Buenos Aires La Boca

Though not far south of the city center, gritty, blue-collar Boca seems miles away from the sleeker northern barrios, and its residents revel in their individuality, often referring to themselves as La República de la Boca. Once the city’s main port on the Riachuelo, the neighborhood was settled in the 19th century mainly by Italian immigrants, who painted their houses with the leftover paint from boats, a practice that gave the barrio the brightly colored houses along El Caminito for which it is now famous—and so very popular among tourists. At times, it can feel like an amusement park. Along with its unique architecture, the neighborhood also identifies itself heavily with its resident soccer team, the Boca Juniors, Argentina’s most famous club and another big tourist draw. Despite the barrio’ s popularity, visitors should be aware that it is still very poor, and should avoid wandering in quiet areas away from the main sights, as there have been a number of muggings in recent years. There is no subte stop in Boca; the easiest way to get here is to catch bus #86 from Plaza de Mayo, which passes right in front of the soccer stadium, or to walk from Parque Lezama in San Telmo along Avenida Almirante Brown.

Safety In La Boca. The barrio ’s non-touristed districts can be unsafe by day and night and are best avoided. If you must travel through these areas, exercise caution or consider taking a taxi.

La Bombonera And El Museo De La Pasión Boquense. Located just a few blocks from the waterfront, the Boca Juniors’ stadium is, in many ways, the center of the neighborhood, as well as its most important symbol. Built in 1940, La Bombonera, or “the chocolate box,” seats only 40,000—a number which is shockingly small considering the team’s popularity. The entire exterior is painted in the squad’s colors, an equally shocking blue and yellow. According to the local story, the group of kids who founded the club in 1904 couldn’t figure out what colors to adopt and therefore agreed to accept the colors of the flag of the next ship that entered the harbor, which turned out to be Swedish. If you don’t make it to a game, you can also catch one of the official stadium tours, which visit the stands, the field, the press room, and the locker rooms, complete with hot tubs and icons of the Virgin. La Bombonera also houses a high-tech, interactive museum devoted to the Boca Juniors. Here, you can catch up on your stats, watch famous historic goals and footage from the team’s championship matches, and get your fill of team memorabilia. Though the exhibits themselves may not be particularly fascinating to non-soccer fans, the complex’s enthusiasm for both the sport and the team is infectious—and may convince you to attend a match after all, especially after hearing the recording of announcers screaming “gooollllllllllllllllll” on loop. (Brandsen 805. ☎4362 1100. Stadium and museum open daily 10am-7pm; box office closes at 6pm. Museum AR$14. Stadium tour AR$14. Combined ticket AR$22.)

La Vuelta De Rocha And El Caminito. On Boca’s southern edge lies La Vuelta de Rocha, a small inlet of the Riachuelo that once formed the center of the barrio ’s port. From the walkway that lines the banks, you can see a number of colorful ships (and shipwrecks) still docked here, though you may have to hold your nose while doing so; the stench this close to the river is intense. If you look to your left, you’ll see the ugly iron bridges Puente Transbordador and Puente Nicolás Avellaneda, both built in the first half of the 20th century to connect Boca with the suburb of Avellaneda. Branching off diagonally from the center of La Vuelta is one of Boca’s main sights, El Caminito, an open-air museum named after a tango song and devoted to showcasing pristine examples of Boca’s colorfully painted houses. In the early 1800s, a small stream branch of the Riachuelo flowed on the site of the modern city’s streets. The creek eventually dried up, and was replaced by a railroad and then an unattractive landfill and road in 1954. Then Benito Quinquela Martín, an artist, came along and forever changed the neighborhood from dump to tourist mecca. He painted a series of murals on daily life across the barrio and, per an old Genoese custom, encouraged the residents to paint their homes in bright colors using leftover paint from boats in the port. Thus, El Caminito was born. As soon as you enter the street, it becomes clear that no one actually lives here anymore. Lined with cafes offering free tango shows and, on weekends, stalls selling local artwork, the street is sometimes so packed with tourists taking pictures that it’s nearly impossible to see the buildings themselves. Depending on your tastes, El Caminito can either be a fun place for a stroll and a meal, or the biggest tourist trap in the city.