I fully recognize that I am different than other people, but I don't
think that I will ever fully understand some aspects in Larin and
Sounth America. To me there seems to always be a sense of "no
urgency". What I mean is if there is lots of work to be done then no
one seems to care when (or in my opinion: IF) it gets done. I'm not
sure how well I can get my point across, but if you know me then you
probably understand my difficulty. :-/ In the same day that I experienced this behavior I also experienced
genuine Argentine hospitality. :-) Now let me explain something first:
the people that I see here remind me of New Yorkers. With little
offense to New York people, they can appear a bit rude to a Southerner
when you meet one on the street. For example, if you were to say
"Hello." or "Can you help me find..." to an Argentine person on the
street then they might look at you like your were either a lunatic or
a thief. (I was told this but I did not fully believe it until I got
here...and yes, this is all just a setup for my main point.) As I was
wrapping up our painting project today, I ended up cleaning off a sign
that was in front of a store because there was some paint droppings on
it. The young man running the store was pleased with my effort, even
though I was not able to get much off the sign without ruining it.
While I was cleaning up, he offered me some "mate" (sounds like "ma"
from Mafia and "te" from Teresa; accent on the "e") which is an
Argentine drink (tea) that I expect to bring back home. Anyway...it
was a very friendly offer, it is an invitation to stop and talk and it
is not extended to everyone. So I quickly wrapped up my cleaning and
stood around drinking "mate" talking as best I could with the man. It
was truly an honor that this man wanted to try to communicate with me
knowing that I knew little Spanish. This was my first experience with
this type of Argentine hospitality from a stranger. Enjoy!
think that I will ever fully understand some aspects in Larin and
Sounth America. To me there seems to always be a sense of "no
urgency". What I mean is if there is lots of work to be done then no
one seems to care when (or in my opinion: IF) it gets done. I'm not
sure how well I can get my point across, but if you know me then you
probably understand my difficulty. :-/ In the same day that I experienced this behavior I also experienced
genuine Argentine hospitality. :-) Now let me explain something first:
the people that I see here remind me of New Yorkers. With little
offense to New York people, they can appear a bit rude to a Southerner
when you meet one on the street. For example, if you were to say
"Hello." or "Can you help me find..." to an Argentine person on the
street then they might look at you like your were either a lunatic or
a thief. (I was told this but I did not fully believe it until I got
here...and yes, this is all just a setup for my main point.) As I was
wrapping up our painting project today, I ended up cleaning off a sign
that was in front of a store because there was some paint droppings on
it. The young man running the store was pleased with my effort, even
though I was not able to get much off the sign without ruining it.
While I was cleaning up, he offered me some "mate" (sounds like "ma"
from Mafia and "te" from Teresa; accent on the "e") which is an
Argentine drink (tea) that I expect to bring back home. Anyway...it
was a very friendly offer, it is an invitation to stop and talk and it
is not extended to everyone. So I quickly wrapped up my cleaning and
stood around drinking "mate" talking as best I could with the man. It
was truly an honor that this man wanted to try to communicate with me
knowing that I knew little Spanish. This was my first experience with
this type of Argentine hospitality from a stranger. Enjoy!
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