Unlike the abundance of vintage shops in cities like Paris, London and Berlin, Buenos Aires has not quite embraced vintage shopping yet.

Many believe porteños view vintage less as fashion and more like putting on a stranger’s second hand dress, but some locals have begun moving away from the designer circuit on their search for something no one else has.

The city’s vintage shops are the most part, chaotic, whacky, diverse and random, but vintage is gradually creeping into wardrobes here in Buenos Aires.

With markets like the Sunday San Telmo market, and the weekend market besides Parque Centenario, vintage shopping here can be a rummaging paradise. This week’s Top 5 is your guide to the best places to buy vintage in BA.

Portobello Vintage Boutique

Having grown up in West London, near the vast selection of vintage shops and boutiques in Portobello Road and Notting Hill, Argentine/English shop-owner Julieta Cameron arrived in Buenos Aires 11 years ago. After quickly noticing a shortage of vintage boutiques in the city, she opened Portobello Vintage Boutique – probably the best vintage shop in the city.

While its exterior may not suggest it, Cameron has, quite literally, imported a Portobello vintage shop into the heart of Recoleta. Once inside you’ll find the quintessential London road signs, newspaper cut outs and posters of iconic British figures among the selection of vintage and second hand clothes.

It’s also miles away from the average vintage shop you’ll find in Buenos Aires. While others can tend to stray into costume dress territory, Portobello Vintage has its head firmly turned towards vintage European style, with a range of different designers, prices and items for both men and women.

In one of BA’s most expensive barrios, the shop receives clothes bought by wealthy residents of the area during their travels to Europe during the 60s and 70s, as well as those sourced by Cameron on her own travels back to the UK. The shop is also orderly, meaning you can pop in here quickly and find something great. Find Argentine labels, as well as designs from London and Paris, ranging from bargain buys to more expensive, special pieces.

Paraguay 1554, Recoleta. Open Monday to Friday 11am-7pm.

Juan Pérez Vintage

Juan Pérez is one of the most well known vintage stores in the capital and stocks just about everything you can imagine.

Walking around the huge shop is an experience in itself, with obligatory lockers for your bag, a bizarre section of vintage ski-wear (including skis) woolly jumpers and fur jackets.

Crammed with clothes, Juan Perez offers hats, jewellery, bags and shoes for both men and women, and it’s easy to spend hours in here, rummaging through everything they’ve got.

The price range here varies: a beautifully intact vintage Louis Vuitton leather bag for $2000 hangs next to a range of other designer as well as far cheaper options.

Although Juan Perez is admittedly more expensive than most of the city’s vintage shops, the pricier items do tend to be worth the money; a delicate silk white shirt from 70s Paris will set you back $200, for example. Nonetheless, there are definitely bargains to be found here; such as a great selection of winter coats and jackets, which are probably nicer than what you’ll find in the average Palermo shop, and definitely a lot cheaper.

A red screen and a mirror alongside a cabinet of costume jewellery encourages all sorts of fun, so don’t be surprised if you find groups of wealthy 60-year old women playing dress-up during the day time.

M. T. de Alvear 1441, Recoleta. Open Monday to Saturday 11am-9pm.

Retro Vintage

Located inside the Mercado de San Telmo on Bolivar, this little-known vintage shop is just a step away from the busy San Telmo market on Sundays.

Open every day, Retro Vintage may be small, but there’s a lot to be found here. The stall is crammed with mainly women’s clothes, and items are sourced through donations from churches and local residents. The shop offers a whole host of items at reasonable prices, such as winter jumpers, dresses, skirts, shirts and shoes, which are all definitely worth spending some time rummaging through.

What really makes the stall stand out, however, is its wide selection of bags hanging from the outside walls. Ranging from backpacks to small purses to weekend bags, the prices begin at around $80 making them cheaper than most bags you’d find at the touristy San Telmo market.

The selection beats many vintage shops in the city, and what’s on offer is for the most part still in excellent quality. If $80 still sounds too expensive, haggling is possible and could save you around $20-30.

Mercardo de San Telmo (Local 37-48) Bolivar 970.

Quinta Avenida Galería

Talk to porteños about vintage shops, and most of them will mention Quinta Avenida Galería. Located among the numerous galleries that line Av. Santa Fe, Quinta Avenida Galeria looks like a normal gallery from the outside, but houses tiny shops all selling second hand and vintage items.

The shops are all run independently, and are full to bursting with clothes for both men and women. Interesting jewellery, one off jackets and blazers along with a selection of bags are just some of the items on offer.

Turning up at around 1pm will give you access to the best stock, and you could quite easily spend the whole day rooting around all the different boutiques in the gallery. Assisted by eccentric shop owners, you’re likely to leave the gallery laden with bargain buys.

The gallery is the perfect place for the dedicated vintage shopper or the rummaging expert as here persistence and patience is key. Particularly noteworthy is That 70s Shop, which specialises in vintage items mainly from the 70s as well as other eras.

Avenida Santa Fe 1270, Open 9.30am-8.30pm daily.

El Buen Orden

With probably the most ironic shop name in Buenos Aires, El Buen Orden has been at its current address in San Telmo for 17 years and is a local favourite.

Not just a vintage shop, it offers every type of antique imaginable. Come here to find vintage jewellery, bags, trinkets, clothes and hats among a whole load of other things such as dolls, pill boxes and doll houses.

More than the clothes or accessories, the best thing here has to be the experience: walking around the strange variety of objects all arranged in a random and haphazard way can be pleasantly surreal. Yet, this is another vintage experience where dedication pays off, and you’re sure to find some interesting pieces at fairly reasonable prices if you persevere.

Antique cabinets stuffed with purses, address books and sunglasses means the chances of finding quirky one off accessories you’re unlikely to find anywhere else are high. Stock changes almost daily, so if you don’t find what you want, you can come back another day and try again. Similarly, if you do want it, get it there and then, because it’s unlikely to be there when you come back.

Defensa 840, San Telmo. Open 11am-6pm daily.

Getting beer on draught at your neighbourhood bar or from a corner store is easily accomplished. It can be a little tougher to find stores that specialize in Argentine craft beer and foreign imports. You can’t drink Quilmes forever!

Here is a guide to some of the noble stores in Buenos Aires that cater to the discerning beer drinker’s need for top notch suds. Each of these locations carries at least one beer that you can’t find at the others, so make sure you visit them all.

Bodega Cervecera

Bodega Cervecera is a Palermo Soho gem a short walk up Thames from Plaza Italia. The store specialises in beer but also carries some wine brands. They carry brands such as Gülmen, Beagle, La Loggia and Die Eisenbrucke. They have gluten free beers, hard to find brands from Belgium, China, and even a beer I had never seen or heard of before from Korea.

Store owner Sebastian Piñol is a friendly guide to the products he carries and is always looking for new things to fill his shelves. If you have a product in mind that he doesn’t carry he is usually able to order it in. Stop in and sample a beer or two from the fridge before deciding what you’ll take home.

I recommend Beagle’s stout, Die Eisenbrucke’s Imperial Stout and Kolsch, and Gülmen Lager Ahumada. It also has the best price I have seen for a bottle of Grosa, a barrel aged Belgian tripel co-created by Argentine musician Gustavo Santaolalla.

Cervelar

Cervelar is an interesting hybrid between a store and a bar. It is like a beer store with tables and waiters. You can order a draught, take bottles to go or do both. They boast two locations the widest selection I know of when it comes to Argentine and Foreign beers (though they don’t have everything). The original location is in Microcentro, right around the corner from the famous pubs of Reconquista and their newest location is in Belgrano.

Prices tend to be a bit higher here on some brands (Grosa, for example). It always pays to compare when you see two stores with the same products. I recommend any of the products by Abdij Deleuze, an Argentine micro-micro brewery that specialises in Belgian style beers. Grab a couple Belgian originals off the shelf to compare side by side.

La Francisca – Feria de Campo

La Francisca is a feria de campo (country fair) themed store located in Palermo Soho, a short walk from Av. Scalabrini Ortiz. The store has a rustic feel and is as close to the friendly, smiley experience of buying at a market stand as you can get without a long drive into the country.

Save for some Schneider lagers, the beer selection is all Argentine and artisanal. The best part about La Francisca is enjoying a beer on the outdoor bench with one of their made to order sandwiches. Sandwiches are cheap (starting at $10) and the cost is based on the weight of the meats and cheeses you pick. Served on a fresh baguette, they are some of the best sandwiches around and certainly some of the cheapest to be found in Palermo.

I recommend the pastrami and smoked cheese, enjoyed on the sidewalk with the beer of your choice. Artisinal beers are all $15 meaning you can enjoy a sandwich and a beer for under $30. Look for Sixtofer’s IPA, one of my favourite IPAs in the country.

Antares

Antares is one of the go-to locations for draught beer, but did you know they also sell bottles to go? Antares can be found in grocery stores (and some of the stores in this list) but you won’t find a cheaper bottle of their products anywhere else. When you consider you can get a 660ml bottle for $13.50 and a draught pint costs $24.00 outside of Happy Hour it pays to get some Antares in your fridge.

Make sure you show up before 10pm to avoid disappointment. Once the beer drinking gets into high gear they don’t sell bottles to go anymore. Antares has a solid lineup of year-round beers but keep an eye out for their seasonal beers. Right now the seasonal beer is Antares Bitter. I highly recommend this beer. It has a gorgeous label and authentic British flavour to match.

Natural Deli

Natural Deli has three locations sprinkled between Recoleta (Laprida 1672), Las Cañitas (Gorostiga 1776) and Palermo (República Árabe Siria 3090). It is a mix between a natural food store and a café/restaurant carrying high-quality foods of all kinds. Their beer selection follows the theme of quality. They don’t carry Argentine artisanal beers, instead focusing on imported beers such as Duvel and Chimay.

You can have a beer sitting down with your meal or take a couple home with you to go with your purchases. This is a great place to try your hand at matching beers with food. Natural Deli is chock full of options for picking up picadas and the drinks to go with them.

I recommend Duvel with your choice of cheese, nuts or preserves.

Are you foaming at the mouth because I missed your favourite beer store? Let me know in the comments! I am happy to investigate your suggestions.

One of the best things about being a tourist is the license to give up control, hand over the reins to the professionals and relax. This means the best chefs cooking for you, the best musicians or dancers performing for you, and the most well-phrased city guides showing you around.

Sophie Lloyd, founder and guide at ShopHopBA, is a well-dressed, shopping professional. So when it comes to the overwhelming shopping selection Buenos Aires has to offer, who better to turn to for a customised tour?

My tour with Sophie began before I even met the lovely, 20-something Brit. Part of the process, as she explained by e-mail, is a list of interview questions to get a feel for the customer’s style, taste and what in particular they are seeking, be it a gift or the perfect leather bag. I responded with unique boutiques and eclectic finds, hoping this might encourage Sophie to reveal a few gems.

Rolling into the neighbourhood known for the shopping elite, Palermo Soho, I met Sophie on a summer Friday for our shopping date. She was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, with a dash of charm and a huge helping of great taste.

As we began weaving through the streets, Sophie assured me she had a plan. Based on my list of answers from the week before, she had selected a few stores in the neighbourhood, though she often tweaks her circuit as she takes it.

“On meeting (clients),” she revealed, “I also get a pretty good idea of their personal style based on what they’re wearing so may throw in a few extra shops along the way.” I looked down at my go-to garb, realising that I wasn’t doing Sophie any favours.

Nevertheless, Sophie hit my style spot on. She took me to renowned independent designer Benito Fernandez, where we found colourful prints and maxi dresses galore. Plus she introduced me to a few new spots including Maria Lizaso, which is anything but another boring Soho boutique, and even took me to browse some menswear locations, showing just how wide her range expands. She listened to what came out of my mouth and gave a second opinion when needed.

We popped in and out of shops, browsing and chatting. I’m not one to dawdle, and Sophie took my shopping speed in stride. She shared stories of writing for the China Daily in Shanghai, where she lived for 5 years, and how she came to be leading me through the streets of Buenos Aires.

“I’d always wanted to have my own business,” she says after moving to Buenos Aires in February in 2010 and continuing in her path as a freelance journalist and costume stylist. “I love shopping and fashion and, more importantly, taking other people shopping, so I decided to do something with that as a side project.” She then launched her website, www.shop-buenosaires.com, and welcomed her first client in April of 2011.

Throughout our tour and conversation, Sophie revealed more and more of her knowledge of the Argentine fashion world in a generous and humble manner. She is filled with fun facts like what labels are thriving in Tokyo- Juana de Arco – and brand new stores openings- Naima. It dawned on me: I need this in my life every Saturday. No pretentious fashion elite, just good old fashioned shopping.

While we were beginning to wrap up the tour, Sophie suggested one last stop a little out of the way. Turned out she had saved the best for last. Holed off behind a tiny storefront on Malabia sits the newly-minted boutique THEM. To the untrained eye, the spot is nothing special. But Sophie led me into a collection filled with sassy pantsuits, Hollywood-inspired prints and unique cuts. Not surprisingly, she informed me how the label was born from an ex-A.Y. Not Dead collaborator and designer friend. With David Hockney references and a cool spirit, THEM won my heart, thanks to Sophie.

By the end of our 2 hours I felt like I had just gone shopping with a great friend, a great friend who just happens to be professional, ready to take control and let the client, be it woman or man, young or old, relax. If you’ve got one of those here in BA, hang onto him/her! If not, you should probably call Sophie.

Shop Hop BA provides half-day or full-day shopping tours open to individuals or groups. The price is AR$150 per hour for up to 4 people. You can reach Sophie Lloyd at infoshopbuenosaires@gmail.com. 

Ever notice how Buenos Aires is all about special nights? The “Night of the Museums,” the “Night of the Bookstores,” the “Night of the Record Stores”? Well, art is overrated, reading is for losers and record stores are dead.

There is one night of the year, however, in which everyone gets to indulge themselves in one of their favorite activities: buying stuff!

Because Americans may have Black Friday, but Buenos Aires has the Night of the Shopping Malls, the night before Christmas Eve in which most major malls around the city stay open until 5 AM so everyone can go spend their bonuses on overpriced products you can definitely find for a lower price anywhere else.

Crowded escalators, endless lines and a very, very pissed off Santa Claus are sure to be waiting tonight, as shoppers run from store to store surrendering to shitty discounts for things they don’t need every time someone yells “happy hour!”

“10% off on a mouse-shaped computer mouse? Sold!” people can be heard saying.

So in case you’re one of those superficial hipsters hoping to experience some good Argentine culture, here’s a list of the malls hoping to rip you off tonight:

• Dot
• Alto Palermo
• Abasto
• Alto Avellaneda
• Paseo Alcorta

Other malls, such as Galerias Pacifico, El Solar and Unicenter also stay open for a while after closing time, but in all honesty they are not as fun as the others.

I mean, the others have marching bands! Marching bands! How cool and original is that?!

Anyway, if you’re going, just get ready for leaving the mall at 5 AM while you realize the searing sun is already high in the sky and you’re sober. That’s when all regrets kick in and you understand that you don’t need gifts to celebrate the holidays with the people you love.

So will I go to those malls and surrender to a spending frenzy right after writing this? Of course I will. But that doesn’t mean I still cannot lecture you on the dangers of consumerism. You know, like the Catholic Church does.

Happy purchases!

A network of three, twice-weekly fairs hosted just outside of Buenos Aires, La Salada has been referred to as both South America’s biggest mall and as its biggest black market. But for the 20,000 shoppers who flood this famous feria every Tuesday and Sunday, these distinctions are of little importance: La Salada is simply where they go to do their shopping.

La Salada  raked in $15bn in 2009 alone, more than the $8.5bn earned by the country’s regular shopping centres combined, according to the government statistic agency INDEC.

Run by three worker’s collectives – Punta Mogote, Urkupiña, and Ocean – La Salada’s success is based largely on its ability to undercut standard prices on items ranging from clothing to food to DVDs.

“When the crisis happened, people were more careful with their money, and so people came here more,” said Jorge Castillo, administrator of Punta Mogote. “We have much more consumption by the people who come for the lower prices.”

Stall operators usually produce their own merchandise in nearby workshops, or buy items from local manufacturers.

Lidia Maza, 53, designs and creates a line of women’s clothing in a house nearby the feria, which is located in the suburb Lomas de Zamora.

“I wanted to try to see if I could be clothing maker,” she said, describing her customers as people who live in Argentina’s interior provinces.

Many stalls items that appear to be knock-offs of international brands like Ray-Ban, Dolce and Gabana, and Adidas, as well as countless pirated DVDs. The European Union called La Salada “an emblem of illegal trade”.

Castillo admits that falsified brands are a problem, but he insisted that only 10 to 20 percent of merchandise at Punta Mogote is pirated.

“Most people do not want problems, so they sell their own brands,” he said.

But walking around the market, knock-off merchandise is abundant. Raids by government anti-piracy forces have occurred in the past, and stall operators had different explanations for how they avoid trouble.

Anderson Cherres, a 31-year-old who has been selling stuffed animals at La Salada for 10 years, said that while his merchandise resembles popular cartoons like Pepe the Frog, Tigger (from Winnie the Pooh), and the Pink Panther, the plush toys are not explicitly labeled as such.

Olga Subelsa, who works at a clothing stand that sells products baring the Nike logo, said that she is not involved in the items’ production. “Other people make them, and they bring them to us,” she said.

Regardless of the authenticity of the merchandise, it is clear that the three markets have provided many with the opportunity to earn a living. La Salada employs about 6,000 people, including security, maintenance, and administrative staffs, in addition to the owners and operators of the markets’ 30,000 stalls.

“Thanks to La Salada, there is a lot more work,” said Mónica Sambad, who operates a successful clothing stall under the name “Barby Pop”. Referred to as the “Queen of La Salada”, Sambad has become a favourite of the Argentine media, attracting coverage as much for her conspicuous plastic surgery – swelling chest, puffy lips, flat-ironed platinum hair – as for the clothing she designs and sells. “With this, I live. I take care of my kids. I bought my house. I have two cars.”

The markets also provide resources for those who cannot afford department store prices.

“This is more the people who have fewer resources, for the middle class,” said Hernán, a security guard who refused to give his last name.

Long-distance buses bring shoppers to Argentina’s most famous feria from interior provinces and neighbouring countries like Uruguay and Paraguay. Many own stores in other parts of the country, and come on Sundays to buy in bulk to bring the merchandise back home.

“A lot more people can afford to buy clothing,” said Sambad. “This is a mall for more humble people.”

Trendy shirts range from 5 to 20 pesos. Sunglasses go for 5 to 15.

“There was the EU statement that talked about how this is the most illegal market in the world, but those guys wear a sweater that was made by a kid who is 8 to 9 or 12 in Central America, and they pay 200 dollars for it,” said Castillo. “But people here, they cannot pay 200 dollars for a sweater. What matters to these people is that they can buy their clothing.”

La Salada’s growth in recent years has been exponential. The markets’ origins date back to 1991, when 45 Bolivian immigrants opened a series of stalls on the dilapidated grounds of a swimming pool park that had seen its prime during the Perón years. The workers formed a cooperative that eventually split into today’s three fairs.

Today, 60% of stalls are operated by Bolivians, 30% by Argentines, and 10% by other immigrants, according to Castillo. The number of stalls grew by 30% between 2008 and 2009 in Punta Mogote alone.

Punta Mogote recently debuted a website to sell merchandise online, and has plans to create a hotel/shopping/entertainment/casino complex in the capital that would be 7,100 metres squared.

Perhaps the most bizarre aspect of La Salada is its hours of operation. Currently, the fairs are open from Tuesday at 1pm to early Wednesday morning and on Sundays from 3am until late morning.

A number of explanations exist for this schedule. Hernán, the security guard, blamed the heat: customers would swelter in the jam-packed aisles between stalls in the middle of day. Castillo attributed the hours to the schedule of shoppers who have to commute.

Tuesday’s opening hours were recently moved up based on consumer demand.

“They [the hours] changed because the people were coming earlier,” Castillo said. “If we were not open, they would be selling on the street, not in La Salada.”

At Souvenir you can expect to find anything from spices and candles to home made artwork or finely decorated notebooks, however you can only expect to find this particular shop between 2nd-24th December. This temporary shop of oddities, art and antiques is only coming home for the holidays.

The concept of a temporary store is novel to Buenos Aires, but commonly practised in the United States and around Europe. Eloise Alemany hopes to bring a little bit of a new tradition to the city of tango. Pop-up shops and temporary stores, popular during the holidays, provide Christmas shoppers with unique or seasonal goods. Souvenir in particular aims to not only helping shoppers find that perfect Christmas gift, but maybe a small something to treat yourself to as well.

Whether you find yourself scouring the city for a piece of art to lighten your living spaces, or hand-made décor, Eloise and her partners Ana Armendariz and Caro Urresti have already assembled a group of their favorite Argentine artists and designers. “What we’re doing is celebrating the creativity in Argentina, we’ve selected a lot of things from different designers who work here independently,” she explains.

By illuminating the scene on local art, crafts and designs, Souvenir has opened the door to many otherwise hidden finds. “We have a small series of handmade Robot figures by Padré y Hijo,” said Eloise, before a small robot figurine made of recycled computer parts, “the story behind these is really nice— they are made by a father and his 11 year-old son. They’ve never shown them before!”

At home in Souvenir with the tiny robot family, the shop also offers new, whimsically printed notebooks from Mono, candles, and a collection of books from a participating antique bookstore. A couple of things you can expect to see range anywhere from hand-woven palm cactuses, vintage necklaces, scented soaps from Pesqueira in Palermo and ceramics all made by various Argentine craft-makers and designers.

“There’s a bit of everything – there’s art which I’ve noticed becoming more and more common in a store setting,” said Eloise. “And we have one of a kind objects that we find in antique shops and other places — little treasures from around the city.”

When coming up with the idea of a “pop-up” the girls decided to keep the talent local, and the flavor exotic. “We also know French chef, Elsa Manlephe, who makes special blends of spices which we sell here in the shop,” elaborates Eloise on the Miss Pepper spice blends. “She can also make your own blend if you fill out a questionnaire so she can learn more about you.”

The Souvenir shop, a small corner of personalized presents, forgotten-vintage spoils and inspired knick-knacks. Along with the customized spice service, they have a local artist specializing in colorful pet portraits — whether it is a gift for yourself, a family member, or your furry friend. “We hope to have enough of a range of things so that everyone can go home with something.”

The girls of Souvenir have their hands full with the temporary gift shop’s steadily growing popularity, and are delighted by the results even after only a couple days into the project. “This is a little bit of a test but we love the experience so far,” Eloise said. “I think the idea is to do this more than once a year and to think of different ideas and concepts that would suit other occasions.”

Souvenir’s short seasonal lifespan seems to draw in new faces every day who know that these rare finds will come but once a year, like Christmas. Despite minimal advertising, they have traveled by word-of-mouth, newsletters, their blog and more, and the semi-secret store doesn’t believe they will remain so secluded for long. The plan is to hopefully go broader long after the holiday season ends — changing locations, discovering new artists and featuring small things that aren’t found everywhere in Buenos Aires.

Markets in Buenos Aires, both Capital Federal and the surrounding suburbs, are varied and full of life. From antiques and artisanal produce, to gaucho shows and fruit and veg, Buenos Aires is certainly a city that holds the idea of the market in high esteem. An interested eye can plan a number of weekend trips to take in the various different atmospheres of each market in turn without ever seeming to run out of places to visit.

Having said that, there is much more to know and love about BA markets than the average guide book or popular website tends to focus on. San Telmo’s Sunday Market (Defensa and Humberto Primo, Sundays 10am-7pm) in Plaza Dorrego for example, is advertised as the market full of and devoted to antiques. Though a nostalgic browse amongst the brooches and eclectic array of telephones, stamps and lace gloves on offer is more than worthwhile, there are other factors that fill the streets of San Telmo with hundreds of faces, old and new, on a weekly basis.

Many people, both Argentines and foreigners, go to Plaza Dorrego every Sunday to take advantage of the free market status and make a little cash. Anything from home-baked food or artisanal clothing and jewellery to freshly produced Colombian coffee is sold by creative entrepreneurs from around the globe.

It is amazing to hear about the positive effects that a few extra pesos in the empty wallet of a struggling BA dweller can have. The hoards of determined sellers who flock to this market every Sunday turn Plaza Dorrego and the never-ending cobbled street of Defensa into an even more bustling, vibrant place of interest than the intrigue of the antique wares would be able to do standing alone.

Indeed, the number of tourists selling home-made cookies, for example, who have decided to extend their time in BA a little further, is quite astonishing. Saturday night is baking time and Sunday afternoon from about 3pm onwards is time to make some beer money for the following week. When a gap in the market is found, someone is bound to fill it, and this branch of activity has generated a huge surge in variety and has brought great energy to this already well-established city spot.

On a similar note, La Feria de Mataderos (Av. Lisando de la Torre and Av. Directorio, Sundays 11am-6pm) on many websites and in all the best-selling guide books, is famous for its spectacular gaucho shows on Sundays from about 4pm and traditional folklore dance presentations throughout the day. However, above and beyond the spectacles from which it has built its popular reputation, Mataderos is also home to some of the most spectacular artisanal food stalls in the city.

Sweet empanadas, alcoholic concoctions using dulce de leche and white chocolate, toffee apples covered in popcorn, huge servings of choripan, creamy home-made ice-cream and fresh fruit licuados are just some of the tasty delights that can be found at this market. One small cafe along the route even sells a cup of red wine for $2 to wash down those huge cuts of red meat in style.

Indeed, it is possible to leave the market on a full stomach without having paid even one centavo for the pleasure. Almost every stall offers ‘tastings’ of their produce to lure the wandering market-goer into buying some of what’s on offer. After a few free bites of dulce de leche, pastelitos, empanadas, chocolate, alcoholic drinks and strips of meat and cheese, needing to stop off somewhere for lunch is not really necessary.

Furthermore, La Feria de Mataderos, like Plaza Dorrego, also operates under a free market system and a number of stalls are kept unreserved for new-comers and those who want to work at the feria every now and then. The process is incredibly simple and very popular. Turn up extremely early, pay $45 to the market administration (found in one of the buildings on the corner of the main square) and sell that creative concoction that the market would otherwise be missing.

Clearly the gaucho shows and the folklore dancing in the streets are important and add to the ambience of the average visit to Mataderos, but being able to work in the market for the odd day is a great opportunity and another way in which creativity and life is nurtured within the Buenos Aires market scene.

The story continues in the same vain for many other markets in BA. Guide books tend to promote the obvious features and fail to reveal the smaller details. For instance, La Feria Cultural Parque Rivadavia (Av. Rivadavia and Av. Doblas, weekends 11am-8pm) is normally recommended for the mountains of books and magazines on offer. Without a doubt, the range and quantity of literature at this market is impressive. It is most certainly a delight to wander through the stalls and hunt down the many gems buried beneath the surface. However, the market is also a great place to go for a game of chess or for a game of truco, followed by a long, lazy mate with friends in the beautiful green park immediately next to it.

As another example, Tigre’s Mercado de Frutos (Puerto de Frutos, Tigre – take the train from Retiro – daily from 10am) is, as suggested by its title, recommended generally for its fresh fruit and vegetables. However, the quality of the artisanal carpentry, the array of plants and the scenic train route that can be taken back at the end of the day when returning to Capital Federal are all equally as impressive.

Though not strictly speaking what normally constitutes a market perhaps, el barrio chino certainly gives off the feeling of being a market in Buenos Aires. China Town (Av. Arribeños and Juramento, daily 9am-8pm) in Belgrano is as expected generally advertised as the place to go to for all things oriental. However, the reality is that shopping for nuts, spices and herbs, as well as produce such as harina de maíz (cornflour) from which an excellent Venezuelan arepa can be made, for example, draws crowds of people every day. In fact, these elements are just as much as a draw as the desire to stock up on vegetable spring rolls.

Everything considered, Buenos Aires has a well-known reputation for being home to a number of wonderful markets, more than is mentioned in this short article, but many of these famous markets offer much more than what is regularly noted. A lot of the material produced about BA markets reiterates the same ideas and perhaps sells short what is available as a result; what the people living in BA actually get out of their markets from one week to the next.

Therefore, bake some cookies, head down to San Telmo on a Sunday afternoon with a basket of freshly made sweet treats and try out a little of the Buenos Aires market scene from a different perspective. Enjoy an alternative experience.

Shiny and light, scrunchable yet durable, cheap to produce and even waterproof, it is no wonder that plastic bags are the most popular way to transport groceries in every corner of the world.

However, when the first plastic bags were born, we never imagined that 40 years on we would be facing a crisis of plastic bag over-population. With a life expectancy of beyond 300 years, the first generation of plastic bags has outlived many of the first proud users of this revolutionary shopping accessory.

Despite the example set by both national and city governments around the world to ban or heavily tax plastic bags, it seems that neither the Buenos Aires government nor the national government have taken action to control the plastic plague in Argentina.

Whether plastic bags are destroyed in incinerators, hidden in landfill, or left to journey into the unknown – usually ending up in the ocean – they have devastating effects on the environment.

According to research published by the UN Environment Programme in 2006, every square kilometre of sea holds nearly 18,000 pieces of floating plastic. This plastic, apart from releasing toxins poisonous to marine life as it slowly decomposes, is often mistaken for food by turtles, whales and albatrosses, to name a few species.

If little Tommy turtle’s stomach gets filled up with indigestible plastic, he suddenly finds that he floats and can no longer dive for food, so dies of starvation.

Not only does marine life suffer from ingesting plastic, but it is estimated that 100,000 marine mammals are literally tangled to death every year by plastic bags.

The world is riddled with immortal plastic bags – in the first month of 2009 over 41 billion plastic bags came into existence – and Buenos Aires keeps on lapping them up.

It is hard to pass a day in this city without amassing a few more plastic bags. Just buying one apple you can easily end up with two bags, one from the fruit counter and one from the cashier. Only 3.5% of these bags are recycled and most are used for an average 15 minutes before being disposed.

Pioneering Warriors

Although small scale and not endorsed by any government authorities, Buenos Aires is home to some active movements striving to reduce the plastic bag presence in the city.

‘No uso bolsas plasticas’ (I don’t use plastic bags) is a local initiative set up by environment conscious Luciana De Luca.

Joaquin Wall, who works on the project alongside De Luca, explains why they are fighting to eliminate plastic bags altogether.

“It is incredible the amount of plastic that is consumed in Buenos Aires and until recently there seemed to be no public awareness about the sheer quantity of plastic bags we use or the environmental impacts.”

Wall believes the lack of concern stems from retailers. “No one asks you in the shops if you need a bag they just give you one automatically. If you say that you don’t need it they give you a strange look and usually try and give it to you anyway.

“We really just want to create awareness and try to change habits,” he says. No uso bolsas plasticas has created a website and facebook page to spread the word.

They also fabricate 100% cotton plastic-bag-replacement bags branding the message ‘no uso bolsas plasticas’ which they sell at production price, $10.

Natural Deli, an organic food market and restaurant, has taken its campaign against plastic bags a step further.

Not only have they brought out a range of canvas shopping bags with fun designs stating ‘soy verde’ (I’m green) or ‘no soy descartable’ (I’m not disposable), but they have also begun using oxo-biodegradable plastic bags.

“It looks and feels like plastic but in six months it will turn into thin air,” says the owner of Natural Deli, Michael Legge.

As this is a relatively new technology, especially in Argentina, it has taken Legge some dedication to find a supplier for the oxo-biodegradable bags.

“Although the oxo-biodegradable bags only cost 10% more than normal bags, it is hard for small businesses in Argentina to find suppliers as the bags can only be ordered in large quantities.

“If a supermarket chain or large retailer were to opt for the oxo-biodegradable plastic bags, getting supplies to smaller businesses would be easier too,” he adds.

Love not War

“Plastic is fantastic” it boldly states on the Symphony website, the British company that developed bio-degradable plastic.

Representative of the Argentine branch of Symphony, Alejandro Dewald, explains how oxo-biodegradable plastic works. “During the fabrication process of plastic bags, we use an additive called d₂w which gives the plastic biodegradable properties. The only residues after biodegradation are carbon dioxide, water and biomass.”

Symphony began operation in Argentina three years ago and Dewalt assures me that it is growing rapidly.

“We are working with the local government to change legislation regarding plastic,” says Dewalt. “The law introduced last year allowing shops one year to ban plastic bags in Buenos Aires province will be effective from 14th October 2009.”

Five billion plastic products, mostly bags, have been produced globally using the d₂w technique. In Latin America, Brazil is the biggest user of d₂w plastic.

Maybe this plastic cloud does have a silver lining: a plastic bag with a limited life. “The beauty of the product,” says Michael Stephens, deputy chairman of Symphony UK,  “is that even if it is not recycled or reused, even it misses getting picked up by refuse collection, it may fly off into the wild, get caught up in a tree, and through exposure to air and sunlight it will simply disappear.”

War or Peace

So, where does the solution lie? Do we doggedly try to eliminate the plastic bag from our lives, opting for canvas bags and wicker baskets, or do we resign ourselves to the omnipresence of this plastic commodity in our world, but at least exercise some control over its life span?

Unfortunately, in Argentina today both options still represent ideals rather than realities.

Various governments at provincial level have taken a stand against plastic bags. In the province of Buenos Aires a law was passed last October allowing supermarkets and large shops one year and smaller shops two years to remove plastic bags from their businesses.

After several attempts to communicate with the Ministry of Environment and Public Space for the government of Buenos Aires, no one was able to advise me of any action the city government is taking to reduce plastic bags.

Inquiries made to the Secretariat of Environment and Sustainable Development for the national government were equally fruitless; leading me to believe that there is no initiative or plan-in-progress to combat the excessive use of plastic bags in Argentina.

It seems that valiant efforts by provincial governments to align plastic bag legislation with more environmentally friendly practices are undermined by a lack of support from the national government.

More than 50 countries worldwide, including Bangladesh, Tanzania and the Philippines, have introduced legislation to cut down on plastic bags, over half enforcing a complete ban on plastic bags.

While the Bangladeshis no longer clog up their drainage system or cram landfills with plastic bags, in the Argentine capital plastic bags remain in plentiful supply, usually under-used and rarely recycled, and all of which will be around a lot longer than us mortals.

 

For more information visit, www.nousobolsasplasticas.com and www.natural-deli.com

“We love Argentine design!” exclaims Australian garden designer and director of Buenos Aires Boutique Tours, Kirsty Noble, as we begin our Fashion Safari over a café con leche and a chocolate brownie.

“When people talk about Buenos Aires they talk about tango and steak, people don’t realise what Buenos Aires has to offer in terms of design,” she adds as she explains why she founded Boutique Tours along with her assistant, Colombian photographer Carolina Montejo.

Starting the tour in a café is a great way to meet the other tour participants and feel like you’re shopping with friends, rather than in an anonymous tour group.

After receiving our free fashion magazine – “soon we’ll be including a complimentary ‘shopping bag’ with a fun design and practical shopping accessories such as water and kleenex,” remarks Carolina – we’re on our way to shop number one of seven.

The tour takes place in upmarket Recoleta and covers all-Argentine boutiques from home and fashion to jewellery and lingerie.

Like the boutiques we visit, each tour is individual. “We don’t have a set route,” explains Carolina. “We adapt the tour to the shoppers.” Whether you want young and funky fashion or stylish elegance, are looking for interior design inspiration or simply after an original designer bag or some stylish summer sandals, they can tailor make the tour to suit your needs.

Their speciality is “uncovering hidden gems” and they certainly exposed some unearthed jewels to our shopping group, two of whom had been living in the city for almost 20 years.

We ended the tour celebrating our new boutique discoveries with a glass of wine and great food in a chic new restaurant – another new find to add to the list. We had a private room in the restaurant and the lunch was a great way to finish off the tour and share our porteño experiences with fellow shoppers.

Kirsty launched the Fashion Safari in November and has big ideas for her enterprise Buenos Aires Boutique Tours. Coming soon are a food tour (which, judging by her taste in restaurants is sure to be a hit) and a photography tour, which hopes to get off the tourist track and offer some alternative images of the capital. She is also looking into extending the Fashion Safari to Palermo.

The bilingual (English/Spanish) tour runs Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays starting at 10am and last three to four hours, visiting seven or eight stores, where you will receive a 10% discount. The promotional price for December is US$25.

For more information visit www.baboutiquetours.com.ar, or contact Kirsty or Carolina on boutiquetours@gmail.com to make an advanced booking.