If you’re new to Argentina and worried about your Spanish language skills, don’t panic – you can communicate with the locals without making a sound. Everyone knows actions speak louder than words, but nowhere is this truer than in Argentina, where the way you touch your elbow means the difference between telling someone they’re stingy and telling them you’re definitely not happy…
It doesn’t matter what kind of cooking magician you may be, it’s nearly impossible to whip up a great meal without starting with a fantastic product. Fresh, high quality, in season, and carefully treated with respectful and passionate hands, 80% of creating wonders in the kitchen commences with a killer ingredient. Amateurs, professionals, home cooks or chef wannabes, if you follow this guide of where to buy the best food Buenos Aires has to offer, there’s no excuse not to surround yourself with an edible dream team.
As Argentina is a country made up of immigrants for the most part, it makes perfect sense that its grapes (excluding Torrontés) are also documented aliens. Take our dearly beloved Malbec. We all know it originates from Cahors in south-west France, don’t we? That’s right, the Old World has had its hand in defining Argentina’s viniculture, thanks to big hitters Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and of course Malbec – from Salta in the north to Patagonia in the south…
Buenos Aires is beautiful – Fact. But despite the city’s name meaning “good airs”, fresh air sometimes feels like it’s on ration in this juggernauting mammoth of almost 2.9 million people. So what do the gente do here to escape the chaos? Well, they hop, skip and jump onto the Tren de la Costa – a dinky railway that kisses the coastline of the Rio de la Plata from the Puente de Maipú (Maipú Bridge) in the northern suburb of Olivos, through 11 stations and 15.5km to the Porteño waterside playground of Tigre.
Fileteado is as porteño as a flock of riled-up Boca fans, although perhaps a little more sedate. It is a form of decorative art that originally started out adorning wagons in Buenos Aires in the early 20th century, painted by the Italian immigrants who worked in the wagon factories. Soon, it began to appear on trucks and buses and can now be seen everywhere from shop windows to metal plates sold at market stalls to giant advertising billboards looming over Avenida 9 de Julio.
Argentina’s ‘It’ couple from his presidential election in 1946 until her death in 1952, Juan Domingo Perón (not usually known as JD) and María Eva Duarte (always known as Evita) shook up the country’s politics via the Partido Justicialista (PJ) party they founded, scandalised and angered the upper class, wriggled their way into the hearts of millions living below the poverty line with populist policies and added a thorough dose of socialist glamour as they led Argentina.
Buenos Aires has something for everyone, including the dog-lover. Thanks to the open attitude of its denizens, abundance of city parks, great weather year round, and low cost of pet care services, it is an ideal city for us dog owners. Just watch where you step!
Selección Argentina are through to the final 16 with Messi back on form. “Dale! dale! DALE! Vamos Argentina! Yeeeaahhhhh!” Or, should I really say: “phew”. The good news is that we’re (that’s Argentina and all their supporters) through to the final 16. Great news for sure. But, let’s be honest, La Selección didn’t make it easy on themselves, despite having a particularly easy group.