Discovering the Charm of San Telmo in Buenos Aires

There's a place in the southeast corner of Buenos Aires that still conveys the feeling of a different era, a slice of Europe that thrives in South America. The neighborhood of San Telmo in the capital city of Argentina was once the wealthiest neighborhood in Buenos Aires.

But a Yellow Fever epidemic in 1872 frightened the rich into leaving San Telmo, was which located close to the river, for lands further away in the north of the city where the residents appeared to be safer from the disease. From that point, up through the mid-20th century, San Telmo deteriorated into a slum.

The majestic mansions were converted into tenements. The early 20th century saw massive European immigration to Argentina, mostly from Italy. The poor immigrants were crammed into sordid, unhealthy conditions throughout San Telmo. But over the years the immigrants assimilated into Argentine culture and life to become a driving force in contemporary Argentine society, as evidenced by the many Italian surnames that are found among residents the city.

In the early 1970s the director of the city's museum decided to help revitalize the neighborhood of San Telmo by holding an antique fair every Sunday morning in Plaza Dorrego, the centerpiece of San Telmo. More than thirty years later the antique fair is still going strong. On every Sunday morning the majority of tourists in Buenos Aires descend upon San Telmo to browse the dozens of booths selling antiques.

Around the plaza you can hear tango music and surely will find more than one couple dancing to the sounds of tango on the cobblestone streets of San Telmo.

Good buys are often hard to come by and it takes a good eye and knowledge of antiques to find the best purchases. But for the diligent there are some real beauties to be found. If you look hard enough, for example, it's possible to find an 18-karat gold and platinum cross necklace for eighty dollars. Of course, all prices are negotiable and you'll get the best deals if you're able to take a local along with you to help with the bargaining. As any place filled with tourists, prices go up for those with American or English accents and no knowledge of Spanish. Still, exploring the booths of antiques - and, yes, a lot of junk, too - is a splendid way of spending a Sunday morning.

If you're really serious about antique shopping in Buenos Aires, then you will want to stop in many of the antique stores that now line Defensa street, the main avenue that runs the length of San Telmo. These antique stores are pricey but carry exquisite merchandise that they will gladly have shipped overseas to your home in the U.S.

San Telmo is also filled with a number of restaurants, many with outdoor seating or views of Plaza Dorrego. Particularly popular is the old Bar Dorrego, which is at a stunning location that offers a window view of tango dancing in the streets and antique selling in the plaza.

Walking up Defensa street on a Sunday you'll encounter a throng of people as the street is closed to traffic while street performers entertain you. Stretching for blocks down Defensa are now dozens of booths that sell arts and crafts in addition to the antique fair in adjoining Plaza Dorrego. Sundays in San Telmo is the perfect place to find your perfect souvenier of Buenos Aires.

But all of San Telmo is not about antiques and catering to tourists. Wander a block away from Defensa street or visit San Telmo on a weekday and you'll find a vastly different neighborhood. In reality, San Telmo is an enchanting, residential area where most of the narrow streets are cobblestone and most buildings date back a hundred years. The residents of San Telmo are a diverse bunch, including now some of the richest in the city. But also some of the poorest as San Telmo is still a neighborhood of immigrants, but now the immigrants are mostly from Bolivia and Paraguay rather than Europe. San Telmo also is the most bohemian of all neighborhoods in Buenos Aires with writers, artists, and photographers calling it home. Many of the city's leading creative artists live in San Telmo.

Lastly, if you walk down a side street in San Telmo early on in the mornings, then you almost feel transported from Latin America and into some forgotten area of Europe. And that's why people come to Buenos Aires.