I recently asked Sebastian Airaldi, Experience Director at Buenos Aires Experience to tell us a little more about San Telmo, one of our favorite barrios.
I wanted a tour that our readers and clients who like to DIY Buenos Aires might follow on the ever-popular Saturday or Sunday jaunt through and around the market.
I might add that I tend to tour San Telmo twice with my visitors so they see the best of both worlds, as trying to stop and admire the antique row houses at the weekend is a little difficult with crowds of people pushing you to move on, so I go back for a couple of hours in the week.
Having an almost in-house super expert on Buenos Aires and tourism is really making my life a lot easier and therefore apart from adding walking tours designed by Sebastian, I intend to concentrate on news and keeping our fans abreast of what is going down in Buenos Aires.
What Buenos Aires X said about San Telmo
Today, we continue our walking tours of Buenos Aires boroughs. That reminds me, the other day I bumped into a colleague and his tour group in San Telmo. He was puzzled that I post my walking tours with directions to my blog.
I understand that there are three categories of Buenos Aires traveler: Primarily there are the masses that have to save hard and stretch every penny to enjoy their vacation in Buenos Aires – my information is mainly for those ‘budget travelers’ who cannot afford my tours – ENJOY! Then we have the ‘intrepids’ who can afford the comfort and joy of a local guide, but alas they want to go it alone – ENJOY! Last, but certainly not least, we have those travelers who desire the luxury of a guide and the guarantee of a five star Buenos Aires tour.
At Buenos Aires Experience, we want to play our part in ensuring that all travelers love our great city: 1/ So they come back. 2/ So they can go back home and tell their friends about their Buenos Aires Experience.
SAN TELMO “A true bohemia “
San Telmo was once home to Buenos Aires’ aristocratic elite. That all changed in the 1870´s when yellow fever plagued the densely populated southern barrios of Buenos Aires sending the upper classes and those who could afford it north to Recoleta, Palermo and Belgrano.
San Telmo Buenos Aires is also close to La Boca where hundreds and thousands of poor immigrants would disembark ships to settle Buenos Aires. These poor immigrants quickly moved north into San Telmo squatting the mansions abandoned by the wealthy.
Groups and families shared one room of som eof Buenos Aires most amazing town houses and palatial homes, sometimes these houses became refuge for ten or more families, and thus the infamous “conventillos” were born in San Telmo.
San Telmo is the “tangueros “ barrio of choice because of its “Milongas”(Dances). I am a tanguero myself and have been taking lessons for fifteen years. This wonderful dance form is a never-ending learning process and like golf, you are never fully satisfied and you might improve your swing with some practice.
More recently, an influx of tourist and the development of Puerto Madero (just across the way) have helped revitalize and gentrify San Telmo, it is not finished yet and my hope is that San Telmo retains its character and does not lose its wonderful antique buildings.
The area has attracted white-collar workers and developers. A number of rundown houses underwent development into lofts, hostels, galleries and cafés, giving SanTelmo a new lease of life.
Fortunately, San Telmo’s worn down beauty and the many signposts of yesteryear are still very evident, and we must fight to preserve this open-air museum in the same way as Caminito (La Boca) sort protection in the 1950s. I am not one for fighting development, just preserving what best about our wonderful past.
Walking tour
The Spanish Laws of the Indies established clear patterns for the cities of the colonies. Always a center, then rectangular blocks of roughly the same size spanned out uniformly from that central point. Here in Buenos Aires we love to break the rules, it is part of our culture. Look at Balcarce Street for example, do you find uniformity – not at all. We Porteños consider rules flexible friends in every sense. You might have already noticed, just watch us driving, queuing, or crossing the street – anarchy!
On our walking tours of Buenos Aires, rather than bitch the bits of our psyche that make us so wonderfully disobedient, we like to try to find some positivity and celebrate our cultural nuances.
We start our San Telmo Walking Tour at PARQUE LEZAMA
Designed by the great Charles Thays and said to be the site of Pedro de Mendoza’s founding of Buenos Aires (unsuccessful and round two of the Spanish conquest) in 1536, PARQUE LEZAMA is today home to the Museo Historico Nacional (National History Museum).
This park has a real local feel that often makes visitors think that it is dangerous. On any afternoon you find neighbors sharing a mate and “torta frita” (local homemade fried dough). PARQUE LEZAMA is hilly, with many exotic trees and old folks playing “truco” (local card game involving lots of bluffing).
Across the park you can marvel the ‘Onion Domes’ of the Iglesia Ortodoxa Rusa (Russian orthodox church circa 1904 )built with Russian immigrants it has amazing stained glass windows designed by Alejandro Chistopherson.
Walk north along Defensa Street to San Telmo´s nerve center, PLAZA DORREGO. During the week the square is full of tables with people downing beers in the midst of a scene reminiscent of Hitchcock’s “The Birds” – Pigeons diving in for the kill, your peanuts and chips at risk if you lose your concentration for just one moment.
If antiques are your thing, you are in for a real treat as the whole area is full of antique shops and awakens at the weekend with masses of tables and curb sellers – San Telmo’s vibrant flea market stretches its way down Defensa to Plaza de Mayo. You will love San Telmo’s antique market at the weekend.
Do you know that between 1880 and 1940 we Argentines were rich with the fifth largest economy in the world, we were big buyers of European luxuries and we loved the Art Nuevo and Art Deco periods, just take a look at the wonderful collections in the shops, we especially liked French furniture.
During World War I, Parisians were struggling to survive whereas the porteños were worrying about what new Bauhaus davenport to buy.
San Telmo’s streets become open air theaters where you can find all sorts of performers and tango dancers. Also interesting, is the Museo Penitenciario Nacional (National Penitentiary Museum circa 1750) Once a convent and then became a woman`s jail.
Walk down Defensa for a block and a half and enter the wonderful Mercado San Telmo, where you can buy a “colita de cuadril” (rump´s tail) a collection comics, or papayas and flour, or antique siphons and silk flowers. I love the fact that Buenos Aires is largely ‘disorderly’ and without areas for particular goods and purchases, but San Telmo an area for Antiques and local arts and craft.
If you want to buy antiques, book our expert guide to help you buy. In addition, if you are making major purchases do not come high season.
Stay on Defensa to Pasaje san Lorenzo 380, La Casa Minima (The smallest house). This is the narrowest chorizo (sausage) house in Buenos Aires.
Next, for a look at one of the best sculptures in town, carry on up Defensa and turn east onto passage Giuffra to Plaza Coronel Olazabal, where you find Rogelio Yrurtias´s Canto al Trabajo (ode to labor), and a tribute to all the hardworking immigrants.
Just across the street is the neoclassic Facultad de Ingenieria (university of engineering) once the home Fundacion Eva Peron, set up by Evita to assist the needy and to further the Peron’s political aspirations.
Cross the street to Azopardo and Avenida Independencia where you will find the infamous Confederacion General de Trabajadores (General Labor Federation), the main labor union that is and always has been a hotbed of Peronist politicking and to this day, it exhibits a portrait of Evita on the wall outside of its headquarters.
We are not a lucky people when it comes to politics, I often wonder if the masses support of Peronism, which has hardly been our ‘salvation’, is because we are still recovering from totalitarian regimes of the late 70s and early 80s and because of the lackluster myriad of second-rate and inept leaders we elect.
We need a true leader, an honest political leader and a true reformer to chase away the ghost of Peron chatter from our kitchen tables. Peron chatter, always ‘rose colored’ ignoring the disasters that started during his presidencies and rumbled on for many years after he had gone. This chatter ‘infects’ each new generation.
On Carlos Calvo 257, you stumble on a Scandinavian like church called Dansk Kirke (Danidh Lutheran Church circa 1931) built by Ronnow and Bisgaard. Five streets from there in Azopardo 1428, is the Svenska Kirkan (Swedish Lutheran Church circa 1944) Just another evidence of Buenos Aires´ wonderfully open culture that welcomes all religions and creeds.
Turn right on to Chile, where you might just spot “MAFALDA” (world-renowned comic character who resides in San Telmo). Then turn Left on Balcarce Street to Avenida Belgrano where just a block to your left is the Basilica de Santo Domingo circa 1758. If you observe the left bell tower, you will notice the small cannon balls encrusted fascia.
Souvenirs of the second British Invasion of 1807, the occupying army took control of the site. Inside you will find the flags that were captured when our peoples and the local militia grouped to run the British invaders out of town – hand-to-hand combat, men women and children firing small arms and scalding liquids from the roof tops – armies were no more prepared for guerrilla warfare in an urban setting than they are today! Those damn British never give up! Just a few years later, they are back as a ‘friend’ of Spain in Europe whilst using their money to support our independence and ‘invade’ us again as investors. That brings us to the end of San Telmo and we suggest you walk back up Defensa to se what you might have missed! Or walk back down Defensa to the smaller obelisk of Plaza de Mayo.
Read our tourist guide to San Telmo Buenos Aires
Read our guide to San Telmo’s monuments and main tourist attractions
Read our guide to best restaurants and resto-bars in San Telmo Buenos Aires
BOOK A TOUR OF SAN TEMLO OR BUENOS AIRES CITY
Book a Tour
Business Owner
Trusted Partners
