Recoleta carries elegance in stone and shade. The cemetery's marble mausoleums form a city inside a city; cats sleep under angels while visitors trace names of presidents and poets. Around it, museums and cultural centers fill Belle Epoque palaces; weekend fairs set up stalls for leather goods and mate gourds.
Avenida Alvear runs with luxury boutiques and sidewalk cafes; Plaza Francia fills with students, skaters, and choripan vendors. Bakeries sell medialunas so buttery they shine; bookstores stretch late into the night. Recoleta is both quiet and showy: leafy side streets hide wine bars, while Libertador Avenue roars with traffic heading toward the river parks.
Walk slow, look up at balconies framed in wrought iron, and pause for ice cream at midnight because this is a neighborhood that assumes you are not in a hurry.