Our Final Night in Buenos Aires

Today marked our second day in Buenos Aires, which is commonly noted as the Paris of South America. I, myself, have never been to Paris, but Bill says it's very nice. Knowing Bill, I do not think I can take his word for it; however, I have noticed the diversity of culture this city has to offer. Touring the city, our first stop was El Caminito in La Boca, a strip of street vendors and small local stores all seemingly focused on Argentinian culture. No less than two minutes after arriving in La Boca, we were invited to take part in a tango dance. Intimidated by the new experience, and the fact that we had to pay for it, we chose not to take the offer. Luckily, we still got to enjoy professional dancers do what they do best.  However, tango was not the only thing we experienced. Soccer jerseys, leather clothing, dulce de leche, and Argentinian pride were easy to find in every store. Our cultural immersion, however, was not found only in these small streets of Buenos Aires.  I believe most of us would think we experienced and deeply appreciate culture mainly back in Uruguay where we made friends with the school children and other residents of El Dorado. 

Yerba mate is a common drink in South America, especially in Uruguay and Argentina. Mate can be described as a cultural, social drink. Usually drank out of a pumpkin gourd, it is mostly described as a strong tea.  After being prepared in a certain way, the mate drinker would experience a bitter taste described by Bellarmine students as "a mixture of black coffee and green tea." Usually the mate is not consumed for its taste, but rather for the purpose of socializing, not to mention the energy boost one receives after drinking it.  Don't worry; mate is safe.  We were told repeatedly that Uruguayan children begin drinking mate at the age of four. All of the participants of this trip at least tried the mate (this doesn't mean they all enjoyed it), but I personally made sure that the majority of us at least tried it by the end of the first week. This communal drink that the locals introduced us to actually brought us closer together. During these mate sessions I felt a strong sense brotherhood bonding, as we reviewed each day's events over a cup of mate.  The traditional ways of drinking mate rubbed off on us in a way I never thought would be possible. I can honestly say that our indulgence in this cultural tradition has been one of the highlights of our trip. Our mutual love for mate influenced most of us to buy our own mate bowls. I feel like we all fit into Uruguay and Argentina just a little more than we would have without mate.  

My experience with the locals has been an unforgettable one. I have established meaningful relationships in a matter of days, stronger than ones with friends I have known for years. The people of El Dorado are honestly the kindest, most welcoming human beings I have encountered in the short while I have been on this earth. Nowhere else have I felt more appreciated than I have in El Dorado by the people of El Dorado. I have heard the same thing from numerous people who return from immersion trips, but I had never truly experienced it in real life until now: those people who have the least often give the most. Maybe we can all learn a little from them. 

-Pedro Sanchez '14