Buenos Aires isn't what it seems like.

We saw the face of the city, with lots of lipstick and mascara, on excursions during our three-day stay. Here's some of the things we saw or were told about:

It is the birthplace of tango.

It is the home of the largest and most active port in South America.

The current World Cup and Copa Americas champions are based here.

It's comprised of 48 proudly different neighborhoods or barrios.

Lunfardo – a slang that blends Spanish, Italian, and other immigrant languages - is unique to this country.

By a wide margin, more Argentinians are of Italian descent than Spanish.

The Cementario de la Recoleta, spanning four blocks, is considered the most important cemetery in Latin America.

The Recoleta, of which there will be more later, is symbolic of the camouflage covering Buenos Aires. For centuries, it has been the resting place of only the very wealthy. Super ornate, like much of the city we saw, but not the reality that most of the population lives in. This has been the story of Argentina for five centuries: the Rich vs. the Rest.

Families of early settlers grew wealthy in the early years through agriculture and meat exports made the city grow to their liking. But during different periods, military leaders who were not controlled by the rich would take control until military men bought off by the rich regained control. From the 1880s to 1930, Argentina had one of the best economies in the world and the growth of the city was staggering.

Then the Great Depression spurred social movements and Peronism was accepted for two distinct periods of progressiveism. The back-and-forth of political wills continue to this day. Currenlty, the country is in economic crisis. Super-hyper inflation (290% at one point in 2024) has decreased to 2.2% in January. To accomplish this, the new administration cut 33,000 government jobs and pushed poverty levels to 50%. Some future economic numbers look promising, but we were told, the haves still have and there has been no relief as yet for the have-nots.

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Carne Asada was the must-do experience in Buenos Aires according to several friends who had already cruised there. They were right.

We were able to enjoy professionals demonstrating the tango and gaucho dancing on the Journey. But for Carne Asada we had to leave the ship. Restaurante Estilo Campo was where Bonnie and I met HBA colleagues Karina and Gabriela.

Carne Asada short ribs, also known as "asado de tira," are prepared by grilling thick-cut beef short ribs over an open fire. You can see the bbqing process as you walk in the door. As you would expect, the meat slides off the ribs with a slight nudge. The meat is drizzled with chimichurri sauce. 

I could describe for you in detail a double play or a screen pass but I refuse to try to find words for the flavor of a bite of center cut Carne Asada short ribs. That I leave to you to come and find out.

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Lastly, back to the Recoleta. That's where Eva Peron's tomb is found among thousands of other rich and famous Argentines. Her casket has been moved several times since her death as if the different Argentine regimes were doing the tango with it.

Eva Peron is a polarizing figure in the country’s history and culture.

Many, especially women, see her as Evita, the radio actress who became an immortal figure in a few short years as her husband General Juan Peron strategically plotted his way to Presidente. Peron’s successful plan wooed the middle and lower classes to his side. Evita made that happen. She fought for women’s right to vote; helped create fair labor law for workers; championed programs for housing and job training for homeless women. She made the happen without ever holding a seat in government. She made countless impassioned speeches to hundreds of thousands from the balcony of the Pink House, Argentina’s version of the White House. She represented the Peron regime around the world with the style and majesty copied by Grace Kelly, Jackie Kennedy and Lady Diana.

But as many Argentines loathed the Perons. They were labeled as opportunists whose only goals were money and power for themselves. After her death at age 33 from cancer, there have been periods on the streets we traveled where uttering the names Evita or Juan was illegal.

Currently, her memory is in favor. We visited a museum in her name in a large house that she established to care for needy women and children. There is a large statue in a nearby park and large images of her on buildings.

So, we learned, Argentines have infinite passion for an actress who develops her brand and soars in popularity. They even have another polarizing one now although you can’t say she’s an Evita clone.

Her name is Wanda Nara. She is a very different kind of climber. I first became aware of her 10 years ago when she ditched for football-playing husband, Maxi Lopez, for a teammate. Maxi and Wanda had three kids. She married the younger, better football player Mauro Icardi, who by then played for Inter, my favorite team.

She not only became Mauro Icardi’s wife and had two more children; she also became his agent. She was in the news as much as Icardi. When his contract came up, she added enough conflict that Icardi moved to a team in Paris. There he struggled and moved to a team in Istanbul. There he’s also struggling so they divorced in July. Icardi has a younger, prettier girl friend. Wanda remains a top celebrity in Argentina. If you must see what she’s now like, check out Love is Blind: Argentina on Netflix, in which she is the hostess.

I loosely tie Evita and Wanda together after talking to a successful businesswoman and mother of two from Argentina. On Instagram, she obsessively follows Wanda, Icardi and the Icardi girlfriend on a daily basis. She showed me her app to prove it.

Bonnie thinks the comparison of Evita to Wanda is silly. She said it was like comparing Eleanor Roosevelt to Kim Cardashian. Who the hell is that? I'm not going to bother googling it.

, back to the Recoleta. That's where Eva Peron's tomb is found among thousands of other rich and famous Argentinians.