the thing about living in a city that pulsates with so much culture & creativity (what's better--there's no deluded self-importance about it) is that afterwards, i think everything will dim in comparison.
the lush, hilly, tree-canopied parks bestrewn with elegant sculptures will make even central park look plain and blocky. furniture design stores filled with tatooed and mohawked artists who made it all by hand will unmask the shoddy warehouse that is ikea. the humble grocers and fruit stands will leave all the naturalness of trader joe's and whole foods strikingly unnatural. elaborate italian and french architecture that resides in even the poorest ghettoes will make even the fancy mansions of beverly hills seems strangely cookie-cutter. the warm, friendly kisses on the cheek will make the perfunctory handshake and awkward hugs seem cold and distant.
hm.
but maybe some good tex-mex, vietnamese pho, korean bulgolgi and indian saag paneer will help make up for all of that.
anyway, so i've done some hard thinking and come up with a list of the top 3 things i will miss the most:
the cafes, the cafes and the cafes.
i hope i can bring back some essence of buenos aires with me; it is an enchanting city with charming people. if nothing else i hope to maintain some of it in the mate and argentine accent i bring back with me (probably in my broken english now too).
i'll likely be working up until my last day (maybe even my last hours) in ba, but we can all shake our fingers at hospital bureaucracy and say, mala ! mala !
ah well, in some ways that's the best way to leave a place--as if you're not really leaving at all.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
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1 comment:
It's fun to see how many times in your entries you used "unnatural" ;). I agree (with I can't remember which entry) when you mention that there's something more to buying things from people as opposed to stores. Drew just read this book for his Fuller class (he's in the MAGL program) and it mentions that our relationships in the developed countries have become more transactional instead of relational. I definitely feel the rub of that and am excited when I hear about your BA experience. Where exactly are you returning to? And when?
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