More about the Subte, and other observations

I think one of the experiences I'll never forget about Buenos Aires is riding the Subte, an experience that I'll surely reflect upon having forgotten my usual frustration. My (occasional) fondness of the Subte does not exist because I've never taken the subway before--I've ridden BART countless times throughout the Bay Area. It is such because the Subte in Buenos Aires has much more character. BART has a massive fleet of trains that are long, sleek, and modern looking, usually reaching up to 10 cars on the busier routes. Trains arrive exactly on schedule, every 15 minutes. When they do arrive, you may not be able to find a seat, but there is almost always standing room. The Subte, in contrast, is colorful--all the different lines are represented by a different color of train, and these trains can range from looking brand new (Line A, for example) to trains that are 30 years old. Old trains are covered with so much graffiti that it appears the government has given up on trying to repaint them, only amplifying the voices of the restless, courageous, and at times actually creative Argentinian youth, brandishing cans of spraypaint. Trains are always 6 cars long, even though some routes average over 400,000 passengers per day. Until this year, the Subte had been running its "rolling stock"--a collection of old cars that were built between 1910-1919 in the Line A rotation. Call me a nerd, but I think that is one of the coolest things ever.

Some pictures (I did not take these, they're from the internet):

Line A used to continue to use these cars occasionally until earlier this year. It's probably almost 100 years old!

This train has a pretty standard amount of graffiti. This line is also the most traveled with over 412,000 people per day.

Something else that is cool about the Subte is the presence of artists who perform for tips. I know this is common in other cities, but here it seems different. Yesterday a blind woman came from car to car and sang a traditional song. She sang so loudly and I wrote in my journal how I wish I had the same courage to sing at the top of my lungs for a crowd of seemingly indifferent strangers. When I reached my stop, I got off the train, but I felt happy to hear the applause from my car as the doors began to close.

Other interesting observations

The cops don't seem to mind if you're brown-bagging in a busy place like Plaza Miserere, nor do they seem to exist without bulletproof vests. It's kind of strange having heavily armed, somewhat stereotypically Latin American-looking cops (usually minus the assault rifles, thank God) who don't really care what you're doing. I do hear they can be pretty corrupt here though (ojito!).

I eat dinner at 7:00pm. That is way later than anyone else in my program, or probably in the whole country. It is characteristic of Argentinians to eat a small snack in the late afternoon and eat dinner after 9pm. Then what do they do? Well, they stay out and party until the sun rises before spending half of Saturday in bed. Many people think this would be the best way to live; yet I, never having stayed up past 4:30 am-- and having recently been reminded via photo evidence that I fell asleep on the boat during my high school graduation party--in the words of my friend Omar, am "not about that life."

Finally, this city is definitely political. It is an election year and despite not knowing anything about it, I have seen a number of marches. I could hear one at a stop on the Subte on my way home and another when I finally got off. A crowd of protesters seemed to follow me home and rallied outside my window. I took a couple of pictures once I got home.

Usually the protests here are bigger than this, but what can I say... it was right outside of my window and I felt like showing it. Besides, now you all can see what it looks like outside my building!