tigre
On sunday, we went to an area of gran buenos aires, called tigre. (It is basically a subarb of the city). We went with a french girl from cam’s class, as well as her two friends from france, a swede (emma was very happy to meet someone affiliated with her bloodline), and an argentine. Given the random mix of nationalities, spanish was obviously the primary means of communication.
We met at the Retiro train station, and took an hours train ride to the municipio. After arriving we had lunch along the river, and we took a ferry to an island of tigre, and walked around for a bit. The area is located in a delta, and is known for its series of canals and small rivers, as well as being a tranquil area so close to the center of the city. (we could really feel and smell the difference between tigre and capital federal).
All in all, it was a relaxing day, although emma may have been a little overwhelmed with the language…it is worth nothing that she did understand quite a bit, and the swede later decided to show off her english.
We came back by colectivo (bus), which passes directly in front of our apartment. I think that means we may be going back!
PS- the water, because it is located in a delta, is normally this shade of brown. However, one river also flows down from Brazil- 1000s of miles- so it could be polluted as well (even though more than a few decided to jump in!)
moving in…
hehehe,, Cameron is the one taking a nap this time!
Less than 24 hours after we first entered the apt. we started moving in. true to form, I (emma )brought all my shoes first, as i didn’t know what else to bring. we spent most of the day cleaning and re-arranging the furniture in the living room, which proved to be difficult as we had to fit in a single bed without making it look awkward.. which actually it still kinda does. But thanks to Cameron’s genius, we can pull it off. once re-arranged we felt much more at home and excited to begin the transformation of the rooms.
The bedrooms both get a good amount of light, and also have wooden blinds to block out light, so i am excited to take my fist nap in my new room. Cameron was smart enough to bring pictures to make her bedroom feel more comfortable, but as i was in many of the pictures she lent me a few for the time being… such a good friend!
we were also able meet the “landlord”. he was in his upper sixties, with a large nose and a pink jolly complexion. Although the woman who rented us the apt warned us about his inquisitive nature, he was in the middle of lunch and did not ask us too many questions but, promptly informed us that if we need anything at all we should go to him, and also that we were not just renters in this apt building but now part of a bigger family.
We still need many more things.. such as plants… wall hangings… forks… and sheets without little black hairs in them… but the apt is more than what we had hoped for.
After cleaning, arranging our shoes, and talking with the landlord we walked around the neighborhood a bit and were pleasantly surprised at the clean air, and tree lined streets. There are also many shops up and down the street that will fill all our needs… fruit stands, coffee shops, pharmacies.. ect.
tonight we will cook our first dinner to break in the kitchen… Breaded meat, salad and of coarse vino tinto
more to come…
Finally!
We got an apartment…
Not the one we had decided to take, but one that we visited today, thought was cute (and much more in our price range), located in a really good, central, area of town.
The woman who showed us the apartment informed us that we were the first to see it, and it would be first “confirm,” first “to rent,” so we decided to run to the bank, withdraw money for a deposit, and sign the contract. It is not the sleekest or biggest apartment we have seen, but as Emma rightly pointed out “it has character” which trumped every other “nice” place we have visited so far. We plan to put up photos once we decorate it, but all-in-all, we are very happy with the place (we also have roof access). Another plus- she said we could move in ASAP, so we’ll begin to transfer some of our stuff over tomorrow and we can transition out of the dark, one-bedroom apartment we are staying in now.
It looks like we also have an extra bed, so visitors are welcome!
acudimos a las urnas
Because the elections here occur on Sunday (and because I am waiting for Emma to wake up from a nap) I figure now is a pertinent time to talk a bit about the political climate. I assume that the basics are being broadcast where you are: that Cristina Kirchner, wife of the current president, is the frontrunner and will win barring some major political blunder. Her closest competition is another woman, Elisa Carrio– so it looks like Argentina is going to ELECT their first female president (the first woman president in the country was Isabel Peron, who, as vice president, replaced her husband after his death). The majority of Argentines we have talked to about elections up to this point (o sea- middle class people from Buenos Aires, cab drivers, and waiters) do not like Cristina and think that Elisa is worse. However, they all concede that Cristina will win.
Another interesting subject that I think should be highlighted is that in Argentina there is a legal obligation to vote. While a large percentage of votes may be blank ballots or even cancelled, everyone legally needs to turn out on Sunday unless they are over 70 years old, sick, or live more than 500km from a voting station.
One final note I would like to end on is a quote that I read in the newspaper the other day which I think highlights the different mentality that exists here about voting (at least compared to the US and Canada). A rough english translation follows the spanish:
El proximo domingo habra elecciones. Por sexta vez consecutiva, elegiremos a nuestro presidente y vicepresidente, ademas de senadores y disputados nacionales y autoridades locales. La posibilidad de votar a quienes nos representan es un logro de toda nuestra sociedad.
Translates: Next Sunday there will be elections. For the sixth consecutive time, we will select our president and vicepresident, as well as senators, national deputies, and local authorities. The possibility to vote for those that best represent us is an achievement for our entire society.
the endless search…
On sunday night, we put in a request for the slightly more expensive but overall favorite apartment in Palermo. However, we are starting to grow frustrated because we still haven’t received confirmation. At this point, we are hoping we can still attribute it to Latin time, but if not, we’ll have to resume our search tomorrow….
***UPDATE- apparently they showed the apartment to some other people who have expressed interest, and the landlady will make her decision tonight. We, however, are not holding our breath and we have scheduled to see another apartment tomorrow afternoon.
cursos.
We are now on day two of our Spanish course at the Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). This is a massive public school with multiple campuses throughout the city, and is considered by the majority of Argentines to be the most prestigious university in the city. It is also the cheapest- university is free for all Argentines, and our course (which lasts until December) is fairly reasonable.
Our classrooms, housed in the facultad de filosofia y letras, are about a 15 minute walk from our apartment now. Emma starts at 9am and cam at 11. Emma says that her class is easy, and she understands more than most of the students. However, this gives her more confidence to talk in class. Cam is enjoying her class because it gives her some much needed grammar review, and she has met a girl from Paris, and, somewhat ironically, two guys who were friends in high school and decided to move down to Buenos Aires together for nine months.
jenga… the greatest game on earth?
we have a new obsession, which could possibly sink to new lows if we decide to rent a certain apartment in Palermo– a resto-bar just around the corner that provides patrons with jenga blocks. Last week, we spent at least three hours at this local joint (we were the last people to leave). The game- combined with two bottles of wine the our Australian friend took particular amusement in- “wanka” and “wayna” wines- made for the most intense game of jenga ever played (well, at least by us). This local bar definitely is a “pro” for this apartment.
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| bowling and jenga |
PS- at the bar we had ossobuco- meat that has been slowly stewed for 5+ hours and a rocket-parm salad. Que delicioso!
agua con gas… mi amor
Emma has discovered the world of agua con gas… maybe she just likes the name… or possibly it goes a little deeper. now that we are informed that tap water (agua de la canilla) is no good for the body, we have turned to bottled water. And with this transformation agua con gas is winning in the competition between flat boring water and fun bubbly water.
this is my ode to agua con gas… everyone should indulge
the apartment search continues…
the past few days have been pretty intense with apartment searching and viewing. We have looked at all price ranges, in many different areas of the city, and sent off dozens of emails. We are narrowing in on a couple of apartments, but the search overall has been pretty discouraging– prices have risen so much, and hidden fees, such as realtor commissions push the monthly rents up even higher (ie, one apartment, listed at $700/month, was actually $850 due to a monthly $150 realtor commission).
We hope to know by the end of the weekend which place we will take…
“I hate tourists”
These were some of the introductory words muttered by a 57-year-old Australian woman we encountered at a recent “young” expat function at a bar in Las Canitas. We should have realized that she was a little smothering when the man we had been talking to immediately turned around and left when she joined our conversation. Some of the highlights of the conversation (all on her end) included:
- “I hate tourists. I hate them so much. The other day, I was standing on a bridge looking at the lakes of Palermo and a whole group of them came over and tried to invade my space. So I didn’t move. I had my back to them and they were surrounding me and I still held my ground. After five minutes I realized that they were trying to take a group photo and I was in the middle of it with my back to the camera, so I finally left.”
- “This wine is terrible. It’s so overpriced, and I only ever have one glass.” we were later enlightened to the fact that she shows up to every event, says she is going to only have one glass and negotiates to pay only 5 pesos- 15 pesos is unlimited- and then proceeds to consume multiple glasses. She also said it was only her second time at the expat function, however, we were later informed that she comes to every event.
- “The food is so expensive at this restaurant. It is so overpriced because of all these tourists. I am going to go home and make a salad. It is much cheaper.”Five seconds later, the waitress comes up and informs her of a 20 peso special on gnocchi- although she can’t understand a word of what the waitress is saying- Cam translates, and she orders the most expensive item on the menu.
Later…
- “You can either live cheaply or live well.”
- “My spanish school here is ripping me off. They only gave me a 50% tuition scholarship, while the others that teach english have a full scholarship. They may be full-time English teachers there, but I am a substitute, and I am going to stay here forever. Well, at least that’s what I’m going to tell them, they don’t know the difference. They’re getting the better treatment and I deserve the better treatment.”
At this point, Cam excuses herself from the conversation and Emma remains stuck with her in the corner.
- “Back in Australia, I was a nurse. I hate the medical profession and everyone in it. I have been a nurse for 40 years, but I’m just not the nursing type.”
- “One reason I left Australia is that my son is marrying a bitch. The other is that all my married friends are boring me and they keep going on about their husbands. you can only be friends with someone for so long without getting bored.”
At this point, Cam sends someone over to rescue Emma from the situation. The next time we see her, she is enjoying her gnocci and staring at Emma outside.
