Week One in Buenos Aires

I’ve officially been in Buenos Aires for a week, and a lot has happened!

The day after I arrived, I mostly ran errands and got to know my new neighborhood (Chacarita). This was not without its challenges; the ATM ended up eating my debit card, so I had to wait until the bank opened that Monday to get it back. I didn’t realize that ATMs could eat my debit card if I withdrew too many times (it took me a couple of tries to figure out how much to get with the exchange rate), so that was a valuable lesson. Luckily, it was easily recovered.

On Monday, I officially started my language and culture class at UTDT.

First day at UTDT!

The school is not really accessible by subway (Subte), so I had to figure out how to use the bus system. This was not an easy task. One intersection can have four different bus stops, and figuring out which one to take can be a challenge. And that’s if I can even find the bus stop in the first place. They often are not very well marked, so it can feel a little like a wild goose chase at times. The Moovit app has helped a lot.

I’ve mostly gotten the hang of the bus system now, but I’m still not quite used to the actual experience of riding the bus. When you get on, you tell the driver where you are going, so they know how much to charge you. Then you swipe your SUBE card. You can load the card with money at Subte stops, kiosks, or some convenience stores, and it works for trains, buses, and the Subte. That makes it pretty easy. What’s not easy is the bus ride itself. The drivers tend to drive pretty aggressively, and they wait for no one. Usually, the bus will start moving before the doors have even closed. They move fast and make sudden movements, too, so it’s very easy to get thrown around. One time, I was sitting in an aisle seat, and the bus took such a fast and sharp turn that I was actually thrown out of my seat and landed in the aisle (there are no seatbelts on the buses). I have since learned to brace myself and try to sit in the window seat.

One of the biggest differences I’ve noticed is that Argentine Spanish is very different from the Spanish I’ve learned. Of course, I knew coming in that there would be a linguistic difference, but I wasn’t quite prepared for how different it would be. For one, I’ve always been taught to pronounce ll like a y, but here it’s pronounced more like sh (y is pronounced the same way). Argentines also use vos instead of tú (you), and it comes with its own conjugation. And the vocabulary is different. I saw many advertisements for desserts and drinks containing frutillas. I assumed this meant mixed fruit. It turns out that this is actually the Argentine term for strawberries, which I only knew as fresas. These differences have had me feeling like Kristen Wiig in Bridesmaids sometimes: 

But I’m practicing and getting better every day, so hopefully it will feel more natural soon. This is where the course has really helped. We had a day of orientation on Monday, and then they gave us a written and oral test to determine which level we should be placed in. The professors told me that they felt I was between the intermediate and advanced levels (which is how I would have classified myself too) and let me pick which class I was more comfortable with. I decided to go with the advanced class. I figured that I’m here to learn and challenge myself. If that means I need to do extra work or play catch-up, so be it. I haven’t regretted that decision so far. 

There’s 12 of us in the class along with our professor, Lara. Lara made it clear from the first day that we were only to speak Spanish in class, which is totally fine with me. We’ve gone over some grammar refreshers, learned Argentine vocabulary, and even learned to make mate, a traditional hot drink in the southern part of South America. Lara is very nice and good at making Spanish accessible, so I’ve enjoyed the class so far. We also took a tour of the city this week. My favorite stop was either the Casa Rosada (Pink House), where the president works (unlike the White House, he does not live there) or the cathedral where Pope Francis used to work. It was beautifully decorated, and it was especially fun to visit since my mom is a huge fan of Pope Francis even though we are not Catholic. Unfortunately, right after the tour, it started to pour, though the forecast only had a 5% chance of rain. We all got soaked running into the market for lunch, but the empanada I ate made up for it.

The Casa Rosada

I’ve also gotten to know some of the other students. After the first day, we all went out to a cafe and talked for a few hours. I’ve already started making friends from all over the world. I also have to give a special shoutout to Mariah, the other student from USC here. She’s doing the course as well, and it’s been really nice to have someone from my home university to share the experience with. We’ve already become fast friends and have done some exploring.

Mariah and me on the rooftop garden, my favorite place on campus

I also did some exploring today for a group project. We were assigned a neighborhood to visit and do a presentation on. My group consists of Elisa, who is from Italy, Olivia, who is from Norway, and myself. We got Belgrano R, a very pretty residential area. We had a lot of fun walking around, visiting the parks, and seeing the sights. At one point, we visited a historic church that was open to the public, only to find a wedding taking place inside. We ended up watching two people get married! We also had some incredible ice cream— for scientific purposes, of course. Tomorrow, our group is taking a day trip to Colonia del Sacramento across the river in Uruguay. More updates to come soon!