In Argentina, there is a saying: “la noche está en pañales,” which means “the night is in diapers.” The real fun isn’t supposed to start until 1 a.m. or later. I’m not a night owl by any means, but Buenos Aires has been on my bucket list for years. And if the coffee’s good and strong (it is) and the siestas are timed just right (they were), I could probably make it. It was worth the caffeine jitters and afternoon time-outs. Argentina is amazing.
Getting there
One of my favorite people was heading to South America, to the countryside just outside Buenos Aires, to wish friends well as they tied the knot. He asked if I wanted to +1 and check this dream destination off my list. Travel with friends can be risky–it can either strengthen the ties that bind or you could find yourself tethered to a wet blanket for the span of the trip of a lifetime. We Googled flights from the floor of his living room, clicking our way to a nonstop round-trip from JFK to EZE for around $750 with Aerolineas Argentina. <high five> Not a steal, but nonstop? Yes, please.
Staying there
In the weeks to come, we continued to browse and click our way to super-cheap AirBnB stays in both the heart of Buenos Aires AND Montevideo, Uruguay. Since we were so close to one from the other, we twofer-ed to grab that other stamp in the passport and see a little more of the world.
Getting around
Transportation in Argentina is incredibly easy and super-cheap. Uber is one of the most well-known ride sharing apps in effect in Argentina. Our 45-minute voyage from the airport to our apartment in the Colegiales neighborhood of Buenos Aires was around $12 US. There’s also a thriving bus system and the metro. I kinda regret never at least TRYING the subway in Buenos Aires, but there was so much more to see above ground and it was so incredibly affordable to Uber. That was our preferred method of transport for this trip.
From a single to multiples
In case you’re wondering? If you can see more than one country while out and about, especially if the flight is on the expensive side and/or a long one? Get after it. I wouldn’t recommend skimping on one country just to say you’ve seen another in the same trip. But if you’ve thoroughly accomplished what you came to see and do in your first country and their neighbor is lookin’ tasty? Go get a sample, y’all! Snack UP. After smokin’ over Argentina, we decided to ferry over to Montevideo, Uruguay for a little recovery after avoiding sleep and stuffing as much incredible as was humanly possible into six days.
WHAT TO DO
In my mind, I had envisioned a late-night glass of red at an outdoor cafe, learning and dancing the tango into the wee hours, dressed in a suit tailored to perfection, low-talking witty repartee en español to my lovely dance partner between lulls in the serenade of the bandoneon.
In reality, it was a cluster of friends, old and new, eating, drinking, and laughing their way through one of the world’s most intriguing cities. I hit several landmarks independently, but as a group, we mostly enjoyed our company wherever we could find a place to land that would accommodate our numbers and tolerate our volume.
La Boca
La Boca is probably one of the most well-known neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, as it is home to El Caminito, the traditional alley, street museum, and famous tourist attraction in the city, seen above.
Parrilla (pah-REE-shah) is the traditional barbecue of the nation. They LOVE their grilled meat. And so did we! They’re also very fond of the offal, or organ meats. I found it to be a very useful method of trying new things by not asking what certain unfamiliar meats were until AFTER I ate them. Turns out lung is pretty tasty.
La Bombonera, or “the chocolate box” is the stadium in La Boca, home of the Boca Juniors. We snuck a peek inside between matches and while minor renovations were being done.
After eating all that protein, my buddy BJ and I took a moment to flex for the camera.
El Museo de Bellas Artes
Stunning. Moving. Chock full of exhibits, but still manageable enough to see in an afternoon. From the austerity of the old masters to the thought-provoking contemporaries, El Museo de Bellas Artes was one of my favorite stops. Here are some highlights from my misty-eyed visit to the crown jewel of the Argentinian art scene.
“Jacob’s Presentation to Isaac” by Giordano ![]()
Preliminary sketches of Giordano’s “Jacob…” 
“Abel,” by Lucio Correa Morales ![]()
“Without Bread and Without Work” by Ernesto de la Cárcova 
“The Improviser,” by Emilio Pettorutti
Recoleta Cemetery
Some of the biggest names in Argentine history are interred at the Recoleta cemetery and I recommend taking a stroll through the grave stones to see who you can see. Eva Peron rests here and some of the monuments are incredible. As you can see, sunset is pretty spectacular, too. But get there early–they close at 6 p.m. Ish. If the crowd is slow, they’ll knock off early.
Ateneo
Theater turned gigantic bookstore with coffee shop. Um. Any doubt why this one made my list of must-sees whilst in Buenos Aires?
THE. FOOD.
By far and large, my favorite part of the trip. Meat, cheese, bread, wine–all the good stuff thrown on a grill and brought to the table piping hot and swimming in grease, juice, and all the delicious drippings. Everything comes with a side of some sort–even the coffee. One of the quickest ways to get to know a new country is through its cuisine. Well, bring your napkin and your appetite. You’re about to meet Argentina.
And hey–if you get the chance? GO TO A WEDDING.
Holy mother of Peter, Paul, and Mary. If you’re offered the chance to celebrate the joining of two souls in matrimony whilst abroad, DO NOT MISS IT. Our trip to Argentina was specifically for this purpose: to watch Nic and Kyle tie the knot. And boy HOWDY. If there was EVER a party, I was in attendance and it didn’t stop until the DJ SAID so.
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Confetti cannons loaded with crepe paper hearts. LOVE, Y’ALL. AIN’T IT GRAND?! Photography by Ignacio Zohler ![]()
Because why WOULDN’T you dress as a T-Rex for at least some of your wedding reception? Photography by Ignacio Zohler ![]()
Garter? Psh. Argentinians let the bachelors duke it out for scotch. WAY better than secondhand lingerie. Photography by Ignacio Zohler ![]()
We danced. Until 4 a.m. Photography by Ignacio Zohler.
The party started late and ended even later. Food, drink, dance. More food. More dance. It was a multi-layer evening of awesome celebrating love, togetherness, and a whole lotta awesome crammed into one room under SIXTEEN disco balls. I’ll give ’em this–Argentinians know how to time a party. Just about the time I was parched from all the dancing, they had a snack break. After refueling, it was back to the dance floor for more insanity. And we were THERE for it. Come about 3 a.m. (I think), they came around with pizza for the party goers, just to make sure nobody petered out until our 4 o’clock curfew. God, I love Argentina.
AL FIN
Y’all. Life is so wide. It happens everywhere, to everyone, all the dang time. I know this sounds like such a “no kidding” statement, but if there was something I’d want to say to anyone and everyone ever’ single day of their lives it would be this: TRY TO STUFF AS MUCH DIFFERENT INTO YOUR LIFE AS YOU CAN FIND. When you launch yourself from ALL your comfort zones–language, cuisine, geography, ALL of it–it becomes abundantly clear just how incredible this enormous world we live in can be at every blessed moment. If you’re having trouble seeing that from where you are, CHANGE WHERE YOU ARE.
Love y’all. Go see it.
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Great report! It makes me want to go back to that region for a longer visit. I was in Uruguay for a conference many years ago and was astonished at how much meat they eat in those parts. It was wonderful. Street vendors try to outdo one another with artful displays of various meats on their grills. I spent 45 minutes in Buenos Aires on the way back, just enough time to de-plane and buy two leather jackets for gifts. There was an unplanned adventure shortly after that as the plane had a day’s worth of mechanical difficulties keeping us in Rio de Janeiro in hot weather with no luggage or visas. (They made an exception but kept our passports at the airport.) When that happens you need to just go with it and take advantage of an opportunity to see an interesting place and create new memories – including walking on Ipanema beach in a dark suit in the sun because that was the only clothes I had. With better planning, I could’ve gone up to see the Christo.