Argentina Te Quiero (part1)

Argentina Te Quiero

Argentina on my mind… Evita Perón, Diego Armando Maradona, los gauchos, Buenos Aires, Patagonia, Misiones, tango, teatros, vino tinto, dulce de leche, bombón, parilla,… Argentina my second country and always will be.


¡Hola Buenos Aires!

I first set foot on this former Spanish colony in South America in 2006. After flying for 38 hours with three stop-overs in the continents of Asia, Africa and South America via Malaysian Airlines, feeling dizzy and sleepy, I knew still that my two-week holiday in this Latin country would be filled with fun and discoveries.

Los Argentinos

Diego Armando Maradona

From aeropuerto de Ezeiza on the way to Sarmiento Suites located at the center of the city, my first attention was caught by a huge billboard of Argentina’s football legend, Diego Armando Maradona. Diego was known for his ‘la mano de dios’ goal, his infamous handball in the quarterfinal match between Argentina and England in Mexico City at the 1986 FIFA World Cup.

This guy did not lose his popularity among los Argentinos after all. They still adore him. A few days later, I asked my bombón girlfriend why Diego is still well loved by his people despite of his drug scandals; she has only this to say, “Most of us separate his personal life from his life as a football player. He is our source of national pride. He is our hero.”

For some, to say that Diego is being adored is an understatement especially with the fanatics. They idolize him. They even founded the Maradonian Church in 1998 for they believed that he is the best football player of all times.

Diego is an example of a “rags-to-riches” story. He was born in 1960 and grew up in Villa Fiorito, in a poor district of Buenos Aires. He made his fortune in football by winning trophies for Boca Juniors, FC Barcelona and SSC Napoli in his entire career. While most of los Argentinos adored him, he had offended the sensibilities of the Catholic Church when he spent USD3,000,000 for his wedding ceremony with Claudia Villafañe when so many Argentinos were suffering from poverty. Though in 2004, this extravagant marriage ended in a divorce. He was also suspended twice; first, for failing a dope test for cocaine in Italy in 1991 and second, for ephedrine test in USA during the 1994 World Cup.

He retired at 37 on his birthday and was considered a legend in Argentina. His team’s victory over England in Mexico brought a lot of national pride and was considered by many as Argentina’s sweet revenge to the British for the Falklands War.

I like football though I haven’t played much in school. We had a big football field in my high school in Bacolod City, the capital city of Negros Occidental in the Visayas region. I played a couple of games in my Physical Education class and that was it. Football in the Philippines is not as popular as Basketball. So in this trip, I once again learned to like this sport and the Argentine team, and ended up buying the famous No. 10 shirt of Maradona.


Eva Duarte Peron

I spent my first day in Buenos Aires with a walk along calle Maipu noted for its old buildings similar to those in major old cities of Europe. Tango bars and restaurants, bombonerias and specialty shops line this street. I noticed posters of Evita on some building walls, hailing her. After her death, Evita is still an icon to recon with, an inspiration for the Peronistas and the las feministas de Argentina.

To those who watched Evita, the 1990s musical movie about her starred-in by pop queen Madonna, they can relate to her being considered as a spiritual leader of her nation.

I should say I’m a fan of Evita and I can sing with emotions the song Don’t Cry For Me Argentina. Never mind my voice, for as the song goes, “it’s not that easy and you’ll think it’s strange …”


El Gaucho

Los Argentinos are synonymous to Gauchos, South America’s version of cowboys. Los Gauchos started the distinctly Argentine custom of drinking yerba mate, its own version of tea. They were early horsemen of the pampas of Argentina. They can also be referred to as the mestizos or the mixed race people. I was amazed to see that they have all sorts of eye colours: blue, green, grey, brown, black. Name it, los Argentinos have it .

The family of my novia is a classic example of an Argentine gaucho. On her mother side runs German and Italian blood while on her father side, Spanish. She has a tall and slim hermana with green eyes and chestnut hair while my girlfriend looks like she is descended from the Andalusíans de Espana.

Carlito, our driver in Argentina, is half-Spanish and half-Italian. I met a tango maestro whose surname is Dubois. He has a French father and an Italian mother. The parents of my novia's brother-in-law are German and Spanish. This explains why most Argentinos look a lot different from the other latinos in Centro and Sud America.

In Iguazú Natural Park in the province of Misiones, I visited a sanctuary of native Argentines with their distinct cultural traditions. They resemble other American Indians, and look totally different from Argentine Gauchos walking in the streets of Buenos Aires.

I was also amazed how los Argentinos have this beautiful and distinct Spanish accent different from the Castellano I’ve learned and speak from my abuela and from Instituto Cervantes. They have this Italian accent and to me it sounds sweet and romantic. Argentina te quiero!

And their women, bombónes? Based on my experience, they are similar to other latinas, son hermosas y calientes pero son locas . Oh mi bombón, me vuelvo loco.