Meghan's Dad Blogs Again

The San Lorenzo v Boca Juniors match was just as Meghan described it--chaos in the streets, passion in the stadium, and a happy crowd as the hated glory boys in blue and yellow fell to the home town blue and red. We gringo tourists were San Lorenzo fans for the day and the locals were pleased to have us there and shook our hands and wished us well after the match. Good thing Meghan sent her Boca shirt home with Karen and me a few weeks ago because--dumb us--we did not realize the game was at San Lorenzo until our bus zigged when we expected it to zag and we head out into the low rent suburbs. That shirt would have been a real problem. Meghan did a great job on the San Lorenzo songs and the translation seems good to me, but she did miss the most important chant of the afternoon. My Spanish is still shaky but even I know that "Boca Puta" is the crudest, most vulgar insult possible. Chanted by 30 or 40 thousand fanatics, it is something to ponder. No wonder they keep the home fans locked up for 30 minutes until the visitors get out of town. Meghan mentioned that we thought long and hard about paying the premium price for the tourist futbol experience. I am glad we did because getting to San Lorenzo to buy tickets at the stadium and then getting there on game day and into the right stand would have been a full on adventure. And if we made the mistake of getting the wrong tickets it could be ugly. Two of my classmates went to matches at "La Bombonera" and each reported that the zealots in the upper decks pissed on the opposing fans below. No wonder they lock in the locals after the match. The game we saw was an important one between top local teams--San Lorenzo is currently just ahead of Boca in the clausura (2nd part of the season), but the real fun is this weekend when River and Boca meet and then next week when River and San Lorenzo meet in the Libertadores (championship tourney of Latin American futbol). I am not much of a sports fan but I am very happy we went to this game. The energy and enthusiasm of the crowd made me realize this is not a sporting event or entertainment--this is the most important thing in the lives of thousands of people. Even if you don't like sports, when you are in Buenos Aires, go to a futbol match.

San Lorenzo vs Boca Juniors

" Porque yo.... soy hincha del CICLON... te quiero ver campeón dar la vuelta otra vez... quiero ganar esa Copa Libertadores... y demostrarles porque somos MATADORES... por que yo te quiero de verdad... te sigo adonde vas... adonde quieras ir....el sentimiento no se compra ni se vende... yo nací CUERVO y seré CUERVO hasta la muerte..... "

"Because I...I am a fan of the CYCLONE...I want to see the champions return another time...I want to win this Copa Libertadores... and show them why we are KILLERS...because I really want you to... I follow wherever you go...wherever you want to go...the feeling that you cannot buy or sell...I was born a CROW and will be a CROW until the death..."

San Lorenzo fan song

For Dad’s last weekend in town, we decided to experience an Argentinean futbol match. Originally, we wanted to purchase tickets and make our own way to a game but after long consideration of the logistical and safety difficulties of this plan, we purchased tickets with a tourist company to see the Boca Juniors and San Lorenzo play on Sunday. We were quite excited about the game because both teams were doing well in the rankings and Boca Jrs is an extremely famous futbol club.
The game was an all day affair. Although the kick-off wasn’t until 4 20, we were picked up from our apartment shortly after 1 pm. We sat in the van while it circled through the one way streets of the neighbourhood picking up other tourists. The people on our tour were primarily English speakers. Eight months ago when I took a similar tour, to the far less important match of Racings vs Newell’s Old Boys, I was the only anglophone.
Dad and I had been under the impression that we would be attending the match in the famous Bonbonera (or candy box) stadium of the Boca Juniors but instead we found ourselves turning away from the neighbourhood of La Boca and heading out into the suburbs of Buenos Aires that don’t make it on to the tourist maps. Short, run down buildings appeared and the sidewalks became unpaved. The San Lorenzo property, which contained much more than just the stadium, was a huge complex covering several blocks. The futbol teams here function as giant social and recreational clubs for the community. Each club has junior teams, picnic areas, and even a school for promising young players.
The traffic around the stadium was pandemonium. The San Lorenzo stadium was too far out of the city centre to be easily accessible by public transit and the low-density nature of the neighbourhood and the size of the San Lorenzo complex limited the number of people who could easily walk to the game, forcing people to drive. Parking was available inside the heavily fortified official parking lot but many people decided to pay less to park on the grassy medians and verges outside the stadium. The result of this verge parking and a general lack of respect for basic traffic laws meant that there was general gridlock for several blocks surrounding the stadium. Our van parked in the official parking lot and we walked to the stadium. At the entrance gate we were patted down (and our bags were searched) before being admitted into the stadium through a turn style. Our seats were just right of centre field and quite high up. However, the steep angle of the stadium meant that even so high up we were quite close to the action. When we arrived, the San Lorenzo portion of the stadium already had a sizeable crowd. In the standing room (the section directly behind each team’s goal, which is generally reserved for the real fanatics) the fans were busily erecting ribbons and banners which seemed illogically large for easy viewing of the game. The stadium was much less fortified than the stadium at Racings but it did still have a high barbed wire fence surrounding the field and separating different sections of the crowd.
We watched the reserve teams (the players not playing in the premier game) were play the second half of their match. As they played, the stadium filled more and more. Rolls of paper similar to cash register tape were distributed to the crowd and vendors walked through the crowd with trays of coca cola, peanuts, hamburgers, and popsicles. The one item that was conspicuously not for sale was alcohol, a wise strategy in crowd control. We had been at the stadium for an hour and a half when the crowd in the now almost entirely full San Lorenzo section began screaming and booing. We looked over to see the Boca Jrs fans arriving with drums, flags, and banners. The fans filled up the Boca Juniors standing section and began erecting their own banners and ribbons. Both sides began to sing their team songs loudly. Right before the game began, when it appeared as if the San Lorenzo standing room would not be able to hold another person, the hard-core San Lorenzo fans arrived. They entered like the Boca fans with drums and flags but the crowd greeted them as if they were rock stars. Once this group had squeezed themselves between the rest of the fans and the fence the game could begin.
When the players finally took to the field the stadium went wild. All of the paper rolls, which had been distributed, were thrown down to the field, fireworks went off, and the stadium shook from the general fervour of the crowd as they sang, jumped and cheered their team into the stadium. Not surprisingly the Boca Juniors players were booed strongly as they came on to the field. The game began and San Lorenzo scored quickly. The crowd was extremely happy and remained active, jumping up and down, screaming, chanting, and singing, the entire game. San Lorenzo won 1-0 and after the game the Boca Jrs fans were let out of the stadium almost half an hour before the gates opened on our section.
If it was possible there was even more pandemonium in the traffic on the way out of the stadium than there was on the way in. In the parking lot there were no people employed to direct the traffic. Cars turned whichever way they wanted and mixed with the happy revellers returning to their own cars. It was a parking lot in which it was an advantage to have an old dented car, but then again that holds true in the entire city. The experience of an Argentinean soccer match is far removed from any other sporting event that I have ever attended and well worth the effort if you are ever in Buenos Aires.
This week is an especially important week for futbol here in Argentina. Several big games in the South American tournament Copa Libertadores have been played and this Sunday a super classic game between (arguably) the two most important teams in Argentina Boca Jrs and River Plate will be played. This is a game promises to empty the streets of Buenos Aires. Tickets are practically impossible to come by and the game has been hyped on almost every TV channel.
On Wednesday, dad left to return to Canada. I remained here but I will not be far behind him. I return to Canada myself in only 10 days. Until I leave I will be continuing with my Spanish lessons. Many of my friends here in Buenos Aires have left to return home and I think that I might just finally ready to follow them.

The Scam

Early Sunday afternoon, dad and I went out for our usual weekend walk into undiscovered regions of the city. We had just crossed the massive 9 Julio, not more than 5 minutes walk from our apartment, when I felt the wet splat of what could only be bird droppings on my ear and shoulder. Immediately, the man and the woman walking behind us ran to help, gesturing to the sky and offering tissues. I was instantly suspicious. I only needed a whiff and a quick glance of the green substance splattered from my hair to my feet to realise that it was not any form of bird byproduct and that it definitely had not come from above. The couple had moved in closer and were attempting to "help us" (read rob us) by wiping us (yes dad was covered also) off. We both made evasive movements by turning in circles and told the people that we did not need their help and that we would return to our apartment to get cleaned up. Sensing that their act had been discovered the pair disappeared as fast as they had appeared and dad and I retreated, in the opposite direction, to the fountain in the middle of 9 de Julio to assess the damages. The whole thing was over in less than 30 seconds. We quickly checked our backpacks and pockets to see if anything was missing. All ipods, cameras, and wallets were there but we were covered in flecks of aquamarine slime that smelled distinctly of the dentist's office (dad was convinced in was relish).
We washed off as best we could in the fountain and decided to continue with our walk. As we repassed the scene of the crime, we looked up to see the smooth, windowless, balconyless edifice of the building and were confirmed in our opinion that whatever we were covered in it had not come from above. We walked in silence for a few minutes, each of us brooding over the events in our minds before we broke out into our usual chatter. An hour later the incident was almost entirely forgotten but the bitter, tangy odor of green slime followed us until we returned home.

Guest Blog

Hola Amigos,

This is Meghan's Dad guesting today.

After sharing a tiny apartment for the last 2 1/2 weeks Meghan and I continue to be friends. Our school schedules are different and that makes a big difference. My classes go from 9:00 until 1:30 while Meghan does not start until 2:30. That gives us time to live our own lives.

School has been great. The pace is rapid and we get several new concepts every lesson. It's hard to know how much progress I have made because I usually can't bring these new ideas forward fast enough to use them in "real life" conversations. But, I am able to do the basic stuff so I don't feel like a complete fool when I am in a correro, tienda or restaurante. I was amazed yesterday when our phone rang and I was able to explain that the previous tenant has gone and we don't know where she went--easy in concept but a breakthrough for me at conversation pace on the phone.

I buy the paper every day and have learned a lot from it, both about Spanish and life in Argentina.

Buenos Aires is an endlessly fascinating city. There are dozen and dozens of impressive buildings, parks, plazas and museums. Before I came here I had very little idea of what a fully developed cultural, political and sporting life is centered here. Music, plays, opera, literature, visual arts are everywhere. The politics are more civilized now than in the terrible days of the dictatorships but they still seem chaotic to an outsider. (Just as an example--I have been told the reason the government can't provide enough coins is because their metal value is more than their face value. Sometimes the ticket offices in the subway run out of change so to avoid a riot they close the booths, open the gates and people ride for free). Futbol is everything in this town and there are several hugely important clubs here. Some of the teams are infamous for the lawlessness of their fans. River, currently the best team, is being punished for some recent violence by being forced to play some games in an empty stadium.

Bs. As. is huge, polluted, and noisy but there is an energy here that I have felt in few other places. Think Paris without the river or the tower, but with more buzz.

Last night I went again to the Bs. As. Symphony--another fine concert. Meghan went to "Rent" (in Spanish). This afternoon I am going to the film festival. There are venues for it all over town and it is only $2.00! This weekend I'll take some long walks and study Spanish--it's a great city for both.

Fall Weather

For the entire month of March and the first week of April the weather here in Buenos Aires was hot and blue skied. It was not unusual for the days to reach above 30 degrees and at night I would lie in sweaty sheets hoping that my little air conditioner could work a little harder. Then last week, the weather changed over night. The news stations were going crazy over the fact that in the countryside the temperature had dipped below zero and formed ice on the roads helping to facilitate even more crashes on the auto pista than normal. The temperature in Buenos Aires had even dipped to a cool 3 degrees before dawn. By the time I left for my Spanish class it was 16 or 17 degrees but you couldn't tell from the way that the Portenos were wrapped up. Gone were the bright skirts and strappy sandals of the day before replaced heavy wool coats and full length pants. There was an amazing variety of gloves, hats and scarves and it seemed as if the people were preparing for a winter in Montreal.

The cold only lasted for a few days. The temperatures rose back into the mid 20s but then the smoke came. The annual burning of the fields in the Buenos Aires delta got out of control and several of the fires jumped, and closed, major commuting routes. The smoke from the fires innundated the city and made everything hazy. The smell of smoke has even permeated into the houses. The government has issued a statement saying that the smoke is not toxic and that it should clear soon but there has been no sign of it's lifting.

Ciclo Joven

Dad has completed his first week of Spanish lessons at our school in Buenos Aires. I think that he has been enjoying his classes very much and I know that he was delighted to discover that there were several people in his class not too many years younger than himself. He has been studying hard to learn his past tense, indirect/direct objects, and comparisons. I have been studying (relatively) hard as well. I have now almost completed Level 4 and each week I am here the Spanish that the teachers speak with me becomes a little more rapid. I would like to think that I am able to operate in the language at full speed (which I can depending on the topic) but I have definitely had a few headaches with the increasingly difficult and subtle grammar points. We have been fortunate, in the interest of being good roomates, that Dad´s classes are in the morning while mine are in the afternoon allowing each of us to have a few hours each day to ourselves in our tiny apartment.


On Tuesday, while I was in class, dad managed to lock himself out of the apartment and since his key was in the lock on the inside he was unable to unlock the door even after he had come to the school to get my key. He ended up having to go through the apartment of our neighbour (who luckily happened to be the doorman on duty at the time) and scramble from his balcony to ours (we live on the 10th floor) before jimmying our backdoor (which we had tried, obviously unsuccessfully, to secure against intruders) open and climbing in. Dad seemed rather nochalant about his Macgyveresque antics but he was very excited to have learned the Spanish word for screwdriver destornillador in the process.

Most of our days aren't quite so dramatic. Much of our time is taken up with school, homework, going to the gym, going to the cinema and watching far too much television. We have also made many long rambles through the city. Buenos Aires is a huge place with multitudes of interesting streets to walk along and buildings to discover. On Thursday, we we to see the Buenos Aires Philharmonic Orchestra play some Nicolai Rimski-Korsakov, Ralph Vaugh Williams, and Franz Haydn. Unfortunately, the orchestra's usual venue, the famous Teatro Colon is closed for repairs this season and we had to see them in a rather standard, poorly lit concert hall but the concert was amazing. The orchestra had amazing tone and their playing was crisp, precise, and clean. The highlight of the evening for me was the cello soloist in the Haydn piece, Jose Alberto Araujo. He was so passionate about his playing and so obviously pleased to be there that he almost made me cry.

The Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival is on this week and we have made several attempts to go. This week we are looking forward to taking in more Buenos Aires culture with a football game, some theatre and a tango show.

Home Improvements

Dad has settled into his new life in Buenos Aires. His luggage arrived Friday evening so we are now moved completely into our apartment. We are pretty happy with the place but have been making some small home improvements by tightening screws, rigging a new lock for the balcony door and jamming pieces of paper into the window frame to keep the glass from rattling in the middle of the night. Our biggest improvement by far has been buying some chairs and a table for our balcony. To buy these chairs we walked two hours to a store in Palermo and then walked 2 hours back with the chairs slung over our shoulders. The furniture wasn´t heavy but it was a bit difficult to walk down pedestrian-crowded sidewalks without accidentally whacking the odd passerby with an armrest.
Today is a lazy Sunday which we have spent reading the newspaper, studying Spanish and wandering around the deserted Sunday streets. Tomorrow the streets will be thronged with people but today everybody is at home resting up for Monday.

The New Apartment

Dad arrived on Wednesday, without his luggage. He has happily been watching movies in the cinema, attending his Spanish classes, and making small home improvements to our apartment. I had threatened before he arrived that we would speak only in Spanish. What has materialised is a mix of Spanish and English that, to be frank, has more English than Spanish. We will have to work on our Spanish speaking.
Here are some pictures of the new apartment and the school.

Moving Day

My father is coming to Buenos Aires for a month to stay with me and to work on his Spanish. The apartment that I had been renting for the last 6 weeks was totally unsuitable for 2 people, so yesterday I moved. Changing apartments was quite a stressful process. The fact that the water to my building was cut off 2 hours before I had to move making it impossible to clean the apartment (I washed the dishes with the water from ice cubes which I melted in the microwave) did not help either. Because I had not cleaned the apartment I was required to pay a 50 peso cleaning fee which meant that I no longer had enough money to pay the rent on the apartment that I was moving into. I had already maxed out my atm withdrawl limit for the day and changed every single American dollar that I possessed. Luckily, after standing in many Atm line ups I found a machine that would give me 50 pesos. It was day 20 of the dispute between the farmers and the government and the President, Christina Kirchner, was making a speech in the Plaza de Mayo. The streets were thronged with people and I waddled through the crowd carrying all my early belongings, which weighed considerably more than they did in my backpacking era just 6 weeks ago. I dropped off my bags at the language school and finished some last minute errands before going to my new apartment.

The new apartment is very nice. It is on the 10th floor and has a balcony (with not much of a view). It is the same size as my previous apartment but it uses the space much better. The kitchen and the television are not quite as nice but they are functional and have everything that I need. The best part of my new apartment is the location. It is 2 minutes walk from the movie theatre and less than 10 minutes to the language school.

Today, there were no classes at the language school because it is the 26th anniversary of Argentina´s war with the UK over the Falkland islands (here known as the Malvinas). I am taking the day to relax after yesterday´s running around and to wait for my dad´s arrival.

Protests

While the lifestyle of Argentina, and in particular Buenos Aires, is modern and in many ways similar to the way that I live in Vancouver, there is a political instability here that manifests itself in large public demostrations unfamiliar in my Canadian life. For the past 15 days there have been increasing tensions between Argentina´s agrarian producers and its federal government. These tensions have been simplified to the phrase ¨Campo vs Gobierno¨(The countryside vs the government) Every day thousands of people gather in the Plaza de Mayo to protest lack of funding or parade in the streets banging pots and waving banners. Major trucking routes have been blocked and there are shortages of many things on the shelves of the local supermarkets. One day there may be a shortage of eggs, the next a shortage of meat. The price of vegetables has steadily and noticibly increased during my 6 weeks in Buenos Aires. I have become desensitized to riot police, loud speakers and survellance helicopters. But despite all the protests, life here continues as usual in Buenos Aires and the people not involved in the fight continue on with their days just as before.

Note: As my Spanish skills become more advanced my ability to spell (in either language) is diminuishing quickly. Please forgive the atrocious spelling in this blog entry. I cannot find an English spell check.