Florida (pronounced flor-EE-dah) is a pedestrian mall in the central shopping district of Buenos Aires.
When I walked through the streets of Cusco, Peru (the nearest city to Machu Picchu), I was so obviously a tourist that I was constantly asked if I wanted to:
- get my shoes polished (odd when I was wearing sneakers);
- have lunch (even when I said in Spanish that I’d already eaten);
- buy things (painful after a while); or
- have a massage (OK, not so painful).
Florida was one of the few parts of Buenos Aires where I’d get hassled as a tourist, sometimes by illegal money changers.
To avoid that, go to a shopping centre, such as Abasto, Alto Palermo or Patio Bullrich.
