sylvester

This is not a trip report; I just wanted to mention a few things I wish I had known in advance. We were in Buenos Aires in mid December, and did day trips to Tigre and an estacion.

My strongest recommendation: if you are like me and get bitten by every insect around, wear long pants and socks that cover your ankles if you visit an estacion. The one we visited provided two kinds of insect repellant but the horseflies still got me. It's now 3 weeks later and I still itch (despite prescription medicine to help!). Oddly, they didn't bite me while on the carriage ride; they bit me during lunch (obviously, I was THEIR lunch!).

BA has extended traffic jams so you need to allow more time than you'd expect to get around in the city, especially if it's raining. On our one rainy day, our hotel said they had phoned several different radio taxi co's and none of them answered their phones.

If you're staying anywhere other than on a "main" street, show the taxi driver a note with the cross streets and nearest big streets. We are seasoned travelers and yet didn't think to do this until we had one driver who refused to take us back to the apt., and two more who had to ask other drivers along the way how to get where we were going.

I had read that women, in particular, dress pretty nicely. Nope. I wore capris and sandals during the day, and nice jeans at night. I did not see any women wearing shorts except those in their teens or 20's, whereas I did notice a fair number of men wearing shorts. Maybe this differs when it gets really hot, though.

If you notice chocolate bars near a carafe of hot milk, it's because they stir the chocolate into the milk and make hot chocolate! Love that custom!

Hope these are helpful. We had a great time, and found the locals to be very friendly and helpful.

Scarlett

*The women do dress nicely and feminine. Shorts are for girls and being at the beach or in a park.
It is a city .. I guess they dress according to that ..

*All you really need to do is give the cross streets, they know all the big streets. They know all the streets, they just can't understand other languages that well.

*I cannot even think about the hot chocolate or I will cry : )

*Taxi - Just cross streets will do. ie ... Puyrredon y Las Heras .

*Always say Hola when you get into the taxi and gracias when you leave.

Now I want some hot chocolate

Scarlett

sylvester, did you shop ? When we visited, I bought a handbag and brought one for my SIL .. and a leather and silver bracelet.
Great souvenirs .. My sister in law visited, she left with 4 handbags LOL
Did you go to the Sunday Feria in Recoleta ?

sylvester

Hi Scarlett. I desperately tried on a million leather jackets but couldn't find one that came anywhere close to fitting me. I know they would alter them but for some reason, although I'm about a size 10 US, I have broad shoulders and they just didn't fit. All I bought was an artsy necklace at the Sunday Feria in San Telmo, but I loved looking at all the other crafts there. I liked their stuff better than what we saw at the Recoleta fair. And my husband bought FIVE leather belts there.

avrooster

About your "they stir the chocolate into the milk and make hot chocolate! Love that custom!": We call it a "submarino", so now you know how to order it.

Scarlett

In the world of leather, I got handbags and shoes. I never wanted a leather jacket for some reason but our nephew bought one when he visited.
My sister in law thought she died and went to heaven with the handbags in Recoleta and the jewelry in Palermo lol ...
5 leather belts is great .. he will never have to buy another belt again.
I love the ferias .. all the mate paraphernalia and leather goods .. the art too.
I miss it so much ..

sylvester

The mate paraphernalia was fun to look at -- cheap, fancy, and everything in between. Having read so much about it, we were glad we got to taste it when we did our day trip to an estancia. Perhaps because I was prepared for it to be amazingly awful, I didn't find it quite as awful as expected! Or maybe I was just distracted at that moment with the horseflies nibbling on my feet!

ClementineLdn

"I had read that women, in particular, dress pretty nicely. Nope. I wore capris and sandals during the day, and nice jeans at night. I did not see any women wearing shorts except those in their teens or 20's, whereas I did notice a fair number of men wearing shorts. Maybe this differs when it gets really hot, though."

I'm confused by this. Why would wearing shorts be considered dressing nicely? Shorts are for kids or are strictly beachwear in most countries. I haven't worn them in a city since I was a kid.

Good tip re the insect repellent. I got eaten alive in Tigre.

Scarlett

Clementine..I guess sylvester just meant that she did not think the women dressed as nicely as she expected.
As far as I know, no one suggested wearing shorts .. Women don't wear shorts in the city .. or I never saw it ..
I remember taking our dog to the park and standing there for a minute and looking down at my legs ( I was wearing a summer skirt) and my legs were covered with mosquitoes. It was like a horror movie.
I was bouncing around, trying to swat them away .. a man came over to me and handed me half a lemon and with sign language told me to rub it on my legs. I made sure from then on to always have a supply of OFF in the house .. I got the towelettes for my bag . lol ..

Scarlett

Not FOR the bag but to carry in the bag ...

dphllps

Do taxi drivers in B.A. accept US$?

avrooster

Some might, but it is better to have the local currency (pesos).

This thread is from 3 years ago.

sylvester

Hmmm. Not sure why it said the thread is from 3 yrs ago; it's not. anyway, 6 weeks after being bitten and some of my horsefly bites still itch, and that's after 3 types of prescription medicine.
As for shorts, I've worn them in many countries in hot weather. Mind you, they're not short shorts! I never felt self conscious, either, and I'm usually very aware of what locals wear. Now, in Paris no matter what I wear at any time of year, I feel "un-chic!"

avrooster

My mistake. I saw Jan. 13 and was confused. The thread is current.

crellston

" 6 weeks after being bitten and some of my horsefly bites still itch" - I had the same problem with horseflies and with sand flies in New Zealand. Repellent didn't work and I found the only thing that relived the itching was to spray the affected areas with very hot water in the shower! A few days doing that and the itching stopped completely.

Scarlett

Horsefly bites hurt !!
I only had mosquitoes to deal with, walking a dog in a park in the morning and evening was bad for me. But I love the OFF towelettes .. you can spray yourself when you leave the house/hotel and if you notice being bitten, whip out a towelette and re-apply.

One of my all time favorite cafes is the Evita Cafe , part of the Evita Museum/ in Palermo, no excuse not to go it is very nice, very interesting and the walled in cafe garden is lovely. Not to mention the food is excellent / we used to have brunch with friends there on Sundays.
Also the Home Hotel does a fabulous brunch ...

So take OFF towelettes for emergencies : )

sylvester

Thanks Scarlett. They will definitely be part of my next trip (Sicily, this May, where I hope nothing bites me but a cannoli!!)

Scarlett

sylvester, now you are going to make everyone jealous.

dwdvagamundo

bookmarking. Thanks for the tips on insects.