Thursday, January 26, 2012

Growing Pains/Observations Going-on-Week 4 (Already?!?!)

Even paradise has its drawbacks.

I invite you to listen to the theme song of my favorite late 80's/early 90s TV show theme song as you read this. Mainly because I don't have any self-taken pictures to accompany this entry (I know, boooo). So my plan is to regale (I'm noticing I use that word often and not always correctly, much like my usage of the word touche) you with some multimedia:

Growing Pains Theme- Season 1

1. The food situation: It's growing slightly dire.  I simply cannot find enough variety in order to cook at home.  I am hoping I can begin to employ the amazing South American cookbook my former co-worker so wonderfully gave me upon my departure, but so far, the ingredients are not as varied as at home, and it's starting to take its toll. Yogurt for dinner just ain't gonna cut it, people. Especially those that know my eating habits of multiple rather large meals per day. Which brings me to my next point...

2. Under no circumstances should I be allowed to cook rice. Or pasta.  I 100% cannot get the measurements right. What looks to be the right amount before is enough to feed the borough of BK (hood shout out!)

3. It is disheartening when people answer your attempts at Spanish in English. Like, really disheartening. I am hoping that gets better because at this point I understand mostly everything and know what to say. It just takes me a little time and portenos don't seem to have the patience for it. But as my classmate and professors say, "Poco a poco, Jill." I am trying to bear that in mind!

4. I love that there is always something to do, and I am having a blast, but I miss my besties. Ya'll know who you are. It's one thing to be out meeting people an talking and learning (all AMAZING, don't get me wrong), but I just want to have a bucket of KFC on Gloria's couch, por ejemplo. I am looking forward to my visitors, while making sure I savor all the moments I have here alone and with new friends!

5. I now know SEVERAL Spanish phrases for "F off". And you kind of need them! It's kind of insane. There's never any real danger (SWAYZ), but when I am out and about in my potato sack (as I am wont to do), I get too many 'mamacitas' y 'hermosas' to possibly keep track. And I'm not saying I'm special in any way. Like I said, I am wearing a potato sack.  It don't matter one bit. Today I had to resort to saying: "Tenes un problema?...Pandejo!" Let's just say they backed right off.


Now for the big news:

Galapagos & Patagonia are booked!


Which also means I've extended my trip past my baby Neek's wedding in May!!! I'll be in the Galapagos Islands for my 30th! Here is my tour. It is one of the only tours that includes camping on the islands. Words cannot contain my excitement!

Galapagos_Unbound

Galapagos Unbound- Adventure Tour

The first and original land-based adventure, featured in the New York Times and winner of National Geographic "Tours of a Lifetime."
Over the years, ROW Adventures has taken Galapagos tours to the next level. We are the only Galapagos Islands tour that allows beach camping on the islands and we offer a range of adventure activities during our Galapagos Tours. You'll sea kayak around the Galapagos Islands and explore areas where cruises can not access. During your tour you'll enjoy Galapagos Islands hiking from experienced guides while visiting the beautiful mountain areas of the islands. You'll come in contact with wildlife, swim off of sunny beaches, and snorkel your way around new worlds.
More about ROW Adventures' Galapagos Islands Unbound Tour



I'll also be in Patagonia March 2-10. I'm going to the southernmost city in the world (more or less), Ushuaia, followed by El Calafate. The big news is that I'm taking an 8 hour intense glacier hike over the major glacier down there, Perito Moreno. Info below.

http://www.hieloyaventura.com/2010/eng_big_ice-glaciar-perito-moreno.asp

Here is a short 15 s video of an ice crash on the above glacier. The immensity of these things is mind-boggling:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuCcFc2inuo

With that, I am off to the club (umm in 5 hours, let's be serious). Adios for now!

Next time: Photo collage of BA with Trivia!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Phil Collins is King Here

Ok, so that may be a slight exaggeration, but words cannot express my surprise (read: delighted surprise, since Phil Collins, along with Richard Marx, are my childhood musical heroes...with that said, here I come, Spotify!) when, on the way back from Uruguay today, there was an AMAZING video of P.C., Live In Concert. 1.25 hours of amazingness, my friends.

Anyway, the point of this entry is not to regale you with tales of how Phil Collins is received in SA (but, oh, if it were!). Today, I took a lil day trip over to Uruguay (you know, how people do down here), and visited the colonial town/village of Colonia de Sacremento. It. was. gorgeous. My pictures below won't do it justice, but I'll try nonetheless.

Colonia was founded by the Portuguese,  a long long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away (1680 AD) and changed hands with the Spanish through battles/treaties/etc several times. Since 1828, it's been part of Uruguay. Its historic downtown is a UNESCO World Heritage site (neat!)

Also, I have to make a quick note about my never ceasing wonderment about this whole traveling alone thing. I meet people where ever I go, and they are all amazing. You honestly never know what's going to happen to you when you walk out the door everyday, and that's pretty freaking awesome. Just today, while I was drinking my sangria, I met a new friend from Australia! It's just...something I never thought of when I was planning this voyage, but there it is.  Ok, enough pontificating. PICTURES!!!!



Yes, I will have a pitcher of sangria to myself while I wait for a squall to pass


I make my second appearance on my blog! I am on the faro (lighthouse). The Rio De La Plata is behind me. By the way, even thought it's technically a river, the Rio De La Plata is 140 miles wide at some parts (what!). Some 'river experts' (who knew those existed? next line of work for me?) consider it a marginal sea. Poor RDLP.

My delicious lunch. Delicious and approx $10. Seriously? The national dish is chivito (not pictured, but also consumed today.) It's a stuffed steak sandwich with bacon, fried egg, cheese, onions, olives, salad, etc. KFC ain't got nothin' on this. 

What I like to call Argentina's/Uruguay's crack-cocaine. I am seriously addicted. It's this butter-mayo mixture of sheer  amazingness. I know, I thought I hated mayo too, until I tasted this. This particular one had some red peppers diced up in it, too. 


Thanks, Sign! Happy to be here!


Monday, January 16, 2012

Sunday, January 15, 2012

It's a Small World, After All

Friends and Dear Readers:

Hola! I have a lot to report but unfortunately not a ton of pictures this time. I am slipping into my old habits of not bringing my camera out with me. Que una lastima!  There is actually quite a lot to report since last week. Things just keep getting better and better. Lemme break it down:

1. La Gente (The People): They are fantastic. I am really lucky to be meeting some really spectacular people so far. People at my Spanish school, people through Couch Surfing and the people I met on my tour to el Tigre- muy bien! I didn't get their contact info on the tour, but then a week later, on Friday, I was walking home from Spanish school and they saw me on the street! It's amazing how things worked out. We spent a fantastic weekend together, and now I have 5 new amigos fantasticos de Vancouver! Next trip: Pacific Northwest and Vancouver, anyone?

Here is a picture of me, looking as usual like a Muppet, with them at Milon, a mansion that has been converted into a swanky restaurant/bar/club that we went to last night. Que rica!



2. Tango: I took my first tango lesson Thursday night at La Viruta in Palermo! There were a lot of people there, so I should take a more semi-private one. But it's definitely a place to go out and take a free tango lesson. Amigas, we're goin' when you get here! As all who have seen me dance before, let's just say....it wasn't a pretty sight.

This is a little picture of the steps we learned on the sidewalk outside of the school.





3. Getting Less Touristy:
Fran, one of my fabulous professors, took us on a tour of an amazing neighborhood that's more off the beaten path than the ones you usually hear about- Belgrano. It is BEAUTIFUL. I took a couple of pictures (below), but they really don't do justice to the trees, beautiful buildings and peaceful tranquility her neighborhood has to offer.  It was really a lovely way to spend the morning and afternoon, walking, sitting at a sidewalk cafe and (trying to) speaking Spanish.

This is a church in Belgrano. Friends (ie Greg), Help me figure out how to rotate pictures!


Impromptu band. The guy playing the banjo was REALLY good.

4. Understanding More and More Spanish: Besides a couple of days of it's-too-hot-to-go-outside- or- you-will-die, the weather has been fantastic. I have been bringing the newspaper with me to this giant park near me (Parque Tres De febrero) and reading next to the lake in the rose garden (a destination to bring you, dear friends who are visiting!) The roses are in partial bloom, but it's still ridiculously beautiful, and I essentially sit around reading the same sentence 46 times until I understand that inflation in the country was 23% last year, for example. (It's actually a problem that I will touch upon another time). But anyway, reading the paper is getting easier. I will bring my camera this week to show you how beautiful this park is.

Spanish class is getting easier, but it's still pretty hard. This week, we sang songs, played Taboo and Guess Who and - oh yea, learned the imperfect subjunctive. Ay de mi! But I am really enjoying the classes. The 4+ hour classes go by really quickly! I am totally in my element, except that it still takes me 100 years to respond to a question, for example, like my thoughts on Pinochet's dictatorship/military junta in Chile in the 1980s. Yikes. Friends, get ready for many more history puns/anecdotes when I return!


5. Goals For the Next Week:
-Take the colectivo (bus). It's a terrifying network of 800 gazillion lines that intersect in a crazy network of horror around the city. Also, if you want to hail the bus, you more or less have to risk life and limb and hail it down by jumping in front of it. Standing at the stop on the curb ain't gonna cut it, people.

-Join el VideoClub (video store!) Fran gave me a few horror/suspense movie recommendations that I'll need to rent. If only I could get a 20 piece bucket at KFC with Gloria now....

-Plan my trip to Uruguay. I'd like to go next weekend. Let's see if I can get it together. And then plan my trip to Galapagos.

-Buy apparatus with which to drink mate. Mate is the national drink here. It's essentially tea, but different. It's a major cultural pastime here, and you share it with your companeros all afternoon. People drink mate all day, every day. In the US, we have water cooler breaks. In the UK we had morning and afternoon tea. In Argentina, there's at least one mate break per hour. It's got a lot of caffeine in it and you can make it hot or cold, with water or orange juice.

-I think that's enough goals.

Many thanks to my good friends John and Gloria for the blog redesign! I am in love with it. As you all know, if I were a man born in the 1600s, my dream job would have been a cartographer, so I am DIGGING the map.

Monday, January 9, 2012

A Lesson Earned Is A Lesson Learned

Lessons Learned: Week 1

1. Sometimes the cheapest bottle of wine is not the best option. Nuff said, amigos.

2. It's OK to not be doing something 24/7.  Coming from NYC, it's part of the culture there to be constantly on the move. This became all the more prevalent on Friday, when my friend Lorena came over and said, "Ay de mi, Jill, you do more in a day than most portenos do their entire life!"  This was after getting a cell phone and taking a pilates class in one day. It is hard, but I am trying to slow down AND be OK with it.

3. No matter the circumstances, it's always good to get out of your comfort zone.  I am going on 30, and have never done so many foreign (out of the ordinary, not "not in the United States") things by myself! Getting myself around, speaking with people (most here don't speak English, but that's why I chose Argentina!), figuring out my daily life- wow, it's been very discombobulating. But it's good. I did the same thing pretty much for almost 7 years in NYC- I'm liking this discomfort (for now). I am in Spanish classes 4 hours a day and I found out today that somehow they thought I was supposed to be in the advanced class, which brings me to my next point...

3a. Don't give up: I wanted to die during the first 2 hours of class today. Pierre, my French Canadian - and only- classmate- is like a superstar. He's like the Ronaldo of semi-private Spanish classes. The imperfect subjunctive ain't nothin' to that guy.  But I stuck with it, spoke and listened to Spanish for 4 hours straight AND read the entire paper today (La Nacion). Only took me 17 hours. I'll take it.

4. I guess I have to be super friendly again. Ugh. Putting oneself out there for rejection, etc is rough. But my good friend, Goire, gave me some fabulous advice the other day: "Who cares; just do it."

5. Adjust to the late culture: I went to a parilla (steak house) the other night with a new friend and we ate at...1am. Seriously. Restaurants don't even open many times until 8pm here and they close down at 3am. I am slowly training myself to eat lunch at 2 or 3 and have many more snacks/(ie Cliff Bars, LGS) during the day between meals. Also, a friend invited me out the other night to a club...which opened at 2am. I am working on importing a case of Redbull to accept the invitation next time. So if you want to go out to tango shows, clubs, bars...people are nuts here. AND they do it most nights and get up for a 9am start at work the next day. Amazing.

6. Electronic Dance Music is kind of enjoyable. Who knew!? They remix everything here (I've heard Beatles house remixes, no joke), and I am finding myself hanging outside the store/school/church (just kidding but barely) to listen.

7. Corks of Wine bottles (are you noticing a theme?) are not meant to go back into the bottle here. I don't know why, but they don't fit back in. Meaning, sink or swim, people. Finish the bottle or go home. (I mainly go home, Mom and Dad.)

8. If you accidentally wear see-through pants to pilates, you will get whistled at on the way there.

OK enough words. here are some pictures from the last several days:







This is the official logo of the town el Tigre, where I took a day trip last week. It's a big exportation port/center, as well as a place where people summer.  Boats are the public means of transport AND grocery stores arrive on boats, so if you're a home owner there, you can just kinda hang. Also, riverfront property/houses cost $60,000 USD there. Huh?


A casino alongside the river from our boat.


A famous parilla in San Telmo, an amazing neighborhood I am just getting to know (and the home of el Tango!!) For all those coming to visit, this is also home to an AMAZING market on Sundays. It goes for about 20 blocks. Lots of amazing local handiwork, and then of course, the random stall selling Winnie The Pooh socks.


Ay de mi! Puerto Madero es magnifico! It's a neighborhood right on the water and there are great restaurants there. Also, BA outlaws gambling so the only casino is on a boat in the middle of the river, so that it's not in city proper. One of the most expensive neighborhoods and a place at which to see and be seen.


I can't figure out how to rotate pictures in Spanish yet, but this is Recoleta Cemetery in the ritzy hood of Recoleta. Evita is buried here, as well as President Raul Alfonsin (1980s) , President Sarmiento (1860s/70s) and MANY other notable Argentines (first Spanish-speaking recipient of the Nobel Prize (for chemistry), etc.


The bad guy crack addict Swayze killer in Ghost??

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Day 1: Successes and....well, only successes!

Hola Amigos!

I think it's about time I regale you with tales of my first day in Argentina, as I know some of you (I'm looking at you, Swayz), have been on the edge of your proverbial seats.

A couple of disclosures first:
1. My fabulous friends are working on a more visually appealing blog, so that it a) has llamas on it and b) is easier to see photos, etc, so stay tuned.
2. If you know me, you know I never bring a camera anywhere, so I promise to finesse my pretty awful camera skillz (you'll see what I mean, trust me).

So yesterday, I had one main task (besides not killing the small child who insisted on sitting next to me on the plane because her tv was broken, then proceeded to fall asleep immediately literally on top of me for 7 hours, effectively watching approx 2 seconds of said TV vital to her well being). Ah, kids...Anyway, that one main task was to get to University of BA to take a placement test for Spanish classes beginning...today. After a 2 hour walk (blocks are longer here!), I finally found the street but could never find the actual building; I swear it doesn't exist. One could potentially call it a failure, but it was great to see the city again, and the weather is to die for! And I wound up at the Casa Rosada and the main square. (photo below) Info on Casa Rosada here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Rosada

The first photo is the other end of the Plaza De Mayo (Casa Rosada is on the other end). It's named for its turbulent history...namely when Argentina revolted against Spanish rule on May 25, 1810. This is the building where they declared that they'd had enough! Lots of protests continue to occur in this square for its history, proximity to government and visibility.


Ok, enough history talk for one day. Oh, did I mention Argentina is ridiculously cost effective? I got this giant glass of wine, which was spilling over, for $3 USD. And it's insanely good wine. I think we're going to have a problem :)


Also, could someone could help me figure out how to use this giant grill (asador) next to the pool in my apartment complex?  If you come visit, I could cook you giant cuts of amazing grass fed beef! (had a steak last night; I am in heaven here):


Ok time to head out. On the docket for today:

-Buy a cell phone (oh boy, this should be interesting)
-Go to a pilates class up the street that I booked for tonight (also should be interesting...what's "downward dog" in Spanish?)
-Grocery store: I'm cooking tonight (not on the asador...yet)!
-I decided to get right on it...Tomorrow morning I head out on my first daylong side trip outside of the city, el Tigre, which is a town in BA province and is at the mouth of the river delta. Lots of wildlife and exploration to be done via boat! I'll be sure to post some pictures when I'm back!