Our Hotel

Hotel Meliá is not only luxurious but is also a hotel in a great location for those who wish to tour the city of Buenos Aires as it is only a short walk from destinations such as Plaza San Martín, La Recoleta, and the Obelisk while also being near a large number of restaurants and shopping centers.

Hotel Meliá Buenos Aires

The hotel provides comfortable rooms, offers high speed Wi-Fi internet free of charge to hotel guests, has its own selection of dining spaces, a spa with a heated pool, and a gym. By offering these, I believe the hotel provides at least one thing that appeals to every individual. Personally, I like the set-up of the rooms as they are spacious, the free Wi-Fi as I wish to connect to my family back home during my stay, and the selection of dining spaces as they are both fine and casual.  

Not only is the hotel nice, but the staff is as well. Upon arrival, it became evident that the staff here is friendly as we were each offered a welcome coffee during our orientation and as the staff is more than willing to answer any questions we may have as well as exchange our currency; something I find to be of importance. 

Resto Bar El Salmon

During my stay so far, I have visited Plaza San Martín as well as a few restaurants along Reconquista. Davis, Steve, and Charles accompanied me at El Nacional and each ordered a sandwich for a quick lunch before we left to go kayaking earlier. They seemed to enjoy the food as they talked about how good it tasted. Later on in the evening, Davis and I sat down for dinner at Resto Bar El Salmon and both ordered dishes off the menu especial, or special menu. We found here that the food was delicious as well. As both restaurants were located across the street from the hotel, we didn’t have to travel far to reach them and soon after arriving at each location, it became evident that both offered high quality food at low prices. 

We’re staying at the perfect hotel and visiting places we have come to love.We couldn’t be happier. 

Earnst and Young Lecture/Speaker

During our second day in Buenos Aires we attended two different business seminars, each an hour long. The first was an economist, Ivan Ordonez, who spoke about Argentina’s economy. The second presenter was from Ernst & Young, which provides advisory services and business modeling for customers. 

Sebastian Ezequiel Spena of Ernst & Young

He briefly spoke of the basics of Argentinian commerce discussing how Argentina’s economy is on the rise from where it was in the past. He then went into detail on three other topics about business in Argentina as a whole. He focused on four main points consisting of the current situation in Argentina, investments, political aspects, and the present economic situation.

The current situation in Argentina is clearly becoming better than the past. Economic growth has been on the increase but was halted when the economy crashed in recent months causing massive inflation, political instability, and social problems. Inflation has been very noticeable coming from American culture. When I spoke to Bianca about the inflation issue she said, “It is definitely a lot different looking at a restaurant menu and seeing a meal for $150. It makes me think twice about the price I’m paying as pesos are the currency here.” Even after this crisis, the majority of Latin companies survived and now are thriving.

He then spoke on investments and opportunities in Argentina. He mentioned that investment opportunities were also on the rise due to the new president of Argentina, Mauricio Macri. The new president has essentially transformed the government into a more capitalist government and lifted the controls on foreign investments allowing easier imports and exports of goods resulting in an economic boost. Because of this new capitalist government, it has opened doors for foreign and local investors. The presenter asked our group, “If you were to invest in Argentina, which aspect would invest in?”, and Griffin answered agriculture. Agriculture in Argentina is the number one export and the area in which Argentina is most competitive compared the rest of the world due to the vast farm land and fertile soil. Then Dustin raised his hand and said infrastructure. This is also an area were Argentina has a lot of potential due to unfinished buildings and abandoned shanty towns.

Bryant team with Ernst & Young team

Our Tour Guide Sophia

Once we all stepped off the plane and into the Buenos Aries airport, I think it finally hit us that we were in a foreign country. This was an exciting/nerve-racking feeling considering none of the students had been to Argentina before. This is why having a tour guide was extremely helpful. We first met our tour guide Sophia when she was waiting for us at the airport holding a sign that said “Bryant University.” From the minute we met her she was cheerful and enthusiastic, even when having to deal with all 45 of us in the crowded airport. Sophia was born and raised in Buenos Aires, therefore she knows a great deal about the city. I had the pleasure of sitting down with Sophia and getting to ask her a few questions in order to get to know her better. Sophia went to college at Austral University where she received her bachelors in communication. She said she knew a 9-5 job where she would be sitting down all day would never be the right fit for her so finding a job that is flexible and active would be perfect. Sophia had always done similar jobs but had never been a tour guide before. She started working with the Austral group three years ago when her friend was able to set her up with a job as a project manager. Her first tour was with a group of post-grads and she has loved the job ever since.

All the students were definitely tired, hungry, and ready for a shower when we arrived at the hotel at 8 am on Sunday morning; but Sophia was able to keep us entertained while we waited for our hotel rooms to be ready by planning a fun game for us to get to know the city. I was talking to some of the others girls on the trip and Katie, Jackie, and Bianca all agreed that having Sophia as a tour guide has made the trip even more fun. She is an extremely nice person who cares about all the students and staff on our trip. She is a great presence to have around and has already made the trip more enjoyable and its only day two! I can’t wait to see what she has planned for the rest of the trip because I know it will be exciting. 

From left: Profs Chris D. and Ashley M., Sofia, Profs Patricia G. and Srdan Z. 

By Maggie Carbin

On Our Way

“To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.” ~Lord Alfred Tennyson

For some the adventure started at Bryant University at 9am on Saturday, for others at 11 when we all met at Logan International Airport. For me, the adventure stated once we were in the sky. When you look out your window and see the houses on the ground get smaller and smaller, until they are just sprinkles on the ground and we were in the clouds. The plane is a healthy size plane, and we are sitting up and down the aisles in between people going about their lives headed to Miami. Several passengers on the plane are already speaking Spanish.  I try to listen and see what words I recognize but their tongues are moving much too fast for my ears.  Everyone that I’ve talked to so far agrees that speaking Spanish is what they are most nervous about.

Our plane on the runway of Logan Airport. 1pm Saturday 

Before we boarded for Miami I spoke to Kevin. Here’s what he had to say:

L: Is this your first international trip Kevin?
K: No, two years ago I visited the Dominican Republic. They speak Spanish but I stated at a resort so I mostly spoke English.
L: What are you most nervous about for this trip? K: Probably speaking Spanish, and the new culture. (Kevin has been taking Spanish for the past 7 years. If Kevin is nervous then there’s no way my 3 years of Spanish will hold up.) L: What are you most excited about, and most looking forward to on this trip? K: I am very excited to make new friends and become closer with all the other students going on this trip. L: What are you hoping to take away from your sophomore international experience? K: New friends, better language skills, and a better understanding of the South American culture and business.
L: Any additional comments? K: It’s a great day to be a bull dog.
Todos los estudios de Bryant University fueron en el avion.  

Our next stop was Miami. After arriving early and having to wait on the runway, we were finally dismissed from the plane and into the airport. Nice. One flight down, one to go. The airport is so big we had to take a tram from our terminal to the next. Once we got there we all got settled, made a time to meet back, and got dinner. During this time I had the chance to speak with my new friend Wilson, this is what we talked about.

L: What did you think of the first flight?
W: It went pretty smoothly. There were no crying babies or anything.
L: What new experience are you looking forward to?
W: Learning how to tango…. Because I don’t know how to dance whatsoever (Ashley- added that we get a certificate at the end)
L: Are you looking forward to the food? How adventurous will you get?
W: I really want to eat authentic food of the country.
L: Would you even try cow tongue?
W: I’ll try anything once.
L: Describe your attitude right now using 3 words?
W: excited, curious, ready
L: Any last comments?
W: I hope to have a good time.

Our second flight was much longer, almost 8 hours in the air. When we landed we couldn’t complain about jet lag because the time difference is only 2 hours. I think the general atmosphere when we finally get off the plane is excitement. Running on only a few hours of sleep we wasted no time and began our day on the bus to our hotel driving though Buenos Aries. The city is large and beautiful full of all types of people. There are parks and plazas at almost every corner and the architecture is just as diverse as the people in the city.  Buildings that are centuries old stand tall next to modern buildings. If I didn’t know any better I might think I was in Europe.

Finally, our journey has  begun.

A business perspective: No opportunity is lost to advertise. There were tv screens everywhere in the airport advertising for everything from IBM to Dunkin Donuts. There were even screens on the plane that were advertising for various TV stations.  In addition the cost of food/ drinks/ accessories in the airport past security are ungodly expensive. This comes as no surprise, it is simple economics; when there is no other competition businesses can charge whatever they feel like.

Bienvenido a Buenos Aires. Sunday 9am 

Spanish Word of the Day: Avion- airplane

By Laura Hayes