7 thoughts after 7 days: Buenos Aires, Argentina

Dorothy, you’re not in Kansas anymore.

Despite being the second largest city in Argentina, Córdoba felt really small. It’s a college town, so all the girls dressed the same (AKA plataformas) and the nightlife was a lot of fun. Too much fun? It also felt like the Remote Year crew straight up took over the city.

Buenos Aires is quite a bit different and almost more comfortable.

Quick recap: Arrived in Buenos Aires after a 10 hour bus ride where I watched a lot of Broad City and slept half the time. We also ate a lot of chips. Went on a graffiti tour. Ate a puertas cerradas restaurant. Saw Fuerza Bruta where I maybe fell in love with the drummer, was part of the show, had my eyes pop out of head. Went to Uruguay.

Here are some thoughts after my first week:

1. Buenos Aires is… Buenos Aires.

It’s a big ass city. It’s basically New York. My neighborhood is called ‘Palermo Soho,’ for christ’s sake. It feels very comfortable, but then I remember I have to speak Spanish.

2. It’s really strange/cool living your life in terms of months.

At “home,” I would never be like:

It’s April! Wow! What am I going to accomplish this month? What am I going to learn? Where am I going to go?

On Remote Year, I am trying to be like that. I’m making a conscious effort each month to have something to look to and say “I did that” or “I made that.” Goals are cool. Stay tuned.

3. You have to allow yourself more time to adjust.

After maybe three days in Buenos Aires, I was mad at myself for not ‘seeing the city.’

I HAD BEEN HERE THREE DAYS! Relax. Moving to a new city each month is weird AF and I need to be nicer to myself. I also have a job and can’t just prance around a new city. This is not vacation.

4. The guys are kind of rude.

I met some wonderful people in Córdoba. Extremely kind souls who treated any human, especially women, the respect they deserved.

Here, not so much.

The other night I was told to go dance on the bar because I was ‘Californian, and that’s what California girls do.’

🙄

I am not a piece of meat, y’all. Porteños, prove me wrong.

5. My positives are your negatives, and vice versa.

When you’re traveling with 75 other people, you are all not going to have the same experience, despite having very similar experiences.

I am going to love certain things, while others are going to think that they are the absolute worst thing in the world. This goes for restaurants, cities, people we meet, clothes…etc. A quick reminder.

6. As soon as you get comfortable, get uncomfortable.

I wrote something on what it feels like when it all becomes ‘normal,’ and since then I’ve found myself craving the feeling of being uncomfortable, or the newness associated with the first few days of Remote Year.

Unfortunately, Buenos Aires doesn’t feel very uncomfortable other than the fact that I don’t speak Spanish. I’m more just craving discovery. Discovering new people, new things about old people, new places, new foods.

7. There are so many little secrets in Argentina!

One of my first nights in Buenos Aires consisted of what we expected to be casual dinner at a sushi restaurant. We ordered a bottle of wine, a few rolls, and laughed the evening away.

We closed out the restaurant and thought we were getting escorted out the back door. The back door turned into a wine room. Which turned into a room with a vault. Which turned into a speakeasy.

WHAT!

Buenos Aires is cool AF.

Missed my 7 day recap of Córdoba? Peep it here.