Land of Illegals, Meat and Wine: What Surprises Tourists in Argentina

Home of the tango and official ambassador of the world's tastiest steaks. From noisy parties to holy places, from selling illegal substances to preaching tours, Argentina combines so much. What surprises tourists in this country?

• Meat. Lots of meat.

Argentina is the world record holder in the amount of meat eaten. Each citizen of this country a year eats about 50 kilograms of beef alone, not counting poultry, pork, or game.

At the same time, Argentines eat almost no fish. Almost all of the catch, measured in hundreds of tons every day, is exported.

• The Wine Capital of the World

Argentina produces more wine than any other country in Latin America. In the world ranking, it ranks fourth, behind only Italy, France, and Spain.

Good wine lovers note that the local varieties are unique in many ways. First of all, this is due to the fact that the wine here is made from grapes, which in colonial times were imported from Europe. Nowadays these varieties are not grown in the EU because they cannot withstand the cold winters. In Argentina, they have survived very well.

Not surprisingly, the locals consume this alcoholic beverage very often. It is even customary here to serve a glass of wine with almost any dish in catering establishments.

• Longevity and Plastic Surgery Addiction

Argentinians boast a very good average life expectancy of 77 years. They themselves believe that the secret of such longevity is good ecology and plenty of meat. But most foreigners see it in something else.

This country is quite well-developed in medicine, and even it is available to almost everyone. In addition, this country is very serious about psychological health. Thus, according to open data, there are 150 psychologists for every 100 thousand residents of the state. In some cities, there are even so-called "psychological neighborhoods" where clinics are located at every step.

And also here are very fond of plastic surgery. Every thirtieth Argentinean at least once in his life changed something in his appearance. Plastic surgery is so cheap that even foreigners come here to correct some flaws.

• Large numbers of illegals

About 750,000 people in Argentina live illegally. But they do not get anything for that. There is no deportation law in the country, so migrants are not touched here. They can easily find a job, rent or buy a house, and get married. The only thing is that the state does not give such people any social guarantees, and does not pay sick leave or pensions.

A lot of people come to Argentina every year: as tourists or workers. Ukrainians, for example, do not need a visa to enter and can stay here for 90 days. By the way, the same visiting conditions apply to neighboring Uruguay, so you can spend as much as six months in incendiary Latin America (or even more).

• A lot of rules of conduct

Argentines are incredibly polite people who always try to follow the rules. It is customary to kiss on the cheek or simply shake hands when meeting each other. Everyone is greeted here: sales clerks, unfamiliar neighbors, and simply people passing by. It is also obligatory to say goodbye.

And there is also a gesture that we don't understand. If an Argentinean during a conversation twiddles his finger at the temple - do not be in a hurry to take offense. He thus promises to think over what you said, and not to hint at any psychological disorders.

• Soccer Vacation.

Argentina is a soccer country. Almost 100% of its population adores this game. And no wonder, since Argentina's national team has twice won a World Cup trophy, and Buenos Aires has the highest concentration of FCs on the planet.

The city is home to such dedicated fans that schoolchildren and students are officially allowed to skip classes during important matches to cheer on their teams.

• Perez the mouse instead of the tooth fairy

Argentine children believe that their milk teeth are taken from under the pillow at night by Perez the mouse. In return, the little fluffy put in a few coins. They even made a cartoon about it called "The Adventures of Perez the Mouse," which all children in the country watched in 2006.

• A few more facts for last

Argentina's political parties have their own varieties of beer.

The country is one of the largest exporters of lemons in the world. More than 20% of the total production of these citrus fruits comes from Argentina.

Earlier OBOZREVATEL told what surprises tourists in Italy.

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