the trust of the horse rather than using physical force.

San Antonio de Areco was definitely one of our best experiences we’ve ever had. We would go back in a heartbeat! Check out our album from the day!

Biking Buenos Aires

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Because Buenos Aires is so big, we thought that doing a bike tour around the city would be fun and informative at the same time. We covered many points of interest and learned a lot about Argentina’s oftentimes tumultuous history.

Our guide, Taylor, who happens to be from Colorado, took us through different parts of the city that we would have not otherwise gone to or learned about on our own. He is very passionate about history and helped us all to understand some of Argentina’s past and present.

We travelled from the oldest – and now bohemian – barrio of San Telmo to the newest and most expensive area called Puerto Madero where the likes of Lionel Messi stays when in town.

Throughout our ride, we took photos of some of the most famous sights in BA including Teatro Colón, El Obelisco, Floralis Genérica (the giant aluminum and steel hydraulic flower), El Caminito (in La Boca), and of course the famous Recoleta Cemetery where Eva Perón lies.

We cruised by the world famous La Bombonera Stadium (the chocolate box) where the Boca Juniors football team plays. The Boca Junior fans are known for being very aggressive – so much so that last year they pepper sprayed the local rivalry, River Plate, and the game had to be suspended! We wanted to go see a game but maybe it’s better that it is off season right now.

We took a nice break midway through the ride where we stopped for a delicious lunch at a food truck in Puerto Madero called Parilla mi Sueño. On the menu was a huge pork sandwich called a Bondiola and a sandwich with chorizo that we shared. There were lots of toppings we could choose from including chimichurri sauce which is an Argentina original.

Later that night we met up with our new Aussie friends from the bike tour and went to an awesome show called La Bomba de Tiempo (the time bomb). It includes a whole team of percussionists that follow up to 70 different signs given by a director. It’s all improvised and every show is different!

And what better way to finish off the long day than to have a fine piece of Argentinian steak for dinner. They’re not shy about the serving sizes either! Our group ordered several different cuts of meat and they were all top notch. Argentina knows how to cook a steak!

The bike tour (a first for both of us) proved to be enlightening, fun and we were able to get a workout all at the same time! A day well spent…

Getting to know Buenos Aires

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Buenos Aires is the 2nd largest metropolitan area in South America and we are constantly discovering how unique it is every time we turn a corner. Every barrio (neighborhood) has something different to offer whether it be art, museums, music, cafes, and let’s not forget – the Argentine tango! It’s known for its European style architecture and has a lot of Italian influence as well, which means pasta and pizza are the main staples here. Oh yeah, there’s the steak too.

We are lucky enough to be staying in the Recoleta neighborhood, which is centrally located to some of the city’s most famous points of interest. We’ve hardly scratched the surface since we’ve been here, but we still have a few days left for more discoveries!

Relaxing and hanging out at our apartment (we got a great deal at $23/night!) has been a nice break from our hectic travels. We’ve been cooking lots of pasta! Here are some shots of our humble abode

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Temperatures have been hovering around 85-90 degrees here! It’s great for strolling around the city and passing through some of the many local parks.

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We went to see the famous Casa Rosada (the pink house), which you can think of as their version of the White House. It is rich with hundreds of years of history, and is the location where important political events take place in the city. This is where many Argentine leaders, including Eva Perón have given speeches to crowds of thousands of people. We walked around the Plaza de Mayo and imagined what it might look like during times of political turmoil, and also what it might have been like to see Eva Perón inspire so many people.

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The Bicentennial Museum located under the Casa Rosada detailed the history of the architecture and politics of Argentina. It also houses many artifacts from the the late 18th century until around 2010. Talk about a time warp!

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One of the many cultural staples here are the multitude of artisan street markets. The San Telmo Féria was one of the best ones we have ever been to! The beautiful cobble stone street called Calle Defensa was lined with bohemian style arts and crafts including leather goods, gourds used for making Yerba mate, paintings, jewelry, accessories and anything else you can think of! We were even lucky enough to catch a tango show in the Plaza!

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So far BA has been so culturally enriching and we’re excited to see what else it has to offer!

 

Whirlwind Sao Paulo

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The last couple days have just been a whirlwind of sights to see here in São Paulo! For starters it’s the largest city in the whole Southern Hemisphere, with a population of 11.32 million. Compare that to little ol’ San Francisco with less than 1 million people! By the way, the photo above is from our apartment balcony!

Japan Town was a few blocks away from our apartment building and a visit to their weekly Sunday street fair was a must. Nothing like some good Asian food, even in Brazil! São Paulo has the largest Japanese population outside of Japan and also a large Chinese population. Interesting to see Asians speaking Portuguese….mind blown.

We visited the famous Avenida Paulista which is located in an area consisting of a blend of the financial district, mixed with the mission and sprinkled with some Berkeley. We even stumbled upon a protest right underneath a museum! Other photos we took include those of the alley “Beco do Batman” in Vila Madalena which is filled with some awesome street art.

And let’s not forget that “when in Brazil, do as the Brasileiros do”…..samba!! We had a great time meeting new friends, having buckets o’ beer, listening to great music and getting a little taste of the samba culture.

Although we had just a few short days here, we seemed to have covered some good points of interest. All this according to our awesome host Ligia who has graciously put up with our endless questions during our stay here  🙂

We’ll miss you São Paulo!! Check out our gallery below!