Dia 22, American Influence? 22 de Julio

Well, sorry kids, today was a pretty uneventful day. Spanish class (where we worked on the subjunctive and imperative!) and then there was a wonderful trip to Freddo. (I should not have to remind you of Freddo seeing as how I just updated about it yesterday!) This time, Bridget and I shared three different flavors and they were all wonderful. =)

After that, Thomas and I went to my apartment and worked on some homework together then tried to plan a day trip to Tigre. Tigre is basically just another town (suburb of BA maybe?) that has cool museums and markets and apparently it’s a must see. But we also want to go to this zoo in another city…and of course I can’t think of the name at the moment…and so we tried to figure out the best way to plan it since they’re both great day trips. That’s what’ll be happening this weekend; we just have to plan it out. (So more on that when…I know more, lol).

After Thomas left, I had dinner and watched an episode of “Life” with Elsa…and now I am writing a blog. I could just let that end there couldn’t I? Shortest update in the world…and way too boring for me. So I have decided that today, I am going to talk (well, write) about the American Influence I’ve noticed down here in B.A. (Warning: it might sound like I get pretty ethnocentric about our country…but it’s just an observation. Also, these are all generalizations; I obviously can’t make these statements about every person/barrio/city in this country.)

- For starters, you really can get around this city speaking English if you wanted to. Not everyone knows it very well, but there are enough people in enough places that know enough English to help you. It’s hard to not speak English sometimes because even when you say the words in Spanish, if they notice your accent (which they almost always do), the majority of the time, they want to work on their English. So they respond in English and continue to talk to you in English because they believe it makes you feel better. (And for some English speakers, it probably does). So if you’ve ever been afraid about the language barrier (which can be daunting at times), have no fear…if you don’t want to learn/practice your Spanish, you don’t necessarily have to.

- American Movies: Are just as popular here. And they are all in Spanish subtitles. Of course, you can find some American movies in Spanish, but it’s even easier to find them in English. (There are Latin American films here as well, but I’ve noticed more posters/ads for our films.)

- MUSIC – probably the biggest “Wow” about the US I’ve had to deal with. I don’t remember if I’ve blogged about it or not, but the first song I heard when I got here was “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt. I was so thrown off because of course, I was not expecting American music, but I have come to find out that it’s hard to go anywhere without it. And I mean anywhere: restaurants, stores, markets, and my own kitchen when the maid is cleaning. There is some Latin music as well, but mainly it’s the US music that I hear. I can not tell you how many times I’ve been shocked to hear Lady Gaga come from our kitchen radio.

- TV – as with music and movies, it’s definitely easy to find American sitcoms on the television, which you all know because I constantly update about me watching TV with Elsa while I eat dinner.

- Luckily enough, I’m happy to say that I haven’t noticed too many American restaurants here (McDonald’s, Burger King, and Starbucks are the only ones I can think of at this moment) and that is probably because everyone is so proud of their food here. And they should be, because I am rarely disappointed with the food here. Elsa is a great cook (I never knew you could mix so many things with eggs [Pasta, rice, and peas to name the things I’ve eaten] and it still taste so good…better even! I hope they never succumb to the American food industry (more than what they already have) because they really don’t need to.

What I wish the US would take from the Argentine lifestyle: (I’ve touched on these before…)

- I love the idea of going to dinner with friends/family and not leaving the place just because you’ve eaten all the food…you stay and talk, and have dessert, then have coffee, then sit and talk for awhile longer, before you even think of asking for “la cuenta” (the bill) because you enjoy that time together.

- No one ever seems like they’re in a hurry. No matter where you have to be, time here is “polychronic” (I learned about that definition in Intercultural Communication, woo!). No one cares about the time. If you plan to meet someone at 8, but don’t show up until 9, no one cares, because people all have lives. They go along with the flow so easily and barely pause to think: “Wait, I have this appointment here, then meeting there, then picking up so and so there, and have to have this ready by then…” I mean, obviously, in a work environment, it’s different (here too), but outside of work and school, why do we focus so much on TIME? We need to be enjoying it like the Argentines! =)

- Everyone helps. I mentioned this in a blog a couple days ago about Elsa helping me track down a book or two (which I now have an Agatha Christie mystery to look forward to!). If you ask for a shirt, you get a shirt, a pair of pants, some socks, etc. If you ask for directions, you get an explanation, a bus route, a sub route, how much it costs to get there, and extra things to do when you’re there. If you ask for an opinion, you get one and a couple of different ones just because. Those who can’t give physically, give friendship like crazy. I have not encountered one unkind Argentine (although I am sure that there are plenty, like in any country in the world).

- Stress? What is stress? I don’t think Argentines know the word. I wish we didn’t either.

- Massages for $40 pesos…for an hour. That’s less than $14 US…for an hour massage. I think yes.

Okay, I’m sure there’s a lot more I could share with you, and maybe I shall in the future, but I am tired and am running out of things to think about… =)

More later from the south! Miss you all and love you!