Last Sunday was Argentina's election day. Cristina Kirchner, wife of the incumbent president Nestor Kirchner, ran and won the election as a part of the party Frente Para la Victoria (Front for Victory), one of the many branches of the modern day Peronist Party. I could give you a whole history of the Peronist party (I'm taking a class on Peronism), but I'll spare everyone the lecture. Basically, they are still considered Peronists, because that is the dominant political party, but today's Peronists' politics are worlds apart from Peron's politics. For some information about Cristina, click here.
Election Day was interesting for several reasons. First of all, the wife of the incumbent president was running. While she won in the province of Buenos Aires, she lost in the city of Buenos Aires, which is called Capital Federal (where I live and all the national government stuff is). Fun fact: the capital of the province of Buenos Aires is not Capital Federal, it is a city called La Plata. Amongst the people I've met (all in BA), she seems to be unpopular, and many people have told me they see her election as a way to keep the couple in power for a long time - Nestor just finished his four years, she will be in office for four years, then she passes the power back to him for four years, and she takes it after him. I'm not sure if I agree with this reading, but thought it was interesting and worth sharing.
In addition, EVERYTHING is closed on Election Day. It is on a Sunday, and all of the bars close at midnight on Saturday night and you cannot serve alcohol. For a city that usually doesn't go out until 2 AM, this was very surprising! Sunday was not much different than a normal Sunday in BA - everything was closed, but everything is always closed on Sunday.
Finally, voting in Argentina is not option, it is obligatory. According to the Argentine Constitution, every person has to vote in elections, unless they have a special circumstances. Election day is on a Sunday, so people don't work and it's easier to get out and vote. Needless to say, they have a very high percentage of people who vote, unlike the US. I was very curious about it, and actually asked in one of my classes what it means that it's obligatory - if you don't vote, can you be punished? The answer is technically, there is a fine. However, it is a strictly enforced policy.
Besides elections, life has continued as normal in BA. Nothing too exciting to report on. I'm getting excited for the family (Mom, Yaya, and Papa) to come down and visit. Over Thanksgiving our program takes us to Colonia, in Uruguay for the day (its a short boatride away), so that should be fun! I'm starting to plan my adventures for the end of the semester, and I'm weighing all my different options for interesting things to do.
Lots and lots of love to the US (and South Africa, and Spain, etc.),
Becca
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Making Change
Math is usually something I´m good at... two plus two is four, the square root of negative 1 is i, and the integral of 2x is x squared. but, simple math here confuses me so much! Mostly, its due to the money sytem. Like the US, Argentina uses bills for $100, 50, 20, 10, 5 (called pesos). But, they have a $2 bill and "monedas" (coins) for $1 peso, and for 50, 25, 10, and 5 centavos (cents). So, for example, something costs $12 and you pay with a $20... You´re going to get $2 and $5 bills and a $1 moneda or two for .50. Similarly, if something costs $9 and you pay with $10, you´ll get back a moneda for $1. It suonds simple, but I tend to forget, and try and find my $1 bills, which don´t exist!
To make things more complicated... monedas are highly coveted objects. You need monedas to pay for the colectivo, the buses that you use to travel around the city. In addition, when you buy something that only costs $.75, people tend to get annoyed if you don´t use your monedas, and pay with a bill to try and get back change. Clearly, that is what all of BA is trying to do, so that they can get on the colectivo! According to somebody I met, there is actually a shortage of monedas, and this is what is causing all the problems...
That´s all for today! Today´s moral: count your change and save your monedas!
To make things more complicated... monedas are highly coveted objects. You need monedas to pay for the colectivo, the buses that you use to travel around the city. In addition, when you buy something that only costs $.75, people tend to get annoyed if you don´t use your monedas, and pay with a bill to try and get back change. Clearly, that is what all of BA is trying to do, so that they can get on the colectivo! According to somebody I met, there is actually a shortage of monedas, and this is what is causing all the problems...
That´s all for today! Today´s moral: count your change and save your monedas!
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Photos
One of the many FANTASTIC views!
More of our hike, but this time showing all the snow. There was over a meter!Nothing too exciting this week - took a midterm, now I'm working on the takehome part of it. I just saw a fantastic movie, called "Mar Adentro," in English "The Sea Within." It won an Oscar in 2005 for Best Foreign Film. It's from Spain and by Alejandro Amenábar - I highly suggest it, though it is a bit unsettling, as its about a quadriplegic who is petitioning for the right to euthanasia.
Today I'm off to the gym, then a bit of shopping with an Argentine friend. Hope all is well in the US. I'm missing the baby naming of one of my cousin's today - its definitely the event I'm most disappointed to be missing so far. Luckily, they live close to school, so I plan on visiting next semester! For those of you who are there - send me photos!
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Bariloche!
I just got back from my group trip to Bariloche. I really don't know if I've ever seen something so beautiful - I felt like I was in a postcard the whole time. Bariloche is a small city in Patagonia, in the lake region. My whole program flew there for the weekend as our group trip - 160 of us! Here's the rundown of what we did (this is a long one!)...
First, we flew there. I was so impressed with how smoothly it went. The flight was uneventful, the only downside was that this airline doesn't have any apple juice. For some reason, I really like to drink apple juice when I fly - it sounds silly, but I always ask for it on flights! Anyway, we got there without any problems and went right to the first activity, a ski lift to the top of a beautiful viewpoint. There I took the first of many, many, many photographs (100 in one weekend!). The link to all my pictures is here. It was absolutely GORGEOUS - lakes, mountains, and beautiful views everywhere. My program director was wearing a Penn sweatshirt, so a group of Penn students took a picture with him. I sent a copy to our study abroad office :-) From there we went to a really pretty beach with another great view. On the bus ride in between our guide gave us a really interesting history/overview of the area. He was very informative and very interesting, though I've never met someone who liked the sound of his own voice that much. He actually told us he became a guide so that he would have people to talk to all day long... That night we went to an Irish pub for dinner, which had "traditional" Bariloche food - we were very confused to find out that traditional food included Nachos.
The next day we got up early to go hiking. We had been told before the trip that one day was hiking, and I was expecting an easy day of walking on a trail, enjoying the scenic views. I brought jeans and sneakers to wear, as did most of my friends. WE CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN! I'm really not kidding. A mountain. Going up was hard - the first half was dry ground and steep, and we were all working pretty hard to get up it. The second half was snow - see my pictures for a progression of the amount of snow that we saw. At the top, there was over a meter and a half (5 ft) of snow! Finding your footing was really difficult, but we got up!
For those of you who have climbed mountains (has anyone who reads this climbed a mountain besides Maddy?), you will know that going up is only half the battle. Going down that mountain was one of the hardest things I've ever done - and I did a decent chunk of it on my tush. Nobody had any balance, and we all took turns falling down and "slip sliding away." Truly, I have never seen pants as dirty as mine were - they were covered in a mix of snow, mud, and grime. It was fun, but halfway through I was exhausted, cold, and a bit grouchy. By the end, my legs were so tired I could barely balance on dry land! Luckily, it was well worth it and I had a really incredible experience. Plus, I can brag that I've climbed a mountain!!!! After going back to the hotel and taking hot showers, we set out for dinner in the city.
The following day we did a bus and boat tour of the mountains. A word of advice: putting a group of 20 year olds on a bus at 9 AM the day after taking them mountain climbing is a dumb idea. It turned out to be a nap with really pretty scenery (and the guide who wouldn't stop talking). I tried to stay awake for as long as I could because the scenery was so incredible, but even I dozed for a while. After our siesta, we got to the highlight of the day, our boat tour! Being out on one of the lakes and seeing the mountains from a different perspective was absolutely breathtaking. We then went to a small island which has a forest of these really cool looking trees. I don't remember all the details, but they were very pretty. I think that they usually only grow to 4 ft or so, but in this forest they grow to over 30 ft. Very cool. We then took the boat back and went to a pretty beach/park to have a picnic lunch. More great views. The park was right near the Chilean border crossing, and on the busride over we actually turned around right near it.
That night we had a free night in town, and my friends and I decided to ask the guides (from mountain climbing) if they wanted to have dinner with us. It was lots of fun speaking in Spanish all night, hearing funny stories about treks, etc. They also took us to the best pasta place in the city - which was delicious and incredibly cheap (the best pasta I've had for less than US $8 a person, including a soda).
The next morning we went into the city of Bariloche to buy chocolate! Bariloche is known for its chocolate, and it's delicious. Two of my friends found a place that offers a discount of 20% if you get a group of 6 or more to buy chocolate, so we all went together. I bought a few to give to friends as gifts and one for myself. Yum! We then went to the airport, flew back, etc.
Uneventful until the end, when my taxi left me off at my apartment and left before I could grab my luggage from the back. Luckily, I had everything important in my carry on (which I was holding) - the only thing that he got was my dirty clothes. He was pretty sketchy from the beginning, driving me around in circles and acting like he couldn't find where I live (I live in a very well known part of the city) to run up the meter. It was really frustrating and upsetting, but not uncommon - almost all of my friends have been robbed here in some way, shape, or form. My program director was great, and actually came over to make sure I was okay afterwards and has helped me find a place to buy some stuff that I lost. A sour note to a end great weekend.
I'm off to bed. Tomorrow I have my first midterm here... I'm nervous, but I've been prepping for it for quite a while. Sending lots and lots of love to the US!
Becca
PS. Pictures are coming soon to the blog, I'm having minor technical problems. Until then, enjoy the photo album.
PSS. Part of the joy of blogging is hearing about all of your lives in exchange! If it's been a while since you've filled me in on what's going on in your world, please please please please please send me an email - I love hearing about what's going in back in the US!
First, we flew there. I was so impressed with how smoothly it went. The flight was uneventful, the only downside was that this airline doesn't have any apple juice. For some reason, I really like to drink apple juice when I fly - it sounds silly, but I always ask for it on flights! Anyway, we got there without any problems and went right to the first activity, a ski lift to the top of a beautiful viewpoint. There I took the first of many, many, many photographs (100 in one weekend!). The link to all my pictures is here. It was absolutely GORGEOUS - lakes, mountains, and beautiful views everywhere. My program director was wearing a Penn sweatshirt, so a group of Penn students took a picture with him. I sent a copy to our study abroad office :-) From there we went to a really pretty beach with another great view. On the bus ride in between our guide gave us a really interesting history/overview of the area. He was very informative and very interesting, though I've never met someone who liked the sound of his own voice that much. He actually told us he became a guide so that he would have people to talk to all day long... That night we went to an Irish pub for dinner, which had "traditional" Bariloche food - we were very confused to find out that traditional food included Nachos.
The next day we got up early to go hiking. We had been told before the trip that one day was hiking, and I was expecting an easy day of walking on a trail, enjoying the scenic views. I brought jeans and sneakers to wear, as did most of my friends. WE CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN! I'm really not kidding. A mountain. Going up was hard - the first half was dry ground and steep, and we were all working pretty hard to get up it. The second half was snow - see my pictures for a progression of the amount of snow that we saw. At the top, there was over a meter and a half (5 ft) of snow! Finding your footing was really difficult, but we got up!
For those of you who have climbed mountains (has anyone who reads this climbed a mountain besides Maddy?), you will know that going up is only half the battle. Going down that mountain was one of the hardest things I've ever done - and I did a decent chunk of it on my tush. Nobody had any balance, and we all took turns falling down and "slip sliding away." Truly, I have never seen pants as dirty as mine were - they were covered in a mix of snow, mud, and grime. It was fun, but halfway through I was exhausted, cold, and a bit grouchy. By the end, my legs were so tired I could barely balance on dry land! Luckily, it was well worth it and I had a really incredible experience. Plus, I can brag that I've climbed a mountain!!!! After going back to the hotel and taking hot showers, we set out for dinner in the city.
The following day we did a bus and boat tour of the mountains. A word of advice: putting a group of 20 year olds on a bus at 9 AM the day after taking them mountain climbing is a dumb idea. It turned out to be a nap with really pretty scenery (and the guide who wouldn't stop talking). I tried to stay awake for as long as I could because the scenery was so incredible, but even I dozed for a while. After our siesta, we got to the highlight of the day, our boat tour! Being out on one of the lakes and seeing the mountains from a different perspective was absolutely breathtaking. We then went to a small island which has a forest of these really cool looking trees. I don't remember all the details, but they were very pretty. I think that they usually only grow to 4 ft or so, but in this forest they grow to over 30 ft. Very cool. We then took the boat back and went to a pretty beach/park to have a picnic lunch. More great views. The park was right near the Chilean border crossing, and on the busride over we actually turned around right near it.
That night we had a free night in town, and my friends and I decided to ask the guides (from mountain climbing) if they wanted to have dinner with us. It was lots of fun speaking in Spanish all night, hearing funny stories about treks, etc. They also took us to the best pasta place in the city - which was delicious and incredibly cheap (the best pasta I've had for less than US $8 a person, including a soda).
The next morning we went into the city of Bariloche to buy chocolate! Bariloche is known for its chocolate, and it's delicious. Two of my friends found a place that offers a discount of 20% if you get a group of 6 or more to buy chocolate, so we all went together. I bought a few to give to friends as gifts and one for myself. Yum! We then went to the airport, flew back, etc.
Uneventful until the end, when my taxi left me off at my apartment and left before I could grab my luggage from the back. Luckily, I had everything important in my carry on (which I was holding) - the only thing that he got was my dirty clothes. He was pretty sketchy from the beginning, driving me around in circles and acting like he couldn't find where I live (I live in a very well known part of the city) to run up the meter. It was really frustrating and upsetting, but not uncommon - almost all of my friends have been robbed here in some way, shape, or form. My program director was great, and actually came over to make sure I was okay afterwards and has helped me find a place to buy some stuff that I lost. A sour note to a end great weekend.
I'm off to bed. Tomorrow I have my first midterm here... I'm nervous, but I've been prepping for it for quite a while. Sending lots and lots of love to the US!
Becca
PS. Pictures are coming soon to the blog, I'm having minor technical problems. Until then, enjoy the photo album.
PSS. Part of the joy of blogging is hearing about all of your lives in exchange! If it's been a while since you've filled me in on what's going on in your world, please please please please please send me an email - I love hearing about what's going in back in the US!
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Cordoba!
I just got back from another weekend trip, this time to Cordoba. It's about 9 hours outside of Buenos Aires, the capital city of the province of Cordoba. I went with a pretty big group, a mix of people from my previous trips to Iguazu and Mendoza. I feel so lucky I've found such great people to travel with - everyone is a lot of fun and we spend most of our time laughing and having a great time together!
The first day we went to Oktoberfest, the annual beer festival. It's located 2 hours outside of Cordoba. We got onto a bus (after being on a bus for 9 hours!) in a big city... and two hours later we were in a small German village. I'm not kidding. It's a little bit of Germany in the middle of Argentina. I couldn't help but laugh when I first got there. Anyway, it was Oktoberfest-like... Lots of sausage, lots of beer, lots of folk dancing. Interestingly enough, the folk dancing wasn't all German, or traditional Argentine - it was from all different cultures that are represented in Argentina. There was even some really cool Arab-style dancing. It was a fun day, but I was happy we were only there for a day - I got bored after a while :-)
Sunday we went hiking in the beautiful Parque Condor. The busride there was one of the funniest parts of the trip - we were quite literally left off on the side of the road ,next to a sign for a park. It took us a while to find the actual entrance (everything else was fenced in!), but it was well worth it. We were in the Sierra mountains (I think!) and it was absolutely gorgeous - just rocks and long grass, all completely untouched. I don't think I've ever been somewhere that was so pristine - there was no development to be seen, the most "modern" thing was the Park Ranger's center. The variety of landscape is really incredible - going hiking there was so different from going hiking in Mendoza.
Monday the gods were against us. Half of our group left Sunday night and the other half decided to stay until Monday night, spending Monday seeing the sights of Cordoba. However, we somehow missed that EVERYTHING touristy in Cordoba is closed on Monday - the museums, the churches, etc. Even the museums that are usually open on Mondays were closed. Even the churches that are usually open on Mondays were closed - one of them actually had a sign that the nuns/priests had gone on a retreat that weekend! We ended up going to the Jesuit crypts, a really cool underground place. You walk down the street and all of a sudden there is a staircase in the middle of the street... and when you go down, you enter these old (empty!) crypts. Nobody knew about them for a while until they were found when construction workers were putting in cables or telephone lines. After that we walked around a bit, visited the Plaza, and relaxed. All in all a nice trip.
That's all for now. Lots of work this week and Bariloche next weekend!
Besos,
Becca
PS. For those of you keeping score, the Plaza was the Plaza San Martín. That means that I have been to... at least 3 San Martín streets, 2 San Martín Plazas, a San Martín national park, and seen countless statues of him. He's the liberator of South America, and he's REALLY loved!
and for some pictures....
This reminded me a bit of the villlage from Shrek
How gorgeous!
Me taking a break from hiking.
The first day we went to Oktoberfest, the annual beer festival. It's located 2 hours outside of Cordoba. We got onto a bus (after being on a bus for 9 hours!) in a big city... and two hours later we were in a small German village. I'm not kidding. It's a little bit of Germany in the middle of Argentina. I couldn't help but laugh when I first got there. Anyway, it was Oktoberfest-like... Lots of sausage, lots of beer, lots of folk dancing. Interestingly enough, the folk dancing wasn't all German, or traditional Argentine - it was from all different cultures that are represented in Argentina. There was even some really cool Arab-style dancing. It was a fun day, but I was happy we were only there for a day - I got bored after a while :-)
Sunday we went hiking in the beautiful Parque Condor. The busride there was one of the funniest parts of the trip - we were quite literally left off on the side of the road ,next to a sign for a park. It took us a while to find the actual entrance (everything else was fenced in!), but it was well worth it. We were in the Sierra mountains (I think!) and it was absolutely gorgeous - just rocks and long grass, all completely untouched. I don't think I've ever been somewhere that was so pristine - there was no development to be seen, the most "modern" thing was the Park Ranger's center. The variety of landscape is really incredible - going hiking there was so different from going hiking in Mendoza.
Monday the gods were against us. Half of our group left Sunday night and the other half decided to stay until Monday night, spending Monday seeing the sights of Cordoba. However, we somehow missed that EVERYTHING touristy in Cordoba is closed on Monday - the museums, the churches, etc. Even the museums that are usually open on Mondays were closed. Even the churches that are usually open on Mondays were closed - one of them actually had a sign that the nuns/priests had gone on a retreat that weekend! We ended up going to the Jesuit crypts, a really cool underground place. You walk down the street and all of a sudden there is a staircase in the middle of the street... and when you go down, you enter these old (empty!) crypts. Nobody knew about them for a while until they were found when construction workers were putting in cables or telephone lines. After that we walked around a bit, visited the Plaza, and relaxed. All in all a nice trip.
That's all for now. Lots of work this week and Bariloche next weekend!
Besos,
Becca
PS. For those of you keeping score, the Plaza was the Plaza San Martín. That means that I have been to... at least 3 San Martín streets, 2 San Martín Plazas, a San Martín national park, and seen countless statues of him. He's the liberator of South America, and he's REALLY loved!
and for some pictures....
This reminded me a bit of the villlage from Shrek
How gorgeous!
Me taking a break from hiking.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Grades?
I was told at the beginning of the semester to expect that grades here are very public. I actually saw final grades from last semester posted all over BY NAME. No ID numbers, no private conversations with the professor, no nothing. Today, I had my first experience with this.
Last week I had a take home parcial (midterm-type assignment) for my class on Peronism. Keep in mind this is a class taught at an Argentine University but in a special all foreigner section. We handed in our papers and weren't quite sure what to expect - the professor said to keep it short, but the questions were very broad. Did I do enough?
At the beginning of class today, our professor gave us a general overview of her opinion of our midterms. We understood the general themes, nobody has a good grasp on the Peronist economy, and our use of the different forms of the verb "to be" was pretty lousy. She then proceeded to go through each of our midterms individually, explaining to us what we did right and wrong. IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE CLASS! I was really happy I had spent time on mine and that I had given it to my academic tutor to read before I handed it in. Luckily, this wasn't an officially graded assignment, so she couldn't announce what grades each of us had received. I was pretty surprised by the whole thing.
At the end, I just wanted to laugh. It was reassuring to know that I wasn't the only student who mixed up masculine and feminine articles (el/la) and that nobody understood the economics. I do understand the merit of this system, but it felt very strange nonetheless...
Last week I had a take home parcial (midterm-type assignment) for my class on Peronism. Keep in mind this is a class taught at an Argentine University but in a special all foreigner section. We handed in our papers and weren't quite sure what to expect - the professor said to keep it short, but the questions were very broad. Did I do enough?
At the beginning of class today, our professor gave us a general overview of her opinion of our midterms. We understood the general themes, nobody has a good grasp on the Peronist economy, and our use of the different forms of the verb "to be" was pretty lousy. She then proceeded to go through each of our midterms individually, explaining to us what we did right and wrong. IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE CLASS! I was really happy I had spent time on mine and that I had given it to my academic tutor to read before I handed it in. Luckily, this wasn't an officially graded assignment, so she couldn't announce what grades each of us had received. I was pretty surprised by the whole thing.
At the end, I just wanted to laugh. It was reassuring to know that I wasn't the only student who mixed up masculine and feminine articles (el/la) and that nobody understood the economics. I do understand the merit of this system, but it felt very strange nonetheless...
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