Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
When Sarmiento became president he built a
monument to honor General San Martín and
planned the park around it. The lower park
retained the name which it shares with Buenos
Aires' large railroad station. The nearby clock
tower was a gift from Argentineans of British
ancestry. Its plaza, formerly called Plaza
Británica, was renamed Plaza Fuerza Aérea fol-
lowing the Malvinas Conflict (The Falklands War).
Most porteños
still refer to this
as the Plaza
Británica.
Barrios
Much like New York, Chicago and Vancouver,
Buenos Aires is a melting pot created by mil-
lions of immigrants, who, while Argentine to
the core, have remained sentimentally
attached to their ethnic origins. The city has
approximately 50
barrios.
Some, built around a
plaza and church, reflect a specific ethnic
group, while others are fashionable or working
class residential neighborhoods. The
barrios
are a jumble of old and new, with modern apart-
ment buildings adjacent to older ones whose
glass-lined French doors open onto plant-filled
wrought iron balconies.
Recoleta
,
San Telmo
,
La Boca
and
Palermo
are most representa-
tive of the city's charm and character.
Recoleta
Located in the northern part of the city,
Recoleta is the city's most fashionable residen-
tial area, home to elegant restaurants, deluxe
hotels and fine shops, as well as several inter-
esting museums. Key streets are
Avenida
