Buenos Aires, Argentina

At the end of a trip to Patagonia on the Argentina side of the Andes, I took a few days to explore the capital city of Buenos Aires. It was at this time I also visited the incredible Iguazu Falls on both the Brazil and Argentina side as I previously posted here:

https://www.kirkstravelstories.com/post/devil-s-throat-iguazu-falls

But this post is about the city itself. Now, I’m not much of a big city guy so my review of the city is likely not as glowing as it probably deserves.

Flying into the city it just looks like another congested big city where people are packed like sardines in a can. This is the part of big city life I don’t understand. With all the vacant land on this earth, and the beautiful open areas of Patagonia in this country, why live here? I know that’s where the higher paying jobs are, but I would settle for less money to live in the country. Just a personal preference, I know.

The city itself looks quite dated. The city dates back to 1536 and has a current population of just over 3 million people in the urban area and nearly 17 million in the greater metro area.

To me, the city has a European flavor to it with its outside cafes and building structures. But despite the flavor, it is uniquely Argentina.

Although areas of the city could get quite crowded, many parts of the city looked low key with out too much foot traffic:

Many open eating areas. I visited in January, which is their summer, and I found the temperatures quite tolerable for outdoor eating and activities.

Of course, soccer is huge in Argentina. I visited the football (soccer) stadium called Bombenera Stadium. It has a capacity of about 57,000 people.

When I say visited, I mean only the exterior as no game was being played at the time. But that didn’t stop many tourists from visiting the area.

But here is what I enjoyed most about the city. These kiosks selling local goods. I often find it difficult to find quality items in these settings but not so here. That’s because they have that fine Argentinian leather. I bout several items here including a soft leather backpack I’m still using 8 years later as my primary backpack. I had one seam resewn while I was in Thailand, but other than that, it still looks great. A bargain at about $40 USD

What capital city is not complete without guards. And these dudes looked impressive!

Yeah, I always love photographing local people in their environment. Especially if they look unique.

Religious figures and the Catholic religion is ubiquitous in this capital city, a legacy from its European founders.

Eva Peron’s tomb is a big tourist draw here. If you want to see it in peace, go early and you can enjoy alone. People don’t get up too early in this city,

Whenever I visit big cities, I love to see the inner city parks. They really can be quite unique and beautiful. This city did not disappoint:

This is my review of Buenos Aires. I admit I’m not the best person to review this or any city as I’m not a city person. I don’t go out at night to enjoy the night life that big cities have to offer. I also don’t go to find the best restaurants as I often eat in the club lounges in the hotels where I stay. But this gives some photos and one man’s perspective of this city.