Big Lights, Sirens, and Dog Shit

Being City-fied:
It has been over a week since I arrived in BA(Buenos Aires). And so far it has been an overwhelming wirlwind.
I arrived to an amazing apartment on Laprida and Santa Fe. I have my own large room, with a balcony, lots of sunlight, and four other roommates in a doorman building. My roommates - not a single one from Argentina; a Peruvian, an Ecuadorian, a Chilean, and a Colombian - are all very sweet, but rarely ever home. So the large apt tends to be empty most of the time, with everyone coming and going at their own pace. Either way, its beautiful and definitely worth the price tag in dollars.
My school is only about fifteen minutes away, walking distance, and all through the very chic neighborhood of Recoleta. Speaking of my school, which is housed in ex president, Carlos Peligrini's old house, I completed my first week.
There were of course, a few bumps in the road, with a small class of six and various girls dropping out on the first day - but for the most part I enjoy it. Long days - from 10am until around 5. And so far, the course has been more or less on tab with being intensive. But they did warn us and most of the work is done during the day, so it is not like I get home from eight hours of class and still have loads more to work on. This first week has been a mixture of classes ranging from Lesson Planning, to writing workshops, to Gaelic classes, to grammar. But it is mostly very practical and easily applicable. So while I get to the end of the day, a bit unfocused and antsy, I am learning all the practicalities of teaching an English course. Some of it can be a bit redundant and useless - since when I really get to teaching a class or private tutoring, all the stuff I learn will actually have to ben thrown out the window. Nevertheless, it is a good start and definitely helps give people a foundation to teach. And next week will be less of actually sitting in classes and more of proactively planning and teaching - so it can only improve.
Plus I have developed quite a routine, which I really like. School, a maté, errands, the gym, and I usually end with a Lakers game - since they are in the finals. I hope you are all watching and supporting. Fisher is my hero. And we are definitely going to win the series - no doubt. Yeah! Thank god, they pass the games here on ESPN or I would feel very lost....
So thats about it for now... Manuel has come up the two weekends I have been here so far and we're both getting to know the city.. And the restaurants and food are amazing here. I found a great organic restaurant and deli down the street. And today we went to the California Burrito Co - which is a Chipotle remake in Buenos Aires - so I got my fix of spicy Mexican food. (By the way, this spot was created by three guys who graduated from my high school, Calabasas High) The public transport - like subway is all pretty accessible and easily manueverable. -- Did I just make that word up? oops. The people are terribly mean in the city - but in that good way, where you know you are in a big city and the porteños (people from Buenos Aires) just dont want to waste their time with tourists.. :) I found Philadelphia Cream Cheese in the super markets and there is an awesome antique fair on sundays in San Telmo. And the sidewalks are covered in peoples' dogs' shit, since they seem to be too lazy to bend over. The sirens are loud and constantly buzzing and I can hear them from my window, even though I am on the 13th floor. Everything is open late. And anything you might want to do or have an interest in, you will find here. Aaaah, the city.........
And the days have been lovely so far. Cold and brisk with lots of sun. A perfect fall. And I love being in cold weather in big cities - it almost reminds of NYC...
I guess I just can't get enough of those big lights, sirens, and dog shit....



post script: I recently talked about how Ryan would be landing in LAX, but I guess I mixed up the months. He actually will be arriving July 3rd. So hes still in Sudamerica. Not to worry though, he will be arriving in Los Angeles shortly. ;)

Since Then

I am off to Buenos Aires tomorrow and theres no food in the apartment.
Stangely at the moment I have finally got my bearings here in Rosario; I am going to leave for a month. I know where to buy the bread I like, and where to buy the good deli meat. I know the guy at the kiosco counter in the center who always asks me about my boyfriend when I buy bus cards. I have a hostel where I know all the staff and play games of ping pong in the back against all the new gringos to town. I know the store where I like to look at the ridiculously expensive Argentenian clothes that isnt tacky. I have a salon where I know the girls and they ask me weekly about my outings with Manuel and what its like to live with him. My weekends have been surprisingly busy over the past month. I know where to buy the organic beer I like. I know the route I take to get to the park to run and that it takes me exactly fifteen minutes each way walking. I know when I take the bus from my neighborhood, it will take me about twenty minutes to get to the center; on the 122 or 143. And I know all the routes and stops they make along the way. I know nothing is open between the hours of 3:30 until 5:30 and theres only one spot in the neighborhood open on Sundays. I know where I like to go out at night. I know where I can play pool or bowling and eat a good pizza. And my apartment feels more like home every day....
And still, tomorrow I will move into an apartment for about five weeks in Recoleta in Buenos Aires and I will have to do this whole thing over again there. If you dont know already, I am doing a TEFL course in BA for four weeks. By the end of the intensive four weeks, I will be certified to teach English and then have access to all the alumni association and can supposedly get a job wherever I want. So the program starts June 8th and the school is right in the area where I will be living. Not exactly sure who I will be living with yet, three other girls, but since I found the apartment on Craigslist from another Cali girl, I am not that worried. There are way too many of us Cali people in BA...
So I am hoping the next month is good... I am actually excited to have classes and a schedule and structure. Man, I miss school. So it should be interesting and busy and new - which is just the way I like it. Thats it for now, news wise and all.
Oh, I will add that Ryan - my travel bud from months back - will be landing in LAX on wednesday and heading back the real world in Los Angeles. Im sure hell be fine, since hes got a lot to fall back on after ending the trip. :) Good luck Ry. Who would have thought that I would be the one to outlast him - I always thought it would be the other way around. Oh well. Maybe I will be back in the states for Thanksgiving or something.... :)
Bueno, tengo que armar mi mochilla y pensar bien lo que voy a llevar. Espero que tengo bastante lugar. no pasa nada. Y ademas, nada. Vamos a Capital.

A vacation from a vacation from a vacation from a vacation from a vacation..........

Rewind.

seven full days I worked at Excalibur restaurant of the four star hostel of the Holiday Inn. Ryan, long lost traveling buddy, came to visit in Rosario. We hung out a bit, I showed him around, we ate some fish, I worked the days. On a Sunday, we left for Buenos Aires. We stayed in a posh area where his family lives, Palermo. We ate, walked around, talked a lot about existential crisis' we both had been having. And we saw Radiohead with Kraftwerk in a giant stadium. Think, thousands upon thousands of sweaty Argentinians and a few other sweaty Americans, pushing and moshing, and rubbing, and singing, and yelling, and stepping, and running, and swaying. awesome! highlights include songs High and Dry, Karma Police, and Sail to the Moon. Also, moments when the massive crowd would open and you could feel fresh air for a fleeting second, instead of smelling Body Odor from the entire sticky pit.
On a wednesday night, I came back to Rosario. It was the end of March. I quit my job the next morning.
Life seemed a bit boring with mere small activities, movies, running, food. The norm.
I got restless. I got an email from Ryan, the second week of of April. He was leaving Corrientes and heading to Iguazu to eventually cross the border into Brazil. I left Rosario. A twenty hour night bus got me to Iguazu on a saturday morning. ryan and I went to the spectacular waterfalls in Park Iguazu- deafening, enormous, mezmorizing, spectacular, dizzying.
Short hike, the next day to a lagoon in the park. then on Monday, we went and got visas at the consulate for Brazil. Tiny office that gets you a visa after two hours (US citizens must pay 130 USD to get into Brazil). Directly, we hopped on a bus to get through the border and into the bus terminal on the Brazilian side to get to Florianopolis, Brazil.
A twenty hour bus ride helped us arrive. Ryan asked to couchsurf there, but the host was full and suggested a friend of hers from the University - they are all film students. (Couchsurfing is a free website that helps put in contact people who are traveling and people who are locals of that specific city or town - either for accomodations, to meet for a drink or coffee, or just for suggestions about touring. check out the website: www.couchsurfing.com) Chico and Morgana picked us up at the bus station. I had not planned to couchsurf so planned to stay at a hostel. we went for great seafood by the beach Barra de Lagoa and I checked into a ritsy hostel with a bunch of Australians. That night we went to a bar, drank beer, and played pool with a bunch of Chico's friends - mostly cinema students in the beach town of Florianopolis.
Next day, amazing pumpkin and shrimp meal cooked by Morgana... I am still waiting for the recipe. Then beach day and birthday party at night with a bunch of great kids, good homecooked lasagne. Next day, more beach day, I checked out of hostel and crashed Chico and Morgana's pad. Next night, a fun themed graduation party of one of Chico's friends. ryan - karate kid, Chico - the red bandit, me -Tom Cruise from Risky Business. some photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/runamokschuster/page12/
Next day - beach day and bus to Sao Paolo overnight.
Sao Paolo. we arrived at 5:30 am. Had some breakfast and Ryan left. I was going to couchsurf but hadnt heard back from my host, Dayane, yet. So I left my bags and spent the morning walking around Sao Paolo. great subway system. I got all over the city. went to a cool antique fair and a photography exhibit in the MASP. Then got my bags and met up with host Dayane. We went to the supermarket, got some food, relaxed and then went out for the night to Carniceria with some of her friends. I by chance met two Ashkenazi Jews who hung out for a bit....
Next day, i did some more touring. Got lost on the bus system for two hours, finally made it to giant and overwhelming Parque do Ibirapuera. All the museums inside were closed for the day. I headed back to Dayane's work and we headed home. We drove to her home town Jacarai for a friends' birthday party. met her friends and family, taught to make a caipirinha, ate churrasco - the brazilian style barbeque and some other great goodies, played foozball, played pool, and crashed. Woke up next morning for breakfast with the fam, then cleaning up, and lunch with the fam. LOTS OF EATING - but great food. drove the hour and half back to Sao Paolo - I packed. we went to amazing sushi. I got exceedingly full. totally worth it.
That night I got on a bus to Rio. Stayed with couchsurfer Renata in the downtown area of Lapa in Rio. awesome area. I went to two great exhibitions - one at the cultural center, or CCBB of two twins who normally do graffiti art. The show was called Vertigem and was by Os Gemeos. Google Image search them - amazing! and also a show in the Museum of Modern Art.
That night we saw a screening of some new independent Brazilian shorts. Then there was a Cachaza party. Next day, we took it easy (I took the subway to check out Copacabana- tons of people and high rise buildings - intense). at night, we played pool, the Brazilian version called mata mata (kill kill) and sang karaoke in a gay bar. Renata and I did a rendition of "like a prayer" by Madonna. watched a loong interview of some ex-winner of Brazilian Big Brother who is gay and headed home. Woke up the next morning - Renata took me to the famous tiled stairs by the artist Selaron. she had to get to work, so left. The artist ended up talking to me for an hour. Eventually I bought one of his pieces.
I got on a bus, to take a ferry to Nitoroi to go with a friend to one of the beaches, that are supposedly better than Copacabana and Ipanema. We went to a fish market to buy fresh fish to cook for dinner, went to the beach - it was far away so we only got an hour of sun, watched the sunset and headed back to Nitoroi.
Cooked dinner and relaxed. I headed back to Renata´s place. Showered and packed. Met some friends in a bar in an area called Botafogo that only played Brazilian music. danced a bit of samba.
headed back to apartment and got on early morning flight to Buenos Aires, then taxi to bus terminal, then bus for four hours to Rosario, then taxi back home. Late saturday night, I got back home.

Play.
I am home. :)

the 9-5

My feet hurt.
So after much hard work and bitching, I have finally and successfully, joined the work force of Rosario. I am employed, unofficially at the moment - I am in the process of getting my work visa, so then it will be more official - by Excalibur. The restaurant of the four-star hotel....drum roll......the Holiday Inn Rosario.
The job, so far, seems to include very long hours - 8 hours a day, very little days off - one to two days per week...I have 6 francos (days-off) for the entire month, and very little pay. I am in a third world country. (I forgot to mention though, I will have great medical coverage.) My salary will be 1400 pesos per month, not including tips - people don't really tip here, so I really don't have much expectations for that.
The people so far are pretty jovial and nice - the staff is huge, about 70 people, which is way more than they need. And I think the people are mostly jovial because it tells you in the intro-packet to always wear a smile and have cara-dura, which translates to without embarassment. I am supposed to work without ever being embarassed to ask anything or do anything. Supposedly.
But I am getting way ahead of myself, by complaining already. :) I like having a job and something to keep me busy outside the house. I now have people of my own which is a good thing. And I am going to try to get mostly night shifts, which are way busier and much more fun, so I wont have to wake up every morning at 6 or 7. I am a terrible morning person - especially when I have to put on a smile and charming personality. And so far, it has yet to bother me, that all the guests, upon discovering that I am a yankee, always ask what the hell I am doing in Rosario. I haven't really come up with a good answer to that one, but today will only be my third day of work.
And soon enough, after I get to the U.S. embassy in Buenos Aires, I will have a visa and can be in Argentina for a whole year, without problems. Otherwise, while the job has yet to give me time to write, I will get there eventually. Especially since I really only want to work nights. When I work days - it kills my whole day.
So yeah! I have a job and somewhat of a routine. And the whole interviewing process, was not actually in vain afterall! Is that supposed to be a relief?
Anyway, thats the news for now. I am using my few francos this next week, to head to Buenos Aires with Ryan to get my box out of customs, go to the US embassy and sort out my visa, and of course for the RADIOHEAD concert on Tuesday night. Radiohead. Radiohead!
Ryan is coming to Rosario for the weekend to visit, which should be interesting since I have not seen him since November.

"Bienvenidos al Holiday Inn, Rosario. Me Llamo Jenna. Como puedo ayudar?"Sonrisa.

In Vain

I had two interviews yesterday, which from what I can tell so far were in vain. Or maybe they were just good practice. Although they were both for waitressing positions and I am not sure the last time, that I wanted a job so badly. Pretty strange to think that after graduating New York University, I am currently crossing my fingers that I get a waitressing position. Maybe its ironic. But mostly I just feel like its a punishment. A punishment for not publishing anything, but really a punishment for not being able to finish anything I start - in terms of writing.

So oh well. Imagine: I show up in my best clothes at the Holiday Inn. A four star hotel in Rosario, Argentina. I spend a while chatting with Paulo, who is the interviewer. He asks me how I ended up in Rosario - I came for a visit and decided to stay. What I like most about Rosario - the river, the flag monument, and of course the museums. W here I am staying - I stay with my boyfriend in Tavlada. He asks me about my travels - I sum up as briefly as I my trip so far. He asks me what my parents do - a little off guard about why he want to know this, I tell him that my mother is a special ed teacher, and that my father is in promotional products - I explain here that all the pens, keychains, and tags for luggage that say the name brand Holiday Inn, are brought by my father from China to his factory in Los Angeles, and he prints the labels and sends them out to distributors. Oh, he exclaims, your father is an importer. Well, I say, not specifically. But he is the interviewer, so I let him think what he wants. He asks me what my boyfriend does and I explain that he is a historian, that he teaches at the university, and that he is an investigator for the state - bascially he has a grant from the state to finish his doctorate in argentinian history. Well, thats wonderful, Paulo comments. He then plunges into more questions about my personal life, which of course catch me off guard, and I smile an over-friendly smile to stall him as I think of a charming answer.

Evenutually, he seems pleased and asks me to wait while he gets his superior to interview me next since he has to continue with the other interviews. I stare at the wall for about 15 minutes or so and think about how fun it would be to work in the ritsy hotel and how it seems like I might get the job, since none of the other girls were asked to wait to talk to a superior nor did they spend so much time with the interviewer. Cesar, a gerente of the Holiday Inn, then comes to ask me the same personal questions, instead of asking me about my experience, why I would be good for the position, what I bring to the table, etc. I answer this time around, much more intelligibly since I have now said these answers twice. He explains how I fit the profile of what they are looking for as a waitress for their fine dining restaurant - they want young, motivated, and interesting people. But after about 20 minutes, he tells me he will talk with Paulo, and let me know. I have yet to hear back.

The second interview I had yesterday, took about ten minutes. It is for a bar in the center of the city, that has bands play and poetry readings, and gatherings of the sort. Maximilliano, my interviewer, explains the job - it will be thursday, friday, and saturday nights from 9 until 3 or 4 in the morning. I would work with one other person, and I should be prepared, since I am a Janqui (Yankee) to hear the wrath of the people. I tell him that it is a good conversation starter, so he shouldn't worry. They will pay me 8 pesos an hour and that doesnt include the measly tips that people barely leave here, especially if they are drunk. He tells me he will call me early next week and let me know, but if I don't get a call, well, its because I am not getting a call.

So like I said - in vain. I'll let you know.....just like they supposedly will......

A Fat Tale

after talking to Tamara this morning, I thought over what she said. And so I dedicate whatever this crap will be today, to her.

I have never been good at the love story chronicles. Any time I have ever put myself to write something about love, it usually comes out as a disgusting attempt. I did once write two pieces for a prose composition class my freshman year at NYU that could actually be considered autobiographical love stories.The first was a piece for an assignment for Professor Goldfin, where he asked the class to write about 5 pages or so, double-spaced, about something we were passionate about; i.e. a hobby, a person, a type of food, an abstraction, etc. I remember writing a really shitty first draft about escapism. How I have trouble being passionate about anything and that I use television as an escapism to avoid reality. Professor Goldfin hated the piece and we scheduled an appointment to talk during his office hours.
When we met, he told me I was copping out of the actual assignment and that I should change my topic. I spent the next week trying to think of things that I could possibly be passionate about and came up with nothing. The night before I had to turn in the redo, I went up to see a friend. I told him about how I couldn't do the essay and I was completely blocked. After much debating, he finally told me that maybe it would be a good idea to just write about being passionate about passion, since I used to say things like that my Freshman year of college. I sat at his desk and after a brief time, I had my first draft.
I basically wrote a count of my years of tumulutous boy-traumas - there were not many, I was only 18. But I ended the piece explaining how I had been hurt many times and yet I was always willing to get myself back together and put myself out there again. Because ultimately, I was passionate for that pang in your stomach when you know you like someone.You know what I mean...the fleeting second when the top of your belly drops like you are riding a roller coaster and you are about to make the big drop on Collasus.
The second piece I wrote later that year, after I fell for that friend. It was a bit cliched, just like the first. I dont think I had really become acquainted with my writing thumb yet or thought that any one in the world had gone through what I had. But it was a more of a quiet story about how things never actually work out the way you want them to in love.

Yet neither of the pieces were actually love stories. The first was a non-fiction drag and the second was about two failing relationships that occur simultaneously based on my life experience. Maybe I figured that once I was in love, it would somehow make the entire genre easier to write about --- well, it hasn't.

So sorry Tamara. Maybe some other day. But at least I tried.........

Mundanity

Settling into a regular routine home life in Rosario has been somewhat tougher than I thought. Maybe, after months of traveling, and not having an actual address, it may take me a while to transition. Or maybe, I just got unbelievably accostumed to the way things were and now, to actually say that I plan on being in one spot for a while, is just too much....I did toy with the idea last night of giving up the whole Rosario life and picking up today and heading to Buenos Aires to keep on traveling. And of course, I am hoping that since I didn't leave there will be some sort of positive outcome to me staying here - some kid from the neighborhood today, did try to jack me and all my belongings. So it must be written......somewhere.

Either way, Tamara did inform me that my blogs were becoming too much like a travellogue of sorts and that she wanted more dirt - so i figured I would try that out. Here's some dirt. Not much but enough to maybe keep you interested.

Finding a waitressing job here has been unbelievably tasking, which of course means that I have tried a few times and handed out my resume to various places and have not heard back once. So I am somewhat discouraged. I'm guessing this might come from the fact that previously in my life, all my jobs have been handed to me and I never had to look that hard for them. So I am unconsciously just waiting for the perfect thing to fall in my lap.

Other than the pitiful job trade, I have been writing. A novel - well, probably not. But I have been writing, getting myself into the supposed practice of writing. So I am trying to be positive about that aspect. And the dirt, well, there is none. I hate to brake it to you - Tamara, I just used my phrase. I am waiting on the whole my life is just naturally supposed to come together part - the friends, the routine, the life. As of now, the most exciting thing that happened to me was today when this 17 year old kid on a bike tried to steal my stuff and ended up grabbing and breaking all my necklaces and following me home. No worries, I yelled at him enough for trying and ended up with all my belongings- good sign! I now have to fix all my necklaces, but not so bad. Just some kid who was bored in my neighborhood and caught me at one of the deserted parts. It happens.

Everything else, I am slowly giving up to time. The job should figure itself out somehow and if it doesn't - well, I have no plan B. So I guess the whole writing thing should take up most of my time for now. Luckily I have no motivation for it and am distracting myself at a pool hall. So no dirt and some broken necklaces. It's an okay start. I did much worse in Sevilla, Spain - I showed up sick with a cold and crying to go home. At least here i have coffee in the mornings and cable. My roomate, Manu, isn't so bad either - especialy since I am not paying to live here. We seem to get along for the most part and he's pretty clean so far. So life is comfortable. Just a bit slow with sweltering heat.

Cross your fingers and hopefully I will have a job one day and actually start writing that novel I have been talking about for years. Hope you're all well. Miss you.