Leaving B.A., but hoping to return

“How do you like Buenos Aires?” we are asked. The question has been posed to us many times since we arrived, and immediately the rules of proper etiquette kick in. Any answer besides “amazing” is not acceptable, but it is this same answer that elicits suspicion as to whether we are just trying to be nice. Thus, Buenos Aires has been an exercise in actually convincing people that we’re serious when we say that this city is, well…amazing.

“We’ve been traveling through Central America for a month, and here…compared to other places…” I struggle to make my thoughts clear. It’s a touchy subject. Since Buenos Aires is much more European and much wealthier than the rest of Latin America, I don’t want to imply that its superiority is derived from its more “civilized” attributes, as some would call them. There is no question that this city feels more familiar than any other place we’ve traveled through on our trip, but what makes it such an amazing place to travel to is that it has depth and complexity that few other place have. It’s a place where answers lead to more questions.

In smaller towns and cities, there are fewer options, fewer outside influences, fewer distinct groups interacting, which means as a traveler, one must be more flexible and conform to the dictates of the particular place. Which is nice, and a good way to force yourself see life from a different perspective, but it also nice to be in a place where you can pick and choose.

In Buenos Aires, choices abound. Fresh fruit markets, ice cream parlors, delicious steaks, cafes, and Italian food are never more than a 55¢ subway ride away. There are Brazilians, Polish, Italians, and Japanese; Muslims, Jews, and of course, Catholics. And like a truly vibrant city, there are people out and about all 24 hours of the day. Literally.

The city is like an alternate universe, superficially different but full of cultural details that mirror our own. Style and beauty are just as important, if not more so here as in the U.S., but somehow the mullet, America’s most notorious hairdo, is Argentina’s most celebrated. By far the most popular hairstyle in Buenos Aires, it would be hard to find a corner of the city where one wasn’t within view. Even most women sport a sort of modified mullet with long layers in the back and shorter shaggy bangs of the top and front. Shocking.

Even tango, the most internationally known cultural invention of Argentina and undeniably unique in its own right, has marked similarities to American musical and cultural traditions. It is a largely improvised dance that spawned from poor neighborhoods of Africans, Italians and other immigrants, slowly evolving and gaining acceptance beyond the lowest social classes and beyond national borders, not unlike Jazz and Hip-hop in the States (among other examples). Though totally different aesthetically, it’s also not hard to see how tango relates to the American “melting pot” narrative.

Despite all the commonalities shared by our cultures, after only a few days visiting it is evident that, sadly, we will leave here with only a miniscule understanding of Buenos Aires, and even less of Argentina as a whole. How did everyone here get so attractive? Why do the subway trains run on the left? When do people sleep when dinner is at 11 p.m. and people regularly go out during the week until 3 a.m.? And, after rising to international fame in the 19th century, falling to brutal dictatorship in the 20th century, and sustaining complete economic collapse in 2001, from whence comes Argentina’s improbable cultural resilience?

Sadly, our stay here is too short to do the city justice. If it were up to us, we wouldn’t have to say goodbye so soon. We would find answers to questions, and uncover the layers underneath. Like the other places we have been and been sad to leave, we can only be happy that we were here for a time, and that there is always the possibility of return.

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