Cambria Is Living the Buenos Aires Life

Final Thoughts, One Might Say "Reflections"

2009-08-13T13:20:00.001-07:00

When I first set off on my journey to Argentina, there was a list of things that I wanted to accomplish. The first and most important thing was to improve my Spanish. Part of me was naïve enough to think that after two months I was going to be close to fluent and the thought of that excited me. I also knew that, while I was gone, I was going to have to break out of my comfort zone. I have always been one or two steps behind others in my Spanish classes, allowing them to speak up first, and would only practice my Spanish in class when I was called on. There have always been those fears of mispronouncing words, not being able to find the right vocabulary, or just having the most obvious North American accent. I knew that I was going to have to completely ignore those fears while in Argentina, and as I tried to prepare myself mentally for the challenge, I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

The two months I spent in Argentina were the most exciting two months I have ever experienced. I found myself in uncomfortable situations where I was forced to dig deep into my Spanish vocabulary and found that I was ever so thankful that Professor Green-Nagle taught us the “art” of circumlocution in her Spanish classes. Throughout all of this, however, it was also easy to forget that I was in a Spanish speaking country. All of the friends I made that were in my program are from the United States, and when we were together, we learned how difficult it was to keep speaking Spanish. Also, quite a few Argentines, once they heard our accents, would try to practice their English. Some of my favorite conversations were held on the buses or subways with Argentines who would speak to me in English, and I would respond to them in Spanish. It took a lot of discipline to stay in “Spanish mode” while they spoke in English, but we would help one another and would both be learning.

The first few weeks were the hardest ones. Culture shock hit me hard and if someone would have offered me a way home after week two, I probably would have accepted. There were a few problems with my housing once I got there and I was working off of very little sleep which affected my emotions. Thankfully, going home early was not an option and I am so happy I stayed with it to the end. I can happily say that I have met people from all around the world: Canada, England, France, Ireland, Scotland, Russia, Germany, Switzerland, China, Israel, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Ghana, Angola, and of course, Argentina. I also have made many friends who live within the United States who I am sure I will keep in contact with. Meeting all of these people has rekindled my love of intercultural communications. There is nothing more enjoyable to me then getting to learn the differences and similarities between two cultures. I was able to study this in depth with Argentina, but the more people I met from other countries, the more I was able to compare and contrast the cultures of the United States, Argentina, and the other countries, respectively. Where many people would learn and think, “That is so strange!” I learn it and think, “That is so amazing!” If there is only one thing that this trip has given me, it is the passion and the want-to to dive deeper into studies of other cultures.

Apart from learning Spanish and learning about cultural differences, I was able to experience the life of Buenos Aires, the “Paris of South America,” first hand. Buenos Aires’ culture focuses heavily on European influence. Much of the architecture resembles that of France, Spain, and Italy. There is quite an obsession with coffee and ice cream (thanks to the Italian influence) and Italian cuisine is the most popular right behind asado (common to our North American barbecue). Steak is the number one food of Argentina, due to the large number of ranches with cattle around the country. Argentines are very proud of their history and their culture and it is imperative for a visitor to share a cup of mate (a strong, herbal tea) when it is offered.

Tango is also an important pastime of Argentina, and to go to Buenos Aires and not try tango is missing out on an important part of their culture. Although I can easily say that tango might not be my favorite thing to do, I enjoyed watching it and was so happy when one brave man from Ecuador attempted to teach me. I learned eight basic steps of tango that I could probably do in my sleep, and yet following someone’s lead is quite difficult. I attended many milongas (types of clubs that are reserved for partner dancing: tango, salsa, swing, etc) where I enjoyed watching friends and professionals dance. The art of tango is beautiful and beautifully complicated and as much as I would love to learn to do it well, I was content with watching those who knew what they were doing!

Another aspect of Argentine lifestyle is how late they stay out. Dinner usually does not begin until after nine o’clock at night (sometimes after ten) and dinner is more than just about the food. If there is anything I discovered about being in an Argentine restaurant, it was how impatient Americans from the United States are. In the United States, when you sit down to an evening meal, you want service and you want it fast. In Argentina, once the waiter seats you, you will not see him again until you are ready to order, and only after ten to twenty minutes of conversation while looking at the menu. Once you have ordered and received your food, there is at least an hour (and that is a short amount of time) set aside for eating and conversation. The waiter does not bring the bill until it is asked for and he never gets impatient waiting for the customers to leave. Conversation and companionship are very important elements to an Argentine dinner. My first dinner in Buenos Aires was three hours long, and it was a time when I was surrounded by new friends whom I got to know over the course of the meal.

After dinner, especially on the weekends, the younger crowd of Buenos Aires goes out into the night with one thing in mind: boliches! (clubs). It is very common to go out to a club around one in the morning, and stay there until six. There are even clubs that open at six in the morning called “After Parties”. These are the places for those who either need a break from tango or who want a great exercise from dancing for hours.

Throughout my two months in Argentina, I discovered that becoming bilingual is something that is going to take more than two months of intense study to accomplish. As if I did not already know, I realized that Spanish is quite a complicated language that is harder to grasp than I imagined. My Spanish has definitely improved and I feel as if I can comprehend it much better. Of course, my speaking has improved as well, but I have found that many people are surprised when I say that I am not anywhere near being fluent. At times, I wanted to give up. I wanted to take my future Spanish degree and hide it because getting through Spanish classes and a summer in Argentina does not necessarily mean I am ready to use the language in my career. But I have found hope knowing that I can keep practicing and studying. I can continue learning and growing in my Spanish knowledge. I know that native Spanish speakers (especially those in Argentina) are forgiving and understand how hard it is to communicate in a second language. I am so thankful for my time in Argentina and will continue to enjoy sharing my story with others. This opportunity would not have been possible without loving parents and supportive friends and it was an experience I will never forget.

Dia 53, Goodbye My New Love, Goodbye. 8 de agosto

2009-08-11T11:52:00.000-07:00

I have a feeling that this might be the most difficult blog I have to write, because it has to be all about my last day in Buenos Aires, that magical city in the southern hemisphere. However, this isn’t going to be my “reflecting” blog. I’m going to save one more for that one. So maybe it won’t be too bad if I just talk about the last day, and how it went and what all I did, etc. Yeah, that doesn’t sound too hard. Okay, let’s go into the city that makes everyone dance.

Like I mentioned in the last update, I was planning on getting up early…and I did. Well, early for me. Serri woke me up around 10:20, which was great because I told her she could wake me up at 9:30 if she was up by then. So an extra fifty minutes was definitely welcomed, especially since I didn’t even sleep that well. I don’t know if it was because I was excited/sad about going home, or if I just wasn’t used to being in bed so early (ha), but sleep wasn’t the easiest thing. I was definitely happy about the thought that the next time I was going to sleep in a bed it would be my wonderful big, comfy bed at home!

Serri and I got ready for the day and went to the restaurant with American breakfast. I had waffles and bacon (which was the first bacon I’ve had since I’ve been here…it’s not very common and is pretty expensive in most places) and orange juice and it was good and so filling. Ivana met up with us there and we had a long breakfast and talked about how much we wanted to go home and yet how we wanted to stay.

After breakfast we walked to the Recoleta Feria. This had to have been my fourth or fifth time there, and it was all so familiar to me. I bought just a couple more little souvenirs but didn’t get anything spectacular. Serri and Ivana bought some really gorgeous mates that I was tempted to get but decided against it. While we were walking through, a little boy came up to us and tried to sell us packages of tissues. At this point, I literally had no Argentine money on me. I would have bought them, he only wanted two pesos or something like that, but I didn’t have it. I kept telling him I didn’t and he just kept following us. It was so weird because the entire time I’ve been here, when people ask for money and you say no and keep walking, they leave you alone. But this little kid (who was probably 8 or 9) just kept walking with us for a good distance. Ivana and Serri did a good job of ignoring him. But it was hard for me to do so. I would look at him and say, “No lo tengo” (I don’t have it) and he just kept talking about his baby sister. It was sad. But at the same time, I wonder how well that normally works for him. How many people eventually give him money so he’ll leave them alone? Oh well, he didn’t get anything from us and finally got distracted by a booth that had an armadillo shell hanging in it. (Yeah, I don’t know…I guess an armadillo shell isn’t as amazing to me, since I see them on the side of the road in Oklahoma a lot, lol).

After a while of walking around, Ivana left and Serri and I decided to kill some time by going back to Recoleta Cemetery. I believe I’ve said this before, but you can go into the cemetery multiple times and see all sorts of new things. It’s not only a large space, but there are so many things crammed into the space that it’s almost easy to get lost in there. We looked for Eva Peron’s tomb since Serri had never seen it. I’ve seen it twice before, so you’d think I’d know where to go, but we couldn’t find it. We eventually had to give up on the adventure aspect and looked at a map, then found it with ease.

We then decided to walk back home and check to see if Expanish had sent me confirmation for a taxi. Oh, I guess this is something I haven’t mentioned. Expanish said they wouldn’t pay for a taxi to the airport, which everyone in my program agrees that it’s something they should do. They did say, however, that they would call the cab for me and make all the arrangements, etc. So I had emailed them earlier in the week, letting them know that I needed a cab, but that Thomas, Adam and I wanted to go to the airport together since our flights were close and it would be a cheaper cab ride that way. Well, after I got in touch with the correct person at Expanish, she then needed to get all of our addresses. Now, I had limited internet access at my house, as we all know, so the emails between us would be about a day apart. I know that Expanish knew where we all lived (obviously, they put us there!) but apparently she either didn’t think to ask or wouldn’t or…something. So I had to email her the addresses. I told her the time I needed to be at the airport, but not being from here and not knowing how long it would take to get from my house, to Adam’s, to Thomas’, to the airport, I didn’t know what time we were supposed to be picked up. I explained this in an email to her, and her next email basically ignored what I had said and she said, “I need to know what time you want to be picked up.” So, by Friday, this is where we were. I got that email late Friday afternoon, and when I was at Expanish I asked if she was there and she had already left. So when I had checked my email again, she had sent me one asking what day I was supposed to leave. I mean, Expanish has all of this information! I had to send it to them… so I don’t know why there was all this confusion and why she couldn’t have looked it all up. So I had to email her, Friday afternoon, telling her that I was leaving the next day and asking her to please call my house phone with confirmation.

So, back to Saturday: Serri and I went back to our apartment to see if the lady at Expanish had called or email me back. Sure enough, she hadn’t. It was almost three in the afternoon; I needed a cab at 5. So I talked with Elsa and she said she would just call the cab service and explain to them that I needed a cab for three people, etc. I know, it would have seemed that easy in the first place, but since I had been talking with Expanish, I figured I didn’t need to bother Elsa about it. Well, Elsa called and explained that we just wanted one cab, but it needed to be the bigger sized cab so we could fit our luggage and what not. I’ve been in a cab twice on this trip with two other people and all six bags of our luggage. I knew it was possible. I was happy once we got this settled, especially since I was feeling as if Expanish wasn’t pulling through for me at this point in the trip.

I finally finished up what was left of my packing and then…Serri and I decided…to go to Freddo! It’s my last day; surely you all knew that I would be going, even if I had some ice cream (not Freddo) the night before. So we walked over to the Freddo that was my first and we split ¼ kilo. I got my chocolate suizo and Serri got tramontana. We decided to take it back home and eat it while watching more ridiculous shows on her computer. It was somehow made into our “tradition” I guess, so why not do it on the last day? As always, Freddo did not disappoint me. It was hard to tell him goodbye as we left, but it had to be done. Breaking up is never easy. =)

Once we got home, Elsa had to leave to meet some of her family. She gave me a hug and told me that next time I come to BA, I can bring my boyfriend or husband and we can all go get “beautiful Persicco ice cream together”. I am definitely going to miss Elsa. She was a wonderful example of an Argentine and I hope that one day I will be able to see her again. (I realize that this means going back to BA…but I could definitely deal!) She gave me her address, and I want to send her a photo of the three of us. It was sad to say goodbye to her.

Serri and I continued to watch our television show, and before I knew it, my cab had arrived…and more confusion began! But before I get to that…

PAUSE:

To Serri, I am so glad that we were housemates. I really don’t think I could have asked for a more fun person to live with! I’m so glad we got along so well, and thank you so much for allowing me to use the TRON. =) Thank you for listening to all my long stories and not only for that, but for being interested in them! I don’t know if I will ever stop “Fake Screaming” and when I do it around people at home, I’m sure they’ll find it strange, but that will just give me the opportunity to talk about my great housemate I had while in BA. Hopefully, we’ll stay in touch and one day we can be owners of Freddo in the US in Minnesota (South Dakota) and Oklahoma. I can’t wait for our three person conferences! Have fun on your road trip with the boy! I’m so excited for you getting to see him soon! =) Thanks for everything!

Un-Pause:

Well, moving on…as I get downstairs, I realize that there are two cabs waiting for me. Luckily, Serri had a friend stop by who has been living in BA for some time now, and she was sufficiently bilingual enough to talk with the cab drivers to figure out what had happened. Apparently, when you explain to a cab company that you want one car for three people plus luggage, they ignore it and send two because they think it’s impossible to fit that much into one care. I’ve said it before, I’ve seen it done…I know it’s possible. However, both cabs were there, and they were refusing, flat out refusing to attempt all of us in one car. Now, we three (Thomas, Adam, and I) did not have enough pesos amongst us to pay for two cabs all the way to the airport, but they said that they take US dollars too, and luckily, we had gotten money from Expanish when we turned our cell phones back in. Since I was the only one there at the time, I made the decision for the three of us that we’d just suck it up and pay for both cabs. I was worried about being late to the airport and didn’t know how busy it would be, etc. So we took the two cabs. Luckily, Adam had a bit of extra money as well, so we were able to pay for the majority of it with our leftover pesos and didn’t have to worry about exchanging money later.

I would like to take a moment and remind you all, that the first song I heard in Argentina was in a cab ride leaving the airport to go to the hotel. It was “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt and I was amazed by hearing American music and naïve to think that all I would have heard was Spanish music. I’ve definitely learned by this point how much of an influence American music has in Argentina…because it’s everywhere. So, I would just like to say that the last song I heard in Argentina was in the cab to the airport, as we were pulling into the airport actually, and it was “Believe” by Cher. Ha. I just wanted to share, because at least one person had to be curious. =)

Once we were in the airport, things went by pretty easily. The line for me and Adam’s airline wasn’t too long and after we got through the line, we waited with Thomas in his line for awhile. We had to eventually break away from Thomas and went to our gate. The security in this airport was very interesting. Almost laid back, but with somewhat different precautions than what we are used to. The first security check point we went through was when we were dropping off our luggage. They just asked us questions about who packed our bags and if anyone gave us anything to take with us while we were in the airport. After we dropped our bags off, we had to walk through to where the gates were and just show guards that we had boarding passes. Then we went through the metal detectors. We didn’t have to take our shoes off or take our laptops or liquids out of our bags, which I thought was wonderful! I thought that surely that wasn’t all the security. But at this point in time, it was. We then walked through immigration where we had to fill out sheets explaining why we had been in Argentina. It was at least the third or fourth time I’d seen one of these so it was basically easy to fill out. We then had to turn in the papers and get our passports stamped. Then, we were in the terminals. Our gate was really close by and I was just wiped and ready to be home, so I stayed there and just sat. Adam didn’t feel like sitting and decided to walk around. I knew that going through security had been just way too good to be true, because about an hour and a half before our flight, they made us all get up with our purses and back packs and stand in a line to go through the final security check point. With Adam gone I had to carry all of our stuff into a line that was really pretty long. Luckily, he showed back up before it was my turn. Once I got to the front, I was asked another set of questions about who has been in contact with my bag and if I had left it alone at any point in time. Once I got past that, I had to go to the next part where someone got the opportunity to search through my bag. The only thing that lady asked me was if I had any lighters or matches on me, which I did not. It was pretty easy and looked as if she barely looked through my stuff. Adam had it a bit harder with his security check. He had bottled water and here, they don’t let you take any drinks on the plane with you if they’ve already been opened. Adam said, “I will finish it before I get on the plane.” And the guard said, “Finish it in front of me please.” So Adam had to drink almost a full bottle of water in front of him as he looked through his stuff. But even Adam had it a bit easier than others because one guard was making everyone take off their shoes and running a detector thing over them. I guess every guard had a specific thing to do, and so it was basically a random search because you didn’t really know what you were going to have to do.

Once we were finally through that, we had about thirty minutes before our flight, so we just talked and hung out. Finally, we were on our plane, with a ten hour flight to look forward to. I didn’t sleep…at all. I watched Mulan (yay for Disney) and three episodes of CSI, an episode of The Office, and a few other shows…It was a long flight. I tried sleeping, of course, but it was so uncomfortable and my body just wasn’t having it.

And thus ends my time in BA. This would be the point when I would say a few words (or paragraphs) about my time spent in the beautiful country of Argentina. But I am going to give that its own update.

Thank you all for reading! Un beso!

Dia 52, Massages and Good Byes = Bitter Sweet, 7 de agosto

2009-08-11T10:15:00.000-07:00

I woke up pretty late today, around two. Not only that, but I didn’t even feel all that great. I hadn’t slept well, even if I had slept long. I was still tired and wasn’t looking forward to having to turn in my phone today, not to mention that it’s my last full day in BA.

After having lunch and hanging out with Serri while she packed, she and I decided to go to Coto for one last grocery shopping experience. We both wanted to get dulce de leche and mate to bring back home. After that, we went to Havana where she was able to get a couple of boxes of alfajores. (In case I never mentioned it or you’ve forgotten, alfajores are one of the main desserts of Argentina. They resemble moon pies but are usually filled (relleno) with Dulce de Leche and covered with chocolate. There are also fruit ones and other flavors, but dulce de leche is the most popular. I don’t so much like them; they are just way too rich. I can handle a bite or two, but after that I am done. Elsa had bought me some mini ones, which I like much better…)

After our mini-shopping trip, I had to rush off to Expanish where I was scheduled to meet Bridget and Thomas and also turn my phone in. While I was there, I had to fill out the longest evaluation form I have ever seen for Expanish. I was tempted to just check the boxes without adding comments, but I figured that that wouldn’t help out Expanish at all. It took me around twenty minutes or more to fill out, and Bridget still hadn’t arrived. I kept my phone until the last minute and discovered that she was on her way. Today was the day that we were scheduled to get massages, and I had about a twenty minute window to get there. Apparently, the subtes were running slow, so Bridget was running later than expected. I had to send her one last text telling her I’d meet her at the massage place, and left my phone with Expanish.

I think it’s so weird how in this city if you don’t need a taxi, they are everywhere. There’s no telling how many taxis roam the streets of BA looking for passengers. However, if you need one, especially around 5:30-6:00 (which is rush hour, by the way), it is basically impossible to find an open one. I guess it makes sense since everyone is going back home and there are a great amount of people traveling, but I still can’t imagine why it’s that hard to find a taxi. I even walked to 9 de Julio (basically the busiest street in the Microcentro of BA) and I still couldn’t get one. I realized then that I should have just had Expanish call me one, but it was a little late now and I had very little time to get to my massage appointment. I guess I started to stress out a little, but soon started hoping that, since we are in a polychronic time zone (where time flows smoothly as opposed to being: appointment A, B, C, can’t be late, rush rush rush, meeting here, picking up Sue there, dropping off Ben here) that maybe me being a little late for my massage wasn’t going to be the end of the world. I finally just took my bus back to my neighborhood where I then had to walk the five blocks to get to the shop. The massage lady had decided to do a pedicure since I was late, but she was really nice and just had me wait for about ten more minutes before getting to me. I didn’t mind at all and just read (well…looked at) a magazine while I waited. Bridget didn’t make it before I went in to my massage, but I figured she would definitely get there before it was her turn.

The massage was wonderful. I thought that it was going to be just a back massage, but I soon found out it was a full body massage! The lady explained to me that she prefers them because the body is one. It’s basically not fair to just massage your back and ignore the fact that your legs, arms, stomach, head, and face, work every day too. So my one hour fully body massage was basically the high light of my day. I was so relaxed and it felt so good! She informed me afterwards that I had had quite a bit of stress in my face. I don’t really understand why I would. She tried explaining it to me in Spanish and some broken English, and the best I could get out of it was maybe that I try and fake my emotions with my face too much. So if I am feeling somewhat sad, I’ll still smile a lot so people won’t know, which causes stress in my cheeks and above my upper lip. Very interesting…especially since I don’t consciously think about it!

After the massage, Bridget was indeed there. I talked with her a little bit and we decided that she would just come over to my house (which was about three blocks away from the place) after her massage was over. So I went home and started packing. It was so sad seeing the room that I had created for myself over the last two months come apart. Pictures were coming down; the closet was becoming empty, so sad. I was surprised at how fast it was to pack though. I didn’t waste any time. I just set my mind to do it and within thirty minutes or so, my stuff that I wouldn’t be using the rest of the trip was packed. I was pretty proud of myself. Bridget showed up and was like, “Oh, it does look sad.”

She had enjoyed her massage too. Apparently, she’s stressed in her stomach and feet. Oh, the things you can learn when getting a massage. Bridget and I sat and talked for awhile. It didn’t seem like long enough because she had to leave to go home and have her last dinner with her host mom. We had to say goodbye and it was so sad because we were both trying to be light hearted and whatnot. Saying goodbye to Bridget was basically the worst goodbye I had to deal with. I spent the majority of my time in BA with her and had gotten to know her pretty well. We had become good friends in such a fast time and although she lives only a few states away from me, it’s going to be hard to try and see one another in the future. But we both want to! So we’ll see how that works.

Another side note!

To Bridget: Thank you so so so much for being my “Best Friend in Argentina”. I don’t know if you knew it, but you gave me so much confidence to just get out there and “dance”. I feel as if I might have broken out of my shell a little bit, and it was so easy to just be myself around you! I am glad we became such close friends and I feel that if, ten or twenty (or sixty!) years from now, if I happen to be in your neighborhood, I could stop by for some mate and a great conversation! I am already missing you and hope that one day we can take a road trip to see one another (*cough* Spring Break!). I hope everything is working out with you in Atlanta and I know that we’re going to keep in touch! Thank you again for everything and for just sticking with me when I was probably scared out of my mind trying new things! I’ll miss you and can’t wait to see you again!

Un-pause:

Okay, so after Bridget left *tear*, I got ready and Serri and I went out to dinner with Elsa. We took her to a place called “La Dorita”, one of the best steak restaurants in Buenos Aires. Well, I suppose there is some debate to that, as always. My dad sent me an email awhile ago about an article he read that talked about the “World’s Best Steak”. The verdict? Go to Argentina. As far as BA, there were three different restaurants on the list. One of them happened to be “La Dorita de Enfrente”. After some research I discovered that there is that one and a “La Dorita” right across the street from it. I then found out that La Dorita was the first one, and it got so popular that they had to expand, thus building the “de Enfrente” across the street. (The title makes me smile because enfrente means “in front”, and since it was right across the street…well, you get it, I hope.) Therefore, I don’t exactly know why “de Enfrente” has the best steak and “La Dorita” wouldn’t. Especially since they are owned by the same people and it seemed as if the chefs could be pretty interchangeable between the two places. The wait staff would go back and forth between the two buildings (especially once the restaurant was completely full). La Dorita wasn’t even a very large restaurant, (hence needing to expand.) The tables were so close to one another and we couldn’t figure out how the wait staff made it to the back corners. Moving on to the more important stuff…the food! It was really good. The steak (Serri and I shared bife lomo, tenderloin) was so delicious. Definitely tender and moist, all those good things you look for in a steak. We also shared a side of papa pure (mashed potatoes) and mushrooms. The mushrooms would have been so much better; except for they were covered in this wine sauce stuff. Now, I have been really patient with my wine tasting here. I always try the wine, because it is such a huge part of Argentine culture. However, after seven and a half weeks, I have only grown to dislike it more. Oh well, it’s not like wine is something we have to enjoy. At least I tried to like it! =) With that said, the mushrooms had this awkward wine taste and I just didn’t like it. So Serri got to eat them and found it strange that I couldn’t like them since the taste wasn’t that strong. Oh well. =)

After we had dinner and we were sitting at our table talking, the conversation somehow turned to…helado! (ice cream for those of you who don’t remember your Spanish vocabulary, lol). Elsa told us of this place called Persicco that has just amazing ice cream and that I had to try it before I left. Then she decided, “Why not go tonight?!” So we did! It was so much fun going with Elsa because she is normally in bed by nine or ten and it was basically midnight at this point. It was her suggestion to go and she was getting all excited about it. So we went and I must say…it was really great ice cream. I don’t know what I will do back in the US when I have to eat normal old ice cream again. Ice cream in Argentina does not fail, ever. It’s all so good! I wish I could explain better because a few people have asked me what makes it so much better. And I really don’t know! Serri decided it was definitely better than Freddo, but of course I have to stand my ground, especially when I cheat on my Argentine love. =) But it was almost a bit more expensive then Freddo, by maybe a peso or so, but still.

After having the great ice cream, we went back to our apartment. It was decently late at this point and Serri and I decided we wanted to get up “early” to try out this place that has bagels and waffles for breakfast! (It’s so unusual to find a place that serves American type breakfast…other than McDonald’s of course.) So I went to bed pretty early (before two I believe) and said my last “Good night” to Buenos Aires.

Dia 51, Last Day of Class and Last Lost, 6 de augosto

2009-08-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

Today was sadly the last class I will ever take in Buenos Aires. Sad? No, not at all. =) Our professor decided to be thirty minutes late to class, which was somewhat frustrating but in the long run he let us out on time so it spared us from having to have extra lessons after our exam. Our exam was a colloquia. He moved around the room and asked us questions. Some were flat out “this is the answer” others needed more explanation. It was somewhat frustrating at first because the first few questions he asked were easy, but others answered before I could get a word in. I don’t blame them, I blame myself for not speaking out, when I knew the answers. So of course, when it comes down to me and Adam left, the next question the profe asks, neither of us knew. We tried working around it, and it wasn’t the easiest. Towards the end of class I finally started to speak up which I suppose helped my grade a little bit. At one point they asked a question about Menem’s uno a uno plan (his economic plan making the peso equal to a dollar) and I knew the answer, and he let me write it on the board explaining the before and after. I got it write and he said, “muy bien”. Frankie was there again and he was helping us out a lot. He’d be standing behind professor Bustinduy and when he’d ask a yes or no question, Frankie would be nodding or shaking his head. It was pretty funny. Towards the end of our session, Frankie and Prof. Bustinduy got into an “argument” about being Peronista. Frankie is anti-Peronista and Bustinduy is not. Frankie started saying that Bustinduy was a Marxist, Fascist and had a tattoo of Che Guevarra on his shoulder and whatnot. They were yelling and just getting each other left and right. Luckily, I happened to have turned my camera on video and started filming it from the inside of my purse. There’s no visual, but the audio is hilarious! If anything, this was definitely the most entertaining class of the summer. I ended up getting a 7 in the class which is the equivalent of an 85. I’m pretty happy about it since the only thing our grade was based off of was the colloquia. I still don’t know what I made in my other two classes. I might try emailing the professors to ask them. If anything, I will get a transcript eventually and I’ll see it then! =)

After class Bridget came over and we hung out for awhile and got ready for the evening. Her host mom had ended up making us reservations at Delywok, the tenedor libre I mentioned yesterday. When we finally went at around nine, we were so hungry and were not disappointed! Okay, so maybe it wasn’t the best food in the world, but it was decent enough. It was like a super buffet. They had so many different things to choose from. They had a regular buffet that had all the vegetables, fruit, fish, chicken, French fries, salad, desserts, sushi, etc. Then they also had a parilla (grill) where you could order different cuts of beef. There was also an Oriental chef that would make one of ten different dishes, and a pasta chef who had about ten different types of pasta, AND a pancake station! Yes, you all read that right, a station where you could get pancakes. He makes it like a normal pancake, then puts chocolate or dulce de leche on it then folds it in half. And then he pours a liqueur over it. There were so many different flavors to choose from! Strawberry (frutilla), dulce de leche, sour apple, etc. It was wonderful! And there was ice cream to put with it! I mean, the food wasn’t the best we’ve had, but the selection and over all idea of the place was wonderful! And it was only $33 pesos, which is a little less than $11 US…totally worth it!

While we were there, Thomas decided he would be brave and try the fish head they had lying out. I took a photo right before he tried it. He decided to be even crazier and eat the EYEBALL of the fish. I don’t know why on earth I didn’t take a photo of his face after he chewed on the eye, but it was hilarious! I think that was a once in a lifetime moment for Thomas…and the first thing he said was, “Cambria, you would throw up.” So glad I decided to not go for the fish eye…or fish head for that matter. =)

After a great dinner with some great friends and conversation, Bridget and I were heading to Sugar, our favorite pre-club hang out. Eric had no plans and said he’d come with us. While we were there some creepy guy went up to Bridget and showed her a text message that said some pretty crude things, and apparently though that was enough to get her to leave the bar with him. One of the things I love about Bridget is that she isn’t afraid to speak her mind. So she looked up at him after reading the message and said, “Do you speak English?” He said yes and she said, “That is so lame! That’s not how you pick up a girl!” Needless to say, his lame tactics didn’t work and he left alone. Another Bridget moment happened in a club about a week ago when some guy came up and said, “What’s your name, baby?” She replied with, “It’s not Baby!” I admire her no-nonsense attitude when it comes to guys. Be real or back off. It’s great! Oh the things I learn from her! =)

We left Sugar and headed over to… Lost! It’s our last Thursday so of course we had to go back to our favorite Thursday night boliche! Since we got in last week after saying a random pass word, we thought we’d try it again this week. I mean, it wouldn’t hurt to at least try to get in for free and save 25 pesos. So Eric walks up, says a random website name as a list and she let us in! I was so happy that we didn’t have to pay again. You would think that they would change the password every week or something, but maybe they are betting on guests who are just American and won’t be back the next week? I don’t know, but it worked for us and we were in. There wasn’t anything too much different from the previous weeks. We danced and had a great time. I didn’t have to ward off as many guys this week, and I guess it’s because Eric was a part of our group. Guys are a lot less likely to mess with you if you have a guy friend with you, so that was good!

As usual, I got home around six and went to bed! Another late, crazy night in BA. Oh the days…how they are dwindling so fast. Just one more full day before having to go home!

Chao for now! Un beso!

Dia 50! La Fantasma De La Opera, 5 de agosto

2009-08-06T08:24:00.000-07:00

Today marks my fiftieth day in Argentina. I can barely believe it. As this time has gone by I have felt like it’s been such a long time, but as I think, “Wow, only a few days left,” I think that it’s gone by way too fast. A huge part of me is ready to go home, but at the same time, I am leaving so much here and I can’t believe I have to leave already. But I think me wanting home and my family and friends is the larger part of how I feel. I know that I really could survive living in a large city like this if I ever need to, but I also know that I prefer the small, car driving, town atmosphere. =)

Anyways… today also marked the end of my Spanish classes. We got our tests back from Monday and even though I didn’t do as good as I would have liked, compared to the first test we had in there, I’ve improved quite a bit. I even understand the subjunctive now! (Well, at least I feel as if I do). We had an oral exam today, and I feel pretty good about that as well. I even used the perfect and pluperfect tenses in my speech (which…to most of you that means nothing, but to those of us who have been studying Spanish for what seems like forever and can’t believe how hard it still is…that’s quite a feat. Lol).

After my Spanish class, we had a mini-break and then had our Culture class. However, our professor wasn’t able to make it. Apparently, he was taking the train and someone jumped onto the tracks! So of course, the train stopped and there was all sorts of chaos and what not. So he wasn’t able to make the class, however, his helper (who I guess is like a student teacher somewhat?) was there and we talked about the government of Argentina from 1983 up until 2003 when Kirchner became president. As most of you know/don’t know…(ha), in 2001 Argentina went through a huge economic crisis. The current president was thrown out and in the course of nine days, Argentina had five different presidents, yeah…five! One of them (Camagno) resigned after 22 hours and 30 minutes. I found that pretty interesting and amusing. It was probably my first class that I really enjoyed (apart from the Spanish class). Frankie (the teacher for the night) wrote on the board a lot and as he went through the history it was basically like a timeline and there were points and everything. It was so easy to follow! We have our final exam tomorrow and it’s going to be an oral exam over everything we’ve talked about. I don’t know how I feel about it all, mainly because there’s so much information! We won’t be allowed to use our notes either, and let’s just be honest; I haven’t been going home and studying my notes after class. =) Hopefully I’ll get to talk about what we learned in class today, I’m pretty confident about that! We’ll see…

After class, Thomas, Adam and I headed to the subway (which was a wonderful 12 blocks away…not fun, lol). It was the “easiest” way (that we knew of) to get to the Centro (Microcentro Barrio... like the “center” of Buenos Aires Capital Federal). Adam went on home, but Thomas and I walked around Lavalle Street (it’s a street like Florida; it’s for people only, no cars). We got dinner (pancho!) and wasted time until it was time to go see “La Fantasma De La Opera”! Oh, and we stopped at an heladeria (ice cream shop)…no, not Freddo. I can’t even remember the name, but the ice cream was more like…frozen yogurt I guess. It was good, and cheaper than Freddo (please don’t tell him that I cheated on him again! Ha), and the texture was like…that in between ice cream…and melted ice cream, lol. I liked it, but of course it wasn’t Freddo. I am glad that I am attempting to open my horizons in the world of heladerias though. =)

Finally, it was time to go to the teatro! Sure enough, the teatro was called “Teatro Opera” which was so fitting since it was showing Fantasma. We were somehow lucky enough to get seats on the planta baja (bottom floor) and although we were pretty far in the back, we could still see everything just fine. They were really great seats! The second the music started playing, my heart was in such a happy place. Every time I see a show, I am reminded why I love theatre. It’s such a magical thing, and you can disappear from the real world for a couple of hours and be sucked into whatever world you happen to be going to. The music was wonderful and even though it was difficult to understand, the music was the same and I know the story line, so I could still follow it. I got the parts that were somewhat funny and I was definitely able to enjoy it. It was a lot like the Phantom in London, the scenes were all a lot a like, so a lot of the spectacle of it wasn’t a surprise to me as it was to Thomas; however, it didn’t stop me from enjoying it. Of course, now I have the songs stuck in my head and I keep asking myself, how on earth have I not gotten the soundtrack yet? It’s on my list of things to do…

One thing I thought was weird was that they were letting people take photos of the stage before it started. I mean, it wasn’t that interesting of a set before the start of the show, but still. I was shocked because that’s such a big no no in the states and well, every theatre I’ve ever been to. I will admit I took a photo…I mean, why not? They were allowing it! =) And they allowed food and drink into the theatre as well, which is common in London so I wasn’t as thrown off by that.

We got out around eleven and then just went on our separate ways. Now I am back at home waiting on Serri to be finished with the net so I can add this update! I can’t believe I am going to be home in just a few days. We are trying to get everything figured out here…the taxi to the airport and turning in our cell phones (which we have to do by Friday afternoon, meaning Friday night is going to be difficult, what with trying to get a hold of people to go out and party for our last night in BA! Ha ha).

I suppose that’s all I have to say for the day. Tomorrow is my last day of classes here, and tomorrow night Bridget has planned a dinner at a place that’s a tenedor libre (a buffet, literally: free fork) that she’s wanted to go to for awhile. After that we are probably going back to Lost for our last Thursday night of boliches! =)

Chao for now! Un beso!

Dia 49: Last Day of Politics Leads to a Freddo Extravaganza! 4 de agosto

2009-08-05T07:27:00.000-07:00

If I didn’t enjoy writing about myself and my life so much, I would say, “Well, if you read the title of this blog, you know about my day.” And I could leave it at that…but lucky for all of you, I do enjoy writing about myself, and that’s what I am going to do for you all again today. =)

I woke up…on my own, around 10:15 (fifteen minutes before my alarm, someone be proud of me) and had my usual breakfast/shower routine. I got ready for class, got online and was able to talk to Amanda and Cody on Facebook chat, which was great because I haven’t gotten to talk to either of them in a long while. Yay for friends! =)

I headed off to class…which just happened to be the class that would end my career as a Politics student. No, not sad at all. =) And class wasn’t that bad either. He talked a lot; Alex asked a lot of questions…it was long, as usual, but not too worrying. We had all done our papers and sent him the email with our papers in it, luckily he hadn’t gotten them yet, so we didn’t have to discuss them in class! At the very end he asked us our opinions of the course. I tried as best I could to explain how it was difficult for me because it was easy to understand a lot of the words, but I would get lost trying to know the concepts of a lot of things. I told him that, although the readings were difficult, I liked them because it gave me something visual to be able to focus on instead of trying to grasp everything just by listening.

As a class, we finished off my peanut butter, and the professor had a few crackers with the PB on them…hopefully he’ll always be able to connect peanut butter to our class, and even if he remembers me as the student who doesn’t enjoy politics and hated the class…at least I introduced peanut butter to him. =) He also let us take a group photo with him after class, so everyone will be able to see the infamous Professor Carlos Piedra Buena (Carlos Good Rock…if you were wondering).

After class…we went and did possibly the best thing we could have done to celebrate the end of Politics class…had Freddo. (And, now that I think of it…no one even mentioned celebrating the end of the class…I think that’s just how my subconscious connected the two, lol). However, we didn’t just have any Freddo experience…as I said in my title, this was an EXTRAVAGANZA! Okay, maybe not this exciting, but we got the big one…the KILO. Now, at this Freddo, they said you could only get four flavors, which was pretty disappointing to us all, but still, we were getting the biggest amount of Freddo ice cream one can get (well, in one container)! The four flavors we got were: Dulce de Leche with Brownie, Tramontana, Chocolate Suizo, and Sombayon (the wine flavored one that I don’t really like…that one was for Thomas and Derek). Oh yeah, Derek and Gerald joined us for this little party. It’s only fitting that Derek (who is almost as obsessed with Freddo as I am…almost) be there for this event. Since there were about 7 of us eating it…it went by pretty fast, and even though it didn’t feel like I ate a kilo of ice cream (well, because I alone did not), it was still enough ice cream to last me for…a day or two. I hope it wasn’t my last Freddo experience. I am now starting to wonder if there is a Freddo in the airport so I can have it right before I leave…hmm. =)

Side note:

After we ate Derek and Gerald had to run to a dance class. And we kind of realized that tonight was quite possibly the last time we’d see each other. They are trying to plan a trip to Iguazu this weekend, so they’d be out of town. It was a semi-sad moment as we all said goodbye. It’s hard making new friends and then having to say goodbye so soon. But I suppose that’s life… we can be thankful for Facebook and being able to stay in touch if we really want to! But to Derek and Gerald (and Greggory, Victoria, Meghan, Ricardo…), thank you for being a part of my Buenos Aires experience. I realize that I barely know you all, but I think that if I were to call any of you right now and said I needed you to come over, you would do it…at least while we are here in BA and it’s physically possible! I enjoyed dancing with you guys (Ricardo, thank you for being my first Tango in Argentina!), playing games with you (um, I still can’t believe I found other people who know the game “Settlers…”), making forts with some of you, acting ridiculously awkward around the apartment, having really great late nights *cough*, and just getting to know you. You definitely helped my time in BA be even better and I will not soon forget any of you! Maybe we’ll all see each other again some day (imagine?... Derek). =)

Moving along…after we said our goodbyes those two left and me, Bridget, Thomas, and Adam walked around the mall for awhile. Thomas and Adam discovered an art museum above the mall, so we went and checked it out. They were even giving away free wine and soda (I had sprite, in case you were curious). We don’t know who the artists were, if they were from the community or world known, but there were four different rooms with different kinds of art: sculptures, photos, paintings, etc. It was interesting, but we weren’t there long enough for me to really have anything more exciting to say about it.

We went our separate ways after leaving the mall and I went home and had dinner with Serri who had been at Iguazú the past few days. We got all caught up with our stories and shared another hour of meaningless television that is now our guilty pleasure in the evenings when we don’t want to go out. Now it’s almost midnight and I am updating thinking I might be going to bed early tonight…woo.

Tomorrow will be my last day of Spanish class…and tomorrow night, Thomas and I are going to see “La Fantasma de la Opera!” We’re pretty excited about it…I mean, it’s Phantom of the Opera, and so we both know the story… and though it’s in Spanish, we will at least be able to know the basic plot! Plus…we get to see a theatre show while here, which we’ve both really wanted to do!

So, goodnight to all! I love you! Un beso!

Dia 48: Tired, Class, Lazy Evening. =) 3 de agosto

2009-08-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

I woke up around nine after barely sleeping all night on their couch. I went back to my apartment and took a shower. I still had a few hours before I had to go to class, so I tried taking a nap. Around noon, Elsa had company, three of her granddaughters who are all under the age of ten. Let’s just say, the house wasn’t very quiet for someone trying to take a nap. I got up and had my breakfast and headed off to class. I met Bridget on the bus (which was really lucky being able to catch the exact bus she was on. We’re pros at the bus system now! Ha ha).

In our Spanish class we had our “terrible examen” (said our professor). It didn’t really seem that difficult. It only took most of us about thirty minutes to finish, and the rest of the time I laid my head down and rested my eyes before we started talking about our class on Wednesday. The oral part of our exam is then and she gave us the opportunity to practice, or at least discuss what we are thinking about talking about. As far as I can tell, we are going to be given five minutes to just talk…about whatever we want, which is surprisingly more difficult to me then being given a specific topic, lol. I think I might talk about the things I will and won’t miss about Buenos Aires…Thomas gave me the idea and I have a lot of things I could throw into those categories, so if I do, I’ll share with you later!

After our Spanish class we had a thirty minute break before our next class. Yes, we’re still making up all the culture classes we missed, so we had to add two hours of class to our class (which we have to do again on Wednesday). I’ve been enjoying this class, but today it was just so hard to pay attention. I was way tired and had a slight head ache and he started talking about Argentine politics (which are obviously a part of culture), but I couldn’t handle it. I was never so happy to get out of a class (well…other than the politics class…they run close together, lol).

After class, Bridget and I had been planning on going to La Bomba again. It’s our last chance and we were so determined to go…but Bridget has been fighting off a cold and I was so tired…so we decided that we could miss it. I mean, I’ve already gone twice and had two great times, I couldn’t really ask for another time to be better…plus that’s twenty pesos I didn’t have to spend, so that’s another good way to look at it. We went back to my place and hung out for awhile. After she left I just sat around and worked on updates that I was finally able to post. I also posted for photos on Facebook for those of you who are interested.

And…that’s really all of my day. I know, not very exciting…and nothing else to really share. I can’t believe I have less than a week before I go home…how crazy! I have this crazy mixture of emotions…happy and sad being the main ones, lol. I miss my friends and family like crazy, but I am definitely going to miss the relaxed, laid back life of BA. I am going to have to go back to work and responsibility and…life, lol. Here, I can basically ignore the fact that my bank account is dwindling and that I have a life where I do my own laundry and make my own breakfast and my own bed! Ha ha…but I’m sure I’ll adjust back pretty well…or else my parents will make sure that I do! =)

Sigh…goodbye for now. More updates to come! (How crazy that there’s only five more BA updates left for you guys to read…please stop rejoicing those of you in the back, you know you’ll miss me!)

As always, un beso!

Dia 47: Church y Tigre otra vez! 2 de agosto

2009-08-03T20:28:00.000-07:00

Well, I woke up bright and early this morning (9AM!) and headed off to church with Thomas. The church was pretty easy to find and I am glad Thomas had been there before to understand what was going on. We got there a little late (which is completely normal here…people were walking in up to twenty minutes after we were) and they were already singing songs. The room itself looked like any church could have looked. It wasn’t necessarily “church-y” looking, more like an old gymnasium turned into a church, and really nice too.

We stood and sang hymns. Luckily, they put the words on a screen, or I would have been lost the entire time! There was a band and a choir along with a few people having their own microphones and singing. At first we sang a few songs I couldn’t recognize by tune, but I understood quite a few of the words, and the songs were catchy so it was easy to sing a long to. It hit me pretty early in the service how great it is that there are people here, in South America, going to their church on Sunday, singing their hymns in their own language, and God still understands every word! God was there in their worship service, and was in my church back at home, listening to His people worship Him in multiple languages, understanding everything that was being sung and spoken. Also, there was also sign language going on in the church as well, but Spanish Sign Language which is different from American Sign Language, so it’s yet another language that God was still blessing.

Then…they started playing the song “Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)” by Chris Tomlin. Of course, it was in Spanish, but I recognized the tune and it was just one of those…way cool moments. I had another one of those when they played “The Happy Song”… I don’t really know if that’s the name, but it goes, “I could sing unending songs of how you saved my soul…” I haven’t heard that song in I don’t know how long, and it was so fun to try and sing in Spanish since the beat is really fast.

We got to take part in the Lord’s Supper as well. It wasn’t even that different from how we do it back home. They passed out the bread and said a prayer and we ate, and repeated with the “wine” (which was apple juice). After the Lord’s Supper, a speaker came up and I thought he was preaching the sermon, but then soon realized that he was just giving an update on how their new building was coming along! That’s right, this church is in the process of building a new worship center and I thought that pretty cool since my church back at home just finished our new Sunday school building. So I was used to hearing about the reports and thought, “wow, home.” After he spoke, they passed out bricks to everyone with a sticker on it…in Spanish, and I don’t know the words (I don’t have the brick with me right now, or else I would go ahead and put them in Spanish for you) but I am pretty sure it had to do with remembering to pray for their church building project and thanking God for how faithful He is.

After that they had the offering and then the leader of the Baptist Convention of Argentina came to speak. He spoke about the story of Jesus healing the blind man in Juan 9:1-7. He spoke really really fast and was quite a character. I could barely understand anything and sadly, the service had lasted so long that we had to leave a little early. Thomas had told me that the service was over around noon-ish, which is what I had been planning on. You see, today we planned another trip to Tigre and had to meet Bridget, Derek, Greggory and Victoria at two at the Retiro Station. I also had to make a trip to the San Telmo Feria (market) in search of an alpaca sweater…so we had to leave by 12:45 in hopes of making it.

The San Telmo market is only open on Sundays and as far as I know it is the largest market in Buenos Aires. It might as well be because it goes on forever it seems like. Now, I guess I haven’t mentioned it already but ever since Serri and Ivana got ugly alpaca sweaters (and told me that I had to have one) I’ve wanted one! They found really cheap ones at the San Telmo market, and even though I found some at other markets, they were more expensive, so I was determined to find one at San Telmo. And sure enough…after walking around in the wonderfully warm sun (with my red jacket on…hot) I finally found the table in front of the yellow gate/wall that was selling all kinds of alpaca sweaters! The cheapest ones we’ve found too! After trying a few on, I finally settled for this orange one, with black and purple. It’s…well, ugly, but that’s the point right? Everyone should get an ugly alpaca sweater while in Buenos Aires…that’s my advice to all! And they aren’t scratchy, and they are warm! So it’s a good investment for being ugly cool! =)

After buying my sweater, we headed to the train station and met up with the others and headed to Tigre. Bridget had wanted to go back and I really wanted to just go out and do something. I didn’t feel like just sitting around…there’s not enough time left in this trip to do nothing! Derek and them hadn’t been yet, so we invited them to come with us. The trip was fun enough. We got to walk through more of the Puerto de Frutas (the HUGE market…where I saw maybe two fruit vendors, lol) this time. We didn’t end up walking to the other side of the city, so that made the walking not as bad! I didn’t buy anything while I was there, so I am pretty proud about that! =)

After a few hours we decided to head back, although the majority of us were tired Derek, Victoria, Gregg and I decided to go back to their apartment and play some games. Gerald met us there and we began playing some card games. After awhile, it was discovered that Gerald had never made a fort when he was a kid, no blankets over chairs or anything like that! The rest of us were so thrown off that we decided to make a fort right there in the living room! So we finished our game and then commenced the creation of our majestic fort. It was quite the fort…let me tell you. Two sheets, a blanket, some string (which, now that I think of it…where did the string come from?), my brick I had gotten earlier in the day, and a lot of safety pins. It was beautiful. Photos will be up shortly. We laid down some pillows and the mattress from the trundle bed and began another game. It was a fun night, getting to learn new things about new and old friends and just hanging out. As usual, I have no idea what time we all crashed, but we eventually did some time in the middle of the night…early morning. =)

And that was my very long and tiring, yet wonderful and fun, Sunday. =)

Dia 46: The day I kicked souvenir shopping in the butt. 1 de agosto

2009-08-03T20:26:00.000-07:00

Well, today was the first day I woke up on my own. No noises in the kitchen woke me up, the maid did not wake me up…I just naturally woke up a little after noon. While some people consider that getting up so late wastes the day, I think that as long as I am staying out and enjoying the BA evenings, that it’s an even exchange. =)

Thomas sent me a text asking if I was doing anything, and he agreed to go souvenir shopping with me, even though he’s already finished his shopping…what a grand friend. =) I met him at Village Recoleta where he was having lunch and then we headed down to La Boca. This was at least Thomas’ third time going and my second. By the time our bus got to La Boca it was around four o’clock and we spent the next couple of hours shopping and browsing…it was a pretty good day.

I was amazed at how easy it was to find a lot of things that I had been looking for the past few weeks. The “stress” of searching for certain souvenirs is now gone, so that’s good. I still have just a few things I need to get (dulce de leche!), but other than that, I am basically done with shopping! I am just hoping that everything fits in my suitcase. =)

As we walked down the streets of La Boca, I couldn’t help but think that I don’t believe I would ever get used to the employees of this city. There are so many people that just stand outside restaurants and either try and get you to go in or try to give you fliers. Most of them are pretty insistent too. And when you’re a person who doesn’t enjoy ignoring people, it’s really hard to keep walking. But if you stop, they basically try and move you to get you to go into their store/restaurant. And they try to lure you in by saying things like, “Oh, new friend!” “Hello beautiful!” “Oh lady, rubia (blonde)! Come here!” It’s so funny…but I have had to just keep walking. Sometimes I say, “No gracias” and look straight ahead. Sometimes I just keep walking as if no one is talking to me…it seems rude to just ignore them, but sometimes it’s the only way to get away without a flier or eating somewhere when you’re not even hungry! I mean, I guess its okay when you like attention (which I do! Lol), but sometimes it can get old, especially when you are in as crowded a place as La Boca.

After our shopping, we went our separate ways. I went back home and hung out with Serri for awhile. She ended up leaving for awhile, so I took the internet and had this crazy urge to watch old Nickelodeon shows on YouTube. I spent about an hour and a half watching Clarissa Explains it All, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and Doug. It was a pretty great evening. =)

I was pretty tired, and was determined to go to church with Thomas in the morning (Elsa wasn’t planning on going again). So I went to bed really early for BA (around 1:30) and had another good night’s sleep!

Dia 45, Class, Therefore I reward myself with a movie! 31 de julio

2009-08-03T16:58:00.000-07:00

Well, since the program decided to finally make up our Culture classes that we’ve been missing, I had to go to school today, which wasn’t the most fun thing to do considering the fact that I was out so late. But what are you going to do about it? That’s right…I sucked it up and went to class, and sat through another long Guillermo Bustinduy culture class. At least he’s an interesting professor, or I don’t think I’d be able to handle it.

Seeing as how I am typing this up a few days after the fact, I can’t exactly remember what all I did on Friday…I know I went home at some point after class and Serri and I watched some more lame television shows on her computer. But at least they keep us entertained right?

After she left to go have dinner with her program, Bridget and I tried to make it to the 10:45 showing of Public Enemies at the cine close to my house. Sadly, the buses were running slow, like they do, and Bridget and I weren’t able to make it on time, so we went ahead and bought a ticket to the next showing, which just happened to be at 12:50…am. Lol… the cine is the same one I went to with Serri on Wednesday, and its right next to the Recoleta Cemetery. Across from the cemetery there are restaurants, bars, boliches, and of course…a Freddo. So of course Bridget and I decided to spend some time there. As we were walking there, we passed this boliche called Sahara and there was a worker standing outside in safari-like garb. He had the safari hat and the brown shirt and pants. It was pretty funny. He started talking to us, trying to convince us to go to his boliche. Within two seconds of talking to him he told me that he loved me and tried dancing tango with me. Bridget and I were laughing so hard. After awhile he moved on to her and told her he loved her as well. Although I guess we could have assumed he was creepy, he was really funny and was just having a fun time, since it was apparently his job to get people to go into their bar. We had other plans, and left him after some talk and some more “dancing”, but it was a great start to our evening.

Next up was Freddo where we split a large triple flavored ice cream. We got frutilla (strawberry), dulce de leche con brownie, and chocolate suizo (my new favorite). And as always, it was wonderfully delicious. We sat outside for awhile before getting too cold, then we moved inside and Bridget read from the book that my host mom gave me. It’s called “Hide this Spanish Book” and has all sorts of street slang that is used in many Latin American countries. It’s not “proper” grammar so there’s a warning to keep it away from Spanish teachers, lol. It’s pretty funny and Bridget had a good time reading out loud from it.

We had a little over an hour to kill after Freddo, so we went back to my house (which is about four blocks, not too bad) and watched YouTube videos and just hung out until it was time for the movie. The movie was really good…and really long. Well, maybe almost two and a half hours isn’t long for movies anymore, but that late at night…it definitely was! I still enjoyed it. We got out a little after three and I waited with Bridget at her bus stop before walking the couple blocks back home. And then…bed early again! I went to sleep around 4:00… ending a basically wonderful day! =)

More later…un beso!

Dia 44, Put on your Dancing Shoes, 30 de julio

2009-07-31T17:18:00.000-07:00

Well, today…was a long day. I don’t even know how else to put it, but I suppose that when you are awake from 10 am to 5 am, well…long is a good way to describe it. =)

I woke up at nine o’clock because Expanish had finally decided to get a tour together for our class. In our syllabus we had for our politics class (and our culture one for that matter) we were supposed to go on various “field trips” to museums and other buildings around town. The first couple of weeks we asked about them and they kept getting “scheduled” but nothing ever became official, so we basically just forgot about it. Earlier this week we received an email saying that they had scheduled a tour and we were meeting at 10am today. So that’s what we did.

It was nice being in a tour with only five of us, and it was much easier to hear our guide (Nacho!...short for Ignacio) tell us all the stories. We met at Plaza de San Martín and he told us about the history of the place and some buildings around it. (Don’t ask me to repeat any of it for you, lol). Our first stop after that was Palacio Paz. I always thought that it meant “Peace Palace”, but I found out today that it is a palace that was built by the Paz family. (So their name means peace, lol.) It was…gorgeous. From what I remember, the man (um…Señor Paz, I don’t remember his name) built it in the early 1900s in hopes of becoming president of Argentina. I guess he thought that if he built a beautiful building it would help his chances? I don’t know exactly, but it mimics the Versailles Palace in France. We got to walk through it and at first our guide took us to a small ante-salon, which went into a larger salon, where people could have banquets and dances and what not. After that, we walked into a hallway and a dining room. Then, we went into what could have been a “den” if it were a normal house. It had a huge fireplace…looked almost homey minus the fact that we were in a palace. =)

After that, we walked around some more. She showed us a few more rooms before we walked into…the grand ballroom! I definitely wasn’t expecting it, so it was quite a surprise. Every room we had been in had been beautiful, but of course, this beat them all. It was a circular room with a great ceiling and a balcony and I can’t remember the last time I wanted to wear a ball gown and heels that badly! I took photos (well, Thomas took a lot of them. He lost his camera…not good…so I let him take photos with my camera, which was nice not having to worry about taking the right photos) so they’ll be on Facebook soon…hopefully. Lol

After our tour of the Palace, we went to Plaza De Mayo, where I’ve been plenty of times before. We went to the Cabildo museum, which told some history about the Revolt in 1810…or something like that. There were artifacts from the old days and what not…like a museum normally has. Obviously it wasn’t anything that amazed me since I have no more to say about it, lol.

We continued to a cathedral that was in Plaza de Mayo. I don’t know the name of the cathedral, and didn’t really understand why it was so interesting (other than the fact that it was a cathedral, so of course it was beautiful inside, lol) until we discovered that it’s where the remains of General San Martín are kept. It’s a really high crypt (I don’t know if that’s the proper word you use or not, but I used it just the same) and there are actually two guards at the door. They were dressed all fancy like and had swords. I took a photo. =)

After the cathedral, we headed towards our school which was quite a walk. On our way there we stopped at the Evita museum which is held in a random building…it turns out, it wasn’t really that random, because I guess it was where she worked when she was alive…maybe? Something like that…but there were no signs outside that I noticed saying, “Come see the exhibit!” and it wasn’t very big…so I guess it’s not the Evita museum…maybe just a Evita museum. Hmmm…

Then, we were starving by this point (none of us had eaten since before ten and it was two o’clock). We were late to class as well, but since it wasn’t our fault, we all decided to stop and get food anyways. =) We arrived in class about fifteen minutes late, but our professor was really cool about it. It was our first time back in our cultural class and I was pretty excited about it. However, I didn’t factor in how tired I would be from the four hours of walking we did just before. It was so hard to stay awake! But, when he finally gave us a break, he didn’t show back up in the class for about an hour, so that was a great break to have. But then he kept us over about twenty minutes, which, long break or not, doesn’t make any student happy. The class itself was good though, and I was able to follow along and understand most of it. He enunciates his words so much better than the Politics professor and he speaks a lot slower, so apparently that makes a lot of difference! =)

After class, Thomas and I walked down near the Recoleta Cemetery. Next to it is a ticket booth that sells tickets to various shows and museums around the city…and we got tickets to: “La Fantasma De La Opera!” We’ve been wanting to see a show here since we arrived, but any show in Spanish is going to be difficult to understand, and since we both know the story line to Phantom, we figured it would be the best bet. We are going to see it next Wednesday night!

After that we went back to my place and I let Thomas finish off the gnocchi I had brought home last night. He had never had them before, and he liked him. So yay for good gnocchi experiences! =) After he left I had been planning on taking a nap before going out with Bridget to Club Lost again. (That’s the same place we went to last week where we had so much fun!) I ended up talking to Derek who has been getting sick, so I went over to his place and took him some medicine. (Yeah, no naps for me! Lol). My mom packed a pharmacy for me to bring over here, so I was able to give him something. Obviously, since he wasn’t feeling well, he didn’t go out dancing with us. We met up with some of our other friends and went out. Somehow, someone remembered the name of a website to mention at the door and so we were on “the list”. This means…I didn’t have to pay to get into the club, which was pretty exciting. I mean, can’t you just imagine how it feels to walk up to the lady with the clip board and say, “I’m on this list…here’s my name, here’s five of my friends.” And she said, “Okay, go in.” Oh yes, it was quite nice, lol.

Once inside, we got to coat check and then hit the dance floor! I didn’t dance for nearly as long this week, maybe two hours, if that. I got tired pretty early though and I took a cab home around 4:30. =) I don’t know if I would ever get used to saying that I have been staying out that late. I mean, here it is apparently normal and my host mom doesn’t think anything of it…but I think that even if I were to stay here longer, I would still not be able to get over it. It’s too much fun…although, I am pretty tired. It’s okay though! Just one more week and I’ll be heading home to normal time! =)

And that’s all for today. I hope you are all doing well! I love you and miss you! Un beso!

Dia 43, "Uno, Dos, Tres?!" 29 de julio

2009-07-31T17:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in updates! I suppose I have been busy, although it doesn’t feel like it. Today, I went to Spanish class where we reviewed for our test on Monday. She kept saying, “El horrible examen.” But then she would laugh, so I am assuming the test isn’t going to be too bad. I know what I need to be studying, so that’s good enough I suppose.

After class Bridget and I decided to get some empanadas (she ended up getting a tarta… torte…almost quiche-like?) and afterwards we went and made an appointment to get massages a week from Friday! We’re pretty excited about this. They are so cheap here, plus, it’ll be great to get the day before we leave. It’s sad to think about how close that day is…so I won’t. Moving along…

I went home after that and Serri and I randomly decided to go see Harry Potter. It’s playing at a theater close to where we live, so we were able to walk over there. Before the movie, we went to my love, Freddo. I discovered that at this Freddo, they have chocolate suizo as well…that’s the flavor I got at Munchi’s a few nights ago. Well, I got it…and it was…wonderful. I mean, it blew Muchi’s out of the water. Poor Freddo, how did I ever doubt our love!? =) I even think it might even be my new favorite flavor, lol. I just don’t know what I am going to do without Freddo in my life once I leave. =)

After Freddo we went to the cine (theater). This cine (which is in the Village Recoleta shopping center) is one of the nicest ones I have ever seen. It’s three stories and has about 20ish theaters. On Wednesday, they show movies for only 15 pesos, which is a little less than $5 US. And it was totally worth it! We had to wait in a line and when we got tickets the lady was, of course, speaking in Spanish somewhat fast and I couldn’t understand her. So she pulled out a seating chart and so we figured out that she was asking us where to sit. She pointed to three different places, and they were all within the first two rows of the theater and they looked as if they weren’t even next to each other. So I was trying to tell her that we didn’t care, but she got frustrated and was like, “Uno, dos, tres?” and kept saying it and pointing to the three spots. So I finally had to say, “Dos.” Then she looked at me and said, (translated) “Here? The screen is right there (points to the where the screen is).” I had chosen the second row in the middle. The other was the first row middle, or the second row over on the side…it’s not like I had any other better options….sigh. We finally got our tickets and continued on our movie cine adventure!

Our theater was downstairs and it was really crowded (obviously since we only had a limited choice of seating). The movie was really good. I realized afterwards that I hadn’t seen the fifth Harry Potter with Kelsey yet (he and I have been working our way through all of them)…but I wasn’t too confused about anything. Over all it was fun to watch, even if it was a couple hours long.

After the movie we went to eat dinner at a local restaurant. Serri’s friend Ivanna meet up with us there and we all had a plate of gnocchi (spelled ñoqui here). It’s a pasta dish, made with potatoes. It’s not my favorite, but I think I might have mentioned last month that it’s an Argentine tradition to eat gnocchi on the 29^th of every month to celebrate having money. When someone starts hosting gnocchi parties, it’s traditional for the dinner guests to put money under their plate, and the host is then supposed to use that money to buy the gnocchi for the next month. Elsa made it for me last month, but she wasn’t able to this month, therefore, we went out and got some, to keep up with tradition! I don’t know if gnocchi is something I want to keep eating though. It’s good…but almost too much gooey pasta (I know, I can’t believe I said it either!) But it is fun to have traditions!

After dinner…we went back home…and that was my day. Again, not a very exciting one, but at least I am enjoying my time and keeping busy! I have a long day planned tomorrow, so I will update about it shortly!

Un beso!

Dia 42, La Era de Hielo, 28 de julio

2009-07-28T22:54:00.001-07:00

Well, I woke up this morning to not the happiest thing in the world. Apparently, our maid is back and she started mixing…something…in the kitchen this morning, before nine o’clock. Then, to make matters worse, she went to the back room (which is right next to my room, open window and everything) and started doing laundry…and then Elsa came back there and they started having a conversation. I started thinking: Here’s something to tell everyone. When Argentines speak to each other, they aren’t quiet. Maybe they are on a bus, or in a restaurant, but generally…they speak loudly. Elsa does when she’s on the phone or when someone is over. Our doorman does, our maid does…it’s just a normal thing apparently. It never bothered me up until nine o’clock this morning when they decided to have a great conversation standing right outside my door. And whatever she was doing in the kitchen…I hope it never happens again, what a horrible noise!

However, I got past that. Apparently, it’s really hard to just have a bad day here. It’s as if my body is subconsciously telling me that I am in Argentina…no time to be grumpy and have bad days! =) So I moved on to school…and everyone, it’s Tuesday. If you’ve been paying really good attention, Tuesdays are: Politics Days! Luckily, today wasn’t too bad. Although I still barely understood anything, I was able to occupy my time with day dreaming about the weekend and all the fun things we might be able to do – I mean… I was concentrating hard on what he was saying with hopes of understanding a phrase or two. *cough* =) Although, there was one point during class, when he was trying to explain a verb to us, and none of us were getting it. He kept saying, “herir”, but of course, in Spanish, the “h” is never pronounced, so to us, we are hearing “erir”, which isn’t a well-known word if it is one. When we finally asked for the spelling he said the “h” and he was making this cutting motion on his arm. I said, “Oh, como una herida?” Which is, “Oh, like a cut/wound?” and he smiled and said, “Exacto, muy bien.” Herir – to wound. Now we’ve all learned something…and I was so proud of myself for picking up on the word! So see? I am learning something, well, paying attention half of the time.

We also found out today in an email that, all of the field trips we were supposed to have been going on throughout this trip, were finally rescheduled. So, this Thursday, we are meeting at 10am, AH!!!) and visiting multiple historical things around the city. The tour lasts about four hours, and then we have to go back to school where we will begin a four hour class. Sigh…it’s going to be so tiring, especially since Thursday night is when we are going back to Lost, the boliche that plays the best music! Sadly enough, Expanish also finally got our classes rescheduled as well. As you might remember, our Culture professor was sick and we missed class because of a holiday. So to make up for it, we have class this Friday (again, with lost on Thursday night…this will be interesting) and we also have an extra two hours next Monday and Wednesday. So, starting Thursday, the rest of my class days (6) will be four hours long…that’s definitely how I wanted to spend my last week in BA. Sigh…but oh well, it’s good since we’re going to actually earn the credit for it. I just wonder about how we’re going to be graded in the Culture class, fitting so many classes together, I really hope he doesn’t throw a paper on us. No me gustan trabajos monigraficos… (Research papers…sigh).

Anyways…after class I went with Thomas to his house. His host mom reads his blogs and noticed that he and I hang out a lot, so she invited me to dinner. Interestingly enough, however, she wasn’t there because she had gotten tickets to a theatre. So I didn’t get to meet her, but I did get to meet her son and daughter a couple of other girls from the states. Dinner was good, it was called Izo (hizo?) and was basically a stew with meat and lentils and other vegetables. I love how stew just makes vegetables easier to eat. =) I had a good time and we were there for awhile. We did finish our homework for Spanish class tomorrow, so that’s good!

Then, as a random thought I suggested that we go to the movies, so Thomas and I decided on Ice Age Three…the only problem was, was that it wasn’t in Spanish subtitles anywhere close. So, we decided to be brave (crazy?) and opted for the Castellano viewing!

- Now that I think of it, I don’t know if I’ve ever talked about “Castellano” or not… so I will now. If I have before, well, here’s a review. Here, the Argentines don’t say “español” (well, most of them anyways). Since Argentine Spanish is so different from other kinds of Spanish, it has its own name…Castellano. And…there you go. It wasn’t a long explanation at all, probably didn’t even need one, lol.

So, I ordered a ticket and the lady looked at me like I was crazy and said, “Es solamente en Español.” (See what I mean, some people actually say Spanish, although…I think that’s the first I’ve heard it said apart from classes.) I was like, “Yo sé. Está bien.” (I know, its okay.) So we went and watched it…and I must say that if you have to watch a movie in a language you aren’t fluent in, a kids’ animated film is probably you’re best bet. I didn’t understand a lot of the words, but I was able to get the concept and I understood the story line as it was happening. So that was good enough for me. I really found it funny that some words like, “Okay”, “Wow”, “Falsa alarma” and others were used. I guess there just aren’t Spanish words for okay or wow? Hmm…

Well, after the movie, I went home…which is where I am now. I suppose I could have gone out, but I am saving my feet for Thursday night dancing! Oh, I guess I haven’t mentioned this yet…so, after my last Thursday night, I noticed the next day that my left foot had bruises on the right side of it…but they didn’t hurt. After last Saturday night, I noticed that the bruises had grown to the top and a slight one on the left side. But still…they didn’t hurt. They are just…ugly and purple and blue, lol. Today, I am finally feeling a little pain, but only when I move my foot a specific way, so I just don’t do that, lol. That’s gotta prove that I’m a dancing maniac! =) Ha ha… so therefore, I am resting my feet for a couple of nights, so they’ll be all good and well for Thursday (which Bridget and I are just way too excited about, lol).

Okay…I suppose that’s all I shall share with you. It’s late, I am sleepy, and I have more school tomorrow (luckily its Spanish class, which I enjoy!). I hope you are all well!

Un beso! (A kiss! Which is how a lot of people here end letters and what they say when they get off the phone, which I think is so cute since that is how you greet and leave people here as well!)

Dia 41, La Bomba with a little Settlers. 27 de julio

2009-07-28T22:19:00.000-07:00

The beginning of today, not so exciting...we are back at Austral University. It’s not the happiest place to be, and no I’m not just saying that because we are no longer in a boys’ dorm! The ride is so much farther away and therefore, it takes longer. And it’s not the worst thing in the world, but now I have to start paying attention to my monedas (coins) again. And people get so frustrated when they have to give you coins in change. But oh well, what’s two more weeks?

After class, I had just enough time to do a little work on my paper before heading to the Konex center where they do La Bomba drum show every week. Being a bit smarter than last week, we decided to get tickets to the show early so that we wouldn’t have to wait in line so long…and the plan worked. I got there around 6:30 and bought tickets for Bridget, Derek, Greggory, Gerald and myself. Then I met Bridget and hung out with her at Abastos Mall until it was time to go back. So, this is the same mall that Gerald and Derek and I went to last Monday, so I took Bridget to show her how great it is. This is the mall that is so great as to have not only one Freddo…but three! And they have multiple McDonald’s as well (including a McDonald’s Kosher which we found hilarious). Bridget got some food at a random Arabian restaurant in the food court. Now, I have a confession…please don’t tell Freddo about this. I was craving ice cream and the line at Freddo was really long, and it just so happens that there is a Munchi’s (another ice cream store) right across the food court from Freddo. We didn’t have too much time and I thought, “Well, it wouldn’t hurt to compare.” =) So I got chocolate suizo (Swiss) and it was “laced with Dulce de Leche” and had little chocolate bits in it… it was… amazing. I mean, I can’t even compare the two places because Freddo doesn’t have the same flavor. And maybe I should keep it that way because I would hate to have found a new love so late in this game. =)

Moving away from my crazy imagination… ha ha. After the ice cream we headed back to La Bomba where we finally met the guys (who were not on time…like we’re in Buenos Aires where time doesn’t matter or something like that, lol). We went inside and began our wonderful party of La Bomba! It was just as great as last night, except for better because I was with people who had such a fun time moving around and just going with the beat. Alex showed up as well, and that girl can’t stand still to the ticking of a clock, so she was definitely moving a long with all of us as well! Derek took a few photos, so hopefully he’ll be able to get them online soon, we’ll see, maybe I’ll steal his memory card and put them online myself. =)

After La Bomba, we all stood outside figuring out what to do. Alex and Bridget decided to go to a bar with a few friends while I went with the guys to go play…Settlers of Catan! That’s right…that’s only going to mean anything to…my father, probably, but it’s a really fun board game that I didn’t know anyone else in the world knew about, lol. My dad bought it online when he was in his random board game buying kick…and we really liked playing it. So when Derek mentioned that he had it I was like, “What?! You know what it is?!” So we all decided to go and play it…and Derek won both rounds. Lame. Greggory and I weren’t his friends for a moment or two. =)

After the game, we watched a little tv, but I was pretty tired so I left after not too long. And went to bed really early for BA…around 2 ish… =)

And that was my day… however, moving along the lines that I brought up the other day about wanting to tell you more about BA other than what I have been doing…I have thought of a few things that I can share with you! Hopefully it will be somewhat interesting. I have been trying to pay attention to things that happen around me that are not completely “normal” per US standards…which isn’t too easy since I’ve been getting used to it these past five and a half weeks. Hopefully I’m not picking up some of the habits, well, the bad ones…lol.

One of the ones I’ve noticed a lot but never really think about it by the end of the day when I am writing is how people walk a long the sidewalks, or across the street, or anywhere for that matter. Going along with BA, a lot of people are really laid back. So laid back that they walk…really slow. Not all people of course…but quite a few. Now, that’s not so much the problem, it just gets annoying when you realize you have a bus to catch and there it is and you’re trying to get around this couple…and for some reason, a lot of people here sway. I know that Bridget can attest to this. You’ll try to walk around someone (or two some ones) and they seem to know you need around so they cut you off, slowly. You don’t want to run into anyone or anything like that…so you try and be patient. Sometimes you just have to risk walking in the road because, well…they don’t move. And since the sidewalks are so narrow, it’s hard anyways. Also, people don’t seem to really look forward when they walk. I don’t quite understand how there aren’t more accidents on the sidewalks, lol. But so many people are looking off to the sides when they walk and who knows how many times I’ve had to dash out of the way to avoid someone who isn’t paying attention. Add that to the people who just stop randomly in the middle of the sidewalk…that’s never fun. Lol… as I write this I realize, this could probably be any busy street in the world…but I’ve never noticed it so bad in London or New York. So hmm…it’s just an observation, take it for what you will. =)

Something else that is a mere fact as opposed to an observation: Buses are so slow at night…so slow. I mean, when they are moving, they are faster, lol…Well. Basically it’s that, the streets are less crowded, the sidewalks are less crowded, and hence, we don’t need so many of one bus running. So when you need to go somewhere…and its midnight, you have to wait at a bus stop. And who knows how long you are going to have to wait. I’ve heard of people waiting for almost an hour, which is just ridiculous…I’d get a taxi before that, especially if I’m meeting someone at a specific time. (Unless, they are Argentine, then of course, they’ll be late too!) So, for those of you traveling to BA…just remember that your normal bus that you see every five minutes in the day time, will probably take longer at night…so sometimes, taxi’s are the best, especially if alone. Luckily, when I am going home, I have Thomas, Derek, or some other person with me, so I don’t have to stand by myself (see mom and dad, I’m being safe!) =)

Anyways…okay, that’s all I have, but I’ve made it almost two pages in Word…getting longer again! Woo! =)

I love you all and miss you! Un beso!

Dia 40, Boliches, Cards and sleeping in until... 26 de julio

2009-07-27T08:42:00.000-07:00

Well hello again all, and thank you for tuning in. I wish that my updates could start being more informative again for you all, as in…telling you about Buenos Aires as opposed to just what I do everyday…but I feel as if I have just gotten into a groove. I mean, today marks the 40^th day that I’ve been in this beautiful country! I have a routine! =) And, not to mention, I can’t remember what things I have told you or haven’t, which makes me sad because I wouldn’t want to leave any interesting cultural stories out. I’ll try to keep thinking of what I might not have mentioned in the past…but if I ever mention anything and you don’t understand it or don’t remember me mentioning it before, ask me so I can write about it in the next update! =)

Moving along to my day…as I left off yesterday at midnight, I guess I should just go from there. Bridget and I met up with a few people she had met a few nights ago, and then we waited on Derek who decided to go out with us as well. Well… they ended up taking us to a boliche really south/west in San Telmo, pretty close to La Boca. I didn’t like the idea of that because every book I’ve read on BA says, “Don’t go to La Boca at night!!!” But no worries, nothing happened and we stayed safe! =) The club was…interesting. Okay, it was pretty…hood? Um…I don’t know how else to say it, but it was a not that great club in a not that great part of town. The music was pretty decent and so we started dancing around two. A little after three though, it was just the same music and I was getting pretty tired, apparently Derek was as well and he suggested that we go ahead and leave and go back to his place to play some card games and hang out.

No worries! It wasn’t just me and one boy hanging out in an apartment…it was me and three boys hanging out in an apartment. =) And no, no one needs to worry. It was Derek, Greggory, and Gerald. I knew who they all were and it was completely safe, so no one need worry about what I was doing there. We played cards for a few hours and Meghan then came home. (She had been out at a milonga). We talked a little and then I crashed out on the couch…we all went to bed around, oh… eight o’clock. Yes, in the morning. I am hanging my head in shame to all of you who don’t understand the concept of hanging out in Buenos Aires. =) But for those people here, it was only slightly late…like staying out past two back in the states. Ha ha…so we all went to bed and I woke up…at four. Yes, four in the afternoon. Again, head hanging right now. =) It was a fun night though, just hanging out with new friends and getting to know everyone better. I realize that some of you who read this (like mis padres y abuelos) won’t like the idea of me being out so late (but to think of it, I wasn’t really out, we were in and I stayed there until the middle of the afternoon…lol) and I’m almost sure you don’t like the idea that I was just hanging out with guys for a good part of the evening, but I assure you all, it was a normal, friend…fun hangout. I just want you all to know that! And no, I am not picking up crazy habits I won’t be able to break when I get back to the states. I am still fully aware of how crazy it is to be at a club until five in the morning…but it’s here, it’s the culture, it’s fun…why not?! =)

So, after getting some Burger King (SO good), I came home and talked with Serri and watched some shows on her computer. I then did some homework (see?! That’s productive! Lol) and am now updating. I think that she and I are going to watch a movie later, not sure…but we’ll see. I know, it sounds like I wasted a day, but I don’t feel that way and that’s all that matters right? =)

I guess I shall go for now, tomorrow school starts again, back at Austral. Boo to long bus rides, but that’s life.

Chao for now friends!

Dia 39, Souvenir shopping aside, we dance. 25 de julio

2009-07-27T08:41:00.000-07:00

Hello all, and welcome to Cambria’s daily update for all your Buenos Aires knowledge needs… with that said, sadly enough I had quite a lazy day. I woke up around noon, and finished the Agatha Christie book I had been reading. I had lunch that was my dinner from the night before and then had the use of the internet for most of the day. I worked on my updates and what not. I really don’t know how I managed to waste those few hours, but I did a great job of it. =)

After awhile, I just felt icky for sitting so long, so I went to walk around, just for something to do. I ended up going back to the Recoleta feria (market). I really enjoy this market for some reason. Maybe it’s because it’s so close to where I live? (About five blocks)… I don’t know, but I enjoy it. And today, there were even more vendors than I remember there being the last two times I went. I was able to buy my other mate which I am excited about! Now I just have to actually buy the yerba mate (the grass!) and cure my mate cup… but I might wait til I get back home to mess with it. I don’t like it as much as other people in the program (like Thomas) who bring their mate to class and drink it. But if it’s offered, I take some for the caffeine hit!

I also bought a few other trinkets and things. I think I’ve finally decided on what I am getting for the rest of my family. To those of you who I don’t get souvenirs for…I apologize, but my brain isn’t doing so well with holding all of the information on who’s supposed to get what, lol. But if there are any particular requests, let me know and I can pick something up for you! (No Argentine ski puppies, Josh).

After my shopping and walking, I went back home where I enjoyed a snack of bread and dulce de leche. If I haven’t explained what dulce de leche is yet, I apologize. I can’t remember and am not willing to go look at the fifty or so pages I’ve already typed to check. But the easiest way to describe it is caramelized milk…but much better than it sounds! It spreads like peanut butter and although a lot of people think it’s a lot like caramel, I think it’s different. It’s not as sticky and the taste is different. It just has the same color. It’s delicious! I’m debating on how many jars to buy to bring home…how ever many I can fit in my suitcase! =)

Since Bridget and I were planning another night out, I decided to take a nap. Now, I realize, Cambria…this is like, the third night in a row! Well, yeah. But it’s the weekend! I don’t have class, so why not? Lol. My nap wasn’t too rewarding, I couldn’t fall asleep and then people would text me to ask about the evenings events, so it left little time for actually sleeping, but it was a good rest.

And then, Bridget met me at my house around midnight and we headed to San Telmo to meet a few people Bridget had met a few nights ago…and we were off to a boliche!

I would type more about the evening, but seeing as how it is past midnight, I’m going to add it to tomorrow’s blog! =)

Love you all and will definitely write more soon!

Dia 38, Can't Find as Good a Place... 24 de julio

2009-07-25T11:51:00.000-07:00

Today was not a very exciting day. I feel as if I say that a lot when I begin my updates, but maybe I can find a way to make it somewhat interesting…

I woke up around 2, yes…in the afternoon. When you go to bed at seven in the morning, you sleep late. I hung around the house for awhile, had breakfast (ha ha, and it was the usual fruit and bread and coffee!). A little after five I went to meet Bridget at the subte and we walked around for awhile. We went to Coto (the grocery store) and since we were both pretty hungry, we decided to make an early dinner, since we were planning on going out again at night. That way, we could eat then, and eat a little before we went out and wouldn’t be too hungry.

We decided on macaroni and cheese and tuna. I know… an awkward combination I suppose. Bridget made tuna salad which I find not too good. =) Serri joined us for dinner and we had a glass of wine, which I couldn’t drink. I don’t know what it is, but I just can not get the taste of wine. It’s too…gross. I know that there are so many people out in the world who love it and enjoy it with their dinner, but I just can’t. I’ve tried red and white wines and sweet wines and not sweet wines…and I am just not feeling it. Garrett (friend from OBU) once told me that I just have to find the right wine with the right food…but I don’t even think I could go through the pains of trying all these wines that I won’t like first. Oh well, so I don’t like wine. It’s not the end of the world. =)

After dinner, Bridget went back home and I decided to take a nap. I mean, we were going back out, I needed proper rest. =) So I slept for about three hours, woke up at 11:30, called Bridget and made sure we were still on.

Saturday is Greta’s last day here (she is in the Expanish program), so a group went out as a goodbye party. I met Thomas and Bridget at the club and we met Greta, Gillian, and some others. Luckily, since we were there early (yeah, 12:30 = early) we got in for free, so that was great. However, the club…wasn’t really that fun. It was pretty crowded, but the music was…weird. And Bridget and I just weren’t feeling it. We hung out for a little over an hour, but eventually decided that we would rather be dancing instead of just sitting around doing nothing. We said our goodbyes and Thomas and Gillian decided to come with us…which probably wasn’t the best decision since Bridget and I had no idea what we were doing. We thought we knew of a place that was pretty close and it was at Plaza Sarano which is basically a place that never sleeps. We finally found the place, but it was twenty five pesos to get in and for some reason we just weren’t motivated, lol. So we ended up going to a restaurant and shared some fries and nachos. Somehow, it ended up being almost four…I don’t know what happened to the time, but it went by fast. So we just decided to go home. It was somewhat of a disappointment, but I guess that when you’re first club experience was as great as my first one on Thursday night, it’s going to be hard to top it. I guess that’s just something I need to accept, lol. But Bridget and I both agreed that we cannot wait until next Thursday and we hope we can get the same crowd going out with us again. It was too much fun. Sigh…

And that was my evening…now, I have been asked about comparing Freddo’s Ice Cream to that of Braums. Well, I don’t know if I can, but I shall try. For those of you who know me, Braums is one of my favorite places to eat in Shawnee, mainly because their ice cream is amazing. =) And, those of you who have been reading my blogs know that I have found an Argentine love named Freddo, an Ice Cream Restaurant Chain. So…how do I compare the two loves?! Ah! I think I would say that Freddo ice cream is…smoother? It’s closer to a frozen yogurt (like most ice cream in Argentina), then ice cream that we’re used to in the states. But…the flavors are different! There’s dulce de leche, and tramontana (which is my favorite, like an almost vanilla, dulce de leche, and these little cookie things), and just all these other flavors that are different than what we have in Braums. I think…though…that if I was just on an ice cream kick, I would pick Freddo over Braums. However, if I wanted food as well, then obviously I would choose Braums. =) I suppose that didn’t help the debate much, but it’s so hard to choose! They are both good! =)

I was emailing my mom earlier and in response to her telling me that she wanted to come visit me here, I said that my family should move here. Mom can work her job on the computer and… (and this makes me chuckle) my dad can do magic shows on the streets and in the subte stations to make money! I haven’t seen any one here doing magic shows! I bet people here would like it! And so would my dad…and Carson can go to school here, just needs to learn some Spanish. =) See?! It would all work out! Ha ha…I wish…but then all my friends would have to move here too, which wouldn’t bother me at all. Everyone: start packing! Lol…

Okay, that’s all I have to say for the day…On to another day, and hopefully more exciting stories!

Chao!

Dia 37, Lack of Class Leads to Freddo! 23 de julio

2009-07-24T11:32:00.000-07:00

So, I got up semi early which I wasn’t too excited about seeing as how I had gone to bed so late. I had my normal breakfast and started working on some homework and my updates as well. Right before I was about to leave for class, I got a phone call from Luciana (our coordinator at Expanish) who told me that our class was cancelled (again) because our professor was still sick. I felt bad for the profe, but was still pretty excited because…well, it is my summer vacation and I don’t know what I was thinking agreeing to all this class business. =) So, I called Bridget who had already left for school (she lives farther away) and since the school is close to my neighborhood, she decided to come over and hang out for awhile. I made some coffee (yes, I did, with her help of course. It wasn’t as good as Elsa’s coffee I have every morning, but it was decent) and we uploaded some photos for her and then I allowed her to look at my paper for Politics.

Now, I mentioned yesterday it was terrible…I wasn’t kidding. =) Bridget was like, “Um, maybe I wouldn’t say that…” and she helped me work through a lot of it and gave me some new ideas that I would have never thought of seeing as I don’t think economics or politics as much as Bridget does. So thank you, Bridget! =)

Bridget left after awhile to go meet with some Expanish students to go to La Boca. I got more ready for the day and went to meet Derek and Greggory for some Freddo. Last night, Derek asked me if I had any plans today, and I did at the time because I thought I had class. But since class was cancelled, I was free, so I texted him and we made plans to meet up. I was excited because it was Greggory’s first Freddo experience and he thought it was it too! Just spreading the Freddo love…

After hanging out with them for about 30-45 minutes, I went back to my apartment where I am now sitting typing this out. I have finally caught up with all my blogs and am quite proud of myself! I went to Coto (a huge grocery store, it makes me think of…Wal-Mart and Sears, minus the clothes…because they have food, drink, and like, a HUGE entertainment section. But that’s all, strange huh?) with Serri. It was a lot of fun. When we got there, there was a lady giving out samples of whiskey which I thought was hilarious, but no, we didn’t get any.

Now I am just waiting on the evening to go by. We (as in Bridget and I) have been planning a night out! I am pretty excited. Meaghan (from Expanish) might go, as well as Derek and Greggory and who knows who all else will come out. It should be a fun night. We are all actually planning on going to a boliche as opposed to a milonga; although I am pretty sure that a few of them are going to do both. We’ll see! More to come later tonight…

The next day…

Well, I had the best night ever I am pretty sure. Bridget and I met up with Meaghan, Eric and a few other people from Expanish at a bar to hang out before the club. The club doesn’t even get good until about one or two, so we showed up around there. There was a line outside the club, and so we had to wait for awhile to get it. I had to wait outside for Derek to show up, but luckily we were able to find the crew once we got inside.

When I walked in, I seriously thought we were thrown into one of those B dance movies, like “Step it Up”. There is a huge dance floor that was crowded with people and there was an open circle in the middle where people were break dancing. It was a pretty great atmosphere. There were so many people and since this was basically my first club experience, I was definitely excited. After we went to coat check, Derek and I moved to the dance floor where we found the rest of our group dancing. And then, that is where we began our three hour long dance session. Yes, you read that right. We danced for three hours – straight! No stopping, no water breaks (which wasn’t the smartest decision, but I survived!) And it was so much fun! I mean, yes, part of the time I was hoping I didn’t look ridiculously stupid, but then everyone else was just dancing and having a good time as well, so it was easy to just put that idea in the back of my head and have fun! By the end of it all, I was so wiped out. My legs were tired, I was tired…we finally left the club around 5 ish in the morning (and the club was still going too, it definitely wasn’t closed! Lol).

After the club, Derek and I met Greggory and Meghan and their apartment and had breakfast! He made peanut butter and jelly tortilla sandwiches which were wonderful (especially after a three hour work out) and I had quite a few glasses of water… I was so thirsty!

A little after six, Derek walked me to the bus stop and I headed home! It’s so funny because, after a certain time in the morning, you can just look around and see those people that are up for work, and those people going home after a night of clubbing. I felt safe walking the three blocks home too, because there were people out and going about their day to day business.

Over all, it was definitely the most fun night I’ve had since I’ve been here. There’s a girl in the program who leaves on Saturday, so everyone is thinking about going out Friday night to celebrate. I’m still pretty tired, but we’ll see…two nights in a row?! I don’t know if I can handle it! Lol…

And that was my wonderful day! I will write more later, as always!

Love you and miss you!

Dia 36, Spanish Breakthrough? 22 de julio

2009-07-23T17:09:00.000-07:00

Well…today I woke up much happier. No headache, not too tired, and just feeling good. I went to Spanish class today and it turned out being a great Spanish class. We covered a lot of stuff, and she gave us a lot of time to just ask her about our various Spanish questions over little things that never really have an entire class dedicated to them, like saying certain phrases and what not. It was such a wonderful class and I feel like I learned a lot in it. I know Thomas felt the same way (he asked a lot of questions) and it feels so good to understand more and learn all these things we never really knew before, even though a lot of it seemed basic.

After class, Thomas, Adam and I went to… Burger King! Yes, I know, why on earth would we go to an American fast food restaurant? Well, for starters, when our class gets out, around 4:00, Buenos Aires starts what is called merienda. It’s basically a time in the day when none of the restaurants serve food food. Some of them have medialunas but most just have drinks. And when you are hungry after class (which we almost always are!), even Burger King looks good. Plus, Derek had told me that BK was so much better here than in the states, so we thought, “Why not?” And…Derek was right. It was so delicious. I guess it’s because of beef is more fresh or something…or maybe because I was so hungry, but it was a pretty good meal. Then we just sat there and talked for almost two hours about…well, a lot of stuff. It was a good hangout time for the three of us to just talk about things we’ve learned here, people we’ve met, what we’re really missing about home, etc.

Afterwards, I went home and started writing my politics paper (the idea of writing it just makes me angry so that’s as much as I’ll say about it at the moment). Alex texted me and told me what milonga they were going to tonight and Bridget agreed to go with me. I tried taking a nap, seeing as how most of the time when I go to milongas we stay out all night, but I just wasn’t tired enough, so it was back to the politics writing. Sigh. I wrote two pages though (which I was really proud of myself for, even though they are Terrible, and I mean terrible).

Around eleven I finally met up with Bridget and we took a bus to San Telmo to go to the milonga. It was another really neat little place, not fancy or anything like that. Meghan and Derek were there, along with their friend Greggory who had flown in that morning. There was a live band at this milonga which I loved! It made me want to play the accordion! There was a singer as well, and everything the band did was just so intense and passionate. Every musician was completely in tune with their instrument and with each other. The singer sang with such emotion that, even though I had no idea what he was singing, I felt it. I just got sucked into watching and listening to the band at one point that I forgot there were people dancing…it was that wonderful.

The place closed at two and half the group was going on to La Viruta, which is their milonga of choice because it’s free to get into after two. Alex, Bridget and I decided to go on home. It was so cold outside (I know, those of you in Oklahoma are like “COLD?!” but it was in the low 40s and so I was almost freezing!) and I was so glad to finally be home in my nice warm bed! =)

Well, look at that, a short update! =) Oh, but there will be more to come soon! Chao for now!

Dia 35, Back to that Politics class I don't enjoy, 21 de julio

2009-07-23T17:04:00.000-07:00

Well, I am sorry to say that today was not a very eventful day. I woke up semi-early and did the usual morning routine. It was raining...a lot today. I went to class, (yes, walking the 8 blocks to school...in the rain) which was not fun. Again, it was a class filled with things I didn’t understand, and as always, the things I did understand I didn’t get the concept of in English. I tried paying attention though!... for the first hour of the class, but then...the headache came on. It was my second headache since I’ve been here, but it was worse, almost migraine bad, and I just wanted to sleep. So class I don’t like + headache + tired = Not happy Cambria. Sigh... the class was finally over and as we were all walking home, I discovered that apparently it was a day where no one wanted to be in class! The others discussed how it was a hard class to be in for four hours today, and since it was cold and rainy, how we’d much rather be in bed with a huge cup of coffee! I started missing my fireplace at home, with hot chocolate, and a great book...oh, that sounds good.

Anyways, after I got home, I was just not feeling great, and I don’t want to get sick while I am here, so I decided to take a nap, and I was in bed from about 6:45 until 9:00. I didn’t sleep much, but I took some Bayer (yes mom, aren’t you proud? Lol) and just laid there. I finally got up and ate my dinner which was perfect because it was this stew thing, so warm and good. =) I felt much better so I worked on some homework and Serri gave me control of her internet because she needed to finish an article for her internship.

And ...that was my day. I know, isn’t it lame? I wish I had more exciting things to share with you...OH, I remember, I think I mentioned a few updates ago that I was going to tell you about street vendors here (the ones not at the markets), so I suppose I can do that now...

To any of you planning on coming here (or maybe it’s like this in many South American countries) this might be a good thing to know. A lot of the times, when people are selling things, they just get on a bus or a subte and start announcing whatever it is that they are selling, tell you how much it is, then walk around and try to hand it to you to see if you’ll buy it. That’s easy enough to say no to. However, sometimes, when you’re sitting there, they just get on and don’t say anything. They walk around and just sit things in your lap. I mean, you might be having a conversation with someone, or listening to your music, and here comes an old man/young man/woman/child with a book/candy/hair ties/card/etc and they just set it on your lap. At first I thought maybe they were just giving things out? Which apparently can be a common thought, and maybe they are hoping you think that, so by the time they come back to get it, you’ve opened the package or used the product in some way, so you have to pay them. Most of the time, they just walk by and take it from you, if you leave it on your lap and don’t move, they pick it up, or you can just hand it back to them. However, it’s not even limited to the bus or subte. One night, when Adam and I were in McDonalds, a man came up and sat two pens on our table, said something really fast in Spanish, then walked away. They were really nice pens too! This was pretty early on in the trip, so we didn’t really know if he was giving them away or not. When he came back to our table, he said something and Adam just said, “Gracias”...I guess he was a bit confused also. So the guy said, “Diez pesos.” And then I realized, “Oh, he’s selling these!” So we said no and he left. One of these days, I might be tempted to just take whatever they throw in my lap and run. Okay, probably not, but again, coming from a U.S. view point, it’s like a breach of personal space when they just put something in your lap like that. But apparently, it’s really common here because no one looks twice when it happens. So…there you go…

So, as I wrote this update, it hit me that today marked my 35^th day here! Well, of course it would since that’s how I title all my updates. I can’t believe it’s been so long. 35 days seems like a really long time, and yet, I still feel as if I just got here. Of course, the streets are easier to navigate and the buses easier to track down, I walk through the big city as if I’ve been used to it my whole life. I really am starting to enjoy it here more than I was at the beginning (of course, that’s the whole idea right?). I am excited to see what the next two and a half weeks bring me! Thomas and I want to see at least one theatre show and hopefully we’ll be able to visit Teatro Colón (yeah! Look it up!). I don’t know what else is in the works, but more fun I’m sure! =)

More later from B.A.! Love and miss you all!

Dia 34, Feliz Dia de Amigos! 20 de julio

2009-07-23T17:03:00.001-07:00

After arriving at the bus stop between 8 and 9, I took a cab back to my house, where I decided there was no point in trying to go back to sleep. Serri was already up, so I had breakfast and talked to her about my wonderful weekend.

I did have class, so I walked on over to school around 1:30, and had our Spanish class for two hours which went by really fast. I went straight home afterwards and did some homework. Bridget and I decided we wanted to go to La Bomba drum show tonight, and Bridget still hadn’t gone, so it’s a must before we leave! Alex was going to go too, and I decided to invite Derek and Meghan since they hadn’t been either.

About an hour before I needed to leave, I talked to Bridget who told me that she forgot her host mom was going to teach her how to make gnocchi, and since they have dinner at nine, it was basically impossible for her to go with me, without her bailing on her host mom (which wouldn’t have been a nice thing to do anyways). Derek still hadn’t responded, so I didn’t know if he was going to go, and Meghan already had plans. I knew that Alex was going but she was also meeting other friends, so I didn’t know if I would be able to find her. Finally, about thirty or so minutes before I had to leave, Derek said he’d go, so at least I had someone to hang out with!

I got to La Bomba a little before 8 and the place was packed! Last time I had gone it was not nearly this crowded. The line to buy tickets was down the block and around the corner. The show started at 8 and lasted until 10, so I thought that surely there was no way I was going to be able to get in on time (I mean, obviously, it was like, 7:50 or something like that), but I went ahead and walked towards the end of the line. Luckily, while walking, Alex was in the middle of the line and she called to me. So I stood with her a little bit more hopeful in thinking that maybe we’d make at least an hour of the show. Well, Alex caught a lucky break because someone had a ticket and wasn’t able to go to the show, so they sold her a ticket. I was waiting on Derek and his friend, so I didn’t want to buy a ticket if I couldn’t get us all one.

Finally, around 8:50, Derek and Gerald, show up, and I had still been waiting in line, so it was pointless to even try to go in since we probably would have had another twenty or so minute wait. So Derek, Gerald, and I decided to just walk to Abastos, which is a really great mall in the middle of a really crappy neighborhood. We walked around and found the Freddo (!) inside it…only to learn (well, only for me to learn because apparently the other two already knew it) that there are THREE Freddo’s in this mall! Three! Isn’t that just the most beautiful thing you’ve ever heard? =) So, we decided to get ice cream (of course). I got frutilla (strawberry) and it was just wonderful, as always. Freddo never disappoints. I enjoy it so much that every time Thomas mentions Freddo in his blog, he includes the fact that it is my Argentine Love. =)

After we got ice cream, we walked around some more, and then Gerald casually mentioned that, since it is Día De Amigos (Friends Day! A holiday celebrated in Argentina…to commemorate being friends with other nations…as far as I know. Not completely sure; someone, look it up for me!) =) that Freddo was having a buy one get one free sale. My response: “WHAT!?!?!?” (Which was an exclamation filled with excitement of course). So of course we went back and got another ice cream…I mean, it was free, why not?!

After another wonderful time at Freddo, we decided to hit the subway and go to Florida Street. It was a little after ten on a Monday night, and I know I talk about the night life here like it’s just the most happenin’ thing, but if you’re not going to a bar/boliche/milonga, then there really isn’t anything to do…so we just walked around for awhile. We found this neat little bookstore that I couldn’t pay attention to for long because I started wanting to buy all the books. There was even this historical royal fiction book about some princess in Europe and I was soooo tempted to get it, even though it was in Spanish and it would probably take me years and a lot of patience to finish, but still. I didn’t get it though, I persevered. =)

After walking around a little while longer, we all went back to Derek’s apartment where Meghan was and we hung out a little while longer, talking and listening to a Tango CD that Derek had just bought. Around midnight I was very tired (I mean, this is still the day I arrived back from Iguazú, on an 18 hour bus ride that I barely slept on!), so they walked me back to my bus stop and I headed on home!

And that…was my Día de Amigos in Argentina, which was pretty great seeing as I made a new friend (Gerald) and got to hang out with other new friends (Derek and Meghan). And…I got to go to bed somewhat early which was pretty exciting as well! =)

Dia 33, Traveling Back to BA, 18 de julio

2009-07-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

Well, I woke up feeling much better than I had the past two days. I guess I slept well, even after being woken up around 5:45 when the other girls came back in! =) I’m glad they had fun though. I had a good night’s sleep, so that was good enough for me.

We went to breakfast and had to check out by ten. Breakfast was cereal and toast again and it was wonderful! I had apple juice as well, which was great as always. After breakfast, Marcos took the group to a monument of…something. I didn’t go. My body was just tired and I opted to staying at the hostel and laying out by the pool, which turned out to be a great idea. I read my book, and then took a mini-nap before the deck chair got too uncomfortable. It was such a lovely day, the sun was so bright, a lot bright than I remember it ever being, but I haven’t been that close to the sun in a long time. In BA, with all the buildings, the sun doesn’t feel so bright, but here, there were no large buildings, just some trees and a lot of sun. There was a nice, cool breeze that would blow through. I would guess that it was somewhere in the 80s degree-wise. It was a lovely morning in Puerto Iguazú.

When the group finally came back (looking worn out and hot, since they had to walk there and back), we all got our stuff and grabbed taxis to take to the restaurant for lunch. We went to the same one we went to on Friday night. I had an omelet, which wasn’t the best, but not the worst either. Our poor waiter was having a difficult afternoon. As he brought me my water, he spilled someone else’s orange juice right next to me. Luckily, it wasn’t on me completely, just my arm. My purse got the worst of it, but I was able to wipe it off. Sadly, the OJ had pulp still in it, so I had to deal with that, and being sticky. Then, right after that, he sat a 7up down on the table, opened the bottle and it started spewing and spilled all over someone else’s place (which luckily didn’t have food on it). I felt bad for the guy with all the spilling he was doing. The worst thing about it was that the 7up attracted all the bees within a mile radius. So lunch was somewhat exciting what with all of us trying to not get stung by the bees!

After lunch, we went to the bus stop and got right on our bus. Then, we embarked on another 18 hour bus ride. Again, we watched movies “Meet Joe Black” and…oh, something else. I don’t remember. I tried working on reading for our Spanish class. After dinner, they played “Changeling” which is a great film. Then I went to sleep…well, tried to sleep. It took me awhile to sleep, as usual on a bus/plane/car/etc, but I am pretty sure I got more sleep on this bus ride than I did on the other one.

We arrived in Buenos Aires between 8 and 9 Monday morning…which will bring me into Día 34…

Dia 32, Las Cataratas (The Falls)! 17 de julio

2009-07-21T22:11:00.000-07:00

Ah, what a wonderful day I had... even though waking up at 8 was not the happiest moment of the day. =) After a wonderful breakfast (so I had frosted flakes, but it’s been so long since I’ve had cereal, it was amazing!) we headed off to Iguazú National Park!

I was so excited, although not really knowing what to expect. I mean, in part, it’s a bunch of waterfalls. I’ve seen plenty of photos…however photos do not do this place justice. There are no words for how breathtaking these falls are…

We started off by taking the “high trail” to the falls. We walked through the jungle (although there was a “brick” trail to walk on) and on the way there we stopped to take photos of monkeys who were just hanging out in the trees. I’ve never seen monkeys in a natural habitat (they weren’t in cages) and it was so great! We also saw a lot of wild coaties. I don’t really know how to describe a coati. Like an anteater maybe, without the really long nose and tail? Ha, I don’t know. I have photos of course. They just ran wild there and were not shy to humans. I even got to pet one although they tell you to be careful because if they think you have food (or I guess if you smell like food) they will bite you. Luckily, neither of those categories applied to me, so I didn’t get bit. =)

When we finally made it up to the falls, I was speechless. I just started taking pictures like crazy. The farther along we walked, the more we got to see. We didn’t take an official tour, so I don’t know all the statistics about the place: how many falls, how high they are, etc. But I just felt that, while looking at them, it just reinforced my faith in God. I mean, they were beautiful and amazing and…it didn’t just happen. I can’t allow myself to believe that some scientific force made these falls happen, and it makes me sad that there are people who do believe that. I just couldn’t help but think: “Wow, look what God created for us to enjoy and look at.” I was amazed by the power of God like I haven’t been in quite a long time. It was a wonderful experience that I will never ever forget. And I kept feeling it over and over again as we saw new falls or the same falls from the lower trails. When you’re standing at the bottom of the falls, you realize how small you really are, like when you stare at the sky for a really long time. They are huge!

After lunch, we went to La Garganta Del Diablo (Devil’s Throat), which was the very top of one of the waterfalls. It was another one of those breathtaking moments. I wish there were more words to describe the falls, but I don’t think one really can do it and be right in describing it! So that’s what you get…look up photos, look at mine on Facebook, it still won’t be as wonderful as being there. And it was even better that the weather was perfect (especially since it had rained for two days before). I even got hot at one point (it was in the 80s and the sun was perfect!). I even got a little red, but no, not burnt. =)

We left the park around five and went back to the hostel where we took showers/naps/etc. That night at the hostel, there was an asado (barbecue) with all you can eat salad, meat (including steak, chorizos [sausage], chicken), and drink (they were serving caipirinhas, a Brazilian drink, it was NOT good, I settled for apple juice, lol). After dinner the hostel put on a Brazilian show, where a man danced and pulled people out on the floor and taught them to dance. He had a group of guys out dancing and then brought out a lady barely dressed in dancing garb. It was quite an interesting evening. It was really fun watching Thomas up there dancing. But that’s his story to tell, so I will just leave it at that…but it was funny. =)

After awhile, the man and his two dancers started pulling everyone up and formed a sort of conga line. Then they had us dance down a line, under peoples arms (like a bridge…), and do the limbo, then they taught us a dance with a LOT of movement. We were so so tired afterward, but I was energized at the same time. I can barely believe I allowed myself up there to be crazy like that, but so many people were doing it (all of the people from our group did), so it would have been lame not to!

When the show was over we decided to go outside. It was a great night and the music was playing…our little group decided to start dancing in the gazebo. I mean, there was a disco light, enough space, and loud music: dancing was meant to happen! I was proud of our group too, because after awhile, other people jumped in and started dancing as well, until it was a full out party with a lot of people just mingling and dancing and talking. It was a great time. I met people from Argentina, Brazil, Ireland, Canada, Germany…it was wonderful!

Around two in the morning, part of our group left to go to the boliche (club) in the center (downtown), but I was way way too tired. I opted for bed, which was a great move. They didn’t get back until almost six and I don’t think I would have been able to handle it!

More to come from the Iguazú trip…

Dias 30 and 31, Traveling to Iguazu, 16 de julio

2009-07-21T21:39:00.001-07:00

I was going to write about my entire Iguazú trip in one big document…but after just writing about the first day and it being so long…I decided on just splitting it up. =)

I got up around noon, although was still really tired what with the crazy late night before. We didn’t have to meet until 5:40 that afternoon, but I figured if I was tired enough, I’d be able to sleep on the bus. As I was debating this, Thomas called and asked if we were still planning on going to a Mexican restaurant. Well, that settled it right there. I was up and ready to go soon and I, along with Serri, met Thomas, Adam and Bridget at Salta de Las Ranas (Jump of the Frogs) Mexican Restaurant. The first thing we all noticed was how long it took the waiter to actually come to our table... quite a long time. However, throughout our wait, we were able to notice little things about the restaurant that were quite funny. There was a chandelier created out of fake corn with the leaves and part of the stalks still attached. There was foam (not the liquid-y kind, the packaging kind) under the tables, which is quite startling when you’re expecting wood, and there was an awkward painting of a cliff next to water that was quite oddly painted. After we were finally attended to, we got the common chips and salsa that comes in most Mexican restaurants; however, they weren’t so common. The chips tasted like wontons at a Chinese restaurant and the salsa wasn’t spicy at al (which didn’t bother me!) and was more like sweet and sour sauce…quite funny. Plus, the bowl was TINY. We ate it up pretty fast, and they don’t bring you more. When we finally got the food it was…eh. It wasn’t the best food I’ve had, but definitely not the worst. I still really miss Abuelitas in Shawnee, even if it’s not “real” Mexican food (whatever that means…ha).

After food, we went our separate ways. Everyone else had to pack for the trip, but I had plans to meet Derek at Freddo. Can I help it that I have found someone with the same love of the place as me!? Ha ha. It was, as always, a wonderful time. I mean, Freddo with a new friend? It doesn’t get any better! =)

After Freddo I went back to my apartment and finished packing and headed to Expanish where we were all meeting to go to Iguazú! We left a little later than scheduled (which I suppose isn’t too unusual for Buenos Aires) and then took the taxis to the bus station. There, we got on our bus and started the insanely long 18 hour bus ride! By this time, it was around seven o’clock. We watched a few movies (Lakeview Terrace, Yes Man) and had dinner (um…I think it was lasagna, with cheese and spinach in it, not great, but not horrid either) and then around midnight I tried sleeping. I didn’t sleep too well; even though the seats on this bus leaned back about 160 degrees! I was really excited because I figured that leaning back that far would help me sleep better, but no. I was more comfortable and probably got maybe 4 or 5 hours…but I can’t be too sure.

Dia 31...

Around 8 in the morning, they turned the lights on and served us breakfast: coffee and medialunas (croissants – literally “half moons”). It was good enough for me and they started another movie “Death Race” which I wasn’t too fond of, but after trying to fall asleep again and failing I eventually finished watching it. Around ten/eleven, our bus stopped and looking out the front window, we saw that there was basically a traffic jam. No cars were moving, not even a little bit. We eventually found out that there was a demonstration (protest) going on a few miles up the road and that they weren’t going to move until twelve thirty. So we just had to hang out on the road. The bus drivers let us get off the bus and stretch our legs. It was nice being in the somewhat country. There were a group of Brazilians in the car in front of us with their mate and they were playing loud American 80s music, which was pretty entertaining. We got to talk with other people who were a part of our trip as well and admire all the green! (I mean, we have been in a city for the past few weeks.)

When we finally got on our way, we only had a little over an hour ride left. We made it to our hostel and it was not like what I expected a hostel to be! There was a huge lobby area with pool tables and a ping pong table. There were computers, couches, a TV area, and a huge dining area. There were rooms downstairs for people to stay in, but we were lucky and got group rooms in buildings that were outside the main building. I guess you could call them cabins, although they weren’t really cabin-y. Luckily, I was able to share a room and bathroom with five other girls that I knew, so it wasn’t an awkward grouping.

After having lunch there and getting our beds made and what not, we met our coordinator Marcos in the lobby and walked about an eight minute walk to a nature reserve where they keep and help animals they have saved. We got to ride in a trailer-type thing (like the kind you see at hay rides) and we were pulled by a huge tractor throughout la selva (the jungle). After about a ten minute drive, we got out and began our tour. The animals were kept in cages (like at a zoo), so we were able to see most of them. There were different kinds of birds and anteaters, monkeys, capybaras!, and other things. It was a fun way to spend an hour and a half.

We then traveled by bus into the center of the city, where we went to Las tres fronteras (The Three Borders). It’s where Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina border each other. The river splits them up, so sadly enough, I wasn’t able to stand on Brazilian or Paraguayan soil. I did take a lot of photos though, and it was still pretty cool to be next to the countries. After that, we walked (and it seemed like a LONG walk) to a restaurant called “Color” (“Because we are all different colors and so is food”, sayeth one of the owners when Sven, an Expanish student from Germany, asked). The food was great, and it was Leo’s (another Expanish student) birthday and so we got to sing to him in English and Spanish and he got free flan (ew).

After that, we went back to the hotel. Part of me really wanted to sleep (seeing as how I hadn’t in the past few days), but then I was curious to see how night life at the hostel was. We enjoyed having some drinks and playing games in the lobby. There was a large-ish gazebo outside and loud music playing but no one was dancing to it. Bridget and I hung out by the pool and just looked up at the stars and talked. I was so excited to see the stars because it had been so long since I had seen any! And what was even greater, was that the stars I was seeing were different from the ones I get to see at home!

I finally went to bed a little after midnight because we had to be up around eight the next day…

Dia 29, Another Night Out? Surely not...oh yeah! 15 de julio

2009-07-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hello all! Sorry for the long delay in the responses, but as I mentioned in the last post, I would be gone all weekend to Iguazú! It was a great time, and I’ll write all about it in the next update. However, I didn’t update what I did on the day before I left for Iguazú…hence, this update. =)

After waking up and feeling great from my first night out, I went to class and talked with Bridget and Alex about how much fun I had and Alex said she would probably be going out this night as well. Well…why not? So I said I would want to go if she ended up going out and Bridget said she would as well. After class, we went back to our homes, I had dinner and worked on homework and talked to Serri for a little while. Finally, around 11, I got a hold of Alex and we decided to meet up in a few to go to the Milonga. Oh, so Alex taught me that not only is a milonga a type of dance, but it is also the name of the type of clubs where they do tango/milonga/etc. Therefore, one can do the milonga at a milonga. Yeah...

So we finally met up after insufficient telephone communication (the phone’s fault, not ours!) and walked the too many blocks to our bus stop. Well, actually, we walked to a place in between two bus stops. After about 11 or 12 in BA, buses continue to run; they are just more infrequent, so you never really know how long it will take to wait on a bus. So we stood in between two and were ready for which ever one drove down the road first. We finally got our bus after about a ten minute wait (which actually isn’t too bad) and headed to the Tango Lab, our first stop of the evening.

Bridget ended up not being able to come (she lived pretty far away and it had started raining) and it was too bad because she would have had fun. This venue wasn’t as cool as far as appearances go, but it was cheaper to get into. After about an hour or so of talking to Derek, Meghan, a new friend from Israel who’s name I can’t remember (although he and Derek both reminded me that night!), we left and went to another venue called “La Viruta” which is in the Armenian culture center (which I find interesting…). By this time it was after 2:00, so it was free to get in. This was the same place where I went to watch the night before (before we went to La Catedral). It was fun and Ricardo was there and he asked me to dance again and I hadn’t forgotten the steps he taught me! I was so proud! Again, I didn’t step on him or fall over, and that’s good enough for me!

After that, I just sat and talked with Derek the rest of the night, until the place started to close around 5. Then, they started playing swing music and so we both got up and I danced with Alex which was fun because it was a couple of girls who really didn’t know what they were doing (although Alex knew a lot more than me!) but we were still having a lot of fun just moving to the music…and hey, as long as we’re having fun, who cares if it’s perfect looking, right? =)

After the last song, we were thinking about preparing to head home, but Meghan and Derek were hungry so instead of going home, we all went out to get some food. Yes, I realize it was around 5:00, but that’s almost breakfast time for many people! =) We found some random bar that was open 24 hours and sat in the back. It was me, Alex, Derek, Meghan, Ricardo, and two random guys from Chile that Alex had met at the Milonga. It was so much fun hanging out and talking. I found it funny that there was a large group at another table that bought a round of beers and other various drinks and were toasting…so late/early! But I suppose that is just B.A.

I finally got home around 6:15…and went straight to bed! It was such a fun night and even if I didn’t get the best night’s sleep, I still had a fun time. I mean…I can always sleep when I get back to Oklahoma, right?! =)

More updates soon! I get to tell you all about Iguazú!

Love you and miss you!

Dia 28, A night out! 14 de julio

2009-07-16T12:57:00.000-07:00

Well, as the title suggests, I was finally able to have a night out! So obviously, I am writing this the next day, sorry for the not on time update. =)

The beginning of the day wasn’t very exciting. I had another day of Politics class and unlike last week, I was feeling much worse about it today. It was really hard to follow, even when he was speaking slowly. I was at a loss for questions and didn’t really feel as if I knew what was going on. Luckily, others in the class seemed to be having a hard time, so a lot of people asked questions. And, to add to it, we didn’t go over what we were supposed to have read. So I feel as if I did all that work for nothing. Because I didn’t really learn that much, and I took so many notes because if we were to discuss them in class, I’d have had some form of an idea about what we were talking about. Instead, he asked questions about the little booklet he gave us (which he gave us two weeks to read). So we were at a loss somewhat. But the we had a nice, almost thirty minute break (thanks to our profe needing a smoke break and us being able to go to the corner café to get coffee…and them being really slow). =)

After class, we all walked together for some time, and before Alex left us, she informed us of a salsa lesson that was happening that night that she was going to. She said she’d been going the past few Tuesdays and every week they do a different dance. Derek (who we met at the zoo) and his friend Meghan were going to be there as well and Derek had said he wanted us all to go. We said we might and went our separate ways.

Well, I have not been out to go to a dancing lesson or just to watch dancing the whole time I’ve been here. So I thought…why not? Bridget and Thomas said they’d go too and we got there late-ish, which was fine to us because we didn’t necessarily want to dance this first time out. Maybe just see what it was like. The place where we met Alex was just a large room (Think: a longer version of the Shawnee Community Center, for those of you in Shawnee). She was dancing and it looked like she had so much fun. Derek ended up not going to that place, but to a milonga (different type of dance….apparently it’s a faster tango) instead. Around midnight, the place was shutting down (yes, early for BA but this was a salsa class, not a club or anything like that). Alex informed us that she was going to go to the milonga where Derek and Meghan were and asked if we wanted to go. It was midnight…which means late…but not in BA. I had been to “un-risky” this entire time I’ve been here, so I was like, “Yes, I’m going to go out!” Bridget and Thomas opted not to go…and boy did they miss out. =)

So I just follow Alex around the city (we get a bus and then walk a few blocks) before we finally find this place. If I remember correctly, it was called “Catedral” and it is in this old building that Alex thinks used to be an old Cathedral. (We’re still fuzzy on if that’s true or not.) It definitely didn’t look like an old cathedral, more like an old gymnasium. Well, rewind: we walked in and there are only large steps going up. We paid the $15 peso entry fee and went up all these stairs and we got to the big room that looks like a big gymnasium. There are awkward and wonderful paintings on all the walls. It’s a non-smoking room which was great (even though there’s a large smoking room to the side, which you have to walk through to get to the bathrooms, which weren’t…too disgusting). There is a stage that had a lot of instruments on it (although there was no band at the time). In the back of the room was the bar; in the front center was the dancing area; and then surrounding the three sides of the dancing area (not including the stage) were tables and chairs. There were quite a few people dancing but it didn’t take us long to find Meghan who was dancing with a guy named Ricardo (from Ecuador) and then Derek was sitting off to the side. And then, the night began…

Alex, Derek, and I talked for a little while and then those two got up to dance. It was a lot of fun watching everyone dance and part of me really wanted to, but at the same time, they were all so good at it that I was like… “I’d look funny.” So there were those two thoughts going in my head most of the time. Throughout the evening those four would come and sit and talk for awhile as they were taking a rest. It was really fun to get to talk to them and get to know them all better. After maybe an hour or two, Ricardo asked me to dance. I was then stuck with those two thoughts going through my head: “Yes!” and “Wait, I’ll look ridiculous”, but I just couldn’t allow myself to NOT dance…So I did it! He knew that I didn’t know what I was doing, but he was really patient with me and taught me “8 basic steps of tango”… I don’t really know if that’s what they’re called, but it seems like they should be. I wasn’t awesome or anything, but I didn’t fall or step on him, and that made me feel good enough! After the song was over he said we could practice more later, so I went and sat back down and talked with them some more. After awhile Derek asked me to dance, and feeling a little better about being on the dance floor, I was less hesitant.

However, little did I know that there are definitely more than “8 basic steps of tango”. He asked what Ricardo had taught and I tried explaining it, but of course, couldn’t do it to where it made sense. So after trying a few steps with me and me being completely lost (sorry Derek!), he finally said, “Let’s just dance.” So then we…danced. He was trying to teach me as we moved and it was somewhat difficult but I’d like to think I wasn’t too horrible. He got me doing… “backward ochos”? I think that’s what he called them, which was basically crossing my legs, while walking backwards…not as hard as it sounds…or is it harder than it sounds? Hmm…I don’t know. But we did that for awhile and I was trying to follow him, but of course it was hard and he had to remind me to follow him. Oh, I don’t think I mentioned it before but Derek (and Meghan) are both on a dance team at school and have been dancing for a few years…so Derek knew what he was doing, lol. So I was trying to learn and it wasn’t too bad. I don’t know. The songs didn’t last very long and before I knew it, we were done. Again, I didn’t fall or step on him, so that was good enough for me! =)

After that, we sat back down and talked for awhile more. Then Alex said, “I think I’m gonna dance one more then we can go”… I looked at the clock; it was almost four in the morning! I know, mom, dad, grandma…you’re not going to like that…but it’s what happened! Now, for others in BA, and even for Meghan, Derek, Alex, and Ricardo…this was normal. It was late, yes, but not strange to be out that late. To me it was like, “Wow, I’m out this late and I’m not getting into trouble!” So she danced a little more while I talked to Derek and then we decided to go. We took a bus (me and Alex) to our neighborhood. We only live about three blocks away from each other. Then I got home at 5:00…in the morning. And I hadn’t been drinking or doing anything else that is usually included in the “being out late” box.

And I had such a great time! I learned (ish) a little bit about dancing and had so much fun watching the others who knew what they were doing. I got to talk to Derek, Meghan and Ricardo who I don’t know very well and for those of you who know me, I LOVE getting to know new people. It was a great night! Plus, I didn’t have class until 2:00, so I still got about 7 hours of sleep! =)

That’s all for now, I don’t know if I’ll be going out Wednesday night or not, we’ll see! However, I guess now is a good time to let you know (so you don’t get all sad later…) that I will be going to Iguazú Falls this weekend! That’s definitely something to look up on image search if you want. We’re leaving Thursday afternoon and not getting back until Monday morning. It’ll be a long, great weekend, but I won’t have access to my computer, or the internet. So no updates while I am there. I know, I know, you’re sad…but its okay! I will have a long, wonderful update when I get back! =) I know you’ll all enjoy that! Ha ha. I don’t know if I’ll be able to update before I leave or not, but I will try to at least one more time!

Love you all and miss you! Bye for now!

Dia 27, Blending of Cultures (well, yeah), 13 de julio

2009-07-13T21:50:00.001-07:00

Hello all…today was a very good day indeed. Had Spanish class, as usual and we got to have a good hours’ worth of conversation, but got to mix in an hour of grammar as well…yay for learning the subjunctive even more! =)

After class, we went to Freddo. We were so excited because Monday is supposed to be “Buy one get one free” day…but alas, you have to be a member of Freddo and what not…and I don’t know if I am going to try and be a member or not. I only have three (?) more Mondays left here…don’t know if it’s worth it. Oh well. I don’t know if I have mentioned it, but they have a HUGE $51 peso bowl that they will fit all the flavors into…I wanna try it. So far I got Adam, Derek, and Bridget in with me. We can split it and have all that wonderful ice cream! I am pretty excited, lol.

After Freddo, Thomas and I went back to my apartment to work on homework. I know I’ve mentioned it before, but we have quite a HUGE reading to do for Politics class. I have almost all of it done (just about a page left now!) but it’s a lot of work. And still confusing after I’ve translated it and get it in English…it still doesn’t make sense! =) I have taken notes though and have thought of some questions, so even though I don’t get it, the profe can at least know that I’ve read it, and that is good enough for me.

Tonight’s dinner my host mom made for me…was delicious. She made chicken (which…was chicken, and wasn’t the exciting part) and this spinach, potato, egg mixture that was just WONDERFUL. I know, I know…it was very green and that usually means I won’t like it, but I’ll try anything once (as long as it doesn’t smell too funny) and I tried it and just…oh, fell in love. I didn’t have a chance to talk with Elsa about it, but I am going to ask her tomorrow what it was that she did to make it so wonderful. If it’s as easy as just mixing the three things together, then yay! I can make it when I get home. I am definitely enjoying all the mixtures with eggs. So far it’s been: rice and eggs, pasta (plain) and eggs, peas and eggs, and what I had tonight. I really am starting to think that mixing in scrambled eggs just makes things better…I don’t know. But I like it!

After I ate and Thomas and I worked on more homework, we headed out to meet a guy and girl Thomas had met online. I know, I know…it’s weird to meet people in person who you’ve met online. But this was strictly a, “Hey, I speak English and I’m in Buenos Aires, any friends here?” sort of thing. The guy is actually half Argentine half British. He’s lived here for a little over a year, but has traveled back and forth between Argentina and England his whole life. The girl is from London. They were fun, and after a bit of walking around trying to find an open bar/restaurant to sit around and talk in, we finally found one a bit farther from our starting destination. It was really fun to get to talk to these two about stereotypes of Americans and the English. At one point, Thomas did a high five, and they told us how American that was and how they usually only do it in English as irony (or sarcasm?). Then, we started talking about country music and what not…I mean, music (classic American rock) was playing in the bar and they asked if it was country. Thomas and I (who are not country fans) had to explain to them that it was not, in fact, country. Then we had to describe what we thought country was and how, even that genre has different types within it. One can find really poppy country or really twangy country. Typical, whiny “I lost my women, she took my dog and my truck” country… you know, all sorts of kinds. From there, we went on to talk about the stereotypes of the south and if there is a difference between “southern gentlemen and ladies” and “hicks” and what not. It was really interesting seeing their viewpoints and what not. What probably surprised me the most is when I put on my southern, country accent it, they loved it. They said it was their favorite American accent which I find so strange! It wasn’t all, soft Scarlett O’Hara southern, it’s the real twangy almost hick sounding southern (to those of you who know the difference or have heard my southern accent). Thomas noted that it was more genuine from my “soft” southern…but to hear them say it was their favorite was just so odd to me. I annoy my friends at home by using that accent, but I think they would have been okay if I would have talked like that the rest of the night. Over all, it was a great night and we have found two more people that we can stay in contact with while here, making new friends who aren’t from the States and thus broadening our horizons of the world beyond us….which I love! It made me really wish that I would have become an Intercultural Communications major…but OBU doesn’t have that as an option, although maybe they should. I love talking with people from other places and love just realizing the differences between the US and other countries. Too many people in our country are SO ethnocentric, thinking the US is the best and other countries don’t even compare…and maybe that’s true for those who think it, but it’s so important to realize that others love their countries too and find that Argentina or London or Italy or wherever are the best countries to live in. Maybe it’s all a matter of opinion…

Today in class, we learned an expression: “En el cuestión de gustas, hay nada escrito.” (In the question of “likes”/opinions, there is nothing written.) There are no rules for liking things…people just do. So if I like the US better than I like Argentina, fine…but I need to open my mind and realize that there are people who like Argentina better than the US. It’s all a matter of opinion and I think that there are too many people in the US who don’t realize that…especially when it comes to “which country is better”. I enjoyed my time learning about another culture (apart from this new culture I am getting to be a part of every day while I am here) and if anything, I have been able to open my mind to even more cultures and people!

It is very late…and I am very tired. But sometime, I need to talk about the vendors here in BA…not today, but some day when I have little to say…I am just writing it now so I won’t forget! =)

More later from BA, thanks again for reading! Love you and miss you!

Dia 26, A Sunday, 12 de julio

2009-07-12T19:12:00.001-07:00

Well, today I woke up thinking I was going to have nothing to do. Elsa decided not to go to church and by the time I realized the time it was too late to try and make it to the one Thomas found. Next week (well, next week is Iguazú! So the next week I will either go with her or go with Thomas for sure). I had homework to do, so that was the plan…and since Serri is coming back soon (tonight or tomorrow, not sure) I knew that I needed to upload my latest photos on facebook because it takes so long and I needed to use the net as much as possible. So those were my plans. A friend once said, “Plans can be fun and exciting” (you know who you are =P) well…mine weren’t. The more days I spend not doing anything here, the more I realize that my time here is getting shorter and I know I have not done everything to experience the B.A. life! I mean, after yesterday, I was still pretty tired when I woke up, more of my body being tired than my brain, you know what I mean… so I didn’t want to try and go do anything crazy or touristy.

While I was working on some homework, Elsa was preparing my dinner (yeah, at 1 in the afternoon). She came and asked me if I liked fried onions and I said no. Don’t worry; it’s not rude to tell people you don’t like food here. They would much rather know you don’t like it (even after they’ve cooked it!) than for you to eat it and hate it. Then she asked, “Do you like ‘lee-bear’… I didn’t know what that was…and she didn’t know the word in English, so I went in the kitchen to see what she was talking about…and there was this big LIVER sitting on the plate! EW! I was like, “Oh, oh…no….” and she laughed and said she figured I didn’t but she thought she’d ask. I’m sure my father would have wanted some though! (Ha ha…)

After finally finishing up my Zoo photo album on Facebook, I got a hold of Bridget. She wanted to use my computer to upload photos and that would give me something to do for the day. I went and met her in her neighborhood and we had lunch first at Havana. It’s a café, but Havana is also well known for their chocolate. It’s Argentine chocolate and it’s pretty darn good. I bought these little chocolate crowns with dulce de leche in the middle, so amazing.

After Havana, we went to….Freddo! And no, it actually wasn’t my idea. Thank you for having such a wonderful idea Bridget! After Freddo we walked around this little market in Belgrano…well, I say little, but it was one of the bigger ones I’ve been to. It’s the same old story, however. Different vendors all selling the same things as at other markets…although, it’s strange that no matter how many markets I go to, I’ll still want to go to one next weekend. I suppose it’s that hope of finding that one thing that keeps me going. Don’t ask me what that one thing is…I don’t know! But if I find it at the next market…I’ll know.

After the market we went to…McDonalds! They are the one place that for sure has wi-fi so sometimes, it’s just easier sharing a large fry and sucking it up and going to the American restaurant. While we were trying to get the computer to work, Bridget goes, “Ew, gross.” I turned to see what she was staring at and not three tables away was a couple making out…in McDonalds! And this wasn’t like, a kiss and cuddling, they were making out. I was disgusted, but when I think about it now, it’s not the first couple I’ve seen making out in B.A. People here are so much more open about it and no one else seems to think it’s improper. But at McDonalds? Well, I guess so. Still, not something I recommend the states picking up!

The internet didn’t work too well, and we were too frustrated with it to keep trying it out. So we went back to the market to…get my dread fixed! There was a guy there (well, I suppose there were a few guys) that were giving people dreads, and since mine has been falling out we thought, “Why not?” This guy had an actual tool (it looked like a really small crochet needle) that he took through my hair. The dread looks so much better now. It’s still nappy, but it looks like it’s supposed to be, plus he put jewelry in it, which is cool! Pictures will be up soon! =)

Then, it was getting slightly dark and much chillier, so we decided to part. I went back home and now I am updating! I finished putting up all my pictures (other than the dread ones) so I feel pretty accomplished! =) I finished my homework for tomorrow and continued to work on the LONG reading for my Politics class on Tuesday. (I am even taking notes for that reading, how strange that the class I like the least is the one I am working the hardest in…hmm).

So all in all, it wasn’t a completely lazy day. I did get out and do things and it was fun. I feel a lot better than I would have if I just stayed at home all day.

I don’t really know what else to share with you. After my four day weekend, I am going back to class tomorrow. Spanish class tomorrow! Yay…and apparently, we have to go to Freddo after class, because Monday is buy one get one free…how can you say no to that? Exactly.

I hope you are all doing well! Miss you and love you!

Dia 25, Tigre, 11 de junio

2009-07-12T18:42:00.000-07:00

Well hello all my lovely readers. I hope you are all doing well!

I spent my Saturday in Tigre, which is a town about an hour outside of the center of Buenos Aires. Some say it’s a suburb, some say it’s not connected, I’m sure I don’t know, but there you go. We didn’t have to get up as early today, thank goodness! I met Thomas at the train station at eleven. We were waiting on Leo to show up, but sadly enough, we couldn’t get a hold of him, nor was he getting a hold of us. After waiting for about 25 minutes, Leo finally called Thomas to ask where he was. We then found out that Leo was, in fact, already on a train headed to Tigre. He was there by eleven (okay, so maybe I showed up at 11:05!) and thought we had left him.

So we got on our train (which I was really excited about because trains are always fun and much cooler than subways…this was just a subway above ground. It wasn’t exciting at all, sad moment for me and Thomas who had never even been on a train before!). About fifteen minutes into our ride, Bridget gets on at her train stop. Thomas had bought little word game booklets (like crossword puzzles and Sudoku) because a guy was selling them on the train, three for only 2 pesos! We saw a Sudoku book which is what made me think, “ooh, fun,” and Thomas got them…only to find out that the pack of three the guy gave us was all crosswords and word games, which would be way cool, except for of course, they were all in Spanish, which made it way hard for me! I think I tried two or three different puzzles, but of course, got flustered. Luckily, Thomas had his little electronic Spanish/English dictionary, so he had fun. =)

Moving along, we finally got to Tigre and got a small brunch (super pancho!), then started walking! It was a lot chillier than we had been expecting, but the longer we walked, the warmer it got. It was a great day with the sun shining and a slight breeze. I enjoyed the town a lot because it wasn’t a huge “city” town like B.A., and you could walk in the street without hundreds of cars driving at you and honking. However, there were many of the same elements: a lot of people, vendors everywhere, beggars, dogs, and super panchos. =)

So we walked down a random street (it looked like a downtown area) towards the Puerto de Frutas (literally: Fruit Port). It’s the biggest market I have seen while down here, there were outside vendors, inside vendors, vendors who were in garage-like spaces. I know we didn’t even see a third of the place while we were there. And they were selling almost anything you can think of: jewelry, magnets, furniture, flowers, incense, clocks, clothes, rocks, vases, lamps, etc. etc. etc. It was a lot of fun and I wish we could have walked around it some more, however we finally got a hold of Leo (who had randomly bumped into a few guys he met while traveling in Mendoza last weekend) and we met him at a Catamaran stop. We opted to try for a different, well cheaper, way of taking a boat tour around the Tigre islands, so we walked a couple blocks and found the Lanchas.

Lanchas are basically ferries…but smaller. One room, on a long boat. I don’t think you can sit outside anywhere, but I didn’t want to anyways, it was too cold. At first, I was pretty nervous, because the boat was rocking a lot before we got started. However, once we got going, it was pretty much smooth sailing (ha) with a few bumps. It was pretty fun, and I am definitely glad we opted for the cheaper choice. There were a lot of great photo opportunities while riding around. There are a lot of houses that just have the river as their back yard. Some people were out on their back decks by their boats, just drinking mate and relaxing. I think that would be a great way to spend the afternoon. There were also quite a few older looking buildings that could have been museums now, or just older houses. There was one house that was encased in a huge glass box. It was so strange (photo in Facebook album). We didn’t know if it was a museum or just a very well-protected house, but it was interesting all the same.

After the hour long boat ride, we decided to go to the art museum. Now, in my “Let’s Go Buenos Aires!” guide book, and in other guides I’ve seen, they describe the Art Museum as a must in Tigre. It’s one of the best in B.A. they say…it’s not true. I don’t know if they got museums confused or what, but I think we were all a little disappointed. The building itself was beautiful. I don’t even know how to describe it (there are photos of this as well), but I would have loved to make it my house! It was pretty funny that, before we could go into the museum, we had to wait for four people (since there were four of us) to leave. They were only allowed to have a certain number of people in the museum on account of the swine flu, and they told us to keep our hands clean and what not. Even inside the museum, a couple of exhibits would only allow so many people in the room at a time. They were definitely taking precautions. It was somewhat small inside (for a museum, not a house) and the lower floor was completely dedicated to a band called…well, I don’t even remember. It had a room with music where you could wear head phones and hear different types of their music, as well as awards they’ve won and albums they’ve made. I’ve never heard of them (obviously, they’re an Argentine band) and so it wasn’t so exciting to me. On the second floor, we finally got to the “art”: paintings and drawings. It was more interesting, but there really wasn’t that much. There was a room that is a huge mural on all the walls, ceiling, and floor, and that was pretty cool. It was still in process, so it was interesting to see that in between stage. The balcony outside was really beautiful. Again, if it were my house, we would have balls outside on the cool summer nights…sigh. Anyways…

We started walking back to the center of town, and man…it was a walk. One way was fine, and walking back I started getting pretty tired. Bridget decided she really wanted a picnic basket (we saw tons of them at the market) and so we would head back to it, even though it was getting dark and we weren’t sure if the market was still open. So we said goodbye to Leo and Alex (Alex had joined us while we were at the art museum) and headed back. By the time we were halfway there, I was so tired. I felt like I had been walking for years. It was quite a trek walking back and forth across this town. (For those of you in Shawnee, think Mall to downtown…twice.) Luckily, the place where all the wicker products were was still open. Bridget got her basket and was kind enough to put my purse in it. “I don’t wanna look lame walking around with an empty basket!” she said, so I thought, “Hey! Carry my purse!”

After all this walking, we were still a little hungry (we had had sandwiches not too long before this), but stopped at…. “Waffles Del Mundo”!!! I don’t know what it was, but there was something about getting a waffle that was so exciting to me. There were waffles covered in chocolate and dulce de leche and strawberries and…all kinds of things. They even had waffles with ham and cheese in the middle or other things like that. So, we go inside to order, and I am trying to say the type of waffle I want (there was a name for the waffles on a stick that you dip in chocolate, and a name for a regular waffle with stuff smeared on it) and as I was trying to find the right name she says, “un wah-flay”? I don’t know why, but when we finally had all of our food and were sitting at the table, the word wahflay was just the funniest thing. Waffle seems like one of those words they would have just kept in the normal phrasing. They still spell it the same way, so it was hilarious to us that they pronounce it differently. Plus, we were tired and had been walking for long amounts of time and the sugar rush was kicking in. It was a great dessert moment for us. =)

After our dessert, we headed back to the train station and went to our homes. It was a great day although I seriously can’t remember the last time I was so tired! I don’t have any plans for tomorrow, rest is definitely among them. I am going to try to go to church with my host mom if she’s going. We’ll see!

Dia 24, Temaiken Zoo, 10 de julio

2009-07-10T21:43:00.001-07:00

Yay, a day of fun filled adventure in Argentina! I woke up so so early, (9:15! Ha ha) and had the breakfast and got ready for the day. I walked the five blocks to the subte which I took to meet Adam and Thomas at Plaza Italia. (Oh, speaking of Plazas… all the big parks here are called Plazas, which I think is great…makes everything seem so much nicer…I don’t know why. I guess it’s the word “plaza”…hmm). Moving on…

There was some confusion about how to get the bus tickets: Let’s just say, there was a sign that said, “Temaikén y Colectivo $56”, which we assumed was a zoo ticket and the ride to the zoo…but the man in the booth wouldn’t let us pay…and we then found out we could just pay for the bus tickets, not the zoo…but it wouldn’t make sense for there to be a sign for $56 pesos, if we couldn’t pay for whatever it was. Weird. But then again, we are not fluent Spanish speakers. =)

Moving along, we got on the “Semi-Rapido” bus (special bus that only stops at a few places to pick people up, meaning it’s semi-faster than a regular bus) and took the hour bus ride to the zoo. The ride didn’t seem that long because Adam, Thomas, and I found lots of things to talk about, which was nice and helped the time go by faster.

Once we got to the zoo, I don’t know what it was…but I was just so happy to be at a zoo. It’s been awhile since I’ve been to any zoo, and I was just so excited. Weird…I felt like a little kid again! We went in and for some reason Thomas was fascinated with Ignacio, the guy who tore our tickets…he took a photo of him and apparently wants that job…working at a zoo…tearing tickets. Thomas, we’re glad you have dreams.

After walking around and a quick lunch, we met up with Bridget (who didn’t leave with us before because it was so early!) and Alex and Alex’s friend Derek who is now a friend to all of us after spending a day at the zoo together. The zoo was a lot of fun. I think the favorite exhibit was the bats! They were so cool and a lot closer than I have ever seen bats before. They are quite interesting little creatures…almost cute, but almost creepy. As Derek said, “Chihuahua with wings…” ha ha. We watched them for such a long time, but they were fun.

There were also these really large…sheep-bodied, gopher-headed animals which were probably my favorite…I know their name, but can’t remember at the moment…oh well, I took a photo of the sign, so that’ll be up in my photo album. We saw everything there was to see: Toucans, parrots, tigers, cheetas (chitas), water life, spiders, a skunk (I know, funny), and all sorts of kinds of birds, a hippo, an alligator, and a fake alligator that looks real from a distance. The things I was sad about not being at the zoo were: PENGUINS (They have them in the south of Argentina…why not migrate a few!) =), Bears, Monkeys… just to name a few that I could think of at the moment. I guess it’s just not the best environment for them? I dunno…

After the zoo (which we spent a wonderful, happy 6ish hours at), we took the long bus ride back (which, again, didn’t feel that long because of all the conversation!) and then…went to Freddo! Yeah, my ice cream love and I met again. This time I got Dulce de Leche con Brownie. It was delicious! Before this trip is over, Adam and Derek both promised that they’d go in with me to buy the $51 peso size! It has all the flavors in it! I am going to hold you guys to it, just so you know! =)

And now, I am at home. Had dinner (with TV of course!), took a shower, and now am trying to upload my photos and type up my updates. I am trying to convince myself to start some of my Political readings for class…I suppose I shall do a little bit. Maybe. =) I can save a lot of that for Sunday afternoon! Lol.

Thanks for reading again! Hope everyone is having a great summer!

OH, by the way, I have noticed from getting emails from my parents and a couple of messages from Jackie, that I really enjoy hearing about what’s going on at home…so if ANYONE feels the need to message me or email me and say, “I have been doing _____ all summer” or “________ did ____________ and it was the funniest thing ever!” or “You won’t believe that _________ did ____________ and now everyone knows and it’s crazy!” or any old news like that…I would love to hear it! Even if you got a new dog, haircut, tattoo (mom, don’t get too crazy)… =) I wanna hear about it! I miss you all and wanna hear about your lives as well!

Love you and miss you!

Dia 23, Dia de Independencia, 9 de Junio

2009-07-10T21:32:00.000-07:00

Hello all those out there who are all “Fourth of July’d” out! It’s me, your wonderful little traveler in Buenos Aires, sending you greetings on this Independence Day of Argentina. =)

Now, I know, you all must be wondering, what is Independence Day like there? Are there great fireworks, festivals, live music, hot dogs?!? What great questions! I shall tell you about Día de Independencia…

I didn’t have school! So that was probably the best thing about today. =) No, not the best…but it was fun to not have school because of a holiday. More…businesses close for the day. There are restaurants open and some stores, but that’s about all. And…no fireworks, no hot dogs, it’s B.A. so I am sure that there were parties going on somewhere, but there were no “9^th of July” parties that I knew of!

So…what did I do? Well, I had myself a good ol’ fashioned LAZY DAY! I know… I had one last weekend, but why not now? We’re making plans for the zoo tomorrow and possibly going to Tigre on Saturday, so I will be doing things! So, I did work on homework, that’s something. Of course there’s a lot more I need to do, but something is better than nothing right? I just realized how MUCH I have to read for politics. This will not be easy. Sigh. Serri is gone for the weekend (which is great because I get to use the internet, but of course sad because my house mate is gone!) so I was on the internet, looking up stuff for class and of course, being lazy.

I did leave for a little while. I walked around the town, went to a Farmacity (like a CVS or Walgreens) and bought some cheap hair wax to use on my dread to keep it all gross like. =) Then just walked around, so I could say that I walked around and wasn’t in my apartment all day! Then I went back home and watched some TV while eating dinner. OH, my dinner was steak (of course) and… Green Bean Puree. It looked…not so great. But I tried it! And the taste wasn’t so bad. It was really really salty, but after a few bites, I couldn’t handle the texture anymore. It’s like, it was trying to be green mashed potatoes, but it didn’t feel like mashed potatoes…it felt funny. I couldn’t handle it. But since I ate quite a bit of it, I was proud of myself anyway! I took a photo…it’ll be up soon!

After dinner, I worked on some more homework and discovered my love for stumbleupon.com. Sigh…I know, I know, it was such a lame day with no exciting stories!

I suppose I can teach you more slang! Woo!

Pibe/Piba: Similar to che (I know, you all remember what that means!)… calling to another person, however, it’s very informal and generally used when talking to people younger than you.

Tipo/Tipa: Similar to the above, however, more commonly used with older people (not necessarily for the young ones)

Gaucho: The Cowboy of Argentina…when we, in the US, think of the cowboy, the old west…etc. and get those happy “those were the days” feelings (and come on, we ALL get those feelings…ha), that’s how they feel about their gaucho here. I guess this isn’t really slang…just a word.

Guacho: NOT to be confused with gaucho. This is basically a “bad” person. Someone who doesn’t help out, is selfish, negative…it’s an allover not a good way to be referred to.

Chamuyero: aggressive guys, I haven’t really had to encounter any (thankfully), but I haven’t been out clubbing either. These are the flatterers, the sweet talkers. The guys who say, “You are the most beautiful girl in the world!” (This has happened to me), and yet, when you say, “NO” or “BACK OFF” they move to the next girl in the room and say, “You are the most beautiful girl in the world!”…. You know, those guys.

Chamuyar: How funny that there is a verb for the noun mentioned above. The chamuyero does the action chamuyar. To be aggressive. You can always say to those guys, “No me chamuyes.” Which is basically like, “Don’t flatter me”….along those lines.

Okay, that’s good enough for today. I have only a few more, so I’m spacing them out for other days when I have nothing exciting to say! =)

Love you and miss you all! Zoo tomorrow!

Dia 22, American Influence? 22 de Julio

2009-07-08T21:21:00.000-07:00

Well, sorry kids, today was a pretty uneventful day. Spanish class (where we worked on the subjunctive and imperative!) and then there was a wonderful trip to Freddo. (I should not have to remind you of Freddo seeing as how I just updated about it yesterday!) This time, Bridget and I shared three different flavors and they were all wonderful. =)

After that, Thomas and I went to my apartment and worked on some homework together then tried to plan a day trip to Tigre. Tigre is basically just another town (suburb of BA maybe?) that has cool museums and markets and apparently it’s a must see. But we also want to go to this zoo in another city…and of course I can’t think of the name at the moment…and so we tried to figure out the best way to plan it since they’re both great day trips. That’s what’ll be happening this weekend; we just have to plan it out. (So more on that when…I know more, lol).

After Thomas left, I had dinner and watched an episode of “Life” with Elsa…and now I am writing a blog. I could just let that end there couldn’t I? Shortest update in the world…and way too boring for me. So I have decided that today, I am going to talk (well, write) about the American Influence I’ve noticed down here in B.A. (Warning: it might sound like I get pretty ethnocentric about our country…but it’s just an observation. Also, these are all generalizations; I obviously can’t make these statements about every person/barrio/city in this country.)

- For starters, you really can get around this city speaking English if you wanted to. Not everyone knows it very well, but there are enough people in enough places that know enough English to help you. It’s hard to not speak English sometimes because even when you say the words in Spanish, if they notice your accent (which they almost always do), the majority of the time, they want to work on their English. So they respond in English and continue to talk to you in English because they believe it makes you feel better. (And for some English speakers, it probably does). So if you’ve ever been afraid about the language barrier (which can be daunting at times), have no fear…if you don’t want to learn/practice your Spanish, you don’t necessarily have to.

- American Movies: Are just as popular here. And they are all in Spanish subtitles. Of course, you can find some American movies in Spanish, but it’s even easier to find them in English. (There are Latin American films here as well, but I’ve noticed more posters/ads for our films.)

- MUSIC – probably the biggest “Wow” about the US I’ve had to deal with. I don’t remember if I’ve blogged about it or not, but the first song I heard when I got here was “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt. I was so thrown off because of course, I was not expecting American music, but I have come to find out that it’s hard to go anywhere without it. And I mean anywhere: restaurants, stores, markets, and my own kitchen when the maid is cleaning. There is some Latin music as well, but mainly it’s the US music that I hear. I can not tell you how many times I’ve been shocked to hear Lady Gaga come from our kitchen radio.

- TV – as with music and movies, it’s definitely easy to find American sitcoms on the television, which you all know because I constantly update about me watching TV with Elsa while I eat dinner.

- Luckily enough, I’m happy to say that I haven’t noticed too many American restaurants here (McDonald’s, Burger King, and Starbucks are the only ones I can think of at this moment) and that is probably because everyone is so proud of their food here. And they should be, because I am rarely disappointed with the food here. Elsa is a great cook (I never knew you could mix so many things with eggs [Pasta, rice, and peas to name the things I’ve eaten] and it still taste so good…better even! I hope they never succumb to the American food industry (more than what they already have) because they really don’t need to.

What I wish the US would take from the Argentine lifestyle: (I’ve touched on these before…)

- I love the idea of going to dinner with friends/family and not leaving the place just because you’ve eaten all the food…you stay and talk, and have dessert, then have coffee, then sit and talk for awhile longer, before you even think of asking for “la cuenta” (the bill) because you enjoy that time together.

- No one ever seems like they’re in a hurry. No matter where you have to be, time here is “polychronic” (I learned about that definition in Intercultural Communication, woo!). No one cares about the time. If you plan to meet someone at 8, but don’t show up until 9, no one cares, because people all have lives. They go along with the flow so easily and barely pause to think: “Wait, I have this appointment here, then meeting there, then picking up so and so there, and have to have this ready by then…” I mean, obviously, in a work environment, it’s different (here too), but outside of work and school, why do we focus so much on TIME? We need to be enjoying it like the Argentines! =)

- Everyone helps. I mentioned this in a blog a couple days ago about Elsa helping me track down a book or two (which I now have an Agatha Christie mystery to look forward to!). If you ask for a shirt, you get a shirt, a pair of pants, some socks, etc. If you ask for directions, you get an explanation, a bus route, a sub route, how much it costs to get there, and extra things to do when you’re there. If you ask for an opinion, you get one and a couple of different ones just because. Those who can’t give physically, give friendship like crazy. I have not encountered one unkind Argentine (although I am sure that there are plenty, like in any country in the world).

- Stress? What is stress? I don’t think Argentines know the word. I wish we didn’t either.

- Massages for $40 pesos…for an hour. That’s less than $14 US…for an hour massage. I think yes.

Okay, I’m sure there’s a lot more I could share with you, and maybe I shall in the future, but I am tired and am running out of things to think about… =)

More later from the south! Miss you all and love you!

Dia 21, First Time Peanut Butter, 7 de Julio

2009-07-08T18:35:00.000-07:00

Well, today was a pretty decent day. I went to class and didn’t hate everything about politics afterwards! I guess sending the profe the email was a good thing because he spoke really slow today and kept making sure I understood. And today, I actually did understand a lot of what he was talking about. I think it helped that he had a hand out today, so we could follow along with him, and he also gave us a brief political history of Argentina, which helped also. So class was pretty decent.

During one of our breaks, I pulled out some crackers and peanut butter (it’s a great mid-day snack!) and started eating. This was the second time the professor had seen me eating peanut butter, and today he decided to ask me what it was that I was eating. We tried explaining it to him (we didn’t know if there was a word in Spanish so we said mantequilla de mani “butter of peanuts”). He looked at it and said, “Hmm…Skippy Cream” which was basically hilarious in his Argentine accent. He didn’t know what it was still, but he agreed to try it on a cracker. He tasted the peanut butter for the first time in his life and said, “¡Qué rico!” (How delicious!). I was so happy he liked it! And how cool is that to be there for someone’s first time at having peanut butter (and they’re around 50-60 years old!)? So that was a pretty fun part of the class.

He let class out about 30 minutes early and he walked us to the Academia. It’s a building that hosts the Academia of Politics and Economics of Argentina…or something like that. It’s where all the academics gather to discuss new ideas and write theses and analogies and what not. So maybe I don’t know the exact purpose of the place, but its somewhere along those lines. We all got a copy of this thin booklet that we are supposed to read in the next two weeks. It’s about the “isms” of politics. It might be somewhat interesting, but it’s all in Spanish obviously so it’ll be somewhat difficult. We’ll see.

So, since last night Bridget and I had wandered around, I thought tonight would be a good night to just hang out at home and work on my Spanish class homework. However, when I got home Serri said she was going to the movies (“The Proposal”) and asked if I wanted to go. Well, of course I said yes because it was Tuesday night and movies are really cheap during the week (less than $5 US at any time Mon-Thur), plus I really wanted to see the movie anyways. On our way there we met up with one of her friends, Ivonna who is from LA and really cool. Before we went to the movie we stopped at Freddo, and I found a new love…

…of Freddo’s wonderful ice cream! Probably the best ice cream I’ve ever had in my life. I tried something called a Tramontana. It was vanilla with dulce de leche and little cookie bits in it. SO good! I am definitely going back there! And it’s a little less than $3 US for a pretty good size amount. Enough to keep me happy! =)

Moving along, after Freddo we went and saw the movie. It was a really good, cheesy romantic comedy. Obviously not “Wonderful” or anything like that, but I was smiling and felt happy when it was over. I recommend it for anyone who enjoys a good chick flick and isn’t expecting an Oscar winner. =)

After dinner, we decided we were pretty hungry and they asked me if I’d been to La Cholita’s yet. I hadn’t so they said, “OH my gosh! It’s so good! We’re taking you there!” So we go to this little steak house that was really busy but basically hidden between two larger buildings. It was all soft light and candle light, so you’d think it was uber fancy, but there were large pieces of paper on the tables (like at Garfield’s) as well. And the food…oh, it was good. Every time I try a new restaurant I think of Aunt Kelly and Uncle Tim who always seem to have a good restaurant in mind when they’re hungry. They would LOVE to spend time here trying to find all the good restaurants. We all got the same thing “Bife lobo”. It was a size of steak that was about a foot long and maybe 4 inches wide, and it came with fries. All for only $10 US. And…this is mainly to let my parents know: I tried it with Chimmi churri (I have NO idea how to spell that) and I LIKED it! That’s right. I tried something that looked funny and has a funny name and realized it was good. I know, it’s not like a rare Argentine spice or anything like that, but it was new for me. That’s something right? =)

And after dinner, it was home, homework, then bed!

More stories later from the wonderful country of Argentina!

Dia 20, Rastas and Dormitories, 6 de junio

2009-07-07T07:39:00.000-07:00

Well, today just started not too long ago (it’s only 11:30 right now), but something has already happened that I feel I should write about! Now, I am going to tell you about a story involving two Argentine women and I am just going to happily assume that this is the way Argentines are. I’m sure that there are exceptions about how people are here (like in any country in any world, there will be people who are different), but I am going to say that these two women are how Argentine women are…because I like thinking that way. I hope that made sense…

This morning, I woke up around 10:00 (actually, I woke up earlier, around 8:00, but being Cambria I will not allow myself to be awake that early if I have nothing to do, so I went back to sleep). =) So, after eating breakfast I realized that I had quite a bit of time to do…well, whatever I wanted to do, before leaving for class at one. Now, I think I’ve mentioned my book dilemma before. I only brought one book with me thinking that I wasn’t going to have that much time to read, because hello! I’m in B.A….no time for sitting around reading. Well, seven weeks is a long time to just run around every single day. I’d wear myself out easily. So, yesterday (as I mentioned) I was hoping a book store would be open, and found none. So today, I thought I would go to a bookstore before class. Then I thought…wait, surely they have libraries here. I mean, biblioteca is the word for library and why would they have that word if there are none in a Spanish speaking country? So I asked my host mom if there were any close by. (This is where the story starts of the Argentine women.) She wasn’t sure, so instead of just telling me she didn’t know (which, lets be honest… there are plenty of people in the US that, when you ask a question, if they don’t know, that’s that…) she looked through her “Guia T” (guide) of B.A. and found a list (which, if I’d have known was there, I would have looked at it in mine). She looks at the list and finds some that are close, but instead of just giving me addresses, she calls the places. She said that libraries here can be very specific, like a library just for Architects or just for Doctors, etc. So she was calling and asking if they were open and when they were open, etc. She called about four or five places for me. Of those, one was open but would not allow you to check out books (why is it called a library?!), two numbers were disconnected, and two were closed for winter/the flu.

So here it was, looking like a dead end. But then she showed me that she had a few books that her son had bought when he visited, and they were in English. There were about 7 or 8 books there, and I probably could have read a couple of them okay, but then she was like, “Muy masculino, no?” I was okay with reading a “guy” book, but did she stop there? NO. She decided to call her friend, Graciela who lives on the floor below us and ask her if she had any books in English for girls. Sure enough, Graciela answered and said she did and would look for them and put them in a bag for me to look through. Then, when I asked Elsa if I needed to go down there, she said no, Graciela would call when she got them together and then Elsa would go down and get them for me.

Isn’t that just amazing? Not only do I not have to buy a book here, I don’t have to go through the process of checking out a book (which might be difficult with the language barrier, and if there were papers for me to fill out to get a library card or whatever they have here) or trying to find a library that’s actually open. And Elsa could have just said, “I don’t know where any are, I’m sorry!” and I would have been okay with that and just walked around until I found one. The longer I’m here, the more I notice that people really are nice and open if you break the ice. Thomas kind of noticed this the other night.

When you’re outside, or on a bus, or somewhere public, the people look like they have a mission and that’s what they’re going to do. They don’t necessarily look friendly (or unfriendly for that matter), just determined. So basically, they don’t look open to talk to you. However, Thomas just asked a question to a lady on a bus the other night, and she smiled and answered the question, then started talking to him and asking him questions (which is easy to do for them when it’s obvious you’re not from here). And she was really nice.

So I thought that would be an interesting story to share, how my house mom went beyond being helpful to make sure I got what I wanted. I am definitely very grateful to be living with her. She’s so helpful and kind and friendly… and fun to watch television with! And today she was roasting a huge red pepper over an open flame. It was just sitting there on the stove, no pan or anything. I am not a cook…but she said it’s to peel it easier. It was interesting looking.

Anyways…that’s all for now, and the day is just starting! More later!

Later, that same day…=)

Well, now it is evening (pretty late for me to be up…12:30! Ha ha). I had a pretty good, long day. I went to my class at the new location. Now, of course, beforehand I had no idea where my classes would be. I just had an address. Even when I got there I had NO idea what kind of a building it was. I went in and Thomas and Adam were already there talking with Marcelo (our student coordinator through Universidad Austral). We stood there waiting on the other two girls and talking about coffee and the different sizes and kinds there are here. (I will give you a coffee guide for B.A. later!) After awhile, I started noticing people walking in and up the stairs or down the stairs into other rooms. And I noticed: “Hmm…I haven’t seen another girl yet.” I know, maybe it’s a strange thing to notice, but not ONE other girl out of maybe 10 people I saw other than the ones I was with. Later, as Marcelo is giving us a short tour of where the bathrooms/study rooms/classroom is he tells us, “Oh, by the way, this is an all-male residential hall.” WHAT? An all-MALE residential hall? How horrible…what terrible luck I have. =) I know mom and dad will enjoy that! Ha ha… none of them seemed really thrown off by the fact that there were a few girls there, so maybe it’s not that rare of a thing, or maybe they were playing it cool. But how funny… and the building is closer to where we all live, and I don’t have to take a bus to get there. Things with school are looking up! =)

Moving on, after class we walked around some, then I eventually went home because I was SO hungry. OH, restaurants here (other than McD’s and Burger King) don’t serve food between 4 and 6 or 7 depending on the restaurant. Isn’t that crazy? It has a name for the time of day it is. I don’t remember the name exactly but it has to do with it being the middle of the day, or snack time. They only serve drinks and some serve medialunas (croissants) or cookies, but no meals. Very interesting. However, I was really hungry because I forgot to eat lunch. I had breakfast around 10:30 so I wasn’t hungry at noon! =) So I went home and ate my dinner early (really early for here) at 5:00. My host mom made these HUGE meatballs (with all sorts of spices and what not in them, they were good) and this stew stuff with potatoes and garbanzo beans (which I ate all of) and little tomatoes (which I also ate!). It was so good, but afterwards I was stuffed! It was a great meal.

After, I uploaded a few more photos (again, it took FOREVER), then went to meet Bridget at McD’s so she could use my computer to upload her photos (which was a lot faster because it was a different wifi server). So tomorrow, I am going to school a little earlier (NO, not because of the boys! Lol) to use their wifi.

After McD’s, we went to the drum show (like I went to last Monday night); however, tonight it was closed due to La Gripe (the flu!). Sigh…now the flu is getting in the way of my fun! Not cool, nope, not at all. There were a few vendors outside selling their stuff, so we looked around for awhile. There was a guy who was from Brazil who hand made all of his jewelry. I know that a lot of vendors say their stuff is hand made, but then he made me a ring while we were talking to him and gave it to me for free! Yay for blond hair? Ha ha. It was really fun talking to him because, since he’s from Brazil his native language is Portuguese and since ours is English, we had to communicate in Spanish since that was something we all knew a little bit better than the other one’s native language. Coming from the communication major within me, it was a pretty amazing thing getting to be a part of that!

As we kept talking to him, I noticed that he had a single dread on the back of his head. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this, but dread locks are a very big thing here. There are plenty of Rastas (reggae heads, basically) with dreads, or partial dreads. They wear baggy, hippie clothing and are very “one with the earth”…that sort of thing. There were a few out there selling stuff. I had been talking to Bridget about getting a single dread to put on the back of my head (under all my hair so it’s not just OUT in the open), so we went ahead and asked him how to do it. He said it was hard to explain, but asked if we wanted one…so I got one! Again, for Free! He was really nice about it and yes, I realize that maybe letting some random street seller give me a dread wasn’t the smartest or safest thing to do (and is very NOT Cambria-like), it was a fun, free moment for me. And like my mom said when I told her on the phone, “it’s better than getting a tattoo”. So yeah, and I like it….and I can always cut it out if I start to not like it. Yay for doing a “cultural” thing while in B.A.!

After that, we went and had a slice of pizza at a random little café. I know I’ve said this before, but pizza is SO good here. Even plain mozzarella pizza is AMAZING. It never disappoints…or at least, it hasn’t yet. I prefer any of the pizza here over Pizza Hut, Mazzios, or even Dominoes! (Don’t tell Raliegh about that last one! Ha) Then we went to our various apartments.

And now I am finishing up my update and then going to bed! But first, I suppose I shall give you a quick lesson on the Coffee of Buenos Aires:

Buenos Aires Coffee 101

For starters, you should know that coffee sizes here are SMALL. The largest size you can get (unless you go to Starbucks which doesn’t count in this lesson) is about the size of a small in the states…not kidding. And that is only if you can find it. (It took Thomas almost three weeks to find a place that sells them that big. However, coffee here is really strong, so maybe it balances it out.

There are four major “types” of sizes that we learned about today. You can get all of these (except for Café con Leche) as a “doble” which is “double”.

Café – about the size of an espresso shot.
Café Doble – two espresso shots
Café con Leche – much bigger (and by that I mean still really small compared to the states) since it’s half milk, half coffee.
Cortada – Coffee with a dash of milk.
Cortada Doble – a bit bigger size of the regular Corta.
Café Lágrima – coffee with only a small drop of coffee, but it’s a much stronger coffee than the others. (Lágrima in Spanish is “tear drop”. You can also get a “Doble” of this as well.

(And you can always add “con crema” [with cream].)

Now you all know a little bit about the coffee styles here. Of course, there is a lot more that even I don’t know, but if you ever come to B.A. (and Marcelo told us it was a lot like this in Italy as well), you know not to get just a “café” unless you really just want an espresso shot. But Café con Leche is probably the most common (and best in my opinion, although I really want to try the Lagrima one to see how strong it really is!).

And that is all the exciting news that I have to share with you today…and this was quite a long update! Woo! It’s almost three and half pages in Microsoft Word! Someone tell me why I’m not a journalist? =)

Chao to all my lovely friends and family! Miss you all and will write more later!

Dia 19, Lazy Sunday: 5 Julio

2009-07-06T08:27:00.000-07:00

Well, like the title suggests, I had another lazy day. It’s been quite a good day so far. It’s only five o’clock right now, so I realize more could happen later. I don’t think I am going to leave the house again though. I woke up somewhat later than I had originally planned. My house mom didn’t go to church this week, so maybe we’ll go next week. I hope so because that will be an interesting experience. I know that Thomas and Adam went to a church today though, so maybe they’ll have some cool stories about it.

After I did my usual morning thing, I worked on my homework for a little over an hour. Then, when I finished, I decided to get out of the house, even if just for a little while. I just started walking down Santa Fe for a few blocks. Then I headed back. On Sundays here, everything is closed other than restaurants, some pharmacies, and grocery stores. I think I might have seen one clothing store open. I was hoping that there would be a book store open because it’s a little rainy today and a perfect day for reading! But alas, no new books for Cambria. I do have a magazine I could read, but that won’t take me long at all. Mom and Dad sent me a book…but who knows when it will get here.

On my way walking back home (after about 20-30 minutes of walking) I stopped at the grocery store. I got some more apple juice (it’s so good here!) and a large bottle of Sprite, some crackers and a package of cookies. Then I went home…and here I am. I finished my update from yesterday and decided to go ahead and start today’s for what I had done so far. Like I said earlier, I don’t know if I am going to do anything else today, I just need a day to rest and hang out.

Later on…

Nothing else exciting has happened. =) I worked on some more Spanish work and watched some television. But it’s been a good day, and at least I got out for a little while earlier. I suppose I can teach you all some more slang, I’m sure you’ve been dying to learn more! Ha ha…

- Bárbaro: “Yeah, I agree.” You basically use this at the end of sentences to show that you’re on the same page with someone. Like: “Oh yeah, gotcha.”

- Quilombo: a mess. To describe something that is “a mess”. Very informal.

- Ir de joda: to have fun (literally: to go to have fun)

- Fiaca: unmotivated, done, lazy, “Tengo fiaca” – I am done. I can’t focus anymore! (I feel that way sometimes!)

And now you’ve all learned some more fun words to add to your dictionaries. I know you’re all studying up and are going to have this all down when I come home (as if I use these words everyday, lol).

I have class at my new location tomorrow! I don’t even know what kind of a building we’re meeting in since all the schools are closed…hmm, we’ll see!

More stories (hopefully more exciting) tomorrow! =) Love you and miss you!

Dia 18: Artisans, Circuses, and 4th of July Celebrations! 4 de Julio

2009-07-06T08:24:00.000-07:00

Today was quite a long day indeed. It was so long, in fact, that I am writing this update on Sunday, July 5. The day started off good enough. The usual morning routine was kept, followed by a short time of being able to upload a few more photos on Facebook from when we went to Uruguay last weekend. There are still quite a few Uruguay pictures left, so I am hoping to be able to upload them sometime soon…we shall see.

Around one thirty, I left the apartment and went to the Recoleta Artisan Fair where I met up with Thomas, Adam and Bridget. While there, I got some lunch and we watched an interesting “radio” man. I don’t know how to describe this man, other than to say that he was decked out in…metal? Copper…fake silver…aluminum maybe? And there was a radio by his feet and that playing music. He would move occasionally for a photo op, but other than that, just kind of stood there. He was quite strange. There were also a couple of statue-esque tango dancers. They were completely painted silver: their faces, clothes, skin, everything. For those of you in Oklahoma who have gone to the Ford Center and seen the copper looking cowboy statue that moves occasionally to startle people, that’s what these two were like. They were completely still and then, out of nowhere, they would do a slow moving tango dance, and then freeze again. Don’t worry, I got plenty of pictures.

Then we went into the heart of the fair. There were rows and rows of artisans selling their work. As any fair, there were the typical touristy things, like t-shirts, coffee mugs, magnets, etc. There was plenty of handmade jewelry and what not. There were also mates and bombillas. I bought a few things, you know, necessary things for the family back at home! =) I have been having a hard time finding picture frames though. Well, not normal ones, I have found quite a few of those, I just can’t seem to find any touristy frames. I’ll keep looking though!

After the fair (and after a delicious chocolate covered, dulce de leche filled Churro) we found a bus to take us to the Circus!!! However, little did we know that the bus finished its route about ten blocks before it got to the park where the circus was being held. So then we got to walk…some more…as we usually do! Then… we arrived at the Buenos Aires Polo Circo Festival! And…it was somewhat disappointing! Ha ha. I know… for starters, it was definitely more festival-esque then it was a circus. And there were no animals! No elephants, camels, tigers, lions, monkeys…nothing. And these are circus performers from around the world (including the US) and I just cannot believe they did not have any kind of animals. I was very disappointed about that. Sigh. According to the activities announcement in the booklet, there were a few free shows in the center ring tent. However, they changed them to be outside. It wasn’t too chilly, but by the time we sat there for awhile, it had gotten pretty chilly, so it was harder to enjoy the show. It was basically an acrobatics show with people jumping and flipping and flying. It was pretty impressive. I took plenty of pictures and some video of it as well.

After the show, we decided to start heading to where our 4^th of July party was being held. It was still a little early (it started at 8, meaning we didn’t need to get there until at least 8:30 or later… you don’t show up on time in this country) so rode the subway and had to change trains on it about three times. Luckily, it wasn’t busy and filled with people. Once we got to the right neighborhood, we stopped in a little café and shared some Sambuyon flavored ice cream. Let’s just say…it wasn’t the best ice cream I’ve had. Thomas had some in Colonia and had been looking for some since. Apparently, its wine flavored, although there is no wine in it. So we went ahead and got some because Thomas really likes it… I do not really like it. Thomas thought it was pretty funny watching my face wrinkle in disappointment when I tried it. After a few bites, it got a little better, but I will not be getting that flavor again. Also, to add to it, Thomas and I had ordered coffee and forgot to order it “con leche”. If you just order coffee, that’s what you get: straight black coffee. Now, this doesn’t sound so bad, except for the fact that they don’t have creamer or milk just sitting around for you to add to your drink! There was plenty of sugar, and I poured an entire packet in mine (the packets here are huge). Then, I thought I’d go ahead and put some ice cream in my coffee…it actually helped the flavor. I was so proud of my little chef intervention there. But the time spent in the café itself was pretty fun, even if the coffee was too strong and the ice cream was an awkward flavor.

Moving along, we finally walked towards the club (bar?) where the group was throwing a 4^th of July Party for all Americans who wanted to stop by. Just for RSVP-ing, we got a free drink and as many free hot dogs as we wanted. It was a pretty cool deal. We didn’t even have to pay for any part of that. And this bar was a pretty cool place itself. The walls looked like older stone, like you would find in an old castle and there were three levels to it. It wasn’t really that big, but just the set up made it seem bigger. We met a couple from California who are spending the month in B.A. just because they can. I thought that was pretty cool. My house mate, Serri also went and I talked with her for awhile also. It was a pretty fun time just getting to talk to other Americans and hearing their stories as to why they were in B.A. One girl actually had had Thomas’ sister as a teacher’s aid in one of her classes at her school. What a small world.

We finally went home around midnight. We weren’t too tired at this point, so we decided to walk until we felt like we should take a cab home. Before we knew it, however, we were already three blocks away from my apartment! It was a pretty far walk but it felt so good out and since it was a Saturday night, the streets were still busy and plenty of restaurants were open. We were walking along Santa Fe which is a pretty busy street as well, so no worries; I wasn’t walking on a random back street in the dark! =)

And that was my day…maybe it doesn’t seem like too too much, but it was a really long day, and sleep was so necessary last night!

I guess that’s all I have to share for today. More later! Love you and miss you all!

Dia 17: Window Shopping and Manicures, 3 de junio

2009-07-04T09:15:00.000-07:00

Well, like the subject suggests, today I went window shopping and got a manicure! Woo! I woke up early ish (9:45) and did the usual morning routine. After I finished getting ready I went to Expanish to talk to Luciana. She was really worried about me and how I was feeling about the class! I told her my concerns and she gave me a few options. She said that I could just stop going to the class and it would not affect my other two classes, or I could keep going to the class and try to grasp as much as possible, but not take a mark (grade) for the class if I didn’t think I was going to be able to do well in it. And of course there’s the option of just staying in the class, doing the work, and sucking it up. Sigh. I don’t know what I’m going to do for sure yet. I know I am going to go again, at least once to see how it goes. For our homework last Tuesday, he just wanted us to email him. One, so he could have all of our email addresses. Two, so we could remind him to make photocopies of this book he wanted us to read. And three, so we can tell him about what we find interesting about what we’ve talked about so far. Well, I think I might take that as an opportunity to let him know how I am lost and not really understanding the material. He can either help me out, or allow me to be lost and that might influence my decision in whether or not I take a grade or not. But I don’t have to tell them that soon, just before the end of the program. So maybe he’ll try and help me out. I don’t know, but we’ll see!

Moving on…after talking with Luciana, I met up with Bridget at the sub stop in my barrio (neighborhood). We then began our three hour window shopping adventure. I would like to say that I bought something wonderfully amazing…but I did not buy anything, lol. Bridget wants to find shoes, so we did go into a lot of shoe stores. We did eventually find that book store that is in an old theatre. It was so great! There was also a little café where the stage was, so we had lunch there. We shared a mini pizza then got cake and ice cream. It was all really good. Nothing too too exciting there. After lunch we walked around the book store. I found a section of English books, but decided to not buy any since we are in Argentina. But I didn’t really find any Spanish ones that I thought I would want to attempt to read. It was such a great place though. And there were people reading in the “box” seats. I probably could have stayed in there for hours.

After Bridget and I finally pulled ourselves away from the books, we continued walking down Avenida Santa Fe (which is the busiest street around where I live, and also where my bus stop is). We looked into a few more shoe stores, and then decided that we wanted manicures. Like I mentioned before, manicures here are really cheap: less than $7 US. We found this cute little beauty shop and it was a fun time. I got this pretty pink color and Bridget chose a purplish redish… color.

After manicures, we went our separate ways deciding to meet back up later tonight. I don’t exactly know what the plans are for later. We are trying to get hold of some other people to see what everyone else is doing. Who knows…maybe I’ll stay home watching TV and going to bed early! Ha ha… we decided to go to the Circus tomorrow because there were some Expanish students who wanted to go but they had school today. So we decided to wait until tomorrow.

And I just realized that tomorrow is the 4^th of July. How strange to be spending the day of my country’s independence in another country. My house mate Serri knows of a group of Americans that’s throwing a mini 4^th of July party. We might go to that just because. They will be passing out free hot dogs! Woo! =)

Later this evening: After already writing my update for the day, I got a call from Luciana, the student coordinator. Apparently, our school is closing because of the swine flu outbreak. But DON’T WORRY! It’s just a precaution; no one had it at our school or anything scary like that. The schools here are getting out for their winter break just a few weeks early. However, we still have class. Oh yes, no worries there either. We are having the same classes, just at a different location. And actually, the place we are at now is closer to where I live. I can actually walk there. It’s a longer walk but it isn’t any longer than what I walk most days in general. And, what’s even better about not having to pay to take the bus, is that I don’t have to be on a bus filled with other people and thus, avoiding germs! And Serri talked to her parents who talked to a travel doctor about whether or not she’ll be okay. He said it’s not too much different from the normal flu. We just need to make sure and wash our hands and take vitamins (which I have done every day, Mom!) and if we do come down with anything to take Tamaflu or something along those lines. There’s really nothing serious to worry about. But it’s still crazy being so close to it. Apparently B.A. is the third most infected place with the swine flu (behind Mexico and the US)…but since the US is on that list, I’m not too worried about it. Plus, a lot of people have been talking about how the media is trying to make the flu outbreak look really bad so that the government will look even worse in the process. I don’t know…people here don’t like their government. So yeah, there’s that update!

I wish I had more fun things to share…but alas, I do not. I guess I can teach you all some more slang, because I know that you all want to learn more!

Lunfardo de viernes (Friday’s Slang)

- Boludo: slang for calling your friends “stupid” or other semi-negative words like that. It’s okay unless you use it when you are really angry with people you don’t know…then it’s considered rude. =) (Because why wouldn’t you want to know that?)

- Copado: slang for “great” or “wonderful”. Can be used for a person or a place. Example: Cambria es copada! =)

- Piola: Another term for nice or easy going.

Yay for the slang of the day! No worries, there is more to come later! =)

Missing you all terribly! More from down South later!

B.A. Dia 16: Clowns and Beer Dancing. 2 de junio

2009-07-03T06:56:00.000-07:00

Well, today was yet another somewhat uneventful day: Take laundry to get done, class, pick up laundry, dinner, TV with Elsa, blog. Wouldn’t that be a much shorter way of telling you how my day went?

Well, lucky for you faithful readers, I do have a few stories to share about strange-ish things that happened throughout the day.

While my bus to school was stopped at a stoplight, there was a clown on a sidewalk. Yes, it was a random clown with a white face, red painted nose, and large shoes. He walked up to the bus, looked at the window (close to where I was standing) and made this face like he was disgusted with what he saw (no, he was NOT looking at me!) and then proceeded to wipe off an imaginary bug from the window. Then he shook the “bug” in the air and pointed his finger at it and started speaking to it like he was giving him a “talking to” about riding on bus windows or something. I don’t know…but then he threw “the bug” on the ground and stomped on it. Then he looked back at us on the bus and smiled and gave us a thumbs up, as if he saved us from whatever creature happened to be crawling on the window. I have learned to think that anything can happen in Buenos Aires and nothing should surprise me. I mean, no one else on the bus looked surprised. They all kept looking ahead or looking at the clown then looking away as if this were a normal happening on their bus rides to work or school. But I couldn’t look away. It was a clown in the middle of the street! Sigh…only in B.A….or college campuses where much stranger things happen but we always say, “They’re in college” or “We’re in college” so it’s okay that people are running around the oval, drinking a glass of milk, then running around the oval…and they paid to do it… it’s college. That’s what I am starting to think about this city…its B.A. Sigh…

Moving on to class time…our professor was thirty minutes late to class today. What? And we waited that long for him to show up? Well…yeah. I know that in the US (or at least at my home University) if the professor doesn’t show up for fifteen minutes we’re allowed to leave, but we didn’t know if they have that rule here or what. Just as we were starting to pack our stuff up, he comes walking in with…an assistant professor? I guess he was an assistant, I don’t know what else to call him, co-professor maybe? Well, we start talking about the civil war in Argentina in the 1800s between Buenos Aires and the rest of Argentina, and then we were talking about different cities, one of them being Quilmes. We, the students, we a bit thrown off I guess because Quilmes is the number one beer here in Argentina. So the professors explained that it was a town and then, our professor started joking around about the younger professor knowing his drink. He started dancing and pretending to have a drink in his hand and talking about Cervesa. It was SO funny! I mean… I don’t remember if any of my professors have ever danced in class, but I am sure it was not as hilarious as this. Sigh…good times.

Besides that, I had a much better time in this class than I did in that Politics class. This is the Culture and Society class and the professor is just much more interesting and actually writes a lot on the board which helps me a lot! And there is an actual time line to this class…we talked about the 1700s last week, and the 1800s this week. I think he said that we were going to watch a film next week about Rosas (a governor of Argentina that…united the two sides after the civil war? I think that’s right, I’ll learn next week!). Anyways, I understood more and actually felt like I was learning more…and didn’t want to cry every four minutes for the entire class! So yay for having a class I’m interested in that’s teaching me more than just Spanish grammar.

Speaking of other classes, I am going to Expanish tomorrow to talk to Luciana (student coordinator) about my options with this politics class. I am hoping that maybe there is another class at the Expanish School that I can take. I understand that I might not necessarily get school credit for it, but that will be okay. I feel as if freaking out in my politics class every week might not help me further my Spanish knowledge, and I get that maybe it’s a mind over matter thing, but I don’t really want to think that far into it…if that makes sense. I don’t know. We’ll see how the meeting with Luciana goes tomorrow. Worst case scenario is that I’ll have to continue the class and I’ll not make a good grade in it then I’ll just tell OBU that I don’t want that class transferred and it won’t hurt my GPA or anything like that! So that’s not too bad I guess…

I don’t really know the plans for tomorrow yet. Bridget has been talking about going to the Circus that’s in town! I really hope we get to go. She is supposed to figure out where it is and all that, so I’m going to contact her tomorrow about it. If anything, I know we’re going to go shoe shopping (for her, not me…lol) and then try and find this book store that is inside of an old theatre. I dunno, it sounded pretty interesting to us, and I just finished my book yesterday. I know I don’t need more books (and especially don’t want to have to add weight to my suitcases!) but those of you who know me well enough know that it’s really hard for me to NOT buy books if I go into a book store… we’ll see. =)

If Saturday is nice we were talking about having a picnic in a park. Maybe getting a manicure or a massage…yeah, I said that. Manicures here are typically less than 20 pesos (less than $7) and massages are supposedly cheap here too! So we’re definitely going to look into that while we can… I mean, wouldn’t you want to say you got a massage in Buenos Aires?!

Well… I suppose that’s all I’ll share with you for today. But how about I give you some Buenos Aires slang to help you brush up on your Spanish! =)

Bondi, slang for colectivo which is what they call the buses here!

Che, which is their equivalent of what they call each other. For example, we say: Hey, come here! They say: ¡Che, ven aca! This is also helpful when you can’t remember someone’s name… you just call them Che.

Boliche, slang for disco (which they never use). We call it a club. In the states, in every Spanish class I’ve had, they teach us discos or discotecs. If you use that word here, they laugh at you and definitely know you’re not from around these parts. =)

There you go, oh students. I hope you enjoyed your short lunfardo (slang) lesson for the day!

As always, I miss you all and love you!!!

Dia 15: An Uneventful Day, 1 de julio

2009-07-02T07:45:00.001-07:00

B.A. Día 15! 1 julio 2009

Well, sadly enough today was a pretty uneventful day. I had my Spanish class and afterwards Thomas, Bridget and I went walking around. We went to Expanish to talk to someone about possibly taking a “field trip” tomorrow. Our syllabus for our culture class says that we are supposed to go to a museum tomorrow. When we asked our profe about it last week, he said that he thought our program was arranging it for us…but no one at Expanish told us or sent us emails. So we tried emailing them and didn’t get a response. We went to Expanish, but the two main coordinators had already left.

After that, we just walked around, and found a café called “Petty Café”. I had a milanesa sandwich which is pretty popular here in Argentina. Milanesas are basically breaded meat as far as I can tell…they aren’t too strange, but I suppose they are not normal either. After dinner, we walked around some more. We walked down Calle Florida again (it’s a popular place apparently since this was about the fourth-ish time I’ve been there). Bridget and I got some ice cream and then we separated from Thomas (who had a different route home) and got on the subte.

The subte tonight, was crazy! The craziest I’ve ever seen it in any country and I only had to be on it for about 5 or 6 stops. Poor Bridget had about 15 stops to go through to get to her place. We were at the Catedral stop, which is at the very end of the line. But there were so so so many people down there that all the trains would be full within two minutes of opening. I have never been so crammed into a place like that. I didn’t even need to hold on to any railing because when the train jerked I had people to lean on either side of me. And the smell…whew, that was just horrid. I don’t understand why people don’t make sure they smell decent before they get on a subte filled with others. But then, I suppose all the good smells mixed together would create something horrid as well… so maybe it’s a win win.

Once I got off the subte, I walked the 6-ish blocks home and talked with Serri a bit about our days. She made some popcorn which I ate while watching That 70s Show with Elsa. Then, Elsa and I watched an episode of a show called Life which I had never heard of, but it’s basically like the typical murder show where the detectives have to figure out who the killer is…The killer in this episode was really creepy and Elsa was making me laugh because she kept saying, “Que horror! Que feo! Que loco!” over and over. She really got into it which was fun because I can see myself just watching the show and not really getting that into it. So it is a lot of fun to watch shows with her. Then we watched an episode of CSI Miami which she fell asleep in the middle of. I asked her if she needed sleep and she said no and that I could stay in there…well she slept anyways. She’s so fun, I lucked out with a great host mom. She also told me tonight that they don’t have squirrels in Argentina and I thought, “How sad.” (There was a commercial with a squirrel in it in case you were wondering how that subject came about).

And now, it’s a little after 11:00 and I am thinking that I am going to go to bed soon!

Oh…one more thing I miss about Oklahoma…the air. Fresh air! I mean, today, for some reason, the air just felt so so heavy with pollution and smells and who knows what all else. My lungs are probably taking a beating with the air here! Ah! But its okay, when I go to Iguazú in a couple of weekends, I’ll breathe a lot there. =)

Well, that’s all for today! Sorry so short, but like I said, it was an uneventful day! Love you all!

Dia 14, A Full Two Weeks of Spanglish, 30 junio

2009-06-30T20:41:00.000-07:00

Well, today I do not have much to tell. It was more uneventful than the past few days.

I went to my Politics and Economics class where I understood nothing for the second time. Even when I understood what he was saying, I still did not get the point of it or how it fit into the class. I don’t see any objective of our class or some form of…form. It’s so very frustrating because I know that the professor knows what he’s talking about. And a couple others in the class seem to understand enough, or at least are really good at pretending they understand what’s going on. The profe even picked on me today (well, he did last week too) about how I nod and act like I understand but my eyes give me away. And then later in the class he mentioned how he hoped I wasn’t bored or something like that. Everyone chuckles and he moves on with class, but I would prefer that he not call me out. I get so so discouraged in that class! It is probably the most frustrating thing I’ve ever gone through. I wish I had some form of desire to learn more about politics and economics, but disliking those two things is NOT helping me get by in this class. I was threatening to quit the class today, to see if there is someway I can just not take that one class, and maybe take a different one at the Expanish School. I know I need to stick with it, but I don’t want to get by with a C in a class I can’t stand. Sigh…and it’s not like I haven’t been in it long. 8 hours of this one class is long enough for me to realize I don’t want to do it, let alone want to try to learn from it. Plus, the professor has an even more difficult accent than most Argentines do…yes, I realize, this is a learning experience for me and I need to learn wherever I can. I also realize that I shouldn’t be complaining about it…but I can and I will. =) I don’t know what I am going to do about it at the moment, but I do know that I would prefer no comments about how I need to suck it up or keep trying. That’s not what I need or want right now, so please don’t! =)

Other than that one class, everything else is going well. I went home right after class and talked with my housemate Serri. She’s really nice and lets me use her internet when she’s not home (like right now, so thank you Serri!). I had a wonderful dinner of…you guessed it! steak and mashed potatoes! They were so good! (However, they were not as good as your potatoes Grandma, no worries!). I then watched “50 First Dates” with my host mom. Our regular TV shows were not on, so we watched that instead. She likes that movie as well and talks about how “linda” (nice) it is.

I am now updating…and trying to upload more photos. It’s seriously taking about ten to fifteen minutes to upload five photos! And when I try to upload more than…oh, eight, it tells me it can’t do it. So sorry on the slow photo updating! I have some really great shots of Colonia at night that I want to share too! Oh well, I shall be patient on one thing if any! =)

Since tomorrow morning will be the start of my third week here, I think it is okay for me to admit that I do miss a few things from home:

1. DR. PEPPER!!! Oh my goodness, it’s like I am having withdrawals…at least they have Pepsi.
2. IHOP! I don’t know why, but I am seriously missing that pancake house. They don’t really eat pancakes here…well, they don’t really eat much breakfast. They don’t eat bacon, eggs, biscuits, and all the yummy stuff for breakfast. It makes me sad. Lol
3. Um…so at the moment I kinda miss the English language! Lol. I mean, I hear it here enough, but still, sometimes (especially after classes) I just need a little English to keep me sane.
4. My front and back yards. I realize now how I don’t use them…and I should. I don’t know what I’ll do (no mother, gardening is not an option, ha ha), maybe I’ll tan when I get back! But there are NO yards here! I mean, I am sure there are plenty out in the country where all the ranches are, but not where I am!

Umm… I can’t think of anything else at this moment…OH YEAH…my family and friends…but that’s a given right? Moving along…

So I brought up mate in a note a few days ago and was asked what it was…then I thought to myself, “Have I really not shared what Mate is with yous guys back at home?!” Then I looked back over my past updates and realized, “Oh my…I haven’t.” What a lousy updater I am to not inform you all on one of the TOP things that Argentina is known for! Sigh…maybe it’s because I don’t really like it that I haven’t written about it? Still, that is NO excuse. So yeah, Mate… is a drink. It is pronounced: Mah-tay. The word is actually two things. The container is called a mate. It is usually a gourd shaped cup (but can be many shapes I’m sure). The other is the drink itself. It is a bitter herb drink that people love around here. The mixture is actually called yerba mate and looks kind of like grass. It comes with a bombilla (metal or wooden straw that’s a bit different looking from normal straws) that you put in the mate cup first. Then you put in the yerba mate almost to the top. After that, you fill it up with hot water, then drink! It’s basically like a stronger version of tea and has a very bitter taste, some people put sugar in it, but I don’t think it improves the taste any. It can be a very communal activity here. (I don’t know if that’s the right word…but still.) It is very common for there to be a group of people sharing the mate, and there can be all these rituals to it as well, but I haven’t seen any other than what we did on our second day of orientation. There is a host who prepares the mate, and they pass it to the person on their left who drinks until more water needs to be put in. If that person does not want anymore, they say, “Gracias”, but if they don’t say it, they’ll get it again when it makes its way around the circle. After each person is done, they pass it back to the host who pours more water in it and then they pass it to the next person. But like I said, I haven’t seen this done anywhere yet. It might be common amongst families…but since it’s just my host mom and house mate here, we don’t drink it. When we walked around Uruguay, there were people carrying it around along with their thermoses. Thomas was drinking it at school today and I had a few sips…it’s still gross. However, that will probably not stop me from buying a small package and bringing it back with me to have some of you try. We shall have Argentine and Uruguayan rituals when I return! Yay!

Okay, I suppose that explanation gave me a bit of length to this update, so that’s better than nothing. I have my Spanish class tomorrow, which I like much much more than that other one. =) I had to write a leyenda (legend) for homework. We had the option of making one up or just writing one we new… I made one up about the mistletoe and kissing under it…why it’s a tradition. It’s not really that great, but if anyone wants to know it, let me know, I shall share…maybe. =)

That’s all for now! Goodbye from Buenos Aires!

Dia 13, La Bomba! 29 Junio

2009-06-30T20:40:00.000-07:00

Hello all my lovely readers!

Today, like many days, started off normal… nothing exciting to tell you about: breakfast, shower, writing letters, finishing off updates, etc. I went to class at 2:00… and didn’t really enjoy my Spanish class today which was quite frustrating. I normally enjoy that class (well…normally, we’ve only had it twice, but still). Today was more talking about the elections of yesterday than about really learning Spanish, which I guess you could look at it as “Oh look at all the vocabulary you could have learned when talking about it!” But I saw it as, “I have a Politics class…I’ll talk about elections then. I would like to learn more about the Spanish language in general…when are we getting to the subjunctive?!”

We finally did get to a few worksheets where I realized that my knowledge of the imperfect vs. the preterit past verb forms wasn’t as good as I originally thought. We were given stories where both types of verb forms are used, and it got really confusing knowing when to put what… Okay, those of you who don’t know Spanish much…here is a quick “lesson” (well, not really, but still):

In English, past tense, we say: When I was a child, I ate apples every day.
Yesterday, I ate an apple.

See how easy that is? Same verb: ate. Doesn’t matter when it happened, if it is in the past; we use it in the past tense.

Spanish: Cuando era niña, comía mazanas todos los días.
Ayer, comé una manzana.

See why that might get frustrating? There are two different verb forms for it, depending on if it was something that happened once in the past or something that happened often in the past. Now, it doesn’t seem that difficult right there, but there is more to it, I am finding out. When you are telling a story about something that happened and giving a setting to the story: i.e. “It was raining…” even if it only rained that one night of your story, you still use that first form because it is the setting of the story. OR, if you are saying something like, “While they walked here, the crowd laughed.” (Yeah, not the best sentence, moving on.) The first verb would be one way, and the second would be the other, because as one action is happening, the other one happens… or something like that. Sigh.

Sorry for the Spanish lesson (ish). I think I was trying to help myself study, ha ha. But hopefully you can now understand my frustration with that part of the language, and this isn’t even the hard stuff yet! I did get homework. We have one worksheet, one writing over what our bedrooms were like when we were kids (imperfect verb form!) and one leyenda norteamericana (I get to make up or tell a north American folk tale that has some form of truth in it…how fun).
After class I went home and was able to update and put up a few of my Colonia photos. There are more coming…once I can get to a place where the computer decides to be faster than 10 minutes per 8 photos. Time can add up when you’re trying to do it, especially if you are using your housemate’s wi-fi card and she’s home waiting patiently to get it back.

My host mom made gnocchi for dinner. (And no, I didn’t know how to spell that on my own, Microsoft Word helped me a bit). She says it is a tradition to make it on the 29th of every month to celebrate having money. I don’t really know why that is…but I think it’s cute. It was pretty good too. I don’t know if it is my favorite type of pasta, but I’ll eat it again (next month!).

Around 7:00 I left my place and headed for…. La Bomba! It’s a drum show that happens every Monday night and it was so much fun! I knew for sure that at least one person from my program was going to be there, but his phone hasn’t been working so I couldn’t get a hold of him to set a meeting time or anything. I got there and there were so many people outside of this place that I didn’t know if I was supposed to go in, or wait outside, or what the deal was. Luckily, as I was about to head it, I saw two other people from our program walk up and was oh so happy to see them! (Thank you Eric and Meaghan for being there!) They had been there the week before, so they basically knew what to do. You walk into the ticket booth area and pay $15 pesos ($5 US) and they give you a ticket…then you walk about 10 feet to the entrance where they tear your ticket.

Then, you are let loose into this WIDE outside space…well, it’s inside outside if that makes sense, which I am sure it doesn’t. There are four walls… no ceiling. That’s better. And there’s this HUGE staircase that leads…I don’t know where because the show was behind the stair case. There is a large drink area where you can get all sorts of drinks (yes, beer, but there was water and soda, etc.) Then to the left of the drinks is another wide opening (which is behind the staircase) to where the show is. It basically looks like you are in someone’s garage, but it’s the biggest garage I’ve ever seen. So maybe more like an airplane hangar? That could hold maybe two large airplanes, plus all that extra stuff you’d have in there? There are large pillars that have different colors of paint on them, large signs that say: “Prohibir fumar” (no smoking) which people completely ignored. Then, there is a stage, with all sorts of kinds of drums on it.

And then… the music starts at 8:00. There are maybe 10-15 people in this band and they all move around from instrument to instrument throughout the show. They are all so talented! There is a conductor who basically dances as he conducts and the music is just…well, if you DON’T move while listening to it, it probably means you’re dead. There was even a 60 year old man there moving around to the music. It’s… infectious, in the not “disease” way, but the fact that everyone around you starts swaying and you can’t help but join in and at least bob your head to the music. It was so much fun! I had a blast…yes, afterwards everything sounded funny because we just happened to be right next to the speakers and it was LOUD, but other than that, what a wonderful experience. And Grandma, I was home before 11:00, so no worries about me being out too late! =) It’s a two hour show and definitely worth the five bucks. A couple of people who went last week and this week were like, “We’re going three for three next week!” I don’t know if I will go every week, probably depends on my homework load and how busy my weekend was/week will be. But I am definitely going to go again!

Well, tomorrow looks like a pretty uneventful day. Politics class for four hours! EWW. I’ll try to survive! More from the COLD (it got down to the 40s! Ah! Ha ha) Southern hemisphere later! Love you!

Dia 12, A Day in Colonia, Uruguay, 28 Junio

2009-06-30T20:39:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness…today was probably the longest day I’ve had here in the Southern Hemisphere, other than the first day that is. I woke up at 6:40AM!!! Yeah, that’s 4:40am to those of you in the central time zone! I got ready relatively fast (in about 15 minutes). My host mom woke up and made me coffee and then by 7:15 I was off in a taxi to “Colonia Express”, a ferry that takes you to Colonia, Uruguay just across the Rio de la Plata. (Which I heard was one of the widest rivers in the world…and it is really really wide. You can barely see the sides of it when in the middle).

We arrived in Colonia around 10:00. (Our ferry didn’t leave until 9:00). It was…cold. Well, colder than it has been this entire time, I would say in the upper 40s, maybe a bit lower. I’m no meteorologist, but it was cold enough to make me shiver, even though I had a long sleeve shirt and a hoody on over it. We first took a walking tour of the city. Our tour guide told us a little about the history and kept telling us to come back and stay the night, and tell our friends about it, and to come back and get married in this little town of Colonia. They apparently really want to thrive with tourism, and it really is the perfect little tourist spot. The travel agencies need to pick this place up because it is…Beautiful! I mean it when I say that it is the most beautiful town I have ever seen. Well, at least the Old City is. The newer parts of town just look like a cute little town, but the Old City…that’s where all the magic is. The neighborhood was built by the Portuguese and the Spanish, so the architecture and the cobblestone roads mimic those in old Portugal and Spain, naturally. The buildings are painted beautiful colors and there are all sorts of different types of flowers on the ground, growing on the sides of buildings, planted on roof tops.

There are also quite a lot of dogs just running around the place. Some of them obviously had owners, some probably didn’t, but they were all happy and friendly. And also, you cannot walk down the street without seeing someone carrying a thermos and mate. It is so funny. I saw more mate in Uruguay than I’ve seen my entire time in B.A. They love love love it in Uruguay. I think I noticed that the way to tell a tourist from a local is that tourists aren’t carrying around mate.

After our short city tour, we went to lunch at a random restaurant. I had raviolis which were…eh, okay I suppose. Then we were free to do as we pleased. We followed our Expanish leader for awhile. He took us to a boardwalk where we took pictures of more buildings and of the river. Then he took us to a “beach” area where we were able to take even more pictures. Then we went back to the Old City center where we split up and went our different ways. Oh, before I forget, there were also orange trees, and of course I couldn’t help but think of my mom who definitely would have picked a few oranges. =) Some of my classmates did and they said that they were the most sour oranges they’ve ever tasted. Sorry mom, I didn’t pick any… I wouldn’t be able to bring them home anyway! =)

Then we split up. We went to some little tourist shops and bought tourist-y things. Then we just…walked…and took photos. I took about 200 photos while I was there…(coming to a facebook album near you soon!) Bridget and I finally got tired of just walking, and since we were pretty chilly we decided to find some café con leche and just sit around the town for awhile. In the midst of our search, we found stairs leading to the roof of a building…so we went up there and found a cute little roof with tables and chairs and what not. Well, we sat… and talked. I know I know, you have a day in Uruguay and you just sit on a roof and talk?! Why weren’t you out doing stuff? I know…however, the sun was in the perfect spot (meaning it was a bit warmer than in the shade) and it was over looking the water and various other rooftops that had flowers and other stuff…it was a pretty sight. Plus, we had about 5 hours in this little town to spend… so why not?

After awhile we went down and started walking again. We finally found a cute little café where we got our drinks and a little bit of food. It was a really cute restaurant with heaters (!) and there was a cute little dog in there as well. And then we took off walking again. We tried to go up to a lighthouse, but it was closed by the time we got there…however, I did take quite a few pictures of it. I also took a few pictures of what was almost sunset. I didn’t get any good photos of it because the clouds overtook the sun and so it made it more difficult.

I don’t know how the time went by so fast, but before we knew it, it was dark outside and so we walked around and took photos of Colonia in the evening. We ended up at a park where we sat down and just people watched. And wow…the people here are just so interesting. They are all so different and quite wonderful it seems. The mullet and the rat tail seem to be hair styles that are in here as well, although not as common. Many a people had their mate (even younger kids…maybe 10 or 11 carried them around). While we were there, a dog found us and decided to make us his new friend. It was so sweet and just let us pet him (no worries, we had hand sanitizer!). As we were sitting on this park bench, just hanging out, a couple of guys walked by and one said, “Hola!”… well, we are not rude, we do not just ignore semi attractive Uruguayan boys when they talk to us… so we said, “Hola” back… but they kept walking, so no big deal, right? =) Well, then Bridget just started feeling sorry for the poor dog and got up to go to the kiosko that was right by us to see if they had any kind of food that she could give the dog (yup, she has a soft spot when it comes to homeless dogs)… and she wasn’t even gone but thirty seconds, when those two Uruguayan guys are back in the park and saying hello to me again, and then sitting down on the bench next to me… But strangely enough, they weren’t…creepy. They were nice and said hello. One’s name was Juan (I can’t remember the other). Then of course they start speaking in really fast Spanish with a Uruguayan accent so I was LOST. Bridget came back and tried to translate some for me. However, when they said, “Donde esta sus novios?,” (Where are your boyfriends?) I laughed and Bridget said, “Tengo un novio” (I have a boyfriend). And then she started getting her southern (she’s from Georgia) attitude on and I guess they got the hint because they, somewhat politely, said okay and said goodbye. Ha ha. It was quite fun and no harm was done! So no worries mom and dad!

Well, after awhile longer, Bridget and I decided to start heading back to the port, mainly because we weren’t certain where the port was from where we were, so we had to back track back through the Old City to try and find it. On our way there, we started hearing music…drumming in particular. So we followed it (I mean, we had an hour before we had to be back). And after a block or two (more normal sized blocks in Uruguay), we found the source. There was a band in the middle of the street playing the drums. There were a few girls dancing and then we found Alex and Leo. Alex has taken a few milonga and tango dancing lessons, so she was out there dancing with them too. We just listened and somewhat moved to the music (no, I did not let my crazy dance moves out…people just have to be patient for that!). After about two or three minutes or so of following this moving drum band down the street, I turned and noticed two very familiar looking figures on the other side of the road. Sure enough, it was Juan and his friend. Sigh. I had followers! (And no, I can’t say whether or not I was excited by that fact. Ha ha). While we followed this band down the street, (for about twenty minutes), Juan and friend followed us…but then, they finally left. I don’t know if they were waiting on me to acknowledge them (which I never did), or if they were waiting on us to turn back and be alone, or what the deal was. But Leo was with us, so I had some form of a guy around in case things got crazy…but NO worries! Nothing happened. They left and we four went back to the ferry unharmed and un-followed (as far as I know I suppose…ha).

Well, then we took the ferry home and that’s the end of my fun day in Uruguay. (Pronounced: oo-roo-why for those of you who want to know the correct pronunciation). =)

More class tomorrow! And hopefully a drum show tomorrow night. One of my classmates said he had the most fun he’s ever had there when he went last Monday, so we shall see.

Miss you all and love you!

Dia 11, A Much Needed Lazy Saturday, 27 Junio

2009-06-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

After a late-ish night on the town, I slept in on Saturday. I won’t tell you what time I woke up. You would sigh and think, “Oh the youth of our generation.” However, once I did get up and around I ate my breakfast (lunch) and started writing out letters to the family and what not. I then proceeded to try to finish my homework for Monday’s Spanish class. (Only one more page to read! Woo!)

After awhile of writing and reading, I decided to go for a walk. I found a local park about two to three blocks away from my apartment and it was such a cute little park. There were tons of little kids there with their moms and dads. They were riding little tricycles and chasing pigeons and swinging. It was such a cute place; I will probably go back (if the weather doesn’t get colder). While I was there I read a little from the newspaper about politics. Not only did I barely understand it, but most of it was continuation of things that have been happening in B.A. recently… I haven’t been in B.A. recently so I was completely lost. Sigh…maybe one day.

Speaking of politics, their local and regional elections are tomorrow. Something you might not know about Argentine voting rights… it’s not only a right, it’s an obligation. That’s right. They have to vote here. It’s not if they want to…they just have to. I asked my host mom what happened if they didn’t vote and she said, “Well, you have to talk to the government, then go through a lot of paperwork, then go to meetings, then get fined, then…well, it’s just better to vote.” It’s so interesting to me that we see it as a “privilege” in the US, and here it doesn’t matter how they look at it, they still have to vote. I can see that as a good and bad thing, however a lot of Argentines (like a lot of people from the U.S.) are very cynical about their government. They don’t think that the candidates are much different or will be much different from what they are now…but they still have to choose someone to vote for, they don’t get the choice to not vote. It’s crazy to me…but something else that’s crazy is that they did not get the right to vote until 198…3… I think. 1983. So it’s only been a little over 20 years for them. So yeah…just thought I’d share that with you. =)

Moving on with my lazy Saturday…after the park I went to the grocery store and bought more apple juice. I don’t know what it is, but there is something just so wonderful about the apple juice here! It’s like coke…but I don’t know if it’s the sugar or not…hmm. Anyways, I bought more juice, then went to a kiosco and bought a phone card to call home again.

Then I went back to the apartment, wrote a couple more letters, read some… I didn’t really do anything exciting. I was able to get on the internet for a little while and I got connected with Adam and we decided to meet at McDonalds to use their wi-fi (because my house mate needed her internet back, plus we just wanted to get out of the apartments, lol). So we hung out at McD’s for awhile, then I headed back home where I had dinner and watched TV…

Wow, I just realized how lazy and lame my Saturday was… but it was a good break from traveling so much lately! I am sure I’ll have better stories tomorrow, because I’m going to Uruguay! Yay, another country to visit!

More from the Southern Hemisphere later! Love you!

Dia 10, Life Without High Fructose Corn Syrup? I'll Take It. 26 Junio

2009-06-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

Buenos Aires, Día 10! Eco Reserves and Transformers!

Well hello all! I know, I’m a couple days late getting these updates up, but sometimes, getting to the internet is more difficult than expected, especially when you’re actually busy all day!

Well, Day nine was definitely an interesting day. I met up with Thomas and Bridget at Plaza de Mayo. It’s where the Pink House is…where their president used to live. How funny, we have the White House, they have the Casa Rosada. But now it just houses government offices, not their president…who is a woman for those of you who don’t know world happenings. =) I arrived there first, and just sat on a bench and took pictures of my surroundings. It was a lovely day, not too cold and definitely not too hot. Now, as you will see by some of my pictures, there are quite a bit of pigeons in B.A…basically everywhere you go, you are bound to see a pigeon or two. Well, today was no different. However, I’m sitting in this park, next to a fountain, minding my own business, when this older lady comes and sits down a few feet away from me…and she starts throwing bread crumbs on the ground. Before I knew it, swarms of pigeons were flying overhead attacking the ground for the bread! And when I say swarms, oh yes, I mean swarms! Hundreds of these pigeons are flying right over my head, it was windy there were so many flying around me! I was a bit scared at first, mainly because I did not feel like getting pooped on. And luckily enough, I didn’t! Thomas had gotten there by then, so he took a picture of me by all these pigeons. It was pretty cool.

Well, Bridget met up with us and we went walking down Calle Florida again. Thomas wanted to show us this mall he found in the midst of it. Sure enough, he had discovered a huge mall, definitely bigger than our mall in Shawnee, and it was completely hidden amongst all the buildings of the street! I was amazing. There’s just a normal double door opening and you walk in and it’s like…well, a mall should be, and it’s really pretty (I took a picture, no worries, ha ha). We grabbed our lunch, Thomas had this icky mashed pumpkin (he liked it though) and I was lame and got a burger (I know! Lame!)

Afterwards, we headed to the destination of the day: The National Ecological Reserve! I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t what we got. =) It was basically a wilderness, where there were supposedly thousands of types of birds; we saw maybe 5, ha ha. I did enjoy it, mainly because it was a break away from the city. We were really in the midst of this man-made nature. There were large paths to walk down, and along the sides the grass was tall, along with various types of trees. It’d be a great place to go running/biking/ picnicking etc. It was really nice, although by the time we were at the back of it, it was pretty chilly. But the walking was keeping us warm. We did get to see the ocean! Well, the Rio de la Plata, but it connects to the ocean which is enough, right? The “beach” was quite interesting. It is definitely not a place for swimming, even in the warm months. There was plenty of sand, and rocks, but there was also…tile? And other types of man made stones. It was kind of odd, as if people threw out their old kitchen counters and they somehow ended up on the beach! But it was fun, and of course, I took photos. =)

After the few hours we spent walking around in there (you can’t get anywhere without walking LONG distances unless you just go back the way you came…so we walked in this HUGE triangle and I’m pretty sure it was at least a couple of miles, if not more), we started the walk back into the city. We decided to get a group together to go see Transformers!!! So we found out movie times and so on while reading the periódico (newspaper) in this little café place. Then we each went our separate ways to our homes to await the 10:30 movie!

I went home and had dinner (steak and potatoes, surprised? Lol) and watch some tv with Elsa, like we do. Then Serri (the other girl living in my house) and I went out to go see the movie. We met with a few other people outside the theater. I was pretty excited about seeing not only the movie, but the theater and how it ran, and what not. So here is my “analysis” of the Monumental Cine in B.A.: It only cost $20 pesos to get in (Yes, less than $7 US). And it wasn’t too interesting. There was a little restaurant in there and then a small concession stand with one worker. For those of you who go to the movies often in the US, prices (as always) at the concession stand were higher than getting a drink somewhere else, but cheaper than the US. What would be considered a Medium Drink and Popcorn (I say “considered” because it was pretty big, but so are the drinks/popcorn in the US) was a little less than $6 US. The candy was anywhere from 50 cents (US) to a few dollars, depending on what you got. It was pretty neat.
The theater itself was like any movie theater, a big screen and seats, lol. Sorry, no exciting stories about that. The movie was really fun! It was in English (we made sure of it!) with Spanish subtitles. I was surprised at how LONG it was (like 3 hours!)!

Afterwards, Thomas and I joined Sophie and Eric at this little bar. No worries padres, I didn’t drink anything, lol. We hung out for awhile and then went on home. It wasn’t too late for Buenos Aires, only about 2:30!!! He he he. And the walk home wasn’t too scary or anything. There were still a few people out that late, but they were all doing their own thing and didn’t even pay attention to us, so no worries.

That’s pretty much all for the day, I mean, not much else can happen after 2:30 in the morning unless you go out! Lol.

My B.A. notice of the day is over:
- Coke! (Well, Soda, Pop, Soda Pop, whatever you like to call it). It’s so much better here! I couldn’t put my finger on why it was so much better until Thomas pointed out that there is no high fructose corn syrup in any of them. And it’s true. They use real sugar here in their Coke, Sprite, (I had the BEST orange soda and the movie!) and whatever other drinks they have. So yeah, I vote that’s what the US starts doing! =)

Well, that’s all I got for the day! More to come soon! Love you all!

Dia 9, The End of First Classes in BA, 25 Junio

2009-06-30T20:36:00.000-07:00

Yay, another day of the first day of classes…I’m glad that there are no more first days of classes here; I don’t think I could take it! But before I tell you about class, let me inform you of my interesting bus ride to the school. It was started off like any other bus ride…it was semi-busy and there was no place to sit. An old man got on the bus after me and a younger man (twenties, maybe?) got up and offered his seat to him. It was the nicest thing I’d seen in a long time. But then, the old man shook his hand and offered the seat to me! I was like, “Aw…” and so the younger man asked if I would like to sit, but I was standing next to a lady older than me, so I offered it to her. I am pretty sure it was the most polite moment happening on this side of the hemisphere at that particular moment. I felt good…and not because I offered a seat, but because so many of us did, it was one of those rare moments that make you feel like all is right with the world! I liked that.

However, life continues and you realize that there are a few crazies out there. Towards the middle of the bus ride, a guy got on the bus and started speaking loudly in Spanish. This is not entirely uncommon, but most of the time when people speak up like that, they are wanting you to buy something from them or just give them money. Well, this guy didn’t have anything to sell and I don’t think he was asking for money (I couldn’t really understand him)… but he went and sat down and all was quiet until a couple minutes later… “BOOM, Paraguay! BOOM, Paraguay!” he started yelling. He did it a few times and I won’t lie, I jumped a little in my seat. The guy across from me looked at me, and we must have both had this, “Um…what?” look on our faces, because we couldn’t help but chuckle. Luckily, that was all the excitement on the bus for me. I got off before anything else strange happened with that guy.

Now, moving on to school… it was another 4 hour class day. I was not necessarily looking forward to it, but it was a new class, so of course there was some excitement involved. Our professor seems nice, he’s quite a character and he writes a lot on the board which makes me happy! He speaks very slowly for us as well, so I was able to keep up with a lot of what he was saying. I took about 4 pages of notes, all in Spanish, yay for my being studious! We learned about the declaration of independence for Argentina from Spain, and about San Martin the great liberator (he liberated Peru, Chile, and Ecuador as well…pretty cool guy that one). Class was way long. I guess it doesn’t matter how much you enjoy a subject a four hour class (with a fifteen minute break) is just tiring! My brain hurt afterward and speaking in Spanish or listening to it was basically the last thing I wanted to do!

The bus ride home after school took WAY too long, almost two hours which is crazy because in the early afternoon it only takes about 45 minutes, if that long. Bridget and I went over some homework together though, so that was good. When I got home I heated up my dinner, which looked pretty good. It was pasta with some type of meat on the top. I like meat… I like pasta, but whatever this was, I did not like it. I ate most of it though, I mean, it wasn’t terrible, it just wasn’t what my taste buds liked. It almost had a barbecue-esque flavor and when I asked what it was, Elsa just said, “carne” which means meat… so apparently it wasn’t anything special…tonight we watched another episode of “That 70s show” and also an episode of “Ugly Betty”. It is fun watching it with her because she really enjoys the shows and she talks to me during the commercials about the story lines and what she wants to happen.

Well…after dinner I called my lovely parents and talked to them (separately because mom was at VBS when I called the first time)…nothing else too exciting happened this evening…

Wow, it’s already been nine days! Some times, it feels like I have been here for the longest time and yet at other times it feels like I just got here. Today it hit me that I am in South America… I mean, I’ve always known that I was here, since I got here, and yet today I was like…wow, South America. Another continent, another lifestyle, it’s different than London or New York, but B.A. really isn’t that different, which is maybe why it hadn’t really hit me. B.A. is a lot like any large city is like. There are a lot of people; a lot of buildings; a LOT of traffic… the main difference is of course, the language. I guess I like it. =) I’m getting a bit more used to it day by day, it’s still unfamiliar and can get a bit unnerving every now and then, but it makes me happy that when I get off my bus stop, I know where to walk to without having to look at my guide book! And the other day (I forgot to put this in my update, so sorry!) someone walked past me on the street and asked me for directions! Sadly, I didn’t know where on earth she was talking about, but the point is that I looked as if I knew where I was and the surrounding areas! What joy!

Other tidbits of the land:
- I have only seen ONE toilet that has a normal handle flusher like we have at home. And I have not seen any that are automatic. They either have push buttons on the side of the toilet (where our handles would be) or they have push buttons in the wall above the toilet… and sadly enough, the water does not go the opposite way just because I’m in the southern hemisphere.
- Smoking is apparently one of the most normal things to do here. You can’t walk down the street without passing 10 or more people who are smoking (this of course depends on how busy a street and how long you walk down it, but the concept is the same). And apparently, it’s not something looked down upon either. People don’t stare or “tsk” at those with cigarettes… I guess it’s just a normal part of their culture? I dunno…
- Argentines are very much open about…well, apparently everything. A group of girls happened to be in our classroom before our class started and within a three minute time frame asked us: our names, where we’re from, how old we are, what we’re doing in B.A., do we go to university at home?, what we’re studying, if we like it here, when we’re going back home, and how long we’ve been here… Well, they’re not shy! They appear to be closed off, but that’s because they don’t just start talking to you. If you make the first move, you basically see them open up and then it’s like you can’t get them to stop talking to you. It’s a wonderful thing!

More later! Chao mis amigos!

Dia 8, How Accomplished I Feel! 24 Junio

2009-06-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

Yay for today! I feel so accomplished today, and I shall tell you why:

Well, I woke up around 10:30 (so wonderful) after having a fun evening eating pork chops and mashed potatoes with my house mom while watching “My Best Friend’s Wedding” (with subtitles, not dubbed).

Well, after I had my usual breakfast I went to the bank and got monedas (change in coins… I need it for the bus). Then I got another calling card so I can talk to my mommy and daddy more =). Then, I decided it was time to go grocery shopping! My program only provides two meals a day, and therefore it’s easier to go grocery shopping then eat out every day. So I went and bought (get this) a loaf of bread, apple juice, crackers, a package of cookies, and an energy bar for only 15 pesos! That’s only $5 US! I felt so proud of myself, lol.

Afterwards I went back to my apt and got my clothes together and took them to the lavadorio (laundry shop!). They took my clothes and they should be ready by 7:30 tonight! I hope it all worked out well! Lol

Moving along, I got to school a little bit early to check my email and what not, and then it was time for my Spanish class. And I actually liked class today! She talked in Spanish a lot, but was much easier to understand than my profe yesterday. And she gave us worksheets which I actually liked working on and could understand better what she wanted us to do. It was a review of stuff we’ve learned before, but it was still really good to have. We even have homework! Lol

After class, Bridget, Adam and I went to Calle Florida. This is the street that cars aren’t allowed to go down; it’s just for walking/bike riding. There are a lot of stores and it’s a pretty good tourist trap. No worries, I didn’t buy anything other than some post cards, lol.

Now we are at Expanish where I get free Wi-Fi! Woo! We’re waiting until 7:30 where this really good empanada shop opens. Bridget has had a craving all day, so why not?

Anyways…oh, I have a funny story from this morning… as I walk through the kitchen, I noticed that my house mom was cleaning something in the sink… it had tentacles. Now, remember that she cooks me my dinner in the morning and puts it in the fridge for me, so I started thinking…”oh no, I’m going to have to eat something with tentacles… I mean, she said it’s okay if I don’t like the food, but she’s going to all this trouble, maybe I should say something…” and as I was staring at it with what was probably the least grossed out face I could muster (which probably still looked grossed out) Elsa turned to me and smiled and said, “You know what this is? Es Calamari.” And I’m like, “great…squid…great…I have to eat this.” And she chuckled and said, “Es for mi ex-husband! No es for you!” WHEW. I had chorizo (sausage) which was amazing…and potatoes! Lol. That seems to be my diet, meat and potatoes. But they are always cooked differently. They were like, fried thin slices tonight and were oh so good! So were the sausages. Yay for yummy food for this picky eater! (And yay for no calamari!)

Later in the day…
Another interesting fact I learned was that my host mom is a teacher of languages. She speaks French and Italian as well as her native Spanish and a little bit of English. I was like, wow…that’s pretty neat! Plus, we have a maid in our house. She comes twice a week to clean, how wonderful. =) AND… I did pick up my laundry (This update has been written in increments) and it only cost $13 pesos (less than $4 US) and it smells SO good! (MOM! OH no, I’m getting spoiled!!!!!!! He he he).

Okay, I suppose that is all for the day. I am so tired every night, which is strange since I sleep about 8-9 hours every night! It’s all this walking! Lol. More tomorrow I’m sure!

And I've put up more photos in my B.A. album, and a new album of where I live!

Dia 7, A Reminder for My Dislike of Politics and Economics, 23 Junio

2009-06-30T20:34:00.000-07:00

Buenos Aires, Día 7: A Reminder of my Dislike for Politics and Economics…

Good evening my lovely readers. This has been a good evening to an otherwise icky-ish day!

Well, okay, the day really hasn’t been that bad. I woke up around 10:30 and got ready for the day as usual. Then got ready for school, checked my email, finished my update from yesterday, and left the apartment around 1:00.

I got to the school a little early and talked with Adam and Alex for awhile. Class started at 2:00 and I was confused from the start. Our professor is so nice, but it’s a Politics and Economics class… I was SO lost. And apparently, I wasn’t the only one. After class, Adam and Thomas were both like, “Umm…” But luckily, our only homework is to find a newspaper and read it, so that won’t be too bad. And our next class isn’t until next Tuesday, yay. When I think about it, I’m glad that I’ll really only have 7 days of that class (6?). Even if it is four hours each day, sigh. He talked about the founding of a nation, like what it takes to become a nation, but I was still pretty lost. I took a lot of notes that do NOT make sense to me, lol. But oh well, we’ll see how it all works out. The only thing keeping me from wanting to quit the class already is that I have to have it to graduate on time, sigh. Part of me thinks I’d be okay taking another semester… that sounds good, right mom? =) Just kidding!

Anyways, after class a group of us took the bus to Adam’s so he could get his computer and then we went to my place to get my computer to come here, where I am now, at a local McDonald’s uploading photos and updating! But backtracking a bit… the bus ride to my school is maybe a thirty minute ride, but on the way back, when traffic is apparently much worse, it took almost an hour. Sigh, it was pretty long. Then we had to walk quite a bit to get to our places. And now they have all left because they have family dinners to get to. I am somewhat sad that I don’t have family dinners with my host mom, but she doesn’t have a set dinner time and I don’t actually know if she’s had dinner at our apartment since I’ve been there. But without fail, dinner is always in the refrigerator waiting for me whenever I want it. Tonight is pork chops and mashed potatoes. Yum yum! Lol

I guess that’s really all there is to talk about today. I know, sad isn’t it? I have a feeling it might be this way for awhile because I don’t know of anything different happening other than school for the next few days. Our next event is Sunday. We are going to Colonia, Uruguay for a day! I am pretty excited about that! Other than that… I don’t know. School tomorrow and Thursday and I don’t know what I’ll do on Friday! Watch TV? Ha ha…

Anyways, I suppose that’s all I’ll write! Please let me know if you have any questions for me! I’d be happy to answer them! Love you all!

Dia 6, A Lesson in Patience, 22 Junio

2009-06-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

Buenos Aires, Día 6: The “First” Day of School

Again, for at least the third time on this trip, I am so so tired and it’s early, especially early for Buenos Aires. I am writing this at 9:49pm. I lost track of time earlier and almost went to bed, and although I could have gone to bed, it wouldn’t have been the best idea because I don’t need to get into that habit. One night I will have to stay out late (I mean, at least ONE time, its part of the B.A. life!) and when that day comes I would like to be somewhat better prepared.

So, today…my first day of school in Buenos Aires. The day was not too exciting, however it was quite a long day. I woke up “early” (8:15am) and did the usual: breakfast/shower/etc. then headed off to the subte (subway if I haven’t already covered this) to meet Adam. Never again will I take the subway to school. I wish there was someway to describe it other than “walking a lot a lot a lot a lot!” However, those are the only words that I think are sufficient enough for the morning. =) Adam lives closer to the subte than I do. However, I thought, “a few more blocks won’t hurt.” Well, the walking to the subte wasn’t that big of a deal. It was waiting on Adam (not knowing that there were THREE subtes to get on at around that corner), then finding Adam, then Adam not seeing me and taking off down the other subte across the street, then me having to chase him (walking briskly, not running mind you, ha ha), then following him down the stairs, through the ticket booth, and down to the trains. Sigh. He walks a lot faster than I had ever noticed before. We finally meet up and get on the subte, it’s packed. I didn’t even have to hold on to a bar because there was no where to fall when the train jerked around. And, not to mention, it was hot. I don’t remember how much I’ve talked about weather here, but it hasn’t gotten lower than 50 degrees during the day time (at night it gets much cooler, but not cold cold like in Oklahoma). However, people around here think its freezing. So not only is everyone dressed in heavy winter coats and scarves and gloves, but they keep the heater on everywhere! And down in the subte (even though there is no heat or air there) it felt like 80 to 90 degrees with people surrounding you. It wasn’t the best feeling in the morning (especially after a shower where you felt all clean and un-sweaty, lol).

Well, we finally got off the subte (after having to make a stop to get on another train) and then walk the 12-20 blocks to get to school. I am sure I’ve mentioned this before, but a block here, is not like a block in Oklahoma. It’s maybe about the equivalent of three or four blocks?... I think. It feels like it anyways. Whatever the case, the walk was long, and although I’m not one to constantly complain about long walks, I prefer being better prepared for them (maybe wearing some running pants/shorts, and a t-shirt, not a nice blouse). But alas, that was how my morning started…not too fun. From now on, I am taking the bus to get to school (three blocks to the stop, one block to the school walking-wise). Much better than what I did today!

Moving right along (onto happier things because I don’t need to be complaining for this entire update). School… was not too scary for it being the first day. It wasn’t really like school anyways because we didn’t have a normal class. Today they wanted to know a little bit about where we stood on the Spanish side of things, how much we knew… that sort of thing. We met our Spanish teacher (whose name I can’t remember at the moment) and she gave us a written test. It wasn’t too complicated; however, there were a few things I didn’t quite understand. I hope I did them right anyways! Then, we talked with her for about 20-30 minutes. We were all together, but then she would ask us individual questions, probably to get a feel how our oral Spanish was. It wasn’t even too scary for me, which is great progress because I normally freeze in a classroom setting where I have to speak Spanish in front of everyone. So yay for that!
And that was all for school today! I know, isn’t that great? Tomorrow starts “real school” I guess. I guess I can tell you my schedule of classes… Mondays and Wednesdays I have Spanish Conversation from 2:00-3:50. Tuesdays I have Latin American Politics and Economics from 2:00-3:50, a twenty minute break, and from 4:10-6:00. Thursdays I have Latin American Culture at the same times as my Tuesday classes. No class on Fridays! Woo! Some say, “not fair”, but almost four hours of the same class in one day might be pretty tough! We’ll see. We shouldn’t have too much homework, just a midterm exam, a final exam, and maybe a presentation in a class, I’m not sure yet. We’ll see. I’m actually looking forward to classes. It’s not like I’m running out of things to do here, but to do many things, one has to spend money, and I feel like maybe I shouldn’t be spending money every single day if I can help it; so having classes, and things to study and work on might keep my mind busy. Plus, it will be an extra place to hear even more Spanish, so that’s even better!

Moving along with my day, after class I went back to my apartment, had some lunch (pasta, yum) and finished my update from yesterday. Then I took off for Expanish to give them my phone and see if they could fix it…well, they couldn’t. Sigh. So they are taking it to the store tomorrow and either getting it working or getting me a new phone. It’s really not that big of a deal, but it’d be a lot easier to get a hold of people to hang out with. I’m glad I see at least five of the people in my program almost every day, so I can catch up with them then.

After I dropped off my phone, I called Bridget (my friend Eric just happened to be at Expanish as well, so he let me use his) and met up with her in her neighborhood of Belgrano. Now, everywhere in B.A. is a great place for shopping, but for some great, hours long shopping, there are only two places that I’ve heard of to go to, and that’s Belgrano and Palermo. Bridget lives right on Cabildo St. which is the longest strip of shops and restaurants I have ever seen. While there, I finally got a couple of undershirts (the saleslady even took off four dollars…I don’t even know why!) and a new purse! (Well, actually two new purses, but MOM, don’t worry! It was buy one get one free! He he he) then, we stopped and grabbed a light dinner: Super Panchos! Um, hotdogs, lol. However, at this place they have over 50 different types of…toppings to put on your hotdog. Bridget got something creamy and cheese-like with mayonnaise (mayo is BIG here in B.A… everyone eats it and it’s on the table instead of ketchup in the restaurants…yuck)! However, I played it safe and got ketchup. Who’s surprised? Anyone? Anyone? I didn’t think so! But, something that is a bit different than normal is that they often put mini-papas (little French fries) on top of their hotdogs… and I did it too! And it was pretty good! I took pictures, so you’ll get to see it sometime.

After our mini dinner, we went our separate ways. I came back home and cleaned up my room a bit (no worries, mom, it wasn’t too messy or anything!) and had my real dinner, watched some television (American shows with Spanish subtitles, American shows are big over here) and now am updating for you wonderful people! Yay!

More things I’ve noticed and haven’t mentioned yet:
- The Smell of B.A…. let me tell you, there is no one smell to this city, basically like any city. But in no other city (New York and London included) have I ever noticed so many smells in one place. Walking down the street, in a ten minute time frame, there are countless smells that hit one’s nariz (nose). Meat, oil, incense (yuck), cheese, McDonalds (for real, one on every corner it seems like!), dog mess (oh yes, people let their dogs go to the bathroom on the middle of the sidewalk and DON’T clean it up! And it’s normal! Is there no shame!?!?!?) and many other smells that can be just as horrible or very good. It all depends on where you walk, quite literally.
- Dog walkers/parks: There are so many people who just make a job of dog walking, I am sure this is common in many places, but I’m from Shawnee, America…it’s not seen very often there. But there are guys walking around with ten-fifteen dogs! And, what is quite unlike many American dogs, these dogs are so so well behaved! A lot of dogs (when with their owners) aren’t even on a leash, but they don’t run away, they don’t chase after pigeons, they stay with their owners. It’s so sweet. And there are parks that have hundreds and hundreds of dogs being watched over. Like a doggy day care, quite interesting.
- Patience is definitely in this large city! While Bridget and I were standing in line at the store where I got my purses (and this is quite a large store, like a bit smaller than a J.C. Penney or something like that, and with two stories) we were waiting in line forever. It seemed like it took each purchase at least 5-10 minutes. Which, yes, doesn’t sound like that long, but you go to Dillards or Walmart and stand in line behind ONE person for ten minutes and notice how you start to wonder what’s taking so long… So, as Bridget starts getting agitated, I look around and notice that none of the other people in line look frustrated. In the states, this would just be unacceptable and people would be looking at their watches/phones and sighing and tapping their feet. Not here, people were nice and smiling and looking as if this was the most normal thing. It was so interesting to me because when you come from a place where time is money, it seems so slow! But I decided to be okay with it. I mean, we had no where to be, nothing to rush off to, why get bothered by it? It was definitely another lesson in the differences of cultures. I liked it!

Okay, that’s enough for today. See, with all this time on my hands I tend to write more and more…hopefully no one is too bored. More to come tomorrow!

Love you all and miss you!

Dia 5, You Haven't Seen Soccer, Til You've Seen Futbol in BA, 21 Junio

2009-06-30T20:31:00.000-07:00

Oh what a beautiful Sunday! I woke up around 10:30, took my shower, had my lovely breakfast of coffee, a banana, and little pieces of toast, then my house mother came back from church! I didn’t even know she went to church, but now that I know, I am going to ask to go with her next week. It was a pretty lazy morning. The email was not working and I almost had a freak-out moment when I realized that I didn’t know what time the futbol game was or where we were supposed to meet…I frantically sent out a facebook message to Thomas and he, luckily, read it and called me (on our house phone. Cell is still not working, but its Sunday so I couldn’t go and check on it as most businesses are closed.)

Well, later in the day (around three and after figuring out where my bus was going) I met Thomas in San Telmo, a pretty little neighborhood as long as you’re not there after dark. =) Our group didn’t have to meet until 4:30, we just decided to meet early so we’d have something to do and not just sit around our houses all day. In San Telmo (and apparently in every neighborhood) there was an artisan fair going on. It was a lot like the one Bridget and I saw in Recoleta yesterday. There were vendors selling everything you would imagine at a fair like this. There were all kinds of street performers as well: singers, dancers, puppeteers, bands, and even a man dancing (tangoing?) with a big doll that looked like a real woman when her back was to you, it was pretty funny. While we walked around, we stopped and got some Orange Juice…the reason why I mention this is because it was REAL orange juice. And when I say real, I mean this lady had a pile of oranges and she squeezed the juice out in front of us! That’s as real as you can get. It was so delicious too!

Moving along, we met up with our group, which I then found out wasn’t the Expanish group, but a group that Expanish works with for futbol games. They are called Juancho Futbol, and they take you to a restaurant (bar? pub? type place…) and feed you pizza and cervesa before the game. (Yes, I tried the cervesa…and it was nasty!) They try and teach you a Boca fight song (the team we went and saw, which is now the team I call my own, ha ha, was Boca Juniors) and you just eat and hang out and have a good time. Then they drop you off at the game, but there are group leaders who stay with you, so you know where you are going at all times and you’re not just running around lost.

Okay…here we get to the FUN part of the day. Oh yes, I don’t know what any of you have heard about Argentine Soccer… its CRAZY! There are so many fans and they are just the craziest people you will ever meet. At La Boca, there is a large group of fans who are called “Jugador 12” (Player 12). In soccer, there are eleven players on each team, in Boca, they consider their fans player #12 because they are there at every game (home or away) cheering the team on. And they do way more than just cheer. Right before the game starts, as the players run onto the field, the fans start throwing confetti and paper (it looked like toilet paper from where we were sitting) and who knows what all else, onto the field. My first thought was, “this would never happen in the US!” Little did I know, that was not the first time I would think that. Once the game started, the fans started singing and some were playing instruments. From what it sounded like, there are at least three or four fight songs that the fans sing/chant during the game…and what’s crazy is that they don’t stop. For the entire 45+ minutes of each half, the fans are singing and chanting. It never ever dies down. I was amazed at how they just kept it up for so so long.

OH! And before I forget… the highest seats are reserved for the visiting team’s fans. And the fans do NOT get along. I learned this when, as the other fans threw down a flag over the edge of where they were sitting (they held on to one end and let the other just lay over the edge) one of Boca’s fans somehow threw a lighter (or something with fire) up at the flag and it caught on fire! Then, when their team scored a goal, their fans started throwing stuff down at our fans (I wasn’t sitting close enough to get anything thrown on me, no worries!) Some people were even throwing cups full of coke! I heard someone say, “Be careful you don’t get peed on.” =O I don’t know if anyone would have done it, or if it was a normal happening at these games, but at this point, it wouldn’t surprise me.

So, in the middle of the second half, when I thought I had seen all there was to see at a Boca futbol game, Player 12 started shooting off Roman Candles… It started with maybe ten-ish, but just continued to where there were hundreds of Roman Candles being shot off into the sky. What’s even crazier (and this was crazy because no one was allowed to bring lighters into the stadium, so I don’t know how all those people brought in fireworks!) was that people on our side had them too, and started shooting them up at the other team’s fans! It was pretty funny, but could be really scary I would think, having fireworks shot at me…no thank you.

Well, I know you are all curious, but no…Boca did not win. I was so sad for them! They lost by one point (and I don’t know soccer very well, but someone said Boca wasn’t playing very good…). However, it was still a great experience! (Even if a bit scary, what with their fans banging on the walls and the entire stadium shaking…this is not an exaggeration… it shakes!)

After the game, we got back on the bus and the group started dropping us off in our neighborhoods; however, in the process, the bus got pulled over. No one really knows why. I mean, all the drivers here drive like crazy people, so I don’t really know why this particular officer decided to pull our bus over. Then, a police man gets on the bus and starts telling us we need to have our documents out to show that we are allowed to be in Buenos Aires. I’m not going to lie; I was pretty scared for a minute. But then, after he only looked at one passport, he got off the bus. After about a ten minute wait, we were able to continue on our way. I still don’t know why our bus got pulled over, but one of the group leaders said that the police were just doing “their job” because they had nothing else to do… so hmm…I guess it will continue to be a mystery!

Well, that’s really all for the exciting times of B.A. today! School starts tomorrow bright and early (at 10:30 ha ha)! Thanks for reading, more stories to come I’m sure!!!!

Dia 4, Miles of Learning and More to Come! 20 Junio

2009-06-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Hay hay hay…. Today was such a long day, but it was really good!

I woke up at 9:30 (on my own!) after having a great night of sleep. No one was hope (or at least my house mate was sleeping), so I took a shower and by the time I was done, my lovely house mom had breakfast out on the table, ready for me to partake of. Having a banana and some toast (with strawberry jam and dulce de leche!) and café (made on the stove, the old fashioned way!) was basically a perfect start to the day.

After breakfast, I finished getting ready, then set off on my own to find a kiosko (I don’t remember if I’ve mentioned these or not, they are little stores set up everywhere that sell candy, gum, drinks, cigarettes, phone cards, etc) to buy a phone card for my new cell phone! Then I walked around my neighborhood trying to find a Correo Argentina (post office) to get stamps and envelopes, etc. I couldn’t find one, but found myself really thirsty so I stopped into a local McDonalds (Yes, even here, and there is one basically on every corner!) and got jugo de naranja (orange juice) and I am pretty sure it was the best orange juice I’ve ever had… I mean, maybe I just haven’t had it in a long time, but I’m pretty sure it was amazing. While I sipped on my juice I tried to get my phone to work, and of course it wouldn’t… I entered in the number the card was telling me to enter and it just wouldn’t work. Sigh. So I finished my juice and headed back to my apartment to ask if my house mom knew how to do it (maybe I was reading the Spanish card wrong?) Well… I wasn’t. She read it and did exactly what I did and it just wasn’t having it. Then I asked Serri, my house mate and she said when she bought phone cards, she just asked the worker at the kiosko to do it for her because she could never figure it out!

Well, by this time I was due to meet up with Bridget, so I walked to the subway to meet her. I was a little early so I stopped into a kiosko and asked the guy there to see if he could get my phone to work…well, he couldn’t. Sigh.

Bridget and I finally got together and went to have lunch. My first Buenos Aires Pizza…was oh so good. I read in one of my B.A. books that pizza here was basically amazing…and they were not lying. It was just cheese (there were single, large olives atop of each slice, I picked those off, ew) and was just the best cheese ever. Too heavy to want to eat every day, but still wonderful!

Moving along, we decided to walk to Recoleta (little did we know that Walking was going to be our main activity of the day…more to come on that). Recoleta was just as wonderful as the first time I was there; I am pretty sure I could go a couple of more times and not see everything there is to see. We left and right outside the cemetery there was this little mini-market thing going on…well, what looked like a mini-market. We started walking along it and realized there were definitely at least 100 vendors there! It was so neat, there was tango dancing (of course) and everything you could ever expect at a market: jewelry, clothes, purses, mate, fruit, books, notebooks, belts, etc. etc. etc. It was so cool! And everything is so cheap! It’s hard to not try and buy everything! However, we did not buy anything! We found out that this little market happens every weekend, Saturday and Sunday and many of the vendors said they’d be here next weekend and the next. So Bridget and I decided that we’d to back towards the end of our trip to get souvenirs and what not, because we’ll have a better grasp of our money situation…aren’t we just smart? =P

After Recoleta, Bridget wanted to go to this park called Jardín Japones (Japanese Garden) because there’s supposed to be a tea house and a pretty lake with a pretty bridge and all this other pretty stuff, lol. So we went…and realized, wow…it’s pretty far. According to Google Maps, its two miles…and that’s not including the 1.5 miles we’d already walked from the pizza place to Recoleta…so yeah! Surprisingly enough, my feet weren’t hurting too bad. Yay for good walking shoes. Once at the garden, Thomas called Bridget’s phone (of course, their phones were working!) and he met up with us a little later, but we had to walk about another mile to find him! The garden was quite lovely (yeah, I just said quite), There were at least two fútbol games going on in different places of the park. However, we did not find any tea house…but it was a big park, we might have missed it somewhere.

After we finally met up with Thomas, we stopped to have a small pre-dinner meal (it was around 6:00 at this point…Bridget and I started our walk to Recoleta around 2:00!) at some random café. I wasn’t too hungry, so I just got café con leche (so good, coffee has yet to disappoint me in B.A.) After the brief meal (and by brief I mean we were there for about an hour and a half) we took off window shopping. Around 8/8:30 we decided to go our separate ways. They both had to be back for dinner by nine. I went back to my place and my lovely house mate allowed me to use her wi-fi usb cable thing and now here I am! It’s taken me awhile to write this update because I have been trying to get my email to work as well. Sigh.

Tomorrow there is a chance of getting to go to a futbol game! I really hope I can go, I am going to have to check my email first thing to see if Natalia got the tickets or not. We shall see…and I asked her about my phone, so that’s even more things to check on tomorrow, sigh (again). Well, even though it’s early (about 12:15 AM here) I think I will be going to bed soon.

Thank you all for reading, love you and will update tomorrow (internet willing of course!) =)

Dia 3, New Families, New Schools, 19 Junio

2009-06-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I have discovered that I do NOT have Wi-Fi in my new home, therefore, updating everyday might be somewhat complicated; however, I tend to find a place nearby that has Wi-Fi. This is B.A., there are so many places with Wi-Fi that I shouldn’t have to go too far. We shall see.

Okay, so day three was definitely an interesting one, and not at all what I expected. I met my host for the duration of my stay…but it was not the one who I was originally supposed to have! We left our hotel around 11:30am and there were three of us in a taxi. Mine was the first house we arrived at. When the lady answered the door, she let me in, and then told me there was a problem. The taxi had already left at this point, and Gabriella tells me that I wasn’t supposed to go there because she didn’t have room for me. Not to mention, Universidad Austral (U.A., where I will be taking classes starting Monday) is very far away from the Palermo neighborhood where we were. So, we called the Expanish School and talked with Natalia, the coordinator. She told me that it was a mix up on her part and that she would arrange to take me to another house. One hour and a mint tea later, I was off in a remis (rental car) to my new home in Recoleta. Recoleta is one of the nicest neighborhoods in B.A., and its closer to my school, so I guess I lucked out. The lady who lives her is named Elsa, she lives alone but also has another exchange student here from Michigan. We each have our own rooms. Mine is this small room behind the kitchen. It’s basically off to itself and I like it. It’s just big enough for me. I even have my own bathroom, but it doesn’t have a shower, so I have to use the other one as well. There is also a balcony next to the living room. I like it because this neighborhood is more peaceful than others and buses don’t go down our street! (That is pretty exciting news, lol).

Okay, moving on the events of the day. After I met my new host mother, I went to my Universidad for a mini-orientation. I had to travel by myself, and it wasn’t the scariest thing, although I am sure I would have felt better if I’d had others with me! The bus I take to get to my school is about three blocks away, and that’s B.A. blocks, not Oklahoma blocks…think more like New York or London, LONG. Lol. Then it takes about 25-30 minutes to actually get to the stop to get off. Then I walk a little less than a block to my school. Universities here are very different than in the U.S. They aren’t campuses; they are just large buildings it seems like. I’ve seen a few and they are all like this. There aren’t yards to hang out in during breaks, etc. And no one lives at their school; they all stay at home with their parents or get apartments. Here it is very common to stay with the parents until one is around thirty years old or is married! Lol. So mom and dad, look out! =P

Anyways, we met one of the coordinators of U.A. who showed us around the school, gave us entry cards so we can get into the building, and talked to us about our classes. I still don’t know how I feel about my classes, I am half-excited and two-thirds (yes, I know) scared out of my mind! But the whole point of being here is to learn and experience this new culture, and my classes are going to help with that.

After Austral we (oh, three of my classmates met at Austral as well, so I didn’t have to travel alone then!) took the bus back to where I first got on at; however, we learned that the bus doesn’t stop at the same place on the way back. We learned from our mistake, lol, and I know what to do now! We walked around for a bit then we decided to go back to our homes to have dinner with our parents.
Now, remember how I talked about late dinners and what not? My host mom eats dinner EARLY! I got home around 8ish and she had already eaten. She had left me food to heat up, so I got to eat at a normal time also! I was so very happy, lol. I do not enjoy eating so late and I guess I don’t have to while I am here. However, she also goes to bed early (its nine thirty and she’s in bed), I don’t know if she’s asleep because she was watching TV, but still… I don’t know anyone around this part of the neighborhood and have no where to go (and in any case I’d be alone until I met up with someone which isn’t the best idea to me). So here I am, sitting in my little room, typing up my daily journal in Microsoft Word, lol. I am going to do some reading and practice some Spanish while I’m up.

How lame am I? It’s Friday night in Buenos Aires and I am hanging out in my room probably going to bed somewhat early (no later than midnight, definitely!)…but you know, I have 6½ more weeks to go out on a Friday night…I think I’ll be okay. It’s not like I want the “late night” habit when I go back to the states, right? Oh, mom would be so proud of my thinking right now!

Other different things I have noticed:
- Cars do NOT follow the lines in the street! It’s as if those white lines don’t even matter. It’s pretty scary, but I try to not pay attention when I’m in a taxi or bus…
- In the two apartments I have been in, there have been toilets in the showers…well, there is a room that has a toilet and the shower, but there is no tub or door for the shower! Does that make sense? There is nothing that separates the shower from the rest of the room…interesting.
- This is my favorite…because it’s hilarious to me: Mullets are IN. They are very popular here. One of the coordinators of Expanish (who is from the states) told us to be careful if we decided to get our hair cut, because the stylists will do Mullets unless we express how much we DON’T want one. So funny…but I’m not cutting my hair while I’m here! lol

Okay chicos, that’s all for today. Tomorrow I plan on some shopping and going back to Recoleta with my new pal Bridget (she’s in the Expanish program with me and is in the same classes at U.A.). More updates later!

Dia 2, Walking and Learning, 18 Junio

2009-06-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

I am currently sitting on my bed in my hotel room, watching CNN in Spanish (which I do not understand!) and it is only 10:17 at night. In B.A...that's probably the lamest you can get! I am so so so tired and wiped out and enjoying life, but I'm so tired, lol. At 6:00, I looked at my watch and was like, "What?! Only six o'clock?!" It felt so much later...and what is even crazier is that it's only 8:17 at home! How strange to think that.

Well, I would like to start off by telling you about my dinner last night. My friends, my family, you have NOT experienced a great dinner experience until you eat dinner here in B.A. We left the hotel around 8:45 and traveled by subte (subway) for the first time. I kid you not, the subway is the same here as in NY and in London, the look and smell of it anyways, lol. Then, by the time we finally got to the restaurant, it was well past nine. From this point on, I have no idea what time it was...just that we finished dinner around MIDNIGHT or later...yes, later. Let me explain...

We get there and there is already bread on the table (something I have noticed about bread before meals, it's not warm bread...it's cold and hard ish on the outside, soft on the inside...not the best, lol. Anyways, then about...oh a while later they come by and ask for your drinks....then after that, we sat, and talked for about twenty minutes. Now, the meal was a fixed meal from our group, so we didn't get to order. We had a "traditional" meal.

After about thirty minutes of eating bread and talking, our first entre' was brought out. A plate for each table, there was chorizo (a type of sausage, which was actually very good) and blood sausage (which was too black and scary looking for me to try!) and some other type of meat, it looked kind of like chicken, but a bit different...and it tasted, fine... I didn't ask what it was, and maybe I didn't want to know. Then, we sat and talked for a while longer...then, the next part of the meal...A big plate of steak. Oh yes, I don't know what kind...I'll try and figure it out later, but just a plate full of these slabs of meat (yes, I took pictures)... so I was like, YUM. And what's even better about Argentine steak is that it's so good, you don't need steak sauce. I've heard that they get offended if you ask for it, lol.

Okay, so then, I was full. I didn't even eat that crazy much, but I ate well and was definitely ready for bed. We talked for quite some time, and then...oh yes, the waitresses brought out the MAIN course. I was like, "AH!!!" Bigger steaks...however, it was one per plate. I couldn't eat it all, but I took a bite and I promise it was the best tasting meat I have ever had in my entire life. Mind blowing great, amazing, wonderful (insert your own descriptive word for "fantastic" here)...My main thought was, "Dad really needs to be here for this!"

THEN, we talked for a while longer...and they bring out the dessert! Helado americano y dulce de leche!!! (American ice cream and...dulce de leche ice cream, literally translated sweet of milk, there is no word in English, as well there shouldn't be!) It was a beautiful dessert. The ice cream was good, it didn't taste anything like american ice cream, but that's what they call it. The dulce de leche ice cream was just amazing. It was smooth and creamy and had a hint of a coffee taste to me (although others said it didn't). Dulce de leche is something very common here. They have it in cake, ice cream, little desserts (kind of like our Little Debbies) called "Alfajores" (I'm bringing a box back with me!). It's such a great thing...

Then, finally....we talked for a while longer and finally left. After about three ish hours of a dinner. A HUGE thing in Argentina in the importance of connecting over a meal. Talking and eating are both very important things, and it shows during a meal. Not all meals are like this (I mean, we ate breakfast like normal, lol) but with a group of friends or family, it's an always thing. So yeah, next time you have a late meal, just think, "At least it wasn't three hours long and ended after midnight"... lol.

Moving along. Today, I woke up feeling refreshed and wonderful, however, I only had about 6-7 hours of sleep because of how late we got back and the fact that one of my roommates in the hotel decided to call her boyfriend who decided to not believe her that she had been at dinner that late and proceeded to ask her question after question about who she was with and were there any boys in the hotel or in her room (there are NO boys in our room, no worries, lol)... and they talked/argued for about 45 minutes, which kept the other two of us awake. Sigh...and we woke up at nine. So yeah. I was still a bit tired.

The first half of our day was spent at an orientation program for Expanish where we learned the basics of getting around the city and what not. We also learned some forms of slang here and what NOT to say, etc. So it was informative, but long (almost three hours). We had lunch around one (empanadas!!! with cheese and meat, so good!)

Then, a few of us just went exploring, walking around. We met back at the Expanish school around three for our "tour" of the city. We took the "south side" tour that took us to La Boca, San Telmo, and Puerto Madero. Definitely Image Search "La Boca" or "Caminito" if you want to see one of the poorest, yet most beautitul neighborhoods of Buenos Aires. It's a colorful neighborhood (literally) filled with music and artists...it can be a tourist trap, but it's worth it just to walk down the streets (there are two). There was live tango dancing and music, free, just on the side of the street. So cool.

After our three and a half WALKING tour of these places, lol, we were so so tired. It was only about seven thirty, but we were hungry and so tired from walking, so a few of us stopped and got dinner (way too early for a porteno [a native of B.A] to eat dinner) at this Italian/Argentine restaurant and had *ta-da!* steak and papas fritas (french fries!). It was pretty good, definitely not as good as last night, but still good. A strange thing about many restaurants in Arg (and maybe in other countries?) is that there is a "service charge" for eating there...so, it's basically like a cover charge at a club, or something like that. At this particular one, it was only 5 pesos (which is a little less than two dollars), so they tell you (tourist books) that you don't really need to tip much. And apparently, tipping isn't necessary in Arg, and when people do tip, it's only about 10% if they were good, lol.

After dinner, we walked around a bit more, then went back to the hotel. And now, here I am typing this all out. =)

Tomorrow, I meet my host family! I don't know what all is in store. We have to check out of our rooms a little before eleven and then off to meet the family. Since my location will change (and as far as I know we don't have wi-fi in my house, unlike some of the other homes in the program, sad) and I will be starting school on Monday, I do not know if I will be able to continue to update like this, but I hope I get to! It's easier than writing it in a journal everyday, but we shall see.

Other:

I did find out that they do, in fact, deliver ice cream! Woo!

And I cannot do my own laundry. When we asked about doing our own, the group coordinator made a somewhat funny face and was like, "No, not here, they do your laundry". It's one of the things that has helped add to the economy since it was basically destroyed in 2001. The delivery system, laundry system, and also, there are workers that pump the gas, not the car driver. Also, what is crazy, gas is SO CHEAP here...less than a dollar a gallon for unleaded, yes...think on that. But really, not as many people drive here as in the US, so I suppose that adds to the difference.

Anyways...I guess that's all. I will try and update again soon! Love you all and if you really read all of this you're crazy but I will never doubt your love! =)

Dia 1, Oh the Confusion of a New City! 17 Junio

2009-06-30T20:24:00.000-07:00

Hello all! Look at this! I am able to update already, here on my first day in B.A. This city is...like a big city should be. There are plenty of people...everywhere. There are big buildings small buildings, etc. But I am getting ahead of myself.

So, my flight left yesterday, Central Standard Time from Houston at 9:00pm. The flight was a horrible ten hours long...ten hours that I did NOT sleep. Sigh. Therefore, I have been up now for 35ish hours. Yes, it is apparently possible.

Then we arrived at the airport where we went through customs and got money changed and all that fun stuff. It was a pretty easy walk through. Then...we had to wait 45 minutes for our taxi because he left us there and had to come back and get us. Sigh...however, we made it to our hotel in one piece.

I will be staying in the Hotel Tango for 2 nights, then on Friday I will go to meet my host family. I learned today that I will be staying with a lady named Gabriella and her 19yr. old son. She is a vegetarian!!! In the land of BEEF, I get stuck in the house with a vegetarian. I'm sure she's kind, just no beef...although, I guess she's not fully vegetarian because she eats one meal of fish and one of chicken every week. Sigh. That's okay, plenty of other opportunities to eat meat.

Moving along. Things I've noticed about B.A. so far... people aren't afraid to stare. And it's not the creepy kind of looking at you stare, it's the curious kind of stare. Thomas, Adam and I went to the Recoleta Cemetary (again, google image search) and it was very cool, on our way there, I realize we must have stood out. Thomas with his map, me with my OBU Bison hoodie, and Adam wearing shorts (no one else in this world down here was wearing shorts). People weren't rude about staring, but they do it, and if you look back, they don't look away. Quite interesting.

Moving along, the sidewalks are WAY TINY. Let me just say, when you can get three people next to each other on a side walk here...well, it's pretty big. I'm not even kidding. Of course, I suppose there are places with larger sidewalks, but most are narrow, and the roads are as well...Most roads are one way, two lanes...

It's probably about 60 degrees here (and it feels WONDERFUL compared to that Oklahoma weather I left behind) but the natives think it's freezing. I find that so interesting. They wear big coats and some have scarves and beanies. You'd think it was 15 degrees out...oh well, at least I'm comfortable in my light sweater.

The doors...are different. Almost all doors have a lock on them and you have to be buzzed in to get inside. Some places you have to actually talk to someone on the other side, but in most there is a security guard standing close by and he lets you in. And you have to be buzzed out, which is strange to me as well...

You can get anything delivered...basically all restaurant chains deliver, and not only that....your laundry! Yeah, they do it for you and bring it back to you...I don't know if I plan on doing this...but we'll see. I do know that I will have to do my own laundry at a laundromat, so yay for money I didn't plan on using for that, sigh.

Anyways...other things I did today, went to Recoleta Cemetary (mentioned that...) and saw the Obelisk and a museum of Leon Ferrari's work (which is way cool)...

We are about to go get dinner here in a little less than an hour. They eat really late here. Us having an 8:00 dinner is considered really early, lol. And they don't get up any later! It's generally a 7-8 o'clock morning for most! Ah! I don't know how they do it.

I also saw a really pretty park that I want to sit in and read a book...I'm such a nerd.

Anyways, that's it from this side of the equator, for now anyways. I don't know if I will be able to write this often or not. But we shall see! Love you all!

Argentina, Beforehand

2009-06-30T20:23:00.000-07:00

So, I recently realized that maybe there are still some of my friends who don't know I'm leaving the country in just a couple short days. I realized this when a friend said "going where? packing for what?" Therefore, here is an informational note for all those who may or may not be remotely interested in why I am leaving the country.

It all started freshman year when Thomas Mosley and I had to do a cultural report over some Spanish speaking country in our Spanish III class, Thomas just HAD to do Argentina because he had some weird fascination with the place. So we did the project and from that stemmed the interest for me!

Last year, Thomas found this program called Expanish (if you're that interested, [which, really, why would you be? but why not, right?] you can check it out at Expanish.com). He discovered that they do study programs in none other but the beloved Buenos Aires, Argentina. He then decided he was going. Period. And I thought, "Well hey, I'm a Spanish minor, why the heck not go?" (Or something like that thought crossed my mind).

And here we are, a year later, about to take the trip of a life time, along with our friend Adam Ray!

Wait, what are we going to do there?! Good question.

For starters (and the main parental approval point) we will be taking classes, three of them. Spanish Conversation, Latin American Culture, and Latin American Government and Economy. As I always say, I don't understand government in English, what am I going to do in an Argentinian Government class?!?!? Well, hopefully I'll learn something. These three classes will be giving us 9 credit hours, which is ultimately what made me decide to be a Spanish major, seeing as I can graduate on time now with both Spanish and Communication majors because of this trip! Yay for making parents happy, right? right?! =)

Other little tidbits of wonderfulness for you to know:

- I will be staying with a host family. And no, I have NO idea about who they are, if they have kids or grandkids, what their lifestyle is like, if they're active in church, etc. etc....oh the mystery of it all!

-There are actually only 5 students taking the same program Thomas, Adam, and I... meaning there are only two students I won't know in my classes. However, there will be eleven students doing something with the Expanish program from who knows where.

-Other than study, the program offers weekly activities such as futbol (ahem, soccer for those of you who refuse to accept the true meaning of the word football) games, watching tango!, touring the historical-ness of the city, taking a weekend trip to the wonderful Iguazu Falls (please go image search it in Google...you'll be even more jealous than you already are!), and a trip to Cordoba, Uruguay!

When will I be back? Well, according to a lovely older lady I work with, I will not be coming back if I meet an attractive Argentine male who will lure me into loving him with his wonderful hotness...

But, let's assume that won't happen. My plane arrives back on Oklahoma soil on August 9, I'm not expecting a huge "welcome back!" sign in the airport...but you know...*cough cough*

Oh, and since I haven't mentioned it, I leave Tuesday. My flight from Oklahoma leaves at 4:25pm and goes to Houston. We then leave Houston at 9pm and arrives in the lovely wonderful magical world of Buenos Aires, AR at 9:49am (that's 7:49am to those of you who will be left in the Central Time Zone).

Will I be able to contact you? Good question again! My main form of communication will be internet. I will not be on often, but I'll send out the occasional "holla" when I can. I will try and update notes and what not for those of you who care enough to read (and if you are still reading this, then I mean you!) I will be given a cell phone there that can be called from the states...I mean, my parents are buying a phone card, I don't expect you to do the same. And I can call from land lines with my calling card...but like I said, emails, facebook, etc. will be the most obvious and best way to get in contact with me.

Wow, this was longer than expected, but if you know me, it was probably shorter than YOU expected, and Jackie Dallas, if you are still reading I will buy you ice cream. =P

I love you all and cannot wait to tell all of the fabulous stories I will have when I come back. Please pray for me, Thomas, and Adam as we go through this experience!!!