Where I lived and studied in Cordoba

This is my last post for at least 24-36 hours. This afternoon I board the bus for San Carlos de Bariloche, a small resort town in the Andes mountains on Lake Nahuel Huapi. It is supposed to be beautiful, even the two men who run the local mini-grocery market where I have been buy fruit responded last night to my statement that it was the last time I would see them because I was going to Bariloche the next day with "Que linda" & "muy bonita!" (How beautiful!) I wanted to give you one more quick post about where I have been studying and living and with whom in Cordoba. I will have to add the Kodak link to more pictures of my home interior later when I have better computer access, but for now here are the pictures of my teacher, my home-stay family, and the locations.

The first picture shows my hostess, Señora Maria del Carmen Linzitto (Luli to those who know her and love her [which includes the 110 foreign students she has hosted in her home in the past 10 years, along with countless Argentine students as well]), with Fanny Lopez, a young woman living here while she works to raise money to pay for her to become a missionary to Mozambique, and Shigeharo Fujimoto, a Japanese student studying Spanish at the University of Cordoba. The second picture is Luli's home, entered through the left hand door of the two shown, to go upstairs to the apartment. My bedroom is the upstairs window at the far right.

The third picture is of me with my teacher in Cordoba, Señora Olga Yanovich de Parmigiani. Finally, there is a picture of the building which held the school, on the seventh floor, yes the top floor, but there was a lift, thank goodness. Now that I am leaving, these are the people and places I spent much of my time with, although as you have already read, I did see a lot and spent every afternoon out and about. I will try to post pictures of the people and places I live and study in Bariloche earlier in my stay there. Until I post from Bariloche, Adios y ciao!

The end of a good week in Cordoba

I am about to wrap up my week in Cordoba. It was a very good decision to come here. The weather has been very warm, in the 70s almost every day. I have only worn my jacket really in the morning, some in the late afternoon/early evening. It was a true immersion experience, with no one around me speaking English and having limited contact with home. I did finally find the CNN in English channel in time to watch Barack Obama's acceptance speech. I definitely feel as though I have been learning Spanish on a fast track this week. Also, this place is filled to overflowing with history. I also feel like I have been on a crash course in the history of the Jesuits, of Cordoba, of Argentina, of all South America. I have visited churches, and museums, until I am filled to overflowing with information. I am actually looking forward to my 21 hour bus ride to Bariloche. Basically moving from here to there will take me the better part of two days and the down time for my brain to process what I have absorbed this week will be wonderful. I am also looking forward to the scenery, although everyone I talk to around here says it will be "boring" (or as they say "burrado".) But it will all be new to me.

I got a taste of the landscape today by going on a mini-bus to Alta Gracia, a small town about 50 kilometers south-west of Cordoba. It is in the foothills of the Sierra mountains, so I saw flat, flat, flat (like west-Texas flat) terrain and then low mountains. It is a nice little town that grew up around an Estancia (one of the ranches the Jesuits founded to support their mission work). It also is the place Che Guevara´s parents brought him as a young boy looking for a better climate for his asthma. He basically grew up here, living here and in Cordoba until he went off to Medical School in Buenos Aires. The museum was quite interesting, and I took lots of pictures for my son Paul, but it is one-sided. It acknowledges his revolutionary activity, but without any detail about his participation in executions, etc. in Cuba which has made him so hated by the Cuban people. Still, it was a very interesting place.

I won't say much more about Cordoba or Alta Gracia, as I cannot still add many pictures. I hope my computer situation improves in Bariloche. I will add one more post either later tonight or tomorrow morning with some photos of my hostess and my home and school here in Cordoba. I will then bring you more updates and, hopefully, more pictures of Cordoba next week from Bariloche. I have the feeling that I will not be as busy in Bariloche, as it is primarily an outdoor resort type town and the weather is supposed to be cold (in the 30s & 40s) with rain, which suggests that I may be spending a good bit of time inside. If so, assuming my computer can connect to WI-FI than I will be able to catch you up on this past week and a little bit remaining from Buenos Aires.

The pictures above are of the Sierra mountains from Alta Gracia; me in front of the Che Guevara Home Museum (kindly taken by a young woman from Costa Rica); a fountain in Cordoba; and the oldest church in Cordoba lit up at night. If you want to see more pictures, follow these links to the Kodak Gallery Albums I have created. This first link takes you to more photos of the Che Guevara Home museum: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.cfz0t4kq&x=0&y=-dshwcs&localeid=en_US

This second link takes you to more photos of the Estancia: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.3qrnum4q&x=0&y=l52cwz&localeid=en_US

Church Worship in Cordoba

One of the first things I did upon arrival in Cordoba was attend a service of worship on Sunday evening. It was at the church which my hostess attends. She was so excited when she learned a pastor was staying in her home. She also has a young woman studying and preparing to become a missionary from this church to Mozambique, once she learned English, French, and raises the funds for her mission. Anyway, it was an excellent opportunity to experience worship in Argentina since I would have someone to go with and would not have to walk in alone, as a total stranger. As it turned out Luli, my hostess, had to visit a friend in the hospital and did not make it to church (which started at 5:30 p.m., the first service for Sunday, the second started at 8:00 p.m.) but Fanny, the young woman preparing for a mission and the Japanese student studying Spanish at the University and staying here, accompanied me to their church.

The Church is called Iglesia de Centro Christian and was founded 16 years ago by an Assembly of God missionary from the United States. Since that time this church, which is not huge (but did appear to have more attendance than Christ Congregational) has sent out 40 missionaries into the world. This night had a mission focus. It was led by their Director of Missions and the preacher was a guest missionary who is Argentinian but has a mission to Italy. He shared photos on his experience the past 8 years and he preached a message which I think (it was all in Spanish) was on the gospel story of the young man challenged by Jesus to give up all and follow him. The message seemed to be about the difficulty of following Jesus, especially in mission work, but that the ultimate reward was worth it. Again, I am not sure of the finer points.

The worship was very much like Assembly of God worship in the US. They had a Praise Team that led a lot of singing, several songs I recognized, though of course they were in Spanish. There were several pauses for prayer, for personal testimonies, and for special mission appeals. The entire worship lasted 2 hours and I was tired after, primarily because it was very hard work to follow in Spanish and try to stay focused. Again, I have a deeper appreciation for those who have limited English capacity and try to follow our worship, even for only one hour. If you want to see some pictures of the worship leadership team, follow this link to the Kodak Gallery album I have created: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.29ljy8sa&x=0&y=-dmmvjb&localeid=en_US

Warm Days Bring Warm Memories

The past two days in Cordoba have been gloriously warm. Evidently they are having a very warm winter, which is fine for this Miamian who cannot get used to being this far south of Miami and usually being far colder than anything in Miami. (Just wait until I get to Bariloche! In the Andes! With snow! Brrrrr!) But Cordoba has been a welcome relief to my soul and my body. It has been pushing 30 degrees (that´s centigrade, folks, not Fahrenheit) which is in the mid-80s! The past two days I have been hot in my long sleeve shirts without my jacket! I could have been in short-sleeves, and probably will be tomorrow.

The sun and the blue sky and the warm temp brought back a nice memory of Buenos Aires. Early last week, in the middle of all the cold we had been having, Tuesday warmed up (though not quite this warm), the sun came out, and the sky was blue. I walked down to Plaza San Martin that afternoon to take some pictures and found the park filled with Porteños enjoying the sun. They were lying on the hillside in pairs, small groups, and solo. They were sitting on benches with their eyes closed, faces tilted toward the sun, drinking it in. I even saw one man in a business suit (very sharp looking) lying in the grass taking his siesta! It was a joy to see and to see them truly enjoying the warm weather. Undoubtedly part of my initial reaction to the city and to their hard, unsmiling faces when passing them on the busy streets the first few days after I arrived was due to the fact that I later learned they had not had sun for about 20 days straight. That would make any person sour and depressed. When the days warmed up they certainly appeared much happier and I began to catch a glimpse of the beauty and joy in their souls.

The pictures at the beginning of this post are from my first day in Cordoba, which illustrates how warm it was right from my arrival. If you wish to see the Kodak gallery album with pictures of my visit to Plaza San Martin, follow this link: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.a7sf63ru&x=0&y=-7csn5p&localeid=en_US

The places I stayed and worked

Now that I am in Cordoba, I want to try to catch you up on some things from Buenos Aires. Tomorrow or the next day I will share with you more of my impressions of Cordoba. The pictures I have posted are of the places I lived and worked in Buenos Aires. As you can tell, they are not real exciting, but they do, at the end of my time in those places (lo siento, sorry) let you know where I went home to every night, where I went to learn Espanol (although I have been corrected by my hostess and her amiga in Cordoba that I am learning Castellano, not Espanol, lo siento, again. They seem very big on their historical connection with Castelon, or is it Castillo, in Spain, from which the language originated here in Cordoba. This was the original location of education, culture, and the monied elite in Argentina long before Buenos Aires became a center of government and the country.) But I digress to Cordoba, let me get back to the past three weeks in Buenos Aires. The first picture is of Senora Vivi Restelli, my hostess for my three weeks in Buenos Aires at the language school. The apartment of Senora Restelli is in the second photo. It was on a busy avenue, Avenida Cordoba about 10 blocks from the school, on another busy street Calle Callao, just around the corner from one of the primary avenues, Avenida Corrientes, which in this area is the heart of the theater district. (It is the Buenos Aires equivalent to Broadway.) Her apartment is the balcony immediately above the door to the street. (I posted pictures of the inside of her apartment in an earlier post the beginning of August. ) [So you get a true feel for my life here, I do not have Internet access for my laptop, no WI-FI in the home where I am staying, so I am writing this while sitting outside at a cafe where I have internet access, but no power access, and so I am doing this while eating. I am enjoying a marvelous steak Milanese Neapolitan with mashed calbasas squash and I just got my sleeve in the squash while typing! Such is the life of a traveling pastor on sabbatical! By the way, you did catch that I am sitting outside. It is a glorious 70+ degrees out today. Feels like Miami!!!]

Anyway this post has become far longer than I intended. There is also a picture of the building the school is in (at least the one I attended, it is supposed to move to a new location the first of September). The school is located behind the third set of windows above the Libreria Santa Fe. Finally, there is a picture of the building which houses the dance studio where I took Tango lessons, again, not real exciting, but it is located on the fourth floor up from the ground. It turned out to be a wonderful stay and experience, my first three weeks in Buenos Aires. Senora Restelli is a fascinating woman who reads a lot, thinks deeply, has some off-beat ideas, but was a marvelous hostess. It was a pleasure and joy to stay with her and I got a very good idea what many, many Buenos Aires residents are like.

The Bus Ride to Cordoba

I am sitting in a cafe/restaurant having finished lunch, using their WI-FI access to update my blog. I am also watching a local futbol match on TV with several groups of futbol fans. It is just like being in Miami during football season! Anyway, sorry for no pictures with this post. I do not have access to a power plug and my battery is low, so I want to get this post up and if you read it without pictures, check back tomorrow or later and I will add some pictures of Cordoba to this post (they have been added.) I walked around this morning getting acquainted with the town, finding out where the school was located, looking for Internet access (as I could not get on in the home I am staying). I took lots of pictures as this is a very historic town. It actually seems to have it over Buenos Aires in terms of history. Evidently Cordoba was founded and built up earlier than Buenos Aires by the Jesuits who immediately began making it an educational and cultural center. It is much smaller than Buenos Aires, only 1,300,000 people, and it has definitely preserved more of the very, very old buildings, some dating to the 1500's. Anyway, I will add pictures later. It is definitely a more laid back, calmer city and I think it will be nice, much needed break for me. (Plus it is supposed to be warmer this week. Today with the sun out it must be somewhere in the 60s pushing 70s. It is supposed to go into the 80s, maybe get close to 90 on Thursday. Checking on a map I figured out Cordoba is at a similar latitude in this hemisphere to Jacksonville, FL in the northern hemisphere. Buenos Aires is about the same latitude as Charlotte, North Carolina.)

One reason my battery is running low is I did make sure to call Dianne early this morning, sitting in an empty plaza, using my battery power and connecting to whatever unsecured system I could find. I ended up talking longer than I planned because of the news she had to share. For those who have not heard, we have a new grandchild! Kati & Ryan had their baby early Sunday morning. Reese Ella Foley arrived at 1:57 p.m. on 24 August weighing 5 pounds, 15 ounces at 19 inches long. Mother and baby are fine (I also had to call Kati and congratulate her and hear about her delivery for myself.) I do not have pictures to post, but maybe Grandma Di will send me some!

Anyway, now to the bus ride here from Buenos Aires. Quite an experience. The bus was very comfortable. They have 3 options for buses here, semi-cama, coche-cama, and luxury. The semi-cama is cheapest, but the seats only recline about like an airplane seat. The luxury seats go all the way down like a bed, but they are very expensive. The coche-cama is a very good option which a lot of people use. The seats recline about like a barca-lounger and have a pedestal for your feet that comes down from the seat in front of you. So it is just like being an a very comfortable lounge chair. Many of us in the U.S. are use to this style of sleeping (usually in front of the TV) and would find these buses very comfortable.

What was problematic about the bus first was it was about 45 minutes late in arriving. Evidently this is very unusual as all the people waiting with me were quite disturbed, as was I. But it did show, I did not miss it. Then, it made several stops on the way to Cordoba which was very disturbing to me as the stations are not well marked and you cannot tell where you are very easily. I kept asking (Esta Cordoba?). The first stop I realized was not Cordoba, but the second disturbing thing happened here. We took on quite a few passengers and several were young men, apparently drunk, and spent about an hour talking rather loudly. Now understand this is already 11 p.m. or later and most people on the bus were already trying to sleep. So, I just put on my ipod to Kenny Chesney and tried to drown them out. The final upsetting thing was that when we arrived at Cordoba I was groggy having fallen back to sleep, and I left my best travel guidebook, the most recent edition I had from Bradt, on the bus. I was slow getting off, worried about getting my luggage, had to get change to tip the young man who took my suitcase out of the luggage bay (and who was insulted with 15 centavos, even though he kept it and indicated he needed more before he would release my suitcase) and so I ended up leaving my guidebook on the bus. (At least it wasn't something more important like my passport, or wallet, or travel journal where I am recording even more thoughts and experiences than I am sharing here. Sorry, I can expose only so much of myself publicly.) Unfortunately I did not get to see much of the countryside as it was dark the entire trip, but I was awake for a while once we reached Cordoba Province and what I could see in the dark suggest that it is flat as the Texas Panhandle. There did not appear to be a mound or hill, and I could see lights way off in the distance indicating towns. I hope to take an afternoon tour outside Cordoba to an estancia and I should be able to get a look at the landscape then. This has turned into a rather long post, so I better finish for now. But, if you would like to see a few more photos of my first walk around Cordoba, follow this link to the Kodak Gallery album: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.cm4dgwu2&x=0&y=6pniec&localeid=en_US

Signs of US influence

Burger King and McDonald's are certainly trying to take over the Buenos Aires meat market! You cannot walk more than about 3-4 city blocks on the main streets without encountering one or the other. That is sad to me. It is another sign of globalization, which is not totally bad, yet it is also a sign of the homogenization of world culture. And the Burger King's and McDonald's seem to be doing as much business as in the United States. One of my fellow students thought it was because it was cheap food, but I went inside to check the prices and they are about the same prices as in the U.S. and they are not much cheaper than what you pay for a much nicer lunch in a cafe, restaurant or bar.

One positive sign was how the Buenos Aires culture has influenced McDonald's. Here most of them have McCafe's. These are separate sections in the restaurant where you can buy a variety of coffee drinks, hot tea, and little pastry and dessert type snacks. It is evidence of the importance for portenos of their afternoon snack time, and of their consumption of coffee. At the regular counter the coffee you can purchase is regular McDonald's coffee, but at the McCafe you can find espresso, cortados, cafe con leche, etc. At least McDonald's has had to adjust somewhat.

There are other signs of North American influence around town. The bank where I have been using the ATM is a CITIbank. For some activities it is nice to see a familiar name. There is a greater level of trust and feeling that everything will go right. I saw a familiar real estate sign, plus there are establishments clearly run by North Americans, like the Alamo Bar and the Amerikan Restaurant, to name a couple. I even saw a California Burrito the other day, but it did not appear to be all that successful.

Of Plazas, Architecture & Politics

The day I took the pictures of the people with their dogs I had walked down to Plaza Congresso. This is a huge plaza in front of the Congress Building. Frommer's Buenos Aires Guidebook makes the point that "this building is a good example of the self-conscious Argentine concept of taking architectural elements of the world's famous buildings and reinterpreting them. For instance, it resembles the U.S. Capitol, with a central dome spreading over the two wings holding the bicameral legislatorial chambers. In addition, the ornamental bronze roofline calls to mind Garnier's opera house and the central pediment is topped by a Quadriga or Triumph carried by four horses, the whole appearance of which directly echoes the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin." (Take a look at the pictures by following the link below.)

In front of the Congress Building in the Plaza is a HUGE fountain called the Dos Congresos. It has many levels and contains statues of people, horses, lions, condors, cherubs and other ornaments. It is quite impressive. The plaza also contains a copy of Rodin's famous statue "The Thinker," as well as a plaque dedicated to the "Virgen de Lugan, Patrona de las Rutas Nacionales," (which the way they drive here they definitely need; although it probably wouldn't be a bad idea for us in Miami, either!) and a plaque dedicated to some of those who were abducted and disappeared by the Military Dictatorship in power during the 1970s.

The same day I also saw a demonstration or protest march down Calle Callao (the school on which my school is located) headed toward the Plaza Congresso and the Congress Building. It was very large, with lots of people, many of whom had children with them. It appeared to be many working class folks, many working moms and dads, and though I could not read the banners or signs they appeared to have union symbols and some were clearly related to public education. It was all very peaceful, with some drums being used and vendors walking along trying to sell food or drink. Since I have been here I have seen this march and in some other plazas, some other smaller demonstrations. It is obvious that people are dissatisfied (there is also a lot of evidence of poverty in the city, people sleeping on the streets, even some families. There are some more pictures of this in the Plaza Congresso set of photos.) At the same time, at least they feel free to express their opinions. That has not always been the case in this country.

Follow these links to see more photos.

This link will take you to pictures of the plaza and the Congress building: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.4mt9khka&x=0&y=-n6bgai&localeid=en_US

This link will take you to pictures of the march and some other street scenes: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.67ai27vu&x=0&y=5ks6mi&localeid=en_US

Portenos Love Their Dogs!

Portenos (the residents of Buenos Aires) love their dogs! As you can tell from these pictures from my walk today through the Plaza de Congresso and the streets of Buenos Aires you see many people walking with their dogs every day. It is very common, as well, for them to be walking their dogs without a leash, although most I saw today were using a leash. And the dogs when not on leash are amazingly connected to their owners, walking very close and never really straying from their side. Even street people have their dogs and even they are amazingly well behaved.

The one down side to their love of dogs is they do not clean up after them. There seems to be no "pooper-scoop" law and so there are numerous piles one must watch out for when walking the streets. And it does not matter the neighborhood - the most upper scale barrios are just as bad as the middle class or even working class places.

This Noisy City!!!

I am staying in today after Spanish language class as it is a damp, rainy, cold winter day in Buenos Aires. I thought I would share with you some reflections on the city, especially the noise! This is a very noisy city. Perhaps all cities are that way, but as I shared in an earlier post, I have never really lived in a downtown urban area, so this is a new experience for me. When I walk to school in the morning, or home at noon, the traffic is overwhelming. Many days the pedestrian traffic is as congested as the motor vehicle traffic. And the majority of streets are not very wife, so the two lanes of traffic are right next to the narrow sidewalks. And all of it is contained in concrete or brick canyons. That means the noise tends to stay at street level and sometimes is even amplified by the reverberation or echo effect. Plus it means you must stay on the sidewalk, for the taxis, cars and buses are right next to you and you dare not step off the sidewalk or you will be in their right of way. With the high pedestrian congestion, it means you have navigate people walking at different speeds which can mess you up quite easily. It all becomes one huge dance, but not a tango. No where near as coordinated.

I have noticed one interesting phenomenon though, if I am able to keep walking at my regular pace, which is pretty quick, I am able to walk several blocks without having to stop for lights! It seems there is a pace you can walk which gets you to the next cross street just as the light changes. I don't know if this is on the regular cycle, or every other cycle, for the cars, but when the pedestrian traffic does not slow me down I am able to keep walking without stopping at each cross street for several blocks in a row. Can't do that in Miami!

The fact that most of the streets, including many of the busiest Avenues, are one way makes pedestrian travel easier. Once you realize which way the traffic originates, you don't really have to worry about looking the other way when crossing a street. Other than, making sure that there are no turning vehicles when crossing a street at an intersection. Even though you have the right of way as a pedestrian, when you are crossing with the light, the vehicles from the perpendicular street that wish to turn, either right or left, depending on which way your side streets traffic flow goes, are not shy about making the turn with pedestrians in the crosswalk. Again, it becomes a sort of dance between the vehicles and the pedestrians at each crosswalk.

The hazards of living in a big city: dangerous vehicle traffic, heavy pedestrian traffic, lots of noise, (from the vehicles, the construction, the emergency vehicle sirens), the exhaust fumes, the dog excrement on the sidewalk, the pigeon droppings from above. It is no wonder many, many people walk the streets with ipods plugged into their ears, and very serious expressions, not a smile on the lot. Life in the big city is tough, and not for the faint of heart.

The Things that Make Buenos Aires Home-y

After the three day weekend, I went back to school and language classes. But most important, I went back to my regular lunch place! Phillip and I found the Cafe/Bar La Nuevo Martone at the end of week one, after trying several other places and having so-so lunches. We fell in love with this place from the moment we walked in and sat down at the counter. The prices looked good, the food turned out to be very, very good, and the waiters very helpful, friendly, and hospitable. We were at home. Even though we struggled with the language, and for the first two days had to basically point at some other patron's plate or a sandwich or quiche-like tart in a display case to indicate what we wanted to eat it was okay. The first few days they smiled at us benignly, the patrons sitting at the counter around us worked hard to hide their smiles, but it was all very warm and cozy feeling. We went back there every day during the week after class the second week, and even took other students with us: Eve one day, and Rhys the last two days. Each day we went we were growing more able to order in Spanish, growing more capable of understanding what was on the menu, ordering with more confidence we knew what would be brought to us by the wait staff. Today, I went back alone and both waiters came up and greeted me: "Hola! Que tal! Como estas? Muy bien!" I ordered from the menu in Spanish, even asking for a half bottle of red wine (un vino tinto media) and knew what was coming and sure enough what came was what I was expecting: ravioli with meat sauce (but the meat is chunks of beef!, not ground up hamburger or sausage.) The pictures above are of the two waiters. The one behind the counter is our usual waiter, named Marcello. I have wondered whether I should go and try some other places for lunch to get more variety and a wider taste of the cooking, but I have decided that for the rest of this week what I need is a place that is comfortable, where I know I am going to get a good meal at a good price. I have been trying other places on the weekends, and I am going to Cordoba and Bariloche for the next three weeks and when I return to Buenos Aires I will be living in Palermo, which is too far to go to La Nuevo Martone each day for lunch. So, I have decided this will continue to be my place for this week, and then on Friday I will say ciao! Adios! and be on my way. (Although I know I will return probably at least once when I get back, and definitely will need to take Dianne to visit the "gang" and enjoy lunch there one day when she arrives.)

La Boca Barrio

Today I went to La Boca barrio, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. First, you may be wondering why I went there and not to school on Monday. Because today was a national holiday celebrating General Jose de San Martin, the liberator of Chile and Peru from Spain in the 1800's, which helped solidify Argentina's Independence as well. So we had no school.

Back to La Boca. I went with Rhys, a young student from Wales and England whom I met at the language school these past two weeks. He has finished his time here (5 weeks for him) and this was his last day before returning to England, and next month beginning his law studies at Cambridge. We went to La Boca to take pictures of the brightly colored buildings and enjoy the art fair and Tango dancers in the street.

La Boca is the "Little Italy" of Buenos Aires - the place where the Italian and Portuguese immigrants settled. It was the working class barrio - filled with tanneries, meat packing plants, paint factories, etc. It was because the people used the left over paint from the factories that their houses became such a bright collage of color. La Boca was also the birthplace of Tango and of course is the home of the famous La Boca Juniors futbol club - the club that produced the great Diego Maradona. The community definitely has spirit for their soccer team, wherever you go you see "oro y azul" (gold and blue) (the team colors) as well as many shops that sell La Boca Juniors memorabilia.

La Boca is still a very rough neighborhood. At least according to the rumors, stories, and guidebooks. They tell tourists not to wander away from the tourist area and suggest you should not bring expensive cameras into the area (but it is such an interesting place that I had to take out my camera). They also say the police only patrol the tourist area during the daylight and then leave at sundown. It seemed safe enough to me, but we did follow the stories and took a taxi in and out of the tourist area, instead of trying to walk in from outside and passing through the regular neighborhood of La Boca. If you want to see pictures of the barrio or of the Tango dancers, follow these links to the Kodak Gallery Albums I created. This link goes to pictures of the neighborhood: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.ciq7wl0a&x=0&y=m7jvcc&localeid=en_US

This link takes you to pictures of Tango dancers in the street: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.470in80q&x=0&y=-7pah57&localeid=en_US

San Telmo and Puerto Madero

I went to San Telmo and Puerto Madero, two new barrios (neighborhoods) for me. San Telmo is one of the oldest barrios and Puerto Madero is one of the newer. San Telmo was the home of the very wealthy until the 1877 outbreak of yellow fever caused many to flee to newly developing areas north of the city center. This is also the area where Tango developed (and the area where the Bush twins were robbed). On Sunday the heart of the area, Plaza Dorrego, is taken over by an Antiques Fair, which actually spreads down Calle Defensa with street musicians, puppet masters, magicians, clowns twisting balloon animals, and more. It was a wonderful atmosphere and there was also some fascinating architecture, wrought-iron balconies, and murals on street walls. It was a wonderful place to visit.

Plus, I had a really delicious lunch. I ate at Bar El Federal, which is one of the barres notable, which is an historical designation tagged on a number of the bars that are around. This bar was constructed in 1864 and has a marvelous atmosphere with very old wood trim, and other decorative items that lead you to feel you have stepped back in time at least 60 years. I had a pollo sandwich Federal (which was a large chicken breast, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, grilled red pepper, bacon, and a fried egg! all on a french baguette.) It was huge! But I ate it all (and then walked off all those calories the rest of the afternoon.) An interesting thing occurred at lunch. There was a painting on the wall of the bar of a man and I recognized it at Carlos Gardel, one of the most famous, old time Tango singers. The joy of the moment was to realize that I have been here long enough and become immersed in the culture to the point where I could recognize his picture without reading a label.

After enjoying the street fair in San Telmo, I walked over to Puerto Madero. This is the newest barrio in Buenos Aires. In fact, it is still under construction. This is the Miami Beach of Buenos Aires! It was once a dilapidated port, the area is now filled with an abundance of restaurants (very high priced) in renovated warehouses. New construction is also going on building high-rise office and apartment buildings. Besides the very modern construction, the major highlight of the area is the Bridge of Woman, a pedestrian walkway across one of the port canals. It was designed by Santiago Calatrava, who is said to have designed it after the silhouettes of Tango dancers. It is a stunning piece of engineering and design.

It was a most enjoyable day. Wherever I walked I saw many, many portenos out walking with family and loved ones, especially many families out with their children, enjoying the warmer weather, the sunshine, the sights, and the chance to be relaxed and out enjoying the day with the ones they loved. If you want to check out more pictures of San Telmo and Puerto Madero, here are the links you may use to go to the Kodak Gallery albums I have created. Use this link to reach pictures of San Telmo: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.529ot3oa&x=0&y=m543xa&localeid=en_US

Use this link to reach pictures of Puerto Madero: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=6d2p4u6.3edn2f2y&x=0&y=jgy96j&localeid=en_US

I have made it through two weeks of Spanish class

Today I completed my second week of Spanish language classes. My fellow student, Phillip Lolonis received his Certificate of Completion for 40 classes (basically 40 hours) of Spanish Language. After we had our final lunch together at our favorite local Bar/Cafe, La Nueva Martone (which was one of our best finds in Buenos Aires so far) he got on a bus for Bariloche, where he will scout out the terrain for me prior to my arrival there in two weeks. Actually, he is taking two weeks of lessons there so he can enjoy the skiing (at which he is quite experienced) and look for more good Argentinian wines. Above is a group picture of some of the students who were in school here these past two weeks, most of whom are leaving after today for other adventures or to return home. Therefore, I will have a private class next week, sort of a one-on-one tutoring session for my lessons. I am actually excited about that, as I think with the foundation laid this week I will make some excellent progress in that sort of setting for a change.

After two weeks of language classes and 15 days in total in Buenos Aires, I have become much more comfortable here and have a better understanding of my initial difficulties. I have traveled all over the United States; to France, Switzerland, and England when I was 18 years old; to Italy in 2004 and Israel in 2006, and I have never really experienced culture shock. I have always considered myself a very open person, accepting of different people and cultures, and excited to experience different places. I still consider that to be true. But I must admit that my first days in Buenos Aires I was reeling from culture shock. I don't fully understand why. Perhaps the weather played a part: it was gray and cloudy, cold and dreary my first three days. Perhaps being here alone: I have traveled alone in the U.S., but I have never traveled overseas alone, always in a group or with my wife. Perhaps it was landing in a big city which is experiencing very tough economic times and encountering a people for whom life is very tough right now. I don't really know, but I do know that by beginning to gain a grasp on the language; by meeting people, both those who speak English from the States, England, and other countries; and by meeting and getting to know local Argentineans, all that helps to make me feel at home and not such a stranger in a strange land. It does help me learn again, (a lesson I already understood, but which I now understand in a new way, at a deeper level of my being) the importance of hospitality to the stranger. A warm welcome makes all the difference in the world to someone who is a stranger in a strange land!

Yo comprendo Espanol mas y mas cada dia.

Spanish classes this week are going GREAT!!! We have a new teacher (they rotate your teacher every week to give you broader exposure to different ideas.) Se llama es Maria Alejandra (Ale)Yaconis. (Her name is Maria Alejandra [Ale] Yaconis.) Heritage is Greek and Italian. She has worked at helping us build our vocabulary, systematize our understanding of Spanish verbs, and worked with us in simple oral exercises to build our skill in conversation. I still have a long way to go, but her approach, along with the extra work I have been intentional about doing this week, has moved me along tremendously. I am beginning to be able to communicate in simple fashion around town. I am much more able to understand what I am hearing from people (especially when I can get them to despacio [go slowly] and repite [repeat].) I am also beginning to be able to read the headlines and understand the news headlines on TV. I still have a long way to go in understanding what the reporters are saying about the stories, but I was able to understand the story about the disappearance of tres emprasarios (three managers) who were in their thirties who disappeared over the weekend and the update today after they found their bodies yesterday and that they had clearly been murdered, in execution style. I am no expert, but I am beginning to feel like I will actually learn this language. (I still struggle to read what Antonia is writing in the comments, but I am even getting there, little by little. I go back and reread them each day and each day I understand a little more what she has written.) All of it is helpful. I think this weekend I will be able to post some more observations and reflections about life in Buenos Aires. But for now, I must study!

Tango Classes!

My Tango classes have begun. Actually, my first free class, (part of my registration fee to the Language school) was my first Monday in Buenos Aires. This past Monday I started the classes I am paying for and had a class Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. My teacher is Guadalupe Garcia, a young, vivacious woman who is a very good dancer and an excellent teacher. Last Friday she had invited Philip and I, her two students on that first Monday, to be her guests at a Tango Show in which she was dancing. It was a "History of Tango on the Radio" in Buenos Aires. There were 8 dancers (4 couples) and 4 Cantare (singers) and a Tango orchestra composed of two bandaneon (accordions), a pianist, a violin, a bass, and another instrument which I am forgetting at this time. It was an excellent show. Phillip and I joked that is was sponsored by AARP of Buenos Aires, because when we arrived at the Theater there was a long line of elderly patrons waiting to enter and more getting off a large tour bus. Upon entering the theater almost all the seats were occupied by older portenos (residents of Buenos Aires). We were clearly the youngest people in the audience. They loved the show, I am sure because it brought back many memories. I loved the show as a tourist, because it gave me a taste of Tango through the years.

Anyway, Guadalupe has been teaching Philip and I the basic steps of Tango, which begins with the idea that you are basically walking to music. Then you start adding "box" type steps in sixes and eights. And then it becomes more complicated from there. The first night she was working with just the two of us, so all she had to do was teach us the man's steps and she would alternate dancing with us as a partner and let us each practice alone the other time. Then this past Monday a new student showed up, Eve, from Paris, France, and so we had two men, two women but at the same time she had to now take time to show Eve the woman's step and then show us the man's steps. On Tuesday, Guadalupe was not well, so she sent a friend, Emiliano, to teach. He was excellent as well and gave us a different perspective, emphasizing different aspects of the Tango. Tonight Guadalupe returned, but Eve was not there and this time Guadalupe did have Philip and I dance together, one taking the man's role and the other the woman's role. (That was not fun, but it was instructive and actually helpful to get a feel for what the woman is experiencing.) But mostly she alternated again between the two of us.

The Tango is a very intimate dance, as almost all dancing is. It is a simple dance in some respects, but very, very complicated in truth. That is, you can learn to dance the basics quickly and simply, but there are so many options and the longer you dance it and the more you study it the more you learn and the more variations on the basics you can add. I think I will take some more private lessons next week with Guadalupe and then when Dianne joins me in October, maybe we will take some lessons with her as well. Argentinians take their Tango very seriously and there are milongas (dance halls for Tango) each open for dancing on different nights for different hours. Many of them don't start until 10 - 11 p.m. and go until 3, 4 or 5 in the morning. Tango is definitely something one must experience in Buenos Aires if you are to taste the full scope of life here.