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Most people come to the Recoleta neighborhood of Buenos Aires to explore the cemetery, but the area around the cemetery is a good place to explore as well. Recoleta is one of the wealthiest areas of the city and has many points of interest.
Paseo Chabuca Granda
I started at Paseo Chabuca Granda, a plaza opening at the end of Calle Junín. In the center is a huge rubber tree that has sprawling branches held up by several supports. It was one of the more interesting features of the plaza, including a few monuments.
Our Lady of Pilar
On one end of the plaza is the Basilica of Our Lady of Pilar (Basílica Nuestra Señora del Pilar), a church completed in 1732.
The small museum in the old cloisters displays priceless ecclesiastical art. It’s open Tuesday to Thursday from 2pm to 5pm and a small admission is charged (as of March 2024).
Recoleta Cultural Center
Next to the church is the Recoleta Cultural Center (Centro Cultural Recoleta). The building complex was completed in 1732 and was originally used by the Franciscans. There are usually art exhibitions inside.
Café La Biela
On the other end there are a few restaurants catering to tourists. One of them is Café La Biela, a place made famous by race car drivers. I popped inside to check it out but wasn’t impressed with the atmosphere.
Plaza Intendente Torcuato de Alvear
A path leading down the hill from Paseo Chabuca Granda goes through Plaza Intendente Torcuato de Alvear. At the bottom of the hill across the street is a monument to Carlos María de Alvear. There are also great views of the buildings that are part of the Recoleta Cultural Center.
Ice Palace
Behind the monument to Carlos María de Alvear is the Ice Palace (Palais de Glace). It was built in 1910 as an ice skating rink, but it proved to be unpopular. It later turned into an important tango ballroom and then an art gallery. It’s revered by Porteños (citizens of Buenos Aires) for its contribution to tango.
National Museum of Fine Arts
A short walk from the Palais de Glace is the National Museum of Fine Arts (Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes). It was built in 1870 as a waterworks facility and became the museum in 1932.
Plaza Francia
There are several plazas in the area, but across from the museum are three small plazas. The first is Plaza Francia. A monument donated by France to Argentina in 1910 stands in the center.
Plaza Mitre
The second is Plaza Mitre. Here, you can find an impressive monument to Bartolomé Mitre erected in 1927. Mitre was president of Argentina from 1862-1868.
Plaza Evita
And the third is Plaza Evita, with a monument to Eva Perón. It was erected in 1999.
National Library
Behind Plaza Evita is a monstrosity of architecture, the National Library (Biblioteca Nacional). It was designed in the 1960s but didn’t open until 1992. As ugly as it is, it shouldn’t be underestimated – it has one of the biggest and most important literary collections in the Americas.
Faculty of Law
Finally, on the street behind the National Museum of Fine Arts are two more points of interest. First is the building of the Buenos Aires University Faculty of Law (Facultad de Derecho – Universidad de Buenos Aires), built in 1945.
Floralis Genérica
Next to the school is the United Nations Plaza (Plaza de las Naciones Unidas). In the middle of the plaza is a steel and aluminum sculpture, Floralis Genérica. It represents all flowers native to Argentina, and has mechanical parts that let it open in the morning and close at night. From 2010 to June 2015, the flower was left permanently open because it was broken and the government didn’t have enough money to fix it.
