Hi! Hope you've all been well! Due to the schedules of a traveling friends and the program that I'm here in Buenos Aires through, I had two back-to-back trips over the past couple of weeks. Here's a few highlights...
MENDOZA
Mendoza is a beautiful city at the base of the Andes mountains in western Argentina very close to the border with Chile. With a friend (Josh) I met while traveling in Peru, I took an overnight bus to Mendoza on Thursday.
The first thing we did was to bus up to a little town called Puente del Inca. Puente del Inca is up in the Andes mountains about 4 kilometers from Aconcagua, the highest mountain in South America. We didn't do a whole lot of advance planning/research, and were a bit surprised when it was still very snowy and cold up in Puente del Inca. However, it was sunny and warm during the days and we had an awesome time. We stayed in a little hostel in Puente del Inca and from there spent a day hiking around the area around Aconcagua. It was incredibly beautiful.
After a day in Puente del Inca, we took the bus back down to Mendoza and spent a day exploring the city. Mendoza is much smaller and calmer than Buenos Aires. We ate lunch in a cafe, visited the city's main plazas, and then went to the Park of San Martin. The park is enormous, complete with a rose garden, lake, zoo, and observatory tower. As we were there on a Sunday, it seemed like the entire city was in the park playing soccer, drinking an Argentine tea called mate, and picnicking. It was a beautiful spot and a nice change of pace from the rather more hectic atmosphere in Buenos Aires.
On Monday, we bused out to a little town called Maipu for a wine tour. The Mendoza region produces about 80% of Argentina's wine and is very well known for its wineries. We rented bikes and rode from vineyard to vineyard, stopping for tastings and tours. On one side of the road were the Andes mountains and on the other side were the vineyards- it was really breathtaking and the views made it hard to concentrate on the bike riding. We finished the day with a tour of a fancy chocolate-maker's store, then went back into Mendoza to catch our bus to Buenos Aires.
Mendoza Pictures
JUJUY
I spent Tuesday going to class and desperately trying to organize my life before leaving for Jujuy, and then went to a jazz club for a show as it was Josh's last night in Buenos Aires. On Wednesday morning, less than 24 hours after getting back from Mendoza, I flew to Jujuy with about 60 other students and coordinators from my program. One bad part- my camera/traveling companion (which must be at least 7 or 8 years old by now) finally stopped working on this trip, so there are no pictures (I took a few before it broke but I can't get them off the card for now- hopefully I will be able to later).
Jujuy is a province in the northwest of Argentine close to the borders with Chile and Bolivia. It is famous for it's incredibly colored canyons (kind of similar looking to places like the Grand Canyon in Colorado). We stayed in a charming little hotel, where every group of three of us got a little cabin to stay in. It was a welcome change from the value dorms (dorm rooms with 10-15 people in bunkbeds) that we stayed in in Mendoza. We ate a lot of delicious steak dinners (the program trips are all expenses paid) and had a lot of time to relax.
On Thursday, we went to a place called Pucara, which is both the ruins of a pre-Incan city and an excellent viewpoint to see some of the coolest parts of the canyons (the area is called the Quebrada de Humahuaca). We spent the afternoon exploring the near-by city/town of Humahuaca.
On Friday we went to the Salinas Grandes- an enormous salt flat up in the middle of the Andes. It was really cool to see-the whole thing is very large, very flat and very white. The native people have a whole production system set up to extract and sell the salt. In the afternoon, we went back to Pucara to hike through the Canyon of 7 Colors. We were there around dusk, and the lighting and the scenery were absolutely incredible. The colors ranged from a creamy beige to bright orange to dark red. It was a very fun way to finish off the trip.
Saturday morning, we left to fly back to Buenos Aires. I've spent today trying to catch up on my homework- it's a pretty daunting task, but all the traveling was definitely worth it. Both trips were incredible and I feel like I wouldn't have the chance to see everything I want to see in Argentina even if I were traveling here for a year. However, it's great to be back in the city- it's really starting to feel more like a home.
All my love, Melanie
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Argentina vs. Brazil, Recoleta cemetary, etc. (September 3-10)
Hello!
Another great week here in Buenos Aires! I'm finally getting all the pieces of my schedule to fall into place, and am really starting to feel like I'm living here as opposed to just visiting. Here's a few of this weeks highlights...
Saturday was the Argentina vs. Brazil qualifier game for the World Cup. Nearly to say, the whole city was buzzing with excitement all day. We found a cool sports bar to watch the game in, which was absolutely packed. Everyone was intensely into the game, and lots of them were wearing flags draped around their shoulders. We spent most of the time singing, yelling at the group of Brazilian fans and pounding on the tables. Even though Argentina lost, I had a great time.
On Monday, we went to a play called El Vampiro. It was a very small, independent production- the only reason we knew about it was that one of my American friends knows one of the Argentines who acted in the play. Even though I didn't quite understand everything, it was very interesting to go experience an alternative side of Buenos Aires culture.
Tuesday night we went for tango lessons at this really cool place called La Catedral. It looks like nothing from the outside but inside looks like a giant converted barn covered in cool artwork. After our lessons, we hung out and watched a lot of the Argentines dance tango (they're really good so it's basically like going to a show). At about 2 o'clock in the morning, a group of tango musicians came in so the dancing stopped and they performed in the middle of the dance floor. Everyone sat around on the floor, sipping on wine and listening to the beautiful guitar. It really made me feel like I was in the real Buenos Aires.
I finally made it over to the Recoleta Cemetary, which is full of the Argentine rich and famous. It's enormous and full of beautiful family tombs- we wondered around for a few hours and I definitely would have been happy to stay a few more. The most famous tomb is Evita's, which is still to this day covered in fresh flowers brought in by visitors. We saw a funeral procession coming in as we were leaving, which really put the whole thing a bit more into perspective. Although it's an awesome place, it's kind of strange that a cemetery is such a touristy place.
I'm starting to understand more and more in my classes (probably due to the fact that I now have tutors for both history and politics). In politics class, we discussed populism and the patterns of economic reform in different Latin American countries. For history, we're still focusing on the Mexican Revolution. However, both classes often drift towards the role of the US in Latin American politics. What the students and teachers have to say about the US is usually quite harsh. I'm tempted to join in, but it's kind of hard to defend a lot of the actions of the US government in Latin America. The resentment of US foreign policy here is pretty overwhelming- I've heard several people say that they think the US was involved with the coup in Honduras and there are almost weekly protests of the US construction of military bases in Colombia. Although it's kind of discouraging for me that they distrust and dislike the American government so much, I've been given an incredible opportunity to learn about the roots and manifestations of this distrust from a first-hand perspective.
Finally, I started my internship with Help Argentina yesterday. My first project is to translate different grantee profiles from Spanish to English. It's hard work, but really good practice for my Spanish and a good way to learn more about what different organizations are doing. I'll be working there 8 hours a week. The people there are really cool- I'm looking forward to getting to know them all better.
That's all for this week. Buenos Aires has been treating me great- I continue to find cool cafes, restaurants and parks everywhere I go. Tonight, I leave for Mendoza and then next week I'm off to Jujuy. I hope you are all well and I send all my love!
Photos from Recoleta and a couple random ones from the game
Another great week here in Buenos Aires! I'm finally getting all the pieces of my schedule to fall into place, and am really starting to feel like I'm living here as opposed to just visiting. Here's a few of this weeks highlights...
Saturday was the Argentina vs. Brazil qualifier game for the World Cup. Nearly to say, the whole city was buzzing with excitement all day. We found a cool sports bar to watch the game in, which was absolutely packed. Everyone was intensely into the game, and lots of them were wearing flags draped around their shoulders. We spent most of the time singing, yelling at the group of Brazilian fans and pounding on the tables. Even though Argentina lost, I had a great time.
On Monday, we went to a play called El Vampiro. It was a very small, independent production- the only reason we knew about it was that one of my American friends knows one of the Argentines who acted in the play. Even though I didn't quite understand everything, it was very interesting to go experience an alternative side of Buenos Aires culture.
Tuesday night we went for tango lessons at this really cool place called La Catedral. It looks like nothing from the outside but inside looks like a giant converted barn covered in cool artwork. After our lessons, we hung out and watched a lot of the Argentines dance tango (they're really good so it's basically like going to a show). At about 2 o'clock in the morning, a group of tango musicians came in so the dancing stopped and they performed in the middle of the dance floor. Everyone sat around on the floor, sipping on wine and listening to the beautiful guitar. It really made me feel like I was in the real Buenos Aires.
I finally made it over to the Recoleta Cemetary, which is full of the Argentine rich and famous. It's enormous and full of beautiful family tombs- we wondered around for a few hours and I definitely would have been happy to stay a few more. The most famous tomb is Evita's, which is still to this day covered in fresh flowers brought in by visitors. We saw a funeral procession coming in as we were leaving, which really put the whole thing a bit more into perspective. Although it's an awesome place, it's kind of strange that a cemetery is such a touristy place.
I'm starting to understand more and more in my classes (probably due to the fact that I now have tutors for both history and politics). In politics class, we discussed populism and the patterns of economic reform in different Latin American countries. For history, we're still focusing on the Mexican Revolution. However, both classes often drift towards the role of the US in Latin American politics. What the students and teachers have to say about the US is usually quite harsh. I'm tempted to join in, but it's kind of hard to defend a lot of the actions of the US government in Latin America. The resentment of US foreign policy here is pretty overwhelming- I've heard several people say that they think the US was involved with the coup in Honduras and there are almost weekly protests of the US construction of military bases in Colombia. Although it's kind of discouraging for me that they distrust and dislike the American government so much, I've been given an incredible opportunity to learn about the roots and manifestations of this distrust from a first-hand perspective.
Finally, I started my internship with Help Argentina yesterday. My first project is to translate different grantee profiles from Spanish to English. It's hard work, but really good practice for my Spanish and a good way to learn more about what different organizations are doing. I'll be working there 8 hours a week. The people there are really cool- I'm looking forward to getting to know them all better.
That's all for this week. Buenos Aires has been treating me great- I continue to find cool cafes, restaurants and parks everywhere I go. Tonight, I leave for Mendoza and then next week I'm off to Jujuy. I hope you are all well and I send all my love!
Photos from Recoleta and a couple random ones from the game
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
School in Buenos Aires (August 20-September 2)
The past couple weeks I've stayed here in Buenos Aires, settling into a schedule with classes and doing various things about the city. I'm in class about 16 hours a week, and when I start my internship (which will hopefully be with Help Argentina) that will be another eight hours. Homework has been taking up a pretty decent amount of my time (the two direct enrollment classes have a lot of reading, which takes me about 3 times longer that reading normally does since it's in Spanish), but it's so far been interesting stuff. Here's a few highlights:
August is the International Tango Fair in Buenos Aires, and all of the events are free so we decided to go see a show. The show was at this cool old theater called Teatro 25 de Mayo, and we got there early in the morning to wait in line for tickets. We went back that night for the show, which was absolutely incredible. Tango is a really beautiful dance, and these were some of the best dancers in the world. I definitely plan on trying to see more tango before I leave. After the show, we went to a delicious dinner at a Peruvian restaurant, and then to an Argentine ice cream shop (Argentine ice cream is the best I've ever had).
Today, I had a free afternoon so I went to see some museums. First, I went to the Evita Peron museum. It was full of movies, information and various artifacts- such as many of her outfits. It was a really cool experience- Evita is still a very popular figure here (her face is used in a similar way to Che's) and it was an eye-opening experience to see how they portray her. The museum was definitely bordering on propaganda in terms of glorifying Evita- there was no mention of any flaws or failures. After the Evita museum, I walked through some of Palermo's beautiful parks to the Latin American Mueseum of Art in Buenos Aires (MALBA). It's a cool modern building with a great collection of art, including some really big names like Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Xul Solar, David Siquieros and Wilfredo Lam.
I've joined a soccer club through my study abroad program. We meet once a week for games, a group of American students and different Argentine people. Afterwards, we hang out and drink a few beers. In a few weeks, we're going to go to an Argentine soccer game, which should be very fun in an absolutely crazy kind of way.
The night life here has continued to be incredible. We've continued to find different bars, restaurants and clubs that are all very fun. The entire country seems to be on a different schedule. The other night we were walking home at about 3:00 am and saw about 20 middle aged business people having a meeting in a restaurant. It's not unusual to see full families, including kids as young as two or three years old, walking around at 1 in the morning. It's definitely a city that never sleeps.
Classes are going great. I really love my politics class. The UBA building it's in is pretty crazy in terms of socialist grafittis- there's a huge sign in front of one of my classrooms that says "Yankee get out of South America," which is a bit intimidating. We're now studying history so that we have a background of Latin American political history before we start with current political events. History class is really interesting too. We're now studying the Mexican Revolution, which I've already studied, but studying it in a completely different way than I learned it in the US. Here, the class is much more focused on the mobilization of the masses and the difference economic relationships between classes (not exac
tly surprising). I'm slowly starting to absorb more and more of the Spanish. For my service learning class, I had an interview with Help Argentina on Monday and I should hopefully hear back from them soon.
Other fun things- ordering in ice cream and empanadas to the apartment, finding good cafes to study with a cafe con leche, and finally getting my student visa!
I hope everyone's well and please send emails updating me on how you all are!
Love, Melanie
PICTURES
August is the International Tango Fair in Buenos Aires, and all of the events are free so we decided to go see a show. The show was at this cool old theater called Teatro 25 de Mayo, and we got there early in the morning to wait in line for tickets. We went back that night for the show, which was absolutely incredible. Tango is a really beautiful dance, and these were some of the best dancers in the world. I definitely plan on trying to see more tango before I leave. After the show, we went to a delicious dinner at a Peruvian restaurant, and then to an Argentine ice cream shop (Argentine ice cream is the best I've ever had).
Today, I had a free afternoon so I went to see some museums. First, I went to the Evita Peron museum. It was full of movies, information and various artifacts- such as many of her outfits. It was a really cool experience- Evita is still a very popular figure here (her face is used in a similar way to Che's) and it was an eye-opening experience to see how they portray her. The museum was definitely bordering on propaganda in terms of glorifying Evita- there was no mention of any flaws or failures. After the Evita museum, I walked through some of Palermo's beautiful parks to the Latin American Mueseum of Art in Buenos Aires (MALBA). It's a cool modern building with a great collection of art, including some really big names like Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Xul Solar, David Siquieros and Wilfredo Lam.
I've joined a soccer club through my study abroad program. We meet once a week for games, a group of American students and different Argentine people. Afterwards, we hang out and drink a few beers. In a few weeks, we're going to go to an Argentine soccer game, which should be very fun in an absolutely crazy kind of way.
The night life here has continued to be incredible. We've continued to find different bars, restaurants and clubs that are all very fun. The entire country seems to be on a different schedule. The other night we were walking home at about 3:00 am and saw about 20 middle aged business people having a meeting in a restaurant. It's not unusual to see full families, including kids as young as two or three years old, walking around at 1 in the morning. It's definitely a city that never sleeps.
Classes are going great. I really love my politics class. The UBA building it's in is pretty crazy in terms of socialist grafittis- there's a huge sign in front of one of my classrooms that says "Yankee get out of South America," which is a bit intimidating. We're now studying history so that we have a background of Latin American political history before we start with current political events. History class is really interesting too. We're now studying the Mexican Revolution, which I've already studied, but studying it in a completely different way than I learned it in the US. Here, the class is much more focused on the mobilization of the masses and the difference economic relationships between classes (not exac
tly surprising). I'm slowly starting to absorb more and more of the Spanish. For my service learning class, I had an interview with Help Argentina on Monday and I should hopefully hear back from them soon. Other fun things- ordering in ice cream and empanadas to the apartment, finding good cafes to study with a cafe con leche, and finally getting my student visa!
I hope everyone's well and please send emails updating me on how you all are!
Love, Melanie
PICTURES
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