BA dontcha know!

"Blast," as in an apt word to describe the amazing time showing the fam around the city, and also one of those quirky cartoon scientist exclamations upon disappointment. Like, "Blast, I can't believe I've put off writing in my blog for two months..."

Anywhow, as you rightly imagine, the Sit invasion was delightful. Minnesotan accents were flung all over the place, along with various limbs and shrieks of joy as I ran up to the fam getting out of the airport. Those innocent little midwesternn lambs, they had no idea what intense city-searching I had planned. Every day was filled with adventuring (and walking, lots of walking); we explored plazas, cemeteries, old ports, new ports, fairs, markets, and my kitchen (it's miniscule, there was a lot of rotating lap-sitting).

Without a doubt, the coolestmostwonderfulaweinspiringkneefallingmiraculous sight was Iguazu Falls. I practically leaped for joy every time a leaf moved or a butterfly flutted by--as is duly noted by the, err, six million pictures I took to document every unbelievably gorgeous thing. The falls are powerful, there are no words to describe. (see pictures!!)

To see all the sights, check out my picasa page (and I promise I'll go easy on the uploading). Thanks family for bringing some home down for us!

Love,
Lee

Hidden gems

The fun of being in a town this big is that you are always discovering something. Be it the most pleasant time to take the train (note: after lunch, around 1-2pm—the best musicians make the rounds and you can get a seat by the window), or a new favorite dive. Also, because the city is so gigantic, part of the challenge is finding the hidden corners and unknown gems that aren't so obvious to your tour-guide toting foreigners. Take last night's dinner, for example: there was no sign indicating a restaurant, and looking at the turn of the century house from the street of its residential neighborhood, you would never guess there was an especially delicious one hiding inside. Known only by word of mouth, and with a delicious rotating menu, you choose whether you want to eat in the dining or living room (I had sweet potato gnochi with herb cream sauce and Peter had beef curry with couscous). The entire dinner—sharing a comfy chair with Peter, chatting with friends, listening to and smelling the kitchen just through the next door—you really feel like you were invited to the best ever dinner party of hosts you've never met and with new friends just a table over.

Or, the weekend before—we ended up seeing an experimental music show/artist-made fun-fair located, of all places, in an abandoned factory. The machines were all left in their workspace and you feel like a definite trespasser making your way up the three floors to the industrial concert space. There were found-footage mash-up videos accompanying different artists destroying toy keyboards, ten foot tall collages being made in the moment, and questionable arts-and-crafts projects in all corners.
You literally have no idea what to expect in every turn of this city.

After six months, I still have that fresh-off-the-plane sense of excitement, sometimes within my own neighborhood. With only three months until we come back for family celebrations, we've gotten to the point where a certain end is within sight. But we know that we have to come back—if not for the simple fact that are curiosity won't let us rest with so much more unknown yet to be discovered.

Aniversario!

Our trip to Mendoza was unbelievable! The stars aligned and it just so happened to be convenient in our schedules to take a nine day trip during our anniversary to the gorgeous wine country and explore the Andes a bit. Everything was amazing--the clean, tranquil mountain town with amazing bakeries and Malbecs. I started trying to think about my favorite parts, and realized there's just too many--instead, here's my list to save you the agony of reading my indulgent detailing of everything amazing in the Andes:

Bus rides with three-course meals and beautiful scenery

Exploring the GIGANTIC park and all of the green space, taking naps in the shade and seeing mountains.

Fun restaurants and waiters who made fun of our "porteño"(Capital) accent

Completely nutso driver brought us through the Andes, thought I would die, but exhilarating. Gorgeous sights, took a hundred pictures.

Decided to stay a few days and explore Chile—so green, little streams coming down the mountain, cacti, trees, flowers…

Los Andes, el pueblo--probably the only tourists there, amazing ice cream, cute little town with music in the plazas at night.

More climbing and meandering around: hillsides not exactly made for tourists and we sort of made up our own “trails.”

Back to Mendoza—strange how much more “homey” it feels to be back in Argentina…especially when first arriving it felt so foreign.

What luck! Found an amazing apartment and we cooked some delicious meals to save money and enjoy our digs.

Rented bikes in Maipu and explored the different wine and olive bodegas. Tree-lined streets with fall leaves changing color, mountains in the distance, warm sun and cool air. We even made some friends at the last bodega and ended up sharing dinner together after.

Creativity on every corner! Painting, dancing, making music, free shows every night and lots of fun andando por los calles. Loads of people out and about, yet it felt completely relaxed.

Another luxury bus ride and it’s back home and back to work.

ps: See photos!! http://picasaweb.google.com/leeann.sit/ArgentinaOtono#

Just a rocking chair short

Well, as I told my friend the other day, I am slowly turning into the little grandma I’ve always wanted to be…that is, my crochet needles are getting practice, I spend many an afternoon chatting with the neighbors as they pass by,and our church’s average age is probably around seventy years old (and I’m being kind). Not to mention the fact that I’m also utterly elated to be able to wear my cozy cardigans and spend the afternoons sipping hot tea. I blame it on all this crisp air. Somehow I return to my grandparent’s expansive back yard and all I can think about is getting the leaf-pile big enough where you can get a decent splash jumping in. Maybe thinking about my sweet grandma, and perhaps hitting the grand old age of 24, has released my inner old-lady?

In any case, my birthday was utterly delightful. On the day itself I had to teach a class (mind you with fun twenty-somethings who are completely contented just laughing and chatting the whole hour), and I decided as a “present” to myself we’d do something fun. What does that mean for an English Language Learner’s classroom? That’s right, more songs. This particular day’s choice was “Stand By Me,” and I feel sorry for the workers nearby our room because we were--albeit, enthusiastic—not exactly a pleasant group to listen to singing cheesy Top 40 tunes. Ahh, the things we do in the noble work of learning…

We decided to celebrate-celebrate at the end of that week because Mr. Rhoades here fell ill. Luckily, by Friday poor Peter’s sinus pressure and sore throat turned into a constant faucet with dramatic blowing-the-nose fanfare--which I’m informed was an improvement. We were promised spicy food at a fancy Palermo restaurant (you know, clear out the sinuses)…Alas, and despite the chef’s personal warning to our table, the food was far from spicy, though a delicious change of pace from the Argentine trifecta of empanadas/pasta/pizza (we got papaya salad and pad thai!!). After, we discovered my all-time new favorite bar. Art of all mediums and colors, wallpaper from decades ago, random pots and pans, and plenty of unclassifiable odds and ends completely covered all of the walls; such that it created the effect of being perpetually lost just moving from room to room. Most importantly, they also have over fifty different kinds of board games just begging to accompany the fruit sundaes, milkshakes, or chocolate brownies listed on their handmade menus (apparently kitschy décor goes along well with American desserts..?). Check and check—one peach sundae and two games of Rummy later and I was in love with this place.

As a last birthday note, I want to say THANK YOU (!!!) to all of my amazing friends and family who sent me well-wishes. I love you all so much and it really made it special for me down here--muchisimas gracias!!

Well, that’s enough excitement for this old lady. With one crochet class under my belt, I’ve learned enough to keep me plenty occupied this weekend. So, if you’ll excuse me, I have a hot pad to make.

Paint this town roja!

We are having the honor this week of hosting Peter’s old friend, Pete (affectionately called Pedro Dos by our host family) in Buenos Aires this week. A really nice thing about having visitors is that we get to do all of the touristy stuff that we never force ourselves to do, but really ought to—all of that iconic stuff that is so quintessentially “Argentine.” So, for last weekend that meant one thing—FAIRS! BsAs has the best, most absolutely wonderful fairs in the whole world. Cobblestone streets for blocks and blocks filled with tango dancers and crafty stuff that I could just gobble up. Mime artists dressed as robotic angels(?), excellent live music wherever there’s space enough to set up, and somehow harmonious combinations of indigenous dress and wares set up in front of colonial European architecture. It’s rich for all of the senses. Expect presents from here.

We also finally made it to the Recoleta cemetery, one of those “top ten” sites that are so lauded. Well, it turns out for good reason. Yeah, it was crowded with tour groups (except for when we stayed accidentally after close!), but it really was quite aesthetic. Imagine a miniature city filled with gorgeous turrets, columns, stone angels and busts, all decorating…tombs. It was surreal how much it felt like a macabre city square, you expected to see a kiosko selling bubblegum on the corner. Peter remarked how much better these corpses live (hmm, wrong choice of words?) than the poorest of poor in the villas not far away. Yet here it’s considered an honor to be one of these old families with a plot in such famous company—Eva Peron is buried here along with many past presidents, authors, and basically every person that represents the streets that are also named after them. (see pictures on Picasa)

As far as Friday nights, we are obligated (by our self-respect) to go to the coolest house in the barrio, which shall remain anonymous here to protect its clandestine nature. You see, the house, a gorgeous old one from back when, is sort of a speak-easy. A bunch of friends that own the house have painted it and made it all gallery-like to host the jazz-loving folks that show up on Friday nights for some good live tunes and delicious tragos. I almost wish it was the kind of place that had a password you had to say to enter and a dress code of flapper dresses and fedoras (cigars optional)—because, you know, it’s just that kind of place. The fun part is that there are rotating musicians every week so you always hear something new.

Having Pete here is also an excuse to eat helpings upon helpings of empanadas—savory pastries filled with meats, veggies, cheese, or whatever—which is conveniently about the same size as your hand for easy eating. Other delicacies that we are “forced” to enjoy in his company: facturas(croissants and other sweets often eaten at tea time…or, in my case, all the time), alfajores (a sort of puffy cookie sandwich with dulce de leche in the middle), and…(for the boys) buckets of asado (barbecued beef). Peter (Pedro Uno, that is) mastered the parilla beautifully, as usual, when we had a bunch of friends over last Sunday. We were celebrating Pete Dos’s birthday and also wishing a buen viaje to my friend, Lindsey, who’s going back to England for awhile. Parillas here mean delicious smells, good friends chatting in the terrace, lots of wine, and usually a good number of languages interweaving nonsensically.

It’s only been a few days and we’ve already packed in a lot of delights. When the boys get back from Iguazu Falls (yours truly stayed back to keep working), we’ll go on more city adventures…so stay tuned!

Mondays are da bomba!

Something about hot, sweaty dance parties involving a wicked good drum circle just doesn’t let you fall asleep like you should when you need to wake up early. Chatting with friends at colorful bars doesn’t help much either. What I’m saying is—Mondays rock. I hereby declare that Bomba de Tiempo is my new favorite thing in the city. What’s not to love—drums drums drums in an amazing venue and dancing in tribal ways you didn’t know you had in you. Granted, the mosh pit that developed was not exactly my cup of tea, but I’ll keep dancing as long as I’m standing. Or not as the case was when all of us were hunching and bouncing in some quasi-ritualistic circle as the music got softer, and then jumping and rioting when the music exploded. Ahh, that’s the beauty of live music—you make friends from strangers just because you are experiencing the same awesome thing at the same wonderful moment.

Such was the last night here in the city for our dear friend, Katie. To her I wish safe travels and all new adventures on the home turf.

Feliz año nuevo chino!

Happy year of the Tiger!

As far as New Years go, I'd say this one started out to a pretty beautiful (if not delicious) start. Somehow, I seemed to have a surprisingly Asian-themed weekend, despite the fact that I'm, well, in Argentina. We visited the Japanese garden Saturday morning and it was stunning! Definitely the kind of place begging for camera-happy tourists to snap the little red bridges, bonsai trees and gigantic carp. The lakes were filled with these brightly colored fish, which must have pretty good eyesight because as soon as you moved closer to the water's edge, they'd "glupglupglup" up at you, waiting for crumbs. We didn't plan for this, so, alas, no new fish friends.

After sadly leaving behind potentially new pets (we do have a swimming pool, after all!), we meandered around all the different parks (after harrowingly darting angry buses on Libertador, that is). Particularly gorgeous was the Rosedal, which had more colors of roses than I even knew existed! The thing about Buenos Aires is, even though it's a megacity, their parks are HUGE! There is sort of a network of gorgeous parks in Palermo that link up to be the Central Park of BsAs....lakes with rentable paddle boats, rollerblading trails, gazebos galore, and, a boundary-waters-worthy amount of hungry mosquitos. It's amazing to escape the crazy traffic, urban jungle and suddenly be surrounded by miles and miles of verdant parks! With a little more bugspray next time, I could definitely spend a whole weekend here. See photos!

China-town was, obviously, a pretty big deal Sunday. We just didn't know how big of a deal it would be! It was almost comical how ridiculously packed these little streets were. Trying to walk down one block took an hour, easily, and you'd definitely come out a little banged up. It was worth it to find steamed dumplings on the other end, though! I reached my pot of gold! Except instead of being at the end of a rainbow, it was an abusive dragon-parade. Oh well, you say potato, I say dim sum.

After, we had friends come over for a BBQ--the first one we actually hosted! Besides eating your weight in meat (or in my case, delicious soy burgers!), a rite of passage here is definitely hosting an asado. A duty we do not mind undertaking--expect greatness when we return!

Love you all,
Lee

ps: More photos on Picasa (http://picasaweb.google.com/leeann.sit/Argentina#)

Niche-making

Hello lovely family and friends!

Hope you are all doing well (I heard word of a winter storm—hope you’re all bundled up!). We’ve been thinking of you all tons! Sounds like lots of fun adventures are happening all over—please write us back and give us all the juicy details!

As far as us, we’ve been busy actually making a life here. Funny how now that I have work (even if they are random hours all over the place), makes me feel much more like I “live” here. I started classes at an English Institute where I work part-time, and the kids are AMAZING! I imagined loving the three-year old class the most, and they are pretty adorable (and TINY!), but I’m surprised by how much fun the senior high-school class is, too! In all my classes there’s singing, dancing, activities (...involving throwing a tennis ball?), games…--all sandwiched in between long hello and goodbye sessions that involve kissing on the cheek every kid, teacher, and neighbor passing by until the school’s locked up. This week’s song for the little kids is, “Let’s be friends!” and, oh yes, there is also a dance.

Unfortunately, these dances were not at all helpful last weekend at five in the morning when Peter and I were jamming to “Sweet dreams were made of these”-dance remix at a “boliche” (dance club) …under a fog machine and flashing lights, no less. We were finally convinced by our host-sister to go out dancing after she had been tirelessly asking us for weeks. We thought the fact that it was her birthday was a pretty solid reason to finally go. And, actually, we had a blast! Sure, we didn’t know a majority of the songs that sounded peculiarly identical. Sure, it was so crowded that routinely getting elbowed in the ribs became a fun, new dance move. But, let’s face it, Peter and I can tear it up.

But, there’s no rest for the wicked and we were up and atom (or is it Adam? Or a..dumb!?) early Saturday morning. I spent the day with my friend from school, Lindsey, exploring the river delta culture of Tigre where boat is the main transport. After enjoying the markets and delicious fruit smoothies, we took a “tour” around the “neighborhood.” Of course, it wasn’t so much a tourist attraction as just the Tigre equivalent of a city bus…a municipal boat that went around a series of little rivers that connected tiny islands, home to houses on stilts. This is the kind of place everyone knows each other; couples sit on their docks, drinking yerba mate (tea) and waving to the boats passing by, or getting on and off as they need. Kids take the boat to school, and the post-worker is also a sailor. We spent the rest of the night enjoying the company of our host family and their friends, speaking SpanishSpanishSpanish until we forgot we were. Relaxing on the terrace under moonlight, smelling and tasting the barbecue of a master, and laughing with new friends and family—these people have truly mastered how to best enjoy each other’s company, and we feel pretty lucky to be included.

This weekend looks promising, too, especially because…it’s Chinese New Year! Being that it’s the year of the tiger (the best, and my year) I’m expecting a lot of great things. Hope you all enjoy your weekend as well, and “Gong Hei Fat Choy!”

Love,

Leeann

Ps: Peter's blog's at: http://osoenargentina.blogspot.com/

Pps: pictures on Picasa at: http://picasaweb.google.com/leeann.sit/Argentina#