The Beginning of the End - Arriving in Buenos Aires

Our first week in Buenos Aires was off to a majorly sleepy start. It took us 24 hours of flying to make it here from Beijing, and oh man did those flights do a number on the group! After our first 13 hour flight we had a 2 hour layover in Dallas, Texas of all places, which was just bizarre. I could completely understand everything that people around me were saying for the first time in months! Also, there were Auntie Anne's pretzels, so I was pretty happy. Then we hopped on the plane for another 10 hours before finally landing in Argentina. Needless to say, it has taken most of the week to get adjusted to the time difference. Thankfully all we had to do on the first day was go to lunch and stay awake for a brief orientation at our hosting organization, CIEE. Then it was straight to the hotel, where my roommate, Alexa, and I fell asleep at 6:30pm.

Our first foray into the city was a bus tour the next day, led by our amazing guide, Gabriel. We visited several neighborhoods and plazas in the city while learning a bit of Buenos Aires history. Our first stop was the Plaza de Mayo, which is at the center of the city. On one side is La Rosada, or the pink house, which is where the president conducts his daily work. Unlike the United States, the president of Argentina lives out in the suburbs rather than in the same building in which he works. On the other side of the plaza is the Cabildo, a traditional colonial building that was the seat of the colonial government before the revolution. After the revolution, Buenos Aires tore down many of the colonialist buildings and rebuilt the city in an eclectic architectural style that mimics that of Paris. The Plaza de Mayo is also an important landmark for the remembrance of "Los Desaparecidos," or "The Disappeared" who were victims of the military government in the 1970's. Some mothers of the disappeared still come to the square every Thursday to walk and make sure their presence is not forgotten.

Next we visited San Telmo, a neighborhood in Southern Buenos Aires. Since we were there on a Sunday, we were able to experience a bit of the Sunday flea market. The street outside the church leading into the square is closed and full of little stands of artisans selling crafts, jewelry, and leather goods and in the square are dozens of stalls selling antiques. Another short bus ride took us to La Boca, a neighborhood founded by Italian immigrants in the early 1900's. The buildings are painted in bright colors and the entire area is full of murals and street art. The Caminito street is like an outdoor gallery, with artists selling their paintings on movable stands. La Boca is also home of the Boca Juniors football club, an immensely popular local team. We also went across the river to the newest and wealthiest area before circling back to our home base in the Recoleta neighborhood.

Monday was a national holiday, so many places were closed and we didn't have class. In the morning, a group of us went to a nearby market to pick up some lunch and had a picnic in the park. Being in Buenos Aires is wonderful because I finally have the language skills to function! I ordered my breakfast bagel and some fresh bag of cherries with only a few stumbles in my Spanish. Then in the afternoon, Brennan, Elijah, Grace P., Sam, and I explored the Recoleta Cemetery. The cemetery is much more like a small city - the paths are lined with large mausoleums rather than individual gravestones. The design of each mausoleum ranges from modern black marble buildings to detailed gothic ones with intricate domes and spires. Eva Perone is buried there, and her grave is still visited daily by people honoring her memory.

On Tuesday we had our first day of class! In Argentina we are studying Art and Social Justice, and I can already tell that it will be my favorite class of Global Semester. We have two Argentinian professors, Cecelia and Natalia, who are teaching our class this month. We will be learning about how art intersects with politics and social movements within the context of Argentinian history. On Wednesday we had our first field trip for art class to the Immigration Museum, which is in the building of the hotel where immigrants would be required to stay upon arrival in Buenos Aires. It surprised me to learn that Argentina actually had the second highest number of immigrants after the United States during the 19th and 20th centuries. The museum incorporated modern art into the historical exhibits, and I found it to be a very compelling way to inspire visitors to imagine themselves into history.

Our second field trip for class was to the Villa Ocampo, the home of Victoria Ocampo. Victoria Ocampo was an Argentinian literary figure in the 1920's who established an important journal called Sur that published the works of Latin-American writers, like Jorge Luis Borges with whom she was close friends. Her story reminded me a lot of Gertrude Stein and her circle of artists and writers in Paris at the same time. Although she was a writer in her own right, she spent most of her career promoting and supporting other writers. The house is now a UNESCO site, and last year hosted the partners of the G20 heads of state during the 2018 G20 summit. We recreated the iconic photo that they took on the back steps of the house with the women of Global Semester!

On Saturday we drove out to the countryside for a relaxing day at a ranch called San Ceferido Hotel and Spa. The entire day was like a dream! Upon our arrival we took a carriage ride to the part of the ranch that is still a working farm and sampled homemade cheese and jam. Then we saw the owner's carriage collection, and we even got to climb inside some of them! We had a beautiful lunch of barbecued meat and grilled veggies, and then some of us went to go horseback riding. Clara and I both rode a horse called Lola who really wanted to run, and she just took off down the road at a full gallop! We both had a great time riding, but this week we're lamenting our extremely sore hip flexors. Some of us also chose to get massages which was an incredible way to end our day. While I definitely believe that Global Semester is truly an educational experience and not a vacation, "spa day" was definitely a mini vacation for all of us.

Sunday was a free day, so a large group of us went out to brunch before going back to San Telmo for the markets. Zibby found us a great brunch spot called La Panera Rosada that was pink themed! We found some treasures at the market, but my favorite part of the day was just exploring the city on foot. Some of us actually walked from San Telmo to La Boca and got to see all the hubbub of game day for Boca Juniors. There were tons of people in the street dressed in blue and yellow who were grilling outside their homes, playing music, and partying as they headed toward the stadium.

In the evening Alexa, Grace P., Aml, and I went to a concert with Hernan. His choir director was performing with her trio at a cafe in the Palermo neighborhood. The place was full of little tables with candles, and we felt extremely sophisticated with our bottle of rose and charcuterie board. The music was beautiful. The group performed songs from different parts of Latin America and sang in indigenous languages. I plan to go back and maybe see another show there before the month is up!

Our arrival in Buenos Aires marks the beginning of the end of Global Semester. I honestly don't know how to feel about this. I don't want to stop traveling, but with Thanksgiving coming up I can't help but miss home and start to get nostalgic. Still, Elizabeth reminded us that we essentially have a whole interim program before we fly home. It might be only three more weeks, but I know that we will fit a lot into that time.

Thanks for reading!

-GMH