By Marie Gradman Andersen Even though we volunteers are here in Buenos Aires to work, we have plenty of time to experience the city and all it has to offer – and that is a lot. Buenos Aires is a versatile city, where you can experience everything from cosy café visits during the day to tango dancing at a ‘milonga’ until the early morning. There is something special about the life in Buenos Aires that you don’t see in other places. Whether it is the European inspired building, the kind and accommodating people, who are eager to help you and learn more about you and your country, the laidback culture,  where no-one is ever on time and there is always time for a ‘mate’ or the cafés, restaurants, bars and ‘boliches’ (clubs). I guess it is all a part of what makes the unique and captivating atmosphere in Buenos Aires. It is hard to describe this complex mixture of things that makes this city so special but I’m going to give it a go anyway. The people and their history Buenos Aires is a city full of history just like any other city. However this city’s history is very apparent. You see it every Thursday at the demonstrations on Plaza de Mayo where “the mothers of the lost sons” demonstrate for their lost sons who were taken by the military regime. Here there is also monthly demonstrations all over the country against the government expressing a wish for more democracy for the country, who throughout history has been ruled by various dictators and military regimes. Argentina has been fighting a long time for democracy through really tough economic periods and struggling with inflation both of which the government does not acknowledge. Therefore, as soon as the topic of a conversation changes and you start talking about the economic situation in the country, the Argentinians tend to get more passionate. And what really can divide the waters is to talk about politics, the current president, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who is as unpopular in parts of the society as she is popular. The amazing thing about the people of Buenos Aires is that they are as hot headed as they are kind. They are always eager to tell you about themselves and their city and if necessary help you out with your Spanish. They are also very interested in hearing about you and your country as well as learning English themselves. The people of Buenos Aires seem so relaxed in their way of life, really enjoying every moment of every day. It does not make that much of a difference whether you show up on time, everybody is more or less late for times of meeting. It is a less stressed and uptight way of living then in the western countries. One thing you never will hear a ‘porteño’ say is the phrase “no I can’t go out tonight it is a school night”. They are always up for a good time and the streets are full of people into the late hours of the night every day of the week, whether they are meeting in a café or getting together for an “asado” - a barbeque with a lot of different kind of meet that everybody just shares. The life of the city In Buenos Aires there is always something happening. Every day of the week there is this a ‘buzz’ in the city, whether it is demonstrations, parties in the streets or the general atmosphere in the cafés, bars, ‘boliches’ (clubs) and restaurants. The city is full of life all week even though many of ‘porteños’ (the locals) in the weekends go out of the city to their houses in the provinces. The city offers so many possibilities of things to do. Regularly there are huge street parties, where they close off, for example Avenida de Mayo, (one of the large streets) to celebrate something like the celebration of the Brazilian culture. At this celebration they put up a stage in the middle of the street and a lot of stalls here people were dancing, eating and having a great time in the street. During the week there are also a lot of events going on in the city, if you are interested in practicing your langue skills you can go to events like ”Mundo Lingo”, where people with all sorts of different linguistic backgrounds get together. Here you chose the flags that represent the language skills that you possess and wear them on your shirt. Here you will meet a lot of people and if you are lucky learn something new, if this interests you a visit to  the Spanish English speed dating event ”Spanglish Exchange” is also an option. At the cultural center Konex you can visit through the week to experience all sorts of events. Every Monday night there is a big drum show on with the band ‘La Bomba de Tiempo’. This show is amazing and every Monday it fills up the entire warehouse with people dancing, smoking and drinking all night. If you are not up for a major party you can go to one of the many small cosy bars with live music like ‘Jazz y pop’, where you just can sit down with a glass of great wine and enjoy the music and the atmosphere. If you are looking for a local experience you should go to one of the ‘peñas’ where they play with local music live or why not try one of the many places where you can dance tango called ‘milongas’ like ‘La Catedral’. If you are not up for dancing tango yourself there are plenty of experienced dancers who you can watch dance instead. It is a must to go to a ‘milonga’ when you are in Buenos Aires! Even though there is this vibrant life in the city during the week, the people of Buenos Aires don’t slow down at the weekend. The bars and ‘boliches’ are packed with people chatting, drinking and dancing. One of the most popular places for a Friday or Saturday night are one of the many ‘boliches’ in Palermo. Sundays are spent with the family eating an asados (barbeque) for lunch, or at a football match in the afternoon cheering on one of the many teams in Buenos Aires. You can also spend your Sunday in San Telmo where there is a street market every Sunday. Here you can spend your day shopping, eating great street food and watching the street musicians. Later on if you hang around long enough there is tango dancing and drum shows in the street. There are of course also other more relaxed activities that this city has to offer. For example can you go to one of the many restaurantsin this city, where you can sample one of the great Argentinean steaks. If you want to enjoy an amazing steak you can go to San Telmo, here is “El Desnivel”.This restaurant is famous for its steaks and they fully live up to your expectations and then some.  This city holds so much! There is so much to see and do that I could write all day about it, but you should just know that this city is so unique and full of life that there always will be new things to experience – it is a city worth your time!