Most people probably know Argentina because of “Evita”, an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical and then 1996 film based on the musical; plus the famous “tango” music and dancing. I know it because I spent about 8 years of my flying career with American Airlines flying Boeing 777’s and 767’s from Miami and Dallas to Buenos Aires. I spent many layover nights here so know it very well. I came to love the food and people but this beautiful city is rich in architecture, history, and culture as well. First here is a little about the country.
Argentina is the 8th largest country in the world and second largest in Latin America (Brazil is largest). The earliest recorded human presence in the area dates back to prehistoric times but the Spanish colonized the region during the 15th century. It declared its independence on July 9, 1816. The 9th of July is a huge holiday down here and the main avenue in Buenos Aires is called, “Avendia 9 de Julio” (9th of July Avenue). It is the widest avenue in the world with 7 lanes in each direction and is flanked on either side by parallel streets of two lanes each. Our crew bus arrived during rush hour and 9 lanes were still not enough.
Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America. It is a member of the G-20 major economies. Its historical economic performance has been very erratic, with high growth alternating with severe recessions. It is my observation that it has a two class society-the have’s and the have not’s. The poverty rate is now 57%. Inflation has been a weakness of the Argentine economy for decades. As of August 2025, the inflation annual inflation rate was 33%. When I first started flying down here the US dollar and Argentine peso were equal ($1 = 1 peso). Not long afterwards the government started devaluing the peso and today $1 = 1,330 Argentine pesos. Today an American can have a very nice dinner in Buenos Aires for a great deal. Could be one reason it is the most visited city in South America!
They have a diversified economy which includes: food processing, wine, tabacco products, cars & auto parts, textiles, leather, refineries for gasoline and diesel, chemicals, and agricultural products (beef, corn, soybeans, sunflower seeds, and fruits). There were a lot of Italian immigrants, so as a consequence, there are many great Italian pharmaceuticals, steel, aluminum, iron, machinery both farm and industrial, home appliances, plastics, tires, glass, and cement.
English is taught here since elementary school but only 42%”claim” to speak it. I know from personal experience that many knew what I was saying but denied it. Pasta can be found on almost every restaurant menu. That’s because 55% of Argentines have Italian origins. Like the US, Argentina is a large melting pot of immigrants. The country has to highest consumption of red meat in the world. The meats are traditionally prepared as “asado”, which we call grilling. Another one of my favorite foods there is grilled provolone cheese with oregano on it. The “papa fritas” or French fries are also to die for. Ok, now I am hungry! There were a lot of Italian immigrants, so as a consequence, there are many great Italian restaurants here.
Argentina is 2300 miles in length, north to south, so it has a variety of regions. Northern Argentina has a more rugged terrain but is still very beautiful. The Pampas is a massive, fertile plain in the central part of the country where farming takes place. In the south is the Patagonia region that is characterized by arid, rugged terrain on east side, moist cold grasslands to the south, and dense forests to the west. There are also world-class ski resorts in Patagonia. Lying next to the Andes mountains almost due west of Buenos Aires is the city of Mendoza and this area is well known for its great Argentine wines. Probably the wine most associated with Argentina is “malbec”, a delicious red wine.
Buenos Aires is also the birthplace of the last Pope, Francis. We were also here on Regent Circle South America cruises in 2012 & 2016.
TODAY:::
We both woke up at 6:45 after a good night's sleep. Rebecca is allergic to feathers so yesterday housekeeping brought her hypo allergenic pillows and took the feather duvet and replaced it with a blanket. Feathers make her nose stop up.
After showering I ran down to the Exec Lounge and got some coffee for us. There was a very nice breakfast buffet there which we would enjoy later. There was a brief electricity outage which put the elevators our of service and our room was also affected.
At noon we went for a little walk to a pharmacy near the hotel. We wanted to get some Z-pacs and amoxicillin but it required a prescription as in the States. The hotel concierge said a smaller, non brand name pharmacy off the beaten track would probably not care about a prescription. There is one right across the street from the restaurant we will be going to this evening. Will try again there.
It was 85 degrees when we were out so too hot for us to walk much. So I am spending the afternoon on my laptop. I discovered that besides our Regent Splendor there will be a MSC Fantasia cruise ship in the port tomorrow. Our ship is 750 passengers and the MSC ship is 3300 passengers.
Tomorrow is "Carnival/Strove Tuesday" a national holiday here. It's making for a long weekend so lots of folks in BA. Kinda like our Mardi Gras tomorrow.
Ok, after our 5pm happy hour we headed down to get an Uber ride to El Establo for din-din.
Tomorrow we board the ship!
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