Almost at the End...

At the casa rosada!




Noche de museos!

I can't believe it has been two weeks since I last updated! I have been so busy with the end of the year for school, finals and trying to do everything before my time in mi querido Buenos Aires runs out! (only 3 more weeks to go)

I will mostly update on the key things of the past two weeks:
I have been working like crazy for Susana, who is in need of translations for her upcoming thesis which she needs to turn in the day I leave. Because of that, I have been literally busting my butt off trying to get things done for her in time. She is a sweetheart and I adore her, but she also gives me tons of work and sometimes it's a little hard to keep up. Surprisingly, she offered me a position at the school she is a director of, for a year, where she will pay for an apartment for me and three friends and we would be payed very generously. As much as I love Buenos Aires and as tempting as it is, I can't know how things will play out, and I do not want to live here for an extended period of time again. The city is actually really dangerous, and the lifestyle here is very tiring. I kind of miss the US! (yes, I said it)

Besides that, I have also been working at the English institute, teaching underprivileged kids. It has been an amazing experience, but unfortunately the last class is this coming Monday. I will really miss all the great people I've met there.

About two weekends ago, I met up with McKenzie to tour a little bit of Buenos Aires, and hit up some spots I've been missing (regrettably my whole life). We met up for breakfast in San Telmo and later went to the San Telmo fair, which is absolutely huge and runs a while neighborhood wide. It was also the anniversary of the fair, so tons of people were dressed up in costumes celebrating and having fun. It was really great, and very funny. After we got our shopping done, we landed right at the Casa Rosada, which is the Argentine White House. We decided to get closer and see if by any chance they were doing tours, and we were so happy to find out that they were! So we toured that, and when we finished we headed over to the Rose Garden in central Palermo.
The Rose Garden was unlike anything else I have ever seen, it was so beautiful and kind of seemed out of place for a busy and dirty city like BA. But it was still awesome, and was made even more awesome by the fact that McKenzie and I decided to rent a rowboat! The day was perfect, and I definitely saw a lot more than I thought I would at the beginning of the day.

A lot of my time, regrettably, has been spent at Starbucks and parks the last couple of days. I have shared a lot of Starbucks time with PoLin, Heidi, Katie and Becca, and lovely park days with Rebecca!
Becca and I are also planning a trip to Mar Del Plata (beautiful beach just outside of BA) for the first weekend in December. It will be spectacular and definitely needed! It's so crazy that we will soon be home in Baltimore.

A week or so ago, the girls and I also attended the Noche de Museos (Night of Museums), which was made up of all museums in Buenos Aires open until about three or four AM and for that one night, they were all free. Although I only went to two (I was tired!), it was awesome to walk around the streets that late and see so many people out. Everyone was taking advantage and the thought of going to a museum late at night was actually pretty cool.

This past Monday night we attended La Bomba De Tiempo concert, where about 6 or 7 persons play different acoustic instruments and create awesome folkloric kind of dances. It was very lively and enjoyable.

Tomorrow is a very hectic day. In the morning I will be going to UP to sign up for finals, then come back home to make a delicious dessert for thanksgiving and then head over to Po's for some shopping for dinner. We will be making asado (bbq) instead of a turkey, since turkeys are really hard to find here, but of course, we will add our own little twist!
Tomorrow night I am going to spend the night at my grandparents' house, since Friday morning MY MOM ARRIVES IN BUENOS AIRES!!! I am so excited, and I can't wait to share the last three weeks of my trip with her! Much more to come once she gets here.

Hasta luego amigitos <3

Joint Blog

By the way, check out an amazing joint blog, created by four american girls abroad in Argentina (I'm one of them), as we take on the hilarity of cat calls in Buenos Aires!

www.quehermosasos.blogspot.com

Gauchitos

I'm finally back to update about the craziness which has taken place after Halloween.
I'm sorry I haven't updated, but my last week of school (yes I'm FINALLY finished!), was one from hell.

Let me just preface this entry, by mentioning that the school system in Argentina is WAY different than the one in the US. While lectures, homeworks and readings are all basically the same, the classes are not only 3 hours, but you must pass the class as a whole AND the mid-term in order to be able to take the final. If you fail the mid-term, then you fail the class, which means you can not take the final for a chance to raise your grade. This means, I had to make sure I not only showed up to at least 80% of classes, but that I studied my butt off for my mid-terms. It was a very tough week.
And this all happened the week after Halloween.

Mon-Thur: International Relations, Spanish, Society and Culture, History, Public Relations presentation, Public Relations mid-term and a Society and Culture presentation which included a 7-page outline. This was why I couldn't update.

Once it was all over, the girls and I decided to head off to San Antonio de Areco, for the yearly Gaucho Festival. The festival is made up of thousands of people from around the country, meeting up at an estancia or ranch, to celebrate the traditional culture of the Gauchos, aka south american cowboys. After eating a delicious choripan at a cute local restaurant, the Gauchos paraded in with their horses, traditional attire (white shirts, black pants, burettes), and lounged around all day, drinking beer and inviting ladies for a ride on their horses. Heidi, Katie, Amelia, Po and I all had our turns! It was a blast, and I definitely got my wish to ride a horse while in Argentina. They also threw tons of piropos our way, and wanted our numbers (which were obviously not provided). The bus ride was pleasant and cheap, and it was a very good day overall.

Also this past weekend, I visited Maru and Gaby at their country club home for Erin's birthday. The party was on Friday, and I was asked to chaperon all the kids on the bus from school to the country club. It was quite an experience, Argentine children are very loud and actually quite potty-mouthed. Let's just say the arrival brought me a sigh of relief. It was a beautiful day out and the party lasted until dusk, and later that night I slept over. It was very relaxing, I always enjoy my time out in the country.

I also want to mention that last week I began working as an English teacher, and it has been wonderful so far. The kids are attentive and willing to learn and honestly, I couldn't ask for more! They listen to what I have to say and seem genuinly interested in learning the English language. The classes go by fast, and I never run out of things to talk about them. They are so interested in learning about America!
The director of the program, Eugenia, recommended me for a job with one of her friends, translating a thesis she's working on. I met with Susan on Monday at a local coffee shop and she offered me the job, which I am excited for it will help me with my finances until I leave! It is definitely much needed!

Now that I am done with school, I will have to focus on helping Susana, but I also want to cross things off my bucket list in Argentina. My mom is actually heading over here in 2 weeks, so once she arrives I will most likely be with her most days. First thing I will be checking off: Puerto Madero as the girls and I will be seeing Social Network there on Friday!

Until the next one mis amigositos! <3