The remainder of my time in Buenos Aires was devoted largely to work, but there was nonetheless one respite that turned out to be the highlight of the trip – the Argentina vs. Greece World Cup match. While I knew that soccer is huge in Argentina, I don’t think that I really appreciated exactly how huge it truly is.
During the match – which took place around 3pm – the entire city literally stopped. The streets were vacant (kind of like in the movies after a nuclear attack), businesses closed and all forms of activity aside from actually watching the game itself came to a screeching halt. It was one of the most unprecedented things that I had ever seen. For roughly two hours, it was as if nothing else in the world mattered at all. Actually, I’m pretty sure that for many Argentines, nothing else truly did matter. They are fanatical about soccer.
The game itself turned out to be very exciting, with two late goals by Argentina serving as the difference. I’m definitely glad that they won, as it would have been depressing to have seen so many people completely devastated after a loss.
The other main highlight of the last few days was the food. I was fortunate to have two work-related dinners that allowed me to have some more of the famous Argentine steaks. I’m not sure exactly what kind of cuts they were since I simply went with the waiter’s recommendation in each case, but they were both very good.
I thought the menu at the first restaurant was pretty funny – the cover was essentially a cow hide.
At one of the restaurants the waiter served us a meat appetizer platter that included some interesting items. The most notable was the membrane that covers the cow heart. Had I not known what it was, I think that I would have really enjoyed it more. But knowing that it was a heart lining was difficult for me to get past.
During the match – which took place around 3pm – the entire city literally stopped. The streets were vacant (kind of like in the movies after a nuclear attack), businesses closed and all forms of activity aside from actually watching the game itself came to a screeching halt. It was one of the most unprecedented things that I had ever seen. For roughly two hours, it was as if nothing else in the world mattered at all. Actually, I’m pretty sure that for many Argentines, nothing else truly did matter. They are fanatical about soccer.
The game itself turned out to be very exciting, with two late goals by Argentina serving as the difference. I’m definitely glad that they won, as it would have been depressing to have seen so many people completely devastated after a loss.
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The other main highlight of the last few days was the food. I was fortunate to have two work-related dinners that allowed me to have some more of the famous Argentine steaks. I’m not sure exactly what kind of cuts they were since I simply went with the waiter’s recommendation in each case, but they were both very good.
I thought the menu at the first restaurant was pretty funny – the cover was essentially a cow hide.
At one of the restaurants the waiter served us a meat appetizer platter that included some interesting items. The most notable was the membrane that covers the cow heart. Had I not known what it was, I think that I would have really enjoyed it more. But knowing that it was a heart lining was difficult for me to get past. 
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