How to Celebrate Easter in Buenos Aires
Easter in Buenos Aires, as in much of the rest of Argentina, is a time for getting together with family and eating and drinking away the day in a familiar setting. Surprisingly, however, this Catholic country doesn’t place nearly as much emphasis on the religious aspect of Easter as you would imagine. Here is how to celebrate Easter in Buenos Aires.
In the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires, Easter is celebrated around the end of March, this year from Sunday the 25th to Saturday the 31st of March. Semana Santa, or Holy Week, falls just as the famous Carnival season is coming to a close, so the festivities and celebrations that take place often coincide with Easter. Street parties, murgas, parades, festivals and processions are all par for the course in the lead up to and during Holy Week, so prepare to get amongst it with the locals. In the city centre around Callo and Corrientes there are usually lots of street parties, as this is how Semana Santa is celebrated rather than it being more religious in nature. Going to church is not a hugely common theme at Easter; rather, it is a time for family, where people get together with their parents, grandparents and children on Easter Sunday, bring some typical food that is eaten around these holidays such as locro or fried pastries, and some delicious red wine to wash it all down.
If you are more religiously inclined, then a fun outing that has a slightly ridiculous twist is heading to Tierra Santa, a Jesus-themed amusement park located out on the coast near the Jorge Newbury Airport. Tierra Santa is something of a religious wonderland, with a vast complex designed in Arabian style that mimics Jerusalem full of scenes from the Bible and eerie statues that depict a wide array of religious characters. There are performances of crucifixions, and plays that teach visitors about certain elements of Catholicism. There is also a huge rotating Jesus that emerges from the ground on the hour to bless the visitors to the park. Another fun thing about Tierra Santa is how everybody that works there is also dressed in outfits that recall the time of Jesus. A strange and interesting day out, and perhaps a good option for visitors with children.
A lot of people also choose to get out of the city around Easter, seeing as it is a national holiday. It is common for people to rent a house in the country or go to the coast, but be warned, the traffic in and out of Buenos Aires around any national holiday can be really slow and annoying, so plan your journey in advance, as travel times can be much longer than anticipated.
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