You got home when???

You won't believe the circadian rhythms of the Argentinians...

At Davidson, pregames start around 9:30pm... maybe 8:30pm at the very very earliest. You go out around 11:00-11:30pm, and the party shuts down at 2:00am (or midnight if it's a weekday party). Those are the rules. Last semester, the police did this really cool thing where they would shut down the parties early around 12:00am for really no reason at all.

Apparently, us Americans are doing it wrong.

When I got to Argentina, I was astounded to find out that their nights START at 2:00am. Going out before that is almost taboo. Argentines eat dinner while Americans pregame. A typical going out night in Argentina involves a pregame (and possibly going to a bar) that begins around midnight - 10:30pm at the very earliest - and lasts until about 2:00am, and then heading to a boliche and staying out until 7 IN THE MORNING.

It's a miracle I've even made it to the boliches. I'm fricking tired by the time the pregame starts!! A boliche is essentially just a club, but with deafening music, flashing / almost strobe light-like lights, and a ton of (horny) adolescents and adults dancing, smoking, and drinking. I have to admit I've only lasted until 4:00am, but one of these days I'll leave the club and step foot in an already sunlight world.

The people here really be relentless though. I remember coming home after my first night of going out and my clothes reeked of cigarette smoke from all the people that were smoking cigs indoors. Definitely very good for my lungs, too!

They also have no shame in acting like absolute animals at these clubs. People are making out left and right and I'm just over here like naw fam. No thank you. It's really fun to be a part of this culture, but I doubt that I'll ever feel accustomed to it. It's pretty obvious that I don't fit in anyway considering what I wear. The girls here are always wearing leather, mini mini skirts, heavy makeup, and massive platform shoes. Here I am wearing some light blue Adidas sneakers and jeans. Fit right in.

It truly is amazing how such a large portion of the population is capable of doing this every week twice a week. And it goes without saying that they go hard during the week too. You'll never pass by an empty bar, even on a Tuesday night. In fact, I'm going to the bar tonight (Thursday) with Loli! Don't worry, I'm legal here.

It'll definitely be interesting to go back to the US and our somewhat lame, somewhat cool parties that end at 2am. On the bright side, I definitely won't be tired by the time they end! Argentina is making me #nocturnal.