Life in BA...

So I have been in BA for 5wks now... WOW time has flown! I can't believe I have already finished my month Spanish course! It feels like I have only been here a wk!
The family I was living with were just gorgeous! I was living in a suburb called Palermo (kind of the St Kilda of Melbourne), super pimpin' spot to be living. Full of bars, cafes, boutique shops, markets... you name it! I spent the month enjoying both the shopping and night life in Palermo as you can imagine! I was living with a family of four, Julio, Silvina, Carla 21 and Luly 13, oh and their dog Rock, a scary (tho I became accustomed to him) rotwheeler, (reminded me of Tess, Emma) and another student, an American gal Alaina! After a wk of living there Alaina and I finally met each other, properly! We had dinner with the fam the Friday night of wk one and then headed to a bar called Tazz (where we met the manager, Martin, and lucky enough to get free drinks for the remainder of the night... and the next time we visited :), yeah I have a way with people). We had the best time together and when we noticed we have the same thumbs (yup that's right she's a freak like me, sorry babe) we knew we were meant to be... great friends for life!! We have spent the last few wks eating, drinking and laughing together! All the things Anna Nielsen LOVES to do! Alaina you are the BOMB girl!!

The school where I was learning Spanish was great fun! Every week they had new activities to join in on! Cooking (I learnt to make Empanadas, my fave Argentine food), Tango show at Cafe Tortoni (the oldest and most beautiful cafe in BA), a trip to Iguazu Falls (will write more about that in another journal entry), Salsa classes (which I never got around to doing), movie nights, discounts at clubs and bars (always nice) etc... had lots of great times and met some fab peops! My tutors were amazing! Expecially Leila! What a gem! She was the sweetest, lovliest, most wonderful teacher I have ever had! EVER!! She made me believe in myself more and gave me a bunch of confidence! Whenever I think I can't do it I just think of the sweet things she said to me and I feel better! The organisers of the program Natasha, Romina and Emanuel were also wonderful. Always happy and friendly! Every day they would greet you with a hug, kiss and a friendly smile! My Spanish has improved from nothing to a bit! Well more than a bit, I mean I had a 20min conversation with a taxi driver the other night and he seemed to understand me perfectly. In fact he told me he understood me perfectly! I couldn't get the smile off my face after I jumped out of that taxi!! What a confidence boost!! Though it is still super hard and out on the street they don't take it easy on you. Locals spk very fast, so you have to really concerntrate to catch what they are saying! But as they say, one step at a time! I just hope I can continue to use it, it's hard to keep up when you stay at back packers and spk English constantly!

I spent a wk at a back packers by the name of ¨Millhouse¨ (which was recommened by Bonnie and Dean) loads of fun. It's crazy in BA... people don't go out till 2am, no joke, that is the standard time for hitting up the town! And home time is around 7-10am! CRAZY! Oh and dinner time is anywhere b/w 9-11pm! Yeah, I don't get it either! Though you really do get used to it!

The food in Argentina is amazing... empanadas (are little pastry delights filled with meat, eggs, and vegies), Choripan (Dad you would LOVE this, it's chorizo sausage in bread with a chili type sauce), Herlado (ice-cream, is the bomb, best I have tasted), steak (once again probably the best ever), pizza's (tho super cheesey are also GREAT)... oh and the beer, Quilmes is the local beer and I love it. Yeah I think I have put on a lil weight (I just can't say no to food, thanx to Dad´s genes) tho have been walking flat out to try and compensate! Hey I´m traveling... whatever! :)

Hey Cass, Jarrad, Brent and Angelo my house in Palermo was right near a famous Plaza (they have tango there, I saw the world championship Tango show there, was fun but to be honest I enjoyed the brass section most, these 3 old dudes rocked the house!) called... wait for it... PLAZA ITALIA :) yeah, I thought you'd like that!! :)

Went to the soccer! In La Boca, saw Boca and (I can't remember the other teams name, maybe it was Racing, it was a month ago and don't have my journal with me) with some crew from Millhouse! Was such an amazing atmosphere, tho sooooo FREEZING and neither team scored which was pretty lame, tho it was super cool to be a part of it!! The crowd were very loud and excitable!! It was great to watch. We also leart quite a few abusive phrases as you can imagine :)

My time in Buenos Aires was LOADS of fun! It is a really beautiful city, easy to get around, good fun, friendly/helpful people, great food (and ice-cream) beautiful language... overall a very enjoyable experience!!
Thanx to all my friends I met in BA, you made my time all the more fun!
Especially Steph and Alaina! I knew you gals less than a month and it feels like we've been friends forever! I can't spk highly enough of you both! My time in BA was amazing thanx to both of you, I just loved the eating, drinking and laughing sessions we shared! All my fave things to do (as I mentioned earlier)... lets do it again in the not too distant future!!
Alaina a big thumbs up to you girl! All the best with work in Wyoming, come visit me it Aust some time and we'll drink cheap red and play card games... standard, ATS!!! :)
Steph, I can wait to hang out and work in Costa Rica with you, lets make that happen! When you come to Aust we'll put a shrimp on the barbee (bbq) and eat some pecans, hee hee :)

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