daily musings.

Random thoughts/comments from the last few days:

1. Carneval in Gualeguaychu was crazy, but exhausting. I would have been a much happier camper if I'd gotten more than 3 hours of sleep the night before after a pub crawl to benefit Club Acorn. (Drink for the children. Rah rah.)

2. Americans starting a dance party on the beach and in the water are not inconspicuous.

3. These aforementioned Americans do very much love dance parties though.

4. Renee and I had dinner at a small family-owned Italian place with live saxophone, piano and guitar. I loved this. I ordered the one kind of pasta on the tiny menu, 'raviolone con calabaza' figuring that calabaza was some kind of cheese. Turns out that calabaza is squash. I did not love this.

5. I talked to a 7 year old girl named Maria at this restaurant. It was very rewarding to finally find someone on the same conversation level as me.

6. I walked into Subway today and it smelled exactly the same as it does in the United States. This fast food restaurant brought on a very unexpected wave of nostalgia.

7. I think I talk too much about the food I have here, but much of my day is planned around my next meal, so food is an imperative part of my Argentine experience.

8. Summer jobs and housing for next year are currently stressing me out.

9. I'm still trying to find 'my place' in this city, somewhere I can become a regular at.

10. I now somewhat understand why everyone is so nice to me here, even with my broken Spanish. I was at the laundromat today when a couple walked in and the charming husband bellowed...'Does anyone here speak ENGLISH?'. Later, the guy was badgering the cashier for a 50 cent piece, which she did not have. 'Well then, DO YOU HAVE DOS-CINCOS?' (asking for two 25 cent pieces while making a 2 with one hand and a 5 with the other) I was embarrassed. Moral of the story: you are in a different country. Try to speak the language.

The guys in our group were all about the costumes.