Cordoba

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The bus journey to Cordoba was a nightmare. I had, inevitably, left the hostel in floods of tears: the taxi driver had to give me his tissues. When i got to the station and the bus got later and later, i proceeded to chew off my hand in panic (had the bus been and gone without me noticing?!?) I eventually had the sense to check my ticket, and realised i was 2 hours early, not the bus 2 hours late. I got on, only to have a drunk man sit behind me, saying i was beautiful, and stroking my hair and asking me questions, asking me my name, and breathing all over me with his boozy breath. I pushed his hand away, but didnt want to piss him off incase he got aggressive, so tried to ignore him. Someone came and told him he was sitting in their seat, but he was like, 'oh its ok, i can sit next to Emily'. At which point my tattered nerves finally gave way and i burst into tears. The woman infront reached behind and held my hand, while a group of men rallied round, saying things like 'she's my sister', and offering me multiple choices of different seats. But the man moved, and i thanked god for the human race.

He got worse, however. He started smoking and spilling his drink over people. Some guys around thought it was funny, but me and the kind woman (Natalia) were pissed off, and she found some spare seats downstairs, and told the bus drivers. Soon more people were seeking refuge downstairs and at the next stop the police got on and escorted him off, while a cleaner got on to clear up his...ugh, dont even want to go there. Luckily our seats downstairs weren't taken, so i stayed there the rest of the journey. Terrible nights sleep though, cricked neck city. We arrived in Cordoba, and Natalia even gave me her number incase I needed her. I got a taxi and found the hostel, was told the girls room was full and i was put in the boys dorm. Bloody hell. Was still only 7am, so not wanting to wake them up, i went for a wander in the park, really really nice, very big with a lake and lots of stray dogs. One of them followed me everywhere, i felt so sorry for him. I had a bit of a sleep (if you pretend you're sunbathing you dont look like so much of a tramp) then sneaked off while Fido was asleep so he wouldnt follow me home. When i got back, I was put in the girls room because i'd reserved, but they hadnt realised. The hostel seems nice and friendly, but they're all Spanish speaking, and i feel a bit of an outsider. Plus everyone here seems about 15. But i refuse to cry anymore, im determined to get some kind of a backbone. I had a bit of a chin wobble when i first arrived and one of the staff was nice to me. Its funny, when your nerves are shot, when you're upset, and have only had a couple of hours sleep, if someone's kind, it just makes those floodgates open.

I came back to the hostel about 1ish, bought some food for dinner then headed out again. I made my way back to the bus station, (discretely consulting the map every block or two) and bought my ticket on to Tucuman, leaving on Tuesday, getting there about 9pm. All the other options were going to get in at like, 3, 5am, which im not doing again. Went to the main plaza, Plaza San Martin, and sat on a bench and had an ice cream. Its so beautiful, there's statues and fountains and this huge old Cathedral - the oldest in Argentina, dating back to the 17th century. I went in and it was truly breathtaking. The stained glass windows, the frescoes, the gilt...it was all so elaborate and ornate. On my travels I came across countless huge churches, they just kept on popping up, each as elaborate and beautiful as the last. I loved just sitting in the plaza watching the world go by, toddlers so young they could hardly toddle, chasing pigeons and squealing with delight. I walked back to the hostel via an artesanal market, gave in to temptation and bought myself a lovely little embroidered black bag (perfect for smart/casual nights out i justified!) it was only about 4 quid. Enough for a nights accommodation maybe, but sometimes a girls gotta have what a girls gotta have. Its so hot here, much more than BA, but i suppose im quite a but further north. Whilst in BA everyones still walking round in their autumn/spring wear, people here are properly dressed for summer, shorts, t-shirts, flip flops...the works! Cordoba reminds me of a Spanish city, perhaps Palma or Malaga...personally i think its got much more of a mediterranean feel to it than BA, which is a bit more London/Paris/New York type. If i was living here, i think i would grow to really love it. Its a university city, and the amount of young people on the streets is noticeable. It doesnt seem as high rise as BA, which is always good, but it also doesnt have the life, the 24 hour feel to it, i cant imagine strolling in to this hostel at 7am. (Must stop missing Fitz Roy, or it'll spoil all hostel experiences from now on)

Had a really early night due to no sleep whatsoever the night before, got a full 12 hours sleep and then headed out again to the main square, this time without forgetting my camera. I wandered round, went into another cathedral, 'La Compañia' built in 1650: only 10 years younger than the one at Plaza San Martin. Also very beautiful and elaborate, with people kissing lots of statues...but got me thinking about Jesus telling people not to worship false idols...do statues of saints and stuff and his mum count? What about statues of Jesus himself? Its an idol, after all, and since we dont know what the big J looked like, its technically false....right, now ive probably managed to piss all Catholics off and start a dubious debate, so im gonna leave it there...
Got a sandwich and sat and watched the world go by, planned my trip to Tucuman and tried to book the hostel in Salta, but they want exact times and dates, which i cant give them till like the day before i arrive..hope they keep that bed for me! Just chillaxed the rest of the day, started reading Paulo Coehlo's The Pilgrim, in spanish of course, but i ended up looking up every other word, and its heavy going! Im getting better though, by the end of the prologue i actually read a full paragraph without looking anything up, and understanding all the tenses and everything! woo hoo! I think my Spanish is getting worse though. Since ive been out of BA ive noticed i havnt been as confident talking to people - fish out of water and all that. Im sure it'll come back (i hope). Right, so im going to love you and leave you, Cordoba gets my thumbs up, next stop: Tucuman!

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Comments

[Ed]

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That drunk fella smoking on the bus would have been considered normal on the number 82 bus anytime after 8pm in Liverpool hehe .. it's regularly an action packed journey home :-) Glad you're ok, remember we're all thinking of you, be careful! Loadsa love, your bro Ed... x