Strolling through the fairs and festivals of Buenos Aires

Most weekends in Buenos Aires are packed with unique opportunities in the city, one in particular being the “ferias” or fairs that you can find in almost every neighborhood.

These street fair style markets pop up every weekend in the same places and sell everything from food to fabrics. There are stalls that line the sidewalks of the different plazas in each neighborhood and everyone from tourists to locals relies on these for their shopping. The ferias are similar to a farmers market or flea market. The most well known and largest in Buenos Aires is the Feria de San Telmo, which extends for miles down through the the entire neighborhood every Sunday.Stalls selling all types of artisanal arts and crafts, clothes, tourist knick knacks, food and more run down both sides of the entire street which ends in a plaza that has even more booths. With the incredible number of vendors that can be found at this fair, there is, without a doubt, something for everyone.

If shopping and street food are not enough for you, there are always many other special cultural opportunities. This past weekend in particular was full of festivities. The city hosted two festivals that are widely loved by Porteños,  “Masticar” and “BAFICI.”

Feria Masticar, which literally means “fair chew,” is a food festival that hosts the best chefs and most popular restaurants in Buenos Aires. The Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente, BAFICI, is a ten-day international film festival that screens movies both new and old from all around the world in different theater locations throughout the city. I was lucky enough to get a taste of both this weekend.

On Friday afternoon, some of my housemates and I explored Feria Masticar and were blown away by the amazing cuisine options and creative variations on traditional plates from the representing chefs. There was also a grocery section where local farmers were selling organic fruits, vegetables and a number of spices and sauces.

After thoroughly scouting all the booths, we decided the best approach would be to compile our vouchers and share a variety of small plates. We tried parilla pizza (barbecued pizza), bondiola (a steak sandwich), ceviche, a salmon dish, raspberry Nutella crepe and dulce de leche torta (cake). I would have to say my favorite was the salmon and grilled vegetables prepared by Jessica Lekerman, the head chef at Mooi.

While it sounds simple, the salmon was cooked to perfection and paired with a hybrid teriyaki balsamic sauce that was just flavorful enough while not overpowering the fish. Aside from all the amazing food, the overall setup created a perfect atmosphere. All the booths were accessible and each decorated to match the chef’s personal style, there was a local radio station playing music and a main stage where chefs would do live cooking shows. After walking around and grazing on incredible food, we didn’t think our day could get much better until the MC announced that it was National Malbec day and that there would be free wine samples for the rest of the evening. While it might not have been the best wine Argentina has to offer, it was fun to taste and see all the wine aficionados give their different opinions.

My weekend of festival exploration continued Saturday night at the Anfiteatro del Parque Centenario, one of the screening locations for BAFICI. This open air amphitheater, was screening “Only Lovers Left Alive,” a German film that was released in 2013. BAFICI has a variety of paid and free screening opportunities.

I will be honest — my friend and I chose to go see this film solely around the free entry (the reality of the traveling student budget) and didn’t know much about the movie beforehand. That being said, I was extremely pleased with my experience as a whole.

In typical Argentine fashion the free event was extremely well attended, but we were able to find seats just in time for the start of the movie. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, which presents the story of two vampire lovers who have lived ordinary human lives throughout several centuries. I know that when people hear vampires nowadays they often think of the Twilight series, but I strongly discourage any preconceived notions about this type of storyline and would definitely recommend this film.

Along with the captivating movie entertainment (shown in in English with Spanish subtitles), the open air and star-studded sky above combined with the energy of a packed amphitheater created a perfect atmosphere that makes me question why we would ever watch movies indoors.

There is truly never a dull moment in this city, and this weekend was no exception. With so much to do on weekends in particular, I am already wishing I had more time in Buenos Aires. Thankfully, with three months left, I will hopefully be able to see and explore as much as possible as I continue to learn of and experience more local activities.