March 5, 2006
Day 158
I went to a park this afternoon with Laura and some of her friends. We sat around and drank mate for a few hours. Everyone else at the park was sitting around and drinking mate, too. At some point when we we were sitting there, I finally truly realized how much slower life moves here than in the States. On weekends, everything is closed. On weekdays, it's hit and miss. Shops open for a few hours, then close for a few hours at siesta time, then open a few more hours in the afternoon. There's no set schedule for anything, and nobody is ever in a hurry. Sometimes I like the laid-back attitude that Argentines have, but sometimes it's frustrating. I still feel like I should be doing something every day, but not much has been going on lately. I guess that I should just accept that I'm learning about this culture by living the local peoples' lifestyle, and stop trying to fit my always-busy lifestyle into theirs.