Friday night I had a new experience that is definitely blog worthy. My program (COPA) planned an evening out to the theater for 30 of the 60 students. I had initially thought we were going to an opera, but as it turns out it was a musical. The show took place in a part of town called La Boca. La Boca, how can I say this concisely, is what we would refer to as “the ghetto” in the states. It is straight up scary at night. I don’t know if it was the best idea having 30 Americans walk through La Boca, but I suppose that the law of large numbers kept us safe. Upon arrival to the theater we ate some fabulous parilla (grilled food) and a very tasty dessert containing Dulce de Leche (a very rich chocolate, caramel spread that the Argentines put on EVERYTHING). As usual, I ate until I could barely move.
The theater was very small and actually felt cozy which was surprising considering the surrounding area. Now I think I need to clarify a few things before I proceed. When I say I went to the theater, I’m not talking about a Broadway show here. None of the actors were professionals and I don’t think many of them had any vocal training. They were simply residents of La Boca who enjoyed performing. Regardless, the show was fabulous. It was an original musical that covered the history of Argentina since the early 1900s. It was very funny and very entertaining overall. The performers didn’t have the most talent in the world, but the made up for it in enthusiasm and style. They looked like they were having a great time on stage and their energy seemed to resonate with the audience.
Saturday night was the birthday of one of my friends from the program. A group of about 15 of us had dinner at a Mexican restaurant that was quite good. Mexican food here, however, is very different than Mexican food in the states. Before coming to BA I was under the impression that people in South America enjoyed spicy food. In reality, they are all a bunch of babies and if anything has spice on it they complain. The items on the menu listed as moderately spicy would be considered very mild in the states. Usually I am the one who complains about food being too spicy, but here, I am the tough guy who asks for the hot sauce.
After dinner we went to a nightclub called Crowbar. When we arrived to Crowbar at 1230 am we were surprised to find out that it didn’t open until 130 am. I don’t know how the people here do it, but they really enjoy staying up until sunrise. The club was very fun. It had three different rooms with different DJs and different genres of music all together. One room was hip hop, one room was rock and roll (it actually had a live band for an hour or so), and one room was techno (the music that is most commonly heard at clubs). When I left at 4am the club was packed and people asked me why I was leaving so early. I feel like an old man here.
I spent Sunday with an old friend of mine from high school, Megan Peppel. She studied abroad here, actually in the same program that I am currently in, 2 years ago. During her time here she met a guy and they have been together ever since. He speaks no English, so needless to say, she speaks fluent Spanish. We spent the day at a gaucho festival 45 minutes west of where I live. Gauchos are the equivalent to ranchers and a gaucho festival consists of traditional gaucho food (mainly beef), music (folklore), and dance (I have no idea how to explain this one). It also had many tents set up where people sold handmade crafts. Most of the stuff was either leather bags, handmade clothes, jewelry or art work. Everything was very beautiful and interesting to see, or as the portaneos (Argentine natives) often say, “era muy linda”.
Today, Monday, was one of the most fun days I have had in BA. I spent the entire day with 10 other students on a bike/kayak trip in Tigre (the most outer part of the city). The whole neighborhood is on the coast that overlooks the main part of the city, so it was a very pretty ride. We didn’t go very fast and our equipment isn’t exactly what you would call fancy, but all things considered, we covered quite a bit of ground. It was also very interesting because Tigre is where the upper socioeconomic class resides. In the heart of the city I have only seen a handful of houses, but in Tigre there were mansions all over the place. Also, the universities there are only private whereas in the heart of the city all of the universities are public. The public schools don’t really have campuses and the facilities are pretty run down (probably because it is free to attend public universities) which is very different than the private schools. The private schools looked similar to small private schools in MN. They actually reminded me of none other than St. Olaf College.
After the 4 hour bike ride we changed gears and hit the water. The bodies of water here really make me appreciate the lakes in MN. There are only a few rivers and I don’t know if there are any lakes, but the rivers are filthy. I would drink the water in Lake Minnetonka before I would jump in one of the rivers here. In any case, the kayak adventure was a blast. Being the 6’2 male that I am (which is above average in the states, but giant status in South America), I was unable to fit in the back seat of the kayak (the back seat contained foot pedals that controlled the ruder). This wouldn’t have been a problem had I not paired up with a girl who was unable to differentiate her left from right. I am pretty sure we went twice as far as everyone else because of the zigzag path we took. She also didn’t think it was necessary to paddle so I got quite the workout today. Although I shouldn’t complain, the workout was long overdue. The scenery was beautiful, the air was much more clean than in the heart of the city and it was very refreshing being near water. The day couldn’t have been nicer.
On another high note, my host family here is the best. I have a week to explore the city after my program ends, before my mom arrives. I asked them if I could stay at their apartment for an extra week, offering to pay them less than what I would pay at a hotel/hostel. Not only are they going to allow me to stay an extra week, but also they have said I can stay there for free. I need to do something nice for them before I leave because they have made me feel so comfortable.
Buenas Noche
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