Buenos Aires on a budget

The first long-haul, low cost flight between Britain and Buenos is scheduled to start early next year. The Norwegian Airlines service will link London’s Gatwick airport with Buenos Aires, with flights talking about 14 hours and fares starting from £299. Planning on booking a flight to Argentina’s charismatic capital? Check out TNT’s tips on how to make the most of Buenos Aires on a budget…

Make a beeline for La Boca
 

Working class La Boca – arguably Buenos Aires’ most iconic neighbourhood -  is loaded with charm and colourful corrugated metal buildings (the ones that you see on the cover of every guidebook). It doesn’t cost a penny to stroll El Caminito – the barrio’s most famous street and browse the crafts and watch the tango dancers strut their stuff.
Close by lies the legendary La Bombonera stadium where Argentina’s favourite football team play in their famous la azul y oro (blue and gold) strip. Tickets to a Boca Juniors game (www.bocajuniors.com.ar) are notoriously expensive not to mention almost night on impossible to obtain, but if you’re content to just take photos outside …. Don’t be too showy though for while Buenos Aires is much safer than other Latin American destinations, in barrios like La Boca you do need to exercise caution and common sense. (Google “daylight robbery” in La Boca to see what we’re talking about.)
 

Gawp at the El Ateneo Grand Splendid bookstore
Book lovers rejoice! Book shops may be shutting down left, right and centre in every other city but Buenos Aires is brimming with brilliant bookshops. So much so, that choosing the best is like trying to select the spottiest dog in a kennel full of Dalmatians. Since you ask however, TNT’s pick would be El Ateneo Grand Splendid – voted the world’s second best bookshop by The Guardian. El Ateneo Grand Splendid (www.yenny-elateneo.com/) was once a theatre – as the balconies, white and gold-leaf boxes, crimson stage curtains and high painted ceilings bear testimony to. It’s a must see - regardless of whether you’re in the market for a book.

Wander to Recoleta
Buenos Aires’ number one tourist attraction? Take a bow Recoleta Cemetery (Junin 1760; 8am-6pm). This city of the dead is where generations of Argentina’s great and good – including Evita – were buried. Even better? It’s absolutely free to see Evita’s final resting place.  
Don’t panic about not being able to find Eva Duarte’s mausoleum – simply follow the crowds or join a complimentary tour that’s offered in English at 11am every Tuesday and Thursday. Further more, if you’re visiting on weekends, check out Feria Artsenal. Located just outside the cemetery, this hugely popular fair is the place to put your haggling skills to the test and snap up a fantastic range of homemade goods for a snip.

Make for a milonga
One essential is to experience a milonga (traditional tango dance night.) Argentina is synonymous with sultry tango – a passionate dance that has seduced the world – and nowhere more so than Buenos Aires, where the spirit of tango oozes on every street corner. Confiteria Ideal (the grand dame of BA’s tango scene; www.facebook.com/Confiter%C3%ADa-Ideal-114137994827/) and La Cathedral (quite possibly Baires’ coolest tango club, www.lacatedralclub.com/) are mentioned in every guide book and for good reason. However if money is too tight to mention, go to La Glorieta – a free outdoor milonga which takes place every Saturday and Sunday evening at the Barrancas de Belgrano bandstand.

Window shop til you drop in San Telmo
The barrio (neighbourhood) of San Telmo is famous for its narrow cobbled streets, crumbling villas and, crucially, the Feria de San Telmo (from 10am). This unmissable Sunday market sells some of BA’s best arts, crafts and souvenirs including bombilla, the metal straw used to drink Argentina’s beloved mate (a bitter herb drink). Even if shopping isn’t your bag, the San Telmo street market is worth visiting for the atmosphere alone: expect to see colourful street performances plus vendors loudly peddling freshly squeezed orange juice and empanadas (super South American pies).
 

Pass on Palermo and stay downtown
Most people will tell you to stay in a hotel in Palermo but the budget conscious would do well to check into a downtown – think glamour meets grit – Airbnb abode, where you’ll get character and local charm rather than inflated prices. There are lasting memories to be gained from staying at 133 Libertad – a gorgeous courtyard apartment (www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/2087059) that will have you checking house prices before you leave.
Many of the rooms boast patios and all are tastefully furnished – proof sophistication is possible on a shoestring budget. The atmosphere is instantly relaxing and the hosts, Matias and Cande – a friendly and unfeasibly good looking young Porteno couple – will go out of their way to make sure you fall under the spell of their city.

Look to La Casa Rosada
The Presidential palace – whose pretty pink hue demonstrates what happens when pigs blood is mixed with white paint – is home to the balcony where Argentina’s most famous son, Diego Maradona (a footballing god who made an enormous amount noise both on and off the pitch) greeted crowds from the balcony after winning the 1986 World Cup for Argentina. The iconic pink palace (www.casarosada.gob.ar) is also where Evita – the country’s beloved First Lady – used to address her legion of fans often called the descamisados (shirtless ones) owing to their impoverished status.
You can tour the building, the focal point of Plaza 25 de Mayo (named after the date of the first successful revolution in South America that eventually led to independence), for free on a Saturday or Sunday upon presentation of your passport.

Chill out at a café
The Argentine capital is a city of coffee connoisseurs. Caffeine runs in the blood of Portenos bringing them out of their homes and onto the streets, in search of a coffee house. Life happens here in these historic cafes so expect to see Portenos eating, drinking, posing, people watching, fighting, kissing and laughing until late into the night. Las Violetas (www.lasvioletas.com/), declared a heritage site back in 1998, is a favourite haunt of the TNT team. Here the cortado is served on silver platters by waiters in white jackets, against a backdrop of black-and-white tiled floors, stained glass windows and marble columns. What’s more you’re positively encouraged to linger all afternoon without ever feeling pressurised to order more. Result.

http://digitaledition.tntmagazine.com/buenos-aires-on-a-budget/

Feel the rhythm of Buenos Aires

Twelve months on since Centre-right candidate Mauricio Macri was elected president ending a dozen years of leftist rule, Argentina’s charismatic capital is booming. And now - when the weather is balmy not blistering and the jacaranda trees are in bloom - is the best time to go writes Kaye Holland

To say that Buenos Aires has been through a lot in recent years is like saying Victoria’s Secret angels are hot: a major understatement.

The Paris of the South has survived a series of corrupt governments, coup d’etats, dictatorships, military rule and more - yet managed to maintain its joie de vivre.

And rightly so for, despite all its troubles, there is so much to enjoy in Baires (as the city is affectionately referred to) whose stately European facade belies its Latin soul.

Make no mistake: the fantastic food scene (Argentina’s steakhouses are legendary but you’ll also, thanks to Italian immigration in the past, find excellent pizza and pasta all washed down with copious amounts of Malbec), passion for futbol (football is a religion), tango (arguably Argentina’s greatest contribution to the world) and proud Portenos (BA residents) will warm even the most jaded traveller’s heart.

Adventures abound all over Buenos Aires, but as a first port of call Plaza de Mayo in downtown is as good a place as any to start. On the easy side of this excitable square (protests and demonstrations are as much a daily event as dinner), lies La Casa Rosada (www.casarosada.gob.ar) whose pretty pink facade illustrates what happens when pigs blood is mixed with white paint….

The Presidential palace is home to the balcony where Argentina’s most famous son, Diego Maradona (a footballing god who made an enormous amount noise both on and off the pitch) greeted crowds from the balcony after winning the 1986 World Cup for Argentina. The pink palace is also where Evita - the country’s beloved First Lady - used to address her legion of fans often called the descamisados (shirtless ones) owing to their impoverished status.

The life of the charismatic, if controversial, second wife of Juan Domingo Perón was cut short (Evita died, aged 33, of cancer in 1952), but her presence continues to be felt - something the 100ft tall iron portrait of Evita, which looks down on the 14 lane Avenue 9 de Julio, bears testimony to.

You can read all about the former actress turned revered political figure in Eloy Martinez’s Santa Evita. And the perfect place to get stuck into this mesmerising novel while enjoying a Cortado coffee (essentially a shot of espresso, with an equal amount of steamed milk) and medialuna (small croissant) is Cafe Tortoni (www.cafetortoni.com.ar/en) - a historic cafe which, with its wooden walls, crystal chandeliers and elegant stained glass windows, is a million miles away from the Costas and Caffe Neros that plague the British high street.

Then make for Recoleta  – an upmarket neighbourhood whose biggest draw is the eponymous cemetery (Junin 1760; 8am-6pm) where generations of Argentina’s great and good, including Evita, were buried.  And don’t worry about missing Eva Duarte’s mausoleum - simply follow the crowds and you can’t fail to find Evita’s final resting place. Free tours are offered in English at 11am every Tuesday and Thursday. 

From Recoleta, potter north and you’ll reach Palermo - a boon for Buenos Aires’ middle class contingent, packed as it is with perfectly manicured parks (TNT loves Parque Tres de Febrero), buzzy bars and parillas (steakhouses) and bijoux boutiques.

The antithesis of Palermo is San Telmo, famous for its narrow cobbled streets and crumbling villas - and a favourite barrio (neighbourhood) of bohemians and artists alike. If you’re in town on a Sunday, be sure to seek out the Feria de San Telmo (from 10am) - an unmissable market selling some of BA’s best arts, crafts and souvenirs including bombilla, the metal straw used to drink Argentina’s beloved Mate (a bitter herb drink). Even if shopping isn’t your bag, the San Telmo street market is worth visiting for the atmosphere alone: expect to see colourful street performances plus vendors loudly peddling freshly squeezed orange juice and empanadas (super South American pies).

Another excellent market - and one of BA's best kept secrets- is the Feria de Mataderos (www.feriademataderos.ar), held every Sunday in the working class barrio of Materados. Admittedly Materados is a bit of a schlep to reach (you’ll need to take bus 126, 155 or 180 from downtown for around 90 minutes) but it’s worth it to watch gauchos (Argentine cowboys) and folk singers entertain the crowds, while chewing down on hearty dishes such as humitas (corn cakes). However the standout of La Feria de Matadero is without a doubt the La sortija show: gauchos gallop at their fastest along a corridor of sand before rising up out of their saddle– leaving just their feet in the stirrups – in an attempt to spear a small ring, all the while cheered on by rowdy locals.

Back in BA proper, football fans will want to make a beeline for blue collar La Boca, home to the legendary La Bombonera stadium (www.museoboquense.com). This is where Boca Juniors - Argentina’s favourite football club - play in their famous la azul y oro (blue and gold) strip. 

Bagging tickets to a Boca game isn’t easy as around 40 per cent of Argentines consider themselves “Bosteros”, but if you get the chance to go to a game, grab it. The swarm of yellow and blue shirts surging toward the fence (yes there’s a stadium fence that separates fans from the pitch) screaming for Boca to score, is something that has to be seen to believed.

One essential is to experience a milonga (traditional tango dance night.) Argentina is synonymous with sultry tango – a passionate dance that has seduced the world – and nowhere more so than Buenos Aires, where the spirit of tango oozes on every street corner. A few milongas to try include include Confiteria Ideal (the grand dame of BA’s tango scene), La Cathedral (quite possibly Baires’ coolest tango club) and La Glorieta - a free outdoor milonga which takes place every Saturday and Sunday evening at the Barrancas de Belgrano bandstand.

Two left feet? TNT recommends signing up for a dance class with Diego Alvaro Zoraida Fontclara (www.facebook.com/DiegoAlvaroZoraidaFontclara) – a name and a tango talent to remember. After a couple of classes with Diego, we’re confident that even the Ed Balls of the dance floor will have mastered the caminar (tango walk).

And if not, well - there’s always next time because a single trip to BA will never be enough. Vist once and you’ll find yourself returning again and again and again - be it for the tango, alfajores (divine dulce de leche cookie sandwiches), brilliant bookshops (the Argentine capital has more bookshops per person than any other city), boliches (clubs) in which to party until dawn, can’t miss cafes and fieryArgentines themselves.

Or as American writer, Truman Capote, once termed it: “Brazil was beastly but Buenos Aires the best. Not Tiffany's, but almost.”

Postcard from Argentina: part six, continued

Kaye’s constant quest for adventure has taken her back to Argentina – the land of gauchos, glaciers, football, tango and beef

Continued from yesterday

Fast forward to 2016 and dozens of estancias dot the outskirts of Buenos Aires. And it’s on these rural estates, once the private getaways of wealthy families, where you’re most likely to meet a modern day gaucho.

I did just that by spending a day on Estancia Los Dos Hermanos – a beautiful ranch run by the hospitable Pena family, nestled in the picturesque countryside of Zapata.

For anyone who wants to learn a little about the gaucho way of life – or simply gallop through the gorgeous Argentine countryside on a thoroughbred – then a visit to an Argentine estancia is a must.

 

But even if – like my companions – you’re not particularly fussed about cowboy culture, a stay (whether it be for a day or infinitely longer) at Los Dos Hermanos offers the opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle, bright lights and sheer size of BA and relax and recharge your battery for a bit.

I was picked up from my apartment in a slightly fragile condition after yet another late night in BA (never mind New York, this is the real city that doesn’t sleep), by the charming Santiago early one Monday morning and driven directly to the estancia.

 

After a much needed medialuna (more’ish small half-moon shaped croissants) and coffee and a warm welcome from Rosario (Rose), one of Ana and Pena’s five children, I soon felt much better and ready to don my riding hat and embrace my inner cowgirl.

Jorge, Los Dos Hermanos’  resident gaucho helped me mount Moro – my thoroughbred for the day – and taught us the basics (how to hold the reigns and halt a horse) before leading our group of three out into the great Argentine outdoors.

 

Trotting along trails in air so fresh it made me feel giddy, I saw no roads or shops – only horseshoe prints. After the non stop noise of Buenos Aires (noise is everywhere in BA), I found the vastness and emptiness lovely.

We returned to the ranch from our morning ride happy if hungry – which was just as well as a generous (the folks at Los Dos Hermanos certainly don’t expect you to starve) al fresco asado was waiting for us.

 

The afternoon is your own to explore the estancia, take a dip in the swimming pool or an afternoon siesta in one of the hammocks.

However tempting though it was to spend the afternoon soaking up the sun from a hammock,  I decided it would be criminal not to get back on the horse (so to speak) and live out my Argentine cowgirl fantasies.

 

On my afternoon outing, we got off the beaten path and I even learnt to gallop – something the muscles in my inner thighs and back could testify to the following morning.

Later that afternoon after watching the sun do its incredible sinking thing, we rode back to the estancia for a mate(Argentina’s beloved herb tea) with the Pena family.

 

For as much as I enjoyed riding, many of my lasting estancia memories were gained from speaking with the staff who were raised on the ranch and have tonnes of interesting tales to tell.

More than that, an estancia stands out for what it doesn’t offer: noise, pollution, pressure, distraction. It offers the kind of complete escapism from modern life you might think impossible– little wonder then that the ladies I arrived with, in need of a break from the boliches (clubs) of Buenos Aires, ended up extending their stay…

 

But if you’re a time poor traveller and can’t squeeze a day or two at an estancia into your BA itinerary and yet after a glimpse into gaucho culture, make for Mataderos – a working class barrio in western Buenos Aires named for the cattle slaughterhouses established there back in 1899.

 

Held every Sunday, this free folk fair is arguably one of Buenos Aires’ best-kept secrets and a celebration of Argentina’s rural traditions.

 

Visitors can fill their boots at the various food stalls selling regional fare such as humitas (corn cakes) and empanadas (Argentinian pies), watch locals clad in coloured skirts and bombachas (gaucho pants) perform traditional folk dances in front of the huge outdoor stage and pick up handmade leather bags for a fraction of what the vendors in tourist heavy San Telmo sell them for.

 

However the standoutof La Feria de Matadero is without a doubt La sortija: expect to see gauchos galloping at their fastest along a corridor of sand before rising up out of their saddle  – leaving just their feet in the stirrups – in an attempt to spear a small ring, all the while cheered on by rowdy locals.

Mataderos is a million miles away from chi chi Palermo (both literally and metaphorically) and a bit of a schlep to get to (take bus 126 from downtown for an hour) but make no mistake: it’s worth the journey for the chance to see the 21st century gauchos of Argentina.

 

NEED TO KNOW

Los Dos Hermanos
Day outing at the estancia costs 1,600 pesos per person and includes breakfast, lunch (with alcohol),  tea and horse riding in both the morning and afternoon. (cabalgatas@estancialosdoshermanos.com; www.estancialosdoshermanos.com)

Feria de Mataderos
This traditional Argentine street fair takes every Sunday from 11am-8pm, place March-December. Throughout February (summer), Feria de Mataderos runs on Saturdays, starting at 6pm. Times are subject to change though, so do check the website before heading all the way out to the Mataderos barrio. (4342 9629 4342 9400 ext 2830; feriademataderos_mc@buenosaires.gob.ar; www.feriademataderos.com

To read part one of Kaye’s Postcard from Argentina series, please click here

To read part two of Kaye’s Postcard from Argentina series, please click here

To read part three of Kaye’s Postcard from Argentina series, please click here

To read part four of Kaye’s Postcard from Argentina series, please click here and here

To read part five of Kaye’s Postcard from Argentina series, please click here  and here

Words and pictures: Kaye Holland

Buenos Aires' best accommodation

Never mind New York, New Orleans and the likes of London and Las Vegas. Buenos Aires is the real city that never sleeps. Portenos typically venture out for dinner around 10pm, before moving onto a bar at midnight and winding up on the dance floor circa 3am (call it a night before 5am and you’re an amateur). All of which means that if you want to make like a Porteno (as BA residents are affectionately known) you probably won’t be getting much shut eye during your spell in the Paris of the South… Nonetheless you’ll need somewhere to crash – if only for a few hours – in between boliche (club) hopping and breakfast (desayuno). Our man in BA has some suggestions for all budgets and barrio (neighbourhood) preferences…

DOWNTOWN
Glamour meets grit in the Microcentre – the heart of Buenos Aires and home to blockbuster sights such as Plaza de Mayo and La Casa Rosada. Downtown Buenos Aires is also where you’ll find Corrientes Avenue, aka the theatre district that’s dotted with Mom and Pop pizza and pasta places (a legacy of the city’s Italian diaspora).

Best for flash packers: 133 Libertad

Most people will tell you to stay in a hotel in Palermo but personalIy I’d advise avoiding the pre packaged path and checking into Airbnb abode, where you’ll get character and local charm rather than inflated prices. There are lasting memories to be gained from staying at 133 Libertad – a gorgeous courtyard apartment that will have you checking house prices before you leave. Many of the rooms boast patios and all are tastefully furnished – proof sophistication is possible on a shoestring budget. The atmosphere is instantly relaxing and the hosts, Matias and Cande – a friendly and unfeasibly good looking young Porteno couple – will go out of their way to make sure you fall under the spell of their city. Thecentral location can’t be bettered either, enabling you to hastily tick of the sights and then lose yourself in the street life.www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/2087059

PALERMO
To the north of Downtown lies Palermo – a little corner of perfectly manicured paradise where men carry tiny dogs and immaculately turned out women sweep from chi chi boutiques to buzzy bars and restaurants. It’s a little bit of a bubble – Palermo houses BA’s expat and middle class contingents – but it’s a pleasant one and, where much of the city’s legendary nightlife takesplace.

Best for digital nomads: The Clubhouse

Looking for somewhere to work? You’re in luck: co-working in Argentina is on the rise but, as remote offices go, The Clubhouse stands head and shoulders above the competition. By day this Palermo Soho destination for all things cool serves as a much needed work sanctuary for the creative industries, in a metropolis plagued by poor WiFi. By night it’s a lively scene straight out of a magazine: model-esque staff serve top notch cocktails around the prettiest of pools, while other ‘after work’ events include art exhibits, tastings, talks by opinion leaders, theme parties, fashion shows and private dinners. The Clubhouse also features four distinctive rooms (like the guests, no two rooms are the same) for those who are keen to make their ‘commute’ to the ‘office’ as short and sweet as possible.
www.clubhouseba.com

Best for trendsetters: Hotel Classico

Hotel Classico – the second project from Argentine born, Los Angeles based restaurateur and television personality, Adolfo Suaya – is without a doubt the hottest address in town, something its occupancy rates bear testimony to. The property has been fully booked since opening its doors in the buzzing barrio of Palermo Hollywood (BA’s hippest neighbourhood) last July. Each floor – accessed by a leather adorned lift – has been decked out in a different colour (I’ve got a soft spot for the scarlet hue, pictured below) and boasts a mix of King and Queen sized rooms. Regardless, guests can look forward to luxurious leather headboards, marble bed frames, walk-in rainfall showers, organic toiletries, chandeliers and classic images of the Paris of the South. The rooms positively ooze Argentine charm – so much so it would be easy to stay put. However when hunger pangs kick in, venture to MOOI – a chic ground floor restaurant whose menu focuseson seasonal ingredients. Further draws include a seventh floor sun-deck and mezzanine level bar, with a basement cabaret club due to open later this year. Someone has done their homework here and it shows: gold star.
 

www.hotelclassico.com

SAN TELMO
Rougher around the edges, is the barrio of San Telmo whose ramshackle streets have long been a favourite with Buenos Aires’ artists owing to their (historically) low rents. The Sunday market on Calle Defensa is legendary and rightly so: there’s enough arts and antiques on sale, to decimate your baggage allowance.

Best for a boutique experience: Mariposita
Situated on Calvos Calvo – only a couple of blocks from the famous Calle Defensa – Mariposita is a gem of a find. On arrival, expect to be warmly welcomed by the lovely Lotte who will lead you up the Carrara marble stairs to your accommodation. There are five rooms to choose from, all of which represent a different region of Argentina. Beyond the bedrooms, there’s a gorgeous garden patio and pool in which to unwind and relax and guests also have the opportunity to immerse themselves in tango at the hotel’s onsite school. Excellent value beginners classes are currently offered at 7pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays and 1pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Even if you’ve got two left feet, do give tango a try: BA is the capital of this sexy yet melancholy strut and, as the old adage goes, when in Rome…
www.mariposita.com.ar

Best for Bosteros: Hotel Boca

Working class La Boca is home to the country’s favourite football team: take a bow Boca Juniors, whose supporters are known as Bosteros. If you aren’t able to see Maradona’s former side in action (tickets are like gold dust), you could always sleep in a yellow and blue Maradona suite at Hotel Boca – aka the world’s first football themed hotel that’s located in the neighbouring barrio of San Telmo. The hotel boasts two restaurants and a spa fit for a football star. Hotel Boca offers several packages which include tickets to a Boca football – an experience that’s not to be missed. But don’t drop the ball (sorry!) too much when in La Boca. For while this scruffy neighbourhood is loaded with charm and colourful corrugated metal buildings (the ones that you see on the cover of every guidebook), it also has a reputation for crime. Don’t believe me? Google ‘daylight robbery in La Boca.’
www.hotelbocajuniors.com

RECOLETA
The antithesis of San Telmo and La Boca is Recoleta – an upmarket neighbourhood that’s often compared to New York’s Upper East Side. Recoleta is also home to Buenos Aires’ number one tourist attraction: take a bow Recoleta Cemetery. This city of the dead is where Argentina’s most famous daughter – one Eva Duarte de Peron – was buried..

Best for luxury lovers: Four Season Hotel

Recoleta is also home to the fabulous Four Seasons Buenos Aires whose recent refurb has only upped the decadence quota. Stars ranging from Sex and the City’s Kim Cattrall to U2 and Madonna have used it as a BA bolt hole. Even if you can’t afford to stay here (you’d need to boast the budget of a polo player), do drop in for lunch at Nuestro Secreto (a gorgeous rooftop restaurant serving Buenos Aires most stylish asado (bbq), dinner at Elena, a stylish place to throw your throw yourself into a feast of local cuisine, or a drink at the always lively The Pony Lounge. And don’t miss chance to try the Porteno tango massage at Cielo Spa. Your therapist will knead your body from head to toe using a variety of techniques – including hot stones – to the beat of tango music!
www.fourseasons.com/buenosaires

In the footsteps of Evita

Evita's Buenos Aires

Conservative businessman, Mauricio Macri – Argentina’s first non Peronist president in more than a decade – may have swept to power in December 2015 on the back of promises to end leftist populism, but even Macri’s most ardent supporters remain enthral to María Eva Duarte de Perón.

Evita, as she was affectionately known, was the charismatic second wife of Juan Domingo Perón – founder of Peronism (whose three banners are political sovereignty, economic independence and social justice) and, to date, the only Argentine to be elected president three times.

The life of Argentina’s beloved First Lady was short (she died of cancer in 1952, at the age 33) but active: the former actress founded the Eva Peron Foundation which went onto provide financial assistance to gifted children from impoverished backgrounds in addition to building homes, hospitals, schools and orphanages in deprived ares like Los Toldos – where Evita herself was born. The revered political figure became the first South American woman to be featured on the cover of Time magazine and played an important role in winning Argentine women the right to vote.

Yet despite her good deeds towards the country’s descamiscados (shirtless ones), Evita certainly had her share of critics. For, while the country’s working class saw her as saint like figure who championed their needs, Argentina’s aristocracy (at the time) by and large loathed her. Evita’s enemies hailed as her “power hungry” and bemoaned the way in which her eponymous foundation took from the rich and gave to the poor. There’s also no getting away from the fact that Evita and Peron ruled with an iron fist, banning newspapers and jailing opposition leaders.

Fast forward some 60 years and the most famous Argentine in the world is widely respected for extending social justice and her legacy – a children’s amusement park, a shelter for unwed mothers, a beach resort for the working class – continues to live on throughout the country.

Want to follow in the footsteps of Eva ‘Evita’ Peron, when in Buenos Aires – where Evita moved at the age of 15, in search of fame and fortune? Walk this way…

Recoleta cemetery

Recoleta - an upmarket neighbourhood that’s often compared to New York's Upper East Side - is home to Buenos Aires’ number one tourist attraction: take a bow Recoleta Cemetery. This city of the dead is where generations of Argentina’s elite, together with past presidents and military heroes were buried. You can easily while an afternoon checking out their impressive tombs - many of which were made from marble - and built above ground.  But Cemetery de la Recoleta’s biggest star is without a doubt Evita. To find Evita’s final resting place, - simply follow the crowds!
Junín 1760, Recoleta

Avenue 9 de Julio
The former First Lady is a cultural and historical icon in Argentina - something the 100ft tall iron portrait which looks down on the 14 lane Avenue 9 de Julio (the widest avenue in the world), bears testimony to. The colossal Evita monument - it stands at 31 meters tall and 24 meters wide - depicts Evita with her trademark topknot hairstyle. The government-funded sculpture was inspired by the famous Che Guevara sculpture in Havana's Revolution Square.
Microcentro

La Casa Rosada
The rosy La Casa Rosada whose pretty pink facade was originally achieved by, erm, mixing pigs’ blood with whitewash is where Evita famously addressed her legion of fans. It’s also where Argentina’s famous footballing son, Diego Maradona (who much like Maradona was born in poverty before becoming a hero), greeted crowds from the balcony after he helped his country lift the 1986 World Cup four years after the Falklands War debacle.
Pink House, Plaza de Mayo, corner of Av de Mayo and San Martin

Peron Peron restaurant

For a politically charged dinner, pop into Peron Peron - a Palermo hotspot where food and fun are always on the menu.
The heart of Humboldt Street (a popular haunt of Buenos Aires’ middle classes) isn’t where you would expect to find a restaurant paying homage to Eva and her husband General Juan Peron but regardless of Macri’s recent win, this place is always packed.
Diners can sit outside at a sidewalk table or inside where  Evita's passionate speeches to the Peronist masses play every so often from loud speakers. As does the Peronist march with diners rising to sing along while slapping the table.
Meanwhile the menu is packed full of Peron’s favourite foods - think Pastel de papas (shepherd’s pie) and loco (pork and red chorizo stew) washed down with Malbec, natch. Elsewhere Evita memorabilia and graffiti adorns the walls.
El Peron Peron, Carranza 2225, Palermo Hollywood, www.facebook.com/ElPeronPeron/

Museo Evita
If you were any doubt as to the fact that Evita has acquired a status akin to a saint in Argentina, a visit to the Evita Museum in upscale Palermo will put you right. “God sent his favourite angel to the earth and when his work was done, ordered her return” is how one exhibit explains Evita’s premature death from cancer at the age of 33, in 1952. The Argentine heroine is immortalised through photos, posters, newspaper headlines and videos - and there’s also the opportunity to view her stylish wardrobe (Evita’s shoes, handbags and hats are all on display). Afterwards enjoy a Mate (pronounced “mah-tay”) on the terrace of Museo Evita’s highly rated restaurant.
Laminar 2988; Palermo;