Tigre from a local perspective

The best travel advice I’ve had so far is to befriend a local and get their tips and views on what to do and where to go. In doing this, often you can avoid overpriced tourist activities, experience quality wining and dining, or discover an interesting suburb that’s been overlooked by the guidebooks. You can also make some great friends. I had a stroke of luck in that not only did I have a connection in the Argentine capital, but she was also generous enough to invite both of us to her holiday house in Tigre! Alex is a dear friend of my mother’s, having met in their twenties when Alex moved to Australia. They haven’t seen each other in years but, nevertheless, she welcomed us with open arms.

The first benefit of this connection was the discovery of Alex’s neighbourhood, Belgrano. Here we found Buenos Aires’ Chinatown, and also some fantastic Chinese supermarkets which import many items that aren't found in the average city supermarkets. For us curry lovers this was curry paste and powder. Another noteworthy item is peanut butter, but the search continues for vegemite.

After a tasty lunch in a cheap and cheerful Belgrano café, we had the treat of driving to the ferry terminal, a luxury for those used to negotiating busy trains with large backpacks. It was also a bonus as it was pouring with rain outside.

Tigre is an island on the Parana Delta and is about an hour outside of Buenos Aires by train. After an hour long ferry ride, we arrived at Alex’s little wharf. Painted a striking shade of pink with blue trimmings, like most, her gorgeous place is perched right on the riverbank. Through Alex we met her niece Diana and boyfriend Rodrigo, San Telmo dwellers who were staying in Alex’s sister’s place next door.

Apart from sun baking on the wharf, watching boats go by, the next twenty-four hours spent with our new local friends was filled with firsts. We tried mate for the first time. You’ll notice in Argentina and Uruguay that people walk around religiously sipping from silver pipes in ornate little cups, clutching their thermoses for refills. This is mate and it’s everywhere! Mate is difficult to describe in words. It’s kind of like a bitter tasting green tea, but much thicker. Actually, what am I saying? It’s not like green tea at all. You just have to try it. Rodrigo performed what Alex labeled a ‘mate ritual’ for us, and sweetened it up a little with some brown sugar and orange zest. It’s definitely an acquired taste, but I got to like it.

Another first was melon with prosciutto for dinner. I’d seen this on menus everywhere but never ordered it. It’s delicious, if you're into mixing savory and sweet. Diana and Rodrigo also recommended a San Telmo steak house, ‘Don Ernesto’. We ended up going the following evening and boy was it good, as most local recommendations are.