Obviously, the country as a whole has pretty much the same customs, like drinking mate, the weekend “asados”, having lots of friends and family always around, but there are some things that are noticeably different. Apparently most of BA is what I would call atheistic. You’re probably getting ready to write in and say that most of the country is Catholic, but hold on a second.  I say atheistic because siesta is my one true religion, and in BA siesta is on it’s way to becoming extinct (insert sad little whimper here).

In the interior I would venture to say that probably 80 or 90% of activities take a break after lunch, and then start up again at around 5 pm. Most businesses, schools, doctor’s offices, etc. all work that way. But not in BA.  They get up and go, and don’t stop until like 6 pm or so. Typical hours in most other parts of the world.  We were in BA visiting my in-laws in the city for an extended period of time, so it was like a little vacation for us. So after lunch you can imagine that since I was on vacation, and with a full stomach, I could hear my pillow calling me from afar! But we had to keep up the rhythm, going here or there, doing this or that.

And when we were doing things, we weren’t lollygagging either: no time to window shop or sit in the plaza and take a cab 10 minutes later! We were on a MISSION (that one’s for you dad). We had errands to run, and bureaucratic things to do to help out my in-laws.

And when you see those things on TV back in Tucumán (regarding BA) you tend to get the impression that the whole city is under curfew, and the mothers are all hiding their babies in the closet.

Since I was on a mini-vacation, I wanted to buy things. Not too much, but just a couple of things. But low and behold some things had to be sacrificed for the sake of eating. Food (eating out), that necessary evil, can easily send you into bankruptcy in BA if you’re not careful. Here in Tucumán when you go out to eat, your check appears at the end of the meal with charges for food and drink.

In BA you get service charges (which is not considered tip) and “table” charges which include silverware and bread. If I decide to eat my pasta with my hands do you think they’ll take the silverware charges off the check? And not to mention that everything is just more expensive in the restaurants. In Tucumán you can get a very good meal (food, drink, waiter, bread and silverware) for two people for 25-30 pesos.

In BA you need to up that to about 40 pesos, minimum. But one thing that they do have that you don’t see too much in Tucumán are the business lunches, where you have food, drink and service (sometimes dessert) all included for a flat fee, but you have limited options, like say only 2 choices of food.

And that is due to the fact that since most people work the typical 9-5, they eat out, as opposed to going back home for lunch. And it’s completely understandable because in BA the distances are a lot greater, so even if they did allow you to go home for lunch and a little siesta, it just wouldn’t be worth it anyway because of the time constraints.

When you’re walking down the street, you can usually tell who isn’t from BA because of the speed at which they walk. Porteños (people from BA) walk fast! I guess it’s just to keep up with the big city pace, but they have a no-nonsense feel about walking around the city. And I even noticed that when they window shop, it’s quicker also. If you see something you like, you go in and ask the sales person, buy it or don’t. There’s no indecision about it. Here in Tucumán, you see something you like, you take a mental note, and continue on because if you want to go back and actually go into the store, it’s not that far to back-track, and you can always take the next bus home anyway, or a cab for only 2 pesos!

Another thing that is noticeable is the time. In BA you say at 3:15, you mean 3:15. In the interior 3:15 could mean 3:30 or 3:45. If you have a doctor’s appointment at 9 am, you better be there because on the off chance that the doctor actually calls you at 9, and you’re not there, you’re out of luck. Reschedule.

In Tucumán you’re probably safe getting there at 9:15 because the doctor will probably get in at 9:30.

All of these things are generalities of course, nothing is written in stone. For example, most bank employees here in the Interior work from 9 to 5, and don’t go home for lunch. That’s because most of them have to be on the same working hours as BA for practicality reasons of course, and that goes for any big companies like the supermarkets, or phone companies, or any company that needs to keep up with Buenos Aires or the rest of the world. 

If you walk around downtown Tucumán during the siesta, or on Sunday, most places will be closed and you’ll have to sit in one of the very few coffee shops that are open all the time (there are a couple in the downtown area). But things are slowly changing.

I can see that in another ten years or so, a lot of the country will have adjusted to being on the BA schedule, working 9-5, phasing out the siesta (hopefully I will be self-employed by then!), picking up the pace etc. But even though BA does move at a faster pace, I think that when its resident’s have the chance, they really do know how to slow down and just take things in stride. We mustn’t forget that that is the Latin way of life. What good is living life if you can’t sit back and enjoy the scenery right? Even if it’s just every once in a while.

The following are the previous articles Jaime wrote for the magazine:

• Spring Is In The Air ~ Living In Tucumán, Argentina
• Life in Argentina ~ Not Taking Into Account The Devaluation Or Political Situation

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