Buenos Aires, Argentina

Buenos Aires surprises its visitors with its contrasts; with a mixture of different styles that distinguishes the big cities of the world: elegant, noisy, cultural, lover of the tango, of endless coffee chats, of nightlife and of course: of soccer.  One of the most interesting attractions of Buenos Aires is its architecture. Its style reflects the influence of the Spaniards, French and Italians in its building and in its parks. The city has wide avenues, mansions, extensive green spaces, hundreds of sculptures and a large quantity of churches.

 Buenos Aires is located in front of the Río de la Plata, and it is made up of 47 neighborhoods.  The majority of the "Porteños" are identified with the neighborhood where they lived almost all their life.  Nine of the neighborhoods concentrate most of the tourist attractions: La Boca, San Telmo, Monserrat, Puerto Madero, San Nicolás, Retiro, Recoleta, Palermo and Belgrano.

It is easy to move around the city since it is distributed in blocks of 100 meters long and wide.  The avenues and streets are identified with names of personalities of the cultural, military and political history of the country and of the world as well as places and dates. The financial district, commonly referred to as "La City" or "Microcentro" is located between Avenida Cordoba and Avenida de Mayo and between Avenida 9 de Julio and Avenida Paseo Colón; while the tourist areas of the city are found in the neighborhoods near the "centro" or downtown, and they are:  Recoleta, Palermo, la Boca, San Telmo and Puerto Madero.