My Random Stories

30/09/12

Well, I can’t say I’ve had any particularly great blog-worthy events in the last few weeks, but here are some of the things I’ve been up to or funny things that have happened

First, dying my hair might’ve worked a bit at least for a while.  I think less people automatically decided I was a foreigner and there are still less looks now even though my hair is almost back to my normal blonde.  I think it’s because a lot of the looks and piropos we got came from people on the street we live on and now people realize we live here so they don’t wanna make it awkward?  That’s what I’m hoping at least. 

Also, I’ve gone out some nights recently with Porteños and even though I didn’t come with any expectation of what Buenos Aires would be like, one night I just realized that THIS is what I had expected.  We went to someone’s apartment first for a few hours and then at 2:45, the porteños said, “alright, let’s go out now!” So we walked for quite a ways down the streets, none of which had power, until we got to this warehouse looking club.  We got in and it was just a concert-like setting with all Porteños.  First time I felt confident that a place was not touristy at all J

            Pills: There are always some sort of people on the streets handing out pamphlets or free coupons, but it was definitely a first when I walked out of the university one day last week and what did I get?  A package of pills.  Yes, they were handing out pain pills to college students as they left the building.  I still can’t get over this….Only in Argentina…haha
            Bandoneon:  Whenever you're on the train or subway and sometimes even on buses, there will be some guys trying to sell stuff or telling you their life story to beg for money, but on the train this weekend, I felt like we got a very Argentine experience.  An older man came out of nowhere, seriously there wasn't even a recent stop, and started to play his bandoneon, a tango accordion.  If you've never heard one, let me tell you, they are LOUD but really pretty, and as we passed all different parts of Buenos Aires in this train, from the nice apartment skyscrapers to the shantytown villas of Retiro, it just made for a great train ride.  :D

Another strange thing here is that almost no one is wearing shorts yet here even though it has reached 80 once or twice.  Apparently it’s not hot enough for them yet.  It’s crazy though to see people wearing heavy winter coats with a sweater and long sleeved polo underneath even though it’s about 70 degrees outside and burning up in the city buses. 

Finally, people keep asking me if I’ve had any terrible language mishaps and I have to say, I’ve of course made too many mistakes, today alone, to write here, but as we’re learning, the funny thing is that everyone is realizing how much we keep using Spanish phrases, mannerisms, and words when we talk in English such as “more or less” or (I’m really bad about this one) “I’m going to ‘take’ some juice”…what I actually mean to say is ‘drink’ some juice but here they say “take,” AND a few times we just have problems recalling the English word: “what’s the English word for ‘carne?’” “Um you mean beef?”  “Oh yeah that’s it.” 

            It’s also always funny when you don’t realize that a word someone is using here is the exact same as in English, just a different pronunciation and accent.   One night our host mom told us she was making “Pan Pudding” except pudding is pronounced as “poo-ding” with an accent on the “ding.”  We of course asked what poo-ding was only to feel really dumb when she puts pudding out on the table.  (Might I add this was the best banana pudding I’ve ever had…or any type of pudding for that matter.  It was almost like cheesecake :D) Also, I will admit that I still have to say “¿Cómo?” a couple times and sometime wait for an explanation when someone here tries to say McDonalds here…I guess it’s just one of those words :P

            It’s also funny if you mix up Spanish words like when one guy from our program asked a lady on the bus “¿Quieres sentir?” (Want to feel?) instead of “¿Quieres sentar?”  (Want to sit?).  I’m happy to say that I haven’t done anything tooo embarrassing yet….at least not that I know of.  J