Día de la Patria

Yesterday was Argentina’s Independence Day, their version of the 4^th of July. The holiday isn’t celebrated the same way we do at home, no neighborhood block parties or fireworks. Nevertheless, the Argentine sense of patriotism is striking. Tuesday I went to my host sister Oriana’s elementary school to see her dance in the annual “Nuevo de Julio” recital. We started with the Argentine national anthem (I just pretended to know what was going on) and the recital continued with kids dressed up in period costume basically reenacting the process of Argentina’s Constitutional Convention. There were dance breaks (Ori was great) and the director of the school gave a moving speech. She spoke about how even though Argentina is going through difficult times, it is necessary to remember that the country was born of difficult times and has overcome many other difficult times; what is important to keep in mind is the value of freedom and liberty. It was a great experience for me to see how Argentine kids learn about their history and heritage, and how proud they are of being Argentine. It is something Americans and Argentines have in common.

 

Later Tuesday night I was talking with a German friend of mine, who was struck by this outpouring of patriotism. Apparently in Germany most people can’t sing the national anthem off the top of their heads, or participate in recitals like Oriana’s when they are young. She said it was because Germans aren’t exactly proud of some parts of their history. I thought that was interesting because Argentina has had dark moments in history too, but deals with it in a completely different way than Germany. It was cool to get another perspective on the meaning of patriotism.

 

Yesterday on my run I was lucky enough to witness one of the most beautiful sunsets I have seen while being here, which is saying something because I have seen a lot. The sun was setting behind the Aduanas building, so I couldn’t see it directly the light around it tiger lily orange. The sky was a celeste blue, with a few long clouds that somehow were managing a beautiful cream color. Most of you probably don’t know what the Argentine flag looks like, but it is a white panel with a sun sandwiched between two blue panels. I couldn’t help but thinking that it was sunsets like that that inspired the design. A fitting sunset for Nuevo de Julio, Argentina’s birthday.