Day 1	Plaza de Mayo, Casa Rosada, Av 9 de Julio, Recoleta Cemetery, Floralis Génerica, Puerto Madero Waterfront, degustation dinner
Day 2	San Telmo and La Boca - Plaza Dorrego, Caminito
Day 3	Tigre and the Delta,
Day 4	Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur, day trip to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay

On our first day we headed out on a (long) self planned walking tour, to take in some of the main sights and areas of interest around the Centro, Recoleta, and Retiro districts.  

From our hotel we walked a couple of blocks north to the Plaza de Mayo, where we checked out the ‘Pyramide de Mayo’ (the city’s oldest national monument), ‘Catedral Metropolitana’ (main catholic church), and the 'Casa Rosada' (official offices and mansion of the Argentine president).

Plaza de Mayo	Casa Rosada

We then headed west across to Av 9 de Julio. With up to 7 lanes in each direction, and another 2 running along each side, it is widest avenue in the world. Along the avenue we checked out a few of BA's notable buildings - the old 'Ministry of Public Works' building with its huge steel images of Eva Peron, and then 'Plaza de la Republica' and the ‘Obelisk de Buenos Aires’ which commemorate the founding of the city.  A little further on we passed by 'Teatro Colon’, BA’s main opera house, which also hosts ballet and classical music events and is reputedly one of the top 5 acoustic venues in the world. Guided tours of the building (in Spanish or English) run regularly throughout the day, except when there's a performance scheduled, although we didn't take one.

Ministry of Public Works	Obelisk de Buenos Aires
Theatro Colon

We made a slight detour to check out the impressive art deco apartment building ‘Edificio Kavanagh’ on the edge of ‘Plaza San Martin’, and popped in to ‘Autoria’ (a cool design shop at 1025 Suipacha).

Edificio Kavanagh	Plaza San Martin

From here we made our way up to Recoleta Cemetery, where we spent an hour or so exploring the labyrinth of over 4500 vaults and mausoleums, built in a variety of architectural styles, and home to the graves of many notable Argentines.

Recoleta Cemetery

After a quick browse around the ‘Feria Artesanal’ (weekend craft markets), and a tasty empanada lunch stop, we headed up Av Pres. Figueroa Alcorta.  We passed the ‘Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes’ and ‘Plaza de las Naciones Unidas’ with the giant ‘Floralis Generica’ sculpture.  We popped into ‘Museo de Arte Latinoamericano Buenos Aires’ (MALBA) for a look at some contemporary art, passed the entrance to the ‘Jardin Japonais’ (Japanese Gardens), although we decided not to go in as the queue was too long, and then made our way up to ‘Planetario Galileo Galilei’. (I'm not sure the gardens and planetarium were worth the walk and we decided that we should have spent some time in the 'Belles Artes' museum, or taken a tour of Teatro Colon, either of which would have been more interesting). We then had a long walk back (should maybe have taken a taxi) back down to ‘Puerto Madero Waterfront’ where we admired the 'Puente de la Mujer' bridge, and stopped for a well deserved drink or two before making our way back to the hotel to freshen up for dinner.

Floralis Generica
Jardin Japonais	Planetario Galileo Galilei
Puerto Madero Waterfront
Puente de la Mujer

In the evening, we had an amazing 16 course degustation dinner at ‘Arambaru’. Stunning presentation, fantastic flavours and cooked to perfection. Excellent service too. Highly recommended if you're looking for a beautiful, top quality dining experience.

Dinner at Arambaru

On day 2 we headed south from our hotel, down through the narrow cobbled streets of San Telmo.  Our first stop was the atmospheric ‘Mercado de San Telmo’, with its impressive wrought iron interior.  This market primarily sells fresh produce and meat, but there are also coffee and food stalls where you can pick up a quick snack.  Next was Plaza Dorrego (and it’s surrounding streets), where the famous ‘Feria de San Telmo’ street markets were in full swing. Hundreds of stall vendors offer everything from antiques and collectables, jewellery, clothing and hand crafted accessories to artwork, knick-knacks and souvenirs.  It was very crowded, but with buskers and tango dancers adding a laid back vibe, with was a great place for wander for an hour or so.

Mercado de San Telmo
Feria de San Telmo

We popped into the Museo de Arte Moderno Buenos Aires (MAMBA), walked through Parque Lezama, and then continued south through La Boca and down to the ‘Riachuelo’ (river).  La Boca is notoriously dodgy, so we stuck to the main road (Av Almirante Brown) which felt ok. Once at the river we made our way to the colourful streets around ‘Caminito’, where early Italian and Spanish immigrants used left over paint to decorate their corrugated iron clad homes.  Unashamedly touristy, there are lots of street performers, naff souvenir stalls and over-priced restaurants, but it is an interesting and entertaining place to wander. 

Caminito, La Boca

We also called into ‘Fundación Proa’, where we saw some impressive installation art, and stopped for a little liquid refreshment and some lunch on the rooftop terrace.  Unfortunately, for some reason, we missed the ‘Museo Benito Quinquela Martin’, which showcases the Argentine artists work, and that of other local contemporary artists.

From here we headed north again, back towards the hotel.  We passed the famous ‘La Bombonera’ soccer stadium, home of the Boca Juniors, fallen football star Diego Maradona's former team. Our final stop was to have been the (apparently fascinating) archeological site of ‘El Zanjon de Grandos’.  Thought to be the location of BA’s first settlement, the site now comprises a restored 1830's mansion along with a labyrinth of underground vaulted tunnels and sewer pits. However, we arrived too late and all the tours were full! Should have booked ahead. 

After a steak and morcilla dinner in a local parrilla, we headed down to the Puerto Madero waterfront again, to see the area by night.

Puente de la Mujer by night	Puerto Madero waterfront

On day 3 we headed out of town, about 35km to the north of Buenos Aires, to the town of Tigre, and it’s surrounding delta region.  It is a popular weekend destination for locals; holiday homes line narrow waterways and boats are the only form of transportation, so it really feels like you are getting away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

We took the local train from Retiro station to Mitre, and then crossed the bridge to the ‘Tren de la Costa’.  It took about an hour and a half all up.

Once in Tigre we had a bit of a wander, and then took one of the commuter launches from the ‘Estacion Fluvial’ to the Tres Bocas area, about half an hour away.  We disembarked here and explored for a while, walking along muddy river side pathways and criss crossing little bridges that span the canals.  Unfortunately it wasn’t a very good day (ie, it was raining) so we really didn’t see the area in it’s best light, but it made for a nice day trip, and an interesting contrast to the city.

Tigre delta waterways

On our last day we ventured out of town again, but this time to a whole different country!  It was really just a way of ticking another place off the list, but given the close proximity of Uruguay we thought we may as well pay it a visit.  You can get to Montevideo by ferry from Buenos Aires in 2 1/2 - 3 hours, but we chose to visit the much closer (50km, and only 1 hour by fast boat) and quainter town of Colonia del Sacramento. 

Before we left we had time for a walk around the ‘Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur’, to the east of Puerto Madero Waterfront.  This 350 hectare marshy nature reserve is popular with walkers, joggers and birdwatchers, and makes for an easy escape from the city (although we could still hear the city traffic!)

Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur

We then took the ‘Buquebus’ ferry from the terminal at the northern end of the waterfront, and an hour (and a glass of champagne!) later we were in Uruguay!

Founded in 1680, picturesque Colonia is now a Unesco World Heritage site, and its narrow cobbled streets, shady plaza's and stucco clad colonial villas easily transport you back in time.  There are a smattering of small museums, and the lighthouse which gives nice views of the old town and the river, but it is really just a place to wander aimlessly through the streets, take in the sights and just sit back and relax.....with a glass of wine and some tapas. It was a lovely place to visit, and was a nice gentle end to our time in Buenos Aires.

Colonia del Sacramento

Buenos Aires is a huge city, with heaps to see and do. We managed to cram most of the main sights into our first 2 days, which meant we could then take our couple of trips out of town. There were a few things we didn't get to do though, and in that respect an extra day of 'sightseeing' around BA would have been great. For anyone with a passion for history and culture, you could quite easily spend a week or more exploring the city's many museums, galleries and notable buildings.