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lavidaatravezdeunavion · 5 years

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Week 3

June 30

We had to be up and ready to go at 7:40am because today we were going to be driving to the Jesuit Missionaries about 3 hours away. Before the missionaries, we went to an amethyst mine. It was cool to hear about it and they said that they don't export the gems so the only way to get it is by buying directly. The gems were breathtaking!

After another two hour drive we finally arrived at the San Ignacio's missionaries and ate at the comedor right in front. I got a pollo milanesa and a salad. I crushed the salad but the pollo was average so I didn't finish it.

After lunch we toured the missionary. Our tour guide explained to us that these missionaries were sent to spread the word of God to the Guarani People. They had built multiple communities in the surrounding area including brazil and paraguay. Later they were taken out and some of the guarani people went back to living in the jungle. San Ignacio was abandoned and destroyed, so the restoration is only partial. It was cool to be able to walk through their common spaces and know that a couple hundred years ago there were indigenous people walking on the same grounds.

The tour finished and we loaded up on the bus for the three hour ride back home. We ate dinner at the hotel and I got a pumpkin soup as a starter and let me tell you I was a little on edge because I’ve never had pumpkin soup but it was sooooo delicious. Since it was a starter they only gave me a little but I would’ve been happy eating a whole bowl of it, 9/10. For my main course I got the fish of the day which was “pacu” with a side of mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes didn’t disappoint but the fish could’ve been better. Not my cup of tea. And for dessert I got a flan.

After dinner we all went to bed since we had to get up even earlier to head to the waterfalls.

July 1

We left the hotel at about 7:30am and headed to the waterfalls that was only 30min from our hotel. We were trying to get on the first train up to the waterfalls so that it wouldn’t be as crowded on the lookout. It was perfect timing because as we wrapped up taking all of our pictures a crowd of people were walking up. If you are able to get on the first or second train in Iguazú falls it honestly will make taking pictures a lot easier.

After we saw “la garganta del diablo” we went to the little store they had and I got an empanadas de espinaca y queso (spinach and cheese). When I paid for it the guy told me to be careful with the animals. But I realized that the birds here are VERY vicious. I stayed inside to eat my empanada but my professor went out to drink her coffee and eat her empanada and got attacked by some birds! This is why they have cages specifically made for people to eat in LOL.

We did another trail to see the falls from a different angle and it was just mind blowing.

After the trails we had little time for lunch. I didn’t want to eat too much because we were going to be taking a boat tour right after. From one of the comedores I got some chicken and rice. While on this trip there are two things that I really miss: rice and beans. They have rice here but they usually eat potatoes and beans are not very popular here so my Salvadoran blood has been a little sad.

Anyway we got on the boat and I definitely recommend doing it if you are able. They give you a waterproof bag to put your stuff in and I also recommend taking your shoes off and putting them in the bag. I was also wearing a poncho which helped protect me, but regardless you will get wet. They take you really close to the falls and you can take some pictures in front but then they tell you to put your phones away because they take you sooooooo close to the falls and get soaked!!

Once the ride was over we got back on our tour bus and headed back to the hotel.

For dinner, we ate at the hotel and I got the pumpkin soup, salad and the chicken milanesa with a side of mashed potatoes. Pretty good meal, favorite of course was the soup.

After dinner some friends and I went to the store to get something to drink. I got a white boxed wine that was only 55 pesos! (~$1.30). If you were wondering, no I did not finish it.

July 2

We were able to sleep this morning till about 9am since we had to leave the hotel at 10am. We got on the plane and headed back to Buenos Aires.

After we got off the plane and back to the resi (which I sort of missed) we dropped off laundry and got a little snack.

Later that night we went to “Caracas bar” to watch the Brazil vs Argentina game. I got this drunk called guarapanita which was rum and fruit juice. I also got some tostones de carne which really hit. The bar was a really cool and had a big screen to watch the game on but unfortunately the energy in the bar was really off. If you don’t know Argentina lost and it was really sad :(.

July 3

I was so excited to wake up today because my sister was going to be coming to Buenos Aires! I got up at around 10:30 and went to brunch with some girls at this cafe called adobo. We ended up walking but then couldn’t find it and then google maps said it was twenty min away so we got a taxi but what we didn’t realize that there were two locations #whoops. Anyway the food was bomb. The bagel sandwich just hit differently and Nutella and banana French toast was to die for!

After breakfast I went back to the resi and picked my things for our trip to Uruguay later that evening. I picked up my laundry and waited for my sister to arrive. Once my sister got there we went to exchange some money. I thought that Uruguay was going to be cheaper than Argentina for some reason but I was wrong. The exchange rate right now is about .55 Uruguayan peso for 1 Argentine peso.

We went to a cafe near Plaza Serrano called “La Panera Rosa” and I got a Chicken Rigatti Pasta. It was honestly one of the best meals ive had. It really had a lot of sauce and contrary to what Future says you can really never have too much sauce.

After lunch we got in a taxi and headed to the port and got on a Buquebus. Which is a ferry and then a charter bus to Montevideo,Uruguay.

We checked into our hostel and then I messaged a friend I had met back in 2016 through Amigos de las Americas a nonprofit organization that I volunteered for. When my friend said he'd love to meet up I was ecstatic! We went to a random cafe near by and got a Chivito, which is a typical Uruguayan sandwhich and of course some wine.

After my friend Miqueas gave us a little tour of the city and we headed to a bar to get a night cap.

July 4

Happy fourth of July!!

This morning we got up and checked out of our hostel since we would be traveling to Colonia later. We walked to a restaurant to get some “breakfast” even though it was 11:30 am. My sister and I shared a milanesa that came with two fried eggs and some fries and potato salad. No need to mention the restaurants' name there are probably better ones out there.

After lunch, we headed to Montevideo Shopping because my friend works around there so he said he would meet us up after he got out. Sooo in the meantime, we got to walk around and window shop.

Once my friend got out of work my friend took us to the coast to get a good view and he knew I had a blog so he wanted to make sure I got good pictures! ( Gracias Miqueas!!! <3)

After the photo session, we headed to the bus terminal and got our tickets for the bus ride to Colonia. We decided to get a quick bite to eat in the terminal to this restaurant called “La Mostaza”. My sister and I shared Ravioli, which was pretty bomb. The filling for the ravioli was like spinach and it was different but definitely tasty.

Once we finished we headed back to the hostel to pick up our luggage and then got a taxi back to the terminal and then got on the bus for Colonia. Once we arrived to Colonia I was a bit nervous because I did not see too many taxis but luckily once we walked outside there was a stand and then headed to our hostel and went to bed.

July 5

Today we got to sleep in again and then got ready to go get some breakfast. We went to this cute coffee shop called “Colonia Sandwich and coffee shop”. I got a roast beef sandwich and some tea. The place was really cute and since its winter time here they had blankets for everyone who sat outside which definitely helped.

There were a bunch of birds surrounding us it was a little scary but more cute lol.

After lunch we just walked around the town which is really small so it wasn’t too long. We saw a lighthouse and some cool views on the coast.

Later we did some more walking and found the drawbridge that we couldn’t find earlier. We also gained a new friend along the way lol.

We decided to get a little snack to hold us over so we could try and eat dinner at a “normal” time. (Dinner in Argentina and Uruguay is usually eaten around 9 or 10pm so its been something difficult to adjust too) We walked into this restaurant that was right in the center, I wish I could tell you the name but the sign outside literally just said “Restaurant”. Anyway my sister and I shared a Rice with seafood dish and some wine. I loveeeee seafood so this was a perfect combination for me.

After we decided to walk and get some ice cream at Freddo which is a pretty popular chain here. We got a Dulce de Leche cone.

Much later we went to go get some dinner at a pizza place called “Napo” it was really delicious. You could even see them making your pizza. My sister noticed that the guy making the pizza had a hat on and said that's probably a health code violation but im still here so I guess it's not that big of an issue. My sister and I got a salad and a pepperoni pizza and some red wine. (forgot to take a picture of the pizza sorry!)

After we headed back to the hostel and went to bed.

July 6

Today we woke up and checked out of our hostel and then headed to go get some breakfast. We went to this cute cafe called “Picnic”. I got an orange juice and a caprese empanada and then my sister and I shared a donut which was nothing like ive ever had before 10/10.

Since we had basically seen all the important landmarks we walked around and went window shopping. After we decided to go do a wine tasting at a place called “Buen Suspiro”. We had tried to go there the night before but it was closed. We got some charcuterie and tasted four different wines: Rose, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Tempranillo. My favorite was the Tempranillo and a close second was the Sauvignon blanc.

After the taste testing, we went back to collect our belongings and headed to the port to get on the ferry back to Buenos Aires.

Once we got back I helped my sister check into her hostel and then headed back to our resi to work on this blog because it was long overdue!

After I finally caught up we went to dinner at “La Robla”. I got myself a Milanesa with a salad and my sister got a Steak with some mashed potatoes and we shared half a liter of sangria. I didn’t know sangria is literally just wine and fruits lol, the more you know.

For dessert we got a banana split!

After dinner, we walked my sister home and then went to bed.

This week we’ve done a lot of traveling so im excited to be back in BA!

Hasta luego,

T.L.

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lavidaatravezdeunavion · 5 years

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Week 2

June 22

We took Saturday pretty easy since we were out pretty late on Friday. We went out to lunch at a cute little cafe called “Casa muamor,” I got a pasta and pesto dish which was alright id give it a 7/10 the sauce to pasta ratio was kind of off and the sauce was really oily. I also ordered an orange juice which like all the other places we have been was delicious. After lunch I went back to the residencia and just hung out with my roommate and some of the guys from here. That was pretty much all we did on Saturday nothing too exciting.

June 23

We woke up to go get brunch and we went to “El Galeon,” the restaurant that's right around here. I got a “Pollo Completo,” sandwich which was huge and it also came with a side of fries. Besides the portion being huge and not being able to finish it was delectable and the restaurant has redeemed itself from that subpar salad I got from there the previous time. I also ordered an orange juice (what's new).

After lunch, some of us went to San Telmo to go to their version of a flea market with a bunch of artisanal things. The Market goes for about five blocks and we went around 2:30 and let me tell you it was PACKED. It was really cool to see all the things people had, my one gift that i want to get for myself is something leather whether that be a jacket or a purse since leather is something Argentina is known for. The only thing that one should be very careful to watch out for pickpockets since there are so many people and usually you can't be distracted looking at cute stuff, one thing I did was make sure my cross body was over my body then i put my jacket over so that my cross body wasn't really exposed.

After walking down the whole market it took us about two hours and then we decided to head back to the residencia. I took a mini nap and then got ready for dinner with our other professor. We all went to this restaurant called “calden del soho.” It was really nice but the prices were pretty expensive (thank god this was one of our program meals hehehe), I got a flank piece of pork. It was actually funny because i had no idea what piece of meat to order and my friend ashlyn who is now a vegetarian was helping me pick lol the irony. Any way when my plate came out my mouth was droooooling, it smelled so good and let me tell you the moment i put that first piece in my mouth i was in heaven.

I also got some of our professors salad which was just a normal “ensalada completa,” we also got some wine to accompany our dinner. I'm not the most knowledgeable on wine but i know i do like red wine. The bottle we got was “ Saint Felicien Malbec,” I had three glasses so I guess you could say I liked it.

For dessert I got a “Flan,” for those that don't know it's basically a custard with caramel. I feel like you can easily mess up flan but thankfully it was made to perfection. We were also celebrating our friends Tyler’s birthday! So happy birthday again tyler! After dinner we went home and got into bed since we had school the next morning.

June 24

Today we had school and I feel no matter how much sleep one gets mondays will always be difficult. Thankfully we only had class till 1:30pm. After class, some of us went to “Che Taco” a place right off of the “Independencia” stop on the blue line. I got some tacos de carne, let me tell you I didn't think I was gonna be satisfied because mexican food in Argentina some people would question it. I was pleasantly surprised! We also got some guac & chips and they were finger licking good, i also got a Jugo de Jamaica (hibiscus) and it was too good to be true.

After lunch we went back to the residencia and I took a little nap (no surprise there) and then got myself ready for dinner. We went to a restaurant in Palermo called “Moriela,” I had the absolute pleasure of seeing my longtime friend Becca and she came with us. We shared a margarita pizza and a bottle of red wine (not sure what kind but it was great).

After dinner some of us went to get some drinks to continue celebrating our friend's birthday. We went to Ragnar the bar we had previously went too, we stayed for about an hour or two and then went on home since we had class the next day.

(my friend Juan says he loves the rain... lol)

June 25

Today after school we went to go get Empanadas from a place down the street. I got one cheese and onion, one chicken and one steak. My favorite one was surprisingly the cheese and onion one.

on the way home we had a mini photo shoot.

And then just before we got home I had to stop by a grocery store to look for an item targeted to kids and see what the nutrition labels looked liked and if they were easy to find. On top of this we had to see what the regulations were compared to the ones in argentina. It was interesting because you see how much power there is in something so small. The labels were so small and kind of hard to find mean while here in the usa everyone knows where they will be placed and legible.

When we finally made it home people were gathering so that we could cut into the cake for tylers birthday! We didn't have plates so people were kinda just eating it out of the cartoon it was a cute bonding moment :’).

For dinner we went to a restaurant here in palermos “EL pinguino de palermo”. I got a milanesa completa, and a side of puree de papa, and wait for it...and to drink i got orange juice. It was a 7.45/10. I've had better milanesa to be honest but it also wasn't the worst ive had.

After dinner we just chilled and then I went to bed.

June 26

Honestly, the best thing to see when you are walking to school at 8:40 am in like forty-degree weather is a dog walker with so many cute dogs. He was really doing the damn thing. He is brave because although these dogs and a lot of the dogs they are well trained but i still wonder if something just set them off and they all go running in one direction he is flyiiiiiiin.

After seeing the dogs before class you just know after class is going to be great. Our other professor who is also on this trip took us to an empanada place and i got 2 cebolla y queso, a carne one and a Pikachu one. Cebolla and queso one had just a bit too much cheese for my liking. The carne one was like a 7.4/10 i feel like it was just good, nothing too crazy.

Also a little tangent about argentine napkins... like what's up. You can't really call these things napkins i think it's deceiving.

Anywaysss after lunch we got back on the subte and got off at plaza italia which is like two blocks from our resi, and walked to the Eva Peron Museum. The only thing to say is *Mind Blown*. If you like history stuff and museums then I highly recommend. She was so impactful on the Argentine history and it's insane how she started out as an actress and went to creating programs to uplift women and children is great. We can each have our own opinions on Peronismo but if this woman had people grieving for 15 days you have to agree that she did something.

For dinner I went to this pay by the weight place and it was great. I got some noodles, fried rice, orange chicken and lettuce & cucumber and put some lime juice and salt over it.

June 27

After school rachel and i went to the travel agency to try to book our trip we took the subte like three different times cause of GPS lol. But on the way we got some McDonalds and i got a “cajita feliz” (happy meal) and it was so cute. The yogurt it came with was so small and it was just great. I also got a toy :) ! Anyway we also stumbled on a cute boutique where rachel got a cute shirt and leather skirt. The owner also gave me some tips for my upcoming vacation with my mom and dad to patagonia at the end of the program. We went walking a couple blocks to the travel agency but they weren’t that much help and it was just no point in going but since we got micky d’s and advice it wasn't that bad.

Here is some candy i got it's their version of laffy taffy but much softer, it's good!

Our friends from the resi took us to this really cute garden we saw some ducks that got a little too close for comfort and they had these statues all over the park so it was really cool.

For dinner we went to this burger place in Palermo “Burger Joint” i got “la Jamaica”. I'm not the biggest fan of burgers but it was so fricken good! It had bacon on it cheese lettuce and honey mustard and more. I got it with a side of fries and pesto-mayo. I was so happy with this meal and i was so mad I had to tap out it's a really big portion i think i definitely would have shared but it just tasted so good.

June 28

After school Rachel and I got a tostada (bread with ham and cheese ) from the cafe right by our resi, “Banova” (okay it's actually an ice cream store but i didn't know that because ive never seen anyone get ice cream from there lol)

We later went to cronico a bar in plaza serrano to watch the argentina - venezuela game (sorry bella lol). I don't know why i got just a salad but it wasn't even all that good. Again for my liking it had a bit too much cheese which I think was provolone so it was just a bit odd for me. I would give it a 7/10.

After the game, my friends and I walked to the bakery our resi and got some pastries. They were delicious. We also played some uno and lets just say it got pretty competitive.

After this I went straight to bed and got excited for our trip to Puerto Iguazu!

June 29

I had to get up at 6am because I hadn't packed for our trip and we had to be out the door by 7am. I somehow packed and got ready without being fully awake. We all piled into a bus and headed for the local airport (AEP). Let me tell you I was soooo excited to know that we'd be going to somewhere semi warm for the weekend. I was even able to pull out my bathing suit for a little but of tanning.

We got to the airport and got checked in and were ready to be on our plane around 8:30 and when we got to the airport we landed at about 10:30.

Once we landed we headed to our hotel St. George. We tried to check in but the rooms wouldn't be ready by 2pm so some of us went to a pay by the weight place by the hotel i got a piece of fish milanesa, mashed potatoes, gnocchi (i now know this is not for me), some yuca and broccoli. It was good not sure really how to describe it but you wouldn't be missing out if you didn't eat there...

After we ate we walked on the main road and stopped to get some ice cream. This is really sweet but if you ever had Mogul candies it tastes just like it.

I was able to sit by the pool and was in love with the warmth.

After we showered we walked to el hito de las 3 fronteras where argentina meets paraguay and brazil. I couldn't believe my eyes. I was so glad we also caught sunset because it just looked beautiful.

I was starting to get hungry and knew it was going to be at least another 30 min until we got back to the hotel because we went walking, so i got some popcorn and if you know my grandma or me you know we love salt. This popcorn was heaven.

So we still had another hour before dinner so we decided to stop by this mexican restaurant called “Tacopado”. My friend Blue and I split a taco combo that came with one carne taco, one pollo taco, nachos and papas aztecas that had chimichurri and mayanose on it. Pretty delish. I was pretty satisfied for mexican food in argentina (that was prepared by argentinians).

After our “appetizers” we still had dinner at the hotel. I was not too hungry so i got a caesar salad. Eh it was good besides those four huge pieces of cheese on top. Rachel and I shared a brownie and ice cream with caramel. I loved the top of the brownie because it was a pool of caramel and that's the only part I really ate lol.

After this I went to bed because we had a long day ahead of us.

I know this post is a week late but I’ve been doing a lot of traveling so I did not have my laptop with me. Hope you enjoyed the post!

Con amor,

T.L.

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lavidaatravezdeunavion · 5 years

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Week One

June 15/16

The long and grueling travel is finally over; I’m in Buenos Aires!! Let me mention that my flight from MIA to EZE was delayed an hour but coincidentally, my roommate and another friend were also in MIA because their flight was also delayed...five hours. They had been there since 6pm so i couldn't really complain too much about my delay but I got on the next available flight and was delighted to get the aisle seat. I settled in with my free pillow and blanket, I browsed the free inflight entertainment and watched Captain Marvel (it was as tony the tiger would say “There GRRRRRRReat!”). I fell asleep soon after dinner was served around 2am and thankfully was able to sleep for about five hours, but that last hour and a half was full of turbulence.

When we finally landed, I was a little sad since it was rainy and dark outside. On top of that, there was a country wide black out (our taxi driver said that the dam that generates the power for Argentina was broken! He said it might have been an accident but he wouldn't doubt that someone might have done something to it on purpose...) We were in the taxi for about 40 mins; I was too tired to keep my eyes open and had fallen asleep! As we pull up to the residence, the taxi driver yells “levantase mija ya llegamos.” I got into the room and wanted to take a shower immediately; I felt like after traveling for 12+ hours you just feel so nasty. Of course I hopped into the shower using my phone flashlight to make sure I didn’t slip, but to be fair our shower is like 2ft by 2ft so there really is no room to fall. I got out the shower and then took a four hour nap, and thankfully when I woke up the power was back on.

I got ready to go to dinner with our group at a restaurant called “Rietti” (Jorge Luis Borges 2205) it was a cute cafe a couple blocks from our residence. I ordered a “Milanesa de Carne con Puree de Papas” - which I would rate about a 6/10. The meat wasn’t as flavorful as i thought i'd be, and the mashed potatoes were pretty plain. Thankfully I had a glass of red wine; I couldn't tell you the name but it was great!

After dinner we went back to our residence and made friends with other people who also live and go to school here. We met some Peruvians, an Ecuadorian, a Costarican, a Chilean, and of course some Argentinians. They were all studying here and had been away from their families for months but were determined to finish school so they could have a career and help their families after. I admired them for being brave and studying in a different country where they don't know anyone. Now being 2 hours from home doesn't seem too bad. This was the end of my first night here, I went to bed feeling excited that I had made new friends and that they welcomed me with open arms.

June 17

This morning we walked to the Subte, which is what they call their metro, and bought and loaded cards so we can be prepared for our first day of school tomorrow. We took the Subte to Las Heras and went to grab lunch at this cute cafe that had dog paintings all over the walls. It kind made me feel like I was in the “Dogs Playing Poker” painting. I got a ham & cheese omelet which was subpar; maybe because I wasn’t very hungry it wasn't that appetizing, but it was just not for me. On the bright side, I ordered orange juice and let me tell you it was BOMB.COM. Honestly, that was probably the best part of my meal.

After lunch, we went back to the residence and proceeded to take a nap. After the nap, my roommate and I went to a restaurant that a friend recommended about fifteen minutes from here and it was called “Chicken Bros”. As my roommate and I were deciding what to order, the guys behind the counter asked us where we were visiting from. Usually, I tell people I'm from right outside of DC just because people know DC. Anyway, turns out that one of the guys was from Woodbridge, which isn’t too far from where I’m from in VA! It was cool to see an American-owned restaurant in a foreign country. Besides the owners being really cool, the food was great and the ambiance of the restaurant was really amazing. The table markers they were handing out were people from american pop culture so it was funny to see that. After this, we went home and went to sleep since tuesday would be our first day in class.

June 18

If you know me at all, you know that I am NOT a morning person. I am THE queen of sleeping in and sleeping for hourssssss. With this being said, waking up at 7am was not the most exciting thing to do. We got up to eat breakfast, and I tried my best to eat something because I knew it was going to be a really long day. For transportation, we use the Subte (their version of the metro) to get to class. It takes us about half an hour to get to school which isn’t too bad; the only thing is that the Subte is really crowded with everyone trying to get to work and school so you kinda have to be aggressive to just push yourself onto the train. We got to Expanish which is where all of our classes are being held. The first two weeks of classes are a crash course of spanish, so they did an oral exam to make sure they were placing us in the right level. Being a native speaker, it wasn't too difficult for me so I was placed in the advanced class. There were only two other kids in my class: an Italian girl and a Swiss guy. I was kind of nervous that our class was so small but throughout the day it felt better because she was able to pay more attention to how we spoke and we were also able to have more in depth conversations about different topics. Today was an exception because we had to take the oral exam but usually class starts at 9:30 and went till 1:30 then we had an hour break then class started again at 2:30 until 4:30. It sounds excruciating, and it is, but the class is fun and time goes by pretty fast. As the class finished, everyone was drained and we all went home on the Subte.

Once we got home, my roommate and I decided we wanted to go find a snack so we walked out of the residence and just started to walk. If you didn't know, street art is a big part of the culture here and is legal, so here in Palermo everywhere you look there is graffiti on the buildings. We started to walk all over the neighborhood and just took pictures and looked at all the beautiful art around us. We ended up walking around for about two hours. Once we got back home we took another nap and then got ready for dinner. We went to this bar in Palermo called “Ragnar” I got myself a burger, and because im legal here i got my first mojito which was really tasty. I really enjoyed the view from the rooftop that they had. Overall it was a really long day but we were finally getting on some kind of schedule. After dinner we went back home and got ready for bed.

June 19

I had a normal school day today but since the women's Argentinian soccer team was playing in the World Cup, we headed over right after class to my teachers favorite bar to watch the game! I later went with Gloria (the italian girl from my class) to eat at a sushi place about a block from our school. I got myself a Mexican Poke bowl which was absolutely delicious. It was my first time eating a poke bowl so i didn't have anything to compare it to. After lunch, we went back to Expanish and waited for everyone to get out of class.

After class we all signed up for a tango class. We waited for our teacher to come and she taught us the basics of Tango; I learned that Tango is not a dance where the point is to move all of your body but it should be a continuous motion (not sure if this makes sense but its not like merengue where your hips, legs, and shoulders move). I think after this class I have more of an appreciation for tango just because I had never really been exposed to it and it didn't look that interesting to me, but dancing it was a whole other thing.

After the tango class we all hopped on the Subte back to the residence. We all took naps (as you can see naps are a crucial part of our routine here lol) and then got ready for dinner. We all decided to go to a bar and to be able to watch the Argentina-Paraguay game. Not sure what bar we went to but it wasn’t too special; I got a quesadilla and some nachos on the side. The most exciting thing about dinner was seeing everyones excitement when argentina scored. The bartender even had a vuvuzela! Since we didn’t have class Thursday, after dinner we walked about two blocks and went into a club. The thing about Argentinian nightlife is that things don’t start poppin till 2am. This is something that we all questioned but it makes sense because they eat dinner at about 10pm. A group of us were just hanging upstairs until about 1:30 and then finally the music started to get really good so we all went downstairs to dance, it was one of the funnest nights so far. We left the club at about 3:30am and got home and all knocked out.

June 20

Waking up at 9:30 after a night out was not ideal, but you do what you gotta do right? Since we didn't have school today our professor from JMU (and our mom for the trip) took us to La Boca which is where the city of Buenos Aires first was established. It’s now very touristy but let me tell you... it is beautiful. All the buildings are so colorful, and craftwork and artwork they sell on the streets were mesmerizing.

We went to the“Museo de Bellas Artes Benito Quinuela Martin,” this museum was in Benito Quinuela Martin house that he lived at the time. The gallery is free to enter and I definitely recommend going if you have time.

The exhibits they had were really interesting my favorite exhibit was the one they had for Roberto Cortes. He is able to depict perfectly what La boca entails and also the struggles and oppression that argentina has faced. The museum also had the rooms made up like how Benito Quinuela Martin had them while he was alive and it was interesting to see how someone lived during the early 20th century. I'm not much of an art person but this entire museum was really interesting, especially to see how different artists show the oppression they have faced as a country.

After the museum, we went to lunch at a restaurant down the street called “La Perla”. I was not the biggest fan of this restaurant just because their service was bad, and the food was mediocre.

We later hopped on a bus back to Plaza de mayo. I'm going to give a little back story for this next part:

During the 1970s, Argentina was facing a “Dirty War” where anyone who was against the government was persecuted. Most of the people speaking out against the government were college students, and because of this students started to disappear all over. Once mothers started to notice that their kids were not the only ones missing they started to organize themselves and want to get answers. This government was obviously very oppressive and because loitering was illegal, mothers would get into groups of two and march in circle in front of La casa rosada (equivalent to our white house) they would wear white scarves on their heads as symbols that these were mothers looking for their missing children. In total over 30,000 students went missing during this dictatorship. There is so much more to this but I personally do not want to write a whole dissertation on how horrible this situation is so here is a link to more information: https://www.history.com/news/mothers-plaza-de-mayo-disappeared-children-dirty-war-argentina

To this day, every thursday, these mothers still march on Plaza de Mayo. We all had the honor of seeing these mothers, family members and activists march in front of la casa rosada. There are now two groups from my understanding one group is still looking for answers for what happened to their children and so this group would walk around La Plaza de Mayo and they would read the names of the disappeared students outloud and after each name the group would yell “Presente” (Present) just to show that their kids will never be forgotten. The other group is now more politically active and strives to make more changes so that this never happens and they walked around the plaza saying different chants. It was remarkable to see that even fifty years later these mothers are still the front of the movement.

After seeing them march, we walked over to a cafe to get some coffee but I personally got a Submarine which is THE best hot chocolate you can drink. It’s basically a bar of chocolate that melts in the boiling milk its delicioso! After we all finished we went back home to the residence, and you guessed it, we took a nap. After our wonderful nap we went to go get dinner at a restaurant around here called “el Galeon”, not my favorite but it was a 6/10, to be fair I only got a salad but the chicken in the salad was a bit questionable. After dinner we went home and got into bed.

June 21

Today was our last day of having class till 4:30; we had two holidays this week since we had to make up for the class time missed. But I am so,so,so happy we do not have to be in class for seven hours anymore. Today in class, I realized that my vocabulary needs to expand more so now i'm glad that we were talking about topics I usually don’t discuss in spanish like the economy and politics. Other than that, class had been fun but I was a little sad today since my friend Gloria was graduating from the program and won't be in class but since shes still gonna be here for another five weeks we plan on hanging out so i'll update you guys when I get to see her again

After class we all went home and then later that night we got ready to go to dinner at a restaurant called “La Robla,” this was a spanish inspired restaurant in Palermo. I shared a Milanesa Clasico with Mashed Potatoes and we also got a side salad. This has been one of my favorite meals so far. The milanesa was to die for and those mashed potatoes really had me begging for more.

After dinner we went to a bar called “Chupitos,” we paid 140 pesos to get in and the entrance fee comes with two shots. I got a shot called “Poseidon,” it had tequila, lime juice and some blue liqour in it but i thought I wasnt going to like it but it was really good. I also took a picture of my friends beer because i mean just look at it...

After the bar we went to a techno club which was really cool to see EDM in a different country. We stayed out till about 5am with everyone and some of the guys from our residencia. After that we all went home and went directly to bed.

P.S.

I know this was a really long post so I may try and keep it to three or four day a post but I just am living in the moment an enjoying life right now so it might be a bit difficult so you all will have to bear with me. Thanks for your support!

Con mucho amor,

T.L.

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