colectivos

Buses are the most popular way to get around Buenos Aires. You can get virtually anywhere in the entire city for around 25 cents. The bus drivers are mad men-they zip and speed along in these huge buses, halting to a stop whenever they see someone waiting at one of the bus stops along the route.

Finding these stops can sometimes be a hassle. Some stops have well marked poles that clearly list what buses come to that spot, others have random stickers that can be tacked onto a pole or somewhere on the outside of the building where the bus stops, and then there are others that you somehow have to just intuitively know stop in that place.

Riding the buses in Argentina was a lot different than riding the buses here. People are not afraid to cram onto the bus in order to make room for as many other passengers as possible. It's kind of like a no man left behind mentality-during rush hour, you can bet that you'll be getting to know the people around you quite intimately. Whereas here, sometimes I think people want to maintain there own personal bubble at the expense of a few other students that in my mind, would be able to fit on the bus if everyone would just occupy the little nooks and crannies. Some days, I just want to show the other people on the white loop where they should stand for optimal occupancy.

The best way to look like a native porteño is to break out your Guía-T, the bus bible that breaks the entire city down into a grid and has all the routes in the back telling you what streets the bus travels on. To use the guide, you find where you are on one page and grid, you look up where you want to go on another page and grid, and then you try to match up a bus that travels to both places. Once you learn how to use the Guía-T, you start walking a lot less.

Posted by: Jamie, Buenos Aires, Spring 2007