Five Things Argentina is Famous For

Argentina is the second largest country in South America, and one of the most populous. Long a center for immigration, this mixture of different peoples and cultures has created a rich and unique Argentinean culture separate from the rest of Latin America. Although often overlooked in the media, Argentina is actually the birthplace of many world-famous cultural icons that many people will recognize. This article will list five unique thing about Argentina that you may not have been previously aware of.

1. Beef

Argentina has tradition of cattle ranches and cowboys (gauchos) much older than the United States. Raising about 55 million head of cattle, Argentina is the third largest exporter of beef in the world. Argentine beef is world-famous for its quality and flavor. Argentines have the largest consumption of red meat in the world.

Whereas many US ranches contain grain-fed cattle raised in feedlots, Argentine ranches are still largely grass-fed, free-range cattle roaming over the vast rolling pastures of the central Pampas and southern Patagonian plains. Many consider grass-fed, free-range cattle to be tastier and healthier, as free-range cattle are less likely to have hormone injections, get more exercise, contain less saturated fast, and more healthy omega 3 fatty acids which reduce cholesterol.

2. Asado

Argentina has its own, world-famous type of barbeque, known as asado. Asado combines the dry heat of grilling with the humid, slow-cooking method of smoking. The result is grilled, barbequed meat that is very tender and juicy. Many foods Americans consider to be Mexican actually originated in Argentina, including chorizo, empanadas, and Dulce de Leche. Finnally, chimichurri sauce (made of olive oil mixed with parsley, oregano, paprika, garlic, onion, pepper, and salt) is actually an Argentine creation, and is traditionally served with an asado barbeque.

3. Wine

Argentinean wine has become increasingly popular worldwide over the last twenty years. Argentina is the fifth largest producer of wine in the world, and has long been the single biggest producer outside of Europe. The province of Mendoza, Argentina’s primary wine producing region, is considered one of the eight wine capitals in the world. Argentinean wine also reflects Argentina’s diverse ethnic background. The grapes cultivated for wine in Argentina come from Spain, France, and Italy, among others places.

Due to the high altitude and low humidity of the prime Argentinean vineyards in the foothills of the Andes mountains, Argentinean grapevines rarely suffer the problems of insects, molds, fungi, and other grape vine diseases. Consequently, Argentinean vintners rarely use pesticides or herbicides, making Argentinean wine naturally organic and flavorful. Argentina is credited with the finest Malbec wine in the world.

4. The Tango

Almost everyone has heard of this slow, sensual ballroom dance, but many don’t realize it originated in Argentina. Specifically, it evolved in the ports, bars and brothels of Buenos Aires (the capital of Argentina) in the late 19th century. Buenos Aires was a city of immigrants at the time, and the Tango, both the dance and the music, was a fusion of musical styles from Spain, Cube, Africa, Italy, Eastern Europe, and indigenous Argentinean folk music.

This slow, sorrowful, and sexual music and dance spread from the working class slums to the rest of Argentinean society by the turn of the 20th century. In the 1920s, it exploded on the international scene and became wildly popular in Europe and the United States. Like Jazz, the Tango craze flourished until displaced by Rock & Roll in the 1950. In 2009, UNESCO declared the Tango to be part of the world’s “intangible cultural heritage.”

Violin, piano, guitar, flute and bandoneon, sometimes guitar and clarinet

5. Evita

For the average person, the first thing they associate with Argentia is the stage and movie musical “Evita,” a rags-to-riches story about Eva Perón. Eva, nicknamed “Evita” by an adoring public, was the wife of the popular Argentinean President Juan Perón, who ruled Argentina in the 1940s and 50s. Evita’s massive popularity among Argentineans came from the charity foundation she set up to assist the poor and working classes. She also advocated women’s right. The story of Evita hit new levels of popularity in the 1990s, when a movie version of the musical was released starring Madonna in the lead role of Eva Perón,

Random Clips of Carnavales Barranquilla Colombia 2010

I spent Carnavales here in Barranquilla Colombia, after having spent 6 weeks in Medellin. This little video is a compilation of some random clips I took during the days of Carnavales in Barranquilla. Hope you like!

Latin American Block Party – Barranquilla Carnavales 2010

I took a small video here in Barranquilla on the second to last day of Carnavales, which was a Monday night. People were partying outside of my apartment until the sun came up. It’s not uncommon to see block parties like this one, not just in Carnavales but for birthdays, holidays like New Years as well as other festive dates. This isn’t exclusive to Colombia. It’s a common to see block parties all over Latin America especially during New Years and Carnaval season.

How To Dress When Traveling Through Latin America

Throughout my book The Global Dating Revolution, I give a lot of tips and advice for those of you that will take the leap into International Dating and actually travel abroad to see what the women are like in other countries.

On Page 250 of The Global Dating Revolution I give the following tips on dressing while your traveling through Latin America. I feel most of these will be applicable to Eastern Europe and South East Asia as well:

Don’t dress like a tourist, with shorts, loud Hawaiian shirt and camera around your neck. Dress casual or business casual with a nice pair of khakis, jeans and either a nice button down shirt or nice t-shirt. Dress for your body type. If you’re very thin, you might want to wear more then one layer, and don’t wear clothes that are too loose fitting. By the same token if you’re a husky guy, no horizontal stripped shirts and nothing that’s too tight:

In my book The Global Dating Revolution, I give advice on where to go to meet foreign women, and how to go about doing so. I outline all the obstacles and challenges, and give you step by step instructions so you can meet amazing foreign women through international dating. You can find out more about my book, plus all the bonuses by clicking here

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Five Things Cuba Is Famous For

I’ve wanted to visit Cuba for some time now, but it’s not easy. Hopefully Obama will remove the travel restrictions for American citizens that want to travel to Cuba. The minute they do, I’m heading over! The picture on the left is a picture of the coastal boulevard in La Havana. From all of the pictures I’ve seen I imagine that La Havana, Cuba’s capital, looks a lot like Cartagena, Colombia, maybe a bit more worn down but a very similar architecture. Anyway, for anyone that doesn’t know too much about Cuba, here are five things Cuba is famous for (Havana should be in this list, but I’ll save that for when I actually visit).

#1. It’s cigars. Cuban cigars are known worldwide as the best cigars. As the best they are also very expensive. Cuban cigars have been called the forbidden fruit because of their distinctive flavor and aroma. The Cuban government controls all cigar production in Cuba. Cuban cigars are made from tobacco, fillers, and wrappers grown, made, and manufactured in Cuba. Cuban cigars are for the most part hand rolled by master cigar rollers known as torcedores. Torcedores are considered artists in their field and are respected highly in Cuba and around the world. Although Cuban cigars are considered the best in the world they are illegal in the United States.

#2. It’s Fidel. Fidel Castro has been a polarizing figure for decades. He is at the same time loved and hated by many. Fidel Castro came to power in 1959 as a result of the Cuban Revolution against U.S. backed dictator Fulgencio Batista. After the overthrow of Batista in 1959, Castro took charge of the military and soon became the next dictator of Cuba. From 1959 through 1960 Castro began to make sweeping changes throughout Cuba. Castro nationalized all industrial businesses, made agriculture into a collective community, and took control of all American-owned businesses. It was also during this time period that Castro began to cut times with the United States and form an alliance with the Soviet Union. Although Castro denied being a communist, he had effectively transformed Cuba into a communist country.

#3. It’s rum. Cuban rum just as Cuban cigars is among the best in the world. Cuban rum has been called the spice of life with its smooth but strong flavor. As with Cuban cigars, rum is illegal in the United States because of the trade embargo that was enacted in 1962. Cuban rum is made from the sugarcane by-product known as molasses. This process of making rum was brought to Cuba by slaves from Africa. Cuba was the main supplier of rum in the 1700’s and today the most common brand of Cuban rum is Havana Club.

#4. It’s dancing. Cuba is famous for its spicy and sexy Latin dances. Picture in your mind moving passionately across the dance floor as you step in time to the beat of your dance partner’s rhythm. Cuban dances are about passion and immersing yourself into the story of the dance. The word Salsa was created in New York, however the dance originated in Cuba. Salsa combines a mix of the Danzón from the French, the Rhumba from Africa, and the Són of Cuba. The Cha-Cha-Cha also originated in Cuba. The Cha-Cha-Cha is similar to the Mambo and gained fame in the early 1950’s. The Cha-Cha-Cha is more sensual than the Salsa and can be more complex with its many rhythms.

#5. It’s baseball. Baseball is more than just America’s favorite past time. It is one of the most played sports in Cuba with a long and rich history. Baseball was brought to Cuba sometime around 1860 by Cubans who had studied and played along side sailors in the United States. Some of the greatest baseball players in the world are of Cuban Heritage. Cristóbal Torriente, Martín Dihigo, and José Méndez are all in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Cubans have played baseball in just about every nation where baseball exists in the world. Not only have Cubans played abroad but many baseball greats from other countries have gone to Cuba to play as well.

Do the World’s Most Beautiful Women Live in Venezuela?

Life.com recently released an article titled “Venezuela’s Most Beautiful Women“. It’s a series of pictures of current and past pageant contestants and winners.

Miss Venezuela (Dayana Mendoza featured in the picture) most recently won the title of Miss Universe for 2009, bringing the grand total of Venezuela wins to a whooping 6.

Having been to Venezuela myself, I have to agree that Venezuelan women are amazingly attractive. An afternoon stroll down one of the busy avenues in the center of the city leaves you with more then eyeful of slender, attractive “chamas” (Venezuelan slang for chica or girl).

Night clubs and in Caracas are no different, and my Venezuelan female friends have confessed to me in the past over some drinks that they have to fight tooth and nail for their men against all the other single ladies.

If it wasn’t for the reports of violence and increased crime in Venezuela I probably would have gone back already. I may have to go and verify the reports for myself. But there are many other places including Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, and Costa Rica where the women are just as friendly and attractive, and crime isn’t as much of an issue.

Although there are many pretty women in Venezuela I would say that it’s definitely not a place you want to venture into unless you’re a Veteran traveler, fluent in Spanish, and are a bit more risk averse.

The one negative about Venezuela at the moment, is that the mismanagement of the Economy by President Hugo Chavez, has resulted in high inflation, increasingly difficult times economically, and shortages of basic necessities like water, and electricity. Rolling black outs are common place, and Chavez recently urged all Venezuelans to take 3 minute showers to conserve water.

In part due to these reasons, crime and violence has increased dramatically in Venezuela over the past decade, most notably in the city of Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. Although there are no outright “travel warnings” for Venezuela on the government websites, Venezuela and Caracas still remain high up on the list of crime and homicide rates.

Still having said all of this, I’m reminded of my European friend who told me a story about a team of engineers from his company in Spain who were sent to Venezuela for a six month stint. Out of the team of 11 engineers 7 of them came back from Venezuela married. And no that is not an exaggeration.

Why Do Foreign Men Have Kids And Marry At Much Younger Ages Then American Men?

I’ve traveled extensively through Latin America, and I have family in a few different Latin countries. I’ve also lived and worked in Northern New Jersey for large part of my life. So I have a very good grasp of both Latin American culture and the culture here in the United States. Over the years I’ve noticed that my male friends, cousins, and uncles in Latin America usually get married and have kids at earlier ages then my American friends and family.

In general there seems to be a pattern where foreign males tend to have kids and get married a lot sooner then American males. Out of all my male friends in the U.S. very few got married in their late teens or early twenties, and only a few were married and had kids in their later 20’s. In fact, I’d say more then half of my friends in their 30’s here in the U.S. are single, maybe dating, but not married and have no kids.

So what gives? Why are these foreign guys procreating and marrying at earlier ages? Is it the water? Do they have a higher sperm count? All joking aside, I do think there are a few main reasons for this difference, but I think the biggest reason is this:

In Latin America men have much better dating options and they start meeting and dating women, even having sex at much younger ages. They enter the dating game much sooner, and they get more playing time, so eventually something happens and they up having kids and/or getting married.

I think some people would argue that Latin American men get married sooner because they might not use as much contraception, as American men, and then they get a girl pregnant, and they have to marry her. There probably is some small truth to this, but this scenario didn’t play out with any of my friends or family who are already married in Latin America.

And let’s not forget something else… I’ve met many, and I mean many men who have may have been dating in the U.S. and other countries such as Canada, Australia and England, but they’ve never been married there. These men step into Latin America, and after a few months of working there, or living there, they end up getting married? How do you explain that? The Internet is riddled with stories of workers, expats, students, volunteers, and vacationers who end up getting married to the sweet women they meet during their stay in Latin America. Seems like too much of a coincidence in my book…

I’ve been studying and researching phenomenon’s like this for many years, and my gut tells me that these men who were never married and who get married when they spend some time in Latin America do so because in Latin America they have access to quality, attractive, down to earth women. It’s something that very few American’s, Western Europeans, or our other counterparts, have access to at home.

Now imagine if you grew up in Latin America and had access to quality attractive women ever since you were young enough to start chasing women… Maybe you would be married and settled by now too? It’s something to think about, and it’s just another one of those dichotomies between the anti-male and pro-male regions of this world.

Ecuador Report From Romeo Blanco

My friend, Romeo, recently spent some time in Ecuador with his girlfriend. While he was traveling through Ecuador he also kept an eye out for the ladies and sent me a very informative email about the dating environment in Ecuador… Here it is:

Dan,

They should put a sign in the entrance to Puyo that says “NO GAME NEEDED”. This place is a cake walk for guys.

Today I was able to have some free time. My girlfriend went with her mom to move there things to the new apt her mom is renting.

So I had a few hours to myself. I went to the center of the city and went to a Dentist. He filled in my cavity for $10 !!!

Next, I was walking around the city, hovering above the smaller guys, and bingo, some girl winks at me.

She keeps staring at me. So I asked her where I could buy the local newspaper (they don’t sell them in stores over here, its not easy to find them) and bingo, she asks me where I’m from.

I told her I’m from NJ, and she tells me shes from Guayaquil (she moved to puyo 3 months ago—-according to her, Guayquil is too dangerous and Puyo is safer and cheaper—shes studying in university of Puyo)

She smiles when I tell her I’m a Jersey boy in Puyo… I decide to test it even more so I told her the truth, that I’m here with my girlfriend visiting her family…all of a sudden her smile fades away…she keeps talking to me anyway.

Then she spills the beans. I asked her straight out, so why are you single (shes been 3 months in Puyo with no boyfriend, —her Ex is in Guayaquil)

She tells me (I’m not exxageratting—word for word), that in Puyo its not easy to find a boyfriend. she told me the guys in Puyo are “muy machista” and they treat women as lesser citizens…in her own words, “ellos se creen la quinta mierda…se creen mucho, hasta los k no tienen nada se creen” translation: “They think they are the shit, they’re too cocky, even the ones that don’t have anything are cocky”

She even told me the guys in Guyaquil treat her nicer, and they are more open minded then the guys in Puyo….she also told me its very hard to find a boyfriend, and she went as far as to ask me if I love my girlfriend or not.

The last blow…before I left her, I told her we can be friends, but I have a girlfriend and she told me sure… I asked her if she has email, she told me take my email, number, etc.

I got her email, and told her we can only be friends, to this she replied with a smile and said I would love to be a friend of such a handsome young man—- ha ha!

While I was talking to her, her friends (like 4 girls) were giggling and laughing across the street…

I gave her a kiss on the cheek and left…that’s that

The same thing that girls told me in Santa Cruz, Boliva 10 years ago, this girl named Jimena told me the exact same shit (almost exactly 10 years later as I went to Bolivia in april of 99) the girls in Bolivia told me.

Our theories are true, and its also true that in the smaller, less populated (and frequented by outsiders) cities its probably even more powerful and men have an even greater upper hand.

This girl was really cute also, she had a nice smile and nice body, tan skinned, your typical Guayaquilena…smiling, etc.

I would say she is an 8 from 1 to 10

Well that’s that, another day with the power and leverage

I’ll enjoy it while I can,

Romeo

Latin America – Where Cute Faces and Thin Waists Are the Norm

Today I would like to talk about Latin American women.

I’m talking about Latin American women from Latin America who are very Latina and cherish their culture. But apart from having a very traditional, feminine culture (unlike many women in the USA who have a more masculine mindset), women in Latin America look great. Latin America has been a melting pot where there has been a mix between European, African, and Indigenous populations. Many people argue that this mix has created a more well balanced and very attractive population, especially in areas where there has been a more even mix between cultures and races.

Places like Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, and Costa Rica are perfect examples of this.

In Latin America my friends, MOST women look great. And why is this? The truth is that in the USA roughly half of the women have lost their feminine curves due to the overweight and obesity epidemic.

Yes, obesity is an issue in the USA. More then half of all Americans are overweight. Out of this, roughly 25% are considered obese, and this number is continuously growing. One other frightening fact is that obesity tends to affect women in more severity then men.

While more then half American women are 20 to 30 pounds over their normal body weight, and roughly 25% are more then 30 pounds over, in Latin America, around 90% of the women are thin and in good shape.

Even those who fall in the minority 10% that are not thin or in shape, are usually a few pounds over, but not obese. In fact, if you’ve ever traveled to Latin America you know that on most of your trips you will never almost never encounter an obese person. You may encounter some older men in their 40’s with beer belly’s, and some older ladies with a little extra weight, but the younger crowds are all fit and thin, and definitely not obese.

This is why “Beauty” is the norm south of the border. In Latin American countries most women look great, because they have thin waists and that psychologically mind numbing .7 hip to wast ratio which drives men crazy. And you can find these feminine silhouettes just about everywhere you look in Latin America. Since most women look great, your dating prospects are truly among the best in the world.

Let’s not forget that apart from their looks, the women of Latin America are some of the most down to earth and sweet women on this planet, but let’s face it, you and me both know that looks do count for something, and these women are top shape… No man can argue with that.

Any guy, no matter who you are or where your from can and will have success in any Latin American country.

I challenge you to travel to any Latin American country and see for yourself. As a good friend of mine once said “seeing is believing”.

Once you see how great and just how “beauty” is the Norm in Latin America, you will see what the rest of the world has to offer for your dating and romantic life. Trust me, there’s a whole world out there waiting to be discovered. A world filled with romantic opportunities, with young women, with thing waists, who take care of themselves and to top it all off, are very very friendly. Ahh yes… That is Latin America, where beauty is the norm for women.

10-Reasons-To-Go-To-South-America

I could rattle off hundreds of reasons to travel to South America, but quite honestly the most compelling reason of them all would be to meet some beautiful South American women. If there is any doubt about the femininity, and beauty of South American women, the ladies representing each country in past miss universe contests should erase all of those doubts.

#1. Miss Argentina

#2. Miss Bolivia

#3. Miss Brazil

#4. Miss Chile

#5. Miss Colombia

#6. Miss Ecuador

#7. Miss Paraguay

#8. Miss Peru

#9. Miss Uruguay

#10. Miss Venezuela

Simply put, South American women are some of the hottest women in the world. There’s not much more convincing needed.