Days 8-10 (and thanks!)

[CraigM]

Two great experiences to end the trip: San Telmo and Boca Juniors.

San Telmo on Sunday is something you don't want to miss and once again I'm grateful you all talked me into it. Such an extraordinary neighborhood with cobblestone streets and beautiful structures, and outdoor markets that seem to go forever. I'm not a shopper but it was still a great experience and something I knew family would enjoy a lot, so I took pictures as encouragement. I got there too early but at least got to walk the streets before the Boca Juniors game and then came back after to take in the rest of it.

Boca Juniors is akin to a religious experience. If you have an opportunity do not hesitate to go, the fans are bonkers and I loved every minute of it. Boca defeated San Lorenzo 3-2 which made it even better. Note of caution though, don't plan your flights around soccer games in Argentina because the whole schedule changes the week before. All 3 games we planned to attend shifted dates and an additional Boca game was added to the schedule.

We managed to visit more great restaurants such as La Cabrera and had a third meal at Sottovoce (that ice cream dessert Mike recommended was off the charts). Also took a long walking tour of Belgrano, it's a huge neighborhood and luckily we had some local advice on which areas and streets to focus on. The Subte was also helpful for getting from one end to the other. On the last day I took one final tennis lesson, walked more streets (my Ecobici had expired) and spent time with a few of Mike's real estate contacts, who were all very helpful.

Huge thanks to everybody for their contributions here. More than half of what we saw and did was the result of recommendations on this site. It was a fabulous first visit to Argentina and I hope to be back soon with family!

 

[Digital Nomad]

Glad you had fun. To go to a Boca Juniors game is the ultimate peak! Wow, that is great. I was supposed to go once but the schedule changed as you mentioned and it didn't work out but it's on my list. Where did you get tickets @CraigM? I assume you went with someone?

San Telmo is perfect on a sunday so glad you got to witness that. Wow, Sottovoce again? You must love that place! Glad you were able to take so much from the board. LOTS of great info on it.

 

[Betsy Ross]

Two great experiences to end the trip: San Telmo and Boca Juniors.

San Telmo on Sunday is something you don't want to miss and once again I'm grateful you all talked me into it. Such an extraordinary neighborhood with cobblestone streets and beautiful structures, and outdoor markets that seem to go forever. I'm not a shopper but it was still a great experience and something I knew family would enjoy a lot, so I took pictures as encouragement. I got there too early but at least got to walk the streets before the Boca Juniors game and then came back after to take in the rest of it.

Boca Juniors is akin to a religious experience. If you have an opportunity do not hesitate to go, the fans are bonkers and I loved every minute of it. Boca defeated San Lorenzo 3-2 which made it even better. Note of caution though, don't plan your flights around soccer games in Argentina because the whole schedule changes the week before. All 3 games we planned to attend shifted dates and an additional Boca game was added to the schedule.

We managed to visit more great restaurants such as La Cabrera and had a third meal at Sottovoce (that ice cream dessert Mike recommended was off the charts). Also took a long walking tour of Belgrano, it's a huge neighborhood and luckily we had some local advice on which areas and streets to focus on. The Subte was also helpful for getting from one end to the other. On the last day I took one final tennis lesson, walked more streets (my Ecobici had expired) and spent time with a few of Mike's real estate contacts, who were all very helpful.

Huge thanks to everybody for their contributions here. More than half of what we saw and did was the result of recommendations on this site. It was a fabulous first visit to Argentina and I hope to be back soon with family!

What a great ending! You had an action packed week! One of the busiest itineraries I have seen. It sounds like you hit all the major stuff you wanted to see. Thrilled we talked you into going to Iguazu and seems like many of the restaurants were recommendations. Hope you come back soon.

 

[CraigM]

Glad you had fun. To go to a Boca Juniors game is the ultimate peak! Wow, that is great. I was supposed to go once but the schedule changed as you mentioned and it didn't work out but it's on my list. Where did you get tickets @CraigM? I assume you went with someone?

San Telmo is perfect on a sunday so glad you got to witness that. Wow, Sottovoce again? You must love that place! Glad you were able to take so much from the board. LOTS of great info on it.

Bummer! Yeah we used AirBnB experiences again, there's a family with tickets and one of the brothers takes you to the game. Luciano & Rodrigo. Should have mentioned that because the experience would be difficult to get on your own. Rodrigo drove us right to the stadium and back (they know the guys that park your car on the street and protect it) and bought us Choripan with Fernet & Coke to enjoy in the street while watching their insane version of tailgating. Also took us to a good vendor to pick up some swag for the game. It was an unforgettable part of the Boca experience.

 

[CraigM]

What a great ending! You had an action packed week! One of the busiest itineraries I have seen. It sounds like you hit all the major stuff you wanted to see. Thrilled we talked you into going to Iguazu and seems like many of the restaurants were recommendations. Hope you come back soon.

Thanks Betsy, I sure hope so too!

 

[Betsy Ross]

Bummer! Yeah we used AirBnB experiences again, there's a family with tickets and one of the brothers takes you to the game. Luciano & Rodrigo. Should have mentioned that because the experience would be difficult to get on your own. Rodrigo drove us right to the stadium and back (they know the guys that park your car on the street and protect it) and bought us Choripan with Fernet & Coke to enjoy in the street while watching their insane version of tailgating. Also took us to a good vendor to pick up some swag for the game. It was an unforgettable part of the Boca experience.

Airbnb Experiences seems like they are very popular now. I will have to check it out. It's not a good idea to go to Boca games alone! Definitely that is the way to do it going with a local. Everyone should go to a Boca games at least once in their lives.

 

[Uncle Wong]

Bummer! Yeah we used AirBnB experiences again, there's a family with tickets and one of the brothers takes you to the game. Luciano & Rodrigo. Should have mentioned that because the experience would be difficult to get on your own. Rodrigo drove us right to the stadium and back (they know the guys that park your car on the street and protect it) and bought us Choripan with Fernet & Coke to enjoy in the street while watching their insane version of tailgating. Also took us to a good vendor to pick up some swag for the game. It was an unforgettable part of the Boca experience.

Thanks Craig. Do you have a URL link to that Airbnb experiences that you used? I see several and would rather use one that is someone actually used. I'd appreciate it. You can DM me if you don't want to post publicly.

You had an awesome itinerary. Did you come down for work too? Seems like you had an awesome trip. I wish I could get my company to pay for me to visit BA. I can't wait to come back. On my next trip, I am going to try out some of the places you went to.

 

[import export]

Bummer! Yeah we used AirBnB experiences again, there's a family with tickets and one of the brothers takes you to the game. Luciano & Rodrigo. Should have mentioned that because the experience would be difficult to get on your own. Rodrigo drove us right to the stadium and back (they know the guys that park your car on the street and protect it) and bought us Choripan with Fernet & Coke to enjoy in the street while watching their insane version of tailgating. Also took us to a good vendor to pick up some swag for the game. It was an unforgettable part of the Boca experience.

I was wondering if you went with a local. Those games aren't for the faint of heart if you don't speak Spanish nor know your way around. I have colleagues that have had issues both in Argentina and Brazil going alone. It's not the same experience trying to do it on your own vs. people that have gone before and know the lay of the land. Glad you had fun Craig.

 

[CraigM]

Thanks Craig. Do you have a URL link to that Airbnb experiences that you used? I see several and would rather use one that is someone actually used. I'd appreciate it. You can DM me if you don't want to post publicly.

You had an awesome itinerary. Did you come down for work too? Seems like you had an awesome trip. I wish I could get my company to pay for me to visit BA. I can't wait to come back. On my next trip, I am going to try out some of the places you went to.

Thanks! It was a fantastic trip, mostly pleasure though so we were on our own dime. It's so cheap though my only thoughts about money the whole time was finding cambios and Western Unions. Here's a link to Boca Juniors for Rodrigo: https://www.airbnb.ae/experiences/1293561

 

[Digital Nomad]

Thanks! It was a fantastic trip, mostly pleasure though so we were on our own dime. It's so cheap though my only thoughts about money the whole time was finding cambios and Western Unions. Here's a link to Boca Juniors for Rodrigo: https://www.airbnb.ae/experiences/1293561

Thanks for the link! Wow all 5 star reviews! Looks awesome!

 

[Betsy Ross]

Thanks! It was a fantastic trip, mostly pleasure though so we were on our own dime. It's so cheap though my only thoughts about money the whole time was finding cambios and Western Unions. Here's a link to Boca Juniors for Rodrigo: https://www.airbnb.ae/experiences/1293561

Wow you got lucky with the dates. I just checked out the next available date and it says November 6!

 

[Vince]

Thanks! It was a fantastic trip, mostly pleasure though so we were on our own dime. It's so cheap though my only thoughts about money the whole time was finding cambios and Western Unions. Here's a link to Boca Juniors for Rodrigo: https://www.airbnb.ae/experiences/1293561

Did you have to use a lot of cash here @CraigM? Most people use their credit cards as much as they can now but some cash is still needed here. It used to be a LOT worse here where you had to use cash for everything and couldn't use credit cards due to no MEP rate.

 

[Uncle Wong]

I'm definitely going to try to go to a soccer game next trip. How did you like your meal at La Cabrera? I thought it was totally overrated. The meal couldn't compare to my meals at Don Julio or El Preferido.

 

[Bob]

Great 10 day trip report @CraigM. Great following along with your trip. Very eventful!

 

[CraigM]

Wow you got lucky with the dates. I just checked out the next available date and it says November 6!

Oh wow good for them! There's at least 3 or 4 others offering Boca experiences on AirBnB if someone wants to go, and you can also check out https://landingpadba.com/

 

[CraigM]

Did you have to use a lot of cash here @CraigM? Most people use their credit cards as much as they can now but some cash is still needed here. It used to be a LOT worse here where you had to use cash for everything and couldn't use credit cards due to no MEP rate.

That part was interesting, most restaurants you could pay the bill with cards but tips are cash only, and we made a point of tipping well for everything so cash was nice to have. Other things cash was either necessary or very preferable and you felt naked without some in your pocket.

Cambios were the best deal. I used one near Plaza Italia, they gave me 1.285 all week vs about 1.200 for my BofA travel rewards card. WU was 1.285 but after a US$9 wire fee on US$200 it was closer to 1.225. The cambios also had bigger bills, WU you had to stuff big wads of 1.000 and 500 notes in your pockets.

 

[CraigM]

I'm definitely going to try to go to a soccer game next trip. How did you like your meal at La Cabrera? I thought it was totally overrated. The meal couldn't compare to my meals at Don Julio or El Preferido.

That's probably fair, El Preferido was definitely better The milanese at La Cabrera was as good as anywhere, but chicken is a lot easier to do well than steak.

Also I forgot to compliment our excellent waitress at El Preferido, I had left my phone on the table and she chased us across the street to return it. That's a normal US experience but it was very reassuring after all the stories you hear in BA.

 

[Bob]

Oh wow good for them! There's at least 3 or 4 others offering Boca experiences on AirBnB if someone wants to go, and you can also check out https://landingpadba.com/

I used Landingpad many years ago. It's good to see they are still around.

That's probably fair, El Preferido was definitely better The milanese at La Cabrera was as good as anywhere, but chicken is a lot easier to do well than steak.

Also I forgot to compliment our excellent waitress at El Preferido, I had left my phone on the table and she chased us across the street to return it. That's a normal US experience but it was very reassuring after all the stories you hear in BA.

Awesome that the waitress flagged you down about your phone. I actually have had my phone stolen eating once while in Palermo Soho. Or at least I think it was stolen. I had it on the table while eating dinner and not sure if I forgot it or someone took it. When I went back to my table out on the sidewalk it was already gone. My fault for not paying attention. You have to be careful with your phones.

 

[I Love Mate]

Definitely be careful with your phones especially in Soho. You were really lucky @CraigM that you got it back. That was a really honest waitress. Especially if it was a nice model like an iPhone. They steal those a lot here and sell them for parts I heard which can fetch several hundred dollars. I always wondered what they do with them as they are locked out but they can make several hundreds of dollars selling for parts which is more than some monthly salaries here.