You Think You Know But You Have No Idea (Part 2): BUENOS AIRES

by Lauren Rains
on February 24th, 2011
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When traveling we have two options: to embrace a location for all that it is including both the sexy and the not so sexy, or get caught up in all the annoying, different, and not-so-sexy attributes of the location and its culture. Last week I touched on some of the craziness you’ll find in Beijing, China. This week it’s the crazy Buenos Aires, Argentina.

When it comes to cities like Buenos Aires, Argentina it can be easy to pay a bit more attention to the not so sexy things if you’re not careful. As you’ll find out soon, one of them in particular is literally shoved in your face every time you walk the city’s streets. And it’s not pretty!

But as you know, in life we can either see things as the glass half full or the glass half empty. We can focus on the good, or we can focus on the bad. After living there for 5 months a few years back, I’ve gathered a collection of the sexy and not so sexy that is Buenos Aires. Let’s put it all out on the table and find out for ourselves what kind of label this city really deserves.

NOT SO SEXY: Dog Poo Balls all up in your face and on your shoes

Yes, Buenos Aires is a city filled with tree lined streets, wide sidewalks, and vibrant colors. But if you stop for a moment and look around you’ll begin to realize that there are little male dogs everywhere, and none of them, I mean none of them, have had their business cut off.

Now I don’t know about you, but when you’re strolling around what’s supposed to be one of the most romantic cities in the world, seeing dog balls bounce around in your face is not the most inspiring thing you could see.

This in turn affects the amount of dog poop that lines the sidewalks of Buenos Aires. Apparently tiny plastic bags have not made it’s way over to BA, because no one picks up after their dog. In fact, it’s so bad that it’s considered “good luck” to step in dog poo. Let’s just say that I got lucky every singe day I was in Buenos Aires for 5 months straight!

SO SEXY: The beautiful accent of Argentina Spanish: Castellano

Unfortunately while I was in Buenos Aires I had a boyfriend and so I was unable to fulfill my fantasy of having a fine latino whipser sweet nothings in my ear in his native tongue.

Okay, fine. I did fulfill that fantasy! But it went no further than that!

Castellano is one of the most beautiful forms of Spanish. It’s almost as if they add a French flair to many of the words. For instance, instead of ella, which means “she” sounding like “eya” they pronounce it more like “asia” (as in the continent). All double l’s have that sound.

It doesn’t sound nearly as good written right here, but trust me, it’s sexy. Just imagine me saying it to your right now in a soft, seductive voice. Oh yea. And if you’re a language geek like me, you can’t get enough of it. Especially if its being whispered in your ear by someone!

NOT SO SEXY: Mullets…on guys and girls.

It’s been a few years since I lived in Buenos Aires so it’s quite possible (and I sure hope so) that this hairstyle has died out. There is nothing more devastating that seeing what would be a beautiful man be destroyed by too much business in the front and party in the back.

Furthermore, even the girls have their hair cut in weird girly mullet things with bangs. I can hardly describe it. All i can say is that it is not sexy. At all.

SO SEXY: The Paris of Latin America

When you’re in Buenos Aires you don’t feel like you’re in Latin America. With so much European influence, you feel like you’re walking around a European metropolis. There’s a reason that Buenos Aires is called the Paris of Latin America, and that’s because it looks just like Paris!

And hey, what do you know! Apparently Paris has a problem with dog poo everywhere as well!

In all seriousness though, the architecture is magical. The detail, creativity, and artistic nature of it’s older buildings speaks volumes.

NOT SO SEXY: Los Desaparecidos … aka The Disappeared

Argentina does not have a pretty history just like pretty much every single country here on earth.

In a coup in 1976 a military junta seized power of Argentina and went on a campaign to wipe out all left-wing supporters. From 1976 and 1983 between 9,000 – 30,000 innocent civilians accused of being left-wing terrorists were arrested and vanished without a trace. Many of them were pushed out of planes over the Rio de la Plata and Atlantic Ocean.

To this day you can watch the Madres de Plaza de Mayo marching once a week for justice in a plaza close to where the Casa Rosada is where the President’s office is. It’s a sad sight to see, and one not to be forgotten.

NOT SO SEXY & SO SEXY TIE: The Meat

The country of Argentina has about a million more cows per people. Okay, it’s obviously not that much, but it’s a lot! They know their cow there, and therefore the meat is delicious! If you’re a man that loves a delicious steak, then get yourself to Argentina, and that’s that.

Unfortunately, they also will eat every singe part of the cow, and what kind of traveler would you be if you didn’t assist in this? This also includes that thing in the picture displayed to your right. I believe it is some part of intestine, but I really have no clue.

I actually ate that. It tasted kind of like cheese actually. Well, cheese that’s been sitting out in the sun all day that tastes disgusting.

Other than that, the meat is delicious! And for you vegetarians, well, at least you don’t have to eat the crap in the photo above!

SO SEXY: LUST & PASSION

Typical of Latin America – lust, love, spur of the moment love affairs, long kisses on street corners – it’s all common here.

If you’re out on a warm summer night strolling through the cobble stone streets of neighborhoods like Palermo or San Telmo you are bound to have some butterflies in your stomach and good times that night. There’s something about this city that ignites passion and love, and it’s a crime not to embrace it.

While in Buenos Aires and you fall madly in love with Mr. or Miss. Right Now it’s bound to be a fling you’ll never forget. And should you visit this city with the long-term love of your life, you’re bound to fall even deeper in love here. It’s just that kind of place. It ignites passion.

BUENOS AIRES OVERALL: SEXY WINS!!!!

So there’s dog poo and balls and some tragic history and mullets, but there are just too many wonderful things about this European city in Latin America to claim it as not sexy.

If we were to walk around this city with a glass-half-empty perspective all we’d notice is dog poo. But if you’re a good traveler, you know to laugh it off, and just have fun listening to the beautiful people whispering sweet nothings in your ear.

Plus, I didn’t even tell you about the empanadas, ridiculous nightlife, hourly hotelos, wonderful people, rich culture, outstanding markets, yerba matte, or pisco sours!

I guess you’re just going to have to go and find out for yourself!

Lauren Rains

Lauren Rains is a crazy, sexy, cool chick on a mission to live a life of abundant adventure, meaning, and substance. She is addicted to the following: WORLD TRAVEL: Experiencing new languages, cute boys, outdoor adventure, crazy transportation, variations on toilets, cultural differences and similarities, crazy food. Everything! WEB 2.0: Web design to social media, she's proud to be a dedicated geek. ENTREPRENEURSHIP: At 12 months she knew she couldn't work for the Machine. WRITING: Check out TheMadtoLive where she blogs about how to live the wild, crazy and meaningful life we're all meant to live! You can also start up a conversation with her about the meaning of life on Twitter at @LaurRains.