Tag: Language

Experience the Joy of Volunteering in Buenos Aires

Volunteering in Buenos Aires

Way back when, in 1998 to be more precise, I came to Argentina to volunteer for Aldeas Infantiles SOS for a year. And while I haven’t run a marathon for charity or anything like it since, the intervening years have seen me do my tiny bit for another local project called Todos Juntos. It was this Anglo-Argentine foundation that British soul singer Joss Stone teamed up with in March to hand out 100 rucksacks filled with school kit to kids…

May 6th, 2015

Argentine Body Language: The Definitive Guide

If you’re new to Argentina and worried about your Spanish language skills, don’t panic – you can communicate with the locals without making a sound. Everyone knows actions speak louder than words, but nowhere is this truer than in Argentina, where the way you touch your elbow means the difference between telling someone they’re stingy and telling them you’re definitely not happy…

August 28th, 2014

Porteño Slang Survival Dictionary: Speak Spanish Like a Buenos Aires Native

You thought you knew how to speak Spanish in your language class, with a teacher that seemed to come from Spain (olé!) or even worse, learned from one. Then you come to Argentina and discover that “cana” doesn’t mean what you thought – instead of “a person with grey hair,” it means “the police!” Don’t despair! Here is a list of Porteño slang terms that you can use to quickly sound like a local in Buenos Aires.

March 6th, 2014

How to Act Like a Local in Buenos Aires

How to Act Like a Local in Buenos Aires

In Buenos Aires, fitting in is a more complicated process than simply knowing your steak, wine and football, or becoming a pro at multiple-dog walking, staring and protesting. Here are some ways you can act, live and love like a local. If you follow them you might just avoid men on passing motorbikes hollering “Gringa!” (but probably not). Whether it’s their amigo, boss or total stranger, Argentines peck each other once on the right cheek to say hi and bye…

March 7th, 2012

Teach Yourself Porteño: The Buenos Aires Lifestyle

Mate kit – Photograph by Ignat Gorazd

‘Porteño’ is more than just a geographical indicator, it’s a way of being. Porteños have their own slang, their own fashion, their own complex psyche and their own attitude. So if you want to ‘do’ porteño, you’ll need more than a Spanish dictionary and a smile.

May 13th, 2011

Argentinian or Argentinean: Decisions, decisions…

Image taken by Tony Unruh

The spelling of Argentinian, Argentinean and Argentine has stirred the passions of grammarians, pedants, and now, and you didn’t see this coming, you. Over the next few hundred words we’re going on a literary treasure hunt – one that digs deep into history, literature and that huge dictionary propping up my printer.

January 13th, 2011