arte, aves, alimentacion...

pictures from BAFWeek...it was creepy.

I just got back from La Feria de San Pedro Telmo, a huge market that happens every Sunday - lots of antiques and loads of touristy stuff too. In my opinion San Telmo is the most charming barrio here with cobblestone streets and little cafes and gorgeous antique and home furnishing stores, but native Argentinians apparently hate it. I ended up buying my first mate gourd, which means it's only a matter of time until I become an addict.

After the feria I ventured to the Museum of Fine Arts for the first time. Very nice museum, I saw some El Greco, Peter Paul Reubens (Pedro Pablo), Chagall, Rivera, Manet, Van Gogh, Miro, Picasso...then there was an amazing cubism exhibit with some really trippy art from Argentina. It made me realize I need a refresher on my art history, I've forgotten so much. A few weekends ago I went with friends from bird class to a graffiti exhibit, which I would call the best exhibit I've ever seen. It really gave me an appreciation for graffiti as an art form, there are some amazing artists in Buenos Aires.

(my hunger is your fashion)

(shows the barrios in BsAs)

I'm bummed that I'm going to miss the El Greco/Valazquez exhibit at the Nasher.

I realized that I haven't officially blogged about the classes I ended up with. I have a killer schedule with classes Wednesday and Thursday, plus bird class once a month.

• Wednesday 12:30 - 3:30: Advanced Spanish and Popular Urban Music of Argentina: the mandatory COPA class. We spend an hour on grammar, an hour on literature, and then an hour on music! The music part has been pretty interesting. We have a huge book, probably 250 pages of lyrics of songs from the 60s to the present. We also have to listen to mp3s for homework. Most of the music we've heard so far has no distinction from American music of the same era except for the lyrics. Also we are reading "Boquitas pintadas," "Painted Little Mouths" by Manuel Puig. It's the first book I've read all in Spanish. At first I had to look up every 10th word and it would take me forever to read, I've since gotten a little lazy, but it is easier to follow now than when I started.

• Wednesday 4:00 - 7:00: The movie class at UBA. I omitted the fact that we have a huuuuuge, huge paper due at the end of the semester, maybe about 25 pages. However, last weekend class was canceled due to a strike! Strikes, huelgas, happen at UBA all the time. Usually they concern professor's wages against inflation, because professors are paid so little that most have other jobs and consider teaching "a service." This strike, however, was to raise awareness to get better funding for the buildings. A few weeks ago a student was using the bathroom when a beam fell from the ceiling and hit him. In the past a main stairwell fell in too. Yep. I need to post pictures of the facultad that I go to...pretty ghetto but I love it.

• Thursday 12:30-3:00: Exterior Politics of Argentina. This is a COPA class that I signed up for at the last minute, but really enjoy! Most of the class will focus on contemporary history of Argentina and it's place in WWII, etc. I think this is the only class where I will have exams, so it may be a bit challenging.

• Friday/Saturday, 3 classes left: Bird class. I am a big fan of bird class. We already had our first excursion to Costanera Sur, an ecological reserve located on the river. It's pretty easy to get to and we were able to walk to it from UCA. The day we went was gorgeous and there were tons of people out tanning, which was crazy considering it is still winter here and yesterday it was 42 degrees and raining. We spent about 5 hours at the reserve watching birds...I have to admit I got bored really, really quickly. I learned a lot though, I recorded in a little notebook about 25 species in all. The most exciting was a pair of wild parrots. Also the cardinals here are really pretty. For the next class we are staying overnight, should be fun!

Concert update: things are looking up from here. Queen is coming, a band I like called the Kaiser Chiefs, a band I've seen but would love to see again called Animal Collective. I'm reluctant to buy tickets to Madonna, because the concert is December 6th which is when we are done with classes and prime traveling time. Madonna's music isn't exactly typical of what I listen to, but it is so classic. The woman is 50 years old. I'm sure the tour is amazing, despite her stupid Obama/McCain opener.

As good as the food is here, it is impossible to get a good salad or sandwich. A salad is essentially strands of iceberg lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and maybe carrots if you're lucky with oil and vinegar. Dressing does not exist. A sandwich = bread and meat. But, in very close vicinity to my apartment, there are two amazing healthy little restaurants that are essentially American. One is called "Natural Deli," yes, in English, which has this amazing salad with quinoa, apples, chicken, and vinaigrette. It is also one of the few places I've seen here with tofu. The other place is called Pura Vida, which has wheat grass smoothies and yummy wraps. It was opened by a guy from Miami and so far I've seen a few Americans there. I didn't realize how much I missed healthy Weaver Street style food but I've been lucky to find these places and they are perfect for lunch.

Thursday night I went with some friends to a bar that is an old mansion, called Million. It was gorgeous. We were sitting in a room and all of a sudden in the corner pops out this black cat who of course decides to jump up on my lap and lie down (allergic to cats). Instead of pushing him off I realized that this was my chance to get in some cuddly animal affection time in, which I miss a lot. I did get some sniffles but it was worth it. Imagine being a cat living in a mansion-turned-bar...

Ever since I got here I have been looking for the perfect pair of knee-high leather boots. Since it is winter boots are everywhere and a lot are on sale. On my way to the gym I always pass a little hole-in-the-wall leather store, and the other day I finally decided to go in. As I was trying a pair on, I was talking to who I presumed to be the owner of the store about the brand, because there was nothing imprinted inside the shoe. He told me the store was owned by him and his two brothers, and he showed me in the back where he had a crazy antique sewing machine and pieces of leather all over the place. The price of the boots was very reasonable considering that everything was made by hand! I feel like I found a gem and of course I love the boots.

I've made a few Argentine friends here, and last night during a conversation they out of the blue said that my Spanish was good! I must be doing something right.

As you probably know my internet connection has had some issues, I think at this point it is "fixed" but at times acts up. I think I'm going to try to go to an internet cafe once a week, and they have Skype there. I'm afraid to take my laptop out to cafes with wifi because if anything happened to it it would pretty much be the end of my life.

Chau!