In the Footsteps of Dictators and the Auschwitz of Argentina

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

“Become an eyewitness to an obscure period of our history and have a unique experience with the dark side of Argentina”

You will explore the following:

Memorial plaques of the disappeared people.

Incredible murals (paintings & graffiti) on the topic:  The individuals, history, and struggles they represent.

An ex-Clandestine Center, often called the Auschwitz of Argentina:  You won’t be exploring the areas that are closed while archaeological techniques of restoration, conservation, and evidence-gathering work proceeds. We can’t go inside the Ex-clandestine center. We can walk around the place where we can find incredible murals (paintings & graffiti) on the topic. Actually, part of the Ex-clandestine center was dismantled before democracy returned and the areas of the cells were demolished, etc. and the most interesting things, for the most part, are easily seen from the outside.

A Clandestine Center of Detention, Torture, and Annihilation was a place dedicated to the kidnapping and torture of suspected dissidents. They functioned during the last military dictatorship that took place in Argentina from 1976 to 1983.

This massive complex contained areas where political prisoners were detained and barbarously tortured.

These terrible places are important for understanding Argentina, and are a visceral depiction of the wide reach of the military dictatorship in its ability to terrorize the local population. The kidnapped people were systematically dehumanized; they experienced atrocities and lived in terrible conditions. All the while, they dreaded the infamous “transfer” – military-speak for execution; some of them were then dumped into the ocean from airplanes.

As I am a living history, I will tell you the interesting facts you need to know to understand the worst, most brutal, and most violent dictatorship in Argentinean history. I am willing to share with you what it was like to live through that dark period in Argentina’s history.

We will also talk about a couple of the worst aspects of the dictatorship: the systematic theft of babies from their imprisoned mothers and the Nazi ideology that permeated the military and security forces. And, finally, you will hear some recorded testimonies.

FOR:

People who want to learn about Buenos Aires history.

People concerned about human rights violations.

Intellectually curious travelers.

Students.

Not for children.

Availability: Tours run everyday.  (Booking ahead is required).

Duration: 2½ hours (approximately)

Price:

Small-group tour: US$30 p/p (Discount for students)

Private tour: US$45 p/p (minimum of 2 people are required to book a private tour)

Note: We will walk around 6 blocks so this is not a strenuous walk.

Meet: We will meet at a street corner in the neighborhood: Rivadavia  Avenue 6401 at the corner of Boyaca, outside the store “Pigmento”.

To get to the meeting point you can take a taxi or subway line “A” (light blue color). If you take the subway get off at “Carabobo” station. When you arrive and you are at the street level, just check out the corner of the store “Pigmento” Map

Please contact me to reserve your spot:

5 Comments Add yours

  1. Patricia G. says:

    Unforgettable experience!
    My experience with Elisa was incredible! And I couldn’t have asked for anything more. She shared some of her personal experiences as a local Argentine, making the trip even more insightful.
    She was amazing, really professional and knew a lot about the dictatorships in Latin America as well as all the ex-clandestine centers in Argentina.
    I had a great tour and I learned a lot. I have a much deeper sense of the character of Buenos Aires and its inhabitants both present and past.
    This tour is also for people who like art because the paintings are amazing!
    Her interest and love of Argentine history and its culture brings to light interesting stories that have long since been forgotten. She explained the history of all the stops by giving a detailed background to what was happening in Buenos Aires at the time.

    I think this tour is a must in Buenos Aires and I would definitely recommend it.

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Marie says:

    I really enjoyed my tour with Elisa, I found the dictatorship tour to be informative and surprised myself that I was engadged the full 2 hours !
    Yes I learnt something!

    Like

  3. Daniel M. says:

    So pleased I did this interesting experience! Highly recommended!!!!

    Elisa is really nice, friendly, personable and wonderful guide who really loves her job and obviously enjoys it. She is the kind of guide who really knows what a tourist wants. Her reputation is 100% deserved. Her interpersonal skills work superbly well in providing a tour which is educational, informative and enjoyable. Her extensive knowledge of the historical site (which had the greatest impact on me) and its amazing history was second to none. She provided enough information without overload. She led me around this eerie place, giving me details I couldn’t have known had I visited on my own. She was always pointing out all interesting things along the way and on the murals.

    The whole tour was full of emotion and awe and I was under no pressure to ‘move on’. This gave me plenty of time space to absorb everything and thought gathering, which was important; whilst also leaving enough time for reflecting upon the site and the situation.

    What is especially good is that you can feel Elisa’s genuine pride and interest in helping her customers enjoy their tour. I can say I learned a lot from her. She was also very well versed on local information. . Her knowledge about the city and its attractions is superb.

    I spent the morning trying to get some understanding of the horrors of the dictatorships while Elisa professionally answered any questions that I asked, providing great information, context and history of both the dictatorships and history of Argentina in general. She told me interesting stories and her personal anecdotes about the time of the last military dictatorship that made the tour very personal and unique. All this means that you learn so, so much more than you could possible imagine. (And there’s not a lot of walking!).

    I have done extensive travelling and I can tell that if you like history and if you want someone who really “knows her stuff” no other experience would be as good as this one.

    I took another tour with Elisa which I also wouldn’t hesitate to recommend (and I have already done so) if you are planning a trip to Buenos Aires. Both tours are really fantastic and very good value for money. Her tours will be the highlight of your trip of Argentina and definitely the best choices you can make. There is no way I would have had the experiences that I did without Elisa! I can only say great things about her and the service she offers….Book her unique tours you will not regret it. They are absolutely first class!

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Thank you so much! I’m speechless from such a great review! You’ve really described the tour as I meant to share it with travelers. I am always willing to share with them what it was like to live thru that dark period in Argentina’s history.
    The tour is meant for intellectually curious travelers like you who want to become eyewitnesses to an obscure period of our history and have a unique experience with the dark side of Argentina.

    #buenosaireswalkingtours #offthebeatenpath #offthebeatentrack #walkingtoursbuenosaires #buenosairestours #toursbuenosaires #buenosairesoffthebeatenpath #buenosairesoffthebeatentrack #aregentinehistory #argentinianhistory #dictatorship #history #dirtywar

    Like

  5. Kirsten Twelbeck says:

    I am very glad to have booked this tour which provided me with an insight into the more recent history of Buenos Aires, of Argentina, and of its people. Elisa opened that door for me, and I will be forever grateful for her to share her deep knowledge, personal experience, and assessments regarding one of the darkest periods of the country’s history, and for sharing her thoughts on how it still impact Argentinian society today. I was the only participant on that day, which made this tour very personal and allowed me to ask a lot of question; I was extremely happy to talk with someone who actually knows the city so well, and has a deep interest in history and societal issues, and to exchange thoughts about politics and society in both Latin America and Europe (where I am from). This tour is an absolute MUST for everyone interested in the deeper layers of Argentinian society, and the trauma that is, by the way, also highly visible in Argentinian art–many of the sculptures, paintings, and photographs that are displayed in the art museums of Buenos Aires tell about the violence, the pain, the grief of an era that this tour brings back to live–fortunately only through words. If you come to Buenos Aires, book this tour. It is outstanding.

    Like

Leave a comment