Weird Quirks About Argentines
For those that don't know, I'm an American but I've lived in Argentina for the past couple of years.
Here are a few quirks about Argentines that I've noticed during my time here:
Saying "Permiso" when they enter a house
When I go to a friends house and they open the door, I walk right in. Nothing said apart from our standard greetings.
For the most part whenever Argentines enter my apartment, they always say "Permiso" first. Stranger, acquaintance, friend alike - permiso.
The further to the left on the Stranger -- Acquaintance - Friend scale the more likely the permiso will come flying.
Permiso means permission but I guess "excuse me" is a better translation.
Either way, it's odd because before entering a stranger or friend's house American custom doesn't really necessitate that you say anything polite like that.
Overcooking their meat
For a country so obsessed with la carne it's amazing to me that nearly everyone here likes their meat well done.
My Argentine friends ridicule me for liking some pink in the center.
I read that each Argentine typically eats more than 140 pounds of beef annually, about 50% more than the average American.
Amazing that a country so devoted to meat consistently overcooks it.
Constantly Protesting
As a group of people, Argentines are not shy about protesting. We're currently living in the centro of Cordoba capital where every single group gathers to vent their frustrations with the government and various groups.
Chanting, singing, banging on pots and drums, setting off fireworks and bombs. All in the name of......??
That's the thing, there's so many protests nobody really knows what they're protesting about. I guess a few people know but I consistently ask my Argentine wife or my local friends who this group is and want they want and she doesn't know.
As I write this I hear a group off in the distance chanting, banging drums, and heading this way. Who knows what they want?
There you go. Just a few quirks I've noticed as a American expat in Argentina.
The protestors you hear coming probably want some money. Isn't the Argentine economy still circling the drain?
The economy has definitely gotten better since Macri took office IMO. At the same time it's also tough to say because I earn US dollars through my work online. I then convert those dollars into pesos to spend locally. So the locals feel the impacts of inflation a lot stronger than me.