Estoy aqui, finalmente!

After 20 hours of traveling we have FINALLY arrived in Argentina. I've had two full days here and it is already amazing!

Our flight from D.C. to Buenos Aires was 10 hours, during which I sat next to my professor, Claudia. I like her a lot, but she is a very talkative and eccentric person. This can be tough to handle for 10 hours, especially since she can't sleep on planes. I had to wait two hours until she went to the bathroom and I quickly put in my headphones and pretended to be asleep when she returned. I kept this up for about six hours, some of which I did actually sleep.

We landed in Buenos Aires to light rain and clouds and about 50 degrees. We were met by our tour guide for the next five weeks, Victoria, who led us to our bus. We each got dropped off at our homestays and got to see our new homes! I live with three other students: Bianca, Michelle, and Lauren. We are living in the barrio Balvanera, which has a shopping/garment area and a Newbury-esque street. Elsa is our host mother. She is in her 60s and lives alone. She is so nice and accomodating. She sets out our breakfast in the morning on trays with matching plates, bowls, and cups. At night she cooks for us, and everything has been delicious so far.

After we arrived at Elsa's on Wednesday she ordered pizza and empanadas for us, which is apparently a traditional Argentinian meal. The empanadas were delicious but the pizza was drowning in cheese... something I thought I would have liked more! After our late lunch my roommates and I wandered around our neighborhood to shop and find a cafe to watch the end of the world cup game. We finally found a crouded coffee shop with enthusiastic fans whose eyes were glued to the ten screens throughout the restaurant. I am not a huge fan of soccor, but it is completely different in South America. On Sunday we are going to Claudia's apartment to cook together and watch the game. It should be an exciting, and crowded day.

We got back to Elsa's by 7:00, which is when dinner will be every night. She baked chicken and sauteed potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, and red peppers. It was so delicious but I didn't let myself eat too much since I'm not used to the food yet. We were all exhausted and after talking with our families went to sleep as soon as possible.

On Thursday we went on a four hour bus tour around the city. We saw la casa rosada (pink house) where the president lives. The architecture reminds me of Athens. It is very European and ornate mixed with poverty and modern buildings.

I have so much more to tell about our day yesterday, but we are about to leave and spend our day shopping! I'll update you all as soon as I can... ciao!