These past 2 weeks have been so busy! The best times, some hard times. Here I will walk you through it all.
Alaskans Unite!
Jodie, me, Joanna, and Mike!
I just can't say Mike!'s name without the exclamation mark. This is all of us Alaskans that are in Buenos Aires (I'm sure there's more, but this is all I could collect for lasagna night). I decided I wanted to have friends over and eat Lasagna and Scottish shortbread and Sangría. Jodie, Joanna & Mike (brother and sister), Kelly and her friend Emily, Samantha, Caitlyn and her boyfriend, Yogev, and a few others came. It was fantastic! The lasagna came out meaty and tasty, and it was my first time ever making it. The night was an excuse to see Mike, Joanna, and Jodie to tell the truth. Mainly Mike, I have to admit. I've known Mike since middle school or high school, he was always the crazy guy! Loved by all, accepted anyone into his life. At junior prom he drank a beta fish, and at senior prom he dubbed Jessie with the nickname of "Boots" because of her 7-inch purple glitter platforms that she wore (which by the way completely nulled my choice of wedges to match her height). So many memories with Mike, although never really hung out outside of school... until now! on the other side of the planet! Joanna and him are currently traveling through the rest of Argentina, but when they touch base in Buenos Aires again there will be more festivities.
Afterward dinner some went home, and the rest of us went out to a private party to celebrate the Interior. It was a fiesta de verdad, it took place in a church or some kind of employment building, with a dance floor and a bar. There was an electric bull, it was funny watching Argentines try to ride it. We were invited by Kelly's friend Juan Camilo who is from Colombia, he was working the coat check and mini bar in the back, and I could tell he was a good guy from the get-go. Very respectful. I'll write about him again later.
Anyways, so Caitlyn bought us some drinks and we started dancing together. I met some other people there, from Santiago del Estero, and Mar del Plata. Sometimes I don't want to talk to strangers when I go out with friends, but this night was different. I had a great time, and everyone else seemed to as well.
On Tuesday, a few days after the dance party in the church Kelly and I went to Gibraltar bar in San Telmo to say goodbye to her roommate who was only in the apartment for a month, Chris. I went to Frisbee with Chris once, and he made lots of pizza... funny guy. We had a few drinks and talked about the good times, and he got super tired (or super drunk) and hopped in a taxi to go home for the night since he was leaving the next day. Kelly and I wanted to stay and talk with the new people we had met even though it was a Tuesday, and that's where it all began. After we had enough of Gibraltar we started heading to Red Door, and there was this guy tagging along with us. I didn't remember meeting him in Gibraltar, but he seemed alright. Kelly and him talked all the way there and when we got there we didn't have a problem getting in. I met some more people, Sebastian from Barcelona who was celebrating the end of his trip as well, among others. Kelly and I got invited to this one guy's birthday party that was set for Wednesday, the next day. Eventually I ended up talking to the guy that tagged along with us and found out he was from Ireland. Immediately wanted to hear more, but I kept my distance so as not to look like an obsessive fool... If you know anything about me, it's that I love Ireland... always have, and have always wanted to go back since I went when I was 16. We talked and talked and clicked right away. His name is Eoghan (pronounced "Owen") and he pretty much changed my life.
Eoghan and I hung out for 2 days straight, I showed him what I could of the city and enjoyed his company very much. I looooove the Irish accents... I felt stupid a lot because I couldn't make out what he was saying sometimes, but that's part of the fun of being from different places even if you speak the same language, I guess. On Wednesday we went to the Abasto shopping center, near where I live, and then to Plaza de Mayo, and the Casa Rosada was lit up in bright pink lights! I have never seen that before, and I haven't seen it like that since (I've been past it a couple times since last week).
I told him what I could remember about the Casa Colonial, Casa Rosada, the Cathedral, and the marching abuelas. I'm no tour guide, but I did what I could, if not for him, then for me to prove that I can remember something from this year to myself... After Plaza de Mayo we walked to Puerto Madero and saw the bridge, had some coffee and alfajores in a cafe, and walked to one of the yellow cranes. He was funny, he wanted a picture with the crane instead of the Bridge. Who am I to argue? Then we walked to Molly Mallone's, this Irish Pub that I knew of in the area. The last time I went I really liked it, and this time was the same. We had some beers and he said he thought one of the burly guys next to us was a Scottish rugby player named Gregor Townsend. I thought he said Gregory, because that's the kind of name I recognize.. I've never met anyone named Gregor, Eoghan wanted me to go ask if he was Gregor Townsend. I know nothing about rugby, let alone who any famous players are so I said no, and we sat there wondering if it was him. Then finally when they stood up to leave Eoghan yelled out "Gregor!", and the guy turned around surprised and was happy to talk with Eoghan.
Gregor Townsend, Scotland Rugby Coach
Apparently he was happy to be recognized, I always imagine such characters to be sick and tired of being talked to, but it was great to see the smile on this muscly rugby players face. We totally blanked and forgot we had a camera on us, so we don't have any pictures with him, but that's more Eoghan's loss than mine. But how cool is that? I would never have been able to pick out a Scottish rugby legend unless I was with an Irishman. After Molly Mallone's we went to a house in San Telmo for that birthday party for that guy we had met at Red Door the night before. It was alright, Kelly and Jenny were there and they left after we got there, so Eoghan and I hung out until a Bolivian guy tried to teach us this twirly South American dance move. I have more experience with the twirly dancing than Eoghan but neither of us really got it, and even tually the Bolivian guy clapped saying we got it, and so Eoghan and I said our goodbyes and left the Bolivian Wasteland, as Kelly has dubbed this new hangout in San Telmo.
These few days were so full of events it seems endless... The next day, Thursday, I met up with Eoghan and we had lunch at Kentucky Pizza and had a bizzare pizza, it was half corn and onion and cheese, and half ham and palm hearts. I ordered ham and pineapple (because I FINALLY found someone who likes hawaiian pizza!) but the waiter messed it up anyways. We got pineapple on the side, which just isn't the same, but it was good nevertheless. We walked to the Rosedal rose garden and around Plaza Holanda, then got some Volta ice cream and walked to MALBA museum. That was interesting, there's a new exhibition that replaced the Andy Warhol one, and it is pretty S&M. It's a photography display, and there's lots of exposed male parts. I appreciate that, so often are women portrayed naked and everyone claiming it's art, not porn, and men never have to strip down and pose for anyone because it's "heinous" or "blasphemous". All in all, I prefer the Andy Warhol exhibit because the new one, in my opinion, crosses the borders that distinguish art from pornography.
Thursday isn't over! We went to Kelly's apartment to meet up with her, Samantha, Jenny and Jenny's friend Eze (pronounced "essay" or mexican "ese!"). We ate some of Kelly's amazing Rosemary focaccia bread and drank beer... then went to thisclub called La France (or GOA), where we met up with Ramón and Fede P.! I left Eoghan, Kelly & then to go look for Ramón and Fede, and at first I was losing hope, and losing happiness because I couldn't find then, then suddenly I literally bumped into Fede and we screamed and hugged each other. Then Ramón came over and screamed and hugged me and kissed my cheek. I love my friends here! How am I going to be able to leave them?!?! I hate goodbyes. Anyways... So the rest of the group came to me and Ramón's friends' spot where we stayed for the rest of the night. I had so much fun that night... dancing with Ramón is always fun, and I always get to meet more of his random friends. We all got a little too crazy, a little too much"baile sensual" (it was our sensual dancing night since Ramón and Kelly and I were joking about it about a month before). Ramón is a security guard so it's just funny to hear him say something like that, haha. I think we weirded Eoghan out. I have no idea how it is in Ireland, but someday I will go and see. Hopefully sooner than later, I have plans to live in Colorado in the USA for a couple years and then move to Ireland. With some trips to Norway and Finland in there somewhere... Life is too short!
So the night was coming to a close, I tried to take a bus to get home but walked 10 blocks in the wrong direction, to the Obelisk, and realized that I didn't have my wallet anyways... it was just gone. I had my bag zipped shut with a coat folded over the top and everything, and somehow my wallet disappeared. I think when I was returning scarves and stuff to Sam and Kelly it got caught and fell out... just bad luck I guess. Kelly helped me get home with coins and has since been loaning me money until I can pay it back. I love Kelly, I seriously don't know how I am going to live without her...
so, needless to say, Friday I was completely dead. Dead to the world. I slept until 6 or 7 pm after my class and went to Kelly's to make dinner. We were going to have a calm night since all week had been nothing short of madness. However, there is no such thing as a calm Friday night in Buenos Aires, and I will have to continue the happenings of my week in another blog, because I have been writing for 3.5 hours already and need to go to sleep. I'm off to immigrations for the 5th time to get my Visa. Not my visa card, my student Visa for residency, to prove that I am studying here... I went in March and it is still not done... I think I am going to have to be firm tomorrow. I need to be mean or something, I need to demand they give it to me. I don't know what else to do. We'll see. Last time I went, I got so upset and offended when I left that I cried all the way home. I hate feeling so insignificant and treated like nothing just because I'm foreign. I only feel like that at immigrations though, the rest of the city treats me like a blonde goddess, so I have no right to complain.
Until next time,
-Jenny
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