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Argentina is all about tango, carne, tinto and football. But you probably already knew this. The very first thing we realized when we stepped out from the airport in Buenos Aires was that it is freeeeezing (it is winter here)! But no worries, we are Finns and tango keeps us warm.
Except from freezing we are taking spanish lessons at a Hostel called MilHouse and walking a lot. We live at a friends place in a very nice neighborhood on the Larrea.
Donde estamos?
In theory it is very easy to navigate ones way through BA because all streets have exact names and numbers and the street signs are very informative. So that's why we decided to walk home after our first spanish lesson and we were feeling very confident. Both GoogleMaps and the guy at the spanish course told us it is a long way to walk. We didn't listen and thought the Argentineans are just lazy people and bragged about the sportive Finns cause the distance on the map looked so short to us.
After walking for 40 minutes we also realized that the map was defective and they had left out many blocks on our street. This was very unfortunate because by then we had already bought four bags of groceries and five liters of water (in a shop that we thought was behind our corner and which was literally 1000 blocks away!!!). Slowly our faith started to fade away and Anna was feeling a bit dizzy and began to sweat. We quickly diagnosed it to be a mild heart attack, but she was soon healed by one of our 10 apples from one of our four grocery bags. In one minute we arrived home.
Donde es el cellular?
We got a tip from a friend not to use the "Subte" (subway) because it is a dangerous place, but we still used it. Soon we also found out that except from being a transportation, it is also a good place for charity. We quickly got rid of all non important foppish stuff such as a mobile phone. Please note: ALL people we've met in BA, both local and tourists, have been robbed at least once. So DO NOT use the Subte! This day ended with Anna spending her last 10 pesos on a sausage (see pictures).
Song of the day: Bon Jovi - Livin' on a prayer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMicq726M5w
Mate en Tigre
On sunday our lovely spanish teacher Lucila took us to a place called Tigre approximately 30 minutes from the centre of BA. There we visited a sunday fair where they were selling incredible souvenirs. Unfortunately we couldn't buy any of them cause it won't fit in our backpacks.
Lucila introduced us to a local tradition to drink tea in a special way. It is a social thing and you need a specific set. The tea is very healthy and it keeps you warm. We loved it! Thank you Lucila!
La Boca
Today we went to an old neighborhood called La Boca. Our other spanish teacher Lorena was really kind and organized a tour in this beautiful part of BA. La Boca has a long history with immigrants mostly from Spain, Italy and France. The immigrants moved there for better life and work at the harbor. People were poor so they built their houses from what they had, mostly parts from boats and ships. That is why the houses in La Boca are so colorful. On the streets we could see people dancing tango and playing local interments. Thank you Lorena!
Mañana
The local people are very friendly and always in a good mood. Tomorrow we are invited to Victoria's place to have dinner. We are really looking forward to learn more about the local culture!
Last but not least a few...
In BA you're out if…
- you don't use your horn constantly and for no reason whilst driving
- you don't have the Argentinian flag hanging out from your balcony
- you've never been robbed
- you don't drink mate
- you don't speak spanish
- you don't have a dog
- you don't have a dog walker
- comments
Scott Edmondson (SF) Great stories. Great trip. I'm enjoying the blog. Enjoy. Hope to see you in SF.
Bianca Great pictures, as always:)
Nicke Looks like your having a pretty good time over there, compared to rainy Finland back home! :-) Have a blast on the tango lesson and watch out for the hairy old men... Hahaa
Victoria What nice experience! I´m proud of my country. It´s not perfect..you know...but it´s nice. was a pleasure to invite you to eat pizza at home, was really nice to meet you, I hope to see you in few year whe I could go to know Finland ;) Girls, enjoy your trip! you are amazing! Kisses