25 lessons learned

Had another great week. Buenos Aires is hosting the world tango festival this month, so on Sunday some friends & I went to one of the free tango shows. I was in awe of the way the dancers moved--the turns, footwork, and costumes were amazing!

The next weekend, the university hosted an international students' night with a booth for each country offering traditional food & drinks, which was a ton of fun and turned into a big dance party with college students from all over the world! On Saturday I played in my second soccer game, saw my first Argentine basketball game, then went out dancing with some of the girls from my team at night!

It feels great to be experiencing something new every day, and I'm enjoying being able to explore a culture that's entirely different from the United States. Here are 25 of the lessons I've learned so far about life in Buenos Aires:

1. Greet people with a kiss on the cheek
2. Argentines are very fashionable, and get dressed up to go everywhere--so break out the skinny jeans & leather boots (sadly, I have to leave my sweatpants at home)
3. Dinner doesn't start until at least 9pm!
4. Water is not free--there are no public drinking fountains, and in some restaurants the wine is cheaper than the water. Also, be sure to ask for agua "sin gas" or it will be carbonated!
5. Everything is paid for in cash, not with a credit card
6. Soccer is the passion of Argentina. (On my first day here, River Plate lost a big game & the fans started a violent riot in the streets) People here get crazy about their teams, and watching fútbol is much more exciting here than in the states.
7. But, you don't have to be good at soccer to enjoy playing it!
8. Watch where you step, because there is dog poop all over the sidewalks. Also, it's not uncommon to see a dog walker with a dozen or so dogs at one time, and all the dogs wear coats in the winter.
9. Argentines don't cook for breakfast, most just have coffee or toast (Waffle House, I miss you!)
10. Milk comes in a bag. Ditto yogurt, ketchup, mustard, and mayo
11. If you make eye contact with people or smile at them on the street, they think that you're either weird or trying to rob them
12. There are lots of thieves & pickpockets, so keep an eye on your belongings--especially when using public transportation
13. But, learning to use the subte (subway system) and the colectivo (bus) will save you lots of money on taxi rides during the weekend
14. Ham and cheese empanadas are the PB&J of Argentina
15. Porteños love to argue politics
16. One U.S. dollar = 4 pesos, so don't freak out if you spend 30 pesos on a meal!
17. Rules of the road in Argentina: pedestrians do not have the right of way, stop signs are a suggestion, use your horn whenever possible, motorcycles are allowed to drive on the sidewalk, and there are no such things as speed limits or separate lanes. Needless to say, drivers here are insane. 
18. PDA is acceptable anywhere, from teenagers making out in the subte to old couples holding hands on the street
19. The nightlife doesn't start until 2 or 3 am and goes until the sun comes up
20. Argentine boys and girls are not friends with each other, you're either dating or nothing at all, and if you go anywhere alone with a guy it means sex
21. You do tons of walking here, which is great, especially if you have become addicted to chocolate alfajores
22. Nicknames such as gordo (fatso), negro (black), and flaco (skinny), which would be very offensive in the U.S., are totally normal here
23. Goodbye is chao instead of adios
24. Getting a letter from home (especially when it comes with Reese's or peanut butter) is one of the greatest feelings ever
25. There will be times when you feel homesick, but skype is great and it helps to have wonderful friends in Argentina : )

The first two months

I'm a little late getting started on a blog, one-third of my 6 month study abroad experience in Buenos Aires has already flown by! Here's a summary of the first two months:

I'm living in an apartment about 30 minutes away from UB, la Universidad de Belgrano, with my host mom Susana & host brother Ramiro. A month after I came I got a roommate, Ariel, another ISA student from Washington. Living with a family has been great so far, I love being able to talk with my host mom & help her make dinner every night!

During my first four weeks here, I took an 'intensive month' course in Spanish grammar and was in class 5 hours a day 5 days a week! The days were long, but it helped me brush up on my Spanish before starting semester classes & I made lots of new friends--I love the other OSU girls!

After the intensive month was over, a group of us spent five days in Mendoza, the wine country of Argentina, which turned out to be one of the most amazing experiences I've had here so far! We hiked in the Andes, went horseback riding, ate asado (delicious grilled steak), took a bike tour of the wineries & did wine tastings, made choco torta, then on the last day we went zip-lining in the mountains, which was incredible. We all got really close during the trip & I have some wonderful memories with the equipo : )

I've also gotten to visit some really cool places, including Tigre, Feria de Mataderos & la Boca:

And we've been taking O-H-I-O pictures everywhere we go--here's one of us with the guards at la Casa Rosada (yes, the Pink House), which is the office of the president:

I can also say that I've danced tango & salsa, learned to use the subte (still working on the colectivo), stayed out dancing until 7am, made friends with porteños, picked up some slang Spanish, and become a college athlete! Here's a team photo after our first soccer game:

And then, of course, there's the food. Argentina is known for its great meat, so I've been enjoying lots of choripán, milanesa, and asado. I'm also in love with alfajores, which are basically cookies with dulce de leche in the middle (Argentines are obsessed with dulce de leche). But, aside from not liking spicy foods, this country has one huge flaw--they don't eat peanut butter! 

I just finished my first three weeks of semester classes--I'm taking film, literature, culture, and Spanish-English translation. The way my schedule worked out I only have class on Mondays and Wednesdays, which is perfect. I'm having an amazing time so far & am so excited to see what the next four months will bring!