I am writing this on my third day of living in this city, and there is so much to talk about I don't even know where to begin. We have been doing things for orientation all week - lectures, survival Spanish classes, and touring the city - so I haven't had much time to just sit down and absorb everything. Hopefully writing everything down will help with that!
My first day was spent checking in at the school, and then meeting my host mom Mercedes. Mercedes works at a bank in the city and has three children and a baby grandson who she talks about all the time. She is very lively and animated and has been hosting students in her apartment for over 10 years as part of various homestay programs.
Mercedes took us (me and Chelsea, who shares my homestay) around the neighborhood when we arrived. We live in Palermo, which is one of the richest boroughs of the city - filled with tree-lined streets, cafés, bars and restaurants.
The view from my room in the homestay. That little café down there has free wifi (super common in BsAs at both cafés and bars) and also tea, coffee, pastries and gelato/ice cream.
A brief tangent about the food here because food is awesome: Buenos Aires has the best desserts ever. Practically every block has a kiosko where you can buy lots of different Argentinean and European candies (Milka and Cadbury brands are super popular). There are also panderías/confeterías (pastry shops) all over the place. The most popular desserts are alfajores, essentially two cookies with dulce de leche in the middle, sometimes covered in chocolate or sugar. They are sold both at bakeries and in little packages at every kiosko and supermarket.
The ice cream (gelato?) is also amazing here, probably due to the strong Italian influence in the city. The most popular flavor is dulce de leche, but you can get many other kinds as well and all of it is pretty cheap.
My room in the homestay. As you can see, it is pretty small but the view from the window is obviously great and it opens all the way so I can get some fresh air and hear the sounds of Palermo at night. Palermo is both a highly residential neighborhood and also home to lots of bars and restaurants in the district Palermo Soho, so there's always noise outside late into the night.
My week thus far has mostly been occupied by orientation activities - lectures on the political history of Argentina, safety demonstrations and a few Spanish classes based on our levels. I'm technically at the "advanced" level because I have finished all of my intermediate classes, so I'm probably in the top third of the group here just in terms of how much Spanish I have already taken. There are many people who are much better than me, and some who have never taken a Spanish class before in their lives.
The best thing we did all week was go on a bus tour of the city, stopping along the way at various landmarks in the neighborhoods of Palermo, Ricoleta, La Boca and San Telmo. The tour was super helpful to see the most important places in the city, as well as get an idea of how the city is laid out.
Highlights were the Recoleta Cemetery:
La Plaza de Mayo (where las madres de los desaparecidos march every Thursday). The site of most protest activities in Buenos Aires, it is similar to Washington Square Park in New York. Anyone who has studied Argentine history knows of the importance of protests and demonstrations in their political culture, so obviously the place where it all happens is significant as well...
and the colorful houses and artistic vibe of La Boca (a very touristy area but still worth the visit) were great as well.
Other notes and thoughts:
Buenos Aires vs. NYC
Living in New York has been great preparation for Buenos Aires, but there are many differences between the two cities. The pace of Buenos Aires is slower, and the vibe in general is much more chill. People take hours and hours to eat, sit in parks and watch passerby, and don't seem in a rush to be somewhere like in New York. In the nicer areas of the city, Buenos Aires is much greener and more clean than NYC, with far more parks and fresh air (hence the name Buenos Aires - literally "good air")
My Spanish Abilities
Like I said before, technically I'm at the advanced level in collegiate terms, but walking down the streets of the city, I don't feel that way. Although I have been able to communicate effectively with everyone I have encountered so far, it is clear that most people know as soon as I open my mouth that I am a Yanqui. My accent is just okay, and I'm still not sure how to pronounce most words in the Argentinian dialect, which is very different from the Spanish spoken in Spain or Mexico that 99% of teachers in America use. I know that I speak with a strong American accent and have trouble coming up with many words. I also learned today that no one here says "vale" here to mean "good" or "alright" which is troublesome considering that I say that word constantly as filler when I'm speaking Spanish in casual conversation.
The Male Gaze, Machismo Culture, and Feminism Abroad
This is one of the things about this culture that will likely require the most adjustment for me in the next few months. I, like most girls in the US, have been heckled on many occasions throughout my life, so this behavior isn't exactly shocking. Although the words are often complementary, I have always felt extremely violated when random men I don't know comment on my appearance, for a variety of reasons. In Buenos Aires and in countries where the machismo culture is prominent, it is considered completely normal for men to whistle, yell, or just stare at women as they walk down the street. The catcalling and staring is usually harmless, and the women just ignore them. The fact that this behavior is part of the overall gender culture and not a sign of aggression and implied sexual violence like it is considered to be in the US will take some getting used to. End of liberal artsy, gender-themed musings.
Cosas baratos y caros
CHEAP: Band-aids and medicine, cigarettes (absurdly so - $2 USD per pack), food and alcohol, razors, and most importantly, public transportation. In New York, a subway ride costs $2.25. In Buenos Aires, a ride on one of the nice, air-conditioned buses that take you everywhere in the city cost considerably less than a dollar USD, and the taxis are much cheaper here than in the States as well.
EXPENSIVE: There is high inflation here, so many things that seem basic cost lots and lots of pesos. For example, I bought the cheapest sunscreen at the pharmacy today and it still cost over $50 pesos. That amounts to around $10 USD using the official rate of exchange. Most things are comparatively cheaper or as expensive as in the States, but with inflation and the fact that pesos are worth almost nothing outside of Argentina, things that are affordable for me as an American are too expensive for many porteños.
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