desde la cama

Well, what an interesting last few days. So, let´s just say our group checked out the nightlife in Buenos Aires on Thursday night and by lunch on Friday I had a migrane and a fever. When we landed in Mendoza that evening I was approaching delerious, but my host family was very understanding. Anyway, I spent the entire day Saturday sleeping except getting up to eat breakfast and dinner, which took an amazing amount of force. Fortunately, with all the sleep, water, oranges, oatmeal, etc. I´ve been improving so that by yesterday evening I had enough energy to string my guitar and banjo and go for a walk. I´m just about to start orientation now in downtown Mendoza and I just have a nasty cough and drippy nose left over, so I probably didn´t have H1N1, but rather some other bug associated with the change of climate (not to be confused with climate change).
But enough whining. Let me introduce my family. We have Alicia, a 51 year old who is very caring and wonderful (even talked to her cousing to order a huge bag of oats for me- what more could I want?). Her brother, Alfredo, is an electrician and has a workshop across the courtyard from my bedroom (yes they have a courtyard shared with the neighbors with various ferns and citrus trees and all that good stuff, a place where I will be spending a lot of time playing instruments and such). Then there is the cocker spaniel, Camilo, who is completely insatiable. He leaps into you laps and demands love non-stop. But it´s ok because he has big floppy ears and doesn´t bark unless the doorbell rings.
Things are pretty nice. Mendoza is gorgeous even in the wintertime, if a bit littered with bottles and such in the street. You can see the shadow of the mountains from downtown. Well, more later. Hope to have pictures sometime soon.

desde Buenos Aires!

It´s day 2 in Buenos Aires. Making this post from the hotel lobby. It´s been a whirlwind last 36 hours. Buenos Aires is a HUGE city with so many stylishly dressed people walking purposefully and so many hustlers. It´s unfortunate that virtually every conversation I´ve had with a friendly Argentine on the street has always eventually turned to some sort of scam or charity that they are supposedly collecting money for. The good news is that my spanish is good enough that I can make it at least 30 seconds into a conversation without being asked, ¨So, where are you from?¨ I just walked to exchange my currency and ran across a highland bagpiper in a plaza. He wasn´t very good, but it has really made my afternoon so far. Really looking forward to getting to Mendoza by tomorrow night and having a home. The hotel is nice, but I haven´t been able to unpack or string my instruments as of yet, because 1 more flight is still on the way.
Visited older neighborhoods of La Boca and San Telmo, which were really nice. Lots of pastel colored tenements and restaurants extending into the avenues and pigeons and chubby cats lounging around. So far the food has been great and not all that much meat. Hooray.

heading out

Wow, my first post as a blogger. How momentous. Anyway, today is the last full day at home. Spent all morning jamming clothes and toiletries (sp?) into my bags and spent the evening cutting yet more chard and the first purple beans. In a minute I'll eat a huge dinner of trout and canteloupe and beet greens and try to get lots of sleep after I try to figure out how to take apart the damn banjo to fit it in carry-on.
Tomorrow is going to be a long day. Airports are right up there with hospitals among desolate places to be, but I've got good books to keep me company.
Well, my next post will be from the Southern Hemsiphere, and probably much less casual that this one. Sorry if the first is a little banal. But God is in the details. Or is it the Devil?