Some Argentine Translations

I think that there is some ambiguity in some of the words I have used.
I will put explanations here when I think of them. Any I have missed please tell me.
Any queries about directions or road names you can try here http://mapa.buenosaires.gob.ar/ go to the page “Donde Voy” and where it says “hasta” just write in the intersection like this “J Salguero y Guardia Vieja” and that will show you where our apartment is or “Medrano y Corrientes” the nearest subte.

asado – an argentine barbecue not quite like we do at home but with a huge amount of meat.

basta la plancha – Strictly, enough of the ironing. It is what the ladies say when they have sat out too many dances and decide that it is time to leave.

boletaria – ticket office

Chacarera – an argentine folk dance, danced in two rows. Men and women.

Collectivo – A Buenos Aires city bus

Cortina – Curtain, see Tanda

Consorcio – the group that decides how a building is run. In our case I have a 3.65% voting share.

Cumbia – dance music with a strong boom chicka boom beat.

DNI – Argentine identification card.

Easy – A large do it yourself shop chain, sort of Argentine Homebase

Edisur – The electric company here

Empanada – Argentine pasty, although I understand they also have them in Northern Spain, where they are more like a tray bake.

Entrada – Entrance fee

extranjero – foreigner, usually us.(see Turista)

Factura- strictly speaking a bill, but for some reason they also call their pastries facturas

feria americana – second-hand shop, not like our charity shops, Viv and I usually sell more to them than we buy, because they tend to be expensive.

Flete – Man and a van, they deliver anything anywhere.

Folklore – What the argentines call folk dancing, see: Chacarera and zamba

Fuegos Artificiales– Fireworks.

Jumbo – A large supermarket chain, not the cheapest of places.

Junto – Together see separado

Kiosco – Should need little explanation, basically a kiosk where they sell just about anything from cigarettes to phone cards.

Locotorio – A shop where you can use the phones often including internet access as well

Milonga – A type of tango dance with a syncopated rhythm. Confusingly it is also the name we give to the actual dance event itself.

Medialuna – What we would call a croissant

Personal or Personal Light – This is the mobile network we use in Argentina

Picateros – literally pickets, in this case it means strikers or demonstrators.

Portero – The building caretaker.

Quilmes – Beer brewed in Argentina, our favourite being Quilmes Negra their version of stout.

Remis – A regulated taxi service, where you pay in advance and the journeys are logged. (A tip here, if someone offers you a Remis in a milonga or anywhere, if you have not called to an office, it is not a Remis)

Reserva – Reservation.

Separado – Literally separate, when we enter a club they often ask “Junto o separado” meaning do we want to sit together or separate.

Sube – Systema Unico de Boleto Electronico. A pre paid card to use on the transportation system.

Submarino – Chocolate melted into hot milk

Subte – The Buenos Aires Subway system

Tanda – A series of tango tunes played together. Normally four, but sometimes five or three. Separated by a random piece of music known as the Cortina (Curtain)

tarjeta – card, could be credito or sube or any other I have not thought of.

Telo – Anagram of Hotel (silent H here) Rooms hired by the hour. Useful in such an overcrowded city

TIA – Not actually Argentine or even Spanish. In the film “Blood Diamond” Leonardo DiCaprio uses the term for “This is Africa” I have adopted it here for “This is Argentina”

Turista – Of couse we are not included in this category.(See Extanjero).

Y – And. Also used to describe an intersection as in “Salguero y Corrientes”

Zamba – Another argentine folk dance. Not even close to similar sounding samba. It involves much hadkerchief waving.