- Personal Space- In short it doesn't exist here. Personal boundaries are a foreign concept. This seems to be both a positive and negative aspect of Argentine culture. First of all, it makes people appear much more friendly than in the states. The custom is to greet and say goodbye to everyone personally when you enter and leave a room. Even when someone walks into class, they kiss the cheeks of every person even remotely close to them. I think that if this was the practice in the US my family would never, ever, leave an event. The negative is the extreme displays of public affection in couples. We were talking to my teacher about this in my Spanish class and she defended the practice by saying "they are transferring positive energy to each other," regardless, I would be a lot more comfortable if they did it not in the middle of the street or next to me on the subway!
- Protests- I think I can say that growing up I had more exposure to political protests than most people but the protests in BA are bizarre. For instance, they are very scheduled and only last for short periods of times. Every Wednesday morning I walk by a small protest of about 30 men in the same plaza that only seems to last for about two hours. Earlier in my stay there was a strike on the subway. My Spanish teacher explained that it happens twice a year, always during the two hours after rush hour, doesnt include all the lines and is publicized well in advance. I'm still confused as to what the point of that is... Mom? Dad? I think its cool how frequent protests are here but Magda and my Spanish teacher definitely disagree. Magda says that protesting is a national sport and people don't care what they are protesting. Yesterday in my Spanish class we could hear firecrackers going off at a pretty regular interval. My classmates and I were all disturbed by this but our teacher dismissed it as people trying to get attention. Also, on the theme of protests., the University of Buenos Aires was taken over by students in protest of something (its not entirely clear what exactly they are protesting) a month ago and classes still have not resumed, you can't even get into the buildings.
- Census- I bet you are wondering how the Census could be a controversial topic and believe me, I am surprised it is. I was explaining to Magda that I was studying the Census in my Sociology of the Population class when she proclaimed that she hates the Census (which is happening again at the end of October). She said that she doesnt open her door during Census time because then the government can get your information and use it against use you. I'm unsure exactly what her reason is but I chalk it up to the experience of living through political turmoil that she has experienced.
- Photocopies- No one said that these were all going to be important cultural differences... One of the most confusing parts of the university system here is how you get the readings. If you are lucky, your class is organized and you simply go to the photocopy store close to the school say the name of the class and are given a fat stack of papers. Usually a few hundred pages copied from various books. (copyright laws? what are those) If you are unlucky, like I am in one of my classes, it is a much longer process. I spent a week trying to find the 500 page book I needed in various bookstores before I caved and went with the Argentine system. I went to the library of my school and checked out the book I needed (it was a process, he had to re-glue the cover on and I was only able to keep it for one day). Then I went to the photocopier, left the book for a few hours, before coming back to pick up my huge stack of photocopies, held together by a tiny staple. In case you are curious, it costs about $12 to photocopy an entire 500 pg political science book. I am very much looking forward to ordering my books on Amazon next semester!
- Paseadores de Perros- This is by far my favorite cultural difference, and what I imagine my dad would hate. Paseadores are dogwalkers. You might be thinking that all dog walkers are the same but, boy are you wrong! Here it is an extreme sport, not to mention a full-time profession! There is a national law saying that you are only allowed to walk 14 (FOURTEEN!!!!!!!) dogs at one time. And, let me tell you, people don't always follow it! This means that you can be walking down a very busy street and turn the corner and be face to face with fourteen dogs! Its amazing how well behaved the dogs get along. The Paseadores are definitely one of the most entertaining things to see while I walk to class.
I'm traveling a lot in the next two weeks: to Rosario and Salta, so I promise an exciting blog update filled with pictures when I get back!
Hasta Luego,
Miriam
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