Sure, we’ve all heard stories about studying abroad; but what is it really like? We were curious ourselves to see what an actual, on-the-ground day in the life involves, so we decided to tag along with some of our participants over the next few months to get a picture of the real Mente Argentina experience.
So meet Simon, a participant from Hong Kong. He came to Argentina on vacation to study bartending and wine; not a bad life. A typical day? Waking up in a shared apartment on Las Heras, across from the botanical gardens in the heart of Palermo. Breakfast might be medialunas and mate, an acquired taste, to be sure—but what doesn’t go with medialunas? It has to be a quick breakfast; at 8 am Simon heads to Spanish class on Calle Florida.
Verbs can be fun. Honest. At the intensive Spanish class there are only a few students– never more than 8 per class– and each week, the class advances to a new level. Professors are experienced Argentinians– perfect for adopting the lisp and other peculiarities of speech to make one an authentic porteno. It’s a four hour class but there’s a break in between; just enough time to grab a quick coffee and chat with the other students, or get insider tips on life in Buenos Aires from the professor.
Nothing caps off a morning of imperfect Spanish verbs like mixing a few drinks. For the first two weeks of his four week program, Simon is participating in the Barman course, a Mente program which will certify him to bartend internationally.
Each day involves learning how to mix drinks, flip bottles in the air, and pour the perfect drink.
At the end of the program, Simon creates his own, signature cocktail: a Ginger Honey Martini. We could definitely get used to drinking that!
After a tough day of language-learning in the morning and drink-creating– and tasting– in the afternoon, a night out is in order. Maybe it’s cooking at home, going out in Palermo, or doing a Mente night out— like a group outing to a show like Hombre Vertiente, or bar-hopping with the other participants–whatever it is, there better be time for sleep; tomorrow’s a new day!
Stay tuned for our next post on a real, live, Mente Argentina participant!
—Patricia
