What to Expect in Argentina for Missionaries

Summary: For the soon-to-be missionary in Argentina, here is a little of what to expect on your mission. For parents and friends, you too can read on to find some interesting information about missionary life in Argentina. Also check out my Rosario Argentina Mission Life Videos.

I remember fondly my days as a missionary in Argentina; I will always cherish the time I spent in Argentina and the friendships I made there. But I also remember that living there was a bit of a culture shock at first, with different foods, a different language, and different customs. Therefore, for the benefit of future missionaries from the US going to Argentina, I thought I would write a little about what to expect in Argentina, some of the unique parts of life there, and other things you may expect to experience. My experience, which will be somewhat different than other missionaries in other cities at other times, was in the Rosario Argentina mission from 1995 to 1997. Though some of these things may seem funny or unusual, they are part of what gives Argentina it’s character. I’ve divided my observations into six categories:

• The Food
• The People
• Environment and Surroundings
• Transportation
• Apartment Living
• The Church

The Food

• Mild Foods: When I first got my call to Argentina, in my ignorance, I was expecting spicy food, perhaps like you would find in Mexico. On the contrary, though, I found mostly mild foods, with a lot of Italian influence: noodles, beef, chicken, salads, pizza, potatoes, rice, etc. Salads vary, as they do in the US, though a common Argentine salad that may be new to Americans is tomato and onion and that’s all. Salad dressing generally consisted of oil, vinegar, and salt (sorry, no ranch or zesty Italian dressing).
• Beef and Asado: Argentina is famous for it’s beef and asado is the national dish. Asado usually refers to a grilled steak, but can also refer to a barbecue event. I remember the first time I was ever served asado. I think I ate more food at one sitting than I ever had in my life. Good stuff. I should also mention, though, that during my time in Argentina, I was served just about every part of the cow, many of which I honestly could not bear to eat. I just couldn’t stomach stomach.
• Pizza and Toppings: Pizza is another common dish in Argentina, which many Americans will be glad to hear, though the common toppings may be different than you expect. Green olives and hard boiled eggs are two of the most common toppings you’ll find on pizza there. Usually, I just got cheese pizza, and it wasn’t bad. In fact, frequently, we just made our own. You could buy a pizza crust, tomato sauce, and queso cremoso (literally translated “cream cheese” but it was more like mozarella) at many corner stores.
• Little or No American Fast Food: My brother in Poland often wrote home about eating at American restaurant chains on a weekly basis (McDonald’s, KFC, etc.), but that will likely not be the case in Argentina. The only American restaurant chain I was aware of in Argentina was McDonald’s, and they were very few and far between.
• No Cold Cereal for Breakfast: If you are used to a daily breakfast of Lucky Charms, Golden Graham, Fruit Loops, or Honey Combs, you may be disappointed. The only cold cereal I was ever able to find was corn flakes, and still that was a relatively rare find. I did have a companion, though, who improvised cold cereal by using a bag of assorted cookies and pouring them in a bowl with milk. It worked for him. I, on the other hand, ate a lot of pancakes and french toast with dulce de leche. Dulce de leche is a very common caramel spread which made for a decent substitute for maple syrup which was not to be found there.
• Polenta: Polenta is ground corn meal that is boiled into a thick soup, very similar to grits. Though unlike grits, polenta is usually not served for breakfast. It is served for lunch or dinner, often with tomato sauce, chicken, or other ingredients. Many missionaries I knew dreaded being served polenta, but I actually liked it. My mother is a southerner, so I was no stranger to grits.
• Water: The water in Argentina, with a few exceptions, is generally safe to drink…once you’ve gotten used to it. And getting used to it generally involves having diarrhea for a week first. The alternative is to always drink bottled water, but that would mean turning down the glass of cold water or “jugo” (literally translated “juice” but it was more like a juice flavored punch) that virtually every member, and many non-members, will offer you. One funny thing about water sources in Argentina, is that most people have water tanks on top of houses. I once asked why this was and someone told it provided more stable water pressure to the house when the city water pressure was sporadic.
• Mandarin Oranges: Argentina had great fresh fruits and vegetables, often at very good prices. When mandarin oranges (mandarinas) were in season, we could get 20 or 30 for a peso (roughly a dollar when I was in Argentina). Deliciosa!

The People

• Language = Castellano: Contrary to what they tell you in the MTC, they do not speak Spanish in Argentina; they speak el Castellano. (Don’t tell the Argentine’s, but Spanish and Castellano are basically the same thing.) The name Castellano comes from the Spanish region of Castile where the language originated.
• Economics: Argentina has wealthy millionaires and very poor people and every economic living condition in between. As a missionary, you will likely be exposed to more impoverished people, and more extreme cases of poverty, than you have seen in the US.
• Fútbol: Fútbol (i.e. soccer) is, of course, huge in Argentina. In our mission, we were not allowed to play soccer (too many injuries, I heard). My first companion, who happened to be a native of Buenos Aires Argentina, introduced me to the main soccer rivalry, two teams called “River” and “Boca.” I tried to not pick sides, but most Argentines are passionately behind one of those teams, though there are lots of other professional soccer teams.
• Catholicism: The overwhelming majority of the people of Argentina are Catholic. “Soy Catholico Apostolico Romano” (“I’m Roman Catholic”) is a phrase you’ll hear multiple times a day, frequently from people trying to get rid of you. In such cases, be polite, but be persistent.
• The Falkland Islands (“Las Islas Malvinas”): The Falklands are a group of islands off the coast of Argentina. They are a British Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom. Yet to Argentina, the islands are theirs, and they are called the Malvinas. In 1982, Argentina invaded the islands, but their forces eventually withdrew in defeat. Still, many Argentines pursue their claim to the islands and, believe me, you’ll hear about it.

Environment and Surroundings

Transportation

• Be Prepared to Walk: Your primary mode of transportation as a missionary in Argentina is walking. You will put a lot of miles on your shoes, so be sure to bring a couple of pairs of shoes that are good for walking. At first, I had a hard time keeping up with my companions, but by the end of my mission, I could speed walk with the best of them.
• El Collectivo (the Bus): For long distances or when walking was not practical, we would take the local bus. Most cities in Argentina have a really good bus system. In many areas we would buy bus passes, though we had to use them sparingly to stay within our budget. Taking the bus on P-day to the grocery store was common, as was taking the bus to go to zone conference. Taking the bus was also usually a good time to sit down, open your mouth, and talk to someone about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
• Remises: Remises are basically taxis, though Argentina had taxis too (I never was clear on the difference). In extreme situations where you have to get across town fast, you can call or flag down a remise. A remis, compared to taking a bus, is expensive, which is why you can’t take them often. When you do take a remise, hold off for your life. The drivers in Argentina are not generally known for driving safe and slow. And don’t forget to talk to your remise driver about the gospel; you’ll have several minutes of his attention.
• Horse-Drawn Carts: From the small towns and even to the big cities, you will see horse-drawn carts in the streets of Argentina. These are not your tourist-type horse-drawn carriages, but real, utilitarian carts being used to transport goods, often fruits and vegetables.
• Multi-Person Bikes: These bikes weren’t designed for more than one person, but I would often see two or three people only a bike going from point A to point B. One time I even saw a family of five (dad, mom, and three kids) on a single person bike. I wish I had had my camera for that one. Many people did not have cars, so a bike was frequently the way for people to travel around.

Apartment Living

• Shower and Calefón: A calefón is an appliance found in many (maybe most) homes in Argentina used to heat up the water for a shower. It is usually a metal tank attached to the wall in a bathroom or shower. Be extra careful plugging or unplugging it; I got a shock or two of Argenitna’s 220 volt electric current from the calefón. Most bathrooms don’t have a separate shower area, with a shower curtain as you are used to in the US. Instead, the calefón shower is usually placed right by the sink and toilet with no separation. Yes, water gets all over, and that’s why you have a squeegee and a drain in the middle of the floor.
• Electricity: As I mentioned above, Argentina’s electricity is 22o volts, double the US standard of 110 volts. So don’t forget a power converter/adapter if you want to plug in your electric devices. 
• Laundry: In about half my areas we were able to make arrangements to pay a woman in the local ward to wash our clothes, but often times we had to wash our own laundry. I don’t think that’s something my mom really taught me, but thanks to my first companion’s training, I picked it up pretty quickly.
• Bidets: For those of you who don’t know what a bidet is (as I didn’t prior to my mission), it is a low-mounted plumbing fixture, generally located right beside the toilet, for washing your derriere. I never used one, but I guess a lot of people do because they are found in most bathrooms in Argentina. In one apartment, our land lord came into our bathroom one day to fix the shower and he asked if if the bidet was working okay. We said we didn’t know because we didn’t use it. He was shock and asked us “how do you clean yourself?” We told him toilet paper was enough for us.
• No Central Heat and Air: I’m sure some people have central heat and air, but no missionary apartment I ever saw did. Depending on where you are in Argentina, the north or the south, excessive heat or cold may be an issue. In the summer, I couldn’t sleep without a fan blowing directly on me to keep me cool. And in the winter, we generally needed to get an electric space heater to warm our bedroom (which we could only afford to run it in the morning when we were getting ready). For my first winter in Argentina, I asked me mom to send me a winter hat to sleep in, and once I had it, I slept much better.

The Church

• Church Buildings and Units. The first area I served in was a small branch called Gazano on the outskirts of a city called Paraná, and there we only averaged about 25 or 30 people a week at Church. Later I served in the big city of Rosario, where we had a beautiful building downtown and a large ward with hundreds of members. All told, I served in eight different areas, ranging from the big city to small towns, from large wards to small branches. About half of the areas had Church-owned buildings and half used rented building for their Sunday meetings.
• Outdoor Baptisms. In areas without a Church-owned building, we would often have to drive long distances to use the baptismal font in another ward building. Or, in some cases, the wards/branches had gotten an above ground pool to use as a make-shift baptismal font. These fonts worked just fine to perform the saving ordinance of baptism, though it could be quite chilly if the weather didn’t cooperate.