Today was an early riser, but much more than a successful day. Our first stop today was the Buenos Aires City Government with Dr. Daniel Ferrante who is the current deputy minister of health of CABA. Ferrante highlighted how the unions play a significant role in Argentina’s social safety net, especially during times of economic crisis. He said that labor unions in Argentina negotiate with the government and employers to secure better working conditions, job stability, and social benefits for their members. One of the biggest takeaways that I learned from that was the primary goal of the program is to provide direct income support for families with dependents whose heads became unemployed due to crisis. On the way out of this session I got to see a closeup of an embroidered flag of Argentina!
Around midafternoon we all took a quick lunch break and then had another lecture with Dr. Gabriel Leverstein who is the current director of the Obra Social de Comercio, the largest union of Argentina. Here we talked a lot about how this union provides medical assistance services and health coverage to employees in the commerce and civil activities sector here. Then, my favorite part of the day began with a bus/walking tour of some famous spots in Buenos Aires. We started off at the Plaza de Mayo, also known as the Pink House, which is the seat of the Argentine national government and houses the president’s office. Just in time we caught the changing of the guards into the Catedral Primada, which was by far my favorite place of the trip so far (I know its early to say that).
Next, we stopped San Telmo, which is the oldest neighborhood in Buenos Aires. This was filled with cobbled streets, colonial mansions and a rich history that was mesmerizing.
And finally, our last stop of the day, we went to La Boca which is considered Buenos Aires’s most colorful neighborhood. Truly one of the most colorful and outgoing neighborhoods that we have visited. With, yet another extremely successful day in Argentina…until tomorrow!
