One of my favorite places in Buenos Aires, Argentina was Parque Vicente Lopez. Imagine tall, graceful trees leaning over winding paths, one of the many little green spaces amidst the bustling city. Parque Vicente Lopez was always bursting with life – children running in and out of the playground, couples walking their dogs, friends sharing mate on a bench, an old man selling flowers from a stand on the corner – and yet nothing felt rushed, with everyone just savoring each other’s company, wasting the day away.
On the last day of our program, I picked up some empanadas (a hearty meat-pie that are super cheap and sold everywhere) and met my friends in Parque Vicente Lopez for lunch. As we laid in the grass, staring at the tree branches crisscrossing the bright blue sky, we reminisced on our favorite parts of our time in Argentina. We had gone on so many incredible adventures all over Argentina – hiking in Patagonia, gazing in wonder at the Iguazú waterfalls, meeting local families (and their llamas!) up north in Jujuy. These are moments I’m never going to forget, as nothing bonds you with your new friends like exploring some of the most beautiful places in the world together.
But I realized that some of my favorite memories are the days my friends and I stayed in Buenos Aires. The little moments where I was able to glimpse a bit of the rich culture of Argentina and start to find my own place in it, like:
- Meeting up with friends for merienda, a classic Argentine tradition where you go to a café for afternoon snack and end up staying for hours chatting.
- The nights my host family invited all their relatives over for dinner, where I would track my Spanish progress with how much of the conversation I understood and join in the laughter even if I didn’t completely understand the joke.
- Cheering with the whole stadium as soccer legend Lionel Messi scored his third goal in an Argentina vs. Bolivia soccer game.
- Taking the bus after class to the Boca neighborhood, watching the tango dancers earn tips outside of the brightly colored houses as we ate our choripan (sausage) sandwiches.
- Running into a huge crowd of people dancing in the street as my Argentine friends and I were going to get dumplings in China Town.
- Hanging out at the study center with my classmates (now friends!) from all over the U.S., listening to them play the guitar and piano while we did our homework.
- Wandering through all the booths at the ferias on the weekend, where we’d spend hours searching for the perfect souvenirs from local artists to bring back home.
Meeting up with friends for merienda, a classic Argentine tradition where you go to a café for afternoon snack and end up staying for hours chatting.
These are the moments that led me to fall in love with Buenos Aires. I loved Argentina’s energy, its never-ending stream of new things to see and do, its warm and friendly people who are curious to know everything about you. And at the same time, I loved the city’s quiet moments, like sitting in Parque Vicente Lopez staring up at the clouds. Since coming back, it’s been impossible for me to answer the question “What was your favorite part of Argentina?” The only response I can come up with is a phrase I saw on a poster in a shop in Buenos Aires – “Un pedacito de mi corazón quedó en Argentina.”
A little bit of my heart stayed in Argentina.