Living La Vida Argentina

Feature Editors:
Ashley Costa, 18
Seraja Jeanty, 16
Massachusetts

En Union y Libertad

Though life for women in Argentina was once full of injustice, they now live by the national motto: En Union y Libertad or In Union and Freedom.” For the girls of Argentina, the country’s motto is a true reflection of life today. Argentine natives, Cecilia Ninin and Gabriela Yasan, offer Teen Voices a glimpse of everyday life within the borders of their homeland.

Cecilia Ninin, 18 Santa Fe, Argentina

I go to a private Catholic school for boys and girls. I spend many hours at school. I have a lot of classes, but the requirements are chemistry, math, Spanish, English, and geography. I have classes that are specific to my specialty, which are economics and business administration. We have a uniform that I don't like much, but I have to admit that it's comfortable. The uniform is a blue skirt, white polo shirt, blue tie, blue socks and black shoes. Boys have the same uniform colors.

I love food, especially Italian food. My grandparents are from Italy, so I love when they cook for me. Pizza is one of my favorites but I also love pasta. In Argentina, we have a lot of common dishes but the most important is "asado," a kind of barbecue we usually eat with salads on Sunday afternoons with family. The most important meal of the day for my family is dinner because it's the time of the day when we can all eat together. We love to get together and enjoy some great "asado."

Fashion always comes back...and it seems that we are back to the 70s. It is springtime, so colors are really important: yellow, green, red, pink, and shiny colors all together. Accessories are important, too: big earrings, necklaces, rings, and, most important, pumps. I love fashion, but just to go out at night. I'm really simple and love basic clothes and colors. I also love makeup. I usually go natural for the day and really dramatic for night. It’s great how you can change just by putting some colors on your face!

I've played tennis since I was six years old. I love sports and I play lots of them with my friends. It’s a great way to stay in shape. Friends mean a lot to me, so I always try to spend most of my time with them. I also draw and sing, so I try to make time to do those, too.

There are lots of traditions that we have here in Argentina. Holidays are not that important to me but if I had to choose, the most important are Christmas and New Year's Eve.

First dates are always a problem! It doesn’t take much for a boy to impress me. I just expect to be heard and to have fun, because it's the best way to begin something that could potentially become more. A typical wedding for a woman in my country is every girl’s dream. It’s common to see a big white dress, flowers, family, friends, and love all around.

I listen to all kinds of music, from Mozart to Daddy Yankee. There are many female artists that are popular here. There is a famous local artist called Soledad Pastorutti, better known as "La Sole." Music has a lot of influence on my country. We listen to music by tango artists, since tango is the most popular dance in my country. We are trying to increase popularity for traditional music among our young people,

I live in a family of four—five if you include my dog. My mom is a housewife so she is home most of the time. My 21-year-old sister is studying economics at a university. I only see her at night because she studies all day. I spend most of the day at school preparing for my exams to go to college. My dad works all day; he comes home at 8:00 in the evening to have dinner with my family. Overall, life at home is peaceful.

It's great to know that there is a magazine for young teenagers who worry about this silly war between women and men. Women can do everything all at once and still be wonderful, something that guys just can’t do. We are living in the 21st century, and are still discussing the same issues that existed ten centuries ago. It's time to let it go and work together to build a better future for all of us. We are the future. If we don't start working, we let our future be determined by others. The future is ours and we have to make it work.

My Life in Argentina

Gabriela Yasan, 15 Capital Federal, Argentina

I go to a public school for boys and girls. As for my classes, I have to take math, Spanish, French, history, geography, biology, chemistry, gym, and art. At my school, I don’t have to wear a uniform. Some days after school I have fencing and I take drum classes on Fridays. Life at home is nice although my family works all day. My sister and I study a lot and we go out with our fiends.

I love asado, also known as barbacoa. It’s the most common dish here. The most important meal is breakfast and my family eats it in different places. My mom and dad eat at their work and I eat in my house or at school. Mealtime is super casual.

In my country the latest trends are those of the 60’s and the 80’s. Teen girls dress in large t-shirts with jeans we call chupines. I have that style too, but I wear more relaxed clothes.

It’s very important that we have dinner with friends and family during the holidays. It’s a tradition on New Year’s that when it is midnight, we eat 12 grapes a minute, one for every month. We dance and eat a lot and parties usually don’t end until seven in the morning or later!

I listen to national rock, like Charly Garcia or El Indio Solari. My favorite female singer would probably be Fabiana Cantilo. She was popular five years ago. We listen to music all the time. When dancing, we prefer techno, cumbia*, cuarteto*, and a little rock and roll.

I feel like I’m on the same level as boys. Here, the money doesn’t rain, so women and men have to work and I agree with that. In the past, men were on a pedestal, but now that has changed and women are more respected.

*Cumbia: a style of traditional music and dance that originated in Columbia and is now popular all over Latin America.
*Cuarteto: a musical genre similar to merengue that comes from Córdoba, Argentina.

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