A Departure into the Unknown: Buenos Aires and Beyond

First of all, to those that have been following my blog, I sincerely apologize for the lack of updating recently.  No excuse really, just sheer laziness on my part.  So to make up for it, I have decided to give you all a nice little update about all the happenings that have been goin’ on down here in the South of the Mundo.  It’s been nearly three months since I first touched down in this crazy city, wide-eyed, alone, and timid amidst the sheer size of such an place.  I have fortunately come a long way since that moment, and things have been slowly falling into place as I’ve been settling in.  My network of friends continues to grow (a healthy mix of Americans, English, Australian, and Argentine), I found an affordable place to live in Almagro (one of the dozens of neighborhoods within the city), and the city is beginning to feel more and more like home with each passing day.  My Spanish is improving (albeit slowly, damn learning a language is frustrating), I know my way around the city, and I already have a number of favorite restaurants and late night watering holes.  The only element that still happens to be eluding my grasp is the ever elusive J.O.B. However, I am remaining optimistic and know that in time something will fatefully stumble my way.  I also know that I can always fall back on teaching English, but the pay is incredibly poor and will probably only extend my stay for a few extra months, but, such is the adventure I got myself into, and whatever happens, I can’t complain, as simply being here I have come to realize is an experience I am most fortunate to have.  Everyday (well, almost everyday) has brought new surprises, adventures, and memories. For your enjoyment, here is a bullet-pointed list of some interesting things that have happened since my arrival..

• I’ve lived with an elderly Argentine couple.
• I hated it, subsequently leading to my homelessness for nearly 3 weeks.
• However, an English friend of mine learned of my homelessness and invited me to squat at his place until my homelessness was no longer.
• I’m a founding member of the BABC (Buenos Aires Broncos Club). We now have nearly 50 members and meet weekly to watch them play at an Expat bar called “Shoeless Joe’s El Alamo.”
• I’ve given a speech at an Argentine girl’s birthday party, in front of her entire family and friends, only a few days after meeting her.
• I’ve ridden motorbikes along the coast of Uruguay.
• I’ve survived a World Cup qualifying match between Argentina and Uruguay.
• I’ve learned that if you arrive at a bar any time before midnight that you’ll most likely be the only one there, besides maybe the other group of tourists in the corner.
• I’ve dated an Argentine woman nearly 10 years my senior, who didn’t speak a word of English. Didn’t last though, I think age might have had something to do with it.
• I’ve danced salsa and tango (or at least have tried to dance salsa and tango).
• I’ve eaten the best steak I’ve ever eaten in my life and only payed about 8 bucks for it.
• I’ve learned that if you invite an Argentine girl to meet you somewhere, and she tells you she will be there, it is completely normal for her not to show up (learned that one the hard way).
• I’ve sipped some of the worlds best wine.
• Topless hookers have attempted to rob me on the street (gender still yet to be identified).
• I’ve been up partying past sunrise more than my entire college career combined.
• I’ve played in a cage with seven adult tigers.
• I’ve fallen in love with a girl from Spain. Well, so I thought, and she was in my life about as fast as she was out of it. So life goes…

These are just of few of the interesting things that have happened to me over the past few months. I could probably go on for a good while longer, but we’ll end it here for now.  And if I do end up having to come home earlier than planned, at least I can take home some memories like these.

…some interesting things have happened to me.  There is no doubt about that.  The first few days at the hostel were a bit slow and I wasn’t really meeting anyone. It seemed as if only 4 or 5 other people were staying there and my only friend so far was the Argentine guy who worked at the front desk who spoke flawless English.  He turned out to be a great guy who loved and appreciated music much in the way that I do. So I would find excuses to wander by and talk music with him whenever I was bored.  There were actually a few instances where we spent nearly hours talking about our favorite bands, differences and similarities between Argentine and North American music, and just basic common ground between our countries in general (this was when I first learned how much Argentines LOVE to converse).  At nights though, I would get lonely, because many of the people staying at the hostel were from other Spanish speaking countries, and I wasn’t confident in my speaking ability whatsoever at this point. My fear of speaking however, is what would lead to probably what will become one of my most memorable experiences here, and after a few hours of avoiding a large group of people chatting (in words foreign to me) and drinking in a large common area of the hostel, I finally decided to walk in just to see what would happen.  The second I walked into the room, I was welcomed into the group for a glass of wine, where curiosity led to questions about my name and where in the world I hailed from, and before I knew it, I was up until 8 in the morning talking and drinking wine with a girl from Columbia, who spoke maybe a few sentences of English, but regardless we were able to communicate.  Her broken English, my Spanglish, and an infinite amount of hand gesturing (and laughing).  And since then, my confidence in Spanish has grown, and I’m meeting new people and making new friends everyday.  I’ve been in Spanish school (Escuela DWS) for almost two weeks now, and already I can understand 60-70% of what people say (if spoken slowly of course).  Speaking is what I’ve found to be the most difficult, and I’m discovering that the only way to learn is to just throw yourself out there.  Wherever you are (on the street, in a store, in a restaurant),  at the very least make an attempt, and your attempt will be met with with a smile and great appreciation.  Once its understood that your Spanish isn’t the best, you can make the most out of the situation, and the locals will be more than happy to help you with what you’re trying to say (or make their best attempt at speaking English).  I don’t know about you, but if I were expected to speak English by a foreigner visiting my country, I would be a bit insulted.  So wherever I go, I always try to speak Spanish, no matter how many mistakes I make, because putting the effort in to speak is the only way to truly learn the language.

Anyways, besides Spanish school being a great way to learn Spanish, its also been a great source for me to meet some initial friends.  The past week and a half, I’ve been mostly hanging out with an Australian guy (James), two Dutch girls (Stephanie and Anouk), two people from Switzerland (Roger and Seve), and a guy from France (Damian).  It’s an interesting mix of people for sure.  We all speak different languages, try to speak Spanish with one another (for practice), but the common language among us is English, which we all fortunately speak. Through James though, I’ve met a fair amount of other people, because last week he had a party at his flat, bringing together everyone he’s met so far in the city.  While at the party, I met a number of other expats/long-term travelers (some from the US and some from the UK), but most notably some Argentine girls.  However, I keep hearing from foreigners that live here how difficult it is to mix and mingle with the locals (especially the women).  These comments have of course disappointed me quite a bit, but they’ve also inspired me even more to step out of my shell even further, and experience what I came here to experience. Which is to learn Spanish, immerse myself within a culture completely foreign to me, and in turn, grow from that experience.  BUT…already I’ve found myself (on my birthday conveniently) singing Spanish karaoke at a birthday party at an Argentine family’s home with 10 Argentine girls, subsequently giving a speech in front of the entire family and guests of the party, to the girl whose birthday it was. Talk about cultural immersion! It turns out that one of the Argentine girls (Justi) that I met at James’ party, would eventually invite me, along with James of course, and a few others to her birthday, where I would soon find myself in such an unpredictable situation. And this is just the first two weeks? I was told by an American guy (who lived here for a few years, but is here visiting) at Justi’s party that I don’t even know what’s in store for me, and that if I’m not careful, I may never want to leave..

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