Argentina Adventures: Buenos Aires after Dark

To experience Buenos Aires fully, you have to stay up late.  This presented a challenge for me, as my preferred bedtime hovers around 10 p.m., i.e. just when city’s nightlife is getting into full swing.  Of course, on those occasions when I babysat for Sylvie, I had to stay up later.  Walking back to my apartment at midnight or 1 a.m., I saw how lively the neighborhood was.  Families, groups, and couples were out enjoying the evening.  There were even some babies and young children in strollers.  Restaurants were filled.  Laughter spilled from the tables outside the pizzeria on the corner of my street.  Through the window of the heladeria (ice cream shop), I saw several people sipping coffee from tiny cups and working on their laptops as if it were 12 noon rather than 12 midnight.  I was almost tempted to stop in for a late night cone of dulce de leche with chocolate chips.  But something stopped me.  I wasn’t quite ready to become a night owl myself. 

After a few weeks, however, I realized that I was just observing the nightlife as a spectator.  It was time to take the plunge and become part of the action.  And what better way than by getting tickets to a late night tango show?  After all, tango is synonymous with Buenos Aires.  Sure, it would be touristy, but I’d been dreaming about tango ever since I’d arrived in Argentina.  

Several venues throughout the city offer this form of entertainment.  Some have a combination ticket entitling you to a dance lesson, a typical Argentine parrilla dinner, the tango show and a drink.  They’ll even arrange transportation.  None of this is cheap, of course.  I debated briefly and decided I’d go ahead and splurge.  A tango show was one of those “only in Buenos Aires” experiences that I couldn’t pass up. 

After doing some research, Elisa and Christian did some research, we opted for the show and drink package at El Viejo Almacen in San Telmo.  From their New York days, they’re used to going out and staying out late.  In order to make sure I could stay awake throughout the 10 p.m. show, I took a mid-afternoon nap.  Getting dressed to go out when I’d normally be getting ready for bed felt very strange.  I had to remind myself that when I was single and living in the Boston area, going out at 10 p.m. was routine.  

When our Uber dropped us off at El Viejo Almacen, I stepped out into a San Telmo that looked much more exciting in the dark than it did during the daytime.  The area was still quiet, but I sensed a hidden passion beneath the surface.  Or maybe I was just being overly romantic. 

Waiting for the tango show to begin

The stage is all ready for the tango show.

The show featured several dancers and musicians, including a bandoneon player.  I love the melancholy tones this accordion-like instrument produces.  The tables were close enough to the stage so that we had an excellent view of the performers.  The dancing was wonderful, and we also learned about the history of the tango – how it started in the multicultural milieu of La Boca and how it was originally developed by men to attract the attention of the few women in the barrio.  I certainly didn’t have any trouble staying awake, thanks in part to the dazzling costumes, mostly in black, white and red.  My only complaint about the show was that it ended too soon.  By 11:30, the house lights came back on, pulling me back to the real world.  As we gathered our belongings, I turned to Elisa and Christian and said, “You have to take tango lessons!”  A thought struck me and made me a bit sad:  If I had a partner, I’d take lessons, too.  Elliott always said he was an excellent dancer. 

Even without going to a show, you’ll notice tango throughout Buenos Aires.  While walking around the city, I saw diagrams on the sidewalk showing the steps.  

This shows how to tango!

At a restaurant in La Boca, a couple danced on a mini-stage set in the window to draw in customers.  In San Telmo, I passed by a shop selling tango clothing.  

Buy your tango clothes here.

And you can find milongas (public events where people go to dance tango) in various parks every week.  I’ll have to save that for my next trip – oh, yes, there’s going to be another trip for sure. 

My other Buenos Aires after dark experience was a night at the opera, at the famed Teatro Colon.  The theater, modeled on the grand concert halls of Europe, is considered one of the finest concert venues in the world.  Before I left home, I had gone to the Teatro Colon website and ordered tickets (using my rudimentary Spanish!) to a performance of the Richard Strauss opera Der Rosenkavalier (or as it’s called in Spanish, La Caballero de la Rosa).

On the day of the performance, I took a nap to prepare for the late night ahead.  Elisa went with me, and we started our evening out with coffee at the Petit Colon café across from the theater and a light dinner at El Gato Negro on Avenida Corrientes. 

A pre-opera dinner at El Gate Negro

The interior of El Gato Negro looks like an old drug store.

Then we hurried over to the theater for the 8 p.m. curtain.  Fancy cars were pulling up outside the beautifully illuminated building.  Tuxedo-clad men were ushering women in ball gowns into the theater.  Elisa and I looked at each other hesitantly.  She was wearing a skirt, but I was wearing my best pair of black jeans.  We shrugged and continued through the doors, held open by doormen in fancy livery.  However, when we presented our tickets at the base of the grand staircase, the usher shook his head.  It seems that only patrons holding the most expensive tickets can make an entrance here.  There was another entrance, much less impressive, for the plebians like us, around the corner. 

The glamorous people arriving at the Teatro Colon

The grand staircase, where we were turned away

Eventually, we found our way to our seats and looked out in awe at the magnificent interior with its multiple levels of horseshoe shaped rings.  

The view from our seats

Even before the music began, it felt magical to be sitting there in those seats.  We enjoyed a wonderful performance of the opera, and I managed to keep my eyes open the entire time.  With two lengthy intermissions, the final curtain didn’t come down until after midnight, when the two young lovers finally fell into each other’s arms.  I glanced at my watch.  Once again, thank goodness for Uber.  I was back in Palermo and in bed by 1 a.m.