BOCA!!!!

Aggies at the Boca game

Well I just got back from the Boca Futbol game-so fun! the fans stand up and sing songs about Boca the entire time-very enthusiastic. Kind of like an Aggie game! On the way there we stopped to eat at literally a hole-in-the wall place. We had either hamburgers or a sausage on a bun thing that has a real name but i forgot it..oops! It was all pretty good! Hunt looks a litte goofy though...haha
The game was lots of fun! They really do say GOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLL for forever when someone scores. La Boca won 3-0. After the game we had to wait to leave the stadium until all of the San Martin fans left or else there would be fights or riots. These people are serious about their soccer! At one point they even started lighting fireworks to distract the other team!!
There was lots of confetti everywhere too! So much to look at!
Tomorrow starts another week of classes....blah but after school tomorrow a friend and I are going to go shopping so atleast thats something to look forward to!

Mmm La Clase de Tango!

Well last night I got to do something these Argentines love to do-Tango! We went to a club in Palermo and got to take lessons! I was in the beginner class, of course-but it was really fun to learn! Very sexy...you cant say "1...2...3...GO!" supposedly you are supposed to "feel" when you are supposed to start and take the steps. Goodness, i'm not sure that my American self has enough sexiness to truly tango like an Argentine! It was fun to try though!
After that we walked around Palermo for like 1332498573498732 blocks to find a place to eat that didnt look too fancy. Finally we found a cute little Italian place. Pretty simple! there was a 5 peso table charge for each person at our table. We counted it as the tip....we learned today that a table charge is NOT a tip. oops!
Today after class I went with some friends, Morgan and Celeste (also Aggies!) with their host parents around Buenos Aires on a personal tour. We went to the Japanese Gardens--very pretty!
It was Pretty! But kind of chilly! After that we continued our tour of the city-Its so much like NYC. Shops everywhere and little vendors on the streets.
Tomorrow we're planning on getting up and seeing some of the other neighborhoods that we didnt get to see as well last Sunday. Souvenir time!!

La primer dia en mi universidad!

Today was the first day of school! Its been a while since I sat through 5 hours straight of class...but it's doable I suppose! we had a 20 min break and a friend and I RAN around the corner to grab some coffee! its hard to stay awake! you cant space out when you're lecture is not in english! you'll be confused for the rest of the class!! Thank goodness I only have a little bit of homework!
Today, my host mom picked me up from school and we went to a part of Buenos Aires called Palermo-SOHO. It was amazing! Cute shops and boutiques and cafes everywhere! I'll definitely be returning! I could have shopped there for days! And most things arent priced too badly! We stopped for a snack and some coffee and tea. Snacks or an extra meal is necessary here because we eat dinner so late! I had the cutest high-heel cookie ever! It was almost to cute to eat! And the tea was brought out in the coolest mug! It kept the water so hot! Argentines love their tea!

El Tigre y el primer dia a la Universidad

So far so good! Yesterday we took a train to a place called El Tigre. Its a city built into the delta of the river. We took a boat ride around the little city. Their only way to and from their houses is by boat. They even have boat grocery stores!! After the boat ride we walked around the little shops for a few hours and then took the bus to what they call the coast. Which is where the delta empties into the bay area. The water is really dirty looking and although they say it is because of all the sediment in the river, i'm not quite convinced. The water is full of trash-we even saw a dead dog floating in the water...yuck! Here is a picture of the water with the skyline of Buenos Aires in the background.
Later that night we went and ate pizza y vino and then saw night at the museum in English with Spanish subtitles. It was pretty good!
Today was a long day. We had our placement exam to decide which Spanish classes we will be taking for the rest of the month. Thankfully I placed into the intermediate class that I need to get credit for the trip!
We start classes tomorrow and go to school from 9:30-2:30 which leaves the afternoon for more adventures!

First Full Day!

After my last post I was able to make some friends and see the city some!...or one street of it atleast-we were afriad that if we left the main road that we would get lost! We ate at a little cafe and had pasta libre, or all you can eat past for 21 pesos-about seven US dollars. not too bad! I came home and thought i explained that i had just eaten dinner but obviously i didnt say the right thing because about 10 minutes after that my host mom served me dinner. a traditional argentine dinner. I was already stuffed but i figured i would try it anway! The only way i've found to describe it is that it was kind of like REALLY flat chicken fried steak. no gravy. muy interesante! After a 10 hour flight, seeing some of the city, and 2 complete dinners in a row i definitely slept really well!
We started off the day today with an orientation. I learned that i have to always be aware-robberies are quite common here-esp if i look like an american. They highly recommended that we never speak english while out on the streets. So we're doing our best to communicate the best we can with each other using as much spanish as we know...more like spanglish at this point though! We then had a full city tour, which was absolutly amazing! There are definitely good and bad parts of town. We traveled to La Boca. Un barrio mas pobre pero sus casas son muchas colores!-a very poor neighborhood but they houses are painted in beautiful colors! There were people tangoing in the streets and vendors everywhere! Tons of fun and neat things to see!
We came back and tried our luck in a coffee shop. Most were successful with what we ordered, but one memeber of the group ended up with a spinach quiche...i dont think thats what he wanted!
One of the boys was walking me home and i found a red jeep! It made me happy and i had to take a picture with it!
It has been a great day of sightseeing today! I have to get up early in the morning and find my way to the train station to travel to El Tigre-a place with great shops, food and little vendors!

i made it!

Well i made it! I am in the ISA office and about to start my orientation. the plane ride wasnt too bad. i sat next to some guys from iran who talked to me the ENTIRE time but they were nice. first class was definitely a plus! my host mom is very very nice and welcoming. she is trying so hard to help me understand spanish buy saying everything in spanish, then in english, then in spanish again so atleast shes being pacient with me! i do have wireless internet at my apartment but i cant get my computer to fully connect. her granddaughter is going to try to help me later tonight though. The city is very much like new york city and is hopefully going to be easy to get around because i am totally on my own after this orientation-yikes! i will do my best to update as much as possible! much love!

Leaving Today!

Hello everyone!
I'm leaving this afternoon for Buenos Aires and I could not be more excited! The plane ride will be 12 hours long-so i'll have some time to rest and think about the things I want to do while down there! I am planning on updating this as much as possible but i'm not quite sure about what kind of internet connections i'll have at the house i'll be staying at. Wish me luck!