Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Hotel Castelar
%
Café Tortoni
Its name flows elegantly
across its awning, an emblem
of the Avenida's bygone el-
egance. The Castelar
(above)
,
which opened in 1929,
lodged the Spanish novelist
Federico García Lorca.
The Tortoni
(right)
offers tango, coffee, and
conversation. It is the city's oldest café, having
opened in 1858, and
is intrinsic to any
discussion of the
city's lore
(see p26)
.
^
Café Los 36
Billares
36 Billares
(center)
is an
1894 dandy, sporting a
Movado clock, rich wood
paneling, and a billiards
hall, thick with smoke
and ambience. It offers
great coffee, tango
shows, and lessons.
&
Palacio Vera
In this Avenida
building's lobby, visitors
can gawk at the sixth-
story glass
vitreaux
and
delicate molding. El Túnel
and El Ventanal are two
of the most evocative vin-
tage bookstores in town.
Teatro Avenida
The Teatro Avenida
(right)
was founded in
1908 to promote the
Spanish light opera
tradition of the
zarzuela
.
Following a fire in 1979,
it was restored to its old
splendor and re-
opened in 1994.
*
New Avenue,
New Attitude
Avenida de Mayo was
Buenos Aires' first fully
planned boulevard, a
project whose scale and
expense had never
before been imagined
on the continent.
Torcuato de Alvear
(see
p59)
referenced Paris'
Belle Époque-spawned
urban planning in the
1880s, but by the time
architects started
building, Art Nouveau
was the rage, resulting
in the present structure.
(
Edificio Drabble
)
Casa de la Cultura
The 1893 Edificio
Drabble once housed the
upscale hotel Chacabuco
Mansions. Today, its
crumbling balconies and
Mansard roof are
reminders of the city's
temperamental fortunes.
Casa de la Cultura,
former home of the
newspaper
La Prensa
,
is pure Neo-Baroque.
The culture ministry desk
inside offers a program
of the cultural events in
the city.
15
Non-guests can take advantage of Hotel Castelar's renowned day
spa (open 10am-9pm Mon-Fri, 8am-8pm Sat-Sun).
