Our journey to Buenos Aires from London began on a stuffy British Airways flight lasting fifteen very long hours. However almost as soon as we stepped foot on to Argentinean soil our acidic moods evaporated and we were captivated by the enveloping passion of what I consider to be the best city in the world.
Sofia Ahmad
A year after graduating from University two friends and I decided to embark on the stereotypical “gap year adventure”. We decided to spend a number of months travelling across South America tracking the well trodden “gringo trail” with a few off the beaten road escapades factored in for good measure. Our trip was to take us from Buenos Aires to Bogotá in four months.
We were aware that we would be living a nomadic existence with just enough time to get a taste of each place but perhaps no more. However Buenos Aires was to be our exception. We stayed there for 1 month, attended Spanish school every day for five hours from Monday to Friday, and lived in an apartment in the trendy Palermo district.
In this month we did not feel we were following the expat traveller community from one hostel to the next on the “gringo trail”; a feeling that I could not escape from during the rest of our trip.
We were British students in Argentina, anxious to make the most of a city raved about by anyone and everyone that had been there. Within days we had embraced the Buenos Aires way of life and quickly fell in love with the wholesome culture of Argentina.
Buenos Aires is as beautiful as the people that inhabit it. Stretches of delightful ever green parks break up the metropolitan landscape of Argentina’s capital city.
Tango dancing and steak houses are ubiquitous sights and the exodus of Italians to Argentina in the early nineteenth century has profoundly left its mark on the make up of the country and its people.
Heladerias (Ice Cream parlours) and Pizzerias can be spotted on every street corner, the overwhelming European complexion of its people is prevalent as is the vivacious personalities and over the top hand gesturing that characterise Italians.
Coming from London we were accustomed to the anonymity of a capital city. We expected to be strangers in an urban jungle, just as we were at home.
Buenos Aires fitted the bill in many ways. It had an overcrowded metro and there were many diverse areas from the political district of El Centro, the young and hip Palermo, the wealthy neighbourhood of Recolletta, the quirky quarter of San Telmo and the rough charm of Bocha home to the most famous Argentinean football team. However unlike London, anonymity had not infected the streets of Buenos Aires.
I have in fact never met friendlier people or made so many friends in such a short space of time.
Almost every taxi driver wanted our life story, they did not care how good or bad our Spanish was, they all patiently persisted with genuine enthusiasm.
Any stranger that I asked for help with did not get irritated with my broken Spanish but went above and beyond to help me.
I once did not understand how to put credit on my Argentinean mobile phone and the two elderly gentlemen who had served me in the shop were as clueless as I.
They did not leave it at that, they searched up and down the local take away joints and shops to find a young technology savy boy who willingly obliged. Within our first week we had made so many friends. The people at our language school were great however we were amazed at how many friends we met by just going out. We would get talking to travellers and South Americans alike who would invite us out in larger groups, to their houses for drinks, to their friends birthdays, group dinners coming up. Within five days we had a network of people we knew in the city.
The formality and Cliqueiness of friendship in England was in contrast to the openness and casual attitude in Argentina.
So much so that when a new friend Silvi offered to take us on a day trip to the sea side town of Tigre an hour or two outside the city ashamedly we caught ourselves thinking why is she being so nice to us? Does she want something? We were genuinely confused at her hospitality towards us.
As for the lifestyle, Buenos Aires is in a league of its own when it comes to nocturnal activity. Dinner is regularly eaten between 10 until 12 with restaurants staying open throughout the night and clubs don’t get busy until 1am and most close at 6 or 7.
We quickly adapted from 7pm dinners and clubs that closed at 2 or 3. We felt as if we were indulging in a month of hedonism. On reflection I feel that we were feeling guilty because we were enjoying ourselves so much, something that comes much more naturally to the Latin culture and climate.
Our Argentinean friends would happily come out with us in the evenings and go to work in the mornings.
They would not go to work with horrendous hangovers as they went out to dance and socialise not to drink so much that they could feel uninhibited enough to converse openly; an all too familiar scene in England.
In contrast to England where work can often be a central topic of conversation they do not talk about work outside of work, something that my guidebook reliably informed me of. However I thought I would put it to the test and I asked my friend Tati how her working week was. Her reaction was a mixture of genuine bemusement and confusion. The Argentinean men were leading ambassadors in “el amor”. Something as simple as stepping into a cab or buying an empanada warranted “Buenos días linda” or “chao preciosa”. They didn’t however pull it off quite so well when they caught wind of our nationality and spouted cliché English phrases, with the most popular being “I love you forever baby”.
Still to imagine a passerby in England saying this, is a bit of a joke. Our pretty petite Spanish teacher Carla who was herself a local , told us that when she first visited Spain and failed to hear the familiar whispers of “hermosa” and “bonita” trailing behind her on the streets of Madrid she felt there must be something wrong with her.
It is as if the men in Argentina had been trained in the art of flattery from the time they uttered their first words.
There was not a trace of awkwardness or uncertainty characteristic of men back home and they do not miss an opportunity to ask a girl out, whether it be through a chance encounter in the park, on the train, in a restaurant or walking down the street.
As a collective we entertained the invitations of a few select locals, who provided us with hours of discussion in contrasting the differences. A chef I met called Oscar took us out with his friends and in one of our first conversations that night he expressed the deep love he held for his mother. After one date with my friend Megan, a guy called Mariano responded to her enquiries about his forthcoming week by declaring the only thing he was waiting for in the week was “to see her again”.
Meanwhile my other friend I was travelling with Meredith met an Argentinean named Federico and after only seeing him twice he had dedicated a song to her.
My friends and I were all in complete agreement that you would certainly not hear those utterances from an English guy after meeting them once, twice or probably even after many more occasions, especially sober ones.
Passion is at the nuclei of this city. Wander the streets and you will see teenagers and pensioners alike, limbs entangled locked in a zealous embrace oblivious to the world around them.
Happen to be in Bocha after a football match and observe armed police sprawling the circumference of the stadium watching out for tempers to flare.
Locals light up the backstreets of San Telmo at night, dazzling passer bys as they dance until the early hours. Enjoy the most succulent steaks in the world complimented by the finest red wines. Finally you need not worry if you find yourself lost in a Buenos Aires, the kindness and love embedded in the city and its inhabitants will help you find your way home. Although before long you may feel that you have a new home.
In our last week my friends and I were hit with a tinge of melancholy, we were excited for our adventure ahead but so sad to leave a city we felt so happy in.
We hosted a party in our apartment to thank everyone. We were secretly proud of how many friends we had made after just four weeks.
Above all we felt that Argentina had taught us so much that we hoped we could take on board. We vowed to try and live with more of the openness, warmth and zest for life that we had found in this city.
I feel that a trip to Buenos Aires should come with a warning. Go at your own risk, but you may find you never want to return home or alternatively spend the next few months pining after a city that will surely sweep you off your feet.
(Photos: Pixabay)
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