Saturday we explored Barracas, one of the southern barrios of Buenos Aires. It’s one of those places that most visitors to Buenos Aires never see unless they’re traveling securely in a tourist bus on the way to one of the tango shows; Señor Tango has a large and gaudy building in Barracas for its extravaganzas. Their only impression of Barracas may be that it’s full of squalor and old factories and warehouses. Actually, I get the idea that a lot of Porteños have that same impression.
After walking around Barracas on our own for five hours on Saturday we came away with a different perspective. Certainly there is an area that is lined with factories, particularly as you get close to the river which reeks of an infamous stench. A number of makeshift residences underneath the elevated railroad tracks also gives the barrio a rather questionable character. The name of the barrio doesn’t help either. The word “barracas” means “cabins, huts, shacks” and the barrio’s name refers to the 18th century warehouses near the river that stored leather and salted meat.
Yet, most of Barracas is a nice residential area with an interesting history that I’m beginning to learn. While I only know a meager part of the barrio’s past, I’ll be posting some photos and writings over the next few days about what we learned.
If you’re only in Buenos Aires for a few days or on your first visit, then you can safely skip Barracas. But, if you live here then get out of trendy Palermo and comfy Recoleta and get yourself down to one of the southern barrios for a few hours. If you’re hesistant about going by yourself, then Robert gives a walking tour of Parque Patricios, a barrio that neighbors Barracas. Borges was very fond of the southern barrios which for him most reflected the mythological nature of Buenos Aires that he sought to create through his literature.
November 14th, 2005 at 7:36 pm
Hey Jeff – thanks for the plug, but more importantly thanks for urging people to explore the south. People don’t really *know* Buenos Aires until they get a feel for that part of town… so much interesting history & quite a few nice sites.
As much as I’m against gentrification, I would love to have an enormous loft in an old factory. If only the subway were just a little closer 馃檪
Did you make it to the microbarrio Monseñor Espinoza?? I want one of those chalets to alternate with my loft.
November 15th, 2005 at 6:35 am
Hi Robert – I did make it over to the Monseñor complex, a wonderful little area. The flower gardens in front of those chalets were in full bloom, very nice. (For other readers, I’ll be putting up a photo of these chalets soon).
I agree that those old factories would make great lofts.
September 12th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
[…] Actually, I now live on Av Caseros but on the east side of Av 9 de Julio where Caseros forms the border of San Telmo and Barracas. This part of Caseros is separated from its other half by the railroad tracks leading south from Constituci贸n. On the west side of the tracks Caseros is the border of several barrios, separating Constituci贸n from Barracas and leading onward to Parque Patricios. I’ve already explored the interior of Barracas but this time I wanted to walk as far as Parque Patricios before turning back towards San Telmo. […]
October 20th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
[…] like everybody is talking about Barracas these days. Robert is busy mapping points of interest in Barracas and yesterday I was joined on a […]
March 11th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Hi Jeff, take a look to our blog…
http://www.protegerbarracas.blogspot.com
– TRAGO AMARGO EN BARRACAS DULCE –
Relevamiento e informe acerca del proceso de transformaci贸n en marcha en un sector de Barracas.
Proteger Barracas
http://www.protegerbarracas.blogspot.com
Por la preservaci贸n del patrimonio arquitect贸nico y nuestra calidad de vida.
July 24th, 2009 at 5:50 am
A quien concierne,Vivo en Sydney Australia hace 35 años y necesito, por favor, si hay algun hecho historico en Barracas para nominar una calle con el nombre AUSTRALIA.Esta entre varias calles, mas o menos segun mis datos: Velez Sarfield,Pedriel,cerca de de la Playa de estacionamiento Sola, Agustin Magaldi.Australia tiene a mi entender unas 12 cuadras..La municipalidad de Sydney me ha hecho la pregunta por que les interesa saber si hubo alguna razon especial para dar ese nombre..Es importante para un proyecto. Se lo agradecere mucho..Rodolfo Rivarola Pte Instituto Nacional Sanmartiniano,Sydney Australia….
October 12th, 2010 at 6:46 pm
Hi. I intend to visit the barrio Barracas in Buenos Aires, but I’ve heard that in this neighborhood as in La Boca, we can be in dangerous because of the violence. I really want to know your opinion, can walk aroud there without problems? Is better to check at the turist’s information center about the security?
Thanks!
October 12th, 2010 at 9:38 pm
Hi Veronica,
During the day you will not have any problems in Barracas. At night the barrio is very deserted and dark, but there’s not anything to do there at night anyway. Even during the day the side streets are quite empty. So it’s best to be cautious and aware of your surroundings at all time, but that’s true for the entire city.
Note that there are two sections of Barracas divided by the autopista. The side near La Boca is the safest. The main street on that side of Barracas is Av Monte de Oca. That avenue and the side streets are safe. There’s a beautiful church there called Iglesia de Santa Felicitas.
The part of Barracas on the opposite side of the autopista is actually larger but there are a lot of old warehouses and industrial buildings in that area, which means not very many people around and you easily could find yourself in trouble. There have been problems around Av Australia, including a shooting, so you might want to stay away from the section of the neighborhood near Av Australia.