Traveling while...

I would stand out in this crowdComing to Argentina I was very well aware of the obvious cultural differences that I would experience. The first thing I noticed here were the stares. I've traveled and studied abroad to places where I've been stared at before, but these stares were more intense. Almost uncomfortable. From the moment that I arrived at the airport, the attention I received was so strong, so very obvious, that I sensed myself beginning to panic from being so self conscious. I remember before coming to Argentina, when telling people that I would be studying here, I'd get really curious, almost worried looks from people who would respond by saying "You DO realize that Argentina is full of racists, riiight?" I do try to not obsess about things like that, but it is something that I, and may other minority travelers have to think about when traveling. How safe is it at night for a woman? Is there a strong anti-Semitic sentiment? Is there an open-minded attitude towards those who identify as LGBT? Are racial minorities generally well accepted amongst locals? You realize that this has to be an issue for many when you notice that there are a few outlets online dedicated to traveling as a minority and even NYU study abroad has specific guides dedicated to communities that have traditionally been marginalized. I found a great forum on rick steeves' website where many share anecdotes of traveling and studying abroad and tips to help you along your journey.

Though racism obviously exists in Argentina, Argentina is in fact, not full of racists. It is however, full of extremely curious people. The curiosity, at first, was cute and almost endearing to me. And walking into bars and not having to do much to have people approach you was a very fun, very new experience for me. After living in very culturally and racially diverse cities such as Miami and New York City, I loved the idea of being considered exotic and different among a very homogenous city. However, the whole thing has just exhausted me. After traveling to Brasil where everyone thought I was Brasilian (until I opened my mouth), and being able to fit in so well into Brasilian society, returning to Buenos Aires just confused me. All of a sudden, I felt like I was being exoticised and pretty much sexualized. Walking through a crowded bar, passing by men yelling opa!!! or mmm brasileña and winking at stopped being cute or funny to me. Being asked whether or not I can sing, dance or any other foolishness that people SOLELY associate with black people (thanks BET) started to offend me. I'm sure me being homesick has also not helped with my intolerance for this invasive curiosity neither. While in Brasil I decided to not to straighten my hair anymore and have decided to keep my hair in this kinky fashion and having men touch your hair while you're trying to go to the restroom, or worse, literally grabbing your hair as your trying to exit a bar and then yelling "Chau morocha!" (slang commonly used here for a black woman) had me feeling absolutely violated and pretty much in tears. A good friend of mine in the program who happens to be Korean has to deal with being constantly harassed by a few Argentines living in her residencia who think it'd be hilarious to bang on her door yelling racial epithets and calling her phone at all hours of the night acting like racist douchebags. Like I wrote in the authenticity post, I often wonder how my experiences differ from my counterparts. If there's anyone still out there reading, what do you think? Do you feel as if you're experiences have been shaped by a part of your identity?

Regardless of how I've been feeling these past couple of weeks, I still love this country. I'm more than pleased with myself for deciding to come here. This country, much like all of Latin America, has such a strong culture of sharing and people here are generally extremely helpful and friendly. I just can't wait until I have a conversation that doesn't involve me saying " "No, I'm not Brasilian. No, I don't know how to dance. No, I will not sing you a Beyonce song. Yes, I really am American." "