San Telmo & BBQ Dinner

Day 2

Sunday. Sept 13, 2009

So I was quite tired from last night so I slept in this morning. After getting up I walked down to San Telmo which is the oldest neighborhood in Buenos Aires. It is a very lively place on Sunday afternoons with antique shops, tango dancing, and street performers all over the streets. The place in unbelievably crowded! While in the area I check out the church of San Pedro Telmo. It is a nice church with a very European feel to it. Outside the church was a group performing with all the string instruments, accordion players, and a man singing with an incredible voice. I ended up watching them for quite some time.

While walking around San Telmo I did some ‘people watching.’ I noticed that they tend to wear darker clothes so I felt like I stood out as an American. I have also come to realize that many of the Argentinians speak very fast. They annunciate very well, just speak fast. The quality of street performers tends to be a bit better than most of the ones that I saw in Europe.

Before heading home I grabbed some pizza at a local restaurant. While waiting for my food to be served I met 4 students from the States. We talked for a while and they were helpful in giving me tips about the area.

I ended up taking a taxi home since I didn’t feel like making the 45 walk again back to the house. One realization that I made is that… people are crazy drivers outside the United States. So far, out of all the 15 countries I have been in, in the last year there is no country that obeys the lines on the streets like the Americans do, haha.

At home I tried listening to the Dallas Cowboys game over the radio but instead got a broadcast of 2 guys making fun of every player on both teams. They were impersonating Aikman and Jerry Jones, and talking crap about all the players and cussing. It was quite an interesting broadcast.

For dinner this evening we had a former student that used to live with the host family come over. It was like his ‘going away dinner’ since he is moving back to NYC on Thursday. The father, Luciano, made an amazing BBQ dinner with the outdoor grill on the rooftop patio. The former student has been here for over a year and half and understands everything they say. He was able to converse back and forth without a problem with the family. This is where I want to be in the near future! I have a lot of work to do though in order to get there.

I have noticed so far that my level of understanding Spanish is not as good as I thought it was. I have truly struggled in understanding what is being said between all the family members while I sit there scratching my head. But tomorrow I start my Spanish course! It will be the first step for me to advance myself! From here on out it will be only Spanish (except for my blogs of course, haha). But seriously… It’s all going to be about my Spanish course, Rosetta Stone, my textbooks, and practicing with the family!