Get on down to La Boca

There's some people who'd tell you not to go to Buenos Aires' La Boca neighbourhood. That it's too dangerous. And at night it possibly is. But you must go. It will give you a real insight into how many of the people in Buenos Aires live.

And the truth is, they're all pretty poor.

So it's well worth the half-hour walk from San Telmo. Or jump on the 29 bus. It´s only 80 cents after all.

Most people who live in La Boca hang out on the streets.

That's because their homes are over-crowded and families are literally spilling out of them.

Most children look under-fed and dirty. Sanitation is practically non-existent, too.

This family look like they have more money than most, though the car isn't theirs.

Dark, oily ribbons of sewage lie along the gutters and it smells pretty bad in most places.

Pavements crumble away at the edges like giant broken biscuits and the roads dip up and down for no particular reason.

Some parts of La Boca look like they've recently been bombed. Others look as though they were just never properly built.

There's some nice leafy bits, though.

This is near the famous Boca football stadium.

And there's its famous row of brightly painted houses called La Caminito, named after a favourite tango song, which you must see. It's where artists sell their wares.

The other locals sell all sorts of things on the streets.

Stuff you'd probably never consider buying.

Like the doors off old fridges.

If you're anything like me, this is what your feet will look like after an afternoon in La Boca.

If you think that's bad, you should see the other side...