A few weeks ago, I visited one of the most important companies of Translation Services, The Spanish Group, as I needed my Birth Certificate translation completed as soon as possible in order to apply for University. After finishing the diligence, I received the most amazing news: I was chosen by the company I work for, to travel to Argentina for two weeks to be in charge of a training course. The news was not only surprising, but also pleasant for me because I was born there and my dearest ones live in the South.
Argentina is very different from other Latin-American countries and that makes it unique and very attractive. In fact, the only similar country regarding its culture is Uruguay. Both countries share many similar cultural characteristics and part of their story as well. As in every country in the world, there are very different ways of looking at it, and what for an Argentinian person might be unpleasant, for someone coming from another corner of the world may be scenic and eccentric from a positive point of view. In fact, there are many thousands of foreign people living in Buenos Aires, the Capital City, just because they fell in love with the lifestyle and they decided to stay.
The most unique characteristic of Argentina is how, nowadays, family and friendship are still playing an important role in life. It is very common to gather during the weekends to have an ‘asado’, what in English could be translated as a barbecue. Or to meet in the afternoon to enjoy ‘unos mates’, an infusion made of ‘yerba’, natural herbs, and accompanying it with the typical ‘facturas’, or pastry. Life and people in Argentina seem to always be in a rush. People run everywhere and they never have time to stop, wait or enjoy quietness. In fact, in the Capital City a quite area can´t practically be found anywhere. Buses, taxis, trucks, cars, and more cars, horns…! The noise is unacceptable, but inevitable. Argentinian Spanish is also very different from other Latin countries. We pronounce words differently and the vocabulary has its own “personality”. Many ‘lunfardo’ words are still used by people, especially the old ones, who seem to resist the passage of time.
Fortunately, during the last years, some areas of the Capital City have been improved and you can only see very old and ruined houses in the suburbs. Also, technology set a new way of leaving and it is spreading faster and faster, allowing people to communicate with the rest of the world with no problem at all. Argentina has an active political life with a very difficult past history and horrible past situations on the way. It is typical to travel to Down Town and find yourself in the middle of a protest not knowing how to get out of there! If you don´t like crowds, don´t worry, there is also beautiful countryside and landscapes, mountains, beaches, snow, all the climate conditions you can imagine, and a great diversity of flora and fauna. But what probably makes Argentina unique is its popular ‘Tango’, its typical dance, danced in other parts of the world as well, even in many Hollywood movies.
Luckily, cultural life in Argentina has developed over the last years as never before, offering great diversity of the artistic expressions and entertainment for all ages. And there are options for all kinds of taste! Nobody could get bored… I can guarantee that!