Buenos Aires Travel Guide - All About Buenos Aires, Argentina

The Sunday milonga (tango dance) in San Telmo

Forget New York. If the two cities were put head to head in who could stay awake the longest - Buenos Aires would win hands down. And then Buenos Aires would continue partying, tango-inig through the streets, tucking into another slab of juicy carne (red meat) and still have the energy for another all-nighter in a hipper than thou nightclub while New York was busy sleeping off its hangover. Buenos Aire's museums, markets, clubs, colonial buildings and passion for fashion could also teach the Big Apple a few tricks. Sure, it's subway system (known here as 'subte') doesn't function all night, but with taxis this cheap and buses so frequent, who frankly cares? nbsp;

The city's statistics are in themselves formidable: 13 million people, 1,400 square kilometres and some 50 barrios (neighbourhoods). Somehow though, Buenos Aires doesn't overwhelm, instead pulling you into its bosom like an overzealous Italian grandmother, before sending you on your merry way wearing a garish party hat and clutching a slice of cheesy pizza.

The first Buenos Aires' barrio on most tourists' hit-lists is La Boca, an eccentric old port district that has been dolled up like a drag queen on acid. Traditionally a working class neighbourhood, these days it has a reputation as both a tourist trap and a dodgy area, but it's nonetheless a delight to wander around its photogenic streets, its wooden and corrugated iron houses painted all the colours of the rainbow. Along Caminito Street, tango dancers seduce tourists as they swill wine at outdoor cafes, while football fans usually make a beeline for Bombonera, the stadium of the Boca Juniors, just a few blocks north of the main street.

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Close to La Boca, the barrio of San Telmo is easily Buenos Aires' most romantic. This bohemian district is the spiritual home of tango, and its picturesque plazas, rows of antique stores and elegantly decaying colonial facades will inspire you to grab the nearest person and twirl them through the cobblestone streets. On Sunday, the district blossoms into one of the most happening haunts in the city, with the Feria de San Telmo taking over the streets with pedestrians, colourful market stalls, live music (how ever did they wheel that piano through the streets?) and loads of idiosyncratic performance artists. People spill out from tango bars, cafes and restaurants, and as the sun starts to set and the market stall holders pack their wears away, Plaza Dorreao transforms into a free-for-all outdoor tango dancefloor.
Just up the road from San Telmo lies Avenida de Mayo, Buenos Aires' main artery, with the Plaza del Congreso (home to Argentina's parliament building) at one end and the Plaza de Mayo at the other. The stretch in between harbours near-daily rowdy street demonstrations and festive parades. Shooting off Avenida de Mayo is Calle Florida, a bustling pedestrianized shopping street whose elegance is somewhat tainted by the heaving throngs pounding its pavement.
A 10-minute walk from Plaza de Mayo lies the city's newest barrio, Puerto Madero. This riverside district is super-modern and feels far more Sydney than Europe. Its riverfront is lined with swanky white-tablecloth restaurants which all enjoy views out to the modernist white Puente de la Mujer (Woman's Bridge).
On the other side of town, Buenos Aires' northern barrios are stately and wealthy. In Recoleta you'll find the Recoleta Cemetery, final resting place of the rich and famous, including Eva Peron. Within walking distance of here are two important art galleries, the Museo Nacional de Bellas - housing old European paintings as well as the pick of Argentinian modern art - and the Museo de Arte Latinamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA), with rolling exhibitions and permanent pieces focusing on 20th century Latin American art.
Also in the north, Buenos Aires' wealthiest and greenest barrio is Palermo, where you could do some serious damage to your credit card in its chic boutiques, bookstores, bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Alternatively, if you're in need of a change of pace, Palermo's botanic garden, zoo and Japanese garden should provide a breath of fresh air. On the weekend, many porteños (people who live in Buenos Aires) retreat to the riverside town of Tigre. A 40-minute train ride from Retiro station in central Buenos Aires, Tigre is the place to take a leisurely boat or kayak trips around the lush islands of the Río Paraná, picnic by the shady riverfront or lose your lunch in the small theme park.