Best Night Ever

Last night, our program director, Debora, took us to a tango show and dinner at a beautiful theater called Tango Porteno. The night started with a 45 minute tango lesson in a large ballroom. I had taken a short lesson earlier this week at a Milonga, or dance hall, with my internship director, Natalia, and hadn't failed horribly so I was excited to practice my new skills.

Well, the steps the tango teachers taught us were not exactly the ones I learned previously so unfortunately I didn't have the upper hand I thought I had. My dance partners were also inexperienced non-Argentinians as well so I couldn't just follow their lead as I did at the Milonga. The first partner I had seemed to have two left feet which didn't compliment my unfamiliarity with the new steps. But thankfully during the second round my new partner had better rhythm and we did pretty well if I do say so myself. The lesson was a lot of fun, and we got certificates at the end!! Afterwards we headed downstairs into the theater where dinner and the performance would be.

When I tell you that food was the best meal I've had in Argentina...

We had a few options for each part of a three course meal. I chose veal empanadas as the appetizer, steak and mashed potatoes for the entree, and a trio sampler of flan, dulce de leche ice cream, and a cheese tart for dessert. Everything was AMAZING. The empanadas were heavenly, the steak was cooked to perfection, and there are no words to adequately describe how good the dessert was.

After thoroughly enjoying our meal over conversation and laughter about our experience in Argentina, the tango show began.

To be honest, before coming to Argentina I thought tango was one of the more boring Latin dances. But if actually learning it didn't fully change my mind, watching professionals dance tango while singing and portraying as much emotion as humanly possible definitely did. The women were in beautiful, sparkling costumes as they swirled across the stage with their partners, telling an action packed love story through tango. At some points it felt like I was watching acrobats with all the seemingly impossible flips and twists the pairs did while maintaining their passionate facial expressions.

As the show came to an end, I found myself wanting more. Much similar to how I feel about my time in Argentina as I prepare to leave in a few days. Through my ups and downs here, this city has enchanted me, and I'm so grateful to have had this experience.

Worst Experience Ever

Being in a Latin American country, especially Argentina, it is to be expected that one would experience awkward racial encounters at best or outright racism at worst. Last weekend I had an encounter that was somewhere in between.

Last Saturday I had to work at the co-op that my internship, Amigos de la Tierra, is a part of to help package and sell their artesanal goods. They hold a feria all day so we were meeting up at the office at around 9am to go help set up. I was the first one to arrive at the office so I was waiting outside in the cold with my jeans, scarf, and coat on. As I'm waiting, a young man walks by me, and we made what I thought to be meaningless, brief eye contact. But after making said eye contact he stopped and asks me:

 "estas trabajando?" (are you working?)

Thinking he may be volunteering with us I answered:

"si." (yes)

But then he proceeded to ask me:

"cuanto?" (how much.)

Confused, I responded:

"cuanto es que?" (how much is what?)

To this he looked at me side eyed and stated:

"por el sexo." (for sex)

Needless to say, I was mortified. This random man had assumed I was a prostitute looking for work in broad daylight while fully dressed. I couldn't even respond in Spanish. All I could utter were repeated "no's" until he got the message and walked away.

Before coming to Argentina, I had read about Black women being mistaken for prostitutes, but I hadn't thought about it again until it happened to me. Thankfully it wasn't at night time or on a smaller street because who knows what he could have done.

Again, I've been reminded of the consequences of my identity as a Black woman that follow me wherever I go and affect my experiences regardless of how carefree I try to be. But to be clear, I didn't write this post to dissuade Black women from traveling to Argentina because it's important that we experience the world and that the world experiences us, but as a reminder to always be aware of your surroundings and to understand the context in which your environment operates.

Until next time,

Alexis

Ni Una Menos: Protesting in Argentina

A few weeks ago my roommates and I had the opportunity to participate in a protest at the National Congress about the violence committed against women in Argentina. Many of the protesters held signs with the faces of women and girls that had been killed at the hands of men who haven't paid for their crimes.I couldn't help but be reminded of the faces of Black individuals, such as Sandra Bland, Mike Brown, and Eric Garner, back at home who have also been senselessly murdered at the hands of those who refuse to acknowledge our worth. As stated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. "A threat to justice anywhere is a threat to justice anywhere". To the women of Argentina, I see you, your cries have not fallen upon deaf ears. We are both in this struggle together.

Also, a cool moment that I was able to capture during the protest were some teenage girls spray painting the Black power fist on a bus stop. Sadly, it was covered up a few minutes later by someone else's posters but the moment still lives on in memory and on social media.

Aventuras en Bici

In the US, going into the office on a Saturday is usually seen as a dreaded injustice against those who find themselves dragging themselves out of bed on a day meant for relaxation and fun after a long week of work. But for me, going to my internship at Amigos de la Tierra on a Saturday meant a day of exploring the city.

Every few weeks Amigos de la Tierra, an environmental organization in Buenos Aires, has a Bici, or a bicycle, tour around the city involving nature, food, and fellowship. On Saturday it was just my supervisor, Natalia, and I riding our bikes por las calles. Going to school in DC, I’m very used to seeing cyclists and their near death encounters with drivers who seem to think they have the same amount of protection as a car; so I must admit, I was a little nervous to bike through a big city but thankfully Buenos Aires is full of bike lanes large enough that I felt safe cycling alongside traffic.

The first stop we made was in Plaza Italiano which is a beautiful park that becomes full of people on nice days like Saturday was. I felt weightless and free as we zipped past kids playing in the park and families sprawled out on the grass. I was having so much fun that I attempted to document our ride on snapchat which proved to be extremely hazardous as I unknowingly dropped my phone while crossing a busy intersection. Thankfully, a kind stranger came running behind me with my phone in their hand. Needless to say, I stuck to simply enjoying the experience as opposed to documenting it simultaneously (at least while in motion).

Our last stop before heading back to the office was at a market for small farmers and artisans where one of Amigos de la Tierra’s partners has an organic food shop. While there, we helped them weigh and package some of their products, and I even got to taste a few. After spending about an hour working and socializing at the market we headed back to to the Amigos de la Tierra office to end the day’s adventure.

Despite my fears and doubts about cycling through the city, I had a great time and may even try it when I return to DC for school.

I Found the Black People!

During my first weekend in Buenos Aires, my roommates and I decided to venture out to La Casa Rosada, or the Pink House which is the equivalent to the White House in the US. After walking around a bit, and quickly discovering there was little else to do without a reserved tour, we looked around to do some more exploring and low and behold there was a huge outdoor artisan market (also know as la feria de san telmo) right across the street. The sun was shining, music was playing, and the street was abuzz with activity as we walked through the feria that seemed to go on for miles. 

After stopping to watch the tango dancers at an outdoor restaurant and purchase a quick snack of choripan, a mouthwatering combination of spicy sausage and soft baked bread, I continued through the feria solo, Having lost track of my roommates somewhere along the way, stopping every 30 seconds to look and seriously contemplate buying something that had caught my eye.

Then, all of a sudden I began to hear soul music. And it wasn't just any soul music, it was live soul music. I could feel the beat of the drums and vibrations from the guitar. As I drew closer to the source of the heavenly melodies, I realized that it was coming from none other than Movimiento Afrocultural!! I had no idea that it was located right in the middle of feria de san telmo or that they have an outdoor jam session every Sunday afternoon (if you're a little lost please refer to my earlier post). After enjoying the music for a little while, I decided to socialize with some fellow Black people and ended up striking up a conversation with a kind older man from Uruguay who then introduced me to the director of the organization. 

Now let me remind you that I had only been in Argentina for a few days so I wasn't quite used to the Argentine accent or fast paced Spanish and didn't quite understand everything that they were saying but just being able to interact with Black people for the first time since leaving my home in Georgia had me ecstatic. I was even more so surprised by the song selection. Instead of the Afro-Latino vibe that I expected, they were playing old school hits from the states. I was even pulled on stage to sing a few Stevie Wonder songs that I embarrassingly didn't know all the words to.  

After practically running offstage and back to my seat, I enjoyed a little more of the music and blackness ending my day affirmed and fulfilled. I definitely intend to return to Movimiento Afrocultural for other events as well as to hopefully make some Afro-Argentine friends while I'm here. 

Until next time,

Ciao!

Traveling While Black in Argentina

Greetings!

My name is Alexis and I am currently in Buenos Aires, Argentina for the summer (or winter depending on where you are) for a fellowship with Cultural Vistas (which if you're a student or professional who likes travelling for free, you should definitely check out!). Like anyone travelling to another country for the first time, I did as much research on Argentina as possible. Pinterest became my best friend and travel blogs my specialty.

As a Black woman attending a Historically Black College/University (HBCU), the illustrious Howard University, I attempted to center some of my research on Black spaces/historical sites. To be honest, what I found was less than encouraging. Granted, I didn't expect much with the little bit of Argentinian history I knew, which included former president Carlos Menem saying in 1996 "no hay negros en Argentina" (there are no Blacks in Argentina) which is completely untrue.

Like many countries in Latin America, Argentina has a complex and, at many times, problematic relationship with race. There is substantial evidence that the government actively engaged in the racial cleansing of African peoples in the country during the early 1900's . But despite that, there are still traces of Mama Africa's influence in Argentine culture, including its people.

Back to the research...

So basically in my research I found a few organizations such as Movimiento Afrocultural and Africa Vive that are centered around affirming blackness in Argentina. I also found that very few Black Americans (or Black people in general) had documented their experiences in Argentina. And that brings us to the birth of this blog. With La Morena en Argentina, I hope to document my experiences as a young Black woman navigating my way through a country with a rich culture and complex history. Hopefully I can help a few wanderlusters on the way.

Ciao!