Kristina Argentina

El Áteneo

While Xmas shopping, Brett and I wandered into a bookstore on Callao and Santa Fe. It looked a bit like a Borders or Barnes and Nobles from the outside, but when we got in - we were really impressed with the size!

The first floor opens up into a three or four story theater (I believe it used to be a theater). Although I didn’t find what I was looking for, we had a good time hunting around, especially finding this “pocket dictionary”.

It also took 30 minutes for me and the 5 people in line to check out (efficiency is not a strength of this country). During that time we had a long conversation with an older woman.

I started talking to her about how long the wait was, which opened the conversation. She then let us know she had been eavesdropping on us, and not to worry - that we didn’t say anything bad, like talk about sex or something. She then proceeded to ask us about every Argentinian’s favorite topics: Argentine men and how they compare to foreigners, the president and how she compares to Obama, and the onda in the city and how it compares to ours. An eternal wait flew by in a flash. 

Have I mentioned that I love this country?