What's your Favorite (and Positive) "Only in Argentina" story?
- Thread starter MorganF
- Start date
Great thread, Morgan. Thanks!
- I love the how the rule of waiting in order for the collectivo is immediately circumvented when a man - be it a teen or an old man - will step aside to let one or four ladies get on ahead of him.
- how quickly some of the same loud annoying teenagers will give up their seat for someone older (as long as they aren't with their friends of course - I mean, a teenager is a teenager) and respond with, oh no, por nada
- I love seeing families and groups of friends hanging out on weekends. I think in North America, while we may socialize a bit, for small chunks of time, we tend to factor in a lot of alone time to recharge. Here, you recharge by being with people you care about.
- Kids + Dogs. I like that both are included in socializing (somewhat) - and seeing the most surprizing people greet little kids or dogs on the street as they walk by. Especially kids - it's nice that they don't only exist in a parallel kid-friendly world, as elsewhere.
- I've almost never gotten ripped off or ticked off at a taxista (altho I have a couple of times, obv). If anything, they are who have helped me the most with learning Spanish. They love to just chat and are patient with all the mistakes - and genuinely curious in where you are from, what it's like there, what you like about BA. Takes a lot of malbec to have me chatting so much & fluidly normally ;-)
- Ice Cream. I guess that is something that stands out to me most: to see men stopping in at an ice cream shop, in full suits, for a cone. Fine, some may be picking some up to bring home - but plenty aren't. Just stopping in for a cone on the way home! THAT is definitely Only In Argentina!
- I love the how the rule of waiting in order for the collectivo is immediately circumvented when a man - be it a teen or an old man - will step aside to let one or four ladies get on ahead of him.
- how quickly some of the same loud annoying teenagers will give up their seat for someone older (as long as they aren't with their friends of course - I mean, a teenager is a teenager) and respond with, oh no, por nada
- I love seeing families and groups of friends hanging out on weekends. I think in North America, while we may socialize a bit, for small chunks of time, we tend to factor in a lot of alone time to recharge. Here, you recharge by being with people you care about.
- Kids + Dogs. I like that both are included in socializing (somewhat) - and seeing the most surprizing people greet little kids or dogs on the street as they walk by. Especially kids - it's nice that they don't only exist in a parallel kid-friendly world, as elsewhere.
- I've almost never gotten ripped off or ticked off at a taxista (altho I have a couple of times, obv). If anything, they are who have helped me the most with learning Spanish. They love to just chat and are patient with all the mistakes - and genuinely curious in where you are from, what it's like there, what you like about BA. Takes a lot of malbec to have me chatting so much & fluidly normally ;-)
- Ice Cream. I guess that is something that stands out to me most: to see men stopping in at an ice cream shop, in full suits, for a cone. Fine, some may be picking some up to bring home - but plenty aren't. Just stopping in for a cone on the way home! THAT is definitely Only In Argentina!
Ries
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Morgan asked me about my miniature anvils, and I cant post a photo on a PM, so I'm putting one up here-
I am a blacksmith, among other things, so I actually have full size anvils as well.
Here is a picture of some little ones- most are in the range of 3"/8CM long.
Many are bronze, and a lot of them were giveaways from various ferreterias or herradores. A few were "users" for jewelry or locksmithing.
They are not common, but I find them from time to time, at stores, at the San Telmo Flea, and even on Mercado Libre.
As you might guess from my avatar, I also collect Pinguinos.
I dont pay a lot for either one, and both are very Porteno, but not a very often seen object.
Virtually every argentine I know has memories of drinking house wine from a Pinguino in the 60's or before, assuming they were alive then. Almost every restaurant in Argentina used to serve a cheap house red in a Penguin Pitcher.
Obviously, you cant get these anywhere else in the world- I dont know if they used em in Chile, but I dont think so.
I am a blacksmith, among other things, so I actually have full size anvils as well.
Here is a picture of some little ones- most are in the range of 3"/8CM long.
Many are bronze, and a lot of them were giveaways from various ferreterias or herradores. A few were "users" for jewelry or locksmithing.
They are not common, but I find them from time to time, at stores, at the San Telmo Flea, and even on Mercado Libre.
As you might guess from my avatar, I also collect Pinguinos.
I dont pay a lot for either one, and both are very Porteno, but not a very often seen object.
Virtually every argentine I know has memories of drinking house wine from a Pinguino in the 60's or before, assuming they were alive then. Almost every restaurant in Argentina used to serve a cheap house red in a Penguin Pitcher.
Obviously, you cant get these anywhere else in the world- I dont know if they used em in Chile, but I dont think so.
Ries said:
Really cute anvil collection!
I collect hotel bells, like you, I don't pay a lot for them. But they are very expensive in San Telmo. I'll keep my eye out for mini anvils. & maybe you could see if you cant' get some freebie hotel bells!
What were we talking about?
French jurist
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In France, I'd be living in a 2/3 bedrooms in the suburbs of Paris, or in a house in Normandy, 1 hour away from Paris.
In Argentina, I'm living in a 2 floor house, with a big garden of 2.400m2/21.000 sq.ft, with a big pool.
In France, with hard working & a good education, you are not guaranteed to meet success & achieve your goals.
In Argentina, not only does it seem easier, but the likeliness of this happening is increasing.
In France, in order to own my house/apmt, I would have likely needed a 30 years loan what is so... thrilling (you subscribe at 35 yo, at 65 yo you go "pffff!"... Then you die within 15 years).
In Argentina, I still don't own anything, but I envision the possibility buying some piece of land quite soon, likely facing the river, not far away from the big city (I already know where, lovely place). I'll pay cash. By the time I'm 65, I may own a few apartments also. (and maybe that at 65, I'll be like "lol"... Not that money makes happy though).
In Paris, if I had kept on living there, I maybe would have strived hard to open an antique bookstore or an art gallery. It would have requested more funds also (even proportionally to my potential income). But that would have been the 1000 bookstore or gallery of that kind.
In Buenos Aires, who knows ? I want to open a Jazz Club, a "Club de los Poetas", an art gallery, restaurants. Potential & achievability is much higher imho (if you can work hard like 18 hours day 7/7, key to success). Those would likely be "one of their kinds".
I also think it's much easier to raise kids in BA than in Paris (and by that, I mean : way much easier). Same thing goes for dogs (et pour les francophones, souvenons-nous de la blague de Coluche "certains font même des enfants parce qu'ils ne peuvent pas avoir de chiens").
In Paris, I would be "controlled" much more, like being filmed by a CCTV 500 times a day. That would be 2.000/2.500 times in London (?). I think our modern societies have created a monster (with a simple click, it's possible to know everything about you : newspapers you subscribe to, your health records, the places you've visited in the past month with your cell, etc. = "Terrorism" was a good argument, right ?). Let's wait until a populist power takes charge in a country having such tools, this will happen (History is History).
In Argentina, it's still a place quite free (not for long unfortunately), a kind of last "Far South". That's what would summarize the best this country.
Also, Argentina is a "fragile giant", giant in size & ressources, small in population.
I guess it's a great chance, considering the decades to come, to live on a land with so much space & water resources.
In Argentina, I'm living in a 2 floor house, with a big garden of 2.400m2/21.000 sq.ft, with a big pool.
In France, with hard working & a good education, you are not guaranteed to meet success & achieve your goals.
In Argentina, not only does it seem easier, but the likeliness of this happening is increasing.
In France, in order to own my house/apmt, I would have likely needed a 30 years loan what is so... thrilling (you subscribe at 35 yo, at 65 yo you go "pffff!"... Then you die within 15 years).
In Argentina, I still don't own anything, but I envision the possibility buying some piece of land quite soon, likely facing the river, not far away from the big city (I already know where, lovely place). I'll pay cash. By the time I'm 65, I may own a few apartments also. (and maybe that at 65, I'll be like "lol"... Not that money makes happy though).
In Paris, if I had kept on living there, I maybe would have strived hard to open an antique bookstore or an art gallery. It would have requested more funds also (even proportionally to my potential income). But that would have been the 1000 bookstore or gallery of that kind.
In Buenos Aires, who knows ? I want to open a Jazz Club, a "Club de los Poetas", an art gallery, restaurants. Potential & achievability is much higher imho (if you can work hard like 18 hours day 7/7, key to success). Those would likely be "one of their kinds".
I also think it's much easier to raise kids in BA than in Paris (and by that, I mean : way much easier). Same thing goes for dogs (et pour les francophones, souvenons-nous de la blague de Coluche "certains font même des enfants parce qu'ils ne peuvent pas avoir de chiens").
In Paris, I would be "controlled" much more, like being filmed by a CCTV 500 times a day. That would be 2.000/2.500 times in London (?). I think our modern societies have created a monster (with a simple click, it's possible to know everything about you : newspapers you subscribe to, your health records, the places you've visited in the past month with your cell, etc. = "Terrorism" was a good argument, right ?). Let's wait until a populist power takes charge in a country having such tools, this will happen (History is History).
In Argentina, it's still a place quite free (not for long unfortunately), a kind of last "Far South". That's what would summarize the best this country.
Also, Argentina is a "fragile giant", giant in size & ressources, small in population.
I guess it's a great chance, considering the decades to come, to live on a land with so much space & water resources.
sinagua980
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When I speak in Spanish here, people actually speak Spanish back to me. In the U.S., being as white as I am, if I try to speak Spanish to someone they'll revert to English even if I keep going in Spanish.
Piropos -my number one favorite.
Calling a plumber on a sunday when -for some unknown reason- you have no water. When he comes over (that same sunday) and it turns out it is an electrical problem; calling an electrician on that same sunday. A few hours later the water is running again.
How all people help the blind on the streets. When someone falls/slips, 10 people stop to check if he or she is OK. How the elderly just ask help from anyone in the street to help them in or out the taxi, and everyone does that -in cases like this nobody is in a hurry.
Calling a plumber on a sunday when -for some unknown reason- you have no water. When he comes over (that same sunday) and it turns out it is an electrical problem; calling an electrician on that same sunday. A few hours later the water is running again.
How all people help the blind on the streets. When someone falls/slips, 10 people stop to check if he or she is OK. How the elderly just ask help from anyone in the street to help them in or out the taxi, and everyone does that -in cases like this nobody is in a hurry.
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