North-bound. or homeward, like the movie. very similar.

Alright, this will most likely be very lengthy, reflective, and insighting.

I am sitting in a spot 7 argentina-floors-up on only one of many large streets, overlooking buses, waiting-for-the-bus'ers, stalling cars and traffic lights. I have yet to make eye contact with anyone, but I honestly do believe that no one has noticed my presence. My flight leaves at night tomorrow, and I am resting and being a bit lazy. I also feel like it's been my last night for several nights as I say bye to people and celebrate all the last nights that there are.

I wish I didnt have to do the whole airport and plane and travel process, such a bother.

I guess I really can't know how I feel until I'm back.

I have very high hopes for my weeks in California. This I feel.

I also think I look forward to home for all the reflecting I will do once there. I'll get creative with telling people stories instead of just going "yeah it was great!" every time someone asks. But also I'm really excited to listen to all the tapes of random life sounds, go through random papers, and start planning how I will paint plano 17 of the guiat onto my wall next semester.

These six months have been the most time I have spent living away from home, in my life. So many things are about to happen. This should be interesting.

love.love.love.

wait oh my god so that was going to be the end of my post, but i just have to tell you that i just got permission to use absolutely any and all food in the kitchen because we all leave tomorrow and will have to throw any extra stuff out. do you KNOW how exciting this is?

stoooooppp it

Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.

If I am doing something in Buenos Aires, it is happening one of these days.

This is going to be a really interesting transition back to the US.

I'm not sure what I will do when I can't hop on the subte and meet a friend downtown,

or walk in and buy a litro for four pesos,

use the guiat to figure out which block to wait on for the bondi,

go to sandguchito,

hear cat calls,

get sketched out by anyone and everyone at night...

i expect i'll just cry a lot,

or be in a state of shock.

not sure.

I've said bye to a lot of people the past couple days, but most of my close friends are still here. And the next few days are going to be really hectic as I try to balance time between them all. Yesterday Ian left. Which was strange.

I'm really just thinking about it like this:

These six months were so amazing, but six months is short in comparison to "life" (which I think should be a very long time). So I figure now that I have friends all over the world, and plan to travel, and plan to not have any plans, I'm going to bump into people sooner or later.

So I'm thinking of it like that.

But I will miss walking down the streets of Buenos Aires. I don't think I can come back at least until graduating BC...

I LOVE BUENOS AIRES

talking about leaving it, and now saying "I leave Wednesday" not just "I leave the 22nd (some date that is far away)" is the most bizarre feeling ever.

Okay that's enough of that,

too sad.

Must go downtown now and be in denial of leaving.

windy balcony, poor internet connection

too and to was really confusing for me when i was learning grammar

i always remembered "i'm going TO the grocery store" no really

i remember that

and i remember in first grade my sixth grade reading buddy was mean

and i had trouble with some words and i explained to him that we learned there were "red words"

and i told him "the" was a red word

red was like tricky

i also remember butterfly was hard

because i wanted to right it and i asked my teacher how and they said it was a hard one and then they helped

by pointing out it was butter then fly, but not in a mean way, just very explanatory

White Rabbit

I've been rolling around naked a lot,

alone in my big room,

staring at my ceiling

and practicing whistling techniques,

But you're not allowed in.

You can be mine if you ask permission,

and know the password.

I'll save your time,

it's not

'peanut butter' or

'daisies' or

'barefoot' or

'password'.

It was 'home', but I changed it-

just as it stumbled over your lips,

and I caught you,

peeking in with shy eyes.

But I can change it back!

Guess again!

Poor (but-possibly-true) Excuse

I was just thinking about all the internships and forms I should be filling out for various things, and all of the things they are for are great opportunities. But I struggle so much to get it done.

So I was thinking, that I honestly believe it's because it's on the computer.

And if these forms were papers in front of me I would visualize them much better,

and do them much sooner.

I think I am an extremely visual person.

Just saying.

Gimme the paper copies.

Updates through pictures...

On Friday Riley and I are leaving (somewhere). Told my landlord Thursday would be my last night here. So before I move I figured I'd post pictures of where I've been living this past month. This first picture looks out my bedroom door at the DINING ROOM/KITCHEN AREA. There is a metal staircase that goes to a bridge above where people hang towels and walk to more bedrooms, and above that is a terazza, which lets in beautiful light. In the dining room area people have written and drawn all over the walls.

MY LOVELY SOCK CREATURE FAMILY (the ones I brought to Buenos Aires).

MIRROR NEXT TO MY DESK, where I hang up all of my jewelry and accessories. To the right is a drawing my last housemate Kerstin drew for me. And on the mirror I have the WRC reminding me I am beautiful (as is anyone who reads it).

MIRROR, DESK, GUITAR, AND MAKE UP THINGS... On the other side of the green door is the bedroom next to me, to the left is another green door which is mine. Green Green Green.

My LARGE AWESOME BED with pictures of loved ones next to it. If I love you there is a chance you are there. Every morning when I wake up I reach my lazy arm over, open the window, and push the shutters to the side and the light floods in.

MY GIANT ARMOIRE AND MY FACE.

3.5 Weeks left. Nuts. A lot of people are taking off to travel, and I need to be attentive because some of them will still be gone when I leave. Which is strange. I am looking forward to being in California beyond belief. However, I wish I could choose to walk outside and walk downtown Buenos Aires whenever, and I won't be able to. Yesterday I was thinking about how I won't be able to walk outside and wander down the streets of San Telmo downtown... and my breathing felt heavy and a struggle. And it's strange. I have no doubt California is going to be absolutely amazing, but it's still strange.

It has been so hot here. Right now its only 72, which is perfect, but the past week its been in the 80s and 90s leaving me no choice but to wear dresses on the daily. It's lovely but it's been so hot and dresses aren't quite naked feeling enough, but I suppose it's the closest I'll get. Yesterday however, it was a bit more overcast and I was really excited to wear pants...

Today I am hoping John will return from the countryside so that I can go with him and climb up on the very top of the terazza, where there are buildings upon buildings and it is impresionante.

love.love.love. (you)

Updates through drawings...

Today I was sitting up on the terazza and I decided to try drawing the view. I've been drawing so many people I thought it might be good to try something else and not be intimidated about it. (I find perspective especially intimidating at times.) I spent a while just drawing the metal railing in front, and was so focused on that. Suddenly I decided to continue the rest of the drawing and I saw how many buildings there really were. Everywhere. It was so interesting to see all these little details everywhere, like the water tanks on the roofs and the broken windows on a far away building. I was drawing one wall when a cat jumped down on it, and next to it I saw a family in a doorway of an even farther building. It was like looking out at a stage, with life performing.

I drew this for Javi's birthday a couple of weeks ago. Tute, Javi, Paul, and John.

This was a while ago at the Casa Convivial, Patrizio sitting with a Quilmes next to him. We drink so many quilmes, all day e'ry day.

This is Riley looking over the canyon we walked to see in Cordoba. El parque nacional quebrada del conodorito. It was a two hour walk through countryside, resulting in many many sunburns. At the end we ate a quick lunch and sat trying to spot Condors, I'm not sure if we were successful...but I think so.

New House/Dad/Gay Pride/Cooking

I can't believe it's November 9th. (I know I just stated this, but please refrain from reminding me.)

Okay so I've been in a new place for the past 10 days. I'm really glad I moved... I have complete freedom here, as I feel like I should. My room is much bigger here, and it's really cozy and lovely. There are three girls from France, a guy from Germany, and a guy from Spain. It's funny how the only native Spanish speaker is the one from Spain, but all communication takes place in Spanish. I really am so proud of myself for improving my Spanish so much while being here, I love love love speaking Spanish.

My dad got here last Thursday, he is here on a house exchange for three weeks. It's nice to be able to hang out with him as a person, not just a father. He lives a few blocks from me. Friday night him and I along with my friend Patrizio went to this DELICIOUS asado that my dad's friends invited us to. It was so gourmet and classy. The best wine and dessert and coffe, but the meat (the asado itself) was so fantastic. Honestly I can't remember the last time I had meat that great. It was cooked perfectly and I cannot express how nom nom nommy it was.

Saturday was a march for Gay Pride. SO CROWDED. Apparently it's one of the biggest gay pride festivals in...the world? I mean it was definitley pretty packed so I may believe that. I put a roll of film in my camera as I walked over with some of my housemates and thus commenced my second roll of film here in Argentina. The people gathered in Plaza de Mayo, of course. This is where people always get together in Buenos Aires. What I really like is that there are constantly protests from all sectors of society, and anyone can get out and speak. It's always empowering to be around it.

I need to pick a day sometime to describe a "typical day" because honestly every day is so packed of awesome happenings, I never know what to pick and choose. So far today I woke up with the lovely Riley by my side and we made delicious scrambled eggs with tomato and basil and avacado. This brings me to my next topic:

COOKING:

I've been doing a ton of cooking in Argentina, due to the fact that I live on my own and do NOT have any sort of meal plan (the idea of having a meal plan feels distant and absurd). I've gotten pretty good at making basic things, and making them taste good. Last night Riley and I made a yummy soup with a chicken broth base, terragon, potatoes, onion, garlic, tomatoes, and terragon. We offered it to a few of my housemates who were full, but as soon as one tried it the rest wanted some too. We felt very proud of ourselves. Last time Riley was here we made two delicious pizzas, one of which we offered to our friends when they came over to chat and drink wine/beer with us. I've also made empanadas a few time with John. Milanesas (like thinly cut meat) are so so cheap and delicious... Making real mash potatoes... Rice dishes... Fancy pasta sauces... I've realized I love cooking. I think it's somewhat therapeutic for me, because if I'm doing a lot of work or just bored, I look forward to taking a break to cook a meal...and I always feel relaxed and happy while doing so. I'm excited because next semester I know I am going to cook all. the. time. (Also look forward to cooking a lot for my family over break.)

This weekend I am going to Cordoba, as paid for by BC. It's the second largest city in Argentina, and we're going to spend a lot of time in a national park, which means NATURE. I really miss nature a whole lot, and it's going to be so fantastic to get out of the city for a weekend. I plan on taking lotsa lotsa pictures.

I've realized that I basically have sketches of all of my closest friends here (still have some to go) and that makes me happy.

Tute

Gavin

This weekend: Cordoba

Next weekend: MICHAEL KOLHEDE AND KAYLA MAY GOGARTY arrive

Next next weekend: Two finals will be over with, and if all goes well I'll be on my way to Patagonia/wwoof

we tigers we tigers woop.

besos,

love.love.love.

Art Night

(First and second most closely resemble the original.)

I'm moving tomorrow/today. It's going to be a fantastic change. I'm moving into a place with six bedrooms, and so far the people living there are three girls from France and a boy from Germany. Every Saturday the landlord buys all the meat for an asado and anyone invited has to bring a bottle of wine. Everyone seems really free-spirited and confident and interesting. My room has a green door, and for the first time in my life I will have my very own bed that is bigger than a standard twin. Nice terraza at the top with a long table and small round table to sit at. In San Telmo, right by the downtown. Starting Sunday morning I will wake up in the center of Buenos Aires, a couple blocks from the weekly street fair in San Telmo. A fair that lasts for blocks and blocks all the way down Defensa with people selling all sorts of products, food, knick knacks... I think my current roommate from Sweden is going to sell some of her sketches there this Sunday to get some money for traveling.

So as my last night in this place I thought it fitting and cordial to have a last-night dinner-esque thing, which turned into being better as an appetizer session of sorts. I made nummy bruschetta and Lu made a fruit salad. Sat around drinking wine and chatting the three of us. When Kerstin went out I proposed art time to Lu, which was very well received.

Nice last night here,

similarly related I love art

(And I've worked it out so that I can officially minor in both Studio Arts and Environmental Studies (though it works out so that I literally have no more "elective-count-for-nothing" classes), so that sounds nice.)

love.love.love.

Rain (Seasonal)

In Boston this means snow

Here the flowers grow

Don't Let It Bring You Down

I spent a while pretending I didn't know

(did you know that I knew all along?)

because I told her I could keep a secret

and you had told her to keep yours.

You would think that vocalizing a secret

(which both parties already knew)

would do little to change a situation

and you would be wrong.

What a relief!

(So glad it's off our chests!)

Now we can muse like children

planning time before death.

But I propose a new plan,

that we forget the secret

(that it was revealed at all)

and run back to innocence and ambiguity.

It's just that I feel trapped

and I have this sinking feeling

(butterflies transforming back into worms?)

that we'll let eachother down.

Now we both know that no one (especially not me)

can predict the future

(but just in case- and

lets hope this is unnecessary)

sorry in advance.

I meant to say I love you I love you I love you!

Believe me always?

But mostly now.

The Present, The Future.

Yesterday I realized that I will be leaving Argentina in two months. I feel I am growing so much, and for the better, here. It seems everything I hear or read or see is new. Because I didn't know anything about Argentina before living here, I am constantly talking to people about politics, history, culture, and seeing it all in action...seeing how related everything is. I feel like I have such MOMENTUM. My new personal motto is: question, question everything. As a result, I have never had so many interesting conversations with so many interesting people. As a result I believe that I am truly the happiest I have ever been. I do believe studying abroad (living abroad) was the best decision I ever made for myself. (I also do believe that studying abroad should be required.) As the semester comes to an end (but let's not talk about this too much) a lot of people are deciding to stay for an entire year. I wish I could, but I don't think it can happen right now. I know that if I were to stay I wouldn't want to continue paying BC tuition to be in South America, and that what I want out of staying would have nothing to do with school.

My inability to predict the future both thrills and terrifies me. Being abroad has allowed me to realize possibilites truly are endless. Originally my thought had been to graduate, maybe stick around Boston for a year working for an environmental organization, and move to San Francisco for at least a few years to do the same. So I felt like I vaguelly knew what I wanted to do for at least the next five years of my life. Now I realize that, while those things still sound like something I'd like to do, I may put those plans off for a while. As may be obvious by now, I love Argentina and I wish I could stay longer. Therefore I'm thinking about how once I graduate I might want to move back to Argentina. I also am thinking about applying for the Peace Corps, a two year committment. I want to perfect Spanish, I want to travel, and I want to continue learning about other cultures at the rate which I am currently learning.

The above is thrilling. I am trying to peg what is terrifying me. I think I know that the more I drift and explore, the easier it will be to drift from those around me. In some ways this is not a bad thing, because I already feel I am keeping in touch with the people that matter most to me. However, if I were to do the Peace Corps, move to Argentina, work in Europe... there is a chance I would have to do it alone. In my mind there are certain friends I have always wanted to live with, travel with, grow with. Now I'm scared that what if I don't get to grow with these friends? What if we only grow apart? Happy as we may be, it is something I haven't previously considered. In my mind there are people whose paths I feel I MUST cross again. I hope that my own independence doesn't prevent these people from crossing paths with me later on, because it may be later than we all expected. Back in high school when we sat around and mused about college and time. Now college is quickly coming to an end and with every day its existence seems less and less relevant in the grand scheme of things.

More Drawings

Too much to say about everything, so I'm going to say a little about life through art. For some bizarre reason the computer keeps reverting the images, so a few of them are flipped the wrong way (probably bothers me more than you).

I miss drawing models in classes. I've mostly been drawing people lately, I guess I'm trying to perfect that before I move on to other subject matter, and I still have a lot of work to do...but having fun in the meantime.

Book in the corner-On The Road

John in his room, sitting on his windowsill by the balcony.

The roof where we stayed on Durazno street in Uruguay. This was mid-September. We had two weeks off for midterms so we went to Uruguay and went couchsurfing. Stayed with these five messy guys, complete characters, and their dog Gizmo. Super relaxing weekend- hung out with the guys a lot, made a few meals, spent a lot of time playing guitar and sitting on the roof (which overlooked the huge river). Lived really cheap and most all money went to burger stands and litros of beer. One night we went to this awesome show in a huge house. Each room seemed to be dedicated to a different activity. One room was a mini-art exhbit, one room had a simple swing hanging from the ceiling (the best room), one was dedicated to a giant jam session for whoever, in the kitchen was someone constantly making french fries, people playing on an outside little balcony, a huge expansive roof, organs... Conclusion: couchsurfing is the best.

This one really should be flipped the other way: La cal hierva cuando la mojan. This was the day I realized I could stay awake in class if I just drew people around me.

From a photo of me in El Tigre, hanging out with a cute dog who follwed Enid, Elia, Ian and I around for a bit, disappearing around the time we crossed the little river to sit down.

Hanging out on the balcony, per usual.

The boy I love. (Photo is backwards, frustrating.)

People sleeping on Buquebus, on the way back from Uruguay. (The ferry that took us across the river.)

A Song About God (title tbd)

(I started writing this song in the shower yesterday and put it to guitar today. For now you'll just have to read it as a poem and imagine how the tune goes...*Hint: use telepathy and you'll get the tune down perfectly*)

Bible camp when I was young,

searching for the hand of God

to steer me through

all times blue

Cross meadows wide and oceans deep

rocky beaches, barefoot feet

find fires bright

but no heaven's light

With the birds flew in the bees

shelter found in tall oak trees

in nature's might

I found no fright

For when her brother died that day

and while I see his mind decay

I won't believe He's yours nor mine

as war novels gain length with time.

If free will has left us to kill

He sees us march on daffodils

and to this I will not subscribe

I'll put my faith in human kind

PHOTOS

I hope this won't divide us.

Everyone deserves a first date,

no one gets a second.

In school we were told to walk with confidence,

to avoid staring down at the ground,

which I often find I do just so that I won't step in mierda.

Even when I am walking briskly, 

column straight,

I feel like I can barely take in the surroundings.

After weeks of walking the same route home I saw a movie theater on the way.

Some of my friends have caught on,

when they talk I can't hear them.

This is only sometimes.

Sometimes as they talk I realize I am losing every word they try to communicate.

They slip through my head unprocessed,

I think this is because my head is too full of thoughts I can't put into words.

I'm glad you said 

that words unite and divide us.

This is why I've perfected telepathy.

Tonight I feel lonely.

Familia pt 1

 

 

Caudillos

Bad: Violence, Good: Order

Serotonin Come Back

Today I feel as though all my serotonin has disappeared. I am trying to decide if I have been having too-much-fun and now my person is upset with me. So I woke up and made a list of things I need to do, in hopes that it'll come back.

-Make calendar

-Study (two midterms this week)

-Read "Everything Is Illuminated"

-Journal

-Scholarships

-Letters

-Write in composition book

-Draw

Trying to balance out things I would like to do with things I have to do. Basically I've set up a good alone-day to do alone-things.

Everyday when I think about leaving Argentina (which is several times a day) I feel a knot in my stomach and a whole lot of confusion. I don't like thinking about it. On the one hand I know that there are great things to look forward to, an apartment off campus, lovely people... but I am not looking forward to it yet. It feels distant yet looming over me. Living here is my-life-part-two... related to part one but completely different. I feel strange about revisiting part one. 

I feel that I have NOT been speaking a lot of Spanish, and this really upsets me. I don't want to speak English anymore.

La verdad es que no sé que quiero. No puedo decidir donde quiero ir, o con quien. Me siento como una persona viviendo en un mundo imaginario, dentro de una burbuja. No puedo decidir si es mejor no pensar en el futuro, viviendo en el presente... 

Supongo que esto es una tristeza normal, que solo viene debez en cuando y solo queda para momentos, horas, quizas un día. A veces cuando intento de entender cada palabra que dice una persona, no entiendo ningún.

Cosas que estoy haciendo o he hecho: visitando parques, cocinando (mucho), ir a la partida de fútbol de amigos acá, dibujando, aprendiendo canciones en la guitarra, tomando collectivos, grabando (en cassette), visitar una estancia (la finde pasada), feria en San Telmo, comprar entradas a Regina Spektor en Octubre (!)...

Tengo dos parciales esta semana, y uno el proximo viernes. Entonces, voy a tener una semana entero de vacaciones...queiro hacer algo copado pero no sé donde ni con quien. Pienso que quiero ir a Uruguay porque es re cerca y no va a costar mucho. Tambien mis amigos estaban hablando sobre el posibilidad de hacer "WWOOF" (http://www.wwoof.org/) para una semana. No sé si ellos estan serio, pero pienso que quiero hacerlo si- no pronto, quizas en Diciembre. (Quiero ir a Patagonia en Diciembre y sería bueno si puedo hacer WWOOF para una semana antes.)

besos

amor.amor.amor.

No Kitty Love.

I walked in the house and pet the cat. I ran upstairs to get paper to make study guides for my midterm next week. I came back downstairs and the cat was waiting at the bottom, meowed. "Okay will you come cuddle with me?" He meowed and I walked over to the couch where the cat sometimes jumps to for company. He meowed again and stopped a few feet from the couch, layed down, rolled around, and then went and sat in the adjacent room.

Predictable.

Dear Cat, Please Come Back.

love.love.love.

More Castellano Please.

 I feel like the best way to work on Spanish would be to leave English behind altogether.

Besides, I keep having these long conversations with the cat and dog here at home, and they don't speak English so they keep giving me these blank looks.

love.love.love.

Sketches

Reserva Ecológica

Was just remembering how I lost the pictures on my digital camera, several of which were taken at the reserva ecológica at the beginning of my trip here. Am thankful that I have a sketch of it, even if it's from my friend Ian's photo.

Riley

And I'm just glad in general that I can have sketches from this trip- this is riley listening to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind- which played on our 18 hr bus ride.

Strange Things Are A Brewin'

Today felt like a cold autumn day,

but it's really a winter day staying late.

Me Gusta Mi Pelo Largo

So I think I somehow forgot to mention that I've been playing guitar for a bit over two months now. I picked it up when my friend left for the wilderness, I think in an attempt to fill the void. Glad I did because I absolutely love playing. I'm still definitely a beginner, but I love sitting around with the guitar and making sounds with it. I also get jealous whenever I'm with someone who is holding a guitar. But usually when I ask them to pass it (or they get the hint because I'm reaching towards it) I just hold it and occassionally hit some strings. I'm really excited because I want to play, a lot.

I've only written two songs, both since being in Argentina, but I'm looking forward to having a ton by the time I leave, and it'll be like a narration of my life and pensamientos while abroad. 

Here is the one I just wrote two nights ago-

I want to write some songs in Spanish. I thought that this one was totally BsAs Spanish, but just noticed yesterday that I said "tu eres" when one of the main differences in the Spanish here is that they say "vos sos"-so I guess I'm not quite speaking their version of Spanish quite yet...

soon.

http://www.mediafire.com/?k1q64c9pcrdtxpc

please let me know if that link works...

Me Gusta Mi Pelo Largo

Recuerdo el día que cortaste tu pelo
así cortaste tus problemas-
quitando memorias del invierno,
ojalá que funcionaba así

Como el día que hablaste sobre espacio
y querías dormir en el parque,
pero por fin encontraste mi suelo
y quien estaba sorprendido?

Tu eres mi vida
tu eres mi sol
tus problemas son mios
y me gusta mi pelo largo

Pues deja que tu pelo crece
y deja que tus ojos abren
esto no es para siempre
y las cosas van a mejorar
poco y poco
no tenés miedo
ven acá
podemos desaparecer
podemos correr con otro plan
antes era una broma
y ahora es la actualidad

Había un tiempo con amor prohibido
y palabras fueron peligrosas
acostando en la hierba era nuestra manera
de estar cerca del uno al otro

pues deja que tu pelo crece
y deja que tus ojos abren
esto no es para siempre
y las cosas van a mejorar
poco y poco
no tenés miedo
ven acá
podemos desaparecer
podemos correr con otro plan
antes era una broma
y ahora es la actualidad

Recuerdo el día que cortaste tu pelo
así cortaste tus problemas-
quitando memorias del invierno,
ojalá que funcionaba así

love.love.love.

Iguazú! (Pictures and sentences about life)

Life is astounding.

Though I still may buy another digital camera, I bought a disposable one for the weekend in Iguazú, so I want to include a ton of pictures!

1. So first we went to Las Tres Fronteras: 

This is me standing triumphantly on Argentina's land. To the right is Brazil with an awesome building-no idea what it is but I absolutely loved it. To the left is Paraguay, with distant skyscrapers from a near by city.

I went to Iguazú for the weekend with Riley, Gavin, and Kyle (all from BC), and a couple other students. It was an 18 hour and surprisingly comfortable bus ride. They played movies (like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind-an "old" favorite), gave us yummy food, wine, whisky. Riley and I played MASH (always a must)... spent the weekend in a hostel (of Hostel International) which was super nice and all around great.

2. From Las Tres Fronteras we took a random side path that spit us out in the neighborhood, from where we walked back to the town of Iguazú. Along the way we passed by this building/chickens/banana tree (not in the photo). I loved this area because it was simple and colorful. It reminded me a lot of being in Kenya last summer. Partly I think because the soil had a similar country, but greatly because of the simplicity and content-feeling that swept over me.

3. We spent all of last Sunday at the park-

This is "La Garganta Del Diablo" (Devil's Throat)

As wikipedia says:

"The waterfall system consists of 275 falls along 2.7 kilometers (1.67 miles) of the Iguazu River. Position is at latitude (DMS): 25° 40' 60 S, longitude (DMS): 54° 25' 60 W . Some of the individual falls are up to 82 meters (269 ft) in height, though the majority are about 64 metres (210 ft). The Devil's Throat (Garganta del Diablo in Spanish or Garganta do Diabo in Portuguese), a U-shaped, 82-meter-high, 150-meter-wide and 700-meter-long (490 by 2300 feet) cataract, is the most impressive of all, and marks the border between Argentina and Brazil. Two thirds of the falls are within Argentine territory. About 900 meters of the 2.7-kilometer length does not have water flowing over it. The edge of the basalt cap recedes only 3 mm (0.1 in) per year. The water of the lower Iguazu collects in a canyon that drains in the Paraná River at Argentina, shortly downstream from the Itaipu dam."

4. This is from that same lookout, looking down the river to the left. The above photo is at the end of the river, on the right. It was so beautiful. I wish I could have stared a bit harder, but the mist was all up in my business...

5. This is a completely different part of the park-there were waterfalls everwhere

and with lots of waterfalls

came beautiful rainbows.

It was a great weekend-

I love BsAs (so much), but it was nice to get away for a few days and remember how beautiful nature and countryside is. A completely different atmosphere. Much needed-break.

All is well here. Living cheaply (which is made easier by how cheap everything is...)

I'm going to translate some things into dollars:

Subte: 30 cents

Empanada: 75 cents

Burger: $2.50

Tablet of Dulce de Leche: 50 cents

Baguette: 50 cents

Movie: Blockbuster: $6 Independent Theater: $2

Cancer: $1.50/pk (or $1 if you're really cheap.... boo)

Went to El Museo de Bellas Artes again yesterday. It's such a fantastic museum. I think I need to spend an entire day there and bring people who are willing to be there that long-

Because honestly every room is fantastic.

Right now there is a Berni exhibit. He's an Argentinian artist who painted in the 20s, 30s, 40s...  and the exhibit is really fantastic. Every since taking the figure painting class at BC I have such an appreciation for all the different approaches an artist can take with the figure. Berni is great. I highly recommend looking at his work but also reading about it. It seems a lot of the paintings are pretty political and reflect Argentinian history, but I think I got a lot out of it.

My fast-friend here, John, had a couple of friends visiting for the week from Florida. I think they saw an awful lot of BA, including this street corner where we waited for about an hour. (Eventually it started pouring and thundering with lightning, which is the prettiest.)

So here we have the visitor,

and RILEY EATING AN EMPANADA NOM NOM NOM.

I love empanadas.

Always and any time of day.

now i'm going to make pesto for my housemate and i!

Because I finally found basil in a store-

and I've missed it dearly

love.love.love.