Special places, streets and neighborhoods

Plaza de Mayo
Since the city was founded for the second time in 1580, the square has been the center of the city. The presidential palace (“Casa Rosada”), the building of the former city council (“Cabildo”), which today houses a historical museum, the national bank (“Banco de la Nación”) and the cathedral stand on it.

Since the times of the military dictatorship (1976-1983) the “Madres de la Plaza de Mayo” (Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo) have met here to demonstrate against the “disappearance” of their sons and husbands by those in power.

It is estimated that around 3,000 people were murdered during the military dictatorship.
The best-known human rights group in Argentina still gathers in the square every Thursday at 3:30 p.m.

The big square is at the intersection of Avenidas de 9 de Julio, Roque Sáenz Peña and Corrientes.
A 67 meter high white obelisk on Avenida de 9 de Julio commemorates the 400th anniversary of the city’s foundation in 1536. The obelisk is the city’s landmark according to paradisdachat.

Plaza San Martín
This large, leafy square once housed the city’s slave market and a monastery. Later it was used as a bullring.
The square is lined with mansions from the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries and modern (high) buildings. At the north end of the square there is a monument in honor of the independence fighter José de San Martín (1778-1850).
The square is popular and frequented by the locals (porteños) and tourists.
On the east side of the square, the “Monumento a los caídos en Malvinas” was inaugurated in 1990, a memorial to the 650 soldiers who died in the Falklands War against England (1982).

Avenida 9 de Julio
With a width of 120 meters and 18 lanes, the “Avenida” is the widest street in the world. It has been running through the city since 1937. The city’s landmark, the 67-meter-high white obelisk, is located on it.

Avenida de Mayo
The boulevard, which was built on the French model, has been the city’s boulevard since the beginning of the 20th century.

La Boca
The old port district is located on the “Riachuelo”, which flows into the “Río de la Plata”.
The street “Caminito” is popular with tourists. Here the houses are made of sheet metal and thickly painted with brightly colored marine paint.
Crafts are offered in shops and on the street. La Boca is considered to be the birthplace of tango.
In one of the numerous pubs that still liven up the district today, the dance, which like no other characterizes the national feeling of the Argentines, is said to have been invented. The neighborhood is also home to the city’s most famous football club, the Boca Juniors.
La Boca is one of the poorer areas of the city and should not be visited outside the tourist routes, especially at night, to be on the safe side.

San Telmo
The wealthy residents of the city used to live in San Telmo, but they had moved to the north of the city in 1871 due to a yellow fever epidemic. Afterwards, numerous immigrants settled here in the large houses.
On Sundays the quarter becomes a pedestrian zone, where tango is danced, antique dealers and street vendors set up their stands and where sMusic combos play in many corners.
The center of the district is the Plaza Dorrego at the Estados Unidos, corner of Defensa. Not far away is the el Mercado de San Telmo. In the traditional market hall from 1897, you can buy kitsch and antiques in addition to various foods.
The Museo de Arte Contemporáneo is located on the corner of San Juan and Defensa. This is where the city’s largest tango scene is located.
The neighborhood is quieter and more tranquil than other parts of the city. Small alleys and squares create a relaxing atmosphere.

Palermo
The city’s bohemians used to settle in the Palermo district, but now you can find fashion label shops, expensive bars and galleries here. The district is still one of the most beautiful in the city, but more and more of the small houses are being demolished in order to build selenium-free high-rise buildings in their place. In the old part of the district, the Palermo Viejo, which is south of Avenida Juan B. Justo, you can find nice souvenirs to take home. The northern part of the district is known by the locals as Palermo Hollywood, as many television studios have settled here. A few streets away is the large antique and flea market “Dorrego” Dorrego on the corner of Cabrera

Puerto Madero
Puerto Madero is the most modern neighborhood in the city. For this purpose, parts of the old port docks were built with modern office and residential buildings. Behind it are high-rise buildings, including the luxury hotel Faena designed by the designer Philippe Starck.
Worth a detour are the numerous local food stalls on the Costanera Sur, where the typical “choripán” (a type of hot dog) is offered, as well as the Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur nature reserve. From here you have a wonderful view of the skyline of Buenos Aires. The area was created through rubble and land reclamation.

Selected opera houses and theaters

Teatro Avenida
The magnificent theater, built in 1906, burned down in 1979. In 1994 it was inaugurated again. Since then, operas, classical concerts and other musical performances have primarily been held here.
Avenida de Mayo 1222

Teatro Colón
The magnificent theater from 1857 is one of the most famous theaters in the world. Among other things, the most important opera performances in the country take place here.
Caruso sang here and Callas, Stravinsky and Strauss conducted the orchestra. A guided tour is also worthwhile because of the huge pool in the basement.
The cheapest tickets (paraíso) are standing places high up, from where you can hardly hear what is happening on the stage without the opera glasses.
Libertad 621
www.teatrocolon.org.ar

Teatro Cervantes
The theater was built in 1921 in the neoplateresque style. The facade is modeled on the Renaissance facade of the University of Alcalá de Henares, the birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes.
Today the theater is one of the most important in the country.
Avenida Córdoba 1155
www.teatrocervantes.gov.ar

Churches and cathedrals

Catedrál Metropolitana
Plaza Bolívar
The current cathedral dates from 1791. In a side chapel is the grave of the hero of the Wars of Liberation, José de San Martín.

Iglesia San Ignacio de Loyola
Bolívar y Alsina
The Jesuit church was consecrated in 1722 and is not only the oldest church in the city, but also one of the oldest preserved buildings in Buenos Aires. It was restored several times in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Iglesia de Santo Domingo
Defensa y Belgrano The remains of the revolutionary hero Manuel Belgrano are in
a mausoleum in the forecourt of the Church of St. Dominic. The church was built in 1751 and is one of the oldest in the city.

Mezquita de Palermo
Avenida Bullrich 55
Website: www.ccislamicoreyfahd.org
The mosque in the Palermo district was inaugurated in 2000. It is the largest in Latin America with over 2,000 square meters of space to pray. Several gardens surround the imposing building, which houses various educational institutions.

Zoological Garden

Jardín Zoológico
In the zoological garden there are around 2,500 animals, an aquarium, a petting zoo and a reproduction of a tropical jungle landscape.
Avenidas Las Heras y Sarmiento

Football stadium

El Monumental
The largest football stadium in the city bears the official name Estadio Antonio Vespucio Liberti. It was built in 1938 and holds over 76,000 spectators.

Port

The port of Buenos Aires is located in the southeast of the city and connects Buenos Aires with Montevideo and Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay, but also with the rest of the world. It is the largest and most important in the country and one of the largest in South America.