Ravioli and Wine

Hello again. Today was a long, tiring, yet really great day. We had an essay placement test at 9 this morning that could have gone better, but oh well. After that we had a long break so I went with some people to get pastries at this little bakery, and then we walked back to the Plaza de San Martin that we saw yesterday with the tour guides. At 12:30 we had another long session on academics, but at 2 we were done for the rest of the day. I wanted to try a restaurant out of my guidebook just to do something recommended. Other people were kind of hesitant, but I convinced a group of about 10 to go try it with me. My guidebook describes Juana M as "a hip basement restaurant with minimalist chic decor, down to earth parilla (grilled meat) fare at good prices, and the best salad bar in the city." It definitely lived up to the description. For about $12 I had ravioli filled with pumpkin and chicken in a spinach cream sauce, unlimited salad bar that had every vegetable, sauce, dressing, and side you could think of, and a third of a bottle of fantastic white wine. Everyone absolutely loved the place, and we spent a leisurely two hours enjoying our feast and some English conversations. I think I've found a few good like-minded friends in the group now who I can definitely see myself spending a lot of time with. After lunch four of us decided to walk to the Plaza de Mayo, which is very famous and right in the heart of the "centro" by the Casa Rosada (where the president works), the legislature, etc. We took a detour there down the pedestrian-only, touristy, shopping streets of Lavalle and Florida. It was 104 degrees today, and the streets were just ridiculously crowded with people. It was dirty and noisy and hot but super interesting. It reminded me a lot of the crowded outdoor shopping aisles in China. When we got to the Plaza we sat on a bench and people-watched for awhile to rest, because my feet were literally bleeding in my new shoes, which was very painful and unfortunate on a day when we walked probably 10 miles. It was my first time taking the subway on our way home, and it wasn't nearly as complicated or unpleasant as I was expecting, so I think I could take it alone fairly confidently now. When I got home I rested for awhile, drank a ton of water, and talked with Francisco. Around 9:15 we left to go running in a park. The program directors are always telling us not to go in parks at night because they're very dangerous but Francisco explained that in this park there'd be a ton of people running because the heat is more bearable after the Sun goes down. We took a bus to the park, which is on the border with Palermo, because I hadn't taken one yet. The system of stops is very confusing, you have to have coins (which are extremely scarce in the country--when I bought a drink the other day I just didnt get my thirty five centavos in change because no one has any), and the buses themselves are dirty and hot. However, we got to the park, which was actually like 3 big parks separated by roads, without incident. There were probably hundreds of people there--running on the wide paths, walking dogs, playing soccer under small lampposts, playing the drums, lying in the grass watching the stars or the crazy traffic whizzing by on all sides. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen. A little bit like Central Park. Parts of it get sketchy around 10ish apparently, and Francisco made us avoid the last cross street after our second loop around. We ran for about forty minutes, and I barely felt tired there was so much to look at. We walked home through another park and the well-known strip of posh restaurants and bars across from the Recoleta cemetery. Francisco kept quizzing me on directions and bus stops, and I asked him random questions about the city and how to say certain things. We've really become comfortable with each other and he is very patient and companionable. We were passing people seated at an outdoor restaurant and Francisco suddenly got very excited and quietly told me to look at a blonde woman sitting near the street. Turns out it was Lilita Carrio, a famous Argentine politician and leader of the Coalicion Civica opposition party. There was a policeman standing guard about four feet away against a wall. I had just done this assignment about important Argentine political/social figures and cultural references, and literally the last name I had looked up on Wikipedia before we left was Lilita Carrio! So that was really cool. When we got home around 11 we had dinner, a ham, cheese, egg, and onion torte, with Claudia. I am now exhausted but it was a really fun day. I absolutely LOVE what I've seen of the city so far, and I am not by any means a city person. I was completely overwhelmed after one day in New York. But Buenos Aires has so many trees, and so many different styles of architecture, and so many historical plazas and statues, it's totally different. I'm feeling more and more comfortable and familiar with my neighborhood. This experience is going to improve my terrible sense of direction and map reading skills significantly! Also, the fact that everything is so late and punctuality doesn't exist is kind of refreshing, and I am the most schedule-oriented, plan ahead person ever. Argentines live in the moment, for the present day, and at this point in my trip, that's all I can really do as well. I can honestly say I am perfectly content sitting here right now and I'm not worrying about my Spanish or the chaos of enrolling in classes or when I will start to be homesick or anything. I had a great day, and tomorrow I will wake up and have another one. The city is doing wonders for my attitude! Well, it is very late again. Actually, very early for here...Francisco just left to go out with friends...but late for me. Chau!