La Primera Semana

Hoy es miércoles, and tomorrow will be the end of my first week in Buenos Aires. I really can't believe that I get to spend another five months in this beautiful city. I have to keep reminding myself that I don't have to see everything immediately; there will be time to see the city and enjoy it quietly.

After a lazy last day in New York and the most expensive taxi of my life to get to Newark Airport, I flew to Houston, where the plane picked up the other lucky travelers on their way to Buenos Aires. There were a number of other American students from my program (CIEE-FLACSO) on the plane and we all awkwardly stood around, discussing whether or not we over packed. On the flight I sat next to a guy who had recently finished his mandatory conscription in the Israeli army and was headed to South America to travel with his friends for six months. We chatted about his travel plans, and my study plans. After an uneventful flight, we landed at Ezeiza International Airport. A charter bus took a large group of CIEE students, or Flacsitos as we are called, to the hotel were we stayed for two nights until everyone moved into their respective housing. That evening the entire group went to eat at a very nice restaurant in the Puerto Madero neighborhood. I felt bad for the other patrons, having to share the restaurant with a group of 120 American students, but the food was quite good and accompanied by, of course, local Argentine wine. 

The next day we began our orientation by meeting the staff, taking a test to gauge our proficiency in Spanish, and learning how to use the colectivos. In Buenos Aires there are a few subway lines (it is called the subte) but the main mode of public transportation are the buses. There are over 500 different bus lines! The stops are not always clearly marked, sometimes distinguished by "that tree over there," and the buses only take correct change, which I am learning, is hard to come by in Buenos Aires. Everyone wants to keep theircentavos for themselves. The orientation activities were for the most part helpful and sometimes redundant - like most orientation activities. That evening I ventured out with some newly made friends to a Greek restaurant in the Palermo neighborhood, where we watched heel slapping dancers and broke plates on the ground. It was a true tourist experience. After the waiter tried to give us menus in English and I spied two other tables of Americans, I decided to try and avoid restaurants recommended by the guide book.

The next day everyone split into small groups and we took walking tours of a small area in Buenos Aires. My group visited Puerto Madero, the newest, and some say most expensive, area of town. The neighborhood has only recently become a restoration project for the city, beginning in 1989. The area was the original location of a new canal, at the end of the 19th century. Madero's design however was obsolete by the time the project was finished and Buenos Aires had to build another port, this time by Huergo. Madero's canal is now recognizable because of Santiago Calatrava's Puente de Mujer, built in 2001.

 

Later we visited the ecological reserve on the edge of the water. During the last regime of military dictators in the late 1970's and early 1980's the land was created to expand the city, but when nothing was immediately done with it, flora and fauna began moving in, and in 1986 a group of ecologists convinced the government to turn it into a reserve. While it might not be considered a spectacularly beautiful destination (my host family says they haven't been there in six years) I found it charming in its simplicity. There were no enormous tropical plants, and the river is brown from the sediment, but seeing modern glassy skyscrapers rising from behind the slightly rundown Costanera Sur, was spectacular in its own right.  

That afternoon I moved in with my host family, a young married couple, in the Recoleta neighborhood. Leo, the husband owns his own business, and Soledad, the wife, is studying Marketing. I am their fifth student, so they know the drill, which I think really helps. We eat dinner together most nights, and watch Argentine talk shows. The shows are like US Weekly, but every night, and on TV - I can't wait until I know all of the local personalities enough to enjoy the gossip. Soledad tries to explain all of the slang to me, but they all talk so fast, it's usually pretty hard to keep up. I think if one day I can understand RSM (that's the TV show), I will be very proud of my Spanish abilities. Anyway, my room at the apartment is really nice. I have a window facing the street with lots of light and a little desk where I can sit and study or use the computer, like I am right now. It is great to be living with two people who know the city so well, because they are so eager to help and answer all my questions. At the same time, we all have our separate lives and routines and they respect that. I have plenty of personal space, but I am not completely isolated. I feel really lucky to have such a great living situation.

But back to my Argentine adventures! On Sunday, the day after our caminata por Puerto Madero I wandered around Buenos Aires by myself for a good four or five hours. I walked in a few circles since my internal compass hasn't adjusted to this new city yet, but I think I am getting better. I took the subway a few times and ran into the famous Recolta Cemetary where many famous Argentines are buried, including Evita herself. Even though it was a Sunday and the entrance was crowded with tourists, it was easy to get lost and wander in solitude. Each tomb has its own personality and I think I could go a hundred times and find a new corner to explore. 

I can only hope that every weekend here I am so good about getting out and exploring the city! There is so much to see, I know that no matter how much I see, when it is time to leave in July, there will still be places that I didn't get around to visiting. I just hope those places are few and far between. 

This week so far has been filled with more orientation sessions reviewing program rules, the housing system, and other such information. We have just begun to learn about the registration process at the different universities where we can enroll and will begin registering at the beginning of next week. Most classes will begin the following week, and some even after that, so we all still have lots of free time on our hands. I have plans to go to Uruguay this weekend, which is just across the river and see Montevideo and Colonia. Hopefully the next post will involve lots of pictures of the beach!