The things that I have discovered “below the surface” from studying in Argentina I have been able to get a better understanding of the history of Argentina and the social, political and economic strife that this country has been going through for decade and ow it has shaped the country. The things that surprised me the most was the economic debt, the despadecidos and the social inequality that is rooted within this country. Argentina in 2001 had an economic crisis that left them with billions of dollars in debt and has brought a great deal of struggle for the people and has impacted the social structure of Buenos Aires. The Despadecidos refers to the victims who were kidnapped, tortured and murdered by the military government. There were over 30,000 people who disappeared, and I was shocked by the fact that I never learn about this before in school in the United States. Being in Buenos Aires has given me a different perspective of United States and other countries and the way that they operate on a social, economic and cultural level. Lastly, being able to learn about the social inequality that is within Argentina and see the discrepancy in how people are treated according to their economic status I have been able to see the similarities and differences that are apparent in the united states. Being in Argentina has been allowed me to live through the perspective of the argentine culture. Some of the strategies that I used to gain the knowledge of Argentina is having conversations with locals, taking trips to different parts of Argentina, exploring the city and doing research about the city on my own. By doing this I have been able to further my knowledge and experiences that that will be able to use later in life. I think that the iceberg is a great metaphor for most things in the world and it allowed me to think more critically about what the surface says about a country, how it got there and what the roots/foundation of that country is. Which has given me the opportunity to understand Argentina for all of the “iceberg” and not just what I see on the surface.
