After having spent a full month in a foreign country you'd think that I'd have fully assimilated to the local culture. When I first arrived in Buenos Aires I knew that I was going to make it a goal of mine to try and fit in as much as possible. Physical appearance from bottom to top: thank god converse is an international shoe. I love these flat-soled, faded-red icons, even if they are starting to split at the seams already. Levi jeans. Mr. Strauss, I have to hand it to you. After a hundred years, your pants are still stylish, comfortable and functional. I've also seen a fair deal of Levi stores here, so you know I'm two for two. Lastly, the abdomen. Here I've chosen to layer: [standard issue, grey, 3-button Swedish long sleeve shirt bought from the army-surplus store] over [blue, synthetic long sleeve bought from some camping/mountaineering store in Buenos Aires] over [the deliciously comfortable, white, stretch, crew neck, banana republic t-shirt stolen from my father's t-shirt drawer because frankly he's got too many to keep track of and I love the things]. This combo works wonders. By obscuring the synthetic layer, I manage to distance my appearance from the droves of tourists who all dress in similar albeit extremely functional clothing. North Face, Arc'teryx, Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, Marmot and Columbia Sportwear to name a few. Hell, it's like I'm back at Middlebury. I like to throw a little character into my wardrobe. An article absconded from the depths of my father's closet. Then maybe something stained and outdated from a second-hand store. I'm funky. I like a little dirt in my sandwich. I also don't want to be treated, approached or mugged as a tourist. No, I don't think I'm going to get mugged, but if some tourist gets mugged it's going to be that guy over there with the little screw logo on his chest. I love you Dan, and don't you dare stop wearing that long sleeve. Ok, most exciting news: I didn't bring a jacket to Argentina even though it just stopped snowing down in Ushuaia, so when I was perusing the local flea market in Bolsón and saw the leather jacket of my dreams I immediately bought it and then almost fainted when I found out it also fit me. It's perfect. One of the pockets is missing. The cuffs have been extended by three inches with what can only be upholstery leather. Most importantly, it's got the perfect amount of badassness.
In other news, I'm totally in Puerto Madryn. This small sea-port town is built around the seasonal tourism that smothers nearby Península Valdés, a haven for marine mammals. This place is porn for marine biologists, and home-video fodder for tourists. Pods of southern right whales visible from the shore, penguins so crowded and loud it's not even cute, southern elephant seals, Killer whales, Southern Sea Lions and Commerson's Dolphins. The plan is to dole out a nice wad of Argentine plata (slang for money) and simply let some excursion company cart me around for a couple days. With that said, they're getting the cart ready, so I should be off. Pictures sure to follow - [excited face emoticon].
No comments:
Post a Comment