where is my music !!

In the past Buenos Aires has gotten some reputable names to come and perform, including favorites M.I.A., The Strokes, LCD Soundsystem. Even the Spice Girls came here on their 11 city worldwide reunion tour last year. From what I can tell the city does a pretty good job of keeping up with a variety of American music. But the lineup for this fall, even though it features some big names, sucks. Here's why:

• September 2nd: Michael Bolton. I don't think I could name one Michael Bolton song, but I would probably recognize it in an elevator. The last time I heard anything about Michael Bolton was when he was a guest star on I Love the '90s presenting the "hotties of the 90s". Pass.
  

• September 10th: Boy George. World famous, yes. But more so for his face makeup than any music. Last year he had to report for garbage duty in NYC after being busted for heroine. Or cocaine. Or both. Do I really want to see him sing "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?"

• September 13: The Hives. Ok, getting a little closer to what I would listen to. Except, one-hit wonder. Can't remember the one hit.

• September 26 - October 11: Motley Crue, Stone Temple Pilots, Nine Inch Nails, Dave Matthews Band (Pepsi Music Concert). Time warp to 1993! Wouldn't pay to see them in the US, not gonna go here. This festival usually gets good names!!

Update: MADONNA. December 2008. I'm there!

today i kind of found a dream come true

Following the advice of Lucky Magazine and my two handy Buenos Aires guidebooks, I ventured to Palermo Soho this afternoon, three short subway stops from where I usually get on. I had only strolled around the area at night because it is home to some of the best restaurants in the city. Today I discovered its shopping.

Palermo had breathtaking boutique after breathtaking boutique after breathtaking boutique. Makes me click my little red heels together and think, we're not in South America anymore. Every store appeared as though they had hired a top notch interior designer. Even the Nike store deserved a second look. But most stores featured exclusive Argentinian and Buenos Aires designers. And to make it even better, everything is AFFORDABLE. Solid color shirts, think Forever 21 prices. Pants, sweaters, maybe Gap prices.

Visiting somewhere like 5th Avenue for the first time has its excitement, but its essentially window shopping. Unwearable, unaffordable. What strikes me is the market here for a fashion designer...their designs are individual but practical in the sense that they can be bought by the average Argentinian and worn. It's a wonderful outlet for creativity that does not exist for tailor-made fashion in the US or Europe.

And speak of the devil...BAFWeek starts tomorrow! Cost to see it? $6.50.

Is it a coincidence that miniature schnauzers are everywhere here? Probably the most popular breed I've seen. Porteños sure do love their dogs. I haven't taken a picture yet, but once a day I usually run into a professional dog walker handling about 15 humongous dogs. Having Kipper cravings...

this is a bored entry

This weekend I made my first excursion outside the city - to El Tigre, a little town located on the Parana Delta. I went with friends Erica and Lauren, from UNC, on a 45-minute train ride to get there. A lot of El Tigre is very touristy, not not necessarily for Americans. We explored and walked along the river (which is very brown) past lots of parillas (aka steakhouses) and also close to a huge amusement park. El Tigre reminded me of the Hamptons on a much smaller and less ritzy scale, because it serves as a place to get away from the city where many have second homes and spend their time fishing or rowing.

Late in the afternoon the three of us took an hour-long boat ride along the river where we saw lots of beautiful architecture and houses. A few had historical significance...

 

 

Saturday night a group of friends and I met for dinner at a Scandinavian restaurant called Olsen. I knew nothing about the menu but only that the atmosphere and service were supposed to be top-notch in the city. Needless to say the food was amazing. Most restaurants serve complimentary bread here, but Olsen's bread happened to be bagels! Some of the only bagels around, apparently. I ordered a tuna dish which was delicious; they also had salmon, herring, beef, and 50+ types of vodka to boast. A fun meal indeed.

Class update: for the most part, I think I have my class schedule figured out. In the Catholic university, I am taking a class for international students entitled "Aves Sudamericanas," Birds of South America. The class meets once a month, 4 times total. On Friday we have a lecture, on Saturday we go on an excursion in the morning to a local ecological reserve, then we come back and have more lecture. The professor was very enthusiastic about the class. He lived in Patagonia for 7 years and seems very knowledgeable about birds. During our introductory class, he showed us 10 pictures of different birds and gave a quiz on what we could identify. Another American and I were the only ones to recognize a robin. The other students in the class are from England, France and Mexico. Also our "textbook" is a field guide to birds of Argentina and Uruguay...I hope to at least see a toucan.

I have also chosen another class in UBA, roughly entitled "Territories, journeys, and identities in conflict: based on fictional Argentine cinema, 1995-2001. An epistemological-methodological proposal." It's a seminar with about 25 people, 3 foreigners including myself. In the first class, the professor introduced the gist of things and we watched a movie for the remaining two hours. The class meets Wednesday from 4-7. And from my impression, most classes are going to follow that same pattern, with one paper due at the end of the semester. So that's a keeper.

Right now I am actually writing this entry by hand as I am sitting in another UBA class, Social Theory of Latin America. And it is a very different experience than the last one. First of all, I can't understand anything the professor is saying. There is no writing on the board. The class has probably 150 students. Most people are sitting with their friends and passing around mate. To say the least, it is an intimidating experience. The longest class I have ever taken at UNC was 2 hours and 45 minutes straight. This one is 4 hours. How am I supposed to pay attention for 4 hours straight in a language I am still learning? And did I mention it goes to 11 pm? Not a keeper.

UBA has been a very different experience from UCA and USAL, the private schools that I have seen. It has buildings all over the city and very far away from each other, but each building is colorfully covered in graffiti. Tuition is free, so the buildings are pretty bare otherwise. It reminds me on an inner-city American school I'd see in a movie, with bright fluorescent lights hanging from the ceiling and bathroom tiles on all the walls. And think tons of gum under desks. Also the average age of students here is probably closer to 25. Edging on 30. Between the two classes I just described, UBA will definitely be a different but good experience.

Yesterday I did a little exploring into Palermo. I wanted to go to the Museum of Latin American Art (Malba) but of course it is closed Tuesdays, so I ventured a little further to see the Japanese garden. It was a tranquil place to get away from the hustle and bustle, with some giant koi and really fat ducks...lots of overfeeding.

I have discovered a new fruit: quinotos. They are very small oranges that you can eat in one bite and they come in big bags. You are supposed to eat them with the skin. Most are bitter but if you're lucky they can be pretty sweet. I guess now being winter isn't the best season for fruit anyway.

It's close to that exciting time again when everyone is returning to campus...must admit it's making me a little homesick. Wish I were there! Hi to everyone going back to the Hill. I have made thedailytarheel.com my homepage so I can keep up with what's going on.

Now that I have finished writing this I have about 3 hours left in class listening to the professor taking really fast about social theory. I think instead I will study the Guia-T, which is basically the bible to the hundreds of buslines here, or maybe I'll just people watch. Chau.

i should have updated this a lot earlier

because for obvious reasons there is too much to say.

This week marks the end of phase 1 and the beginning of the reason I'm really here, a reason I would like to forget: school.

August 4th is the day that most of the universities resume 2nd semester, because after all it is winter here and a balmy 50 degrees everyday.

Up until this point we (students in the COPA - Cooperating Programs in the Americas - program) have been attending orientation, where they teach us something useful every once in awhile, but the main goal is to orient us with the academic situation. We get to pick and choose classes from 4 universites: Universidad de Buenos Aires (the only public one), Universidad Catolica, Universidad del Salvador, and Universidad Torcauto di Tella. All of them are very different and count for a different number of credits, etc. Some schools offer special classes for international students but for the most part we are going to be completely immersed with new Argentine friends.

These next two weeks are referred to in Spanish as "shopping": trying out classes. Right now I am looking at checking out around 12 classes, to decide on 3 or 4. So that means the next two weeks are not going to be fun. Even though it shouldn't be my priority, I care most about making a good schedule rather than what classes I'm taking. Most classes are held once a week for 3 or 4 hours at a time, meaning if I could have classes 2 or 3 days a week I would have wonderful long weekends to travel and go exploring. I am lucky because I have a lot of flexibility in choosing what to take.

The main lesson I learned from orientation is that at some point, at least once, no matter how many precautions I take, my wallet is going to get stolen. Even if I hug my purse to my body at all times, even if I really did have eyes in the back of my head, someway somehow in this city people are out to get me.

Besides security being implanted into my brain, most of the orientation was a waste of time. But some has been helpful. In Spanish class we learned some basic rules about español rioplatense, the Spanish they speak here in Rio de la Plata. For example, instead of saying "I will" for the future tense, it is more common to say "I am going to..." The vos form, which seemed really scary at first, actually comes more easily to me. An English equivalent is like saying "y'all" for "you" and a little verb changing. Also some words are different. Store once was tienda, now it is negocio. Not that people won't understand Spanish spoken elsewhere, but I've been trying to stick to the new rules here. And I can't leave out the wonderful accent, jjjjj. Street = calle = ca-yay = now is ca-she. See here for more.

The two week mark is also a time when I am supposed to "get it." Spanish that is. I'm not sure if that time has quite arrived, but indeed it has shown improvement. I haven't had dreams in Spanish yet but actually I've had thoughts in Spanish. I'd say the most difficult part to overcome for me is not the speaking but the shyness and focus on getting it right. By no means am I going to be fluent by the time I leave here but speaking and comprehension are definitely going to improve.

To help improve our Spanish, the program requires that we live with a host family. My host family has been wonderful. I am living with Pipa, Atilio, and Elina who is eleven. They live on the 4th floor of an apartment building. I have my own huge room with an excellent closet but tiny bed, and luckily wireless internet. Anywhere you go in the city the elevators are the kind with two doors that you have to open and shut by hand, which is fun. Also the keys are very old-fashioned.

As for the city itself, so far it's been a blast. The great thing about city life is being able to walk places nearby. Basically my cousin Ingrid who left today has shown me the ropes...good restaurants, good sites, good shopping. I've been really lucky to have her here and it's been great cousin bonding!

The traffic here deserves its own paragraph, because it is chaos. Traffic lights here flash yellow twice. At home we are only given the luxury of having one yellow light flash before a red light. Here there is a second yellow light that flashes before a green light, so that absolutely no time is wasted and no horns have to be honked as drivers rev their engines to go. Also the concept of lanes is rarely used here. God forbid I am in a life threatening situation, because there is also no such thing as pulling over to let an ambulance through. In fact, I've seen that it is more customary to cut an ambulance off.

Another great thing about the city is the prices! Transportation is pretty easy. I'm still a little afraid of the buses because I'm not sure where to get off, but a bus ride costs about 30 cents, subway the same, and a taxi usually between 4 and 7 dollars. Food is also cheap, an empanada usually costs around a dollar. My favorite foods so far have been the empanadas and dulce de leche, which is basically caramel found in deserts of all kinds. The ice cream here is delicious too. Then again pretty much all the food I've had here has been good, including pizza, pasta, and sushi.

On the topic of food, a major dilemma in my time here has been the question of which gym to join? One of the most popular gyms in the city is this one: MEGATLON. Pretty intense. Apparently it is the gym to be seen at and has locations everywhere. Except that it has American prices, around $60 a month. So I have been searching for something a little closer and cheaper, but a membership somewhere is due soon for me.

Speaking of locations, Buenos Aires is very big so it has to be divided into barrios, or neighborhoods. I am living in Recoleta, which is a very nice neighborhood with good shopping and food. Next door is Palermo which is known for having more modern bars and restaurants...this will explain better.

Palermo is home to the restaurant with the best meal I have ever had. Filet mignon (called lomo) here: http://www.parrillalacabrera.com.ar/

Argentinians don't sleep. I can't decide if adjusting to hours here has been really hard or really easy, because in reality the daily schedule here is equivalent to the life of a college student. Sleeping in, late dinner, staying out late. Except a little exaggerated. Dinner in my house isn't ready earlier than 10:30 pm. So that has required some getting used to, but I've learned to space out meals with a little snack around 6. And people actually don't sleep in late either, somehow they manage to show up at work at 8 am after staying up till 2 or 3. My theory, because there aren't exactly siestas, is that mate makes the world go round. Mate is a highly caffeinated tea that many are addicted to.

I would be posting a few photos, but studying abroad puts you in a weird situation because you don't want to look like a tourist. So basically I haven't taken as many pictures as I would have liked to at this point, but they will be coming soon.

Interesting fact: turn on the radio at midnight here, any station, and you will hear the national anthem. Patriotic!

Skype me - screen name is crvfanatic.

As they say here, chau.