Return of the Pinguino

The rest of the weekend went well! Saturday night we went to some Tango competition on Saturday night. I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't near as exciting as I expected. We were also at the very top of the balcony. It wasn't choreographed routines or anything - it was straight up ballroom tango. It was still interesting though, the theater was real cool, and it was freee!

Then we went to a real nice sushi restaurant that Brady made reservations for. It was soooo gooood. I love sushi.

Afterwards, we went back to the bar that we ordered vino pinguino at! I really enjoy the bar scene a lot more than the club scene. Its a lot of fun just to get a table with a bunch of friends, share a few drinks, and chat. The atmosphere is usually nice too. Nice ambiance, as Brady would say. haha

"The more you make the penguin throw up, the more likely you are to throw up."
Today Charlotte, Paige and I went to the San Telmo Fair. I really like the fair...they have it every Sunday!



It was such a pretty day today! It made up for the freezing cold rain yesterday. After the fair we went to the mall in Palermo. I REALLY hate shopping, so it wasn't the best thing ever...but on the bus ride back, Paige fell out of her seat on a turn, which made it all worth it!!! Hahaha
I've never seen locals smile or laugh at Americans before today :)
Love you Pagina.

La Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur

Today Charlotte and I went the Natural Park, or La Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur, which is in Buenos Aires, not too far away from our school.

First we crossed this interesting bridge.

I think it looks like a giant harp and I think someone should find a way to play it.

We were walking on a sidewalk close to the reserve and there were wild parrots!Right outside the park.Woo!

Mr. Bicycler,
Period of mating.
Respect the path restrictions.



Water!
There was a lot of construction debris near the water. It was neat though, because there were spots where all of the brick and concrete was eroded into sand. Nature can even take our trash and make it pretty.
Drift wood!
Dead Fish.

Climbing back up.
The skyscrapers were kind of disheartening, but it was still pretty. It was a nice break to get out of the city for a few hours.
This tree was spiky!
Some strange pods on a tree. They looked like corn. Or larva.





:(

A Big Bird.


The best part of the entire thing: WILD GUINEA PIGS!!!
They were afraid of people, so we couldn't get close, but we saw three on our walk through the reserve!! They are pretty fast! haha

First week!

First week is done! I somehow made it through with very little sleep. Classes are going well. School is school no matter how you look at it, but its a lot more fun being in class for four hours a day (then homework) and being able to explore a foreign city afterwards! One night Char and I went out to a cafe, and it started pouring rain as soon as we left. There are lots of cute little cafes around, and many of them also have wifi. We went to one called La Poesia. There is a lot to do around San Telmo, which is the neighborhood I live in. I know my way around that area fairly well now, which is nice.

We are taking two classes, two hours each and have an hour lunch break in between. We found a little outdoor restaurant close to the school, next to the canal where we usually get lunch. Empanadas!! :)

Red Bull! And me looking a little strung out. They even serve red bull in a glass.

Charlotte outside of schoolPaige and Harry. I love this picture!

Wednesday night this week we had Tango lessons! That was fun. We learned one of the many (five? nine? something like that?) possible patterns for the dance. We had the lessons at the basement of some building. When we got there they were finishing up a swing lesson...it was pretty sweet, and there were a lot of people there!

Below are pictures of us taking a quiz during class

Class Picture! :)

Whenever I travel I always notice what kind of dogs they have in the country. For example, most of the dogs in Jamaica look very Brittish, as it was once a British Colony. I feel like the dogs here perfectly match the importance of self-image here. People are really concerned with there image...most people dress real nice and fashionable, and there are hardly any fat people. Lots of people drink mate because it also suppresses your appetite and will keep you thin. I think it matches this perfectly that ALL of the dogs are pure bred, even many of the dogs wandering the street. There are lots of well bred Golden Retrievers, German Sheppards, Labradors, Pointers, Weimaraners, Sharpeis, Boxers, and of course Pitt Bulls. I feel like it is equally as common to have a mixed breed dog versus a pure bred in the United States, but here I have seen very few people out walking a mutt.

My professor took this picture of a girl walking ELEVEN DOGS. haha