1. El cielo / the sky. The clarity of the sky is hard to describe. The blue is translucent, liquid – it seems to have a third dimension, a depth. But strangely, the bright sun bleaches colour out of the quadrant it occupies. The other evening, I turned around and was stopped in my tracks by the flat, white glow at the far end of a downtown canyon – as if a photographer had dropped a reflective sheet between the buildings.2. El sol / the sun. It’s strong. It could be a cool 20 degree day with a lovely breeze, but as you step out of the shade, you’ll notice a physical pressure on your skin, a warmth with weight. “The hole in the ozone from the Antarctic”, I’m told.
3. El aspecto fisico / Looks. There are beautiful people here. Lots of them. And there are many, many business dedicated to maintaining them. I would guess that 40% of all storefronts near the school are depilation salons. Those that are not, teach Pilates.
4. Los perros / The dogs. There are dogs everywhere. All shapes, sizes and breeds. Their constant barking, frantic howling and staccatto yapping from behind closed doors and shutters is this middle class neighbourhood's low key soundtrack. Through the day, they emerge in clusters, their leashes wrapped like maypole ribbons around the arms of grim-faced dog walkers. Yesterday I saw one virtually spread-eagled by 15 dogs, each pulling towards a different compass tangent. They seem to spend their "park time" tied to fences. No one picks up after them.
5. Las Colas / The line-ups. Portenos are very orderly. I’m told that if there are two people gathered anywhere, they form a line. I was most surprised by drivers at a very large gas station. Rather than crowding the plaza and jostling to be the next to a pump, drivers formed a line out on the street and down the block, waiting until a car left before even driving into the plaza.
6. El Anden / The Sidewalk. It seems that homeowners are responsible for building and maintaining the sidewalks in front of their buildings. This means that every 10 paces, you encounter a different colour, texture, condition, even level. Two reasons to walk with your eyes glued to the ground: Dog poop and constantly changing sidewalks.
7. Los pobres enprendadores / The enterprising poor. Perhaps it's an aftermath of the economic meltdown decade ago or perhaps the lack of a tranquilizing safety net, but there is a class of hard-working poor that are constantly present:
a. Recyclers: Skinny, sunbaked men - sometimes accompanied by wives and children - pull 2-wheeled carts holding immense canvas sacks through the streets of even the best neighbourhoods, stopping at dumpsters and garbage cans to methodically sort out and collect paper, cardboard, metal – whatever material they are selling for recycling.
b. Subte vendors: Salesmen of all shapes, ages and skin tones, stand in the middle of moving subway (Subte) cars and deliver a carnie patter extolling the benefits of a rubber toy or children’s book, hoping for a sale or two before they move to the next car at the next station. Young women and grubby children walk the length of the car dropping packs of gum or pens on laps and return for them, or a cash purchase, before the station.
8+ - There are bound to be many, many more interesting differences that pop out at me as I spend more time in Buenos Aires....
