So it's been quite some time since I've taken the time to sit down and actually blog about everything I have been up to. It's taken a couple of weeks to get through the midterm craze and it's pretty bizarre to think that we've just wrapped that up and now it's time to begin to think about the 'final push' until the end....weird.
Beautiful Park in Palermo
Since getting back from Iguazu we've stayed pretty local. My roomates were able to head down to Cordoba, Argentina to celebrate Oktoberfest "Argentine-style" well I stayed back to welcome a visit from KATHRYN! She arrived safe and sound in one piece on Saturday and was slotted to stay for a week. Unfortuantely, she came down with a pretty bad case of strep and had to cut the trip short, leaving on Wednesday, but I guess it's a good thing that we did a lot before she got sick! Besides, I wanted to brush up on my hospital vocabularly and a trip to the Emergency Clinic at the German Hospital seemed to be the perfect solution- I really think the staff there is starting to recognize me (as the foreign blonde with nervous tendencies) but that's besides the point.
One of our tourguides
When Kath was here I enjoyed some great meals (even tried a new restaurant) and made it around a few places in the city I've never been. On Sunday, after a quick run around Palermo and a stop for some Starbucks, we headed to Plaza de Mayo where we went to Mass at the city cathedral. A nice quick 1 hour mass was a great place to relax and take in the beautiful architecture and detail work hidden in this gem of a building. (I spent some of the time understanding what was being said and most of the time with my head up looking at the paintings on the ceiling...must have looked like I was praying real hard...) After getting a satisfying Jeez-it we were able to quickly look around the entire church and its several displays dedicated to various states before we crossed the plaza to head to the Cabildo. A building that used as the seat of various government officials during colonial times is now a museum. Though not all that vast or interesting it did have a pretty nice view of the whole Plaza de Mayo and a gorgeous courtyard. Next stop, Casa Rosada. Perhaps a happy accident, as we walked by the Casa Rosada we say a huge line of people out the front door. Deciding to 'go with the flow' we tagged onto the back of the line and after we weren't stopped by any of the many guards we entered to wait for a free tour. Tours for the Casa Rosada seem pretty hard to come by considering they are only given when the President is out of the country...guess we got lucky. Although semi-hokie, after a 20 minute wait in line we were greeted by a series of 'tourguides' dressed in the traditional guard gear who rotated us through half dozen or so rooms in the building. Not to burst anyone's bubble, but although we did get to stand on a balcony (I didn't cry for my people like Evita did) the rooms seemed a little less than breathtaking. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the Bicentenial exhibit that was displayed in the foyer featuring portraits and descriptions of a whole slew of Latin American figures throughout the years...pretty neat.
Now, let's not forget the highlight of any of my experiences- the food. Of course I had to take Kathyrn to La Cabrera for a delicious piece of meat and it was just as amazing the second time around :) However, the unexpected surprise of the weekend was dinner on Monday night at a little Italian hole-in-the-wall restaurant fittingly named "Guido's Bar". Reservations are a must at this tiny gem and if you're looking for menus forget about it. The only decision you'll have to make all night is white wine or red wine and for little Ms. Indecisive this was a very. good. thing. Each night "Guido's Bar" features a different 4 course menu with the freshest ingredients. The antipasto course of sauteed mushrooms, fresh homemade mozzarella, zucchini with a vinegrette, homemade pizza and a tortilla of sorts left us in awe. We continued the indulgence with the pasta course featuring two different pastas with the most delicious sauces I have tasted in a long time. The dessert sampler plate put us over the edge with some of the most fantastic flan and tiramisu yet. Needless to say we left there quite satisfied, trying to ignore the fact that we were one of the first ones in the restaurant and the last ones out...oops.
Tuesday led to an ER clinic trip to try and get some Z-Pacs for Kathryn but apparently they just aren't the same as in the US because by Wednesday it was worse and we had to say our goodbyes so she could get home to some US medication. Although it was hard to say goodbye to my 'connection to the States' it was made a little easier finding out that my mom is coming to visit in November!!! Until then I certainly have had a lot of work to do (including starting to think about final research papers which is mindboggling considering I feel like we're no where near the end), some more exploring to take on and some overall R&R before I head back to the States and back to reality. Needless to say, the fact that regisration for my spring classes at Richmond is Monday makes me realize there's really not that much time left. But forget the sappy reflections...I've got almost 2 months to come up with all of those :)
Besos,
Perry
