So I didn't even know but I have been done with class!!!!! I don't even have class to go to for my biology class. I found that out when I thought I was running late for class today and no one was there. I was like "What the heck?" Well I didn't go to the last class, which was two Mondays ago because my parents were here and I decided to ditch. lol. And last week was 'feriado,' a holiday for Argentina. So...this is weird and very exciting. But kinda sucky because I was hoping to not spend money, which I still plan on doing, but it's a bit more difficult when I have nothing really do to officially. I need to sit down and figure out what to do with all this free time...hmmm...I guess I will do that now! I mean I have nothing else to do...haha
1. Go to Olivos, the neighborhood right next to mine, to explore.
2. Go to the Rio to drink mate. With or without company.
3. Read.
4. Write in my very blank journal
5. Stop buying things so I can go crazy when Max comes.
6. Take pictures all over the city, so pretty much look like the ultimate tourist.
7. Stare at the wall.
8. Cook something. (Chocolate Chip Cookies??)
9. Dance the tango.
10. Figure out how to do the male part for tango. ahhhh. (It's because I want to teach when I get back...it's good to by dynamic)
11. Dance in general.
12. Stare at the ceiling.
13. Watch Desperate Housewives!!!!!! (It's a new obsession)
14. Draw in my blank journal.
15. See if my stuff will actually fit in my suitcases to bring home. (Ojalá que sí)
Well I'm pretty satisfied. I found 15 things that don't cost money to do in my spare time. The best ones are probably 7 and 12. Mhmmmm.
I dunno. I think it's pretty interesting that everyone has pretty much left. I don't know what to think. We're getting all new meat at Belgrano haha. They're going to have a good semester. I know I have! I feel that I'm so different. Is it because I've been in a different place? Was I just different here because of that and then I'll be the same when I get back? Or did Argentina really change me? I guess I shouldn't worry about it, but either way it will be interesting to see happens.
besos,
Julia
Monday, June 22, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
It's been a while.
This past month has been intensely busy for me which is a poor excuse for not writing. Anyway, I have now officially been here for 4 months and nearly 2 weeks. My family came to visit me for two weeks and left last Tuesday. We had sooooo much fun together. When they first came we went out to dinner at my favorite restaurant in my neighborhood called Vicente Lopez. It's a restaurant and a confiteria (a confiteria is a bakery filled with croissants, pastries, and little pastries called masas). Unfortunately they just tried the restaurant even though the desserts alone at Vicente Lopez are enough to make you die of happiness. You can then imagine though how good the food is. That night my dad tried his first Argentine steak, an ojo de bife (ribeye steak). Okay... is this my ADD. Sorry. Well I am going to discuss this (as in me eating more red meat in the last 4 months than I have in one lifetime) a little bit more.
I have been trying to discover what I want to order when I get a steak here because I barely know what I like in terms of steak in the states in regards to all the options of how to cook it and which cut I like. I know nothing, which is embarrasing since I worked at a freaking steakhouse for 2 years. very sad. Well, I have enjoyed my meat-eating here in the sense that no matter what you order it's good, there are only a few options in which to choose (ojo de bife, bife de chorizo, bife de lomo), and only two ways of ordering a steak as opposed to like 5 (rare, med. rare, medium, medium well, and well...gives me a headache even thinking about it versus jugoso or rare o cocido or done). Well now I know I love red meat. Well at least in Argentina. I rarely eat it in the states and now I'm afraid to invest in it because I probably will be very disappointed (plus it's really expensive in the states!)
Now, onto the rest of the trip. We took a city tour the next day and went to see La Boca, Recoleta, and somewhere else. It was a great tour. I was glad I went because I got to see the city all over again. The reality is that Buenos Aires is so big that it's mind-boggling. It's unexplainable just how big it is. Just come here someday. It is a well worth it.
That night we ate at Cabrera and the food was AMAZING. My sister and I shared chicken stuffed w/ sundried tomatoes and cheese. Not only was the portion ridiculously large, but it was the most tender, juicy chicken ever. (Dang. I'm really sorry if vegetarians are reading this. I'll stop soon).
Now I'm just going to summarize. We went to an overpriced tango show (though it was nice) and just explored 9 de Julio (the sixteen lane street. I believe it's the widest in the world). Then my parents and sis went to Iguazu falls and saw these crazy animals attack a woman w/ a banana in a plastic sack. Then they came home and a few days later my sis and I went to Cordoba to visit Ivi. It was super relaxing and very much needed because I had so many exams to write and study for. With Ivi we talked and talked. drank yerba mate, went clubbing, ate an asado, watched a good but sad movie (The Boy with the Striped Pajamas), ate lomitos (sandwiches w/ tenderloin, tomatoes, lettuce, egg, mayo, peppers...anyway you get the point). It was soo worthwhile and jess and I had succcch a great time.
For the past couple of days I have been finishing up my Latin American studies classes (I have my Tango paper to finish and that's that!), which means that I only have one class to study for for the rest of my time in Argentina. The better news is that my final exam is on July 13, meaning that 4 days after Max arrives, I am officially DONE with eleven days to do whatever I want to!!!!!!!!!!!!! Super super exciting. Then I (sadly) go home to CO, but it's not really that bad because I get a month more of summer before starting a new year at Cornell.
At the four month mark, I feel like I have learned so much Spanish. I feel equipped with a tool that I will be able to use the rest of my life, my personal, career, and private life. I also like that I can communicate in nearly all settings. I pretty much feel very good about coming here, especially because I began college resigned that I would never study abroad because I'm a pre-med student. Well for those of you out there in the same position, do not limit yourself like I almost did. Ya...I'm behind by a year for my studies, but I planned on taking a year off anyway. What is one year behind with all the great memories and experiences I've had here?
Also, this has been a growing experience for me. I have learned more about myself than I ever thought I could. I've learned the following:
1. Always be there for friends and family
2. Distance can separate people but it doesn't have to
3. I'm not in control of making everyone happy and I am learning to be okay with that
4. Not everyone likes me, and sometimes it's not worth it to try to get them to like me
5. I can still respect people who don't like me but I don't have to be fake around them
6. I try to find the best in people
7. I can be friends with all sorts of people, which means I learn from all of them.
8. I can be/need to be honest with myself so that I can be honest with others
9. Love can get deeper in the wierdest of circumstances (This is directed towards my wonderful, supportive, and loving boyfriend)
10. Smile at everyone
11. Trust people but be street smart
12. Don't take coins for granted when survival depends on them haha
13. Listen to people and the impression you give off. Learn from it but don't change who you fundamentally are because of it.
14. Therapy is good and necessary whether official or unofficial
15. Music is beautiful.
16. My experiences are different from other people's experiences
17. I have never been more humbled here.
These are a drop of water of an ocean of my own learning. As I read the list above, I laugh that I had to take a step back and realize this stuff since a lot of it is common sense. But at the same time, it's easy to take for granted the simplest stuff, so I won't be too hard on myself. Well this has been long enough. Sorry to make your eyes tired.
Les mando mil besos,
Julia
I have been trying to discover what I want to order when I get a steak here because I barely know what I like in terms of steak in the states in regards to all the options of how to cook it and which cut I like. I know nothing, which is embarrasing since I worked at a freaking steakhouse for 2 years. very sad. Well, I have enjoyed my meat-eating here in the sense that no matter what you order it's good, there are only a few options in which to choose (ojo de bife, bife de chorizo, bife de lomo), and only two ways of ordering a steak as opposed to like 5 (rare, med. rare, medium, medium well, and well...gives me a headache even thinking about it versus jugoso or rare o cocido or done). Well now I know I love red meat. Well at least in Argentina. I rarely eat it in the states and now I'm afraid to invest in it because I probably will be very disappointed (plus it's really expensive in the states!)
Now, onto the rest of the trip. We took a city tour the next day and went to see La Boca, Recoleta, and somewhere else. It was a great tour. I was glad I went because I got to see the city all over again. The reality is that Buenos Aires is so big that it's mind-boggling. It's unexplainable just how big it is. Just come here someday. It is a well worth it.
That night we ate at Cabrera and the food was AMAZING. My sister and I shared chicken stuffed w/ sundried tomatoes and cheese. Not only was the portion ridiculously large, but it was the most tender, juicy chicken ever. (Dang. I'm really sorry if vegetarians are reading this. I'll stop soon).
Now I'm just going to summarize. We went to an overpriced tango show (though it was nice) and just explored 9 de Julio (the sixteen lane street. I believe it's the widest in the world). Then my parents and sis went to Iguazu falls and saw these crazy animals attack a woman w/ a banana in a plastic sack. Then they came home and a few days later my sis and I went to Cordoba to visit Ivi. It was super relaxing and very much needed because I had so many exams to write and study for. With Ivi we talked and talked. drank yerba mate, went clubbing, ate an asado, watched a good but sad movie (The Boy with the Striped Pajamas), ate lomitos (sandwiches w/ tenderloin, tomatoes, lettuce, egg, mayo, peppers...anyway you get the point). It was soo worthwhile and jess and I had succcch a great time.
For the past couple of days I have been finishing up my Latin American studies classes (I have my Tango paper to finish and that's that!), which means that I only have one class to study for for the rest of my time in Argentina. The better news is that my final exam is on July 13, meaning that 4 days after Max arrives, I am officially DONE with eleven days to do whatever I want to!!!!!!!!!!!!! Super super exciting. Then I (sadly) go home to CO, but it's not really that bad because I get a month more of summer before starting a new year at Cornell.
At the four month mark, I feel like I have learned so much Spanish. I feel equipped with a tool that I will be able to use the rest of my life, my personal, career, and private life. I also like that I can communicate in nearly all settings. I pretty much feel very good about coming here, especially because I began college resigned that I would never study abroad because I'm a pre-med student. Well for those of you out there in the same position, do not limit yourself like I almost did. Ya...I'm behind by a year for my studies, but I planned on taking a year off anyway. What is one year behind with all the great memories and experiences I've had here?
Also, this has been a growing experience for me. I have learned more about myself than I ever thought I could. I've learned the following:
1. Always be there for friends and family
2. Distance can separate people but it doesn't have to
3. I'm not in control of making everyone happy and I am learning to be okay with that
4. Not everyone likes me, and sometimes it's not worth it to try to get them to like me
5. I can still respect people who don't like me but I don't have to be fake around them
6. I try to find the best in people
7. I can be friends with all sorts of people, which means I learn from all of them.
8. I can be/need to be honest with myself so that I can be honest with others
9. Love can get deeper in the wierdest of circumstances (This is directed towards my wonderful, supportive, and loving boyfriend)
10. Smile at everyone
11. Trust people but be street smart
12. Don't take coins for granted when survival depends on them haha
13. Listen to people and the impression you give off. Learn from it but don't change who you fundamentally are because of it.
14. Therapy is good and necessary whether official or unofficial
15. Music is beautiful.
16. My experiences are different from other people's experiences
17. I have never been more humbled here.
These are a drop of water of an ocean of my own learning. As I read the list above, I laugh that I had to take a step back and realize this stuff since a lot of it is common sense. But at the same time, it's easy to take for granted the simplest stuff, so I won't be too hard on myself. Well this has been long enough. Sorry to make your eyes tired.
Les mando mil besos,
Julia
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