Recommended Hotel
in Buenos Aires:

Click on the Image to enlarge

National Government House (The Pink House): Federal Government House and famous for its pink exterior, statues and lush furnishings. The museum at Yrigoyen 218 holds an unusual collection of personal effects of past presidents. Today the Grenadiers of San Martin in their smart red and blue uniforms, stand to attention around the perimeter.
On the east side of Plaza de Mayo is the Casa Rosada, the Pink House of Buenos Aires. This presidential palace dates back to President Sarmiento's time. The pink salmon color is said to have come from Sarmiento's attempt to

bring peace between the Federalists and the Unitarists parties in his 1868-1876 term. The Federalists were the "red" party and the Unitarists were the "white" party. Another more interesting theory is that the Casa Rosada is pink from the use of bovine blood as a coloring agent. Whichever story is true, the building is certainly pink! Eva Peron (Evita) rallied the Argentine people from the balcony of the Casa Rosada, as did her husband Juan Peron and many other politicians who have convened throngs of Argentines in the Plaza de Mayo over the decades. If you see the movie, "Evita", the Plaza de Mayo was the setting for many of the key scenes. Back to top

Click on the Image to enlarge

City Cathedral: The original structure of the Metropolitan Cathedral was built in 1745; it was given a new facade with carvings telling the story of Jacob and his son Joseph and was designated a cathedral in 1836. The look of the cathedral was changed from a traditional Spanish colonial look to a Greek-revival style at that time, with a pediment and colonnade in front, though the sides, back, and exterior dome remain similar to the original. Inside lies an ornate mausoleum containing the remains of General José de San Martín, the South American liberator regarded as the "Father of the Nation."

(San Martín fought successfully for freedom in Argentina, Peru, and Chile alongside the better-known Simón Bolívar). His body was moved here in 1880 to become a rallying symbol of Argentina's unification and rise to greatness when Buenos Aires became the capital of Argentina at the end of a long civil war. The tomb of the unknown soldier of Argentine independence is also here, and an eternal flame burns in remembrance. Among the chapels of note is the one on the east side of the cathedral with a statue of Jesus with the notation, "Santo Cristo del Gran Amor," or the Holy Christ of Great Love. It was donated in 1978 by an Argentine soccer player whose family had disappeared. He swore he would donate a statue to the church if they were ever found, and they were. While Argentina is a strongly Catholic nation, it is not very big on ritual. However, the most important midnight Mass in Argentina occurs in this church. Called the "Noche Buena," it is held every December 24, generally at 10pm, but call the cathedral to make sure of the exact time. Back to top

National Congress

National Congress: The Congress of the Argentine Nation is the legislative branch of the government of Argentina Situated at the end of Avenida de Mayo, at the other end of which is located the Casa Rosada Argentina's parliament is bicameral and is made up of the 72-seat Argentine Senate and the 256-seat Argentine Chamber of Deputies. Designed by the Italian architect Vittorio Meano Julio Dormal, the building was under construction between 1898 and 1906. Inaugurated that year, its aesthetic details were not completed until 1946.

Local sculptor Lola Mora graced the interior halls and exterior alike with numerous allegorical bronzes. As time went by, the building proved too small for its purpose, and in 1974 the construction of the Annex, which now holds the Deputies' offices, was started (image, below).
Congressional Plaza was created facing the building by French Argentine urbanist Charles Thays and inaugurated in 1910. Popular among tourists, the plaza is also a preferred location for protestors and those who want to voice their opinion about Congress' activities. guard a lateral entry.]] The building from 1976 to 1983 housed the CAL (Legislative Advisory Commission), which was a group of officers from the three Armed Forces. Commissioned to review and discuss laws before they were issued by the Executive Branch, they served a succession of de facto military presidents during the infamous National Reorganization Process.
National Reorganization Process. In practice, this became a mechanism to detect and discuss the differences between the three commanders-in-chief of the Army, Navy, and Air Force regarding a specific project. The CAL was established by the Acta del Proceso de Reorganización Nacional (National Reorganization Process Act), the guiding document for the military government established after the coup d'état of March 24, 1976.
Following a 1994 reform of the Argentine Constitution, the Argentine Senate was expanded from 48 members (two per province or district) to 72 members, whereby the party garnering second place in elections for Senator would be assured the third seat for the corresponding province. Back to top

Click on the Image to enlarge

Cabildo: Restored in 1949, the original 1725-1785 construction – which replaced a 1610 building – was the seat of Spanish colonial power. This building was the place where, on 25 May 1810, locals capitalized on the Spanish crown's political woes in Europe and launched the independence movement. The structure's left and right wings were demolished to make way for the Avenida de Mayo in 1889 and Diagonal Sur (Avenida Julio Roca) in 1931. The building now houses a museum guarded by sentinels in period uniforms. A crafts fair is held in its courtyard Thursday and Friday noon-5 pm.

Museum open Tuesday-Friday 10:30 am-5 pm, Saturday and Sunday 11:30 am-6 pm. 1 P admission. Bolivar 65, Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires. Phone 4343-4387. Back to top

Click on the Image to enlarge

Plaza de Mayo Square (May Square): is the main square in downtown Buenos Aires. Witness to the most important events in Argentinean history, Plaza de Mayo is surrounded by such symbolic buildings such as the Cabildo, the Cathedral, and the Casa Rosada, offices of the President of the Nation. The Plaza de Mayo has always been the focal point of political life in Buenos Aires. Its current name commemorates the May Revolution of 1810, which started the process towards the country's independence from Spain in 1816.

The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo: A group of women who became a symbol of human rights activism and courage. Dressed in black, they have been demonstrating for years every Thursday at 3:30 in the afternoon, in the famous Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires, demanding to know the fates of their loved ones. Marching around the statue of liberty, in front of the presidential palace, they used to tie white hadkerchiefs imprinted with names of disappeared sons and daughters, around their heads, and carry signs emblazoned with photographs of those about whose destinies they sought information. The Mothers' use of the imagery of Christian motherhood made them particularly effective against the professedly Catholic military regime. The mothers are a symbol of courage; leading the struggle for justice, they started their demonstrations while the junta was still in power. Several of them, including their founder, Azucena Villaflor de Vicenti, disappeared themselves as a result. Back to top

Click on the Image to enlarge

Barolo Palace: The works were initiated in 1919 and finished in 1923. The building is monumental: it comprises 32 meters of width x 42 meters of length, with exit to two parallel streets: Avenida de Mayo and Hipólito Irigoyen. Between both streets, a pedestrian alley with commercial shops is in place. The roofed surface is 16,630 square meters, distributed in 18 floors and 2 basements. The structure was entirely made of reinforced concrete, a technique with no precedents in our country by that time. The Barolo Palace was the first building considered as the “first high building” in Buenos Aires, with 100 meters.

The Palace finishes at the top with a rotating lighthouse —installed in 1923— of 300,000 spark plugs. The lighthouse announced great events, like the result of a boxing match held between the Argentinian, Luis Ángel Firpo, and the North American, Jack Dempsey, in 1923. The Toro Salvaje de las Pampas threw his opponent away the ring for 17 seconds. However, the match continued and then Dempsey defeated Firpo.
The particular style of Mario Palanti combines modern elements —a concrete structure, floors aimed at organizing the offices, bow-windows— he cites buildings —for example, in his volume at the “Rajarani Temple”—, or take motives of different moments of the architecture history. This variety of styles and mottos is due to a severe symbiology.
Even more surprising it may result the program used to organize his work. Palanti worked in an obsessive correspondence with the poetry and partitions and hierarchies of Dante universe: Pythagoras, Aristóteles, Ovidio, Horacio, Virgilio and the Testaments.
With the Barolo Palace, Palanti rendered an homage to Dante Alighieri as the best representative of the Latin genius. Thus, the Palace is full of analogies and references to the Divina Comedia. Palanti adheres to a tradition initiated with the Gothic Cathedral: the building is an illustrated scale model of the cosmos. “The floor of the building is built based on the gold section and the gold number. The general division of the Palace and the Divina Comedia is found in three parts: Hell, Purgatory and Heaven”.
The building was inaugurated in 1923. Unfortunately, Luis Barolo could not enjoy the complete work since he died a few time earlier. In 1997, it was officially declared as a National Historic Monument and few years ago –in 2002– it was entirely restored following the original plans.
**It was the highest building in Buenos Aires during one decade, until the construction of the Kavanagh building in 1936. It is located at Avenida de Mayo Nº 1370. Back to top

Click on the Image to enlarge

Click on the Image to enlarge

La Manzana de Las Luces: Constructed by the Jesuits in the early 1800s, prior to their expulsion, La Manzana de Las Luces, a cluster of buildings southwest of Plaza de Mayo, was an enclave meant for higher learning. The metaphorical luces (lights) of its name refer to the "illuminated" scholars who lived within. This was the colonial administrative headquarters for the Jesuits' vast land holdings in northeastern Argentina and Paraguay. In 1780 the city's first School of Medicine was established here, and it became home to the University of Buenos Aires early in the 19th century.

Among the historic buildings still standing are the Parroquia de San Ignacio de Loyola and the neoclassic Colegio Nacional, a top-notch public school and a hotbed of political activism.
You can tour parts of the historic tunnels, still undergoing archaeological excavation, which linked several churches in the area to the Cabildo and the port. The original purpose of these tunnels is a source of speculation—were they used for defense or smuggling? Back to top