Fast-moving dog walkers and their charges are a frequent sight near the parks in the capital city of Argentina. Photo by Gene Korte.

Tourism is up in Buenos Aires. And why not? It’s more affordable than most exotic destinations, it’s big city fun, and it’s home to the tango and all that this dance brings to visitors who come to this city known as the Paris of the South.

When the snow is flying in New York City, it’s springtime in Buenos Aires, a port city on Argentina’s long Atlantic coast. And the time zone for both cities is the same half the year. The temperature is mild year-round, and in the winter it’s sunny and in the 80s.

The jacaranda trees will be in their spring finery of purple blossoms. And the fast-moving dog walkers and their charges — sometimes 20 or more leashed dogs spread out like moving petals on a flower — will take people-watching to a whole new level.

Spanish-speaking Buenos Aires, perhaps the most European of cities in South America, is a sprawling metropolis of parks, cafes, museums and some 2,000 monuments.

The tango was born here. It appeared in the 1880s with the music and the dance, it’s believed, coming from some combination of Italian immigrants, African slaves and brothels. Tango is taught around the world now, but Buenos Aires is its birthplace.

Visitors can take tango lessons all day in Buenos Aires, or dance in the streets in the colorful La Boca section of town where the Italian dockworkers first settled. At night there are more than 30 tango dinner theaters to choose from or you can skip dinner, find a tango bar and just watch (www.turismo.gov.ar).

Among the popular tango dinner clubs in Buenos Aires is El Querandi (http://www.querandi.com.ar). The night we were there the men were each given a black fedora, white scarf and suspenders, so that they looked like tango dancers. And the women were each draped with a red boa, a red rose necklace and long black gloves. In this club the tango is danced on a small stage in vignettes that tell a story about the dancers. Two dancers and an accordion player in one scene, two couples by the piano in another, a singer by himself and so on during an enchanting evening. This stop was arranged by Abercrombie & Kent, http://www.abrocrombiekent.com.

Many airlines fly to Buenos Aires from several continents, but LAN Airlines (www.lan.com) is a traveler favorite and the leading airline in South America. Chilean and other wines are served in all classes. Argentina is famous for its beef and it is available everywhere in this country, but we enjoyed our best steak flying over Argentina on a LAN flight. Check the company website for details of the LAN Airpass.

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(c) 2011 Diana and Gene Korte

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