The Honeymoon Period Continues...

On the flight to Buenos Aires, we sat near an old man who grew up in Buenos Aires but who had lived recently in Seattle. He was telling us that if he came back to Buenos Aires for more than a week, he began to "freak out" because of the filth and the craziness of the city. When he saw a look of concern cross Jess and my face... he quickly clarified: "But you will love it!"

And he's right. The great thing about travel is that it gives you a different perspective on things that might otherwise be bothersome. The other day I was being chased at 4:30am by a pack of transvestite prostitutes yelling "I wanna be sexy with you." Normally I would have been threatened by this, but at the time all I could think was "My! This is different."

I need a new name

All of the Portenos seem baffled by the pronunciation "Nathan" and "Nathaniel" and "Nate" sounds pretty egregious in the Argentine accent. I think the closest Spanish name is "Nacho" (short for Ignacio). This was my father's Spanish name when he was in High School and he has (and probably will) explained to every busboy at every Mexican restaurant that we've ever visited and will possibly ever visit, in broken Spanish, that he was called "Nacho" because there was already another Thomas in his class.

So maybe I need a new name to go by in Argentina? Any ideas? Or perhaps maybe I don't need a new name. Last night it led to my first ever instance of being charming in Spanish. Here it is. In translation.

Beautiful Argentine Woman: (Something.... probably very clever)
Nathan: What?
Woman: (Repeats)
Nathan: ...
Woman: Are you a foreigner?
Nathan: Yes, I am from the United States... Seattle.
Woman: What is your name?
Nathan: Nathaniel.
Woman: Wha..?
Nathan: Nathaniel.
Woman: ????
Nathan: What is your name?
Woman: Eugenia.
(We dance)

The above is how most of my Spanish interactions go. Pretty flavorless. But our dance went really well and after it was finished I jumped back into the conversation with greater aplomb.

Nathan: Perhaps, I need a new name?
Eugenia: Yes, A new Argentine name! (smiles)
(We dance)

Nathan: What is a good Argentine name for me?
Eugenia: Hmmm.... I think "Cesar" like the emperor of the Romans! (big smile)
Nathan: Good! (Beems with feeling of linguistic puissance)

The we danced to Desde el Alma, one of my favorite songs. It was a very beautiful dance and she said so.

Obviously, a very minor conversation victory, but a good feeling nonetheless.