just in case you forgot.
http://picasaweb.google.com/celessa711/thesouthamericandiaries/
photos! updated constantly (when i am sitting around my apartment, especially)! interesting!
no real news. i am sick now. i live off sleeping in late, lots of TV, a few good books (i devour any english book that jonas lends to me), tea time, pasta and skype chats with my friends back home.
i think i am going to the north of argentina, however. soon. very soon. i am getting that restless feeling again. and no wonder! i have been sitting in buenos aires for over two weeks now, with only a visit to MALBA, a few parks and markets, two random clubs and one birthday party to show for it.
but thank goodness i went to a tango show. the two weeks would not have been complete without it. ha.
words / concepts of the day:
medicine in argentina: since coming down with a cold, i have been told a whole slew of wives tales (or maybe, good advice? you decide) that differ than the ones in the north. example: tie a silk scarf around your throat if it hurts. drink a little bottle of gross yogurt stuff every morning to aid digestion. dont take lots of ibuprofeno (advil), but feel free to indulge in asprin. if you feel sick to your stomach, squirting a little bit of this weird stuff in lukewarm water is the best cure. and on and on. it is so strange to me.
cleaning techniques in argentina: mopping is the most confusing thing here to me. in the kitchen, you just dump a bunch of water on the floor and squeegee a giant rubber thing across the floor, directing all the water towards a drain. other things include momentarily running your hands under a bit of cold water (you're lucky if there is soap in public bathrooms) and walking away.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Sunday, April 27, 2008
life in the city
i have determined that i will not die in south america, friendless and broke (and probably fat off empanadas).
well, the money part is going to be okay at this point, at least. ha. i got my debit card in the mail, finally, four weeks after it was sent from seattle. the package it was in contained many, many lovely things. que sopresa! as i opened it at noemi's house, i got so excited that i made her look at everything too. trying to explain in spanish about my house was difficult, ha. "seis chicos en tu casa?" she kept asking with wide eyes. i nodded. "muchos chicos..." she muttered, shaking her head, walking on her tiny legs to the kitchen for some more coca.
even thought i didn't know noemi very well before, i am glad i had the package shipped to her because it gave me an excuse to hang out. at her house, i realized how lonely i really am. i have a few friends here in the city, but its difficult at times. number one, the language barrier. two, they all have work and school. three, getting from here to there is hard and confusing for me, with buses, subways and confusing streets.
yesterday, after visiting the MALBA, i was standing on a street corner, trying to decide if i wanted to go into a cafe or not. i have this great book that jonas lent to me, and i just wanted to sit, sip some cafe, and dive in. while i was standing there, an older guy, maybe 35 or 40, walked up to me and asked me if i needed directions. we got to talking, and i said i wanted to go to the cafe to read. he said, perfect! i was going there myself. then he invited himself to sit with me, and began talking about american authors. if i wasn't so darn lonely for some sort of human interaction (in english, spanish is so exhausting for me, always), i would have been one hundred percent creeped out. but i craved the conversation, so we chilled. after a bit, the waitress hadn't come to our table yet. it was busy, and so the guy asked me if i wanted to take a cafe at his apartment instead. now, don't even worry, there was never a moment's hesitation in my answer. i told him politely, no, i have a rule never to go to a stranger's residence. he nodded, and i felt a little more creeped out. an awkward excuse (i told him i had a boyfriend waiting for me to cook him dinner. not really true) and a chau later, i was on my way home.
after that whole day spent wandering parks, checking out the art at MALBA and getting hit on by creepers, i was really looking forward to saturday night. jonas had secured his friend's huge house in caballito for the birthday party. this house is amazing. double-tall ceilings, mysterious rooms, winding staircase and a huge open main room open to the stars. i dont know what happens when it rains.
well, jonas prepared a pretty kicking dance mix/mash up of music. we arrived a bit before the party started (at midnight) and turned on the beats. after an hour or so, people began arriving. i am so, so shy in groups of spanish-speaking people. i just hate feeling like a special child who doesn't really know how to talk. but hey, i am in the wrong country for this. so i just have to get over it. i gulped a little bit of courage down and attempted to make conversation. a few minutes later, lucci arrived. lucci is an old friend of jonas, and absolutely the craziest party girl ever! haha, she is definitely the ellen of south america. no joke. the goblins will understand that one. anyways, soon, lucci, her friend paz, and i were dancing in the middle of the room, not caring that no one else was partaking of the music. the three of us bonded, and were running around laughing and spilling stuff and etc. in the middle of this, jorge and miguel arrived. haha we all got pretty silly, and a good time was had by all.
so, during my travels, i have determined that certain people i meet are absolutely international versions of my seattle friends. example: lucci, argentine-ellen. amanda, dutch-steph. miguel, argentine-josh. jorge, argentine-nik. shawn, new york-micah dean (ok, not international here). i guess i just miss every one so much that i look for friends who remind me of the seattlites i love.
words / concepts of the day:
MALBA: museo de arte latinoamericano de buenos aires. one of the coolest art museums around. i got to see frida kahlo and marcos lopez, two of my favorites!
buenos aires parks: amazingness. there is a whole section, north or avenida de santa fe, that is full of parks, botanical gardens, zoos and a japenese garden. you can wander for hours and get lost or just forget where you are. also:
the mystery of the cats. amidst the roses, trees and occasional playground are hundreds of cats. yes, cats. steph wallen, you would be horrified. they all live happily, and no one really knows how they all survive on their own, fat and free. i see little piles of kitty kibbles in the parks though, so i imagine that hundreds of happy, crazy, south american cat ladies distribute food for los gatos every night.
well, the money part is going to be okay at this point, at least. ha. i got my debit card in the mail, finally, four weeks after it was sent from seattle. the package it was in contained many, many lovely things. que sopresa! as i opened it at noemi's house, i got so excited that i made her look at everything too. trying to explain in spanish about my house was difficult, ha. "seis chicos en tu casa?" she kept asking with wide eyes. i nodded. "muchos chicos..." she muttered, shaking her head, walking on her tiny legs to the kitchen for some more coca.
even thought i didn't know noemi very well before, i am glad i had the package shipped to her because it gave me an excuse to hang out. at her house, i realized how lonely i really am. i have a few friends here in the city, but its difficult at times. number one, the language barrier. two, they all have work and school. three, getting from here to there is hard and confusing for me, with buses, subways and confusing streets.
yesterday, after visiting the MALBA, i was standing on a street corner, trying to decide if i wanted to go into a cafe or not. i have this great book that jonas lent to me, and i just wanted to sit, sip some cafe, and dive in. while i was standing there, an older guy, maybe 35 or 40, walked up to me and asked me if i needed directions. we got to talking, and i said i wanted to go to the cafe to read. he said, perfect! i was going there myself. then he invited himself to sit with me, and began talking about american authors. if i wasn't so darn lonely for some sort of human interaction (in english, spanish is so exhausting for me, always), i would have been one hundred percent creeped out. but i craved the conversation, so we chilled. after a bit, the waitress hadn't come to our table yet. it was busy, and so the guy asked me if i wanted to take a cafe at his apartment instead. now, don't even worry, there was never a moment's hesitation in my answer. i told him politely, no, i have a rule never to go to a stranger's residence. he nodded, and i felt a little more creeped out. an awkward excuse (i told him i had a boyfriend waiting for me to cook him dinner. not really true) and a chau later, i was on my way home.
after that whole day spent wandering parks, checking out the art at MALBA and getting hit on by creepers, i was really looking forward to saturday night. jonas had secured his friend's huge house in caballito for the birthday party. this house is amazing. double-tall ceilings, mysterious rooms, winding staircase and a huge open main room open to the stars. i dont know what happens when it rains.
well, jonas prepared a pretty kicking dance mix/mash up of music. we arrived a bit before the party started (at midnight) and turned on the beats. after an hour or so, people began arriving. i am so, so shy in groups of spanish-speaking people. i just hate feeling like a special child who doesn't really know how to talk. but hey, i am in the wrong country for this. so i just have to get over it. i gulped a little bit of courage down and attempted to make conversation. a few minutes later, lucci arrived. lucci is an old friend of jonas, and absolutely the craziest party girl ever! haha, she is definitely the ellen of south america. no joke. the goblins will understand that one. anyways, soon, lucci, her friend paz, and i were dancing in the middle of the room, not caring that no one else was partaking of the music. the three of us bonded, and were running around laughing and spilling stuff and etc. in the middle of this, jorge and miguel arrived. haha we all got pretty silly, and a good time was had by all.
so, during my travels, i have determined that certain people i meet are absolutely international versions of my seattle friends. example: lucci, argentine-ellen. amanda, dutch-steph. miguel, argentine-josh. jorge, argentine-nik. shawn, new york-micah dean (ok, not international here). i guess i just miss every one so much that i look for friends who remind me of the seattlites i love.
words / concepts of the day:
MALBA: museo de arte latinoamericano de buenos aires. one of the coolest art museums around. i got to see frida kahlo and marcos lopez, two of my favorites!
buenos aires parks: amazingness. there is a whole section, north or avenida de santa fe, that is full of parks, botanical gardens, zoos and a japenese garden. you can wander for hours and get lost or just forget where you are. also:
the mystery of the cats. amidst the roses, trees and occasional playground are hundreds of cats. yes, cats. steph wallen, you would be horrified. they all live happily, and no one really knows how they all survive on their own, fat and free. i see little piles of kitty kibbles in the parks though, so i imagine that hundreds of happy, crazy, south american cat ladies distribute food for los gatos every night.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
here and its now
in buenos aires. i have no been here for 12 days, and just as i tell everyone who asks me how long i will be here, i have no idea. about anything.
susie and leana were here for a while. they both arrived on friday night, and leana left early on saturday. susie stayed with me for a few days, which was so fun. we didn't do much other than shopping, walking around parks, and going out to cafes for medialunas. but it was great.
one night, we met up with our dutch friend robin (who stayed in our hostel in mendoza). we went out to dinner at an old restaurant. another night we went to cafe tortoni for a tango show. wow, there is something so porteño about wandering up and down avenida de nueve de julio, smiling at the illuminated obelisco, walking to a tango show. it is late, dinner will be later, drinks will be the latest of all. take your time, this is buenos aires.
it is hot again. yesterday was jonas' birthday, and we got to wander las calles with his sister lara and baby lola. lola was awake and mischievious, making these big funny faces at me. i thought about it. what would it be like to be born into this big half latin, half european city, post-2001 crisis, in a neighborhood like palermo, full of tourists that help support the rehabilitating economy? what will it be like for lola to grow up in a culture that is attempting to remain its own thing but is being influenced by so many people from all over the world? i wonder what the future holds for buenos aires, and for the next generation. will these children really know the stories or juan peron, of the dirty war, of the malvinas, of the economic collapse of 2001? or will all these events be a faded memory of the past. many porteños say, it is time to move on. i can't imagine how forgetting the past will help the future.
words / concepts of the day:
porteño: a resident of buenos aires. porteña, if its a girl. or la alma porteña, which people here say is the soul of the city.
avenida de nueve de julio: one of the widest (and porteños say it is the widest) streets in the world. at 19 lanes wide, it is impossible to cross in one light! the whole area around this is congresso, or downtown. tons of theatres, tango shows, hotels and fancy restaurants that all vie for a view of the obelisk (el obelisco).
history of buenos aires: shortest history of the last 50 years, ever. juan peron, president in the 40s/50s. held very radical beliefs. his wife, eva (evita), was raised to near sainthood when she died at age 33, after spending most of the budget on aid for the lower class. the dirty war, happened in the 70s. the military took over the government and began eliminating anyone who stood in its way. thousands of people who disagreed with the politics simply disappeared. the malvinas, are a set of islands off the very southern coast of argentina. in the 80s, to divert the public's attention on events of the 70s, the military declared war on england, who had a controversial claim on the islands. argentina lost, the subject is still touchy. 2001. the economy finally collapsed, in a way that rivals the american economic collapse of the 30s. literally, almost ever person was moved down a whole class level. an entire population of the lower class has been reduced to garbage collectors.
susie and leana were here for a while. they both arrived on friday night, and leana left early on saturday. susie stayed with me for a few days, which was so fun. we didn't do much other than shopping, walking around parks, and going out to cafes for medialunas. but it was great.
one night, we met up with our dutch friend robin (who stayed in our hostel in mendoza). we went out to dinner at an old restaurant. another night we went to cafe tortoni for a tango show. wow, there is something so porteño about wandering up and down avenida de nueve de julio, smiling at the illuminated obelisco, walking to a tango show. it is late, dinner will be later, drinks will be the latest of all. take your time, this is buenos aires.
it is hot again. yesterday was jonas' birthday, and we got to wander las calles with his sister lara and baby lola. lola was awake and mischievious, making these big funny faces at me. i thought about it. what would it be like to be born into this big half latin, half european city, post-2001 crisis, in a neighborhood like palermo, full of tourists that help support the rehabilitating economy? what will it be like for lola to grow up in a culture that is attempting to remain its own thing but is being influenced by so many people from all over the world? i wonder what the future holds for buenos aires, and for the next generation. will these children really know the stories or juan peron, of the dirty war, of the malvinas, of the economic collapse of 2001? or will all these events be a faded memory of the past. many porteños say, it is time to move on. i can't imagine how forgetting the past will help the future.
words / concepts of the day:
porteño: a resident of buenos aires. porteña, if its a girl. or la alma porteña, which people here say is the soul of the city.
avenida de nueve de julio: one of the widest (and porteños say it is the widest) streets in the world. at 19 lanes wide, it is impossible to cross in one light! the whole area around this is congresso, or downtown. tons of theatres, tango shows, hotels and fancy restaurants that all vie for a view of the obelisk (el obelisco).
history of buenos aires: shortest history of the last 50 years, ever. juan peron, president in the 40s/50s. held very radical beliefs. his wife, eva (evita), was raised to near sainthood when she died at age 33, after spending most of the budget on aid for the lower class. the dirty war, happened in the 70s. the military took over the government and began eliminating anyone who stood in its way. thousands of people who disagreed with the politics simply disappeared. the malvinas, are a set of islands off the very southern coast of argentina. in the 80s, to divert the public's attention on events of the 70s, the military declared war on england, who had a controversial claim on the islands. argentina lost, the subject is still touchy. 2001. the economy finally collapsed, in a way that rivals the american economic collapse of the 30s. literally, almost ever person was moved down a whole class level. an entire population of the lower class has been reduced to garbage collectors.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
some of the best
a few of the more memorable moments of this trip. he.
• leana (looking at susie's cleaned plate): wow, you just plowed through that.
• susie: i wasn't sure if we were getting more food or not.
• susie: pampa just keeps stopping to snack.
.....
• jen: how can you not like card games??? you just aren't normal.
• me (running into the room) asia just dropped trou! asia JUST DROPPED TROU!
.....
• leana (confused, to the waiter): perdon, tienes fondue aqui?
waiter: no.
• me: mommy, why do you do laundry so often? i have enough clean socks!(cries)
.....
• shawn: well, you could "hand wash..."
.....
• amanda: well now i feel like a prostitute.
• inca: (very angry and drunk off pisco) you didn't wait for me.
.....
• brasil: BRASIL BRASIL BRASIL!
.....
• front desk man: YOU MUST PAY!
• ben: caution! caution!
.....
• pancho: (ecstatic) thank you amanda and couchsurfing.com!!!
.....
• amanda: i want big ben! i want big ben's body!
...................................
and who can forget this little incident.
poor lamp post. scarred for life.
the end.
• leana (looking at susie's cleaned plate): wow, you just plowed through that.• susie: i wasn't sure if we were getting more food or not.
• susie: pampa just keeps stopping to snack.• jen: how can you not like card games??? you just aren't normal.
• me (running into the room) asia just dropped trou! asia JUST DROPPED TROU!• leana (confused, to the waiter): perdon, tienes fondue aqui?
waiter: no.
• me: mommy, why do you do laundry so often? i have enough clean socks!(cries)• shawn: well, you could "hand wash..."
• amanda: well now i feel like a prostitute.
• inca: (very angry and drunk off pisco) you didn't wait for me.• brasil: BRASIL BRASIL BRASIL!
• front desk man: YOU MUST PAY!
• ben: caution! caution!• pancho: (ecstatic) thank you amanda and couchsurfing.com!!!
• amanda: i want big ben! i want big ben's body!
and who can forget this little incident.
poor lamp post. scarred for life.
the end.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
tuesday nights in argentina
i feel like i am finally settling into this whole living-in-one-place-and-sleeping-in-until-noon-everyday thing. sort of nice, actually.
yesterday, i went to the national museum of natural sciences (museo argentino de ciencias naturales) with jonas for a while. it was fun wandering around the almost empty museum, looking at dead bugs and dinosaur bones. it was a cold, almost rainy afternoon and sort of the perfect activity for such weather. afterwards, we decided coffee was in order so we scooted over to his friend's work, where we were served cafe and some chocolate cake.
back at the apartment, i suggested we make pasta. a few tomatoes and lots of noodles later, dinner was prepared. two of my roommate's friends, miguel and jorge, stopped by to eat and drink. after a few hours of heineken, things got pretty hilarious! justin timberlake was blared from the speakers and my new argentine friends danced around busting out american pop lyrics like nobody's business. so, so great.
around 2 we decided it was time to go out to the club. yes, it was a tuesday night. and yes, the club we went to was a "local" club... meaning all the locals worked there while tourists danced their little hearts out in the middle of the week. the cover was okay but the drink prices were through the roof! the dance floor was pure electronic, which i got into a bit. what kept the night amusing was watching a very, very, very drunk miguel attempt to stay conscious, doing odd things in the process (he grabbed some girl's ponytail at one point, began hardcore dancing later on, and kept collapsing on my shoulder and slurring things in spanish to me). by about 6, we hauled him home on the bus (literally depositing him in front of his home by way of sort of gently pushing him off the bus at the stop). as soon as i got home, i collapsed on my bed and slept ... until noon, once again.
i am too lazy to think of any concepts for the day. sorry, maybe later.
yesterday, i went to the national museum of natural sciences (museo argentino de ciencias naturales) with jonas for a while. it was fun wandering around the almost empty museum, looking at dead bugs and dinosaur bones. it was a cold, almost rainy afternoon and sort of the perfect activity for such weather. afterwards, we decided coffee was in order so we scooted over to his friend's work, where we were served cafe and some chocolate cake.
back at the apartment, i suggested we make pasta. a few tomatoes and lots of noodles later, dinner was prepared. two of my roommate's friends, miguel and jorge, stopped by to eat and drink. after a few hours of heineken, things got pretty hilarious! justin timberlake was blared from the speakers and my new argentine friends danced around busting out american pop lyrics like nobody's business. so, so great.
around 2 we decided it was time to go out to the club. yes, it was a tuesday night. and yes, the club we went to was a "local" club... meaning all the locals worked there while tourists danced their little hearts out in the middle of the week. the cover was okay but the drink prices were through the roof! the dance floor was pure electronic, which i got into a bit. what kept the night amusing was watching a very, very, very drunk miguel attempt to stay conscious, doing odd things in the process (he grabbed some girl's ponytail at one point, began hardcore dancing later on, and kept collapsing on my shoulder and slurring things in spanish to me). by about 6, we hauled him home on the bus (literally depositing him in front of his home by way of sort of gently pushing him off the bus at the stop). as soon as i got home, i collapsed on my bed and slept ... until noon, once again.
i am too lazy to think of any concepts for the day. sorry, maybe later.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
back in buenos aires
tomorrow will be one month since i began my aimless wanderings throughout south america.
and here i am, back in the big city of buenos aires. i arrived on sunday morning, after a fifteen hour bus ride and after a saturday spent recovering from a ridiculous friday night. ah. but friday night is another story. blah.
i took a taxi from the retiro bus terminal to my new apartment in palermo queens. i was greeted by my new roommate, jonas, who showed me around the place. the apartment is all tall ceilings and windows and balconies and birds chirping. seriously! i have never lived somewhere so nice and i have this weird feeling that i am staying in someone else's house. but, as jonas reminds me, its my apartment, too, for the next few weeks.
(i still meticulously fold the hand towels after use.)
this weird shock of a semi-permanent place of residence still lingers. it took me over 24 hours to finally painstakingly unpack my backpack. i always feel like i need to be ready to get on a bus and leave. i forced myself to hang up photos and line my shoes up nicely. oh, and my room i bigger than any room i have ever had, and its all mine! so weird. my own bed, my own desk, my own TV. so funny to me!
besides the odd feeling of being settled, i have explored the neighborhood a tiny bit. yesterday, i walked 4 blocks down avenida thames (where i live) to the main street of corrientes. i wandered for about 2 kilometers before i got tired and turned into a havanna cafe (sort of the starbucks of argentina) for a ridiculously sugary espresso drink and cookies. afterwards, i went grocery shopping at the supermercado, which was sort of the highlight of my day haha.
last night, jonas and i went to one of his friends' houses for a movie night. this guy has a whole room full of chairs, a giant projector and dozens of movies. so great! after watching "i'm not there" and "control" (two movies about the lives of famous musicians), we realized it was 4 in the morning and sleep was needed.
today, i woke up several hours into the afternoon and after almost burning the kitchen down trying to fry an egg on a gas stove, i am contemplating what to do. museums? maybe. parks? possibly. but actually, right now, i am craving a cup of cafe con leche and a couple medialunas and sitting at some cafe for hours reading jd salinger. i guess i am allowed to do that. its vacation.
words / concepts of the day:
aminovio: hmm, forgot to discuss this concept earlier. amanda told me this one haha. basically, aminovio = amigo con beneficios. get it?
supermercado: supermarket of amazing south american food products. in argentina and chile, basically the same products as in the US. just slightly different. for example, tomato paste comes in boxes, yogurt and milk comes in a non-resealable bag (it seems so counter-intuitive!), and the best thing, por salut, this cream cheese sort of thing (but not) that is amazing on crackers or for making cream sauces. i am obsesses with it. i have two containers of it right now.
south american kitchens: looks like american kitchens, but the stoves are gas stoves. which means you have to turn on a switch on the wall, push in the oven gas nob for the apropriate burner, and light a match by the gas until it goes poof! and a flame appears. it is tricky and i always feel like i am going to set myself on fire. also, the water heater in always in the kitchen. everytime you turn on the hot water the thing goes wooosh and a flame appears in the little heater window. so odd.
and here i am, back in the big city of buenos aires. i arrived on sunday morning, after a fifteen hour bus ride and after a saturday spent recovering from a ridiculous friday night. ah. but friday night is another story. blah.
i took a taxi from the retiro bus terminal to my new apartment in palermo queens. i was greeted by my new roommate, jonas, who showed me around the place. the apartment is all tall ceilings and windows and balconies and birds chirping. seriously! i have never lived somewhere so nice and i have this weird feeling that i am staying in someone else's house. but, as jonas reminds me, its my apartment, too, for the next few weeks.
(i still meticulously fold the hand towels after use.)
this weird shock of a semi-permanent place of residence still lingers. it took me over 24 hours to finally painstakingly unpack my backpack. i always feel like i need to be ready to get on a bus and leave. i forced myself to hang up photos and line my shoes up nicely. oh, and my room i bigger than any room i have ever had, and its all mine! so weird. my own bed, my own desk, my own TV. so funny to me!
besides the odd feeling of being settled, i have explored the neighborhood a tiny bit. yesterday, i walked 4 blocks down avenida thames (where i live) to the main street of corrientes. i wandered for about 2 kilometers before i got tired and turned into a havanna cafe (sort of the starbucks of argentina) for a ridiculously sugary espresso drink and cookies. afterwards, i went grocery shopping at the supermercado, which was sort of the highlight of my day haha.
last night, jonas and i went to one of his friends' houses for a movie night. this guy has a whole room full of chairs, a giant projector and dozens of movies. so great! after watching "i'm not there" and "control" (two movies about the lives of famous musicians), we realized it was 4 in the morning and sleep was needed.
today, i woke up several hours into the afternoon and after almost burning the kitchen down trying to fry an egg on a gas stove, i am contemplating what to do. museums? maybe. parks? possibly. but actually, right now, i am craving a cup of cafe con leche and a couple medialunas and sitting at some cafe for hours reading jd salinger. i guess i am allowed to do that. its vacation.
words / concepts of the day:
aminovio: hmm, forgot to discuss this concept earlier. amanda told me this one haha. basically, aminovio = amigo con beneficios. get it?
supermercado: supermarket of amazing south american food products. in argentina and chile, basically the same products as in the US. just slightly different. for example, tomato paste comes in boxes, yogurt and milk comes in a non-resealable bag (it seems so counter-intuitive!), and the best thing, por salut, this cream cheese sort of thing (but not) that is amazing on crackers or for making cream sauces. i am obsesses with it. i have two containers of it right now.
south american kitchens: looks like american kitchens, but the stoves are gas stoves. which means you have to turn on a switch on the wall, push in the oven gas nob for the apropriate burner, and light a match by the gas until it goes poof! and a flame appears. it is tricky and i always feel like i am going to set myself on fire. also, the water heater in always in the kitchen. everytime you turn on the hot water the thing goes wooosh and a flame appears in the little heater window. so odd.
Friday, April 11, 2008
crossing continents
wow. its been one week since i updated my northern hemisphere friends on events happening in my southern hemisphere life.
one week ago, i was partying in santiago with a bottle of pisco and some good friends. after that whirlwind week of museums, italianos, shopping, hostel adventures and couchsurfing situations, i decided to update my scenery. amanda and i bought tickets to cross the border once again.
monday morning, pancho and i raced to the bus station to meet with amanda. she arrived without a moment to spare, and us two girls said our goodbyes to the city. seven hours and a lot of sleep later, we arrived in mendoza, argentina.
mendoza has been perfect. tree-lined streets, quiet cafes, all the cafe con leche and medialunas i could ever want! its definitely argentina again, but not the craziness of bsas and warmer than bariloche. in mendoza, amanda was finally able to meet up again with her special french friend, ben. the three of us spent monday and tuesday eating pasta, roaming the streets and of course... drinking wine!
(oh, by the way, mendoza is the wine capital of argentina. sort of the napa valley of the continent) monday night amanda, ben and i met up with a friend of ben´s, an argentine chef named pablo. we took a late dinner with tapas and plenty of rose wine at a nearby winery. so amazing!
on wednesday, susie, leana, leana´s boyfriend chris, jen and joel arrived in mendoza. it was so fun to be reunited with the whole group again! i had to update everyone on events that transpired in santiago haha. a lot can happen in ten days, for sure. i moved to their hostel on wednesday morning, after a horrible experience in hostelling international - campo base (tiny gross rooms, one bathroom for everyone, rude staff... oh and dont forget getting woken up at 2 in the morning by your bunkmate having sex. out of control) the new place, la damajuana, is this amazing old mansion converted into a youth hostel. the garden is huge and green with a giant swimming pool in the middle! the backyard also leads to a nice kitchen in the old servants quarters. so great.
the next two days basically consisted of all of us, plus amanda and ben, sitting around the pool in our swimsuits soaking up the sun. or, rather, getting extremely burned. oh well. one day, i did nothing except eat fruit, ice cream and beer while sitting in a pink bikini by the pool! haha. what can i say, its vacation.
by friday, we were ready for a little more activity. susie booked us all on an excursion to see some wineries. not just any wine tour, however; a bicycle powered, 12 kilometer, 6 winery journey! a van came and picked us up, as well as about a dozen other hostel kids, and drove us to the bike rental place out in the country. we got a map and set out. the first stop was a huge old winery museum. we browsed the old barrels and vineyard equipment while sipping merlot. pretty amazing!
a few hours later, several wineries, many glasses of wine, a few chocolates and a random shot of absinthe later, our group was wobbling home on our bikes. we all went back to our respective hostels to rest and relax. susie, leana and chris also had to pack up. they had decided to head to cordoba for a few days before returning to bsas.
speaking of bsas. i found an apartment! months and months ago, i thought i had found a roommate in bsas, in palermo queens. but the whole situation unfortunately did not work out. i kept in touch with the guy, and he randomly emailed me a few days ago asking if i still needed a room. and i do.
so, tomorrow night i return to buenos aires. i have a solid place to stay at least until the end of april. my debit card is in the mail, my phone may be able to get fixed and life might be slightly predictable for a while. or maybe not. ha.
one week ago, i was partying in santiago with a bottle of pisco and some good friends. after that whirlwind week of museums, italianos, shopping, hostel adventures and couchsurfing situations, i decided to update my scenery. amanda and i bought tickets to cross the border once again.
monday morning, pancho and i raced to the bus station to meet with amanda. she arrived without a moment to spare, and us two girls said our goodbyes to the city. seven hours and a lot of sleep later, we arrived in mendoza, argentina.
mendoza has been perfect. tree-lined streets, quiet cafes, all the cafe con leche and medialunas i could ever want! its definitely argentina again, but not the craziness of bsas and warmer than bariloche. in mendoza, amanda was finally able to meet up again with her special french friend, ben. the three of us spent monday and tuesday eating pasta, roaming the streets and of course... drinking wine!
(oh, by the way, mendoza is the wine capital of argentina. sort of the napa valley of the continent) monday night amanda, ben and i met up with a friend of ben´s, an argentine chef named pablo. we took a late dinner with tapas and plenty of rose wine at a nearby winery. so amazing!
on wednesday, susie, leana, leana´s boyfriend chris, jen and joel arrived in mendoza. it was so fun to be reunited with the whole group again! i had to update everyone on events that transpired in santiago haha. a lot can happen in ten days, for sure. i moved to their hostel on wednesday morning, after a horrible experience in hostelling international - campo base (tiny gross rooms, one bathroom for everyone, rude staff... oh and dont forget getting woken up at 2 in the morning by your bunkmate having sex. out of control) the new place, la damajuana, is this amazing old mansion converted into a youth hostel. the garden is huge and green with a giant swimming pool in the middle! the backyard also leads to a nice kitchen in the old servants quarters. so great.
the next two days basically consisted of all of us, plus amanda and ben, sitting around the pool in our swimsuits soaking up the sun. or, rather, getting extremely burned. oh well. one day, i did nothing except eat fruit, ice cream and beer while sitting in a pink bikini by the pool! haha. what can i say, its vacation.
by friday, we were ready for a little more activity. susie booked us all on an excursion to see some wineries. not just any wine tour, however; a bicycle powered, 12 kilometer, 6 winery journey! a van came and picked us up, as well as about a dozen other hostel kids, and drove us to the bike rental place out in the country. we got a map and set out. the first stop was a huge old winery museum. we browsed the old barrels and vineyard equipment while sipping merlot. pretty amazing!
a few hours later, several wineries, many glasses of wine, a few chocolates and a random shot of absinthe later, our group was wobbling home on our bikes. we all went back to our respective hostels to rest and relax. susie, leana and chris also had to pack up. they had decided to head to cordoba for a few days before returning to bsas.
speaking of bsas. i found an apartment! months and months ago, i thought i had found a roommate in bsas, in palermo queens. but the whole situation unfortunately did not work out. i kept in touch with the guy, and he randomly emailed me a few days ago asking if i still needed a room. and i do.
so, tomorrow night i return to buenos aires. i have a solid place to stay at least until the end of april. my debit card is in the mail, my phone may be able to get fixed and life might be slightly predictable for a while. or maybe not. ha.
Friday, April 4, 2008
moment to moment
this is my life.
waking up, wherever i am, figuring out what time i have to check out of the hostel or catch a bus or meet with someone. throwing things in a locker or grabbing all my life pocessions that i carry in a backpack. meeting with the other two of our triumphant trio (amanda and shawn) and dishing out stories of each others´ nights ventures. eating junkie italianos or giant ice cream cones. walking around. museums. malls. parks. more food probably. sleeping in a park laughing about a million inside jokes that have been born in a week´s time.
yesterday, while at a giant shopping mall, amanda and i saw a ticket counter for cross continental bus tickets. we ran over and bought tickets for mendoza, argentina on monday. just like that. no plans beyond 3 or 4 days. spur of the moment decisions. life is good.
not having plans does have a downside. i get back to my hostel, say, at maybe 11 in the morning... after not being there for 24 hours. don´t ask. and the front desk guy demands that i pay up or he wont give me my key. and then of course i hate bailing out of people. i was supposed to go to pichilemu today. and then i wasnt able to check out of my hostel in time. because of not-aforementioned funny events. and it was too late in the day to get a bus. so i jotted a quick email, but still feel bad. ahh i hate letting people down. gah.
tonight: dinner with pancho, drinks with the trio (plus a swedish girl, a pair of identical twin british boys and a funny large black brazilian guy who speaks neither spanish nor english), and quien sabe? who knows, we´ll see!
bravissimo: tana, i tried it. its amazing! basically, only the best ice cream place in chile. not just chocolate and vanilla, but everything from pineapple to aloe vera flavors. seriously good!
pichilemu: a little beach town south of santiago. supposedly the surfing capital of chile. but, i am not sure. i never made it. :(
mendoza: the napa valley of argentina! amanda and i are set to go on monday. i want to take a wine tour, she wants to meet up with her french man haha
waking up, wherever i am, figuring out what time i have to check out of the hostel or catch a bus or meet with someone. throwing things in a locker or grabbing all my life pocessions that i carry in a backpack. meeting with the other two of our triumphant trio (amanda and shawn) and dishing out stories of each others´ nights ventures. eating junkie italianos or giant ice cream cones. walking around. museums. malls. parks. more food probably. sleeping in a park laughing about a million inside jokes that have been born in a week´s time.
yesterday, while at a giant shopping mall, amanda and i saw a ticket counter for cross continental bus tickets. we ran over and bought tickets for mendoza, argentina on monday. just like that. no plans beyond 3 or 4 days. spur of the moment decisions. life is good.
not having plans does have a downside. i get back to my hostel, say, at maybe 11 in the morning... after not being there for 24 hours. don´t ask. and the front desk guy demands that i pay up or he wont give me my key. and then of course i hate bailing out of people. i was supposed to go to pichilemu today. and then i wasnt able to check out of my hostel in time. because of not-aforementioned funny events. and it was too late in the day to get a bus. so i jotted a quick email, but still feel bad. ahh i hate letting people down. gah.
tonight: dinner with pancho, drinks with the trio (plus a swedish girl, a pair of identical twin british boys and a funny large black brazilian guy who speaks neither spanish nor english), and quien sabe? who knows, we´ll see!
bravissimo: tana, i tried it. its amazing! basically, only the best ice cream place in chile. not just chocolate and vanilla, but everything from pineapple to aloe vera flavors. seriously good!
pichilemu: a little beach town south of santiago. supposedly the surfing capital of chile. but, i am not sure. i never made it. :(
mendoza: the napa valley of argentina! amanda and i are set to go on monday. i want to take a wine tour, she wants to meet up with her french man haha
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
the life of a traveler
i have learned something interesting.
there is this whole weird traveler sub-culture. it consists of random connections, locutorios, hostel connoisseurs, cross continental buses and wild "why-the-heck-not" sort of plans.
another part of this world is "temporary best friendship," as i call it. right now, my two best friends in the world consist of individuals i have not known longer than a week. amanda, for example, is from holland and the two of us are like college freshmen girls, attached at the hip, asking each other "where are we going to eat tonight," and borrowing each others' clothes.
shawn is from the US, and the two of us bicker like brother and sister. amanda met him somewhere in cordoba or mendoza, i dont know, and the two have been traveling together ever since. now i am joining the little group, and who knows what is going to happen next.
last night, over pasta at "las vacas gordas" restaurant down the street, amanda shouted, "hey, do you want to go hitchhiking back to buenos aires with shawn and i?"
sounds like a plan. haha. oh what is my life right now. so funny.
words / concepts of the day:
locutorios: a little shop with phones and computers for internet, perfect for travelers and those without cell phones or internet. in most of south america, its ridiculously cheap. $1 usd per hour, at the most.
youth hostels: okay, i am sure you know what a youth hostel is. you pay a little bit to sleep in a dorm bunk bed. but in south america, these hostels go all out to compete for customers. they will have patios, barbeques, laundry rooms, pools and many have a full bar for the kids. a lot of people get addicted to hostel life and end up living in them for weeks or even months.
there is this whole weird traveler sub-culture. it consists of random connections, locutorios, hostel connoisseurs, cross continental buses and wild "why-the-heck-not" sort of plans.
another part of this world is "temporary best friendship," as i call it. right now, my two best friends in the world consist of individuals i have not known longer than a week. amanda, for example, is from holland and the two of us are like college freshmen girls, attached at the hip, asking each other "where are we going to eat tonight," and borrowing each others' clothes.
shawn is from the US, and the two of us bicker like brother and sister. amanda met him somewhere in cordoba or mendoza, i dont know, and the two have been traveling together ever since. now i am joining the little group, and who knows what is going to happen next.
last night, over pasta at "las vacas gordas" restaurant down the street, amanda shouted, "hey, do you want to go hitchhiking back to buenos aires with shawn and i?"
sounds like a plan. haha. oh what is my life right now. so funny.
words / concepts of the day:
locutorios: a little shop with phones and computers for internet, perfect for travelers and those without cell phones or internet. in most of south america, its ridiculously cheap. $1 usd per hour, at the most.
youth hostels: okay, i am sure you know what a youth hostel is. you pay a little bit to sleep in a dorm bunk bed. but in south america, these hostels go all out to compete for customers. they will have patios, barbeques, laundry rooms, pools and many have a full bar for the kids. a lot of people get addicted to hostel life and end up living in them for weeks or even months.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
around the big city
ahh. today was a day full of completo italianos, plazas and some good old fashioned chilean dancing.
i woke up late, after a good night's sleep. i emailed amanda so we could meet up in plaza de armas later that afternoon. since i had run out of chilean pesos on saturday night (that last underground club cost $6000 pesos to get in, like $15 usd!), i had to find a way to change my argentine pesos. armed with a few hundred AR pesos, i braved the financial district to find the best cambio with a decent exchange rate. after a half hour, i walked away with $66,000 CH pesos. feeling rich, i found a little starbucks-esque cafe (they served ridiculously sugary espresso drinks in paper cups) and settled down for some good reading time.
i wandered over to plaza de armas after a bit. realizing i had over 45 minutes to wait for amanda, i took out a notebook and started taking notes on the people i saw. and thus was born the "official lists of weird south american culture." here's a sneak preview at what i have observed so far:
official list of weird t-shirt phrases written in english and worn by south americans:
1. "pure, white, sugar" (seen by susie on a guy in BA)
2. "MANUAL LOVE" (on a wrinkly old, overly tan woman. the grossest t-shirt ever)
3. "Made in the US of A" (on a small, stocky, definitely-not-US-citizen in santiago)
4. "Teenage Playboy" (with a playboy bunny, on an old woman in the customs station)
5. "I am watching you" (a larger girl in santiago)
6. "BUY NOW!" (a stocky chilean in the financial district)
7. "justify my love" (a punk teen in santiago)
8. "myth of egoist" (not sure, just weird)
9. "HERO" (chilean teenage boy)
10. "Japan Force 18" (on a small, chubby boy)
11. "National Pornographic" (seen in the markets of Parque Forestal)
12. "Kiss me!" (on a possibly 11 or 12-year-old girl's shirt)
13. "What is your sister doing tonight?" (seen by Susie, in BA)
to be continued...
note taking continued for half an hour or so (and don't worry, there's also an official "Odd South American fashion" list, including descriptions of the parachute pants). then amanda arrived, with her friend shawn. for some reason, i assumed shawn for from chile, even though his english was perfect and his name was not chilean. and, as i found out two hours later (after explaining to him where i lived in the US and drawing him a freaking map), he was NOT chilean, not latin, but from new york city! he laughed and said that he and amanda had planned it out as a joke. i gave him a lot of crap about tricking me for a bit, but we became friends in the end.
the three of us went shopping in the market near parque forestal, and then explored the actual park. it was gorgeous! climbing to the top of an old, old tower in the park, we could see the whole city at dusk. after the park, we walked around for a bit before finding a place called "la piojera." piojera turned out to be an absolute hole-in-the-wall local joint, as evidenced by the stares we got when entering. the food was amazing, the music was incredible (two guys with an accordion and a guitar serenaded everyone amidst the sounds of chileans shouting "drink drink drink!"), and the terremoto kept everyone dancing to the traditional music. at the peak of it all, an old man stood up and pulled out his fancy handkerchief, inviting his wife to dance. everyone in the pub clapped along and cheered for the couple who, although their walking was a slow shuffle, their feet flew when the music came on.
after a few hours at the pub, we all headed home to sleep. i am feeling a bit sick, but hopefully a good night's sleep will do be well!
words / concepts of the day:
cambio: a money exchange service place. on avenida augustinas, there are about 6 in a row, so you can check for the best rate.
terremoto: a specialty drink here. strong white wine with a huge scoop of plain gelato. its best when stirred around a bunch. the place to get it is la piojera, on bandera and san pablo, near the market.
"me duele el/la ____ :" my _____ hurts. a great phrase to use when your throat (la garganza) hurts and you need medicine, or your stomach (el estómago) is upset. just visit the closest faramcia and explain what hurts. if you don't know the name of the body part that hurts, pull out a huge picture map of the human body and point to a part (as amanda did haha)
i woke up late, after a good night's sleep. i emailed amanda so we could meet up in plaza de armas later that afternoon. since i had run out of chilean pesos on saturday night (that last underground club cost $6000 pesos to get in, like $15 usd!), i had to find a way to change my argentine pesos. armed with a few hundred AR pesos, i braved the financial district to find the best cambio with a decent exchange rate. after a half hour, i walked away with $66,000 CH pesos. feeling rich, i found a little starbucks-esque cafe (they served ridiculously sugary espresso drinks in paper cups) and settled down for some good reading time.
i wandered over to plaza de armas after a bit. realizing i had over 45 minutes to wait for amanda, i took out a notebook and started taking notes on the people i saw. and thus was born the "official lists of weird south american culture." here's a sneak preview at what i have observed so far:
official list of weird t-shirt phrases written in english and worn by south americans:
1. "pure, white, sugar" (seen by susie on a guy in BA)
2. "MANUAL LOVE" (on a wrinkly old, overly tan woman. the grossest t-shirt ever)
3. "Made in the US of A" (on a small, stocky, definitely-not-US-citizen in santiago)
4. "Teenage Playboy" (with a playboy bunny, on an old woman in the customs station)
5. "I am watching you" (a larger girl in santiago)
6. "BUY NOW!" (a stocky chilean in the financial district)
7. "justify my love" (a punk teen in santiago)
8. "myth of egoist" (not sure, just weird)
9. "HERO" (chilean teenage boy)
10. "Japan Force 18" (on a small, chubby boy)
11. "National Pornographic" (seen in the markets of Parque Forestal)
12. "Kiss me!" (on a possibly 11 or 12-year-old girl's shirt)
13. "What is your sister doing tonight?" (seen by Susie, in BA)
to be continued...
note taking continued for half an hour or so (and don't worry, there's also an official "Odd South American fashion" list, including descriptions of the parachute pants). then amanda arrived, with her friend shawn. for some reason, i assumed shawn for from chile, even though his english was perfect and his name was not chilean. and, as i found out two hours later (after explaining to him where i lived in the US and drawing him a freaking map), he was NOT chilean, not latin, but from new york city! he laughed and said that he and amanda had planned it out as a joke. i gave him a lot of crap about tricking me for a bit, but we became friends in the end.
the three of us went shopping in the market near parque forestal, and then explored the actual park. it was gorgeous! climbing to the top of an old, old tower in the park, we could see the whole city at dusk. after the park, we walked around for a bit before finding a place called "la piojera." piojera turned out to be an absolute hole-in-the-wall local joint, as evidenced by the stares we got when entering. the food was amazing, the music was incredible (two guys with an accordion and a guitar serenaded everyone amidst the sounds of chileans shouting "drink drink drink!"), and the terremoto kept everyone dancing to the traditional music. at the peak of it all, an old man stood up and pulled out his fancy handkerchief, inviting his wife to dance. everyone in the pub clapped along and cheered for the couple who, although their walking was a slow shuffle, their feet flew when the music came on.
after a few hours at the pub, we all headed home to sleep. i am feeling a bit sick, but hopefully a good night's sleep will do be well!
words / concepts of the day:
cambio: a money exchange service place. on avenida augustinas, there are about 6 in a row, so you can check for the best rate.
terremoto: a specialty drink here. strong white wine with a huge scoop of plain gelato. its best when stirred around a bunch. the place to get it is la piojera, on bandera and san pablo, near the market.
"me duele el/la ____ :" my _____ hurts. a great phrase to use when your throat (la garganza) hurts and you need medicine, or your stomach (el estómago) is upset. just visit the closest faramcia and explain what hurts. if you don't know the name of the body part that hurts, pull out a huge picture map of the human body and point to a part (as amanda did haha)
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