TruthNugget's blog

I'm on a boat, there's an icebergFour months ago I could never have even begun to think about experiencing that which I have in the past semester. Good times, bad times, lord I've had my share, but all in all this has been a completely worthwhile experience that I would recommend to all contemplating whether or not to go on a study abroad program.

Some of the best moments on my trip came from escaping the group mentality of NYU and venturing out into the world by myself. Whether meeting argentine people in random bars and clubs throughout the city, or hopping on a bus of which I had no clue of the direction it was heading, getting out and experiencing life in Buenos Aires provided me with the most worthwhile experiences. The program is somewhat structured to keep you within the group, whether through housing or through the academic center, but by leaving the group behind I discovered a lot more about my own being as well as the city to which I called home for four months. I also think traveling outside of Buenos Aires by myself provided me with some of the most amazing moments on my trip. When the only person you have to rely on is yourself, it can be quite scary, but also quite rewarding. Though Buenos Aires is a fantastic city with plenty of places to offer for any kind of traveler, getting out and seeing what existed beyond the metropolis made me appreciate what I had within it. Though it can be nerve wrecking to get on a 14 hour bus ride to a random city you have never been to before in the middle of the countryside in Argentina, once you get there the feeling is indescribable. Whether river rafting in Mendoza, glacier touring in Calafate or getting soaked by waterfalls in Iguazu, I had much better times on the road than staying put in my surroundings.

The staying put and just living in Buenos Aires made me encounter some of the greatest problems I faced. At times I got so caught up in thinking about life after BA that I couldn't just enjoy my time abroad. As terrible as that sounds, one can only fully realize the impact it has on you when it happens to you. I think part of this problem stemmed just from my own anxieties and fears, but the majority of it came from the fact that I'm graduating next semester. I think I would have had a much greater appreciation for my time abroad if I had gone during my junior year. The fact that I face so many unknowns facing ,e when I get back to the US left me never wanting to leave my apartment in Buenos Aires at times. Looking back with just a couple days to go, I would have told my past self to stop being such a pansy and to think about the fact that I may never live in another country again for the rest of my life. But you can't change the past, you can only learn from it....so in looking towards the future I will try not to get so caught up in my insecurities.

Being able to blog about myself weekly really enabled me to reflect on what was happening during my trip. Sometimes just writing things down can provide you with the power to analyze and understand exactly what you are experiencing in a given time in a given place. "The Art of Travel" course is a great way to give permanent existence to fleeting memories and moments in time. I know I will look back years from now and laugh at my writing, laugh at my perspective on life and for that I'm very thankful.

I think it is my duty to tell others just what the program in Buenos Aires is like. The staff are very helpful and really make you feel at home, However, the classes here are just terrible. They had no direction, no greater meaning in the world of education and they made me feel like I was wasting money on schooling that was below NYU standards. Though some professors are quite intelligent and though they mean well in the long run, I felt like I needed professors that challenged and inspired me. Besides the school though, life in Buenos Aires is more than amazing.

Though scary times await me in the heart of winter in NYC, I'm ready to leave this place behind and start anew. As one of my favorite lyricist of all time Trey Anastasio says "This has all been wonderful, but now I'm on my way." I hope that everyone out there in the blogosphere takes advantage of the fleeting days they have abroad and I look forward to meeting some of you down the line in NYC. Thanks for providing me with small insights into your personalities and your lives abroad. Chao.

----TRUTHNUGGET

View from Asia de Cuba, my Favorite club right on the riverIn the past four months I have experienced both some of the best moments in my life as well as some of the worst. This statement essentially defines my study abroad experience as well as summarizes the opinions of others I have talked to, in Buenos Aires and other abroad sites. I would say that Buenos Aires is one of the best places to be but definitely doesn't have the best program. Buenos Aires is cheap, its fun, its in close proximity to amazing places and is has some of the most beautiful architecture and women in the world. Below I will provide a list of statements providing advice about life and times in BA.

1. Eat steak and eat a lot it. If you don't eat meat you will be finding yourself struggling to find alternative eats.
2. That said try to eat on the cheap side, find a couple good places and stick with them.
3. Use the money that you save on going out to travel outside of BA
4. Go to Mendoza and do the bike wine tour.
5. Go see the waterfalls in Iguazu
6. Go to El Calafate and do a tour of the glaciers
7. During spring break try and check out another country. My favorite had to be Bolivia- its cheap and has some of the best natural wonders in the universe. 4 day jeep tour of the salt flats= $70, nuf said
8. take a day trip to "el tigre", beautiful escape from the hustle and bustle of the city
9. If your going in spring take a boat down to Punta del Este in Uruguay. Pricy but beautiful
10. Best Clubs in Buenos Aires= Crobar, Asia de Cuba, Liquid, Pacha, Shampoo
11. If your into clubbing, this is the greatest place to do it. Clubs are way cheaper than NYC and stay open throughout the night.
12. Best Restaurants= Don Julio, La Cabrera, Osaka, Itamae, Mirasol
13. Don Julio is a great traditional Parilla with an amazing wine list and my absoulte favorite place to spend an evening. La Cabrera may be touristy but its steaks are some of the best on the planet. Try the Chorizo Mariposa= butterfly sausage. Osaka is a spin off of sushi with a peruvian twist. Its a little on the pricy side but its worth a visit at least once while your in Buenos Aires. Itamae its traditional sushi and if your sick of empanadas and steak, it is a great alternative
14. If you don't feel like going out to a restaurant, try making some of your own food or hitting up the cheap spots. La Poloma is right around the corner from the NYU site and serves up 6 peso choripan. Choripan is a sausage sandwich, which is high in fat but also high in the pleasure factor. One of my favorite lunch specials while I spend my time wasting away in school is fresh bread and avocado sandwiches. For 4 pesos or $1 you can get two bread rolls and an avocado, add some salt and serve up for the perfect little delicacy.
15. Best places to waste the night away drinking= el Alamo, Plaza Serrano, Milon, Levitar, Godoy
16. Though El Alamo might be an ex pat bar its the perfect place to meet argentine men and women. I've met and befriended countless Argentines there as well as watched plenty of sports games on sunday afternoons. Plaza Serrano is a great little spot in the Palermo neighborhood, full of bars and restaurants that stay open till the wee hours of the afternoon. Milon as I mentioned in another post is a fantastic Mansion converted into a bar that makes for a good location to take someone on a date. Levitar is a place hidden from the rest of the world that stays open until 2PM, not that I've been there that late, or one could say that early. Dj's of all sorts spin beats here and drinks are cheap and delicious. Godoy is close to Levitar and also situated in the Palermo neighborhood. It's got a great out door patio when the weather is right.
17. My Favorite parks= Parque 3 de Febrero, Parque Las Heras
18. Favorite Musuem= the MALBA, essentially the MOMA of BA
19. If you could live in one neighborhood I would say live on the border between Palermo and Recoleta. One huge problem with this program is that NYU makes it mandatory for you to live in a NYU housing site. I got out of it with a little bit of trickery and got my own apartment. NYU rips students off and sometimes sticks them in crazy home stays with Jesus worshipping freaks. Renting your own apartment is much cheaper and will give you more freedom to have people over for drinks or whatever.
20. Don't expect much from school here, classes are on the weak side. That said, some of the spanish Professors are really amazing including Pia Bouzas.
21. My last piece of advice has to be make the experience as memorable as possible. Don't stop yourself from meeting new people, seeing new places and living a tad bit on the wild side. Though things may get rough and though BA can be an inefficient place to live, there is nothing quite as amazing as living in another country thousands of miles away from home.

Image of a skype manI woke up on thanksgiving day, thinking more than ever about the fact that I hadn't seen my friends or family in months. As I dragged my ass out of bed I went straight to my computer and saw my email box full of messages from my parents and greater family. The overall message was "where the hell have you been for the past couple months?". It seems that my time abroad has left me unable to communicate with my family. I guess they don't understand the fact that living thousands of miles away from home actually makes one feel that they are thousands of miles away from home. Thus it was time to go through the motions of endlessly skyping away in an attempt to reconnect with what I had lost. So for about the first three hours of my day I skyped literally everyone and anyone I could think of. Some conversations where brief and cordial, a quick hello to a friend or a nice sentimental moment with a cousin. Than I moved on to tackling the bigger issues, those issues being my parents and my sister. First I called my sister, who immediately signed on so we could video chat. The first few minutes of the conversation consisted of her criticizing my lack of communication, to which I responded with the same argument. After a few harsh moments of an older sister taking it out on her less qualified younger brother, we proceeded to have the best conversation we had in months. Simultaneously I got to see the proceedings of the thanksgiving dinner that I should have been in attendance for. She took the computer around the kitchen pointing out every dish that my family was preparing for the night. See the closest relatives in my family had decided to have thanksgiving at my cousins brand new vacation home in upstate maine. So instead of having to go through the hassle of trying to get in touch with my parents and my closest cousins, they were all in one room and they could literally see me. I saw the dishes coming to fruition that I had so many times enjoyed in previous thanksgiving celebrations. Is was almost as if I was in the room with them. They were all drinking wine, so I poured myself a glass of wine and even though I was on another continent for a few fleeting moments I felt completely at home again. One by one each of my family members stood in front of the computer. We joked, we drank, we laughed and we expressed emotions that we hadn't been able to share for months. If I was thankful for one thing more than anything else on thanksgiving it was my internet connection and my skype application. After about an hour of fraternizing via the internet it was time to let my family go. The rest of my thanksgiving was quite uneventful. The study abroad site provided us with a nice meal that took an argentine twist on an American tradition. Yet, we couldn't drink wine, and at one point lil wayne was playing in the back ground so somethings just didn't feel right. Unfortunately my mind was stuck in a place that it was impossible for my body to be-that place being back in the US with my family, eating real stuffing and enjoying a hefty portion of artery clogging gravy.

On the corner of my street there is the constant presence of the flower man. One of the most interesting characters I have encountered in my travels, el vendedor de flores, brightens up my day every time I turn the corner to head towards my apartment. Standing at about 5 foot 2, this 70-year-old man has as more energy then most kids I go to school with. He is always bouncing around the streets offering deals on Jasmines, parading roses in the faces of beautiful portena women, or simply cracking jokes at the other random people who come upon his territory.

This man simply owns the corner of Vicente Lopez y Pueyrredon. He has a little shack that he says has been there for over 15 years. A couple of days ago I finally decided that my place needed a little vegetation so I decided to check out his wears. Now at first he did his usually song and dance routine displaying different types of roses and his seemingly favorite flower-daises. He rubs his ever-present five o clock shadow and takes long intense inhalations of the flowers, proving their perfumed worth. In jumbled Spanish I tell him I’m looking for something a little more special, a type of flower that he doesn’t offer to any regular person meandering by his stand during the day. All of sudden he does a hop, skip and a twirl, dashes a smile with a hint of realization and procures the most random looking cactus I’ve ever witnessed in my life.

Its almost as if he saw through to the center of my jumbled thoughts; immediately I knew this cactus was for me. In truth, I probably didn’t need any plant in my apartment but constantly seeing him on the corner slowly drove me to support his operation. The guy is an ancient, mythical flower sales man, but the strangest aspect about him is that his legs are two different sizes. Instead of letting this disability negatively affect his existence, a special show was built for him that stand almost a foot taller than his other show. Now I thought snapping a photo of the mega show would be rude, so I’m currently plotting to take a photo under the veil of secrecy. Even with his handicap, you’ve never seen someone with a more enduring smile. They guy bombs and weaves between traffic, running up to car windows and persuading them with his old man charm. He may lead the life of a simple flower salesman, but he enjoys every moment of his time on this earth, at least from what I’ve seen. Unfortunately not many other people in Buenos Aires share his enthusiasm for life, but maybe if they bought more of his flowers, a little bit of his positive energy could rub off on them. (Picture and Name of Flower Man soon to come).

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Making the Most of My Time Abroad- at least in this pictureAs I sit writing this blog in Argentina, I’m currently streaming a live show of my favorite band occurring in Philadelphia, booking holiday tickets for a flight to Miami, emailing my mom in NY and stumbling upon a number of other random website- all in the confines of my comfortable air conditioned studio. If Xavier de Maistre lived in today’s world I don’t think he ever would have left the realms of his lair. Everyday as soon as we log onto the Internet we have the ability to literally travel around the world without ever stepping foot outside. We can make our money on the Internet, order our food for delivery on websites, pay our bills, read books, listen to music, check out photos and even communicate with our friends face to face. The technological advances we have created in our common age have made the strange notion of room travel an everyday experience. Why venture to the outside world when we can survive and entertain ourselves simply jump into our pajamas, sprawl out on the couch and veg out to the constant flow of information stemming from the Internet?

I for one believe in Maistre’s notions that travel is what we make of it and it really doesn’t matter to what location we travel to, as long as we are in a frame of mind that is conducive to enjoyable exploration. Sometimes I take for granted the peace and tranquility experienced in my bedroom, especially the studio I live in abroad. The king size bed with a delicate pillow top, the simple side table light that guides my journey’s into the realm of books before I fall asleep, and a dozen other useful items that make my life function. However, on the other hand falling into the trappings of a comfortable living space denies one access to the wonderful world occurring around you. On a beautiful today in Buenos Aires I felt like the heat was too much to bear so I simply escaped the world and spent the entire day in my apartment. Sure I got to download an episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm”, read different news articles from around the world, and work on the job search for when I get back to the US- but I could have been outside, taking a stroll along the ecological reserve or renting a kayak on the river basin in Tigre. My time abroad is rapidly coming to an end but instead of forcing myself to take greater advantage of a city I might never visit again, I find myself doing the exact same things I could be doing anywhere else in the world. And though I’m exciting about returning home, seeing long lost friends, taking my dog for a walk and eating a falafel on St. Mark’s street, as De Botton clearly states in the first paragraph of this chapter---our homes have a tendency of remaining the same.

Now instead of just leaving this writing as a blog post, I think its time I actually followed my own advice, I’m getting the hell of my couch, catching a cab and going out for a couple drinks. Chao. Hasta Luego.

A room with a ViewThe three blocks I have lived on in the past three years have never ceased to amaze me. In my first year at NYU I lived directly next to the projects and every time I walked home I was either offered drugs or called “white boyyyyy”. My second year at NYU I made the mistake of renting an apartment on St. Marks Place, the street brothel of the east village. Just by my luck I lived right above the noisiest bar on the block and each night I found myself drifting off to sleep to the lovely sounds of drunken buffoons. Naturally in the third year of my NYU experience, my time abroad in Buenos Aires I live on the hooker bar block.

Vicente Lopez between Pueyreddon y Guracahga is the realm of the high-class hooker bars. Five bars in a row, each with the symbolic emblem of 5 stars-the mark of a bar that bar something special lurking on the inside. During the day my block is as normal as they come. There’s the flower man on the corner whom only has one leg and jumps between cars attempting to sell his wears during peak traffic hours. There’s the fruit and vegetable stand, a place I go nearly every day to buy fresh produce, and where the workers are constantly watching Argentine telenovelas. There’s the ever-present “SuperKiosco”, a corner store clone that exists on almost every block in the center of Buenos Aires. But when the sun goes down, my block transforms into a different beast.

The first sign that something out of the ordinary is happening on Vicente Lopez is the guy waving down taxis on the middle of a pedestrian block. From the hours of 8PM till about 7AM, this guy stands with a huge flag in his hand beaconing cars and taxis to him as if he was working at a mainstream hotel. The second sign that Vicente Lopez is different from all other streets are the flyer boys who dance from sidewalk to sidewalk forcing you to take their advertisements. Now these advertisements aren’t your average run of the mill flyers, each one has naked woman and man, with the corresponding name of the bar in which you can find them. So every night as I casually try to make my way to my apartment I’m bombarded with flyers and other guys who are the next level workers for these prostitution rings. These guys are a little more serious and ask questions-in English- like “Would you care to see the show these evening Senor?” Now the first couple weeks I could never get to the door of my apartment without being harassed by this crew, but now they know my face and just ask, “When are you finally going to give in?”- now they ask in Spanish.

Trying to get to sleep on my block in Buenos Aires is way more intense then it ever was on St. Marks Place. I’m always hearing throngs of screams from groups of tourists below, hustling to get into the bars for lower prices, or coming out of the bars and yelling to the high heavens. Then if I’m still unable to fall asleep you get the crew of workers emerging from the bar just as the sun is rising. They tend to fraternize outside smoking cigarettes and drinking beer until god only knows what hours. Usually I can only get to sleep by turning the air conditioning on blast to subdue the noises from below. But even with the lack of sleep and the constant harassment to have sexual encounters for payment, I wouldn’t want to live on any other block. Not that I necessarily agree with whatever is happening behind close doors, in fact I’m completely against it, but what would a study abroad experience be without a little exposure to the seedy underground of a third world country. Also I think I forgot to mention that all of this late night activity occurs directly across the street from the Recoleta cemetery, one of the holiest sights in all of Buenos Aires.

One night in a global ApartmentAs soon as I leave my apartment in Buenos Aires I’m bombarded by the ever-present existence of the golden arches. Walk another block and a burger king advertisement of a 4x4 hamburger, four patties and four pieces of cheese, stares down upon me like big brother. Walk yet another block and gigantic Gatorade bottles beacon costumers towards kiosks, while next-door Staples enchants people into buying office supplies. What I have simply described is the everyday journey that I embark upon to get to the NYU study abroad site, but the overwhelming theme of this walk is the presence of globalization. Companies like McDonalds and Burger King have slowly but surely built enterprises in the country of Argentina. McDonalds has even changed its style a little bit by including McCafe’s in each of their restaurants, which now numbers in the thousands throughout Argentina. These fast food chains are symbols of the intense globalization of companies that are slowly taking over the world. For me the Staples, the Wal-marts, the burger kings and other global products represent a future of humanity in which nothing but chains rule the world and our minds. Just a block away from the McDonalds on my street corner is a restaurant that serves up ridiculously delicious burgers at half the price. Two doors down from the Staples is a quaint store that sells the same office products but in a localized and non-overbearing manner. Yet as the economy continues to spiral out of control these local stores that enable local economies to sustain and survive will slowly be wiped off the face of the earth, replaced with gigantic enterprises that bombard customers with advertisements, playing on their subconscious thoughts. As I walk down avenida Santa Fe, Buenos Aires answer to New York’s Broadway Avenue, I feel like I’m lost in the land of everywhere but nowhere. Similar to the suburban sprawl that exits through out North America’s landscape, this avenue has no essence or unique feel. Whatever it was that once defined this place has been transformed into a global, commercialized maze. It doesn’t have a feel or a mojo, it’s like a mall that stretches on for miles and miles, forcing you to continuously purchase as you fall deeper and deeper into the clutches of consumerism. This aspect of globalization tears at my soul, and forces me to think differently about the nature of my own country and the affects it has on the rest of the world.But there is a more positive side to Globalization that it is embodied in the globalization of people and ideas. I was sitting in a friend’s house listening to electronic music from Europe, drinking beer from the United States and relaxing with people from Argentina, Guatemala, Norway and Peru. A hundred years ago such an experience would never have been possible unless your were a member of the aristocracy and even so it would be highly unlikely. Each of us chose different songs to play on you tube, expressing our unique musical tastes, anything from Manu Chao to Thievery Corporation, to Red Hot Chiller Peppers and beyond. Every person in the room was born in a different country and had grown up under the influence of different cultures, yet somehow we had all managed to make it into one apartment in Buenos Aires, Argentina to celebrate life on a Saturday night. The morning of that night I had woken up disgusted by the presence of globalization and the havoc it is reaping on the world, but by nightfall my perspective had undergone a transformation, I was able to see how globalization can have a positive impact on our lives.

Personal Opinions displayed in Public in BA Miranda France’s Bad Times In Buenos Aires tells the tale of a woman’s life and times in Buenos Aires from an overbearingly grey perspective. Instead of seeing a city full historical and cultural heritage, of beautiful architecture and of vibrant unique citizens, she sees a polluted wasteland full of political dissidence, despair and all around negativity. Instead of viewing all the positive aspects of BA such as the food, the museums, the café and street life, she interweaves political history with her own negative experiences in BA. Though I’m grateful to her for not sugarcoating the city or presenting it as a Europenesque utopia situated in South America, the overall tone of the book was unappealing, a display of the good and bad times of BA through the eyes of a self indulged English woman.

Though I’m glad that she talks about important political proceedings like the impact Eva Peron had on Argentine Society, and the dictatorship that occurred from 1976-1983, the book was less of a travel log and more of one women’s quest to understand all the dirty secrets of Buenos Aires. The book is well written and has some great one liners, but I was looking for a comedic approach to bad experiences in a foreign place. One aspect that was enjoyable to read and kept me from hating the rehash of issues I have talked about in my Argentine Politics course was the description of the random people she encounters in her apartment building and in daily excursions throughout the city. The gay man living with his mom for the second time, the woman who is of European origin and is glad that all native argentine citizens have almost all been eliminated and many others. People define place, and in this book the descriptions of people enable readers to get a great sense of the mish mosh of immigrants, natives, and different cultures that give the city its vibe. Waiting in lines forever to buy groceries, having difficulty paying phone bills, all are part of an experience in a different culture, as well as what life is like in any big city.

Occasional hints of arrogance sometimes got in my way of enjoying the book, and not being able to see the glass as half full put me off multiple times. Some times she seemed to ignore the wonderful nature of people in Buenos Aires as well as the overall cosmopolitan feel, but hey its just one persons perspective. I too have had a share of bad times in BA mostly stemming from problems struggling to speak Spanish, a distaste for school and feeling overwhelmed for awaits me when I get back to school. Besides my own anxieties though the city has barely had a negative effect on me whatsoever. I've met great people both American and Argentine, I've seen beautiful museums, parks and shows. I have eaten also absorbed some of the cultural habits around me, liking drinking mate, taking siestas and clubbing till 7AM. I think that the reader should understand that BA, like other big cities such as New York, has the best of the best and the worst of the worst. Yet getting wound up in the worst will only keep you down, go to a café, have a glass of wine and laugh at waiting in long lines, that’s my advice for Miranda France.

I Pay to See IceMy travels in Argentina have taken me from waterfalls to vineyards to mountainsides to metropolitan sprawls and back again, but until this week I had never made to the far south, the land of Patagonia. My Dad was coming to visit me so I wanted to take a trip that enabled us to see a unique part of the World while simultaneously escaping the hustle and bustle of Buenos Aires. Of course like any family adventure the trip began on a stressful screamed filled morning. We woke up late because my dad doesn´t know how to set an alarm on his brand new iphone, advanced technology just isn't meant for some folks. Everything would have been fine but unfortunately in my hazy morning mind frame I told the taxi driver to take us to the wrong airport, an unfortunate mistake that cost us hours in the airport, fees for a flight change and an ear full from my dad. As I waited in the airport trying to ignore criticisms from my father I forgot just how wonderful family vacations can be. No one can stress you out worse than your parents and I was beginning to learn that lesson all over again.

Finally we made it to El Calafate, a charming mountain like town on lake Argentina with beautiful Hotels, interesting artisan shops and all around relaxed vibe. We checked into our hotel, which had a wonderful view of the lake and mountainside and bar that we would come to know well in the following days. But the real adventure began on our second day when we traveled to the Perito Moreno glacier about 65km outside of the city. Our insanely risky driver whisked us towards the glacier at alarming speeds sending our guide falling into random European tourists and spilling more than one Gourd full of mate. Finally we entered the parque nacional los glacieres and hopped outside the death Mobile into a World of soaring mountain Peaks, crystal clear Waters and humongous condors. We stopped and took a couple Pictures while I made fun of my pops for not having a digital camera. He replied that he would have bought one if it weren't for my NYU tuition. Dad 1, Matt 0. Than we hopped back in the coche and raced towards the main attraction, the Perito Moreno Glacier. Let me begin by saying that I was in absolute awe of the glacier. It´s bigger than Buenos Aires and stands 60 meters above the water where it hurls giant chunks of ice that crash with a thunderous sound into the depths below. My dad and I stood their for hours ignoring the guide, sipping some vino and just basking in the wondrous place that we were lucky enough to have come to. In coming generations as the World becomes hotter and more polluted places like perito moreno will cease to exist. The melting of glaciers will cause the Waters to rise and places like NYC, Amsterdam and San Francisco will be inundated by water. Yet lucky for me these Worldwide catastrophes haven´t occurred, they are only in the process of coming to fruition. As I sat in front of the glacier my mind filled with thoughts of the future of our natural environment I Couldn't help but think about what was to come next. Sure I was there seeing the glacier but would my kids orgrand kids be able to? Trying to escape my labyrinth of negativity and chatted it up with my Dad, talking about where he was when he was 21 and how I Could finagle myself into getting a polish passport because he was born there. My mind quickly floated away from feelings of cultural anxiety to feelings of joy, I had finally come to enjoy my family vacation.

Authentic Experience: Bus Getting Trapped in snow for 12 hours in middle of the Moutains in PeruIn my time studying and traveling abroad I have seen myself and others engaging in ultimate quests to experience the authentic nature of the places to which we travel. Being a tourist means fighting for authenticity and whoever can win the fight thus wins the game of traveling. Sure anyone in Buenos Aires can go to a tango show or a soccer game, but a real experience is going to a party with locals and hearing their friend’s band play. Anyone can go out to a restaurant but being invited to an asado where a real live Argentine is cooking steak will always make for a more enjoyable evening. I constantly see myself participating in this struggle for authenticity and though I have enough self-awareness to realize what I'm doing I never stop playing the game.

Some of my worst experiences in my time abroad have come from participating in the pseudo back region atmosphere that is created simply for tourists. We went on a class trip to an "Estancia" or ranch and watched a bunch of sad looking Argentines dress up in gaucho gear, do traditional dances and ride horses. Though it was nice to see watch traditional gaucho life might have been like, these people were simply playing a part, so in reality I was still seeing the front region. Did these people really want to run around like a bunch of fake gauchos, doing mock sword fights and forcing people to get up from tables and dance, probably not. Did I want to watch these people pretend to be gauchos, definitely not. The same type of experience occurred when we went on a school trip to see a tribal village outside of Iguazu Falls. We drove in on a bus to the "village" and the tour guide showed us tools that his ancestors used to catch different animals when wild animals used to actually exist in the rain forest. He showed us huts that people used to live in and clothing that they use to wear, but now they live in normal modern buildings and the guide himself was wearing converses. Sure it should have been interesting to see what tribal life used to be like, but subjecting myself to the false authenticity of the village put a sour taste in my mouth. The only part of the trip that was authentic was the rain pouring down upon our group while being in the rain forest.

Being abroad and searching for authenticity in the same places that every other tourist goes to is a painful experience. Whenever I'm around other tourists I see myself for what I actually am and it’s a painful realization. Guided tours with a group of tourists is a pitiful excuse for an authentic experience, and though there is value in seeing historical and cultural points of interest, I find myself playing tourist over and over again.