Political Tension: The Power of Meat

I've received news that the political tension between the Argentine government and the farming industries has reached the states, and I would like to elaborate on the dynamics of this crisis. To start, one most know that agriculture and agro-industry are of major importance to the Argentine economy. Meat, soy, and cereal are the three most important exports in the international market. For the farming industry it is more beneficial to export their produce and earn an international rate than to distribute in country. Just to get an idea of their currency's value the ratio of the Argentine peso to the US dollar is 3.1-1. As more produce was being sold in the international market the inflation rate for these products were increasing for the locals. In response the government raised the export tariffs above 20 percent to help control inflation by making international profit the same as inter-country profit.

As a result to the high export tariffs, workers and owners of farming industries have begun protesting. Their forms of protesting vary from passive protests such as silent marches in the streets of Buenos Aires and rallies in front of the La Casa Rosada: The Governor's House, to more serious forms such as blocking major highways to stop produce from entering into the city. As of now prices of meat are rising as availability is diminishing and many have suffered long waits in traffic jams caused by the road strikes. Subsequently long distance bus trips are being canceled across the country. These strikes have been on going since the beginning of the month and just this weekend the government and the farming industries have agreed to meet and discuss the issue at hand.

Although this appears to be an issue between an economic industry and the government, the people of Argentina are not sitting idle and are picketing and petitioning as well. Cacerolazos- the name given to the collective street demonstrations, which include the clanking of pots and pans that first occurred in December of 2001, which eventually brought down the presidency of Fernando de la Rua during the economic crisis of 2001- are ever present. The people who are participating in these cacerolazos are in strong support of the farming industries. A common chant is "Estoy con el campo" or "I'm with the farmers" can be heard over the clanking of metal cookware. In contrary, others are marching in the streets and waving flags to show their support for the government on this issue. The result of these protests are complex, and have stirred up lingering political unrest left over from the crisis of 2001, which has to do with the political mistrust many Argentines have towards the government of their country after falling victim to 15 years of continuous triple-digit inflation.

In summary, knowledge of Argentine history has helped me understand the many levels of the current political-tension, but still there is an air of uncertainty. Due to this uncertainty it would be unjust to form an honest opinion on this issue; making it important to keep myself in "the know" and listen to the opinions of the locals. Although stories and opinions may vary, all hope for a resolution this week to end the tension and bring the "carne" (meat) back to the city whose culture is dependent on it.

The Argentine BBQ: Parrilla vs. Asado

One very important aspect of the Argentine culture is a BBQ. A BBQ is more than a good representation of the excellent meat quality here in Argentina; it is cultural way of socializing. When you are first introduced to a porteno (which is how they refer to themselves) almost always the first social invitation is to an asado. This is their way of sharing their food and friendship with you. An asado is similar to our BBQ's back home. Big brick grills fueled by charcoal are used to cook meat of all sorts. A typical asado consists of not just one cut or one sort of meat, but rather is consists of many cuts of meat and from many different animals. In general you will find pork and beef ribs and sausage, chicken, steak, blood sausage, and of course various entrails like the kidney, intestines, tongue, and parts of the heart. Although these cuts of meat seem strange for us, they are considered the delicacy of the asado.

While vacationing in Villa Gesell for the Easter holiday, Christina (a rotary scholar from Florida) and I were invited to an asado by some portenos we met on the beach. Of course the apartments we were staying in had 5 asado grilles, so our new friends had a small asado of chorizo and blood sausage sandwiches for us. They invited some of their friends, who were also staying in the area, and by the end of the night we were full and fully engulfed in Argentine culture. It was a wonderful experience for us both and I look forward to many more asados in the future.

Another form of an asado is called a parrilla. The difference being a parrilla is an asado in a restaurant and not at someone's home. Restaurants that offer parrillas on the menu have the brick grills built into the restaurant and the grill masters cook in front of the people dining. Like an asado a parrilla consists of many cuts and types of meat. One can order what ever they would like off the grille. The food arrives at the table on a mini-grill to keep the food warm. To get a taste for all the various meats one can order a parrilla completa, which consists of a little bit of everything. While on our vacation we tried a parrilla completa, which means I tried it all. I will say the texture of some of the entrails threw me off a bit, but they were definitely flavorful.

I've added a few pictures to show the infamous cultural activity of the BBQ. One hasn't experienced the culture until they've tried the traditional foods prepared in their traditional ways and the asado or the parrilla are the best way to dine like an Argentine.

A warm welcome from Villa del Parque

As you all know a Rotary Scholar is required to visit Rotary Clubs and give presentations about himself, his district back home, and share with the club members his experiences in their country. As well, scholars are given a host club and a host counselor to help facilitate their relationship with Rotary. I'm very fortunate to have such a wonderful host counselor, Willie Cittadini, who has been beyond helpful since I've arrived. We met on Tuesday for lunch to get acquainted with one another and he invited me to his Rotary meeting on Wednesday.

Around 8:30 Willie picked me up for our Rotary date. As Villa del Parque is a suburb of Buenos Aires we had some time in the car for Willie to prepare me for my first presentation. We had to work extra hard on the word for scholarship "la beca" because the way I was pronouncing it sounded like the word for cow "la vaca" (“v" makes the "b" sound). Willie didn't want me to thank them for the cow their club has provided me. We made a quick stop at his house to meet his wife and kids. Lots of kisses on the cheek and questions later we were on our way.

Villa del Parque is a small club of about 15 and is only for men. Their meetings begin at 9:30 in the evening and have no official ending time, and they are held at the public library. Everyone was very welcoming, complimentary, and excited to have a visitor, as guest speakers aren't a norm for the smaller clubs in the area. Keeping to Rotary norms we began the meeting with an official sounding of the bell and their national anthem. Business was taking care of first before dinner, and after the meal we had the chance to relax and socialize. I did speak to the club and I'm sure they're eager to see my improvement with the language...We'll just say they humored me a bit. At around 12:00 Willie and I left to get some ice cream and re-cap on the night's events. Tired and full, Willie dropped me off around one in the morning. Not quite how we do it in the states, but I wasn't expecting it to be.

I've attached two pictures. The first is of the club president, and me and the second is of Willie and me. Needless to say I miss my family back home very much, but after the meeting I felt a strong sense of family right here. I suppose that's just the magic of Rotary.

First Impression

Well I made it, luggage was all there, and so was the nice man holding a sign with my name on it. Coming from Cleveland, which was at a low of 17 degrees when I left, and arriving to 80 degrees and extreme humidity was quite a shock. So was the size of Buenos Aires. It's impossible to look at a map and fully comprehend just how big of a city it is. My taxi driver was flying from street to street (I stress flying because here no rules apply on the roads, in fact most four way intersections that don't require a stoplight don't have stop signs) I could hardly figure out where we were and where we were going.

Well my final destination was in Almalgro, a northwestern sub-section of Buenos Aires. The barrio, or neighborhood where my host mother lives is a great representation of the European and Latin American influences that combined to form Buenos Aires. It's almost as if someone has placed parts of Spain, Italy, and France in the middle of Mexico. There are beautiful plazas, cathedrals, and buildings surrounded by open-air markets and palm trees. Although quaint in it's appearance, Buenos Aires is a very busy city. People, pets, cars, and motor scooters are ever present, which made for a loud night's sleep my first night.

As for the weather, I arrived towards the end of summer and rain has proven to be the great indicator of a season change. Similar to Florida, it will be sunny and beautiful one minute and then out of nowhere will come a torrential down pour. When it rains it pours here! The first few pictures that I'm including are of the flood that occurred on my second night. I was home alone; my host-mom was in the suburbs visiting her daughter for the night, when the power went out. It had been raining heavily for about an hour, so I went to the window to see if others had lost power. To my surprise, there was about 3 -4 feet of water flowing down the street. As this was the first time I've experienced such a thing, I was curious and ran down stairs with my camera. Shocked at what I saw I initiated conversation with the locals about what was happening. They new right away that I wasn't from Buenos Aires and it wasn't my accent that gave it away. It was the fact that this sort of thing happens about once a month. I proceeded to question them about how long it will take for the water to go back down and the one man said as soon as it stops raining it will be gone in less than a half hour. Two minutes later the rain stopped and the water was gone in 20 min.

So enjoy the first few pictures of the flood, but please note that this city is very beautiful I just happened to be there during one of its messy moments.