B.A. nights

So I am happy to report I've been pretty successfully partaking in the famous (notorious?) Buenos Aires nightlife. The hype about it is ALL TRUE, being here makes partying in NYC seem like a soiree. And partying in pesos is amazing! Everything so miraculously affordable it is laughable, the prices for drinks and steaks and taxis and things all divisable by 3.8. So the ticket for the fancy club you thought cost $30 only really costs about $8.

And we've been to quite a few of them, Crobar, Niceto, Club 69, Museo. Tonight it was drum and bass night at Bahrain. I have cumulatively partied more these past 5 days than I did in my 20s. And while it is gratifying to be making up for lost time with so many nights of consecutive clubbing, it also pleases me to know that soon the madness will be over and I can get a good nights sleep again... guiltfree!

Between the crazy nightlife and this Milhouse hostel experience, being here in Buenos Aires has felt like a time warp. I share a room with 5 others, who are travelling from South Africa, Israel, England and even San Francisco. Coming "home" after a day's strolling and sightseeing, I walk into the hostel bar lounge where people are either playing pool, chatting in small groups, checking email and/or drinking an alcoholic beverage of some sort. Going to my "room" consists of lying on my bottom bunk and probably chatting with whoever else is also there about their day and forthcoming plans for the evening. Everyone is open and engaging and has interesting things to say. I have never had an easier time or so much fun meeting new people.

I will greatly miss this aspect of travelling, the openness of others, the stories they have to tell, the ease with which people seem happy and willing to get to know you.

So yeah Buenos Aires has been pretty amazing. There is obviously loads more about it that's been wonderful, the city so beautiful and interesting to absorb. And I've walked everywhere, to the Recoletta, Palermo, San Telmo ... and eaten gelatos and steak (almost) every day... and been to a few tango milongas ... and shopped and gotten my hair done. Slowly checking most everything off my list...

For my last day tomorrow I hope to make it back to Palermo for some more wandering and also to the Recoleta neighborhood to visit the cemetery where Eva Peron is buried. I will probably at some point also eat another gelato, maybe buy a pretty (and highly affordable) dress. I know snow awaits me back home in NYC so I will generally try to make the most of this last full day of summer in Buenos Aires.

Love,
Karen

Buenos Aires

I am spending my last week in Buenos Aires for the grande finale of all this. Staying at the self professed ¨party¨ hostel, the Milhouse, on main drag Avenida de Mayo where once again I feel the mother hen. But a party hostel seems most appropriate for B.A., where it is gauche to show up for anything before 2 or 3 am and where I am hoping peer pressure will help keep me awake.

Today was my first day and I walked an hour to my first Spanish class - where I am the only student!! - in San Telmo, grinning and occassionally also gasping with happiness along the way. Despite being a large city and home to aprx 13 million people, I feel like I want to absorb as much of B.A. as I can on foot. This city is beautiful. The weather this morning early summer perfect, with every other street offering up some shop or monument worth seeing or coming back to. I had not planned a particular route other than to reach the corner of Defensa and Brasil, but managed to still see Plaza de Mayo, Casa de Gobierno (¨the pink house¨) and Plaza Dorrego, along with a few museums and some pretty churches.

My teacher, Julia, is great and after conversing in Spanish for 2 hours at the cafe, took me on my first (and probably only) city bus ride to Plaza San Martin near the Recoleta. The emphasis of our classes is conversation and since I am the only student, I get to dictate our pace and focus. I am grateful for this freestyle approach, am furiously writing everything down in the hopes of emblazing as many new Spanish words and tenses on my brain as I can before I go home.

I also have such a long list of things I want to do and see and *eat* while I am here, and am grateful to have a full week instead of the originally planned 3 days to enjoy Buenos Aires. These include:

- Parilla at ¨La Vieja Rotisseria¨ and maybe also famous ¨La Cabrera¨
- The markets of San Telmo and Palermo Viejo
- Visit to the cemetary of Recoletta
- Tango lessons and/or show (milonga)
- Wednesday night happy hour at ¨Museo¨
- Day trip to El Tigre
- Dinner and drinks anywhere in Palermo Hollywood (I´ve been told)
- Clubbing B.A.-style (we shall see about this one!)

Helping me along with all this is the strength of the dollar against the peso. All in all, this will not be a terrible way to end my trip.

Love,
Karen