Beautiful and Budget Friendly Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires, the capital city of Argentina is a gorgeous city, but it is also perfect for folks on a budget. An unfortunate economic climate has put in the country in what seems like an endless cycle of recessions. This is bad for Argentina, but great for tourists. When I visited Buenos Aires, 1 U.S. dollar was equivalent to 3.40 Argentine Pesos, now 1USD=3.70ARS.
If your budget is preventing you from hopping the pond to Europe, I would suggest coming to Buenos Aires. It has a very European feel to it, but without the high price tag. The lifestyle and architecture are markedly more European than any other city in South America. Most Porteños, or residents of Buenos Aires, are of European descent. Argentina actually has the largest number of Italian descendents outside of Italy. To this point, it seems that there is a Pizzeria and or gelato shop on every corner. Also, Argentine men seem to have inherited the art of flirting and flattery from their Italian forefathers. Don’t believe the hype about the general preference for blondes. Argentine men LOVE the ladies. Trust me!

As part of your trip to Buenos Aires, I would recommend spending a day or afternoon in the historical neighborhood of Recoleta. This is a beautiful neighborhood filled with breathtaking parks and dotted with Parisian-style architecture. Most sights in the neighborhood are free or very low cost. This also happens to be the domain of the ladies who lunch. Most restaurants we came across in this trendy and upscale neighborhood offer great lunch and dinner specials. We had a lovely prix-fixed lunch at a great cafe including an appetizer, entree, dessert, and glass of wine for 70 pesos or roughly $20. Argentina’s claim to culinary fame is their mouthwatering steak, and at these prices you would be foolish not to try it.

Walking down the fashionable streets of the Palermo neighborhood, I saw more boutiques in one place than I have ever seen before in my life…and they all had sale signs in the windows! Buenos Aires is really putting out great designers and you can get fantastic deals at their shops. I highly recommend visiting the Carla Danelli boutique. She is a designer focused on shoes, handbags, and other leather accessories. Her designs are unique, modern, and only use the softest leather. I was able to purchase a beautiful fuchsia colored leather handbag for 50% off the original price. It was a great deal!

www.carladanelli.com
Buenos Aires is relatively spread out, but it easy to get around on the subway or subte. Taxis are everywhere and cheap. Most taxi rides cost us between $3 to $5.
If you are looking to travel internationally, but do not think you can afford it in this economy, Buenos Aires is one of the places I would highly recommend to visit. Not only is it a beautiful and friendly city, but you can experience all it has to offer on a small budget.

Bad years can’t start in Rio

That is what I have now come to believe as I look out at the water and see the millions of smiling faces around me. Toasting on the beach in my all white, I am amazed at the level of joy that I feel and how happy everyone around me also is. They toss their flowers into the sea wishing for good luck in this new year and jump seven waves to get their seven wishes. We watch the fireworks and drink champagne as we wiggle our toes in the sand. Shouts of Feliz Ano Novo! Happy New Year!, are shared with friends and strangers alike. In the humid heat we dance along to the Samba in the middle of millions celebrating another year. This is Reveillon!  Read more

You Go, Solo, In Miami-oh!

Lately I’ve become the Solo-Traveler, which I love. I’ve been jet-setting on these one-day and weekend getaways. Traveling solo can be a lot of fun. And strange as it may sound, or most of us tend to not believe, it can be pretty safe. I would advise you to do your research, brush up on the culture, the local life, the language, surrounding neighborhoods, and the local attractions, etc. With that being said, here’s my latest one-day getaway excursion to South Beach, Miami, FL. Nestled in the heart of South Beach but a tab bit off the main beat is where you’ll find a quiet and seductive boutique hotel called The Sanctuary. I found the name of the hotel to be quite peculiar…very sacred. I wasn’t sure if I should pray first or kneel down before entering this “holy” ground…I didn’t know if I should be shunned for my persecutions or praised for my persecutions. A sanctuary is a place where one is taken for some sort of wrongdoing. Well if I did wrong and I had to choose a place to be persecuted it would be South Beach’s Sanctuary Hotel.

Read more

Why Montana?

Montana?
Why Montana?
It is funny where our travels can take us in life. There are certain places we just know we want to visit and will be attractive to see, but we must never discount life’s little surprises.
One of these surprises recently took me to Great Falls, Montana. It is a relaxing and quaint city. From the flat and rolling hills landscape, to the soft and friendly nature of its people, Great Falls is a nice place to visit.

I stayed at the Crystal Inn hotel which had very nice accommodations. It is not a national chain, but the room was very comfortable and very clean! Check out the pics!

Read more

My first “visit” to my islands…

Though I was born and raised in the states I identify with my parents birthplace; the Virgin Islands. Since I was a baby we have traveled “home” to family for summers and holidays. I have fond memories of helping my grandmother bake traditional tarts in her scorching hot kitchen or sitting on her porch watching cruise ships hoping for a cool breeze to decrease the humid and sticky temperature. We would visit my mother’s family on the small island of St. John and eat mangos taken directly from trees and swim in clear waters at the many beaches. But I was never a tourist. From the minute the plane landed I became an integral part of the island, traveling with the residents on their day to day journeys and never experiencing the “America’s paradise” my friends and co-workers would rave about whenever I mentioned an upcoming trip home. To me a trip to my islands meant familiar faces, great home cooked meals, a million mosquito bites, and time with friends and family. I knew nothing of the great resorts, activities or restaurants. Until now…

Read more

Au revoir Paris

Day three started out really sunny and with lots of promise as we took a metro trip to La Defense which is the downtown Paris working area. Lots of futuristic highrise buildings like any other downtown location and I can see it being really packed and bustling on a work day. A train ride back to the city center and a walk around Les Halles which has a really huge shopping mall but with boring chain stores we can find over in the States.  At night Les Halles has a strip of clubs and bars and a bit of seediness thrown in for those with much energy to spare after walking around the city all day.  A walk through the grounds of the Louvre museum and Jardin des Tuileries which is supposed to be a really great centrally located garden but there was barely any green so calling it a garden was a bit of a stretch. The tour ended at Place de la Concorde and the obelisk which is a huge gold topped obelisk taken from the Egyptians by Napoleon during his reign.

At night we took a dinner boat ride with the Bateaux-Mouches company along the Seine.  This was by no means cheap as it involved a 4 course dinner, a bottle of champagne and wine and I am sure there are cheaper dinner tours available if we had done the research but it was a nice dinner and the views of all the major monuments along the Seine…whew, you just can’t take too many pictures of the Eiffel tower especially when it is all lit up at night. Absolutely beautiful.  The buildings along the Seine are historic but fabulous architecture and it is sometimes hard to believe they have stood for thousands of years.

Read more