Taking the bads with the goods

I have a lot of time to ponder about things I have been experiencing. I have also been using this time to think about how I have been reacting to this trip abroad. Its amazing how being in a completely different atmosphere has allowed to see, understand, and appreciate things that I used to take for granted

A carefree stroll: The sidewalks are pretty bad. They are made of prefabricated tiles, all fit together to form the walking surface. But there are so many broken tiles, you have to look at your feet when you walk. Also there is no grass next to the sidewalk. It is tile, curb, street (insane traffic). There are so many dogs in this city, that one HAS to watch his feet for other reasons. There is so much pedestrian traffic, that one also has to pay attention to where they are headed. Not to mention that the traffic is insane, so corners demand extra caution. I do miss being able to casually walk down the street. Because the city is so dense, the only areas where you can feel alright standing still are the parks ( which are nice, and plentiful)

I have had some struggle accepting my position as a foreigner. I have found out that I have a hard time doing things outside of my comfort zone. I have spent a lot of time at a student residence two blocks away, and have made a lot of English speaking friends. I am supposed to be studying for a test I have Thursday, but procrastination followed me across continents.

As far as my volunteering goes, I have been spending time at the office of an NPO called "Un techo por mi pais" - (roughly) A roof/shelter for my country. I am designing a pamflet that they give to companies explaining their mission. But on Saturday, I hope to go with them to the neighborhoods and paint some of the new homes they recently built.

I went on a free city tour today. It was really interseting, and what I have been wanting for a while: some knowledge about the architecture. There is a building here that was designed for Dante's Divine Comedies. There are floors called Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. Each room is designed diffently to coordinate with the plays. Also learned a lot about the history of the city, and its layout. (and saw the tomb of San Martin).

Okay, time to hit the books. Sorry, its hard to stay on top of this! So much going on. Miss you all. Enjoy the sun for me

Dave

Everybody needs change

Whew! two weekends...About the title- The bus companies here only accept coins for payment, and they hoard it all then sell it back to the government for more than its worth. Its creating a huge problem, because no one has any monedas to give, which is an issue whenever you try to make a transaction with anything- food, taxis, anything. At the markets, you can often get things cheaper just because they dont have the money to break your big bills...Very strange problem.

Last Friday I joined a pick-up soccer game. it was only 5 per side, small field. Man that showed me how much wind ive lost since my sprained ankle! it was fun, but i felt underqualified, there were a lot of good futbol players on the field. it was cool because there were people there from all over the world, united by the love of the game.

Last Saturday: Another futbol game, but this time at a national level. Me and 4 friends went to the world cup qualifier game: Argentina vs. Columbia.

We took the subway for about 20 minutes, and then walked for another 30...and still were in the city. I swear this city is the size of michigan. It was an amazing feeling walking toward the stadium with the crowd. It reminded me of OUR football saturdays at the big house. Street venders chants filling the air, along with the smell of their food. We haggled with a vender for flags to hang around our necks. We were convincing him that his group rate of 5 for $50 was worse than his original offer of 2 for $15. it was a humorous transaction to say the least.

We were rushing to get into the general admission seating, but the view of the city was breathtaking. it was right at sunset. i wanted to get a panorama, but i could only take a snap shot. The stadium was not the nicest...there was a score board, but it was not operational. The pitch looked fine, but I was later told that it was dirt was spray-painted green so it would look fine on tv...They had to pay the coaches to calm them down about the terrible conditions. Looked good from where I was haha.

Last sunday: I went to the market in Recoleta, near my homestay. Its the artisans market, a lot of really cool things. I spent a good two hours there buying presents for friends/family back home and still only saw about half of the market. Because the beef is so popular, so are the leather products.
After that, we headed to a barrio way on the edge of BA, called mataderos. It is where the cows are brought to town. it was a lot different atmosphere, not touristy at all. there was a really cool street band of about 10 people playing flutes.

I didnt buy anything, but i wanted to buy a fork and knife. They have these cool holsters you put on your belt, so you can show up to grill and whip out your own utensils (very common here).

Monday: La Bomba- all i can say is it was the coolest drum show i have ever been to. They have it every week: about 15 drummers and string instruments too, just jamming out for about 2 hours. i couldnt hear much at the end, but its an amazing feeling having the whole crowd moving as one to the beat. The atmosphere was really well set with colored lights and funky aromas.
Thursday: There was a welcome dinner at the Road House/student residence (the other option, instead of a homestay). It was really nice because I got to meet a lot of people who are really active on the weekends. So I just jumped on their plans.
Friday: Tango lessons! Surprisingly, a white boy found some rhythm and learned some steps. There were more girls than guys, and it was quite embarrassing when I we were paired with a local girls (around 12-15 years old) who just schooled all of us foreigners. But it was still a good time.
Saturday: 8 of us from the Road House went to a large area by the ocean- The Ecological Reserves-where we rented bikes to ride throught the greenery and along the Atlantic ocean. It was a beautiful day, we actually got to feel the sun for once. In the city, the sun rarely gets by the tall buildings. We rode around for about 2 hours, and worked up an appatite. Then we got to sample the local grilled meat stands, where I got a chorizo sandwhich (sausage). Muy sombroso!
It was a very random day, but fun. We walked along the markets there (they are everywhere, i swear) and came upon an aerobics class in the street. two girls from our group ran up and joined.
We bought a nice soccerball (7 dollars) and played four v. four for the rest of the afternoon.
Sunday: we went to La Boca (the mouth), one of the original barrios formed around the port where the river opens into the ocean. There is a lot of cultural history there because of all the immigrants pouring in from european nations (mostly italian). Its a very colorful neighborhood in the 2 block tourist zone, but it is also the poorist, and most dangerous.
It was very cool, all the statues that were put in. It overlooked the restaurant we stoped at for lunch. There was also a free tango show involved, complete with a live band.
I felt a little touristy, but it was a fun time.

(My soccer skills have been improving though).
Ill try to go back to the previous posts and add pictures too. Miss you all!

So much to do, so little energy

Well, I have not locked myself in any small spaces, so I'm already doing better than last post.

This city never sleeps, I swear. I went out to a parilla (steak house) on Friday, and made a lot of new friends. A couple Brits, a Sweed, couple Americans. It was a great meal, I'd say it was worth $30 after all the wine and steaks, but it came out to around $15. Its amazing how cheap things are, but they do add up. The local beer (Quilmes) is actually pretty tasty, especially from the tap. We went to a Barioche (club) called Museum. I intend to see other museums too, but this one was hard to pass up. The Argentines start to show up to the clubs around 2 or 3 in the morning, and leave around 7. Friday was my only night out, and I only made it to 3 (had to wake up at 9 the next morning). Its hard to shift gears, but I have 8 weeks to adjust.

But it is not all about the night life. Sunday I went to the San Telmo market, which literally draws about 10,000 people every sunday. One street is taken over by local merchants. It is quite an amazing site. "The area is full of antiques, colorful characters, passion, youth, and nostalgia. Tango percolates, and the street artists fill the streets with amazing music." It was a great day, and I cant wait to go back. I dont think 8 sundays will be enough.
Below is the mate drink and the dulce de leche (caramel spread) that is everywhere down here.
I started my spanish classes this week. I was placed in a 300 level class, but after one day of that, I knew I was in over my head. Being good at placement tests can be a bad thing, so I dropped down to the lower class, and its a lot closer to what I should be learning. I go from 1-4 durring the week, which is good and bad. Its hard to wake up early when I dont HAVE to.

Next week, I will start he volunteering during the mornings, so it will really put my stamina to a test. I've been waking up around 10 and going for jogs around the neighborhood. I have seen a lot, the city is soooo huge. My runs that I intend to be 20 minutes have been more like 40 because its so easy to get lost with these crazy streets.

Yesterday I met up with Sarah P. a friend from UofM. We went to the Chinese Barrio for some Americanized Chinese food in a Latin American city... It was an adventure, about a 25 minute taxi ride, the city is very large..

Tomorrow I will be playing a drop in soccer game with people from all over the world, and Saturday we are going to the world cup qualifier game(Argentina vs. Columbia). I am really excited for that. I will post pictures next time, I swear!

Chau!