In September 2016, our ambassadors Claire and Megan boarded a plane for Latin America. They have since traveled to Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, and Peru. After half a year, here is what they’ve told us about their adventures...
When you travel to the other side of the world, you have to be ready for some surprises! The culture and everyday life of a foreign country is often very different from our own. You must learn to adapt!
According to Claire, the citizens of Argentina are very proud of their country! “When we meet them, they make sure we’ll have fond memories of the place. They are very attached to certain customs, such as:
Argentinians are very welcoming and helpful people. And though the cities are impressive, it is especially easy to get to know the locals in small towns or villages.”
In Chile, they noticed some surprising cultural differences. For example, when taking public transport, your picture may be taken in case of an accident.
At one point, during a conversation with the Mapuches (indigenous people from the South of Chile), the locals posed many questions about the ambassadors’ home country of France. Some questions were quite shocking, like asking if the French used money, and what it looked like. It showed them a very different perspective from their own.
“When we went grocery shopping, there was always somebody at the cash register to put our purchases in bags,” said Megan. “These people are usually students who aren’t paid by the store, and whose sole source of salary is tips from shoppers. Locals usually tip 100 pesos (about 15 cents).
There are people who help you park in the street (even if you don’t ask). There are also artists who will entertain you at a red light, by juggling, dancing, singing, etc. for a couple minutes. In exchange, they ask for a tip.
It was hard to get used to at first, as it’s paying for a service that you didn’t ask for.
Similarly, in restaurants, la propina (the tip) is included in the bill given to you after the meal. However, you are free to decide whether to pay it, though it’s impolite not to.
The most surprising situation we encountered was when a man asked us to roll down the window of our car to speak to us. He asked us where we were going, we gave the name of the town (which was in fact written on the road sign ahead of us), and he indicated the direction we should take by gesturing at the road sign. Then, he asked for a small contribution for helping us!”
Claire and Megan found the locals to be very accommodating and welcoming to foreigners. While they spoke very little French, it was a language they had learned in school, so they were enthusiastic to try the few words they remembered! Claire and Megan also got to learn more about Quechua, a family of languages spoken in Bolivia and Peru. They are heading back to France very soon, but this experience has been, for them, an amazing adventure.
You can follow Claire and Megan's adventures on their page.
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