This was my time in Buenos Aires and my first week here traveling the world. I was so excited to start my travels in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a city I had heard a lot about and was looking forward to experiencing first hand.
Best Thing I Ate This Week
Fugazzetta y Jamon Pizza from Pizzeria El Querido
Many people think of Argentine food as Asado and Empanadas, which are very popular across the city. However, in Buenos Aires, there are actually more pizzerias than parrillas, which means you can find plenty of options in any neighborhood. This is due to the fact that many porteno families are from Italy and have carried on cooking in their new home.
Since this was our first time in Buenos Aires, we had to try the pizza at a local spot. Pizzeria El Querido is a neighborhood spot where the owner is behind the counter making the pizza. She takes the time to come to your table to welcome you to the restaurant. The pizza itself was not as thick as a deep dish pizza, but more similar to a Detroit style one. Fugazzetta y Jamon is covered in sweet onions, stuffed with cheese, and includes a layer of ham to top it all off.
An Interesting Fact I Learned
Diego Maradona: beloved futbolista from Buenos Aires
My knowledge of futbol is pretty limited, but, coming to Argentina, I knew that Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi were worshiped for their success as international futbol stars. Besides Diego Maradona achieving his success in the 1980s I did not know much about his background. Since this was our first time in Buenos Aires, we took a walking tour in the famous neighborhood, La Boca, where there were murals of him everywhere.
It turns out that Maradona grew up in a working class neighborhood in Buenos Aires and went on to play for the local club, Boca Juniors. They have their stadium located in the neighborhood he grew up in. (Learn more about tours in Buenos Aires, including the one in Maradona’s neighborhood.) The locals loved him because he overcame the struggles of poverty to give the everyday person hope. He brought a league title for Boca Juniors, went on to play at Barcelona, and became a star at Napoli. There, he won a league title for the underdog, southern, working class team against the rich northern teams. His fame peaked when he delivered legendary performances in the World Cup and brought Argentina the championship in 1986.
His off-the-field issues often mired his on-the-field triumphs, such as substance abuse and domestic violence issues. During an emotional recognition at la Bombonera (La Boca Stadium), he stated “La pelota no se mancha”, which roughly translates to “the football never is marred”. In many ways, people still feel this way about Maradona and his controversies: his troubles could not tarnish the beauty of his play.
My Travel Tip of the Week
Weighing fruit at the grocery store
During our first week of grocery shopping, we went to check out at the local grocery store, and the women at the counter asked us if we had weighed the oranges we were trying to buy. At first we did not understand and we were confused because we usually do this at the register. But then Melina remembered that in France, the grocery stores require you to weigh the fruit before checking out.
If you are in a supermarket with a counter or weigh station near the produce section, be sure to go and weigh it before checking out to avoid confusion.
My Additional Anecdote This Week
Perception of danger varies around the world
Many times, Americans worry about traveling to destinations in South America and view them as dangerous. Our first friend we met upon arriving in Buenos Aires was from Manta, Ecuador, and he held so much pride in his country. He shared with us many recommendations of where to visit during our future trip. Recently, we have read articles about Ecuador being unsafe but the way he spoke of it there was no indication problems exist.
Then when he was talking about places to visit in the U.S., he mentioned that he always wanted to go to Japan and thought about making a stop over in America on the way. His plan was to spend time in Houston, even though it was a longer flight, because he thought San Francisco was too dangerous to spend time in. It was interesting to me that he was coming from a place many people from San Francisco would feel is too dangerous to go to, but he in turn felt the same way about visiting them.