My First Full Day

Javiera set apricot marmalade, plum marmalade, butter and dulce de leche on the table. When I finished spreading butter over my toast this morning and proceeded to take a bite, Javiera abruptly stopped me. "You aren't going to put anything else??" she asked. I shook my head and smiled because she sounded as if she didn't believe me when I said I was content with just butter. I should've known that when she asks a question like that, it will be followed by insistence. She took a piece of my toast and spread a dollop of dulce de leche over the butter. She extended her hand and said, "You try." I reluctantly took a very small bite, in the same fashion that I normally would when eating something for the first time, but both Javiera and Maxi guilted me into consuming the entirety of the dulce de leche. It turned out to be wonderful, sort of similar to caramel, but so sweet! Especially for having just woken up. According to Javiera, sweets for breakfast are very common among Argentineans. When I denied her offer of coffee or tea several times (because once again she didn't believe me at first), and told her that I usually drink juice in the morning, she cocked her head to the side and looked at me with furrowed brows. "How strange. We take orange for dessert, not breakfast," she said, marking the end of that discussion.

After breakfast, Maxi left to visit his girlfriend who lives outside of the city. Javiera and I walked to La Recoleta, one of many charming neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. We came across a market, La Feria Plaza Francia, which is organized in the park every weekend. Local artisans of many different kinds convene there to sell and showcase their work, which includes handmade jewlery, la rosa del inca (the national stone of Argentina), clothing, paintings, drawings, sculptures, mate and bombillas (the gourd and type of straw used for drinking yerba mate), leather anything, and so on. Many of the products are very traditional to Argentine culture, but not all of them. Javiera and I wandered through, stopping briefly at various jewelery vendors. I ended up snagging an inexpensive silver ear cuff for my cartilage, and Javiera insisted (I could foresee that this was going to happen often..) on buying me two different types of alfajores, which could be described as a corn-flower based cookie sandwich with dulce de leche in the middle. My favorite so far are the ones that are covered in chocolate. Delicious!

She also took me to see Nuestra Senora del Pilar, a beautiful church across from the park, then to the Recoleta cemetery. I have never seen a lovelier cemetery. Seriously. The style of the tombs and mausoleums is gorgeous, so pleasant and ornate. The cemetery is also kept incredibly clean. It is certainly a tranquil place and I plan on going back sometime.

Javiera and I then went to visit her brother's home which was not too far away. Her brother is a diplomat currently posted in the Philippines with his wife, but their four children still live in their apartment in Buenos Aires. I met Joaquin (29), Javier (27), Marta (25), and Martín (20). Javier did not stay long, but I got along very well with the others. Javiera left for home and I stayed to go to the park with Joaquin and Martín. Marta gave me her number and let me know that she goes out most nights of the week so I should feel free to call her any time. They all speak English quite well, but I tried to speak Spanish most of the time. I feel like my ears have already become more accustomed to hearing Argentine Spanish in particular. Anyway, we walked around the market for a bit, looked at some things and talked. Martín left shortly after to play a RPG (a.k.a. role playing game, for you non-nerds), so Joaquin and I continued through the park for a while then decided to go back his apartment for some warm mate. This stuff is strange. Even while I was drinking it I had trouble finding the proper language to describe its taste. The herb itself is called herba mate. Joaquin poured some of the herba into a mate (gourd used as a cup) followed by boiled water, took a few sips, then passed the mate across the table to me. He explained that drinking mate is very much a social tradition, similar to hookah. There are people who drink it alone, but it is traditionally a beverage to share among a group. Everyone drinks from the same mate through a bombilla, and someone must refill it with hot water once the water is gone. I enjoyed the mate, especially after being outside in the cold, but it is so bitter that I'm not sure I could drink it as often as Argentines do. Maybe it will grow on me though... it is definitely unique. I am sure I will have some again very soon, and hopefully it will be as pleasant a social experience as the one today. Yay for new Argentine friends!

After a while I walked back to my apartment. It is only about 15 or so blocks away, but still very exciting because I was confident about where I was and how to get back. I love getting to know a city, recognizing stores and street names, and just having an idea of where the hell you are juxtaposition to other desirable destinations. Joaquin was very sweet and offered to walk me back even though it was still light and very safe, but I knew I would get home okay. I broke out into a proud little victory dance in the elevator on the way up to the apartment. Only 5 minutes later Javiera forced me to try liverwurst. Never again... But sweet potatoes drizzled with dulce de leche. Yum.

Now it's time to relax and watch River Plate versus Vélez Sársfield.

p.s. Photos to come!