Mi vida y familia nueva:
It took me about twenty hours (more or less) to get to my new city. When we landed I felt a bit sick and disoriented and with fifteen other people running around me, I was really overwhelmed. From the airport, it was another hour to make it to the University of Belgrano where we were to meet our new families. I was retrieved by a friend of my "mama's," named Mia. Mia tried to engage me as much as one can with an exhausted, sickly person who hasn't had much sleep and doesn't fully grasp the language. It was quite the taxi ride.
My mama is Lucy Smith, a former English teacher who lives in her first story apartment with a "perrito" named Oliver, nephew, a housekeeper for the week and another for the weekend. This is very common, Lucy assures me, but it is still a little strange that there is someone to serve our dinner and do the chores around the apartment. Lucy is very good to me, and we have become very good friends.
In addition to Lucy, I have the students in my program for an extended “family” here. There are only four boys in my group of about fifteen, so it is quite the “estrogen fest” and reminds me a little of sorority life. Everyone is, for the most part, wonderful, and we have a great deal of fun together. Our first day here, we took a trip to a town called Tigre which sits on the delta del Rio de la Plata. We spent about four hours in the sun, unaware that we were being slow roasted by UV rays… Needless to say, despite using MUCHO sunscreen, we were a little familia de langostas (lobsters) by the end of the afternoon. It was pretty humorous.
Despite our sunburns, we grow more and more comfortable each day. This helps because in Argentina, there is quite the lack of personal space; thus, we often stand extremely close to each other and have taken up the habit of giving “besos” to each other in place of greetings and farewells.
I now understand why people call Buenos Aires the Paris of South America; it is a city in which I wish I could be in love. Here, affection is as rampant as the stray dogs that occupy every nook of Buenos Aires. Everyone hugs and kisses (yes, even the most masculine of men), and there are often couples of all ages standing in the street exchanging saliva in a manner that suggests they are worried it will be there last chance. In one instance, I witnessed a boy around the age of thirteen making out with his girlfriend while his mom stood no more than three feet away. Perhaps it was because I am a cold-hearted America, but I felt extremely awkward.
Buenos Aires has millions of inhabitants and is constantly in motion. I love it here. Along with the human population, there are large populations of pigeons (which I call my pajarritos or “birdies”), stray dogs that were left to survive the street life because their owners were unable to take care of them and insects. While on the beach, I made friends with a perra sin familia that wandered up to me and put her head against my leg. Dulce, we called her, like “dulce de leche,” a favorite caramel dessert that is very popular here. Another evening, I was lucky enough to stumble across una cucaracha… I was less than impressed.
Another resident that is often seen in the streets of Buenos Aires, is the Argentinean male. As a female, especially an American young woman, there is more danger in a smile than any other action when around these men. I’ve only been here a week and have already been met with ominous smiles and “Estas hermosa” and “Mi amor” while walking in the early morning to class. I’m not especially scared of the men, but I know that being careful will save me a lot of unnecessary trouble.
The same is true of thieves and pick-pocketers. If one does not wish to lose everything, it’s incredibly important to be alert and cautious in the streets. For example, when I go out in the evenings or leave for school, I take only what I absolutely need for the day. Sometimes, it means I have to make a trip back to my house to exchange my wallet for my computer in order to check my e-mails. But, as they say, when you get robbed you often have everything with you, so I try to prevent what I can.
You should be wary of the stray dogs. Most of them have fleas, which I don't think you want!!!
ReplyDeleteJust as a warning.