Lots of Tango, a sprinkle of trivia, and a generous helping of Brazilians

After being stuck in the Iguazu airport for nine hours (most of us were asleep on the hard marble floor), we arrived back to Buenos Aires. We were completely exhausted, so the professors let us sleep in! Don´t worry, we still went to school in the afternoon! However the extra sleep was much needed and it prepared us for our highly anticipated night ahead. After our school lessons, which I won´t go into (don´t worry, we learned a lot), we went home to prepare for our Tango lesson, show, and dinner.

Around 7:00 we arrived to Complejo Tango. Since most of us ladies were lookin´ pretty fine, we took taxis to our Tango experience. We arrived to what looked like a hole in the wall place with wooden doors. However after following the tight staircase up two flights we arrived to a beautiful and elegant space with different studies and a huge performing space. We started our Tango experience with a lesson from Alejandro. He taught us the three basic steps of Tango: the square, the eight, and the sexy pose (picture included). After learning these steps we spent the rest of the time practicing. Since there are thirteen females and one male in our group (Hardy), poor Hardy was passed around all thirteen women! He was a great sport though and proved to be quite the dancer. After receiving our Tango certificates, we entered a gorgeous dance hall with a stage and two floors of tables. We were served small appetizers and lost ourselves in a sultry evening of Tango music and dance. The dancing was phenomenal and the live music was mind blowing. Let´s just say it was an experience we will never forget. I know I went home with the desire to find Tango lessons in Birmingham. :)

The next evening a few of us went out to a hip new restaurant near our school called, ´´The Moving Bar´´ where they had an international trivia game! We participated in 5 rounds of trivia with people from New Zealand, Peru, England, Australia, and Brazil. After the game eneded (we lost...) they put on music from all over the world. However since there were at least thirty Brazilians, we ended up listening and dancing to mostly Brazilian music! Man, those Brazilians love to dance! They were adamant about teaching us ´´gringas´´ to dance the samba! Finally after a round of much Brazilian dancing and a round of Spanish karaoke, we had to say ´´Adios´´ to our new international friends. It was fantastic meeting new people from all over the world who each spoke a different language. They only way we all could commuicate was through our non-native language of Spanish!

-Jackie

Iguazu - day after the falls

Our last morning in Iguazu we had the opportunity to choose our activity- a few went back to hike around Iguazu falls, others signed up for an additional excursion in Iguazu forest, while the rest chose to stay close to the hotel to enjoy the pool and surrounding cafes and shops. The four of us that went on the excursion enjoyed an exciting morning of zip-lining and rappelling. We were picked up bright and early from the hotel in an huge safari-like jeep and taken down bumpy dirt roads to a zipline in the woods. After that the truck took us to another location for us to rappel down a waterfall (quite a unique experience!) We returned to the hotel soaked and covered with red dirt, but glad we signed up for the the excursion!

Our group was scheduled to fly back to Buenos Aires in the mid-afternoon, but due to a sequence of flight delays and cancellations we spent 10 hours bonding on the stone floor of the tiny airport. We finally arrived back in the city around 2:00 AM, and one of our van drivers kindly met us there to shuttle us back to our apartments. It was a long day but definitely worth the trip!

Sally

IGUAZÚ: totally worth the Disney-World lines

We visited Iguazú falls, one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World, on Saturday, January 15. The entrance of Iguazú looks more like a theme park than a nature preserve. With tour buses, snaking lines, and even a mini-train, it was a paved pedestrian superhighway through the jungle for the first half mile. Even so, by the end of the experience I was half suprised there weren´t more people.
Let me first say that we had an adorable and amazing tour guide, Marisa. She was quite informative and had a real passion for the area. The first stop we came to was La Garganta del Diablo, Devil´s Throat. Enchanting, astounding, and unbelievable are some of the words I´d use to describe it. Everyone stood goosebumped and gaping at seemingly endless water. I realized that the word ¨wow¨is common to many languages. After that, we rode the train to another stop and hiked the Upper and Lower trails (Circuito Superior y Inferior, which can be seen here), which were both breathtaking. We got a lot of really great pictures--maybe we´ll make the Interim Bulletin!


After a full day at the park, we returned to the Hotel Saint George for some down time. Many people retreated to the pool, and most of us got our first sunburn of the year. A note about Saint George: the restaurant was fantastic. I was especially fond of the breakfast buffet (which, as everyone figured out, was also supplying my lunches). The picture only shows the sweets section. I could definitely get used to the Argentine custom of dulces for breakfast!

This whole excursion was fantastic and won´t be soon forgotten, although I was glad to get back to Buenos Aires
. ¡Chao!




-Collin

Eva Peron Museum visit

The Eva Peron museum has been the highlight of the trip so far! Going into it, I knew a little about the life of Eva. However, most of this was gathered from the musical EVITA, which we quickly learned was not an accurate portrayal of her life. The area surrounding the museum was beautiful. It was an area that I had not explored prior to this visit, but it looked intriguing. It was across the street from the Zoo! The house looked simple on the outside, silently embedded in a tiny street. But inside it takes on a whole new perspective. I was actually surprised with how big the museum was inside, because it looked so small on the outside. I felt like the museum was put together wonderfully. Typically, I am not a big fan of museums, but this one captivated me. For the most part the house has remained in its original condition, with renovations done here and there to allow for the museum. All of the belongings in the museum actually belonged to Eva, like her clothing and other objects, which just brought the whole story more to life. It was also interesting how they combined actual footage of her life throughout the tour. Our tour guide was wonderful also. His passion and dedication to teaching visitors about Eva and her life made the tour that much more interesting. He brought the story to life in a way that not many could. The courtyard surrounding the backside of the house was beautiful. It was a perfect ending to the wonderful day!

--Landi Drake

Belgrano and a birthday in Buenos Aires

It was Jackie's birthday today! But before the celebration began... we all went to our classes. In my class we talked about the difference between northern countries and southern countries of the world. We talked about the treatment of the poor. I really feel like everyone's Spanish is progressing regardless of class level. My southern accent is beginning to fade and the real Argentinian speaker has come out!

In the afternoon we took a tour through Belgrano, and saw a super cool museum of Spanish art. Everyone took a lot of pictures in the beautiful garden. We also saw Chinatown and heard about some interesting history between the Chinese and Argentinian people. I also ate the most fantastic ice cream at Freddo, and it was life-changing good. I've had so much fun getting to know everyone in our group!

Today was awesome! I look forward to seeing the museum of Eva Peron tomorrow!

--Ellen

Bruschetta, Brazilians, and Beauty

Our third official day in the beautiful city of Buenos Aires was a success! The past couple of days we have really had an opportunity to explore the city and get our bearings--seemingly overwhelming, but actually quite rewarding. Even successfully using Subte, the subway system, is celebrated. The most rewarding aspect of the trip so far is the cross-pollination of cultures; in my class there are the three of us and three students from Brazil. Class time is basically used to learn about the different cultures: we tell them about the United States, they tell us about Brazil, and our professor talks about Argentina. The Brazilians are quite amiable, and I hope we get to spend some out-of-class time with them soon. The most challenging aspect of the trip is the constant Spanish mindset--when I get up in the morning at 6:45, I immediately start my day speaking Spanish to Teresa, my host. I expect that my language skills will drastically improve due to the constant use of the language. Finally, the mix of influences in Argentina is also quite apparent. In class, we heavily discussed the importance of immigration to Argentina's culture. Yesterday at a local cafe, we ordered bruschetta, a traditionally Italian dish. We ate dinner at an Irish pub called Matias, and today we ate lunch at Cafe de Las Violetas. The architecture and menu also demonstrated the heavy Italian influence; one of the Profesoras had a Caprese Salad! I hope to continue to observe the many beautiful places, people, and foods that Argentina has to offer! Hasta luego...

Jennifer

Bienvenidos a Buenos Aires!

Well... we're finally here! I think today after class it really began to sink in that we're actually in Argentina. After about 12 hours in the sky it feels good to be back on land...even if it is far from home. Yesterday we arrived and we're greeted very warmly at the airport and by our families. We explored, ate dinner in the city, and practiced our Spanish. The general impression after the first day of classes is that we'll be fluent in no time at all. Let's hope so! After class we took a tour of the city-- the REAL Buenos Aires. We saw important sights like their capital and old ports, and we got the opportunity to have some time to explore. Later it'll be dinner, but now, we're finding souvenirs to bring home, so get excited! We sure are :)

Melanie