The schedule of Buenos Aires

When I wrote about dining out in Buenos Aires I didn’t mention that a standard time to make a dinner reservation would be around 9:30 or 10:00 pm. I don’t know whether families go out a bit earlier, but if so not by much. If you go to eat at 8:00 the place will be empty, many restaurants don’t even open until 9. Although this seems quite late, it makes sense given that everything else here is shifted later:

• I know a few people who have to be at work at 8 or 9, but many places start time is 10 AM, and I know people who don’t start until noon and work until 8.
• Lunch is normally around 1 or 2
• Around 5 some people have “merienda” or afternoon tea – but I think this may be dying out; if I’m at a cafe studying around tea time the cafe gets a lot more full, but pretty much everyone is over 60. On the other hand, at the afterschool program where I was volunteering they also have an afternoon snack of tea and bread or biscuits. Most cafes have merienda combos like tea or coffee, toast and jam, half a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, sugar cookies, and a slice of cake. I guess this is to get people through until dinner.
• The busiest time of day at my gym is around 7-8, about an hour later than my gym in Boston. Rush hour lasts from 6 to 8 or so.
• Dinner, as I mentioned, is around 10, and if you’re going out may last until around 12.
• Clubs don’t get going until at least 2 in the morning, so if you eat at 10, you can move on to a bar around 12:30 and then to the club at 2. Or 3, or 4...I once went to a party at someone’s house that started at 12:30ish, there was a lot of beer there and we hung out until past four when we moved on to the “boliche” for a few more hours. (“Boliche” is the name for a bar that clears room for dancing at some point in the night, so not a full on nightclub with a huge floor. Think Phoenix Landing in Central Square.) I’ve only done that once or twice but one of my roommates is out until 6 or 7 every night it seems.
• The late schedule is true for milongas as well, and although I am usually headed home by 3 at the latest some of my die hard tanguero friends will be in one milonga until it starts to dwindle at 2 or 3 and then move to another one until 5. Bear in mind this is not just weekends but every day of the week! And it’s not just tourists either, though I don’t quite understand how the locals pull it off and also earn a living. I guess maybe they don’t have to be at work until noon?

Not quite yet...

Ok, I lied. I'm actually staying two more weeks - the ticket was only $25 to change and I decided that I haven't done quite as much dancing as I'd wanted, since I've been more focused on Spanish.
My new return date is May 13th, still soon! I'll see you then!

Hola!

Hello faithful readers - if there are any of you that haven't given up on me after my month of inactivity. I have, however, been uploading some new photos that you can see at http://www.flickr.com/photos/58658659@N00/.

I'm coming back to the States the week after next (the 28th of April) and suspect that in the meantime I'll probably want to spend more time doing things than writing about them, but I'm hoping to write at least a couple more entries, perhaps backdated, before returning. In any case I have a lot of stuff in my head that I'm going to write at some point, even if it's after I get back! So stay posted...