Protesta

Pots banging, people shouting, fireworks (I hope that's what it is) going off. Sounds you might hear at the winning of a soccer game. Yet, this time it's in protest.

What do the Argentines have to protest?

One might look at their society as progressive. They have a woman president. They allow gay marriage. Sex change operations are now covered under medical insurance. But, one does not rid the country's problems by being progressive.

Government corruption is a persistent problem.
Argentina is closing itself off from the world. They do not allow imports, even on necessary items, like insulin for diabetics.
Recently, the government nationalized it's oil (YPF). This caused many countries to turn it's back on Argentina for not letting capitalism run it's course.
It is almost impossible to get your hands on U.S. dollars. It is practically a black market selling of U.S. dollars.

While there are both good sides and bad sides to every decision a government makes, it puts pressure on your people to constantly change and directly effect their everyday life.
People are tired and scared. Scared of another economic crash like the tragic one of 2001 where many middle class families found themselves completely broke overnight.

I am no one to have a full on intelligent conversation on these topics. Economics, while interesting, are not my forte. All I know is people are tired of President Christina Kirchner and the implications her decisions will have on the economy of Argentina.

Hiking the Andes

A couple weekends ago, I traveled with a group of friends to Mendoza!

Mendoza is a province of Argentina, about a 13-14 hour bus ride. It's a drier climate, perfect  land and air for vineyards. It also includes the Andes.

We stayed in a hostel and the very first day there, we went on a wine tour. It was very interesting and we got to try various types of wine, mainly red. I'm not really a huge red wine fan, but I can appreciate it and also appreciate how much work goes into making it.

We went to two vineyards, the first being family owned. You can only buy their wine directly from them! The second vineyard was a little larger, where they combine new technology with old traditions. After visiting the vineyards, we also went to a place where they make olive oil. It was really good!

The next day, we went into the Andes mountains. We took a bus to Puente del Inca, which is a naturally made bridge the Incas used and built a spa underneath. Most of the spa was ruined by a flood, but the bridge is still there. It was a really awesome sight to see!
From there, we hike 3km up the mountain to Aconcagua Provincial Park. From this park, we had an amazing view of Aconcagua, the biggest mountain in the Americas. The view was breathtaking!

I also headed to Portrerillos with a friend, which is a dam in the river in the middle of the mountains. It was a perfect day of hanging out by the water, hiking, and climbing foothills.
I had such a great experience in Mendoza and highly suggest visiting it if you ever get the chance!

P.S. Pictures to come soon! For some reason, my computer isn't letting me upload them onto my blog.

The Little Things

I can't believe I've been here for over a month! And I am SUPER behind on my blogging. Since my last blog, I've started school, gone to Mendoza, and so much more; but one thing at a time.

Life in Buenos Aires is much slower than in the U.S. What one might get done in three or four hours back home takes all day here. Honestly, I've gotten used to this and I've also learned to appreciate the little successes everyday.

When you're in an entirely new culture, everything seems just a little harder to do. For example, today I needed to buy batteries for my camara. After walking for about half an hour, I finally found a place that sold batteries. I could have done this in five minutes back home. I didn't mind, though. It's satisfying just to be able to accomplish even such small tasks.

Here's a list of little things that I've felt successful in by accomplishing them here:

1. Finding my way to my new home the very first day.
2. Figuring out that if I play about five minutes of Solitare on my computer BEFORE I try to get my internet running, it works much better.
3. Leading a group, successfully, to a place I've never been.
4. Finally understanding the joke on a billboard I have passed a few dozen times.
5. Telling someone in another language a funny story, that they not only understand, but even laugh!
6. Discovering a little place with really good food at a super cheap price.
7. Figuring out that if you drink coffee during that really boring class (which happens to be at the time my body is ready for a nap), I can stay awake and even participate in Spanish.
8. Finding a really cool place that no one told you about and sharing it with others.
9. Not getting hit by traffic. (this is an everyday success)
10. Not stepping in dog poop. (again, another everyday accomplishment)
11. Finding friends you can relate to so you don't feel alone in a big city.
12. Realizing you may know the streets in this city better than the ones back home.

I hope, even back home, to remember the little successes can really add up. I'm glad for this lesson that Buenos Aires has been teaching me.

Me Encanta Rosario!

Last weekend, we all headed about 5 and a half hours north of Buenos Aires to a city called Rosario. Rosario is a beautiful city located right next to the river.

Rosario is known as the birthplace of Che Guevara. Che was a revolutinary leader in the 20th century. He was criticized by North Americans for being a communist and a friend of Fidel Castro. But, when looking at his principles, you have to take a second look at his life and give him credit for wanting a better world for the Latin Americans. I highly recommend watching The Motorcycle Diaries to better understand where this guy was coming from.

Inside Rosario, you will find a statue of Che.

Right next to the Che statue, you can find Rosario's first train station. It was a little odd seeing a train in the middle of a field, next to a no longer inservice station.

Graphic art found on the train station

Another prominent feature of Rosario is "El Monumento de la Bandera," or, the Monument of the Argentine Flag. Manuel Belgrano was the creator of the Argentine flag and the monument commemorating both the flag and the creator is breathtaking! The more picture I took of it, the more I realized how grand and detailed it really is.

El Monumento

Manuel Belgrano

 At night time, the main street fills with musicians. Here is one of my favorites.

 

In a park on that street, the entire place was filled with origami butterflies. They were on trees, benches, and even on a fountain. It was really pretty!

The next day, I went to the beach by the river. It was a great day filled with swimming, hanging out with friends, and soaking in the sun. The river water was comfortably cool. It wasn't crystal clear, but that is because of all the natural sediment in the river. The beach sand was soft and about 10 feet into the river, it turned into mud.

I could definitely find myself living somewhere like Rosario!

El Tigre y más!

Yesterday was a fun day filled with markets, boat rides, and medialuna!

ISA took a trip to El Tigre, which is this city on a river. I half expected the place to be run down for some reason, but it was really nice! We took a bus-boat (it's like a bus inside of a boat with comfy seats) on the river and looked at the houses and learned a little about how the population here lives.

This is the boat we took.

The inside of the boat! 

A couple of the houses along El Tigre





There are no streets for cars along the river, so everyone travels by boat. Their supermarket is even by boat!

An example of a boat supermarket

There aren't just houses along the river; there's a museum and even an amusement park.

Pictures of the river

After El Tigre, we went to the market called Puerto de Frutos. It's a large market filled with lots of neat things to buy at a very reasonable price.

The market is right next to El Tigre.

Once we left the market, we headed over to Río de la Plata. From this point, we could see Uruguay on our left and the skyline of Buenos Aires on our right. Es muy lindo!

While here, we sat down and ate toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, brownies and medialuna. Medialuna is a croissant with a sweet coating, usually honey. They are a tasty treat.

Uruguay

The skyline of Buenos Aires

The beach of Río de la Plata

The day was filled with fun and adventure. It was a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of living in a big city.

Hasta luego!









Dancing the Tango

Yesterday night, I learned how to dance the tango! The students of ISA went to a tango club called "La Viruta" which translates into woodchips. It's so called for the movement of the feet in the dance are said to take woodchips out of the floor.

Learning the steps was easy. There are seven steps to the basic tango and then we were also shown two variations to the step. I was doing well..... until I danced with a partner.

I'm horrible at following!

For some reason, my feet want to do their own thing, without letting the man take the reins. For one of the steps, the man leads with his shoulders and the woman is to do this figure-eight step with her feet. My partner lead with his shoulders one way and my feet decided they would rather go the other way.

Maybe with more practice, I'll actually get it down..... maybe.

Just for fun, I've attached a youtube video of the tango:

http://youtu.be/j-Iv76apVwc

Buen día!

A Tour of the City

Buenos Aires, as I learned today, is an eclectic mix of various types of life all in one city. One area is filled with museums, architecture, and embassies and the area right next to it may be a port or an outside market.

Some of the neighborhoods we visited included Recoleta, La Boca, and Puerto Madero.

Recoleta:

This is the largest tree in Buenos Aires. As you can see in the bottom picture, branches are held up by planks to keep it from breaking.

The following pictures are from the Cemetery of Recoleta. The Cemetery is full of mausoleums of famous Argentineans, like Eva Peron.

This statue found in the cemetery is an abstract statue of Jesus.

These pictures are of the Catholic Church located right next to the Cemetery.

Plaza de Mayo:

In Plaza de Mayo, you can find the Casa Rosada, which is the Presidential House. Many protests happen outside of this building, but since the tour happened on a Sunday, no one was protesting.

La Boca:

La Boca is a very colorful neighborhood with artists and singers in the streets. It is also home to one of the ports in Buenos Aires.

Puerto Madero:

Puerto Madero is home to another port in Buenos Aires.

By the end of the day, I was exhausted and ready to get home. It was a fun day with lots of sight-seeing.

Oh... and one other thing. I had my first Alfajor and it was so good! It's this pastry, which reminds me of a moon pie, but filled with dulce de leche and covered in chocolate. My mouth was very happy.

¡Hasta luego!