- The People: the people here are completely different from the personalities I'm used to in the states. Smiling is not common, unless you're looking at me, which is then a dead give-away that I'm a Yankee. (US citizens are referred to as Yankees --or Yanquis-- since the people here are also known as "Americans"). Outside of friends chatting, conversation is very practical and direct, Argentines know what the want and will not beat around the bush.
- Safety: for the first time in my life I'm truly having to be aware of my surroundings and use/develop "street smarts." Rules include: 1) don't speak English, 2) try not to be loud (common stereotype/accurate label of Yankees), 3) when using public transportation have a hand on your bag, if its a backpack you wear it on your stomach, don't keep anything in your pockets, don't stand by the doors, and be aware of people staring at you (which seems to be everyone anyways), 4) the danger time is between 3-5 am, during which you NEVER walk home alone, 5) be wary of taxi drivers trying to give you counterfeit money, 6) always have at least 20 pesos on hand in case you are approached by a mugger, to try to get them to move on quickly. I could honestly go on, but these are the main ones. I'm so used to just automatically trusting everyone, but here there are just people trying to get by and willing to take advantage of those who are susceptible targets. So far while we've been here, 4-5 people have been pick-pocketed and 1 guy's backpack got stollen that had a $900 camera in it...
- Going Out: this process starts around 1, and thats still early. Most places don't start getting hot until 2-3 am and then its completely normal to be there past 5am... Also, making the transition from Grog to Buenos Aires nightlife is going to be tough. No shorts and flip flops, no $5 all you can drink, no 25 cent pitchers... Alcohol here is waaaay cheaper if you buy it in the store (wine and beer can be found for cheaper than water), but at the clubs it gets pricey fast. On the topic of alcohol, its considered to be a vice of the lower classes. Of course people drink when they go out, or have a glass of wine with dinner, but getting drunk... that is associated with the poor, or with the Yankee tourists. Don't get shit faced (add that to the rules).
- Food: soooo good! Most of my meals are eaten at home, but every time I've been out, I've liked it. The Italian influence is impossible to ignore, and thats a good thing. The coffee here is also delicious, not like in the states where sometimes you get hot brown water in your cup. Prices here are pretty good as well, most sit-down, nice meals fall at about $10 US, but its also possible to get a $2 lunch of empanadas!
- Getting Around: bottom line, I get lost... A LOT. Like pretty much everyday I get lost at least once. The first couple of days was hard, and it was really frustrating and difficult to keep my cool. Now I've just accepted it. Quite a number of the streets here are not labelled... like QUITE a number, so half the time I'm basing my directions off of instinctual "feelings"... and I am no navigator. The subway system here is called Subte, and thats probably the only thing I'm kinda good at. Then there are the buses, or Colectivos, which don't have set schedules, and no maps for the routes, so I haven't tried them yet. Car traffic is to be treated with caution, I would never want to drive here. People go down the wrong sides of the streets, stop signs do not exist, and the pedestrian generally doesn't have the right of way.
There are a lot of other aspects of adjusting to a B.A. life, and I'm sure I'll get to them later. For right now, I just keep having to remind myself that I'm going to be here for 5 months! Its been one week, and it seems like 3. However, I dread mid November, when I'm packing my stuff up and wondering where did all my time go?!?
No comments:
Post a Comment