I have now been working for a month (although you wouldn't know it if you saw my bank account... It sucks to earn pesos!) for an auto shipping company that moves cars within the US. Random, but it's actually a pretty great job. The office is really laid back and everyone is cool. We went paintballing which ended up not being as great of a "team building" activity as our bosses had hoped since we were split into 2 teams and everyone was shooting each other. And my boss pegged me in the NECK (not on purpose, of course... but I had to wear scarves for a week because it looked like I had a gnarly hickey!). We also had a crazy Christmas party at a fancy restaurant/club where they paid for us to all get wasted and dance until 6 am!
Some of the girls getting ready for paintball (I'm on the left):
But, it is still work, which is why I was so excited to take some time off when MARISA came to visit!!!! She was my first visitor of what will hopefully be many... the day she arrived we got on a 17 hour bus ride to Iguazu Falls. I think we spent more time traveling than we did in Iguazu, but it was all worth it! The cataratas (waterfalls) were mind-blowing. They were enormous, humbling, and unbelievable... it is hard to comprehend the strength, intensity, and expanse of the falls.
We took a boat ride close to the falls and got completely SOAKED! Seriously, it was like we had just gotten out of the shower. We were so close to the water it was awesome!!! Also in Iguazu we got attacked my butterflies... I am not even kidding. It was the craziest thing but they were everywhere and eventually I didn't even feel bad swatting them away! Also it was ridiculously hot- think Palm Springs but muggy, too. Thankfully our hostel had a pool where we could seek refuge after our long, hot, sweaty days. It was fun staying in a hostel again, where we met travelers from all over the world, and where I felt like I was on a vacation from my "normal life" in the city :)
When Marisa and I got back to Buenos Aires, I showed her all around the different barrios. We spent some time in La Boca, which is the birthplace of tango and home to multicolored streets.
Apart from a couple of touristy streets, the barrio is really rundown and dangerous. So after a little stroll, a snack, and some tango, we moved on to... Puerto Madero! What a juxtoposition... this new area of the city is full of high rises, ritzy hotels, and 'mucha plata' (a lotta money).
We did all the important things in Buenos Aires- namely eat a lot of steak & empanadas and drink! We ate amazing meals and went out every night. She learned about the 'chamuyo' of the Argentine men (the bullshit pickup lines/trying to kiss you upon first meeting/etc). We had a Christmas picnic in the park, went to open air markets, walked around my area, and hung out with my Argentine amigos. I was so sad to see her go, and I hope I was an alright tour guide!
And then I slept as much as possible in order to regain my strength for New Years! My amazing new friend and soon-to-be Argentine roommate Caro had people over and I played drinking games with the Argies until 7 am, when I was too tired and drunk to speak anymore spanish so I had to go home. Then I slept until 5:30 pm, a new record!
I am starting out this new decade with the following goals:
-stop eating and drinking so much (this one will be REALLY hard in BA, but it's getting to be a problem... ha)
-step up my spanish a few notches. It's not cool to still suck when I've been here for over 3 months!
-blog more
-keep in touch with everyone from home that I love and miss so much!
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and new years! xo
