“Don’t you miss home?” my cleaner asked me. I’ve been in Buenos Aires for just over two months now; for the first time during my various travels I haven’t felt that yearning in the pit of my stomach that would have punched me by now.
Of course I miss my friends and family dearly. Bizarrely I’m coping without hummus, but I am hankering for some decent chocolate; even just Cadbury. And yes this time is different. I’m here with Alistair; we’re here for a few years rather than just months so time is not of the essence in quite the same way; and Alistair’s job means we’re already part of the St George’s school community.
In all honesty, my biggest surprise is just how much I do feel at home here. I’ve just finished reading Bad Times in Buenos Aires by Miranda France; while some parts did make me chuckle in solidarity, I’m very glad I read it after we’d arrived. While the bureaucratic hell she refers to is still alive (bear with me, more on this), times have changed, well for some things anyway.
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| Ahhhh home at last |
I can see how in a country where many things are more often broken than not, living in a pre-internet era, not having a Sube (an Oyster-style card for the buses) or having to go through an operator to call your neighbour would wear down the sturdiest of demeanours. But come on, you’re in Latin America… that’s what happens. At least the sun shines.
The highs
• Climate: Speaking of sunshine, suffice to say I think we’ve found our perfect climate in BA, a latitude of about 35 degrees. It's not horrendously sticky, it's sunny most days, and the sound of the Pampero wind whistling through the city is simply mesmerising.
• Castellano: I thought I’d hate Argentine Castellano – double ll pronounced as juh, vos instead of tu, missing off letters at the end of words… why?! I’m becoming more accustomed to the accent, Argentinisms, and actually find it all rather endearing. I’ve also just read 1964, a poem by Jorge Luis Borges, one of Argentina’s most famous writers, and I’m smitten. Plus my cleaner tops up my lessons with more day-to-day vocab.
• Ice cream: I’m in helado paradise. What you don’t realise until you arrive is how good, and how many, ice cream parlours there are in BA. The chocolate may be deeply disappointing but thankfully the ice cream makes up for it.
• Buenos Aires, of course: Despite all the political and economic malaise we constantly hear and read about, we couldn’t have picked a more friendly, warm-hearted and diverse city in Latin America. The cultural scene is one of the best in the region, offering everything from Tango to jazz, wine tasting to music festivals, literary events to cinema… you name it and someone will be doing it.
• Home sweet home: Don’t knock suburbia. Before we arrived, we mocked it and were dead set against living in Quilmes, where the school is in the south of BA. Once again, it’s proved rather agreeable. It has plenty of shops, restaurants, cafes and to my delight, a mosaics class. Transport into Capital is silly cheap, AR$2.20 (15p*) for a return train journey (admittedly a bit hairy) and buses, quick and with air conditioning, are only AR$7 (47p). On the downside, it does mean I haven’t seen as much of Capital as I’d have liked by now but hey, three years right…
The lows
• Political and economic labyrinth: Disappointingly, I know even less about Argentine politics and economics than when I arrived. The presidential elections take place later this year, in October, but I have no idea who represents which party, what they stand for, nor what half of them look like. Does anyone…?
• Identity obsessed: I didn’t appreciate how individualistic Britain is until we came here. I cannot buy anything in this country without my national identity card (DNI). I need it to buy a pay-as-you go SIM, to withdraw cash from an ATM, to enter a running race etc. As it happens I still don’t have my DNI.
• Security mad: Argentines are absolutely obsessed with it - whether it be at home, school, the workplace… everywhere. I’ve got 3 keys for my front door. It takes so long to lock up, check right to left, back to front that no one’s around that I’ve probably already been robbed.
In-betweeners
• Going with the flow: I’m not very good at slowing down, even more so in a city where everyone walks at a snail’s pace and then stops right in front of you. I need to improve my Spanish, find work, get contacts if I’m going to be a freelancer… oh so much time but also so little time. Tranquila everyone tells me… I’m not going anywhere fast so maybe I should stop and listen and see what happens.
So two months in, it’s funny how you get used to a place. For the same amount of time, our stuff from England – TV, cutlery, bikes, kettle, toaster, bed sheets etc – was sitting in the docs and we seemed to manage just fine without it. Until it arrived, naturally. So, yes I do miss many people and things in and about England. And yes some areas of my life, especially work, are unsettled. But until we go back, I feel right at home.
Exchange rate: AR$15 = £1
Exchange rate: AR$15 = £1
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