So after a series of long-haul bus journeys, we decided to fly to Buenos Aires from Puerto Iguazu. The flight took 1 hour 30 instead of 19 hours by bus - an easy decision to make!
Our hostel was an area called San Telmo, so we had planned to take a taxi from the airport to the nearest subway station... but our taxi driver refused. Clearly spotting an opportunity to rip off some tourists, he proceeded take us on guided tour around the city instead - enthusiastically pointing and shouting out names of places whilst we nodded and smiled in the back. After he charged us for his impromptu tour, he then had the cheek to give us his mobile number in case we wanted to use his services again!
When we finally got there the Art Factory hostel felt like luxury: a private room, a fireplace, free tango lessons and HOT showers!! Each of the rooms was painted by a local artist and our rooms featured a huge centaur with angels and colourful faces. The weather was close to freezing, so we layered up and spent the first day getting our bearings. There was a sense of panic as the locals talked of snow for the first time in almost 30 years! We visited a lovely local cafe and read up on San Telmo - one of the oldest parts of the city. Tango is said to have originated here, when Spanish and Italian immigrants set up tenements in abandoned mansions, and expressed their troubles through music and dance in the courtyards. Today San Telmo is full of cafes, antique shops, artists and dancers.
The next morning we went on a (rather chilly) walking tour of the city, organised by two local university students. After watching an archeic video in spanish, we visited the places where major events have happened over the last 60 years and were given a detailed lesson about Argentina's political history. We were then given the option to visit a collection of Eva Peron memorabilia, compiled by an enthusiast who'd kept them hidden from the military dictatorship for years... we said yes, and found ourselves in the room where her body had been embalmed for three years after shed died! Afterwards we were taken to a bar with live tango dancers and a free beer :)
In the evening we went to a local steak house for the most amazing meal - Jo was almost laughing to herself she was that happy with her bife de chorizo (although that could have been the bottle of wine). The steak was described as being for three people, but that didn't stop us having one each!
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