Learn Spanish in Buenos Aires, the Paris of the southern hemisphere

Some people refer to the city of Buenos Aires as the "Paris of the southern hemisphere". Others consider it to be one of the economically most powerful cities in Latin America.

Artists see it as a singular cultural experimentation field. For tourists it is an attraction by itself and the gateway to Argentina's enormous hinterland. For its citizens, the "porteños", Buenos Aires is all of this plus a bit of nostalgia for the good old times.

Buenos Aires' physical structure is a mosaic as varied and diverse as its culture. The city has no dominating monument. Instead, Buenos Aires is composed of many hidden corners and intimate details. Glass-sheathed skyscrapers cast their slender shadows on 19th century Victorian houses. Tango bars fill with the hazy, piquant tang of cigar smoke while dusty, treasure-filled antique shops lie just across the way.

The city's neighbourhoods are small and highly individualized, each with its own characteristic colors and forms. In the District of San Telmo, the city's multinational heritage is embodied in a varied and cosmopolitan architecture - Spanish Colonial design couples with Italian detailing and graceful French art nouveau. Artists left thier mark in La Boca by painting the district's pressed tin houses, leaving the district's side-streets as avenues enveloped in color.

Buenos Aires is never more alive than it is at night. It is what you'd expect from a city that invented tango. Avenues come alive with people on their way to restaurants and theaters, especially in the barrios of Puerto Madero, Recoleta and Palermo. People like to dress up and stay out until dawn. The city's Palermo and Belgrano barrios attract a young crowd of clubbers.