I have gotten used to the fact that when I have a task to do in Buenos Aires, I will generally not succeed until the second or third time. I will not get off at the right stop the first time I take a new bus, I will not find the post office on the first or second try (still working on that one), I will ask at three kioskos until someone can put more money on my metro card. This is just how it is, and I need to adjust myself to a new culture that is (this is not said critically) less efficient than the United States.
This goes for my language abilities too. Though my Spanish has improved tremendously since I’ve been here, it’s still very clear I am a foreigner. I try my best to look up words I might need ahead of time—if I’m going to the post office, I review words like stamp and phrases like “air mail.” If I do ever find the post office, I will be ready to go! I have become much more diligent with this process after The Great Shoe Fiasco, in which I went to buy shoes without knowing the word for "size."
Generally, when I don’t know or understand what I am being asked, I say no. This seems to be the easiest way of getting by, since most of the time I know what should be happening or what they should be saying to me but not the specifics. For example, when I went to the food court (patio de comidas, patio of food in Spanish) at the mall, I didn’t know what they were asking me specifically about the food, but I knew they were trying to get me to add items on to my meal. However, this strategy is not fool-proof. On Sunday night, I had the following exchange while ordering carry-out sushi:
Cashier: Okay, do you want wasabi? It’s an extra two pesos.
Me: No.
Cashier: Do you want (word unclear)?
Me: No.
Cashier: (slowly) You don’t want silverware?
Me: (obviously flustered and embarrassed) Um, no, um, I live
close to here.
Cashier: Okay? Wait
and it will be ready in (unclear).
I wait patiently, but it wasn’t until another couple came in five minutes later and I hear the whole exchange over again that I realize it’s a fifteen-minute wait while they make the sushi. I went for a quick walk around the block, and when I came back, the cashier goes, “Oh, I thought you got tired of waiting!”
But overall, things are improving with my ability to function in the city and in Spanish. Yesterday, I went to get money (more on that process is another post), and at the first location I was told there was a problem and that I needed to go to another location. I go to place number two, and while I’m waiting, I strike up a conversation with these two Canadian travelers. They had been in the city for twelve hours, and I, Molly Zweig, resident of Buenos Aires for five weeks, was asked for advice about what to do in the city and how to get around. I felt very good to be helpful, and I also was reminded that as much as I may struggle, I have come a long way since I’ve been here.