GEOG226-Society and Culture

I have observed several things about Argentine society and culture that we specifically discussed in class. The first is the conflicted identity of Argentina- there are many groups of people that made up the Argentine society including the Spanish, Indians, Africans, and immigrants. Argentina is very Europeanized, and is known as the "Paris of South America" because of the beautiful private mansions and wide avenues. The Italian influence is evident all over Buenos Aires. For example, Italian cooking is dominant here- pizza, pasta,  and gelato are some of the most popular foods here. There are also cafes on almost every street corner you go. When I walk out of my apartment there are 2 right outside my door. One can also see British influence by reading "The Buenos Aires Herald" which is an English newspaper here.

Something we discussed in class was the disappearance of African Americans, or people of African origin, from Argentina over time. It is assumed that black people simply merged with other groups, especially the white Europeans. I can honestly say that I have seen very few African Americans here, other than 2 of the students on our trip. I thought it was very interesting that many of the Argentine people think that my friend Alex is Portuguese because of her skin color. She is African American and dresses nicely so many people here assume she is from Brazil. She has had to explain to several taxi drivers that she does not speak Portuguese and that she is American.

Another interesting part of the Argentina culture is religion, which I haven't fully figured out yet. Without question, Argentina is a Catholic country. However from what I have seen, it is more common for people to just identify with their religion and don't actively participate in it. This is what I have noticed at least with my host family and other people have mentioned about their host families. For example, my host mom has the apartment decorated with painting of Jesus as well as small golden jesus ornaments that hang from several door handles in her home, but she doesn't attend church frequently. I have also noticed that several taxi drivers have a cross hanging from their rear view mirrors.

One section of the Society and Culture chapter in our textbook discusses the "National Identity of Argentina." I have first hand experience with many of the things discussed in this section. Specifically, the way people greet each other here is very different than at home. Kissing each other is expected when you say both hello and goodbye. Kissing on the cheek is normal as well as a quick kiss on the lips, and the kissing noise is always made, sometimes contact isn't even made. From my personal experience, with most people, both men and women, contact is made and we kiss on the cheek. People sometimes can be "over friendly" but for the most part  I personally like this aspect of their culture. At home people can be so cold, but here I always feel welcome.

Finally, the fashion really jumped out to me. I feel like I fit in here more than I do at home, at the University of Delaware because it here it is common to dress up and look nice. Fashion is a very important part of the Argentine culture, people like to look good. At home, I am often asked why I am dressed up or where I am going, while I just enjoying dressing nicely. Women were heels, skirts and dresses regularly. The outfits worn in the Tango show last night really grabbed my attention. They were all so intricate and sparkly. The Tango is the national dance here and is a dance filled with emotion. 

FUN RANDOM FACTS!

-The national sport here is Pato, however futbol is the most popular.

-The traffic lights are simultaneously yellow and red before changing to green.
-There seems to be a problem with cleaning up after your dog in Buenos Aires. You always have to watch where you step!

-Apparently people don't flush toilet paper here. It is common for people to throw their toilet paper away in the trash can rather than flushing it down the toilet. EW!
-It is not uncommon for men to whistle, cluck, or even meow at women when they walk down the street.
-Cars and Buses do not stop for you no matter what! Also, the taxi drivers do not abide by the lanes on the street. It is pretty much free for all! Very scary

-In Buenos Aires they are all about the ham and Dolce de leche. Almost everywhere you go you will find both of these foods. The pizza is topped with ham, the crackers on the plane are ham flavored etc. Dolce de leche is served at breakfast, like we put out jam or jelly to put on toast. It is found in crosisants, cookies, cakes, and is the most popular ice cream flavor here.

-Everyone says "Chao!" here...the Italian influence
-The national drink of Argentina is wine!
-When you order a coke when out to eat, you must say Coca Cola or else they do not understand what you are asking for.
-Do your best to avoid the hospitals here. They are run-down and seem somewhat unsanitary with bugs flying around everywhere. It can be hours before a doctor even sees you.
-The people here are in good shape. You don't see many fat people. Being skinny and beautiful is very important to Argentine women.

GEOG226- The Gauchos and the Pampas

Today we visited an estancia (Spanish word for ranch) in the Pampas. The word Pampas is derived  from the Indian language called Quechua, meaning upland meadow. The Pampas region contains the country's largest cities and industrial centers including Mar del Plata, Rosario, Corduba, and Buenos Aires. It is considered the most important region in Argentina economically, politically, and demographically.The Pampas region has very rich soil and has 2 subdivisions: pampa humeda and pampa seca. The estancia we saw today was in the pampa humeda region, it is much more humid and wet, as we were able to see with the heavy rainfall and high humidity.

We traveled northwest for about 2 hours to get to the estancia. It looked like a ranch crossed with a spa/ resort feel to it because of the pool and tourists. The land was very green and there was a lot of rainfall. Horses were roaming around everywhere with the Gauchos. 

The Gaucho is the Argentine version of our cowboy where their horse is like their partner or best friend. After the 19th century Gauchos made up a majority of the rural population, herding cattle on the vast estancias. Today we were able to get a sense of the Gaucho lifestyle. We saw both the facon, which is a large knife they carry, as well as the rebenque, the leather whip.

It is very clear how influential the Gauchos are in Argentina and how much they are loved and respected. They have a lot of pride in what they do which they demonstrated when showing us their horsemanship tricks and skills. One gaucho was able to ride two horses while standing with one foot on the back of each horse. Another Gaucho showed us the bond between he and his horse by asking it to lay down, put its hooves on his shoulders etc. It is incredible the trust and the bond the Gauchos and their horses share.

The Gauchos explained to us the way they fight for a girl because it is not uncommon for two men to want the same woman. They ride their horses full speed and attempt to stick a pencil through a ring hanging from a bar. It requires a lot of skill and accuracy. If the Gaucho is able to get the ring then he puts it one the finger of the woman's hand he wishes to marry. If she accepts she kisses him back and if not she kisses the horse instead.                  

GEOG226- Evita

This past week we went to the Evita Museum and learned a lot about her life and what kind of person she was. While many people adored Evita, there were many who despised her as well.

Evita was born in Los Toldos, a rural area in Argentina in 1919. However, she had a fake birth certificate made that said she was born in Junin in 1922. She did this to help her status and appear that she was from a wealthier area than she actually was. Evita was one of 5 children and she was born out of wedlock.

When Evita was 15 years old she moved to Buenos Aires where she started living her dream as an actress. When she reached financial stability she was able to move to Recoleta, an area that was well known and prestigious. 


In 1944 she met her future husband, Juan Peron, at the GALA fundraiser for the recent devastating earthquake in San Juan, Buenos Aires that killed over 6,000 people. She married him just one year later. His family was never fond of Evita, simply because of her background. 


In 1947, she went on a European tour, which some people referred to as "Eva Peron: Between 2 worlds, an Argentine rainbow."On this tour she went to Spain, Rome, France, England, and Switzerland. In Spain she was well liked because she donated a lot of people to several foundations. She was also liked in France and was given a rosary by the pope. However, she was strongly disliked and unwelcome in both England and Switzerland. In fact, England rejected her completely. They had no interest in talking with her. In Switzerland, people were so unhappy with her being there that while speaking to the people tomatoes were thrown at her.


Something that the guide mentioned, that I found very interesting is that is very common for their to be disputes and controversy over Evita within the family. For example, his grandfather was part of the Peronist movement but his mom strongly disliked Evita. Clearly our guide is a supporter of Evita. This just shows that Evita was, still is, and probably always will be a controversial figure in Argentine society. 


Even though there were many people against Evita, she did a lot of good for the people. She started women's suffrage in Argentina, created the female peronist party, and the charitable Eva Peron Foundation. During her life, she donated a lot of money, and was adored by the working class people in Argentina.

Words used to describe Evita

Sadly in 1950 her health quickly declined and she was diagnosed with Cervical Cancer. She died just two years later when she was only 33 years old and was mummified as to preserve her forever and people could constantly be reminded of her. When Peron was overthrown, her body was stolen and buried in Italy for nearly 15 years! Eventually it was recovered and was buried in the Recoleta Cemetery. Even though Evita has been all around the world, her body remains to this day in Recoleta in a beautiful mausoleum. 

Burial Site in Recoleta

GEOG226 Blog- Iguazu

This past weekend we visited the Iguazu Falls, the second largest falls in the world after the Victoria Falls in Africa. Here we were able to see and experience a lot of what we specifically learned about in class. We saw the falls from the Argentine side, but many people visit the falls from the Brazilian side as well. The Devil's throat marks the border between Brazil and Argentina.

Our guide explained to us that the rainforest doesn't have different seasons. Instead there is a period with higher rainfall than others. The winter is considered the dry season and the summer is the rainy season. Right now, it is considered the rainy season, so we were very lucky to have such good weather and no rainfall while at the falls.

We were also able to see in a sense how the falls were formed. When the supercontinent, Pangea, split there was volcanic activity. The different layers of the falls, which you can see in the picture above, show the layers of molten material. Everything we walked on while climbing around the falls is made of molten material. 

Our new "soil tans"

We also got first hand experience of the lovely soil in Iguazu that we talked about in class. Because the soil contains a lot of iron, when it mixes with the air it oxidizes (becomes iron oxide= rust), giving it a reddish color. The soil itself is relatively infertile because of the insoluble materials it contains. The reason there is so much vegetation is due to the decomposition of litter which can be a number of things including leaves that drop from the trees, dead animals etc. This decomposition is what contains the soluble materials making growth possible. In class we talk about the buttresses that are found at the bases of the trees in the rainforest. We were able to see these when visiting the Guarani tribe. Because the roots are shallow, the trees have theses "buttresses" to help support them.

Our Guarani guide also taught us that they use the seeds from plants to make the jewelry that he was wearing. They look like wooden beads and are either white, brown, grey or black in color. He also told us that the Guarani use the liquid that comes from the bark of the Redwood trees in Baptism as well as to help with sickness.

Nature and the Guarani Tribe

Coati

While hiking through the jungle we saw a lot of wildlife. One animal that we saw a lot of is called a Coati, or a Brazilian aardvark. They look similar to a raccoon. Two of the most distinguishing features of the Coati are its tail and its nose/snout. They have very pointed elongated noses and long tails as well used for balance and signaling. It was amazing to me how domesticated these animals are in a sense. They are not afraid of people at all; they got within inches away from me while walking through the rainforest. One thing that a guide mentioned to us is that people frequently feed them, which is bad because they start to rely too much on people and lose their natural instincts.

I also saw several monkeys in the rainforest. They were in large packs and the mothers carried their babies on their backs down trees which was adorable. I saw two monkeys helping to clean each other as well. We were able to get relatively close to them without scaring them away, but not nearly as close as the Coatis would get to us.

We also saw many types of birds and butterflies, all of which were vibrant in color. The butterflies ranged from black and white patterned with red trim to bright purple and blue. I carried one on my hand for part of the walk back from the falls. We saw a toucan and another brightly colored bird as well. The biggest surprise was seeing a small crocodile in the river when we were rafting to the falls. While fairly small in size, I would not like to get much closer than we were while on the boat.

There was much to see and learn about besides the animals. The rainforest for example doesn't have seasons per say. There are just periods were there is more rain than others. Right now it would be considered the rainy season (summer time). We also learned about the soil in Iguazu. It is reddish in color due to the iron, and it is relatively infertile. Because the roots are shallow, trees have buttresses at the base to support them.  

The Guarani man that was our guide taught us a lot about nature as well. They use the seeds from a particular plant to make the jewelry that they wear. They appear to be wooden beads when in actuality they are just seeds from a plant. There are white, brown, black and reddish colors. He also explained that they use a liquid that comes from the bark of the Redwood trees for baptism. 

Our Guarani guide also told us about the community that lives in Iguazu. He said there are approximately 2,000 people living there. At school the children learn both the Guarani language as well as Spanish. They are taught a little bit about our culture as well ("white people" in the words of our guide). As for religion, it is not associated with Catholicism; it is their own indigenous religion.

School children singing

Bienvenidos and welcome to Iguazu!

This weekend we went on an adventure to the Iguazu Falls. The falls are located in the Province of Misiones in Northeastern Argentina. The Iguazu river starts in Brazil and flows into the Parana River. It was discovered by the spanish and the translation of the word Iguazu means "Great Waters" (I= water and guazu=great). The Iguazu Falls are the second largest in the world after the Victoria Falls in Africa.

The legend goes that the Guarani tribe sacrificed women to the serpent. One day the chief fell in love with a woman that was supposed to be sacrificed. The serpent was furious and split the river to condemn the lovers. In reality, the Iguazu River runs over a plateau that was formed by volcanic activity during the time that the supercontinent Pangea split. As you can see in the picture above, the falls are in different layers which are layers of molten rock. 

The picture above is of the "Devil's Throat". It is the most impressive of all the falls and it marks the border between Argentina and Brazil. While standing above the falls you could almost feel the power of the water. 

Seeing the falls from below was amazing too. It was really loud and the water was very powerful especially when we got to the base of the falls and were directly under the water. To hear the person next to you, we practically had to shout, but everyone was yelling anyone because it felt like we were on an amusement park ride between the speed and quick turns the boat made and being soaked as we rafted into the falls. 

Iguazu Falls are commonly compared to Niagara Falls, but I personally don't think they can even be compared. I visited Niagara several years ago and it was not nearly as impressive as Iguazu. Iguazu is easily 3 times as big and you can see the falls from so many different angles so you can the whole picture. 

The whole crew at Iguazu

Plaza de Mayo

Plaza de Mayo is the main area of political life in Buenos Aires. The modern plaza was formed in 1884 when the previous two plazas were demolished. The name, Plaza de Mayo, commemorates the May revolution in 1810 when they started to gain independence from Spain.

Since 1977, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo have protested there. This is a group of Argentine mothers whose children disappeared during the Dirty War of the military dictatorship. In protests they wear white scarves with the name of their child's name embroidered on them to symbolize the blankets of the lost children. This group of women are there every Thursday.

When we went there a few weeks ago, we saw signs of protest such as in the picture to the right. While there are small, noisy demonstrations quite often,the plaza is also filled with people relaxing and sunbathing. It has become quite a popular tourist spot.

The most recognizable building at the square is called "Casa Rosada" also called "Casa de Gobierno". This is the pink government palace at the eastern end of the square. There are 2 possible explanations as to why the palace is pink in color.
One is that it blends the red and white colors of Argentina's opposing political parties. Another explanation is that the original paint was made with cow's blood to prevent damage from the humid climate. Regardless, it is a beautiful, very important building that has held several Argentine presidents and other historical figures. Even Madonna spent time there while filming the movie "Evita."

Casa Rosada

El Cemetario en Recoleta

Recoleta Cemetery 

A few days ago we visited the cemetery in Recoleta, and it was incredible. I had never seen anything like it in my life. It was built in 1732 and was remodeled 2 times. It contains the graves of some of the most important Argentines including, Evita and several presidents, as well as normal everyday people. The picture above is the outside of the cemetery which has beautiful greek columns and an inscription at the top of the building that reads "Requiescant in Pace", meaning rest in peace in Latin.

Once entering the cemetery, you see elaborately decorated marble mausoleums with many statues and all different architectural styles. Mausoleums are purchased so that the whole family can be buried together. In one mausoleum, I was able to see over 10 coffins!

There are many tree lined blocks within the cemetery; it takes several hours to see it all. I found it very interesting that famous people as well as everyday people are buried here. A lot of people saved up money during their life time just so they could be buried here. One man that our guide told us about, worked at the cemetery his whole life and saved up his money to design his grave and to be buried there.

The mausoleum in the picture below cost 2 million dollars! It is amazing to me how much people are willing to spend to have these elaborate burial sites. It is clear how important respecting and honoring the dead is in Argentine culture.

While Evita's burial site was beautiful, I expected it to be more intricate and larger in size. I personally thought that some of the other graves were more impressive. However, I love that there were flowers on her grave, especially because this is not common for the Recoleta cemetery. Other than Evita's grave, I only saw flowers on one other. The flowers put on her burial site helped brighten up the cemetery with their color. The dark marble that the mausoleum is made of adds to the beauty as well.

Evita's Burial Site

Los Mercados

Flowers at the marketplace

Yesterday we went to El Tigre, a town north of Buenos Aires that lies on the Parana Delta. The town is made up of islands that are created by streams and rivers- unlike anything I had ever see before. We visited a marketplace while we were there which was really interesting. There was jewelry, leather bags, shoes, colorful flowers, furniture, food etc. I learned that people don't bargain at this market- the prices are fixed for the most part. This market specifically is known for the hand crafted furniture; I saw a lot of rocking chairs while I was there. I thought the market was cool to see but I didn't find too many things I wanted to purchase. However the one thing that stood out to be were the colors. As you can see in the picture, the colors of flowers were brilliant- hot pink, deep purple, bright blue etc.

Beautifully hand crafted Argentine chess table

A version of our Barbie dolls

Sand Telmo Market

Today we traveled to another market in Buenos Aires called Sand Telmo. This market is located right by the Plaza de Mayo and is open on Sundays from early morning until about 6:00 at night. The street where the market was located was overwhelming in the best way possible; there were people and vendors everywhere. You could find pretty much anything there. Everything is beautifully hand crafted whether it is jewelry, leather bound books, sandals, or even chess tables and dolls. We spent about 3 hours there and didn't even  get half way down the road. In the picture on the right, you can see how crowded the street was and that it is cobble stone and slopes downward as you continue down the road.

The prices were reasonable here and you could even bargain a little bit with the vendor depending on what you want to buy. For example, my friend and I both wanted to buy the national stone called the Rhodochrosite Inca Rose. The price was 50 pesos for one, but he told us if we each bought one he would reduce the price to 45 pesos each. The stone has a beautiful pink color and the myth is that wearing it will help one find their soul mate. I am wearing one on my bracelet and one on my necklace so who knows, maybe I will find my soul mate while in Buenos Aires!

Food, food, and more food...

The first day of our trip, my friends and I had no idea where to go or what to eat so we spotted a McDonalds and ate our typical fattening American meal- french fries, chicken nuggets and soda. After being in the city for a few days we discovered the amazing food that is native to Argentina and we haven't looked back. McDonalds is a thing of the past...

Before coming to Argentina, I had several people rage about amazing the food in Buenos Aires. I am certainly not disappointed! The food is simply incredible. My favorite treat so far are small pastries that you can find at almost any local bakery (picture on the left). They are bite size cookies covered in either chocolate or powdered sugar with dolce de deleche in the middle of the 2 cookies. While small, it is easy to eat many in one sitting! There are two bakeries on Montevideo where I get these pastries. One place is called "Tutto Pane". This bakery has many delicious delights including croissants, cake, cookies, bread etc.


Another dessert I have fallen in love with in Buenos Aires is the ice cream or "helado". A hot spot to get ice cream is called "Freddo", and there are several throughout the city. Dolce de leche is a very popular flavor here. There is an entire column on the menu
of different types of dolce de leche. My personal favorite is dolce de leche "con brownie". It is rich, sweet, and creamy.

The dessert isn't the only amazing food though. I have loved all of the home cooked meals my host mom has made for me. One night we had steak, and I now know why Argentina is famous for meat! Epanadas are another favorite and something everyone should try while in Argentina. An epanada is a stuffed pastry that can be filled with meat and/ or vegetables. My favorite place to get epanadas is called "Mayoral" and is just around the corner from Vatel. They are very inexpensive (4 pesos= about 1 dollar) and have many different kinds. So far I have had one stuffed with meat and one with cheese, tomato, and basil. It is somewhat like a hot pocket in the United States, but shouldn't be compared because empanadas are far better.