Land of the Dead

Grandpa and Grandma at the Palermo Bosques (Lake and Forest)

In Recoleta. The door to the telephone booth said "uso exclusivo para superheroes" (use exclusively for super heroes!)

So it has been two weeks since I last updated (sorry!), but things have been slow and hectic at the same time.

Since my last entry, I have started school and kind-of gotten into a routine of some sort. My mondays are very short, just filled with spanish in the morning. In my spanish class there are about three girls from France, me, and about ten chinese kids. Now, while I sympathize with the chinitos for being new to the country and having to learn a latin language, I really do not think these kids should be in advanced spanish. Only about two of them can really comprehend what's going on, and the others just speak chinese to each other the entire class. It's really frustrating,

especially when we are paired up with them. Other than that, spanish is really boring.

Tuesdays are probably my toughest days, since I have to get up and out of bed by 6:30am and take the very busy subte to school. Once at my stop, I have to walk about 7-8 blocks to school, which I usually do half-jogging, half-walking. I then have my PR class for about three hours. I leave exhausted.

Wednesdays are just challenging, intellectually. I am in school from 10am until about 6pm. My day consists of spanish (snooze), sociedad y cultura (society and culture of the 21st century in Argentina), and a 3-hour lecture on relaciones internacionales (international relations). Now, while the classes themselves are not hard, trying to follow them in spanish and understand all of the technical terms, can be really hard. I don't think even a native can stay focused through a 3-

hour lecture. It's really torture.

Thursdays are my days of sociedad y cultura, and historia. History wouldn't bother me so much if the professor was not a 95-year old monotone man. Has anyone ever tried to sit through a 3 and 1/2 hour lecture with a monotone professor? By the end, I was drawing puzzles on my notes.

Since my fridays are free, I try to fill them up with as much fun as possible. Last friday I had to take on the annoying task of picking up my background check for my visa, and although it was very quick and easy, I really hate having that kind of chore, since people there are usually not the nicest. After picking that up, I got coffee with my tio Gabriel, and shortly after I headed home, but not before I received a call from Sabrina, one of my friends from elementary school here. She invited me to coffee at her house, and I headed over there around 6pm. Now, I

attempted to take my first colectivo (public bus) here, but it didn't quite work out as I hoped. The bus broke down halfway down to where I needed to get, so I had to get off and walk about

15-18 blocks. I was surprised to find that my memory of my childhood served me well, since I found my way just with my photographic memory. Sabrina's house is located near my childhood apartment, so it was very nostalgic. I arrived at her house, and saw her family that I hadn't seen since I was 10 years old. It was really nice, and we decided to meet up for drinks later that night. After coffee, I headed over to Benjamin and Adriana's house, two of my french friends and had dinner with them. It was really pleasant, and we got to meet other people. After dinner, I met up with Sabrina again and went for a drink, where we ended up going to her house for a slumber. It was just like when we were girls, it was so cute.

Yesterday, I walked the streets of beautiful recoleta, where the famous recoleta cemetery is located. It was a beautiful day of about 70 degrees, and walking around the parks and the graves

was amazing. I definitely enjoyed it.

Messing around Recoleta

The graves

Last night Heidi, Katie, Po and I went to a bar at San Telmo, a place known for their vendors, but not so much their nightlife. The bar was very cute, styled after an Irish pub (there was a shrek mask staring at us and everything!). Our cosmos were absolutely delicious (and very sex and the city-esk!).

Today awaits me a girly shopping day with my aunt Vivian and some empanada making with Po and the girls. I am teaching them how to make empanadas and I hope they turn out good, since I haven't made them in quite sometime. I can't wait!

Until next time,

Heidi

PS- A shout out to the most amazing man in the world, my boyfriend Mickey, who's birthday was yesterday. Happy 23rd baby! You are my rock, my love and my best friend. I love you!

Get Me A Beast!

Oh my, what a week! Brace yourselves, this one is going to be a long one.

Tuesdays I finish class around 11:15am, and usually have nothing to do, but I have now discovered that Miss Heidi does not have class on Tuesdays, making it an ideal day to get together.

Last Tuesday we headed over to the free Argentine Museum of Art, where tons of artists are featured and are mostly Argentinean. Now, let me just tell you that this place is particularly huge, and almost impossible to do all in one day. So Heidi and I stuck mainly to the main floor

where there is an overwhelming and dominant theme: Mary and Jesus. Yup. I spent an afternoon with Jesus and his family, seeing how he was portrayed according to each artist. It was actually interesting, and in some cases, beautiful.

Wednesday brought a day of frustration and misery. Why? Because I had to do what most of us fear: a visit to a state building to ask for criminal background. Now, we all know that any type of transaction like this is awful and long in the U.S., but Argentina seems to be able to achieve a whole new level of frustration when it comes to handling these types of activities. They not only make you stand in line OUTSIDE on the curb, but once inside, it is a miserable 2-hour wait to

even TALK to someone. And once you have completed what you needed to do, you have to come back a week later to pick it up only to stand in line in the freezing cold once again, and wait

for your name to called. Wonderful? I think so (not!).

I arrived at 11:00am, and left at 2:00pm. Argentina, you really out-did yourself.

After my terrible morning at the Argentine Police Department, I met my uncle Gabriel for lunch. Mi tio, being a lawyer, works about a block and a half away from the Police Department, so we met at one of the most delicious and beautiful restaurants in the area. I have to pre-phase this but saying that the area in which all the "legal" stuff is found, is architecturally gorgeous. A lot of thought and love went into the building of these grand masterpieces.

We met for lunch and decided to talk about the upcoming weekend, since he informed me that it

was my step-grandmother's birthday last Sunday.

Friday was a chill day, until the night time of course. Katie, Becca and I grabbed some very awful chinese food, and later met up with Heidi and Po at the famous Club Serrano, located off of Plaza Serrano. They were hosting a Study Abroad Fall 2010 kickoff event, so obviously we all fit right in. It was a very cute place with an outdoor terrace, where heaters filled up the place, but they did not help much. We were all freezing and once the alcohol wore off, we could barely stand it. We ended up leaving at around 2:30am, but it was still a good time.

Saturday was one of my laziest days so far. I met up with Po and Heidi at a little cafe near Plaza Italia, since Po was picking up the tickets for a very special event the next day. We chatted and gossiped, and later went into this beautiful little clothing shop right across the way. We have to come back and buy these gorgeous dresses that were there for the equivalent of $17 USD.

Awesome!

Later, my tios abuelos (great uncle and aunt) treated me to dinner at a restaurant nearby, where I enjoyed the most delicious chicken breast and fries and an awesome fruit salad for dessert which came packed with its own Argentinean flag! (so cute).

Sunday was a very magical day. It was Beauty and the Beast on Broadway day! For the equivalent of $13 USD the girls and I all bought tickets to the show, and we enjoyed it as much as

the little kids in the audience. The play was really well done and the actors were funny and convincing. I would see it again and again if I could. Although it was a little odd to see it in Spanish, it was well worth it and we all enjoyed it.

The show was followed by a trip to the nearest McCafe on Calle Florida, and later I headed home to meet my tio Gabriel.

Gabriel, Maru, the girls and I went to my step-grandmothers birthday dinner at her house. We saw a bunch of family that I probably hadn't seen since I left, and we ate delicious empanadas!! It was really enjoyable, and I even got to see my cousin Ezequiel, who is five now and absolutely adorable. I fell in love with him.

After the birthday dinner, I decided to spend the night at Maru's country club house outside the city, since yesterday was a national holiday! We filled up our day off with tennis classes, more empanadas and familia. My aunt (my mom's and Gabriel's sister) came over with my cousin Gus and Roman and my uncle Sergio. It was great having the whole family together again, especially since we were all enjoying the spring-like weather and some really good food. Maru's house is gorgeous, and I wish I could have stayed there longer. I didn't get home last night until about 11:30pm.

This week is my first real school week since I arrived. My new schedule is as follows:

Monday: Espanol Advanzado- 10:00-11:30am

Tuesday: Relaciones Publicas- 8:00-11:15am

Wednesday: Espanol Advanzado 10:00-11:30pm, Sociedad y Cultura- 12:00-1:30pm and Relaciones Internacionales- 3:00-6:00pm,

Thursday: Sociedad y Cultura 1:00-2:30pm and Historia de la Cultura y Civilizacion- 3:00-6:00pm

Fridays: FREE!

So not looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to having something to keep me busy...

I am really starting to miss home. Boyfriend, I miss you. Best friends (You know who you are!) I miss you. Dante, Mommy and Daddy.

PS- *photos credit of PoLin So*! Love you chica.

Lions, Tigers, Bears, Oh My!

PoLin and I at Florida Ave

From Left: Katie, Jenny, Heidi, Becca, Po, Me, Carlos at the zoo!

Caricature!

The rest of the week went consistently well, without too much fuss.

I met up with Benjamin and Adriana on Wednesday to have some lunch over by Santa Fe Ave, where we enjoyed some very yummy pizza and beers. I have to mention that the beer here is much more alcoholic than in the US, so I tend to get tipsy just off of one. I don't know if that makes me an extreme light weight but it sure is funny.

After lunch, I wondered around the streets since it was a busy day and I didn't feel like going home. I ran into this woman who makes scarfs made of thread which she says takes her about five days to fully finish. She was only selling them for five pesos each (the equivalent of $1.25 USD) so I bought two. Argentina is full of these women.

Thursday I went over my cousin Cynthia's again to visit her baby girl Mia. This time Mia was in a fabulous mood and I stayed for about two hours just playing with her. I am officially in love.

Later in the day I met up with my step grandmother, Marta. Now, Marta is a very peculiar type of female. She is adamant about everything, and will speak her mind. She sometimes has verbal diarrhea, but can be very sweet when she wants to be. I am not going to go into details, but I will say that it wasn't the most pleasant coffee date I ever had.

Friday was a very fun day. Heidi, Po and I decided to take a trip over to Florida Ave, where the streets are solely for pedestrians and there are tons of vendors in the streets selling everything you could possibly imagine. There is live music, tango and tons of artists. We all got our caricature drawn as well! It is hilarious.

It was quite an adventure. We walked along the five or six blocks which fill the street, and at the end there is a beautiful plaza with huge trees. In front of the plaza is the Argentine military base, which was built so long ago that it is quite rare it is still standing. It was gorgeous.

The three of us sat down at a McCafe halfway through, since it was cold and we were starving. When we headed out of the cafe, around 6:00 pm, tons of new vendors were out in the streets and that is when our shopping got really intense. I swear, this country makes me spend so much money.

Once it became night time, we decided to head over to the obelisk, which is just another version of the Washington Monument, but in Buenos Aires. While we don't know who copied who, we still loved it and it was a very fun experience. I have to mention that we ran across a very busy crossing just to get the perfect shot of us and the obelisk. It was quite hilarious, and I wish I could have caught it on tape.

Friday night, Becca, Katie, Heidi and I got together for dinner at Pompeii where we enjoyed a delicious meal, followed by some margaritas. Delicious.

Saturday, Carlos, Jennifer G, Po, Heidi, Becca, Katie and I all took a trip to the Buenos Aires Zoo! I've been looking at it for a couple of weeks now and I couldn't wait to actually go in. The zoo here lets you purchase food to feed the animals, so we purchased a bucket for the equivalent of $4 USD and fed all the animals in the park. It's actually really cool because you can get close to the animals since they are used to people, and you can basically pet them. It's a very different experience from the US. In addition, the zoo itself is beautiful, a version of Central Park in the middle of the busy Buenos Aires. It was a lot of fun.

Saturday night just consisted of bar hopping in order to try which place had the best drinks. That is all.

Sunday was supposed to be a lazy day, which included an asado and some sleeping. I headed over to Po's around 2:30pm for an asado, the Argentine version of a bbq, but what makes it different is not only the amazingness of the meat, but also the fact that the food just doesn't stop coming. ever. There were about four rounds of meat, which just kept coming off of the grill. It was heavenly. After dessert all I wanted was to hibernate with my food coma, but Angie called me.

Angie is my friend who I met while she was living in the US, at Bonnie Ridge Apartments. After she moved back to Buenos Aires in 2005, I make it a tradition to see her every time I'm here. We got together for coffee right around Belgrano, my neighborhood, and caught up on our lives. She looks great and it's awesome to have another friend here in BA.

After such a hectic weekend, today is my day of rest. Classes don't officially start up until next Monday, but I have tons to do this week. Volunteer also starts next week so I need to get ready to be completely busy all the time. I love being busy, but it is quite a change from my laziness now. Wish me luck!

Welcome Back

Club Araoz

At Hillel, enjoying our drinks

So I decided to update mid-week this time because I feel like this week is going to be a big one, since it has already been hectic enough and it's not even wednesday.

Last Saturday I grabbed dinner with Becca at Pompei, a beautifully crafted coffee house/restaurant where you can get baked fish with all kinds of sides for only $7. I ordered way too much food, but it was the most amazing meal I've had here by far.

After dinner, Becca and I headed back to my apartment to wait for Gus, who was being brought over by my aunt and uncle. They drove us to the Hillel house.

There are no words to describe the Hillel house. After looking at pictures for a little over a year, I have to admit it's much better in person. The house is an old rustic built, but it is crafted very nicely. It is definitely a place I'd love to live in. Because the activities were mediocre and nobody was really bonding, the three of us left at around 1:30am, and headed over to Santa Fe and Araoz to party it up at Club Araoz. It was amazing.

The place is jam packed with people by 2 am, and if you're pretty you are made V.I.P (which of course we were!), so it's an awesome location to be at on a Saturday night. They were giving out all kinds of little ears too, and I was humorously given the devil horns.

We left Club Araoz around 5 am.

Sunday was another full day. Heidi, Becca, Po and I all headed over to the Evita museum in Recoleta. It was a long walk from where we met up, but it was worth it. We learned a lot and afterwards had coffee at a really cute cafe right near the museum. It was a perfectly chill afternoon, before the start of classes.

I started classes today, at 8am sharply. Or I should have. After not only leaving late, I arrived at University of Palermo's PR building only to find out that my class for the morning was in another building 7 blocks away. I did not make it in time, but was 35 minutes late. Not my best first day ever, but the professor was really nice and was understanding once I told him I was an exchange student.

The class is all girls, which I don't quite enjoy because of the competitiveness but I'll get over. The lecture is three hours long, so I guess it's a good thing that the teacher makes jokes. I almost fell asleep by the 2nd hour, but he also gives us a half an hour break. It's really not that bad, except for the time it starts.

Tonight I got together with Becca to have some coffee. I think that's what I enjoy most out of this country, the fact that you can just sit down and have some coffee for hours and it's completely normal. It's definitely a lot different from the US. I could get used to it.