How To: Pedestrianism

Okay so today I am going to write about this giant city that I am living in from the point of view of a lovely little pedestrian. Which is me. I am a pedestrian, along with--as I can gather--the vast majority of the population here in Buenos Aires. This fact would seem to lead you to believe that there are lots of perfect places to walk and in general not worry about being struck by fast-moving vehicles. THIS IS NOT TRUE.

Let me elaborate. There are traffic laws here, apparently, somewhere, in some sort of legislature, but you might as well call them guidelines. Like, the only place where you can really expect cars to be following the rules is at traffic lights, and even then, you're still putting your life in someone else's hands. Like, it says you can cross safely, but no one told the car turning right that you were crossing, and obviously they have the right-of-way, because they are a giant car that could kill you. So basically you better pay attention.

Otherwise, there are hardly any stop signs at smaller intersections, and you can expect that no one will stop at those. The only road signs there are are to direct you not to park somewhere or to tell you where you could end up should you continue following the road you are on. And sometimes (which as a pedestrian who doesn't know this city well yet is incredibly annoying) there are no street signs! Like, trying to get home, maybe there will be a sign that says my street name, and about 80% of the time there won't be. It's basically one big guessing game. So that's fun.

One thing I do appreciate about this city is its public transportation. You can basically get anywhere you want to go for between 6 and 7 pesos a trip which is between 40 and 45 cents in US dollars. So that's a good time. And it gets cheaper the more trips you take, which is also a good thing, I think. We took the subway today, which is fun, because I've never used a subway before! I'm pretty sure I'll be an expert at navigating things when I'm done here. At least that's the hope.

Back to scarier things, another important thing to note when being a pedestrian is that you also don't have to obey the traffic signs. If it says don't walk and there are no cars coming, you better be walking, you snerb! Otherwise the local people will definitely know that you don't know what you're doing, and the most dangerous thing to do as a pedestrian (surprise, I know, is not to get hit by a car) is to look like a tourist! Because then you're an easy target for people to rob you.

Also, you're not allowed to help anyone, because it could be just a ploy to rob you. So be careful if you're wandering around Buenos Aires, and all of a sudden someone drops all their bags, because they could just be the distraction for you, and you could be getting robbed if you stop to help! That's what we learned about pedestrianism from our orientation class.

Okay actually going back to two paragraphs ago, you can obey the traffic signs ONLY when you're trying to cross a giant road. Now, maybe you think giant roads are like, three lanes, four lanes, like a high way, but no. In fact, they are TEN lanes wide, but have crosswalks through them?? And if you cross without the signal because it looks like there are no cars coming (like we may or may not have done today, no one will tell you for sure) it turns out that the reason no cars were coming was because the light a little farther down was red, but lights can change, and suddenly you're only halfway through the intersection and cars are racing at you like literally accelerating even though they can see you because they are in charge of the roads here, so you better run you fools! Also, these roads are like, only one way streets, so that means once you finally cross, you have to cross another same size road going the opposite direction.

I'm honestly surprised that I haven't seen anyone get hit by a car.

Also, it seems like maybe in a city where all of your people mostly walk everywhere, you would want to keep nice sidewalks and stuff so the people don't have to walk in the road and die all the time. But no, I was walking home from the subway today, and apparently all of the sidewalks that had been fine just yesterday were torn up and crushed into holes and rubble overnight? What the heck? So there were just people wandering in the streets and walking through the car lane that was vaguely reserved for pedestrians, and all the car people were mad that they couldn't actively hit people who were in their lane, because there were more police officers hanging around, and also some barricades, although I've seen those be more effective in keeping people away from firework launches than keeping cars off of makeshift sidewalks.

So, in general, it has been a pleasant experience, and no one I know has died or even been injured from cars, but there is still plenty of time for that, I suppose. The basic rule of navigating sidewalks and other public transportation in Buenos Aires is that there are no rules. Or maybe, for something more concise, DON'T DIE. (I feel like that's how a lot of my blog posts end. I'm fine with it. It's good advice.)

PS: The food list!

• Avocado
• Quinoa
• Something that is basically a large empanada?? but I don't remember what it's called! It starts with a 't'
• A drink with the brand name Paso de los toros I think, that was basically grapefruit flavored pop
• Eggplant (probably the weirdest vegetable I've tried)

PSS: Here is a picture of Xander my bunny friend on my fan, keeping cool in this heat!

A New Adventure - How To Argentina

Hello friends!!! It's been a while, but now I have actual news to tell all of you! As of yesterday at 9:30 am (6:30 am Central Standard Time) I landed in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In a stunning change of weather, it's around 90 degrees here, while back in Minnesota it's only like 20. So this is not a good thing. I am dying. But not really, it's just very hot.

The flights were good. I have only flown a couple times before, and those times I was pretty nervous, but this time, I don't know, I felt way more excited I guess? And I started to really enjoy the taking off and landing parts. So that was cool. Also, I had a window seat on the first flight, and it was really nice to look out and see the giant snow clouds over Minnesota, and also almost every where else until Tennessee. I was weirdly in awe of the clouds, like, how do they even exist? They looked like giant snow piles that I wanted to jump in, but I could not. Unfortunately. Because clouds are made of water and if you jump through them you probably die. So that was a sad realization that I already knew.

The second flight was waaaaay longer, and way more Spanish-y. Almost everyone in the airport spoke Spanish and I was vaguely intimidated. And also everyone on the plane spoke Spanish except for the people who didn't, but mostly it was Spanish. So that was a good introduction to the rest of reality for the next five months.

Also on this flight, I experienced many emotions. It was a weird time. First, I was excited because we were taking off and apparently I like that now. Then, after like 20 minutes in the air, I felt like this was the worst decision I ever made, and I started crying, and it was a good thing the lights were off UNTIL THEY TURNED THEM BACK ON and I had to behave like a real human and talk to people about weird dinner and stuff when all I really wanted to do was built a sound proof cube around my body and scream into the void. But it's fine. And then I ate dinner, which was a salad with chicken, which was weird. And I become annoyed by the guy in front of me playing Sudoku on his in flight screen, and how he was SO SLOW and also put a 2 in a column where there was already clearly a 2, but I didn't want to say anything because that would have seemed creepy. And then I discovered that my TV thing had Brooklyn 99 so I watched multiple episodes of that, while eating and vaguely listening to Spanish conversations, and trying to ignore the snoring. Then I tried to sleep, pretty unsuccessfully, but the most comfortable position was with my head pushed up against the seat in front of me, but when ever I was almost really asleep I would drop the pillow and wake up and then be mad. And then after about four hours of that, they served breakfast. And then it was time to land! It looked like we were landing in the middle of a forest, which was weird, but we didn't hit any trees.

In the airport, I stood in line for immigrations for like 45 minutes, and it was super hot, and also I was still wearing appropriate Minnesota weather clothing, so it was the worst. But I found some other students who are in my program, and we talked and complained about the heat and in general made the entire process more bearable. And we found our luggage together, and we went to customs together and we saw some dogs, and then we found our airport transportation! And then we waited like 2 more hours to actually leave. So I have spent enough time in airports for a while.

We took a small bus to the university, and our host families picked us up there. I took a taxi for the first time in my life, which was a weird time. And then I took a well-deserved nap in the very warm room that I can call mine for the next five months. And then this other student and I walked to the ISA office so we could have a short orientation. And we only got a little lost, both there and on the way home, so that is a good thing!

Today, we did more orientation stuff and also took a tour of the city, which was cool! I got to see a giant cemetery where all the rich people are buried and that included Eva Peron's mausoleum. So that was cool, because I've learned about her! And we saw the Casa Rosada, which means Pink House, which is basically like the White House of Argentina. And we toured some other tourist-y places, and I got very sunburned, which is an accomplishment for February 26th. We took a lot of public transportation so we would all learn how to use it, and it wasn't the worst, except for the fact that it's still 90 degrees today. I have to use it tomorrow by myself/without real Argentine people to show us what to do because it's a holiday and we have nothing planned except exploration! Hopefully that will be fun!

And then I walked home by myself, which was an interesting time, because I got lost. Not like, really lost, just like, wow I walked a block too far, and then turned back and got to the right block, and then walked down a road that was unfamiliar, and then found the street I was supposed to be on, but turned the wrong way, and had to cross to the other side, and then realized I was on the wrong side of the street anyway, and had to cross again because I remembered that I always have to walk past the Buddhist temple in order to get home, and then I finally did. So, you know, not that lost.

We have an orientation at school on Wednesday, which I'm looking forward to. We get to sign up for meetings with academic advisers who will help us choose classes, which I am also really excited for, because I am a nerd!! Everyone else is like, "Let's party and drink and cry" and I'm like, "CLASSES!!!!!" So, I'm working on finding a balance between not being a super hard-core-like party-er and then also trying to do fun, exciting culture things without always being in my room by myself reading and doing works.

So I think that's all the most exciting news I have, because I've only been here for like 36 hours. But it weirdly feels a lot longer than that? So who knows. I will try and keep you updated on more exciting happenings.

PS: Also, I would like to keep track of the new foods I try, so I am going to put a list here, and will hopefully be added on addition blog posts.

• Tuna and potato mix
• Spinach cooked into an over-hard fried egg
• Empanadas - corn, ham & cheese, and beef
• A weird dulce (sweet) carmel handed to me on the street by a vendor giving free samples
• Juice-tea, I don't know what it's actually called, but it tasted like sour apple candy, but without the sour
• Guarana, a drink flavored with Brazilian fruit, fizzy like pop

PSS: Here is a picture of my bed with a stuffed animal bunny friend on it. Good job being a traveler, Xander!