A sí que bueno.

Great news--I had some interviews last night and they went pretty well. I talked to two guys that are part of the "board" of the organization...basically they are two of the four individuals that make most of the decisions for the group. ALSO, a few of the guys I talked to have visited Minnesota. One of them said, "Oh, Minneapolis, what a great city. Minnesota is really pretty!" He definitely won some cool points in my book....I feel like whenever I tell people I am from Minnesota, they just give me a blank stare. I also chatted with some members of the group and made a few contacts, so exciting! I am going to start to transcribe the interviews and then I can finally integrate them into my paper and maybe, just maybe....knock out a "rough" final draft this week.

I have been pretty lazy lately- mostly research stuff, grabbing lunch or coffee with some friends, walking around the city, and hanging out with my host family as much as I can. I feel like a part of their family and I think it's going to be really difficult to leave them. I guess I'll just have to visit again. Yesterday, we had a big Sunday lunch with my parents, the three kids and their significant others, and the main source of entertainment, Juli (Julian), my oldest host brother's baby. He has gotten so much bigger since I got here and is so CUTE. My oldest brother, Sebastian and his wife, Vanessa, are heading to Atlanta in a few days to visit Vanessa's brother for a few weeks. I made cookies for dessert, which turned out pretty good. I miss really awesome, baked goods back in the states. I mean the dulce de leche is good here and so is the ice cream, but nothing can beat a good, buttery cookie or bar. Also, my family's oven is a gas oven and it kind of freaks me out. Weird, right? I always make my host brother, Juan, light it for me because I just envision myself lighting my hair on fire. Like I said, freaky.

Besides hanging out today/conducting interviews, I slept a lot and went out with some friends to a Chinese restaurant in Belgrano. Belgrano is another barrio, above Palermo, and it is supposed to be even fancier than Palermo and more expensive. I would like to check it out during the day because they supposedly have a really cool China Town here (another thing to add to my "to do" list in Buenos Aires). The Chinese food was SUPERB. It was a nice break from meat, pasta, and pizza...

Lately, I have been envisioning what my life will be like once I return back home. It feels weird to call Minnesota "home" after living in Argentina for almost 4 months because I have formed a new home here. I have gotten so close with some people and it's weird to think that I won't see see everyone everyday. I also imagine myself speaking in Spanish to my family and friends, it seems so normal but I don't think there are many people in Duluth that would understand it....I suppose my Minnesooooootan accent will come back fairly quickly, ya know?

A few pictures that I downloaded recently:

Colonia, Uruguay
























Lindzy, Rachel, and me in Palermo (last weekend)










Bicentenario (Bicentennial) in Buenos Aires




Happy Memorial Day to all you American folk.

Besos,
Abita

Can this paper just write itself?

The past two weeks have gone by fast. Way too fast. In a way, I want the next two weeks to be over because that would mean my paper would be finished...but I cannot imagine being done yet. The majority of the kids in my program are heading back the day after the program ends, but there is a handful that is going to stay. I will be here for about 12 days, so I am starting to think of where I want to go...so far, a few kids and I have been brainstorming and we still would like to visit Mendoza, Córdoba, Iguazu, and personally, I would LOVE to make it to Chile, but we'll see....

So this paper. I actually have about 15 pages which I'm happy about; I won't be stuck writing 30+ pages the last week (thank god!). However, I still haven't had interviews yet and that will be a pretty big section in my final paper. But good news- I am going to an event on Sunday that my group is putting on!

Quick summary of the past 1 1/2 weeks....
1. It was the Bicentennial this past weekend in Buenos Aires, celebrating 200 years of independence (Argentina broke free of Spain's rule in 1810). There have been events all month and this past weekend, there were free concerts, ballet and tango shows, booths, and food set up in the Plaza de Mayo and near the obelisco. Basically, the city was CRAZY busy the entire weekend. I checked it out during the day and listened to some live music, but after awhile, I left...it was too much to handle. There were so many people that it was uncomfortable and it was hard to move anywhere!
2. I usually work on the paper for a few hours every day during the week/meet with teachers and advisers.
3. I hung out with Rachel and her friend, Lindsey when they were in BA. It was great to see her and we actually checked out the bicentennial events together and went out for dinner a couple of times.
4. I am actually going to make dinner with some girls in my program for my host family tonight. SO excited. Pasta with veggies and cheesy-garlic bread. YUM.

I'll post some photos from Uruguay, bicentennial, and everything in between once I upload the pictures!

Muchos besos

Hello, stress.

I. AM. STRESSED. I have had a hard time getting everything organized for this research paper but I think it is finally starting to come along. I forced myself to start today and I actually wrote a little bit of my introduction and background information...Now my plan is to write until I can no longer form sentences and go to bed...

My parentes threw a dinner party at the house on Friday which was fabulous...We started out with cheese and fiambres (cold-cuts) and drinks. For the main course, my Mom made her famous "pastel del choclo," (looks like a solfeé but with corn, cheese, minced up veggies, and then it's baked). Basically, really incredible. After the main course, we had dessert, which consisted of two kinds of cake. We were not done...My parents then brought out champagne and lemon ice cream and mixed them together into a drink for everyone. I have no idea how I didn't throw up from eating all that, but needless to day, it was delicious! It was a fun night, but by the time everyone left, it was almost one in the morning so I went to bed.

On Saturday, I researched some more articles for my paper, caught up on some laundry, and later, I went swing dancing with my friend, Sam. After swing dancing, people started to tango and we watched them for awhile. It is really fun to watch good tango dancers, they are incredible and it always amazes me that they don't trip on their 4 inch heels and break their ankle. I think that would happen to me even if I didn't wear heels...They make it look so effortless, too but it is so HARD! Afterward, we met up with some more SIT kids at a bar near by and hung out for a few hours.

I read some more on Sunday and later, I went to my friend Freddie's place because her host sister and brother's girlfriend had an opening for their clothing line PLUS amazing cake. The girls come up with their own designs and get them screen printed onto shirts. They were pretty cool but I didn't fall in love with anything I found. It was a unique experience; their sizing is really small and seriously, some of the tops can only fit a person that has no hips and/or has never gone through puberty. And then there was amazing cake. Weird contrast, right?

I will be working on my paper all week and some of us have planned to do one or two fun things each day as a break so we won't go crazy. Writing and staring at a computer screen, let alone in Spanish for an entire day can make anyone want to jump off a cliff....

So, my plans for this week besides this paper:
-Visit the Museum of Fine Arts (Museo de las bellas artes)
-Visit the Bicentennial Museum
-Go to a park and read
-Meet up with Rachel on Wednesday!!!!
-Cook again for my family
-Shop
-Eat at Matildas, my favorite cafe in San Telmo (they make fresh sandwiches and have awesome baked goods. I think I like it so much because it reminds me of a coffee shop in the U.S...)

Buenas noches.

ISP period has begun!

Since classes are officially over, I have begun the ISP part of the program. For the next 4 weeks (actually a little less now!), I am going to be investigating a Jewish organization in Buenos Aires. It is called JAG (Judíos Argentinos Gays) and I am going to investigate why it started and will eventually interview the director (hopefully) and some members. I have already started to read and dig through books and websites. This past week, I have been researching background information, writing and revising my proposal for the project, and I have met with my adviser. He was actually the one that suggested that I investigate this organization. I am SO excited to investigate; it''s going to be cool to use everything I have learned thus far to interview individuals and learn about this organization. It's due on the 8th of June, so it is going to go FAST.

Other than trying to fill my brain with as much background information as I can, not too much is new. Since all of the other students have started their research projects, I don't see everyone in the program as often either. I went to a funky bar last night, called Carnal, with some girls in my program. It was fun but I came home early because I had to get some stuff done for today. At the bar, it seemed like all the men were either thirty and/or had nasty beards...not really the best combination...

My host parents are having a huge dinner party here tonight so they have started to prepare some food already...should be fun! I will probably work on my project a lot this weekend because I really want to get as much done as I can before I meet with my adviser again PLUS Rachel comes in a few days and I want to be able to show her around. I also would like to go to some parks in Palermo and go running on Saturday or Sunday. My friend's host Mother is having a party at her house on Sunday. The daughter and son's girlfriend are launching a new line of clothing, so that should be awesome to see!

Sorry for the short post but I should finish reading and send my adviser my work! Happy Friday!

Also, here is a link to more photos I took in northern Argentina:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2037362&id=1282380112&l=f7239dada9

Patagonia, Salta, and blood sausage

I don't even know where to begin, I'm sorry this has taken me so long to update. I have gone on two trips in the last month and whenever I have some time to blog, I never want to sit down and write. So, brace yourself for a summary of what I have been doing for the last 4 1/2 weeks...

I have gone on two major trips with my program since I last posted: Bariloche, a city in Patagonia as well as Salta and Jujuy (up north).

Patagonia:
My program is centered around human rights and social movements and the trip to Patagonia was focused on one's right to land. We visited a couple of Mapuche communities, whose right to land has been violated and there have been instances where the government even tried to take their land away. The Mapuche are an indigenous group of southwestern Argentina and south-central Chile. One day we visited a community outside Bariloche and a woman from the community shared her story of how she stood up to the Argentine government. Here is a picture of her and the group listening on:









Patagonia was stunning; I saw some of the most breathtaking views of my life and the lakes and mountains were gorgeous. However, Bariloche was pretty touristy and I would love to visit a smaller town in Patagonia with less foreigners. We had lecture almost every day there as well with a group of lawyers that worked in Bariloche and we went on a few hikes outside the city. We also were able to experience the "real Bariloche." We visited a few neighborhoods right outside the city and saw some of the poorest communities I ever seen in my life. It was such a weird contrast- going from the center of the city, with beautiful hotels and shops to communities with run-down homes and buildings. It was a nice trip and I ate some of the best chocolate. After dinner, we trekked over to one of the many chocolate shops and sampled different kinds... I was definitely in chocolate heaven!

A few more pictures:

Hiking

Up North:
I actually just got back from Salta last Thursday after a two week trip with my program. We had lectures on gender and sexuality as well as human trafficking on the border of Bolivia and Argentina. We took a bus to Salta and returned via plane. The bus ride to Salta was about 20 hours and it was actually not as painful as it sounds- we left around 5 and the seats fold down to a bed, so we all slept through the night. Actually, my seat didn't go all the way down because it was broken, but it was still comofortable. We were also served my personal favorite, "mystery meat" with hard bread. It was disgusting and when I told my host parents about the "carne misteriosa," they thought I was nuts...

Like the Patagonia trip, we also had lectures and for one of the classes, we visited a soup kitchen, also called a "comedor." We had the opportunity to talk to the women that worked there, helped them make bread and prepare food, and of course, played with the kids. The soup kitchens are in very poor areas of the city and the women that worked there made meals for up to 100 kids each day. Also, one of the first days in Salta, we visited an archaeology museum and they had three Incan mummies that were discovered around 2000. The mummies were young children that had been sacrificed in the Incan empire and were in excellent condition. Before they were sacrificed, they had huge celebrations and marches in the city and it was thought to be a great honor to be chosen (Sounds pretty awesome huh?). Even though it was kind of creepy to see such small mummies of children, I loved the museum and thought the exhibit was fascinating.

For another lecture, our group split into two groups and I chose to visit the hospital in Salta to talk about female reproductive rights. I had envisioned that we would meet and talk with various doctors and listen to their experiences and perspectives on women´s rights. The lecture actually turned out to be really strange...The first part of it made me think I was back in sex-ed class in high school- painfully awkward and funny. About half way through the lecture, the woman pulled out lyrics for a song and not only did she turn music on, she started to sing along. I totally lost it and some kids in my program started to sing along as well. She also talked about abortion and how the majority of Argentinians are against it. I thought it was interesting to hear her perspective but did not feel like getting into a debate with her about abortion...I was happy to get out of there after that lecture!

Another part of this trip included a home-stay in a rural community outside Salta. My friend, Josh, and I stayed in Gobernador Sola with Rita and Javier along with their son. Rita is the head of the primary school near by and also the secretary of the community. Her husband, Javier, works in Agriculture and is the vice president of the community as well. Rita's mother, Rosa, came to the house everyday to work but she lived down the road. There were mountains on either side and the town was tucked in between; it was stunning. There was an elementary school near by as well as a church, but otherwise, it was an endless landscape of fields, mountains, and more mountains. I thought that we were going to be working in the field and killing chickens or something, but we ended up talking to the family and hanging out.

One day, we helped pick choclo, which is essentially corn, and helped Rita make humitas, a traditional Salta dish. Basically, its mashed up corn, sauteed onions and peppers, and cheese wrapped up in a corn husk. SO GOOD. Another day, Josh and I visited the school and played with the kids and later, they schooled us in soccer. Let me tell you, that altitude difference makes you TIRED! We went to bed the first night around 10 or 11pm and woke up the next morning at 11 and we still took naps later that day.

One of the last nights, we had the opportunity to go to the town meeting and listen in. It was really interesting; they talked about how some wealthy people from Buenos Aires are buying their land and beginning to build homes there. Another interesting topic they talked about was "el tren a los nubes," or "the train to the clouds." It's a train that starts near Salta and runs through the mountains, offering the riders amazing views of the Andes mountains and landscape. However, the bathrooms on the train dump their waste right onto the land, which in effect, ruins their land and crops! The people I met in the community are some of the nicest people I have ever met and I hope in the future that I can return. Overall, it was a nice break from reality and it was cool to gain a different perspective on their lifestyle. Oh, and kind of a funny story from our trip: The grandmother, Rosa, and I became good buds. She thought Josh and I were a couple and kept telling him, "Be careful; make sure other men don't look at Abigail." Of course, it was a little more dramatic in Spanish, but you get the idea...

Here are a few pictures:









A few more things...
1. I am DONE with class now! Actually, I have to finish a ten page paper (almost there) and then I start my independent research project for the last 4 weeks. I am going to focus on a Jewish organization here in Buenos Aires and conduct interviews, so it should be really fun. I am also looking forward to setting up my own schedule and having some more time to explore the city.
2. I tried blood sausage at dinner and I LOVED it. My Dad told me he wouldn't be offended if I didn't like it but I kept asking for more. He told me I was a "vampiro." I definitely don't want to know what it's made of because if I really want to eat it again, so please don't tell me...
3. Rachel comes to Argentina in a week, I am so pumped!
4. My friend, Mercedes is studying abroad in Brazil and she is actually from Buenos Aires originally. Also, her boyfriend is studying abroad in Buenos Aires. Last Saturday, I was in Recoleta and all of the sudden, someone touched my arm and said, "Abbey!" Lo and behold, it was Mercedes! So random. This city is huge and without planning to meet, we ran into one another. I love when things like that happen.
5. I made chicken parmesan for my family tonight and it was a big hit. I guess my irrational fear of burning the apartment down and being sent back to the states was a little over the top...
6. I miss Swedish fish. And peanut butter. Whenever I go to a market, I always look, only to find lots of dulce de leche. It's good, but I mean, nothing can beat a good peanut butter and banana sandwich.
7. I am sleeping in tomorrow!

Besos.