the mall. and other impressions.

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So I spent the past few hours trying to find gloves, a hat and socks. The big mall is open. I always thought socks was calcetines. So I had a hard time trying to find them. But the lady I bought my stuff from was sooo nice and was appreciative of my broken Spanish.

I went to the huge mall. There is a sale, so it´s a little crazy. The electricity went off, and everyone let out a quiet sigh at the same time. It was kinda funny actually.

The clothes here are cheap. But not that much cheaper than anywhere else. Although, I must say the jewelry here is more beautiful, and for those of you who know how obsessed I am with jewelry, it´s pretty much paradise. I haven´t spent much on personal items. Most of my expenses have been for food and getting to places. I´m hoping to spend some money on a few things like jewelry when I come back to Buenos Aires and leave for the states.

Everyone told me I would love Buenos Aires. I must admit, it´s only okay. I was talking to the lady that I bought the stuff from and told her I prefer places that are much more quiet. Which is probably why I like Palermo more. She told me I would love Mendoza then, so I am hoping that going to the wine country and Mendoza itself will be much more relaxing.

A few things...
--the people here are pretty nice. they are also very helpful when you talk to them.
--i´m still having a hard time understanding their spanish. It´s hard for me to ask for a botella de agua and see botesha de agua. or say gracias without the s.
--their subte is pretty nice, but crowded.
--their bus system is as finicky as any bus system.
--people are really protesting, and there have been attacks in the Plaza de Mayo. I´ve been fortunate enough to have already seen that area and have avoided being pummelled by police and protesters. I saw the police lining up while I was waiting for the bus when I tried to go to La Boca but ended up going to Palermo on Monday. We had no idea what was going on... good thing we headed to Palermo instead. Only 13 people were injured. 12 of them the cops. I probably would have been okay.
--Food is cheap. I had an amazing steak sandwich. AMAZING. they put steak and ham on EVERYTHING.
--there are very few vegetables at restaurants... so i´m missing vegetables.

Things i´m learning about myself...
--i´m realizing more the kind of person I am, the kind of person I want to be, recognizing the difference, and understanding to appreciate my idiosyncracies.
--it´s much easier to be open with strangers.
--people are finding it hard that I am shy. I guess that´s a good thing.
--someone told me I was intelligent because I figured out why the keyboard wasn´t working: it wasn´t plugged in.
--the world is my oyster.

Oh, and I must add..
If you have a lonely planet phrasebook (which I picked up) check out the love and relationship section. They have a "sex" portion, and two nights ago, the group of folks I was hanging out with had a good laugh reading through it. Apparently, they put it in every phrasebook.

And, I converted someone into a How I Met Your Mother fan. =)

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