Like Paris - but in South America

After having some bad luck with the weather in Encarnación and a lot of rain, the Paraguayan weather report revealed a different "problem" for the next few days: at least 37 degrees Celsius during the day with no chance of a cloud or shade. Since Paraguay is not known for its museums and other tourist highlights, we decided to escape at short notice. That's why the day after our carnival adventure, we headed towards the bus station again for one of our longest trips: 15 hours to Buenos Aires.

Another reason for the detour to Argentina was the many enthusiastic travelers who raved about Buenos Aires. Combined with the big city atmosphere that we already miss a little, we had enough arguments for our small 4-day trip. And we were not disappointed. We both really liked Buenos Aires and now understand why it is called the Paris of South America. In addition to beautiful architecture that reminded us of cities in France and Italy, there are several neighborhoods that invite you to take a stroll and have a coffee. Speaking of coffee - as lovers, we finally got our money's worth here. After a lot of instant coffee in the last few days and weeks, there was finally a wide selection of nice cafés and good food.

Of the major tourist highlights, the Recoleta Cemetery, a cemetery for the city's famous and wealthy families, will particularly stick in our minds. This cemetery has little in common with the ones we know, as there are no normal graves, but rather large and beautifully designed family tombs. Individuals from several centuries find their final resting place here.

In addition to the historical sites in the city, a small modern district has been created on the grounds of the former harbor, which reminds us a bit of Miami Beach - bridges lead from the rest of the city to this offshore "island" with many modern skyscrapers. However, here too, the stark contrast between the rich and the poor was evident, which has caught our attention again and again, especially in Argentina and Paraguay. The promenade with the modern houses and hotels suddenly ends and is directly followed by streets with run-down metal shacks. This always makes you think, and at least we feel that the problem of the gap between the rich and the poor and the shrinking middle class is much greater here than in Europe.

After our short stay, we are now back on the bus, ready for the next 19-hour bus ride as we make our way back. But we are sure - Buenos Aires will see us again. Not on this trip anymore, but we would like to come back and explore the city further.