In Argentina, there are obligatory anklets always in attendance, there is omnipresent Che, and then there is inescapable Mate.
Having been previously exposed to my Argentine roommates in Barcelona, or semi-Uruguayo John in Ecuador, I thought I knew a little thing or two about mate. Yerba mate - mate herb - is an infusion that is drunk out of metal cup varying in style wherever you go. Thus far we have seen metal mini-cups, cups carved out of cow hooves, wooden cups...anything that can hold mate at some point probably will. It is drunk through the bombilla, a sort of metal straw. For you spanish speakers, here are some words courtesy of http://www.argentour.com/mate/mate.htm:
Actualmente el mate se consume en gran parte de Sud América: Suroeste de Brasil, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, parte de Chile y parte de Bolivia. Siendo el mayor productor y consumidor mundial Argentina. Aunque en consumo per capita en Uruguay es mayor al argentino.
That is, it's not just in Argentina, but also in Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil and Chile. Argentina has the highest consumption and production worldwide, but it was easy to on our daytrip to Colonia, Uruguay that consumption per capita of mate is DOUBLE that of Argentina. While groups of Argentine "matistas" (as I jokingly call them) are rarely seen without one member with a thermos on hand, in Colonia every member of the group had their own thermos! Indespensible, these thermoses keep hot water the exact sub-boiling temperature necessary to create the perfect brew.
It's a stimulant, it's social and has certain rules (the person who prepares it must take the first drink), and it's an amazing cultural phenomenon. Think of it - at the beach, EVERYONE has mate. Can you imagine an equivelant in the States, or in France? Everyone loaded up with apple pie? Everyone with a crêpe? Hmmm...Waiting for your answers...
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