Living the Porteña Life

My new routine has barely been established as of yet, we’ve had only four days of classes thus far and already two vacation days for Carnival. Coming back to Buenos Aires, I finally feel very established with my way around the city; I know the places to go, but more importantly, the places to avoid. Despite this, I am still learning the intricacies. Just today, I got incredibly lost on the bus, forgetting that there are two routes the 39 bus can take (which would beg the question, with over 740 bus lines, why not make it into two?).
 
I live in a different homestay than last semester with an older woman named Mavi who epitomizes the aging Porteña. Physically, she’s thin, incredibly tan and dresses like the 1990s. Her personality is judgmental and she loves to scold and pry into my business. I have a suspicion that my bedroom is a converted maid’s quarters because it’s behind the kitchen and has no window. It’s stifling in the summer and I’ve been sleeping with my fan propped on a chair facing directly at my naked, uncovered body. Needless to say, it’s been a rough adjustment from my previous homestay where I had a ceiling fan, balcony and friend in my “madre,” but I’m learning to cope.
 
The gym here is among my favorite people-watching locations and I can say with confidence that porteños’ way of exercise is far different than in the US. Today, despite every cardio machine being occupied, I was the only one breaking a hard sweat. Most treadmills were taken with people lightly strolling, some of the hardcore people at a light incline. Women and men have clearly come to scope each other out, taking careful consideration in matching their scrunchies to their sports bras or not doing too many reps consecutively and risk breaking a sweat. The thin, attractive population of Argentines mystifies me because their exercise regime is quite leisurely.
 
The diet here is far more basic and less varied than in the United States; it consists mainly of different combinations and preparations of bread, meat and cheese. Discovering that I’m a celiac over break, my diet here has changed drastically because all of the quick and common foods have wheat, for example – empanadas, sandwiches, tarts. Needless to say, the meat culture here is incredible and divine steaks can be found for $40 pesos (about $9 USD). Let me clear some misnomers about Argentine cuisine: no it is not spicy, Argentines are quite sensitive to spicy food though they use a lot of salt; no it is not the same Mexican food, I wish sometimes it were though.
 
My favorite part of life in Buenos Aires remains the leisurely lifestyle, the hours spent idling in cafes without waiters bothering you to order more or leave or just sitting in the park chatting into nightfall.
 
The picture is one I took at a neighborhood parilla where we got a steak, chicken, fries and soda for about $10 USD per person.