First week in the books!

¡Hola! I arrived safely in Buenos Aires last Saturday. The flight was okay. I intended to sleep through the night but I struggled to fall asleep with the limited space on my seat. Regardless, I made it safe and sound. It was about a ten and a half hour flight. 

San Telmo

I took an Uber from the airport to my apartment. One of the immediately noticeable in Argentina is the size of the vehicles. In comparison to the United States, residents drive compact cars. You will not see many pick up trucks, SUVs, or large vehicles on the road. The ride was about 45 minutes long. On the way, I also saw a lot of locals spending time outside, playing soccer, and grilling meat (presumably steak) in public parks. 

I met my landlord Macarena at the door to my apartment. It’s on the 9th floor of a building and a 12 minute walk to my Spanish school. Macarena was very friendly, spoke clear English. She has remained helpful answering questions about the city. The apartment has a living area, bedroom, bathroom (featuring a bidet). It’s situated in a busy area, with supermercados, carnecerias, cafe’s, and local shops all within short distance. Since I'm somewhat high up, I do not hear much noise from the streets below.

My apartment

After Macarena gave me a rundown of the unit, I rested until about 6PM. I spent dinner time walking around the business division of my neighborhood. It’s not directly in the tourist area, so all of the menus, signs, etc. are in Spanish. Very few places have parallel English menus. I wanted to get empanadas for dinner. So after some procrastination, I summoned some courage to order in Spanish. I requested two, but I must have messed up somewhere, because the employee gave me three. Nonetheless, I chalked it up as a success. 

For some background, I took Spanish classes in high school and some in college. I also utilized online learning programs like Babel prior to arriving. But I would by no means consider myself to be a “spanish speaker.” I can read at a basic level and have an okay vocabulary, but I struggle with listening and speaking. My goal with my program is to have sharpened my vocabulary and become conversational by the end of the three months.

Tres empanadas

The first week of classes went well. My classmates are from all around the world — the UK, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Brazil, the US, etc. My teacher lives in the city. It’s a “full immersion” program, meaning the classes -- even the directions and explanations from the teacher -- are in Spanish. The school organizes social events after class so the students can do various activities together. On the first day, there was a walking tour of the school neighborhood. We all grabbed Argentinian lemonade at a local cafe afterwards. I mostly talked to students from Germany and Switzerland. They asked me questions about the United States, Montana, US politics and more. I asked them the same about their countries. Germany has an election coming up near the end of the month. Later in the week, we went on a tour of Plaza de Mayo, where the “Casa Rosada” is located. It’s a historical building where the Argentinian President works. After the tour, we all grabbed pizza at Pizza Guerrin. It was some of the best I’ve had in a while.

Steak lunch

By and large, Buenos Aires is very safe, I walk to my classes with no issue. But as with most cities, you have to be alert for pick pocketing and petty theft. As an example, when we left Pizza Guerrin last week, someone on the streets approached me. They started speaking Spanish. I did not understand what they were saying. They kept pointing to my left towards the ground. I looked that direction, then they started reaching for my right pocket. I brushed past them and walked away. It was no big deal, but it serves as a reminder to be cognizant of possessions. It also reflects the economic struggle that many in the country are unfortunately experiencing

Outside of school activities, I also try to practice spanish with the locals, almost all of whom have been friendly and welcoming. Specifically, I have been shopping at a convenience store by my apartment. The owner knows that I am learning Spanish. She practices with my when I ring something up at the register. She also has given some tips on slang. 

Overall, my experience has thus far been positive. I enjoy hanging out with my classmates and have been able to cover a lot of ground already in Buenos Aires: Eva Perron museum, Church of the Pope, La Boca, San Telmo, Plaza de Mayo, Puerto Madero. My Spanish could improve. But I'm sure that will come with time. In upcoming weeks I would like to go to Uruguay (via the ferry boat) and possibly Ushuaia. We will see!

Chris 02/10/2025