A lot of people wonder what it’s like being in South America. Is it hotter? Colder? How are the people? What’s the food there? I spent a month in my home country, Argentina, a nation filled with great people, food, and an amazing culture.

I’ve been going to Argentina since I was a baby for Christmas and New Year. This year, my grandpa Hector turned 90 on December 15, and we wanted to surprise him. That’s why we left earlier this year and were able to be with my grandpa to celebrate with all his grandkids around him. This is how my trip started and continued with celebrating Christmas, New Year, and soccer like no other country does.

After a week of being in Argentina, we settled in my grandmother’s house. She lives in Tigre, a suburban area that has grown from a small town to a very nice city in the last 10 years. Almost every morning, we’d walk to a nearby open mall to enjoy breakfast. There are many places, even a Starbucks, but my personal favorite place is called Tostado. Here I’d order a ham and cheese toast, with oven potatoes, a fruit yogurt, and a coconut water lemonade. We were joined by my cousins, uncle, or aunt and they’d enjoy the typical facturas (pastries) with a cafe con leche and freshly squeezed orange juice. Breakfast was the time when we decided what to have for lunch. 

Tigre offers many options for lunch. You can grab something light at a local eatery, have a typical asado, get some sushi, pasta, or pizza, or simply stop at the one of the two largest grocery stores. To keep the vacation on a budget, we would normally buy our food at the grocery store and cook it at my grandma’s house, and on special occasions we were able to enjoy an asado, or barbeque.. This town is close to the Delta del Parana, where you’ll find various rivers, streams and markets, and sometimes we’d buy fresh produce from the locals at the Mercado de Frutos as well.

Visiting Buenos Aires and  Córdoba

“Capital Federal” (the city of Buenos Aires) h

as a population of about 3 million people, but adding “el gran Buenos Aires” it becomes a total of 15 million people. The architecture of the city of Buenos Aires is a blend of different styles mostly with French/European influence. It’s a cosmopolitan city that receives immigrants, students, and tourism from all over the world. My favorite buildings in the city are el Teatro Colon, la Universidad de Buenos Aires – Engineering College, la Casa Rosada, and Estadio Tomas Adolfo Duco (Huracan’s soccer stadium). Nightlife in Buenos Aires is amazing, restaurants are empty until 9 to 9:30 pm when people start to show up for dinner even on weekdays. The youth go out to discos or bars that open around 2 a.m. and close at dawn. 

60 to 70% of Argentinians have Italian ancestry, 20 to 30% descend from Spanish immigrants, while the rest descend from other ethnicities including indigenous people. People are loud and less structured; however, they are undeniably friendly, direct, and welcoming. Argentineans love to travel, domestically and internationally. They have a great country that offers every climate and geography there is. It’s about 100 degrees in the province of Salta or Formosa in the North and 35 in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in Tierra del Fuego. There are lakes and mountains to the West, beaches and glaciers to the East, deserts and fertile lands in the center, rainforests and one of the largest waterfalls in the world, Cataratas del Iguazu, to the North. 

Following a family tradition we traveled to Córdoba, a province in the center of Argentina about 500 miles from Buenos Aires. Córdoba is the second largest city with natural landscapes like las Sierras de Córdoba o el Dique Los Molinos. Córdoba is also home to la Gruta de Lourdes, a religious sanctuary located in Alta Gracia and “La Doma y Folklore” festival which happens every year. Here, the gauchos from Argentina and neighboring countries compete in rodeo competitions.

Enjoying La Costa Argentina

After returning from Córdoba, we had a few days of regular routine, and then my cousins and I visited “La Costa Argentina”, with one of the most famous beaches in South America, Mar Del Plata. Mar Del Plata is located around 250 miles from Buenos Aires and is a favorite vacation spot for many reasons including the beaches, the seafood and the theaters. Even though the water is cold and the sand is rough and dark yellow, it’s an amazing place to spend your vacation. The beaches are long and wide, with an ocean that makes you roll through the waves. It is different from every other beach I know of, mostly because you can find any type of snack, drink, smoothie or typical food directly from your beach chair, and right after that, jump in the water and surf the waves.

After visiting Mar del Plata, we returned to our home and spent our last weeks without any other travels but spending more time with our family. To me, being there is that; family and food combined with visiting amazing places that the country has to offer and learning as much as I can about the culture.