I have some things I'd like to discuss about Argentina. Not adventures, but things.
This post isn't going to have pictures, sorry. Not much has happened since we got home from Mendoza, at least nothing picture worthy. We had class and a weekend of doing absolutely nothing and that's it. I wish I was lying, but it's been a lazy week and a half. The most excitement of this week has come from standing in line at the place to finally apply for our visas, which is basically a DMV on steroids filled with lots of miserable people. I was a pathetic excuse for a human being when we went this morning, but that was mostly because we were up too early for my taste on a day without school. We all made it through the process in a reasonable time, and went to lunch and to La Calle Florida (Florida Street) to window shop.
But back to the point of this post... strange things about the city of Buenos Aires. And boy, there are a bunch.
1. Napkins
I wish I could properly explain to you what napkins here are like, but I'd never be able to truly do them justice. Is the thought of using wax paper to wipe crumbs off your face or hands appealing? No? How about computer paper? Still no? Well, then you're out of luck. Napkins here are anything but helpful for their intended purpose. Obviously I'm not expecting cloth napkins, but I'm at least expecting them to be foldable without a noticeable paper crease and a glorious waxy coating.
2. Sidewalks
For the love of God, we've talked about this already. These people need to get their act together with the sidewalk situation. Is it really THAT difficult to get one material for all the sidewalks? Is it even more difficult to rope off sections so that people/birds/dogs don't step in it?
3. My name
Apparently my name is somewhat of a challenge for the people of Argentina. A usual exchange goes something like this:
- "¿Cómo te llamas?" (What's your name?)
- "Meagan, ¿y vos?" (Meagan, and you?)
- "¿¿¿¿Maggie????" (Self Explanatory)
Without fail. I don't know what it is about my name, but nearly everyone here at first thinks my name is Maggie. I then go on to correct them, and they can say my name perfectly. I have to agree with my roommate's theory that people don't choose to actually listen to us speak because they assume we're bad at talking based off the way we look. I'm clearly too pale for this place.
4. Eating at a Restaurant
Don't expect to be seated, and don't expect to be rushed in and out of the place. This is one thing I can actually appreciate about weird stuff in Argentina. In the US, restaurants are all about turnover and getting meals out quickly and new people at the tables, but here it's perfectly normal and accepted to spend 3 hours at a cafe and only ordering a cup of coffee and some medialunas. The check is never brought directly to you, and you have to flag down your waiter or waitress if you want it. It's also not unheard of for them to just tell you the amount and not give you a receipt at all. It's a very laid back mindset, and something I'm learning to appreciate.
5. Getting Change...
Do you want change for that 100 peso bill? Too bad. I'd like to preface this section by saying that currently, a 100 peso bill is the equivalent of handing the cashier $22.50 USD, so for the sake of this example, we'll use $20 dollars as the comparison. Are you kidding me? I'm trying to buy 50 pesos worth of groceries, and naturally I hand you a 100 because those are the only bills that ATMs give out, so please do not look at me and ask me if I have anything smaller. You really can't make change for the US equivalent of 20 dollars? There is NEVER change here. I could even buy something for 80 pesos and they'll ask if I have smaller bills. No, I don't. And coins are an entirely different issue. From what I've learned there is a coin shortage here, so if something comes to 15.50 pesos, they will almost always ask you if you have the 50 centados because they almost never have the right change to give you. I just can't wrap my head around the denominations of money that they have and how little they are actually worth, but the same goes for the penny in the US.
On a related note to that, if the total comes to some strange number like 24.68, cashiers in normal stores will usually just round it to the nearest .25 because there are barely any coins smaller than that. So strange.
6. Cat Calls
From a young age, boys are trained to yell and whistle at virtually any woman who walks by or near them. It's unavoidable in this city, but it's just a part of the culture. Even though they do it to everyone, I'll use it to make me feel a little bit better about myself, but still ignore them because it gets old, fast.
7. Walking
I thought Americans were bad walkers until I came here. I have to add at least 10 minutes to my daily commute from simply dodging people on the sidewalks. The porteños just walk without any regard for the people going in the opposite direction, or even the same direction! I also feel like many have the attention spans of goldfish, because it's like they've never seen a store before. I cannot tell you how many times we've been walking, when suddenly someone in front of us just stops dead in their tracks and looks at a store window. Or how people cross a huge group of people just so they can go look at some pair of shoes in a window. I once saw an old woman walk slower than molasses in front of me, and then stop suddenly in a store window aimed at teen girls. I'm sorry lady, you are definitely not in the market for a pair of metallic leggings, please let me pass.
8. Street Happenings
This goes for most cities. I don't want to take your flyers, I don't want to buy your counterfeit subte cards, and I definitely don't want to buy bras and underwear off your blanket on the ground. Believe me, some of the other items sold off blankets on the ground are pretty awesome (like bags and jewelry) but what could possibly be sanitary about buying bras and underwear? Someone PLEASE tell me.
FIN
Well, I digress.... I felt like this post was a long time coming. Believe me, I really enjoy the city, but there are always going to be things that are strange no matter where you live. This city has a lot to offer (including Dulce de Leche, and that's all I really need in life) and for every bad there is a good.
Besides today, I have a pretty busy weekend ahead. Tonight is La Noche Internacional at our University and I will be participating in a TANGO presentation with my tango class, so look out for pictures of that soon! The International Night should also have lots of food from all over the world, including some adult beverages (Because the school actually allows and encourages that so we can share "culture" with our fellow students) from each of the participating countries. Tomorrow we have a trip to a really old book store which is inside a theatre, and then we're going out to dinner to celebrate one of the girls' birthdays at a restaurant which is apparently delicious. And then finally on Sunday my roommate and I are heading to San Telmo (a neighborhood in the city) to go to the Sunday market and to buy our Mate gourds! I've been looking forward to this for a while.
I think that's enough ranting on my part for today... I miss everyone very much, and I cant believe it's already been 6 weeks!
¡Ciao!
- Meagan
