Sorry.

I don't edit my posts......and I don't really plan to :-D

The Dopeness

Sorry but I can't remember what has gone on since I wrote last, but I really want to tell you guys about last night. People have been talking about this drum circle, La Bomba de Tiempo, for a while now, and I finally got to go. 

Though the show does not start until 8, we got there around 6:15 to buy 15 peso (around US$4) ticket. We pulled up to the venue, an old empty warehouse, and the streets were lined with hundreds of hippies, locals, tourists, and just general party-goers. Everyone was drinking and dancing in the streets while waiting in line for tickets, and thought the venue was enormous the show sold out!

We got in and it was just a stage full of amazing percussionists going crazy. The crowd was massive and everyone was just dancing their petunias off. What a blast!

We made a plan to go to Punta Del Este, Uruguay this weekend. I'm pretty excited to lay on a beautiful beach.

I'll keep you posted!

M

MMM MMM Good

Sorry I haven't been posting very often. I feel like the time I spend on my computer is such a waste. Anyway, I'll try to remember what went on this week.

Thursday evening I went to a bar called Los Cardones (I think). It is around the corner from our residence, and it is jam packed with locals. The bar actually rents out guitars for free, so the place has an awesome Argentinean vibe. Then we went to the hip-hop party at a club called Lost. The music was awesome, the place was great, but it was 45,000 degrees in there! I could hardly drink enough water to make up for what I was dancing off!! Friday I woke up and went to the meeting for kids that want to volunteer. I still haven't been placed with an organization, but I'm hoping for one called Crecer Con Amor or something like that. I'll let ya know when I find out. 

Friday night we went to a bar called Milion. It actually used to be the mansion of one of the aristocrats, but when yellow fever hit the southern part of the city, the family fled. It was REALLY cool and it just made me imagine what our house would be like as a bar :-) 

Saturday we woke up and wandered around the city. We ended up at the house (now a museum) of the late, great Carlos Gardel. He is the man we can thank for the evolution of tango from a dance to a song, and the locals consider him their Frank Sinatra. Seeing his house and all of the artifacts was really interesting, and for only 1 peso! As we turned the corner we saw a street packed with kids playing soccer, and I truly felt like I was off the tourist track for the first time....until they started playing "kick the ball at the gringas"

Some More Fun Facts:

• They do not eat spicy food here. I'm cravin some flava! However, when the Italians settled here they STRONGLY impacted the cuisine, so everything is infused with a bit of Italian.
• Though there are sometimes lanes on the streets, drivers do not follow them. Also, most intersections do not have stop signs (it's pretty interesting to watch). Also, at the start of 2009 they just developed a DUI policy. Also, pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way here.
• There is no law that forces people to clean up after their dogs. It's gross.
• Carnaval is not really celebrated in Buenos Aires (don't worry, we haven't gone without a party).

Please post questions and comments! I don't really know what you guys would like to hear!

I love you all,

M

Damn.

So... school started. That sucks. I have class Monday-Thursday and at least 2 hours of homework every night. I am drowning in this Spanish class, because they try to teach us by having us guess what the crap they're saying. So Spanish class is completely frustrating.

Tango & Culture class is awesome though. We will be learning the history of the dance and music and I am really excited about it. Music of Latin America is a ridiculous class thus far. The teacher is a scatter brain and didn't even remember to order our books. Also, we spent the whole class tapping on our legs and desks and what not, just makin some beats. If it weren't for Spanish class this would all be going as planned!

I'll write again soon chicos....

You're Rrrreally Gonna Love This

Hola!

Last night we went to an awesome reggae show. Well, it was funky reggae melted with rock and obviously some latin flavor. The band was called Las Umbanda and I highly recommend you look into them.

Today, since everything is closed on Sunday, we went to this antique market in San Telmo. Suddenly, after drinking fresh squeezed juices (they offer them almost everywhere!) we heard a big band of drummers marching down the road, followed by 20 or so female dancers. So cool! As we followed the band we found a long strip of some sort of hippie market that we hadn't expected. Each vendor was working on their crafts as they were trying to sell them. It was super cool.

Anyway, classes start tomorrow so I've got to go shower, chill, eat, and get organized before I hit the hay at a time that is early enough to wake up for class in the morning.

Peace&Love,

Meesh 

Week 1

Hello friends, family, and those that accidentally Googled words that brought them here!

Life in Buenos Aires is already wonderful. My best friend Jesse and I live together in a residence for international students called Master in the part of town called Palermo Soho (much like in New York) and its in the part of the city called Palermo Viejo. Our room is tiny and has no air conditioning, but we absolutely love it. Every day we meet new students from around the globe, and practice our charades skills. I don't speak a lick of Spanish, and that is probing quite difficult. Though portenos (people of the port--that's what they call people from Buenos Aires) are very sweet, and apparently English is the second language here, I fail to communicate with pretty much every porteno I meet. That part is getting quite lonely.

Yesterday we went to a town called Tigre, just an hour or so north of BA. We thought we were going to a lovely beach, and hen we got there we found that both the pool and the river were doo-doo brown. Ahh the benefits of being a functioning port! Tigre was fun though, and I got that tan I've been craving since we left Puerto Vallarta only a few weeks ago.

A few days ago it was very rainy, so we took a bus tour of the city. I learned all about the history of BA and what brought it to its current state. After driving through the shanty-towns in La Boca, they showed us a picture of an area in BA and asked us to guess what year it was taken. Most of us guessed early to mid 1800's because BA now looks so modern, but we found out that it was 1997!! This led us right into a discussion of the corruption in the local government, and how it has affected the development of the city. For example- there is an 8 block long train here, with only one car going in each direction, that cost the government US$ 22 Million. Who do you think got all that money??!!?!? One clue: the extremely wealthy aristocracy in BA also own most of the construction (steel, lumber, etc.) and real estate companies!

Other fun facts:

• Graffiti here is art. By far the coolest graffiti I've ever seen.
• Portenos eat dinner at 11, go out at 2, and go to sleep at 7am. We're really suffering over here!
• Though Buenos Aires is located on the water, the closest (actually nice) beach is 4 hours away!
• There is a specific word for horse shit in Argentinean Spanish
• The meat here is as amazing as they say-- but not nearly as cheap.

I love you all and miss you much!!

Kisses