.jpg)
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Chauisimo BsAs - Te Echo un Gracias
Oye erebody - 3.5 days and counting till I hop on that double decker bus to nowhere, leaving the increasingly humid but increasingly unrepeatable ciudad known as Buenos Aires. I am moving around quickly these next few days getting gifts, eating all the food I won't taste for a long while (choripan - empanadas:pollo/humita - non-saucey pizza - locro - and of course medialunas (small, awesome egg/sugar croissants) and pretty much just aimlessly walking around the city that I have grown to call home.
My feelings right now are mixed as such:
Remorse - There is still so much more of Argentina for me to know, and I am sad to leave all of the people that have made my time here so damn, perfect. Friends I may not see for months, years or a lifetime; unless I of course take a global trip in 2018 and make it to Europe, back to South America and Southeast Asia. For that I am sad to leave, I really have a grasp for this city now and it's nice to have a niche and know where and what you're doing. Plus I've only been working about 18 hours a week for the past 6 weeks, I doubt I'll find that anywhere too soon. And the food and cheap beer. A liter of beer is 4 pesos at the mercado, 1 u$d. Come on.
Excited - I'm bout to embark on a pretty indepth and not too commonly traveled route Northwest through South America, and I'll have one of my good friends from Colorado to accompany me, Brent Thrash (adventurous Texan). We depart on Sunday and move Northwest through Argentina - then cross into Bolivia where we will hit up both lake Titticaca and the Bolivian Amazon in Rurrenburque. Then out of La Paz I'll fly solo to Cartagena, Colombia, then Medellin, then Bogota. Finally on the 19th of December I'll fly to NYC to meet mi hermana then to Chicago for christmas. Lots of traveling, a good 3 weeks to do it, and my entire November salary to make me enjoy it. It will be like nothing I've ever done. The longest trip I've done before this was from Sevilla, Spain = East through France, Italy and Greece. But I have a feeling that western Europe may be a tad different then Bolivian jungle and Colombian mega-cities. Anyway, for this I am truly pumped, and a tid bit nervous cause we have one important train to catch in Bolivia. If we miss it we're on really, really shitty (deserving swear) buses through the unpaved outback of southern Bolivia. Other than that though it's all good, we have enough buffer time to really enjoy the trip.
Relieved - 11 months, thats how long I'll have been here. It was great, it was fun, I learned about 15 things on top of another language, the most important being that if you're happy and patient you can make a living anywhere, but I'm glad to come home too. Where things make sense, I can get free cracked pepper on my sandwich and I have 5 options for a burrito within a 2 mile radius. For this, I am relieved to be returning, in all my self imposed glory, back home.
Hungry - Did someone say burritos.
Okay, there's a lot more I think I want to say but that should pretty much cover the major points. Look above for a really un-in-depth map of the trip I'll be taking or for a dated/picture-full and cool version go to this link.
A Drawn out Peace Out
My feelings right now are mixed as such:
Remorse - There is still so much more of Argentina for me to know, and I am sad to leave all of the people that have made my time here so damn, perfect. Friends I may not see for months, years or a lifetime; unless I of course take a global trip in 2018 and make it to Europe, back to South America and Southeast Asia. For that I am sad to leave, I really have a grasp for this city now and it's nice to have a niche and know where and what you're doing. Plus I've only been working about 18 hours a week for the past 6 weeks, I doubt I'll find that anywhere too soon. And the food and cheap beer. A liter of beer is 4 pesos at the mercado, 1 u$d. Come on.
Excited - I'm bout to embark on a pretty indepth and not too commonly traveled route Northwest through South America, and I'll have one of my good friends from Colorado to accompany me, Brent Thrash (adventurous Texan). We depart on Sunday and move Northwest through Argentina - then cross into Bolivia where we will hit up both lake Titticaca and the Bolivian Amazon in Rurrenburque. Then out of La Paz I'll fly solo to Cartagena, Colombia, then Medellin, then Bogota. Finally on the 19th of December I'll fly to NYC to meet mi hermana then to Chicago for christmas. Lots of traveling, a good 3 weeks to do it, and my entire November salary to make me enjoy it. It will be like nothing I've ever done. The longest trip I've done before this was from Sevilla, Spain = East through France, Italy and Greece. But I have a feeling that western Europe may be a tad different then Bolivian jungle and Colombian mega-cities. Anyway, for this I am truly pumped, and a tid bit nervous cause we have one important train to catch in Bolivia. If we miss it we're on really, really shitty (deserving swear) buses through the unpaved outback of southern Bolivia. Other than that though it's all good, we have enough buffer time to really enjoy the trip.
Relieved - 11 months, thats how long I'll have been here. It was great, it was fun, I learned about 15 things on top of another language, the most important being that if you're happy and patient you can make a living anywhere, but I'm glad to come home too. Where things make sense, I can get free cracked pepper on my sandwich and I have 5 options for a burrito within a 2 mile radius. For this, I am relieved to be returning, in all my self imposed glory, back home.
Hungry - Did someone say burritos.
Okay, there's a lot more I think I want to say but that should pretty much cover the major points. Look above for a really un-in-depth map of the trip I'll be taking or for a dated/picture-full and cool version go to this link.
A Drawn out Peace Out
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Por un rato mas..
Oye Boludos, como se van? I hope all is well with you folks. Those of you residing in the politically shifting country of Estados Unidos, I hope you all made some good decisions. From what I can tell on the various news websites I cite for my daily educatin' on world events it seems that on both federal and state levels the U s of A is in for some major shifts in power. Or it's all a bunch of malarky conjured to make us watch more TV, who knows. All I can say is that the daughter of the creator, and former President of the WWE (a.k.a wwf) is running for a SENATE seat. I know she's intimidating and can speak well but....well actually..I guess that pretty much is all one needs to get a vote right?
Anywho this blog is called Argenventure, not I'mgoingtoRantAbourMyFeelignsventure, so let's get on with it shall we. Though I'm still confused, did that comedian guy ever get elected to represent Minnesota?? (online sarcasm)
3 things of interest have passed since our last sit down. And they break down as such.
1) My buddy Wade ran in the Buenos Aires Marathon on 10-10-10, thats 42 kilometres for all you standard system users. He's a fairly consistent runner so wasn't to difficult for him but he asked me to hop in on the 32nd kilo to give em that last motivation to break through the wall. I don't know if it was my sharply accurate wit, fresh, unsweated attire or simply my naturally slow and unpracticed running pace, but it seemed to work. He finished with a strong time and I got to completely steal glory from those deserving corredores who had been running since 7am that morning. I got to see belly dancers, bolivian marching bands, and about 1000 people cheering me on from the sidelines. Seeing as how I had only been running for about 45 minutes I was really able to put on a show these people didn't expect, what with my energy packed leg muscles and still actively thinking mind. It was great, I wasn't able to technically finish cause I didn't have a number but I was only a half kilo away. And I was all sweaty and wearing running clothes at the end of a marathon so people totally thought I was one of them. Here's a pic, guess who has run 20 miles already...
2)The current President of Argentina is Cristina Kirchner. The famous, and glamourous, left leaning wife of the former president Nestor Kirchner. As of last Wednesday (which happened to be the National Census day here, which is a whole nother story, I think that actually is point #3 I was getting to) he is referred to as the late former president Nestor Kirchner. He died of a heart attack Wednesday morning, though many people believe it was Tuesday but those mysterious folks who always plan these things thought it better to wait until a national day off so the mourning could really come into play to announce his death. So on Wednesday morning, when legally no business could be open, a very polarized figure was announced dead to the very em-pathetical peoples of the Argentine. - A quick note on my reactions and experiences with this interesting situation. I work 2 blocks away from the Plaza de Mayo (the main political meeting place of BA, also the plaza housing the casa rosada (casa rosada=the white house for argentina)) Because of this, on Thursday when I was walking my merry way to educate people on the finer points of an auditorially pleasant english diatribe, I saw a line, and I'm talking one by one, maybe two wide at any point. A line that I assumed was a march waiting to get things moving (marches literally happen twice a week in the downtown so it was no shocker at all, especially considering the circumstances) Then I continued walking towards the casa rosada to pick up my daily newspaper and some sugar steamed mani (peanuts, absolutely delicious, cost only 2 pesos too) when I noticed that this was no march waiting to go, this was a line, a line for waiting, a line that doesn't seem to move and wrapped around the entire plaza. Shocking yes, but again not the craziest thing I've seen happen in the plaza. I then go upstairs to my first class on the fifth floor of citibank, I have a view of the northside of downtown from here, by thor's beard I saw the same damn line wrapping around 2 more blocks of the city, and this was coming from the opposite direction that I came. Meaning it was doing this on both sides of the plaza. I don't know if my description is either clear or delivering the shock I had intended but, in lesser words, there was a long assed line, probably about 5 o 6 thousand people. It was for a viewing of the closed casket of Nestor inside the pink house. I don't think there's anyway everyone could have seen him but it was amazing to see the devotion. But much like anywhere in the world, Nestor was one who taxed the rich and upper middle class and gave to the very poor. So most of my educated, middle class students and people who make enough money to spend it on tequila at bars in Palermo on the weekends, really don't give a flying fiddle about Nestor. It's funny to see the insane devotion some of these people had for him and the downright passivity others did. It made me think if Michelle O. died and what the reaction in the states would be. Other than the obvious half year dedication of Vogue covers to "The First Lady's Outfits and What they meant" I imagine there would be a great outpouring of support for her family. Same thing is happening here.
Dang, sorry about the tirade there (thats right; fit in tirade and diatribe in the same post) but I thought you educated, lovely people might find that interesting because I didn't see one note or one link on time.com or cnn.com saying anything about Nester diciendo chau (saying goodbye)
3)There was a national census here. I can officially say I lived in Argentina because they are officially marking it down.
Phew. Allright. I have four weeks left here before I make an epic journey north to meet the fam in Chicago for christmas. I'm going to make a cool interactive map thingy that one can access here so you can track me. Or, which is what I imagine will happen, my mom will use this tool to confirm I haven't been kidnapped by any FARC agents in the south Colombian jungle and held for ransom only until I befriend the rebels and begin an online social marketing campaign to spread their message.
I hope you guys are well and if I don't see you first have a happy thanksgiving. Eat an extra forkfull of turkey covered with mashed potatoes covered with stuffing covered with gravy covered with buttered biscuit pieces. covered with love.
chau
Por un rato mas = For only a little longer
Anywho this blog is called Argenventure, not I'mgoingtoRantAbourMyFeelignsventure, so let's get on with it shall we. Though I'm still confused, did that comedian guy ever get elected to represent Minnesota?? (online sarcasm)
3 things of interest have passed since our last sit down. And they break down as such.
1) My buddy Wade ran in the Buenos Aires Marathon on 10-10-10, thats 42 kilometres for all you standard system users. He's a fairly consistent runner so wasn't to difficult for him but he asked me to hop in on the 32nd kilo to give em that last motivation to break through the wall. I don't know if it was my sharply accurate wit, fresh, unsweated attire or simply my naturally slow and unpracticed running pace, but it seemed to work. He finished with a strong time and I got to completely steal glory from those deserving corredores who had been running since 7am that morning. I got to see belly dancers, bolivian marching bands, and about 1000 people cheering me on from the sidelines. Seeing as how I had only been running for about 45 minutes I was really able to put on a show these people didn't expect, what with my energy packed leg muscles and still actively thinking mind. It was great, I wasn't able to technically finish cause I didn't have a number but I was only a half kilo away. And I was all sweaty and wearing running clothes at the end of a marathon so people totally thought I was one of them. Here's a pic, guess who has run 20 miles already...
2)The current President of Argentina is Cristina Kirchner. The famous, and glamourous, left leaning wife of the former president Nestor Kirchner. As of last Wednesday (which happened to be the National Census day here, which is a whole nother story, I think that actually is point #3 I was getting to) he is referred to as the late former president Nestor Kirchner. He died of a heart attack Wednesday morning, though many people believe it was Tuesday but those mysterious folks who always plan these things thought it better to wait until a national day off so the mourning could really come into play to announce his death. So on Wednesday morning, when legally no business could be open, a very polarized figure was announced dead to the very em-pathetical peoples of the Argentine. - A quick note on my reactions and experiences with this interesting situation. I work 2 blocks away from the Plaza de Mayo (the main political meeting place of BA, also the plaza housing the casa rosada (casa rosada=the white house for argentina)) Because of this, on Thursday when I was walking my merry way to educate people on the finer points of an auditorially pleasant english diatribe, I saw a line, and I'm talking one by one, maybe two wide at any point. A line that I assumed was a march waiting to get things moving (marches literally happen twice a week in the downtown so it was no shocker at all, especially considering the circumstances) Then I continued walking towards the casa rosada to pick up my daily newspaper and some sugar steamed mani (peanuts, absolutely delicious, cost only 2 pesos too) when I noticed that this was no march waiting to go, this was a line, a line for waiting, a line that doesn't seem to move and wrapped around the entire plaza. Shocking yes, but again not the craziest thing I've seen happen in the plaza. I then go upstairs to my first class on the fifth floor of citibank, I have a view of the northside of downtown from here, by thor's beard I saw the same damn line wrapping around 2 more blocks of the city, and this was coming from the opposite direction that I came. Meaning it was doing this on both sides of the plaza. I don't know if my description is either clear or delivering the shock I had intended but, in lesser words, there was a long assed line, probably about 5 o 6 thousand people. It was for a viewing of the closed casket of Nestor inside the pink house. I don't think there's anyway everyone could have seen him but it was amazing to see the devotion. But much like anywhere in the world, Nestor was one who taxed the rich and upper middle class and gave to the very poor. So most of my educated, middle class students and people who make enough money to spend it on tequila at bars in Palermo on the weekends, really don't give a flying fiddle about Nestor. It's funny to see the insane devotion some of these people had for him and the downright passivity others did. It made me think if Michelle O. died and what the reaction in the states would be. Other than the obvious half year dedication of Vogue covers to "The First Lady's Outfits and What they meant" I imagine there would be a great outpouring of support for her family. Same thing is happening here.
Dang, sorry about the tirade there (thats right; fit in tirade and diatribe in the same post) but I thought you educated, lovely people might find that interesting because I didn't see one note or one link on time.com or cnn.com saying anything about Nester diciendo chau (saying goodbye)
3)There was a national census here. I can officially say I lived in Argentina because they are officially marking it down.
Phew. Allright. I have four weeks left here before I make an epic journey north to meet the fam in Chicago for christmas. I'm going to make a cool interactive map thingy that one can access here so you can track me. Or, which is what I imagine will happen, my mom will use this tool to confirm I haven't been kidnapped by any FARC agents in the south Colombian jungle and held for ransom only until I befriend the rebels and begin an online social marketing campaign to spread their message.
I hope you guys are well and if I don't see you first have a happy thanksgiving. Eat an extra forkfull of turkey covered with mashed potatoes covered with stuffing covered with gravy covered with buttered biscuit pieces. covered with love.
chau
Por un rato mas = For only a little longer
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)