11 days left in this city

I've had a wonderful experience in Buenos Aires and generally dislike activities that reflect on the past, but I've found myself making lists about what I love about this city and why I should probably actually go back to the US.

Why I should stay here for the rest of my life:

-Fruit and veggie vendors on almost every street

-Excellent 24/7 public transportation

-Alfajores. Giant cookies filled with dulce de leche. This country is pretty addicted to sugar.

-The night life is probably unbeatable

-Fresh squeezed orange juice

-Politically active population

Why I should probably actually go back to the US:

-The food in Argentina... sucks. The diet appears to be salt, beef, potatoes, and more salt. Ok, their beef is good but 1) I don't eat much beef 2) It's apparently really expensive right now.

-'Free' gym at Whitman

- No commute, to get to class anyway

-Getting cat called by any male between the ages of 8 and 80 gets old

-Fresh air, PLEASE. This city is falsely named

-Dog poop on the sidewalks...

-Being able to do my own laundry would actually be a pleasure.

-Being able to get strong enough sunscreen and light enough makeup in the stores is difficult.

-Skim milk. One variety is sold here with 5.2 grams of fat in 200ml. Perhaps 3%?

I know I'm missing plenty of the thoughts that have gone through my mind on this subject. Take this as a sampling.

Uruguay!

I spent a long weekend in Uruguay, celebrating Thanksgiving with my entire program and then heading to the beach for a few days with friends.

The director of our program owns a B&B outside of Colonia, which is 50km across Río de la Plata from Buenos Aires. Our program of about 150 students met on Thursday morning at the ferry terminal in Buenos Aires for the boat ride to Colonia, where a Thanksgiving meal was awaiting us. We took the slow ferry so I enjoyed a long nap. Mario owns a gorgeous house with a lemon orchard and a pool. We enjoyed the 80 degree weather under a giant tent as we feasted on 10 turkeys and lots of veggies. The only thing that was missing were the massed potatoes. Sort of ironic since 'pure de papas' is a very common food in Argentina. They even had pumpkin pie!

I got all the dark meat that my heart desired!

We were then transported to Colonia and our hotels. Colonia is a World Heritage Site with gorgeous Portuguese and Spanish architecture. It felt nice to be out of the congestion of the city and to wander around the town. Two friends and I found a restaurant that had an antique car fashioned with a table and a bench. Still full from Thanksgiving dinner, we just got sangría.

Spanish and Portuguese style houses intermingled. All of the trees are in full bloom, too!

The costanera in Colonia! Buenos Aires is somewhere on the other side of the river.

On Saturday morning, 7 friends and I got on a bus to travel to Punta del Este, a beach town about 4 hours from Colonia. The days were relaxing with trips to the beach and cooking in the hostel. The town is definitely a resort occupied by Argentines and Brazilians during the summer. There weren't very many people at the beach, but it was also only in the 70's with wind.

The famous hand on Brava Beach in Punta del Este.

The sunset was gorgeous on the ferry ride back to Buenos Aires. All of it is thanks to the smog of BA though...

On Tuesday I finished another class by turning in a paper and giving a presentation. I have one more exam on the 10th, the day my parents arrive! I'm getting ready to be back in the US, but I'm excited to see some more of Argentina first.