Mendoza

Well it has been awhile since I last updated. Classes have kicked into high gear the past few weeks. I have hardly had time to do anything other than study. It was frustrating as the first part of the semester we were given a normal amount of work and then the past few weeks have been just jammed pact with numerous assignments and tests in each class. I was able to get away this past long Easter weekend for a last excursion in Argentina. I went with Cameron to Mendoza, a smaller city about 14 hours away on bus. We left after class on Wednesday and arrived the next day around noon. We went through a different company than normal to avoid the craziness of Retiro station in Buenos Aires. It was also a lot more personal of a trip and we got to know the other travelers on the bus and the guide, Alejandro, was funny and made the ride enjoyable. We stopped at a gas station and then the next morning at a traveler's restaurant a few hours out of Mendoza for a medialuna (croissant) and coffee. When we arrived in Mendoza, we were dropped off at our two-star hotel, San Remo, where we shared a cama matrimonial.  We were picked up a few hours later for a city tour. We had to practice our Spanish a lot more than in Buenos Aires as nobody speaks English. After the end of our tour we visited the Los Toneles bodega, got a tour and lesson on the process of wine making and then a tasting. Mendoza is known for their bodegas (vineyards) as well as olive oil. We were dropped back off at our hotel later that evening and went out for a cheap bite to eat at a restaurant on Las Heras. We went to an ice cream place after that my guidebook had recommended.. it was the best soft serve I have ever tried... although it could be because it was dulce de leche flavored. 
On Friday we went to Betancourt Aventura located in Lujan, a town outside of the center and surrounded by the Andes. Cameron and I signed up for rock climbing and repelling since it was too windy to go paragliding. We had lucked out and got private lessons with the owner and founder, Fernando Betancourt. It was scary as we were really high up on the side of a mountain but it was so much fun. After he drove us back to the base where we had caprese empanadas. After lunch, we headed out to a nearby gaucho ranch and went horseback riding up the mountains. The views got more breathtaking with the incline. The horses were a bit smaller than the ones in the states and go two speeds: slow and really slow. But it was fun to experience a true "gaucho" horseback ride. 
On Saturday Cameron and I woke up early to catch a bus to Maipú, a town full of vineyards about 45 minutes away. We rented bicycles for 25 pesos (5 dollars) and set out for the bodegas. Most offered free tours and sometimes even free tastings. We visited a wine museum, five vineyards, and an olive farm along six miles of paths with scenic views of the mountains, vineyards and farmland. My favorite stop was La Familia Di Tomaso, the oldest vineyard in Mendoza. Our last stop was Olivicola Laur where we learned about the different types of olive oil and why olives are different colors. For those of you like me who didn't know, extra virgin olive oil has the lowest acidity (less than 0.8). Another fun fact: green and black olives can come from the same tree, even the same branch! The color corresponds to the ripeness of the olive when picked. Green are picked before ripening and black when they are ripe. Cool, huh? 
The next day, Easter, we woke up early to study for finals at a local Havanna cafe in Mendoza then hopped on the bus and headed back for Buenos Aires. It was a great trip overall and great closing to my time in Argentina. 
Just finished my third final today and have one more tomorrow. I head back to the states on Tuesday. I can't 
believe the semester is already over. Here are some pictures from my trip!

Plaza Sarmiento by the river 

  Here we are at the Monumento La Patria al Ejercito de Los Andes

Los Toneles

Lujan de Cuyo

Cameron with Fernando at the top!

Repelling down the mountain

Gaucho ranch

Giving our horses a break up the mountain

Horseback riding with Cameron and our guide, Luis

Vineyards and lavender

View on the bike ride. 

   

San Isidro

Went to a gorgeous little town thirty minutes outside of Buenos Aires by train with Cameron and Kalon. Although, we had a bit of trouble with transportation on the way to the train station. My madre told me to take bus number 60  and it would take us directly to a bus stop outside of Retiro so we didn't have to go to the chaotic central bus and train station of Buenos Aires. When we got off the bus at the "train station" as the conductor instructed us to, we were in a very rough looking neighborhood and unsure if this was the place my madre was talking about. We walked into the train station and they told us we had to go to Retiro, on the other side of the city and had to take a subway to get there. The main reason we had avoided Retiro was because of the subway which we did not want to take. The subway was so crowded. The whole sense of a "personal bubble" was thrown out the window as we were jam-packed in the subway with lots of sweaty and aggressive people. I guess it is all part of traveling in a big city, huh? Once we finally got to Retiro, we had to wait in line to buy our train tickets. I saw a woman talking to the police and she looked like a serious drug user. She was twitching and unable to make a coherent sentence. She was very skinny, dirty, and about 8 months pregnant. It was incredibly sad as she had another kid (that looked to be about 5 or 6 years old) begging for her. This woman picked up a half eaten apple underneath a bench and started eating it as she walked over to various travelers and tried to talk with them. This was a very upsetting situation as there are so many homeless people in Buenos Aires. Many of them have children to help financially. The government will often pay these people if they have kids but they also use the kids to beg (as many travelers will feel bad for a starving kid) or to steal. It is a terrible problem that many kids are born into and grow up completely unaware of any other form of life and the cycle continues. Okay, back to the trip to San Isidro...
 It was thirty cents each way by train. We finally arrived at 3 pm. We went to get our haircut at this neat little "Peluqueria" that my madre's best friend from her childhood owns. His name is Diego and was so nice and the hair cuts were so cheap! We were a bit nervous with getting an Argentine cut, but we walked out looking pretty good! San Isidro is a quaint town by the river with a market in the park on the weekends. The vendors sell jewelry, clothing, food, and souvenirs. Some of the food included candied apples covered in popcorn (yes, popcorn), empanadas, churros, postres, caramelized peanuts, and orange juice. San Isidro was a great break from the busy city life. The cobblestone streets, fountains, parks, and slow-paced atmosphere provided us with a perfect getaway. We went to the cathedral of San Isidro and also went out to eat. Cameron and Kalon had a delicious pizza with ham, cheese, arugula, olives, and tomatoes. I had to order something else as I had been having stomach problems. I ordered a Caesar salad... which was a bit different from the usual in the states. It was a pile of lettuce with chunks of cut up cheese from mar del plata, and shredded chicken from a can. Salad dressing doesn't exist here so it was accompanied with oil and vinegar. It was a pretty good salad but not like that in the states. I guess it is a good thing that salad dressing doesn't exist here, like many other condiments and junk food, as the obesity level is so much LOWER here. I rarely see one obese person a day. The population's health is overall pretty good, but they all smoke cigarettes. You can buy a pack of cigarettes for $1... ONE DOLLAR?!? GEESH! It is probably good that cigarette prices are so high in the US as I am sure every other person would be walking around the street puffing on a cancer stick.
Well after lunch we headed back to the train and went home. We had wanted to visit the museum and see some other things but we went on a "feria" day.. when nobody works, and all the stores were closed.  It is fall now so the weather has been great. Sunny and in the 70s during the day so we were able to enjoy walking around and exploring...

Train Station in San Isidro

Calm streets.

 Catedral de San Isidro

Market in the park

Candied apples, peanuts, popcorn.. on wheels!

Visit to see my Uruguayan family!

This past weekend I went to visit my family in Montevideo! It was so nice to see them again and be back in their beautiful house! It was a strange feeling to be back in the city after four years. I remembered somethings as they hadn't changed but I was surprised how much I had forgotten. Here are a few pictures...

Outside the casa :) ...with pretty flowers in bloom!

Lunch with my family :) mi madre is the BEST cook.

Madre outside in the back of the house, which has been redone since I was last there.

 Mis hermanos, Santiago y Florencia 

With mis padres! 

 Sunset on the boat leaving Colonia, Uruguay

class trip to ESMA

In my Latin American culture class, we traveled to ESMA, Escuela de Mecanica de la Armada, which was the largest illegal detention center of its kind during the Dirty War (1976-1979). About 5,000 people were taken and tortured and murdered (or "disappeared"). There were only 200 survivors. Many were killed in "death flights" in which the victims were sedated and then thrown into the Rio de la Plata from airplanes. Most detainees were held in the concentration camp for about 15 days. They were forced to stay in a small blocked off wooden space separate from other detainees. They were given just enough space to lay down but no room to move. They were allowed to use the bathroom once a day if the officer wanted to escort them. There last days were spent being tortured in the basement and then they were "transferred," which really meant they were going to be killed. All of this went on in the Officers' Mess. The attic was where most were kept and the basement was the main place of torture. Meanwihle, officers slept and lived with their families on the first and second floors. The ground floor was where they ate and had their conferences and meetings. It was shocking that these officers stayed in the same building in which these poor people were being tortured. 

Here are some pictures. We were only allowed to take photos outside of the buildings because some of the officers are still being charged and going to trial.

This is the entrance in which all detainees entered, hooded and shackled. ESMA was built right in the city and in plain view. Although some things were kept private, the public aspect of this camp was to create fear.

Pathway leading to the Officers' Mess

The Officers' Mess

Class trip to Calle Florida

On Thursday, our literature teacher Guido took us to Florida street. There are a lof of historical sites and places that various important people either frequented or lived at. We met at London City, a cafe where Julio Cortázar wrote Los Premios. We have been reading some of his work in class so it was neat to see the exact place where he wrote what we had already read. After, we walked around to a few other sites.

Here are a few pictures from our trip:

Cafe Tortoni is over 150 years old. This was a favorite spot of Carlos Gardel and Jorge Luis Borges.

Oh, just your average mall in Buenos Aires, the Galerias Pacifico. 

The class with our professor, Guido.

After we walked inside the largest Burger King in South America. It used to be the residence of the Argentine president,  M.T. de Alvear but was then converted into a fast food restaurant with three floors.

I found it a bit sad that such a gorgeous building would be converted into a fast food chain from the United States. 

Spring Break in Punta del Este, Uruguay

Last week I was on Spring Break in Punta del Este with a few girls from my program. We first stayed in a hostel ,El Viajero- Brava Beach, in downtown Punta del Este for 2 nights. On the third night, we moved to another hostel called El Biajero- Manantiales, which was located about 20 minutes away. Manantiales was more relaxing and filled with people our age and great for surfing. We layed on the beach every day and had great weather. At night, we cooked up some delicious meals with friends we had met at the hostel. It was a great hostel experience. 

Here are some photos I took of the trip:

Brava Beach!

(Notice how the beach is EMPTY. It was the final week of Summer for them. We had perfect weather, 80s and sunny all week!)

Inside the first hostel:

With mis amigas from Brazil, Juliana and Grazi, inside the hostel before the beach!

Sunset at the port

Our second hostel by Bikini Beach

 Dinner with our new friends from Australia! We grilled fresh fish, shrimp, and vegetables. 

The view from El Viajero- Manantiales:

The bar and pool at the hostel

Bikini Beach

It was great to get back to Uruguay after so much time in Buenos Aires. The fresh air and more relaxed vibe outside of the city was a nice break.

Northwest Trip

Just got back from our trip to Salta and Jujuy provinces in Argentina. It was an incredible time with sites and views unlike any that I have ever seen. On the first day (Thursday), we flew into Salta mid-afternoon and spent the rest of the day there. We went to a school to bring supplies and visit the students. I made a friend and his name was Leonardo. He was quite the charmer and loved my sunglasses and getting his picture taken:

After the school we were able to visit some of the older churches in Salta. The first was the Catedral Basilica de Salta. It was absolutely stunning. The church bells were rung in beautiful melodies by a group of men in the bell tower. I loved the architecture and intricate designs both inside and outside of the pink church.

That night we went to a restaurant called "La Chueca," where we ate some delicious empanadas and I had locro, a traditional northwestern stew with veggies and meat. The flavors were bold and quite spicy and I enjoyed every spoonful. 

We spent Thursday night in Salta at the Posada Angelus hotel. On Friday, we woke up bright and early and headed 4 hours out to the province of Jujuy. The mountains went on for miles. As we drove through the windy roads and farther up the mountains, the increasing altitudes started to make me dizzy and feel weak. Fortunately I had brought some excedrin and after one of those I was able to walk around and felt better. The natives and often travelers will chew on coca leaves or drink mate coca so help alleviate some of the side effects of altitude sickness. The locals are all humble yet incredibly proud of their land and who they are as a people. Here was our first stop in Jujuy in front of some of the mountains at the foothills of the Andes:

Then we went to the highest point in Jujuy, Cuesta del Lipán at 4170m.o.s.l. This was where most the girls and myself had the most trouble breathing, but it was absolutely gorgeous and worth it. The air was so pure and the wind was a nice chilly break from the summer warmth below. 

Here is Kalon standing at the highest point!

Kalon, me and Catie jumping at the Cuesta del Lipán!

We continued on to the Salinas Grandes (salt lakes) in Jujuy where we saw some neat wildlife and some of the actual mountains of the Andes from afar. The animals below are called vicuñas. These are one of two wild South American camelids found in the high alpine areas of the Andes. Don't get too close though, as they can be aggressive.

The salt lakes were unlike anything I have ever seen. You could see the reflection of the sky but needed sunglasses as it was bright like snow. We walked across the salt lake with bare feet. It felt like a smooth salt rub that you'd pay big bucks for at Bath & Body Works... and here I was getting a pedicure rub for free! My skin was so smooth after and the salt was so clean and natural. It was truly amazing.

Cameron, Samantha, Kalon, Fallon, Adrianne, and me... walking on the salt lake!

After the salt lakes we drove to Purmamarca, Jujuy to eat lunch and hike the Montaña de los siete colores. We tried llama for lunch (which tasted similar to meat but a bit more gamey) at Las Cañitas. This restaurant was a family's house opened to the public for some local eats. The hike was really neat with the different colored mountains. The red clay-like mountain contrasted with the teal colored mountains and they seemed to go on for miles. 

The pictures are great but nothing in comparison to the real thing. I wish the pictures did justice to the true beauty of this site. 

We left for Tilcara after the hike to check into our hotel, Vientonorte. We ate dinner at La Carmela that night and tried the local tamales, empanadas, and locro. Once again, the flavors were robust and unique to the Northwest. We spent some time out in the center of the town for Carnaval. 

Below are some locals from Tilcara in the central square. They have flour on their face. It is a tradition of Carnaval in the Northwest as it is a time of celebrating fertility of the land and flour comes from wheat which comes from the earth. 

Here is a view from my hotel room in Tilcara the next morning: 

On Saturday we visited Pucará de Tilcara, a fortress about 900 years old and strategically built on the Quebrada de Humahuaca. It was an ideal place on top of a hill to defend against attacks. There are various houses that were built to blend in with the mountain, a church, places for sacred ceremonies, and areas for llamas to roam. 

After Tilcara on Saturday, we made our way to Humahuaca, a small town in Jujuy. On our way we drove over the Tropic of Capricorn (Southern Tropic) one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth.

When we arrived in Humahuaca, it appeared to be another quiet little town... 

However, things soon would change. We noticed lots of flour, baby powder and cans of foam spray being sold. We saw people covered in powder but just assumed they must be celebrating Carnaval pretty hard.... until someone ran up behind me and powdered my entire face with a huge handful of flour. Initially, I was so mad because I was the first and only person with flour all over my face, sunglasses, hair, clothing, etc. until more people came and started throwing flour and spraying the rest of the group with flour and foamy spray. Ruben, our program director, decided we needed revenge and bought all of us bags of flour, baby powder, and foam bottles. When we got over the fact that we were going to be quite dirty it was so fun. People of all ages were participating and celebrating Carnaval in a very mischievous yet playful manner. We got some people good and then when we ran out of supplies, those people came back for us! It was a great day even though we had a five hour bus ride after back to Salta... covered in powder, flour, and foamy soap.

I managed to get one picture of me and Tori partway through the day:

We were absolutely covered but I must say, I have not had that much fun in a long time! 

Here is a picture of the Carnaval spray and a bag of flour:

When we arrived back in Salta, we celebrated Kalon's birthday and then went out to dinner at the Casa de Güemes where a show was performed with dancing and live music. 

The next morning we woke up and visited the MAAM museum (Museum of High Altitude Archaeology) with naturally preserved mummies of multiple Inca sacrifices that were discovered in the high Andes right ouside of Salta. There are three different mummies but only one is out at a time and they are rotated every 3 months to keep them preserved as the AC and presence of people can ruin them. Here is a picture of the boy mummy that was sacrificed when he was about five years old. 

(I did not take this picture but got it off the internet as security was tight and cameras weren't allowed.)

After the museum we visited the market. There was not much open as it was Sunday. A few of the girls ended up quite ill over the course of the trip with 72 hours of stabbing pains in the abdomen, fevers, and fainting. I am not sure if it was the food, the water, or a bug. I am glad I didn't get it though and am knocking on wood in hopes that I stay healthy for my Spring Break trip to Uruguay. 

The plane ride back was nice. They give you drinks (with refills), crackers, a shortbread lemon cookie, and alfajores. Not too shabby for a two hour flight, especially in comparison to the US flights where you are lucky to get 3 pretzels if it is an extra long flight :P

I am now off to Punta del Este, Uruguay until Sunday! I was unable to do laundry today though as it is a national holiday today and tomorrow so nobody works. We are planning on stocking up on some staple foods before we leave to cook in the hostel as food over there on the beach can be a bit more expensive. The Buquebus boat leaves at midnight and we will get to Colonia, Uruguay where we will take a bus to Punta del Este. I am hoping the weather clears out for us, it is a bit rainy today.