Hello!
As soon as my mind broke away from university and Canberra into the abyss of the holidays, I remembered my blog. Whilst I've been keeping a journal, blogs are fun too. So now I wait for the midnight bus outta here to start work tomorrow morning at 10am and I have perfect opportunity to write something small.
Currently I'm mega tired. I awoke at 5.10 this morning in Cunnamulla, south-west Queensland, and travelling with a group of kids arrived back to Canberra at 6pm tonight. We had gone for a trip to a remote Aboriginal community in far-north Queensland. It was fascinating. I needed something to get me out of this haze/bubble of university and college life where you easily lose perspective about the big issues at hand. But heading back to the desert changed all this and it all feels new again.
So my first semester of university is done. It feels good, though introductory subjects are very broad and not the most stimulating. I had romantically envisioned that university means attractive young things sitting on grass in the afternoon sun in summer clothes discussing the intricacies of particular literature, the flaws in particular theories. Whilst this has not yet happened, I do hope it will soon.
Also being away has given me a big fun list of things to do whilst I'm at home. Apart from work, in the eternal quest to earn youth allowance, I want to teach myself more guitar, finish some songs, run, bushwalks, firetwirl, do drives, catch up with some high school pals. I hope I can do this in the two weeks that I have.
At the end of last semester I was beginning to feel a bit more settled into college, though that did take a while. Funny, it's easy to feel comfortable and chummy with people when you're travelling, but being still and getting to know people is more challenging. Many of the first years have come straight from school too, something which I hardly feel I can relate to now. So now that I feel more atop of the social aspects of Canberra life, I hope to be more involved in things I'm interested up here. Having done this trip it would be great to be more active in indigenous affairs, and also the uni green commitee and maybe the college choir? The problem is that there are so many things that are interesting and that I want to be involved in that it is easy to over-commit. I don't want to get to that stage!
Driving south we felt the order and enclosure of the land increase. In gulf country the plains spread out unfenced for hundreds of kilometres. It is left to its own devices with no imposing forces at bay. Cattle roam free, over the road, horses, emus, pigs, you name it. As that land melted the farms that appeared seemed so precious, a bit silly. Getting a different perspective on reality is something that cannot be underestimated.
Hurrah!
Time to catch the bus.
See you next time. G.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Friday, December 18, 2009
fin.
I write my final travel post from the desk of Leah's room overlooking a peaceful backstreet of Berkeley. A cool breeze is coming in the window, though thanks to the wonderful clear day it's not too chilly. I was aprehensive about entering the northern hempishere's winter, however California is treating me well.
I left Buenos Aires at midday on Wednesday. I awoke naturally early, headed down and tried to swallow some breakfast. A brazilian dude saw me with my two packs and asked if I was headed to the airport. We subsequently shared a cab together. He was pretty nice, our mix of spanglish was impressive for the both of us. On our way out of Buenos Aires there was a 'manifestacion' (strike) on the highway. People were standing on the road, sleeping on the road. I couldn't gather what it was about. The taxi driver shared a brief conversation with a nearby policeman- he seemed pretty bemused about it all. Good old Argentine police! Nothing is to be taken seriously. Reminds me of the time that a guy staying in my room in the hostel got-supposedly- 1000 euros stolen out of his pack. The police came in and questioned us, took some notes, but everyone knew nothing would come of it.
I found myself airside with $50 pesos remaining. With a bit of time before boarding, I ordered a 'fernet'- a typical argentine liquor typically served with coke. It's really strong, tastes like medicine, but at the end of my stay there I came to like it. However this was fernet only, served with ice, which filled up a whole glass. Ach!!! I tried a few sips but couldn't handle it. I bought some coke and tried to mix it up. Eventually I forced it down and at 11am I was ready, drunkenly, for the flight. 9 hours to mexico city, then another two to LA where I stayed for the night.
I had researched my stay on sleepinginairports.com and luckily for me LAX had won the 'Worst Airport' award. I hoped it wasn't a global competition.
However the airport was undergoing renovations and I was able to access a relatively clean and new area. Luckily as I was trying to sleep on an uncomfortable chair a nice airport woman told me about a better place where 'many other people are sleeping'. I found my posse and luckily there was a small couch available for the taking. Throughout the night I got stared at by an Irish woman, kicked in the head a few times, and experienced severe coldness, HOWEVER!!! it was a pretty positive first time sleepinginairports experience. Thank you LA! I awoke at 5 and couldn't sleep again so after reading for a little while I went to check in to go to San Fransisco.
I will mention here how funny it is to be in America, or any developed country, after being in Argentina. Soap in the bathrooms! Paper towels! Toilet paper! The abillity to speak in English! Asian food stores! Good coffee! Fruit! All of these things are appreciated again. Slowly and surely I am experiencing new tastes again. I had my first grape. My first pomegranate. Leah cooked me a delicious vegetarian mix with soba noodles and eggplant and soy and chilli. Yogurt. Berries. It is lucky.
Berkeley, again, is wonderful. This trip feels pretty complete coming back here. Catching up with a few of the same people, experiencing the same fresh, wonderful, exciting and energetic feel of the place. I still feel a little strange about going back to Aus, but it feels a bit more smooth-edged now.
It's wonderful being with Leah and everyone being wonderful. It is mixed with sadness though, as people say to her 'have a nice life'. She's packing around me and constantly offering me her clothes to take back in my pack. We're headed to yoga at 4.30, before grabbing some din dins. My flight's at 10 to 11. I'll be seeing you all on the flipside!
Lots and lots of love,
Georgia
I left Buenos Aires at midday on Wednesday. I awoke naturally early, headed down and tried to swallow some breakfast. A brazilian dude saw me with my two packs and asked if I was headed to the airport. We subsequently shared a cab together. He was pretty nice, our mix of spanglish was impressive for the both of us. On our way out of Buenos Aires there was a 'manifestacion' (strike) on the highway. People were standing on the road, sleeping on the road. I couldn't gather what it was about. The taxi driver shared a brief conversation with a nearby policeman- he seemed pretty bemused about it all. Good old Argentine police! Nothing is to be taken seriously. Reminds me of the time that a guy staying in my room in the hostel got-supposedly- 1000 euros stolen out of his pack. The police came in and questioned us, took some notes, but everyone knew nothing would come of it.
I found myself airside with $50 pesos remaining. With a bit of time before boarding, I ordered a 'fernet'- a typical argentine liquor typically served with coke. It's really strong, tastes like medicine, but at the end of my stay there I came to like it. However this was fernet only, served with ice, which filled up a whole glass. Ach!!! I tried a few sips but couldn't handle it. I bought some coke and tried to mix it up. Eventually I forced it down and at 11am I was ready, drunkenly, for the flight. 9 hours to mexico city, then another two to LA where I stayed for the night.
I had researched my stay on sleepinginairports.com and luckily for me LAX had won the 'Worst Airport' award. I hoped it wasn't a global competition.
However the airport was undergoing renovations and I was able to access a relatively clean and new area. Luckily as I was trying to sleep on an uncomfortable chair a nice airport woman told me about a better place where 'many other people are sleeping'. I found my posse and luckily there was a small couch available for the taking. Throughout the night I got stared at by an Irish woman, kicked in the head a few times, and experienced severe coldness, HOWEVER!!! it was a pretty positive first time sleepinginairports experience. Thank you LA! I awoke at 5 and couldn't sleep again so after reading for a little while I went to check in to go to San Fransisco.
I will mention here how funny it is to be in America, or any developed country, after being in Argentina. Soap in the bathrooms! Paper towels! Toilet paper! The abillity to speak in English! Asian food stores! Good coffee! Fruit! All of these things are appreciated again. Slowly and surely I am experiencing new tastes again. I had my first grape. My first pomegranate. Leah cooked me a delicious vegetarian mix with soba noodles and eggplant and soy and chilli. Yogurt. Berries. It is lucky.
Berkeley, again, is wonderful. This trip feels pretty complete coming back here. Catching up with a few of the same people, experiencing the same fresh, wonderful, exciting and energetic feel of the place. I still feel a little strange about going back to Aus, but it feels a bit more smooth-edged now.
It's wonderful being with Leah and everyone being wonderful. It is mixed with sadness though, as people say to her 'have a nice life'. She's packing around me and constantly offering me her clothes to take back in my pack. We're headed to yoga at 4.30, before grabbing some din dins. My flight's at 10 to 11. I'll be seeing you all on the flipside!
Lots and lots of love,
Georgia
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Ayer.
Yesterday. Yesterday was a wonderful day. I shall probably have to document it right here.
It involved waking up in Buenos Aires' Micocentro District, full of street vendors and old men sitting in cafes and business people and a few daggy tourits and street markets and and the peatonal (pedestrian mall) that runs stright through the middle of town.
We (me, Emma and Rosie -Dudley St reunited) luxuriously meandered down to the hostel breakfast which included free medialunas (croissants), bread, dulce de leche, tea, coffee on endless supplies. While Rosie and Emma went out to book their bus tickets outta this crazy town, I read, journaled, Alexander-techniqued, hung. They came back 1ish and we picked up our newfound friend Jess and took to the world.
Flagging a taxi, I sat in the front seat helping the newcomers out with the language barrier. Their knowledge is muy muy muy basic so whilst we're together I'm trying to get them on it a little. So I chatted to the taxi driver about Buenos Aires, the port, the weather, the rich porteños. We then arrived at our destination.
THE WORLD'S FIRST RELIGIOUS THEME PARK.
It was a little bit shut when we arrived, opening at 4. However, this allowed ample time to go for a river-side walk along the Rio de La Plata, the river spilling out into the Atlantic. If you travel for three hours across it you will bump into sleepy Uruguay.
Along this walk we came across rich porteños on their lunch breaks. Poor fishermen with beat-up cars pumping music across the pavement. Many ´hóla chicas´, ´que hermosas´ and ´ah, mi amor´'s were given our way. It comes when weird-looking ladies hang out together.
After our walk we went to a tenedor libre (all you can eat) which the taxi driver had recommended for us. Siga La Vaca. So we were a bit confused about the situation, what the dealio was. However we flagged a camarera and sorted out the deal. Jess and I went together to the parrilla and loaded up with some asado, I also some intestine for the curiously disgusted ladies. Then salad, and ya estar, done. It was wonderful, but I shan't detail it too much.
However, when it came time to pay the $46 pesos each ($AU13) the waiter was telling me something which I couldn't understand. I had to tell her that I didn't get it, and after a few minutes I realised that she was telling me that
SOMEONE HAD ALREADY PAID FOR ALL OF US.
A random. Anonymous gift of kindness. Happy times!!!! We were so thrilled and were asking the waiter who it was but she wouldn't give! They shared all of these coy smiles between each other but wouldn't budge. We think we guessed it was a man sitting by himself talking on the phone for most of the ordeal. That was just his way out of it, I think.
So feeling most spritely we embarked on our journey to the theme park.
It was great, mechanical nativity plays (nothing on the McGowan one, mind you), all of the employees decked out in Middle-Eastern Attire, FREAKY SCULPTURES EVERYWHERE, it was amazing. We left before the resurrection scene though, when an 18-metre tall mechanical Jesus rises 10 metres into the air before descending again, ´displaying 36 mechanical movements´. What a bloke! Stellar effort.
This satisfied my desire to see weird things in Argentina...usually people are pretty straight down the line...but this was a whole other ball park.
Last night we caught up some Sam and Luke, two Gappers, in Palermo. We shared beers and maní until 5 am. It was swell. Caught a cab back into centro and I was safe and snug in bed by the tender hour of 5.20am.
Now it's nearly 1pm saturday and people are just rising. The plans for today are a big walk, visit a massive park, art galleries, and the Recoleta cemetary, where Eva is buried, amongst plenty o others.
Buenos Aires is beautiful.
Goodbye you.
It involved waking up in Buenos Aires' Micocentro District, full of street vendors and old men sitting in cafes and business people and a few daggy tourits and street markets and and the peatonal (pedestrian mall) that runs stright through the middle of town.
We (me, Emma and Rosie -Dudley St reunited) luxuriously meandered down to the hostel breakfast which included free medialunas (croissants), bread, dulce de leche, tea, coffee on endless supplies. While Rosie and Emma went out to book their bus tickets outta this crazy town, I read, journaled, Alexander-techniqued, hung. They came back 1ish and we picked up our newfound friend Jess and took to the world.
Flagging a taxi, I sat in the front seat helping the newcomers out with the language barrier. Their knowledge is muy muy muy basic so whilst we're together I'm trying to get them on it a little. So I chatted to the taxi driver about Buenos Aires, the port, the weather, the rich porteños. We then arrived at our destination.
THE WORLD'S FIRST RELIGIOUS THEME PARK.
It was a little bit shut when we arrived, opening at 4. However, this allowed ample time to go for a river-side walk along the Rio de La Plata, the river spilling out into the Atlantic. If you travel for three hours across it you will bump into sleepy Uruguay.
Along this walk we came across rich porteños on their lunch breaks. Poor fishermen with beat-up cars pumping music across the pavement. Many ´hóla chicas´, ´que hermosas´ and ´ah, mi amor´'s were given our way. It comes when weird-looking ladies hang out together.
After our walk we went to a tenedor libre (all you can eat) which the taxi driver had recommended for us. Siga La Vaca. So we were a bit confused about the situation, what the dealio was. However we flagged a camarera and sorted out the deal. Jess and I went together to the parrilla and loaded up with some asado, I also some intestine for the curiously disgusted ladies. Then salad, and ya estar, done. It was wonderful, but I shan't detail it too much.
However, when it came time to pay the $46 pesos each ($AU13) the waiter was telling me something which I couldn't understand. I had to tell her that I didn't get it, and after a few minutes I realised that she was telling me that
SOMEONE HAD ALREADY PAID FOR ALL OF US.
A random. Anonymous gift of kindness. Happy times!!!! We were so thrilled and were asking the waiter who it was but she wouldn't give! They shared all of these coy smiles between each other but wouldn't budge. We think we guessed it was a man sitting by himself talking on the phone for most of the ordeal. That was just his way out of it, I think.
So feeling most spritely we embarked on our journey to the theme park.
It was great, mechanical nativity plays (nothing on the McGowan one, mind you), all of the employees decked out in Middle-Eastern Attire, FREAKY SCULPTURES EVERYWHERE, it was amazing. We left before the resurrection scene though, when an 18-metre tall mechanical Jesus rises 10 metres into the air before descending again, ´displaying 36 mechanical movements´. What a bloke! Stellar effort.
This satisfied my desire to see weird things in Argentina...usually people are pretty straight down the line...but this was a whole other ball park.
Last night we caught up some Sam and Luke, two Gappers, in Palermo. We shared beers and maní until 5 am. It was swell. Caught a cab back into centro and I was safe and snug in bed by the tender hour of 5.20am.
Now it's nearly 1pm saturday and people are just rising. The plans for today are a big walk, visit a massive park, art galleries, and the Recoleta cemetary, where Eva is buried, amongst plenty o others.
Buenos Aires is beautiful.
Goodbye you.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Buena Suerte Por Toda Su Vida
Done done done!
The last week has been busy and has consisted of____-___-___-
- Seeing a free Symphony Orchestra in Argentina's oldest theatre and getting a whole BOX to ourselves!!!
- Seeing a FREE film in ENGLISH!!!! Was called The Quiet Man, by John Ford. A barrel of laughs
- Meeting up with my darling friend and to-be travelling companion Rosie in Plaza San Martin Cordoba and having play times!!
- Seeing many art galleries
- Seeing a marathon of Cordobese bands until 5.30am
- Catching up with my German buddy Tanja, Australian friend Rosie from Villa Allende, AND Reuben's friend Amelia and three of her friend...They just finished their placement in Peru and were travelling south. SO MANY PEOPLE TO TALK TO!!!!
- Last weeek at Ascochinga!"!!! Consisted of
- Our final puppet play...last night, a ripper!
- Sleeping outside and having crazy great conversations with the team and a bottle of red
- Finishing Jane Eyre
- Rosie's 21st birthday
- Visiting the nearby Jesuit ruins of Santa Catalina. B E A UTIFUL!!! And talking with the taxi driver there.
- Seeing the countryside turn green and greeen after so much rain..Rosie came at the right time!
- Having a pig sacrificed for us last night!!! INTENSE>!!!!!
Now, the four of us are sitting at the internet cafe ´Cyber Trek, the Next Generation´and are all doing our own thing. NExt we are going to hang out in the park and read books and write in our diaries. Then, at around 10pm tonight, we are all going to part ways. Reuben to BA, Michael to Bolivia, Rosie and I to Mendoza. It's the end of a chapter, believe you me.
Yayyy exciting! Half of the keys on my keyboard are really stiff which is kind of hindering my ganas (will) to write. However, things are good. 10 days left here, I believe. I don't want to leave,,,, but in preparing myself to leave it is all ok.
I hope you are all well. I am listening to Animal Collective and it's putting me in a grouse mood. Now I am off.
Goodbye, see you soon.
GG
The last week has been busy and has consisted of____-___-___-
- Seeing a free Symphony Orchestra in Argentina's oldest theatre and getting a whole BOX to ourselves!!!
- Seeing a FREE film in ENGLISH!!!! Was called The Quiet Man, by John Ford. A barrel of laughs
- Meeting up with my darling friend and to-be travelling companion Rosie in Plaza San Martin Cordoba and having play times!!
- Seeing many art galleries
- Seeing a marathon of Cordobese bands until 5.30am
- Catching up with my German buddy Tanja, Australian friend Rosie from Villa Allende, AND Reuben's friend Amelia and three of her friend...They just finished their placement in Peru and were travelling south. SO MANY PEOPLE TO TALK TO!!!!
- Last weeek at Ascochinga!"!!! Consisted of
- Our final puppet play...last night, a ripper!
- Sleeping outside and having crazy great conversations with the team and a bottle of red
- Finishing Jane Eyre
- Rosie's 21st birthday
- Visiting the nearby Jesuit ruins of Santa Catalina. B E A UTIFUL!!! And talking with the taxi driver there.
- Seeing the countryside turn green and greeen after so much rain..Rosie came at the right time!
- Having a pig sacrificed for us last night!!! INTENSE>!!!!!
Now, the four of us are sitting at the internet cafe ´Cyber Trek, the Next Generation´and are all doing our own thing. NExt we are going to hang out in the park and read books and write in our diaries. Then, at around 10pm tonight, we are all going to part ways. Reuben to BA, Michael to Bolivia, Rosie and I to Mendoza. It's the end of a chapter, believe you me.
Yayyy exciting! Half of the keys on my keyboard are really stiff which is kind of hindering my ganas (will) to write. However, things are good. 10 days left here, I believe. I don't want to leave,,,, but in preparing myself to leave it is all ok.
I hope you are all well. I am listening to Animal Collective and it's putting me in a grouse mood. Now I am off.
Goodbye, see you soon.
GG
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
higos y mora y la última semana
Hi there sports fans
11.35am, November 24. I rushed into Jesus Maria this morning with not enough time to brush my teeth or get out of my pyjamas. Supposedly the bus was coming in 5 minutes but it never came. But it was one of those situations where you can´t go and brush your teeth because then you´ll miss the bus. So I grunned and barred it.
I finished reading Homer´s Odeyseus last night, which was a ripper of a story. Now I´m reading Jane Eyre. It´s Reuben´s copy, and I have to finish it before we part ways next week.
So, a bit more than a week to go. How am I feeling? Hmmmm. I have been a bit flat over the last few days. I do not have any energy at the house that I´m living in.
In my life it has never mattered that I am female. It´s never impacted upon me. Here it´s like I´m walking around naked. It´s a shit thing to feel. I get stared at all the time (in a house of 30 guys). Even when I give classic ¨puck off¨looks, and ignore people, I can still feel eyeballs on my head. It´s a bad thing to feel for so long and slowly it eats away at me.
And I have found myself in a pickle. I don´t want my gender to matter. So for that to happen, I have to get to know them as if I were a guy...which means spending time with them and getting past the obvious initial difference. But I can´t stand to be with them (the workers at the house, not the ´chicos´with the disabilities) so therefore I actively distance myself from them. Ah! Woe is me. It´s a challenging situation and it would be interesting to see how other people dealt with it. The problem would be solved if I had the company of another woman my age so we could share it. But no one else there understands how I feel.
I am looking forward to gaining distance from the house at Ascochinga and trying to nut out all of those emotions that I felt and how I could have dealt with the situation better. At the moment it´s like it´s all swarming around me and clouding my vision and in the middle I just feel battered.
Moving on
This coming weekend is my last in Cordoba. I have myself a list of all of the things that I want to accomplish, things that I haven´t done before now. Rosie is staying in student accomodation and it would be great to stay with her and experience that life.
Ah ha! Now there are two Rosies. My other friend Rosie is coming around and hopefully I will travel with her for a few weeks in Mendoza and then meet up with another friend Emma in Buenos Aires. I can´t wait to begin this solo travel, apart from the little bubble that I´m in now.
The higos and moras (figs and mulberries) are out. It reminds me a lot of home. Disco, the supermarket, now has Christmas decorations out too and there´s another feel in the air. It seems as though going home for Christmas is the best time of year to go home.
There has been heaps of rain here as well, which has turned everything green. Incredible, really. I hardly recognise the place. Reuben and I decided to sleep outside on Saturday night, por al rio (by the river) and unfortunately we got misted on hardcore. We shared a bottle of red...were thinking of sleep by 3am, but then by 5 I was completely saturated and decided to call it in.
I had a wonderful day last week picking mulberries in the sunshine with two of the chicos. We sang together and got stained faces together. I could talk with them without having to really think hard about what I was saying, and found that it just flowed out of me.
Two weekends ago Reuben and I went to La Cumbrecita, a pueblo peatonal (pedestrian-only) village nestled amongst the pines of the Sierra Cordobas. It was a wonderful day (no more) of hiking and exploring deserted waterholes and waterfalls. Also we got treated to a wondful DESAYUNO GRATIS yes please full of fresh fruit and criollitos and medialunas and tea and coffee. All very pleasant.
Now I am off to work on a scholarhip application.
Goodbye friends.
I will write soon when my head is perhaps in a better place.
Love love!
11.35am, November 24. I rushed into Jesus Maria this morning with not enough time to brush my teeth or get out of my pyjamas. Supposedly the bus was coming in 5 minutes but it never came. But it was one of those situations where you can´t go and brush your teeth because then you´ll miss the bus. So I grunned and barred it.
I finished reading Homer´s Odeyseus last night, which was a ripper of a story. Now I´m reading Jane Eyre. It´s Reuben´s copy, and I have to finish it before we part ways next week.
So, a bit more than a week to go. How am I feeling? Hmmmm. I have been a bit flat over the last few days. I do not have any energy at the house that I´m living in.
In my life it has never mattered that I am female. It´s never impacted upon me. Here it´s like I´m walking around naked. It´s a shit thing to feel. I get stared at all the time (in a house of 30 guys). Even when I give classic ¨puck off¨looks, and ignore people, I can still feel eyeballs on my head. It´s a bad thing to feel for so long and slowly it eats away at me.
And I have found myself in a pickle. I don´t want my gender to matter. So for that to happen, I have to get to know them as if I were a guy...which means spending time with them and getting past the obvious initial difference. But I can´t stand to be with them (the workers at the house, not the ´chicos´with the disabilities) so therefore I actively distance myself from them. Ah! Woe is me. It´s a challenging situation and it would be interesting to see how other people dealt with it. The problem would be solved if I had the company of another woman my age so we could share it. But no one else there understands how I feel.
I am looking forward to gaining distance from the house at Ascochinga and trying to nut out all of those emotions that I felt and how I could have dealt with the situation better. At the moment it´s like it´s all swarming around me and clouding my vision and in the middle I just feel battered.
Moving on
This coming weekend is my last in Cordoba. I have myself a list of all of the things that I want to accomplish, things that I haven´t done before now. Rosie is staying in student accomodation and it would be great to stay with her and experience that life.
Ah ha! Now there are two Rosies. My other friend Rosie is coming around and hopefully I will travel with her for a few weeks in Mendoza and then meet up with another friend Emma in Buenos Aires. I can´t wait to begin this solo travel, apart from the little bubble that I´m in now.
The higos and moras (figs and mulberries) are out. It reminds me a lot of home. Disco, the supermarket, now has Christmas decorations out too and there´s another feel in the air. It seems as though going home for Christmas is the best time of year to go home.
There has been heaps of rain here as well, which has turned everything green. Incredible, really. I hardly recognise the place. Reuben and I decided to sleep outside on Saturday night, por al rio (by the river) and unfortunately we got misted on hardcore. We shared a bottle of red...were thinking of sleep by 3am, but then by 5 I was completely saturated and decided to call it in.
I had a wonderful day last week picking mulberries in the sunshine with two of the chicos. We sang together and got stained faces together. I could talk with them without having to really think hard about what I was saying, and found that it just flowed out of me.
Two weekends ago Reuben and I went to La Cumbrecita, a pueblo peatonal (pedestrian-only) village nestled amongst the pines of the Sierra Cordobas. It was a wonderful day (no more) of hiking and exploring deserted waterholes and waterfalls. Also we got treated to a wondful DESAYUNO GRATIS yes please full of fresh fruit and criollitos and medialunas and tea and coffee. All very pleasant.
Now I am off to work on a scholarhip application.
Goodbye friends.
I will write soon when my head is perhaps in a better place.
Love love!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
jajajajajajaja
Yes yes yes hello
Wowie so a bit has happened since Uruguay, and it seems that my time here is wrapping up and in my mind it´s all coming too quickly.
Reuben and I performed the puppet play in the late afternoon sun under the big tree in the courtyard. The chicos loved it. I was playing the part of Luis, one of the chicos, who doesn´t talk but rather makes very distinct noises. I got them perfected and he was just beaming with pride. His face was classic- this old man absolutely overcome with joy and giving a big gummy smile. Usually I find him pretty annoying, but it was good to be able to be distanced by the performance and still be having fun together.
However one thing I do find disconcerting is the lack of praise I get for doing things and the loads of praise that Reuben gets doing the same things. It´s as if he´s done it by himself!! It´s happened with cooking and also this play. I don´t make a big deal of it, but it makes me a little sad on the inside. Oh wells, such comes from being in a completely male-focused country, I suppose. I don´t agree with it but I think the only thing I can do is suck it up.
I have just spent the last few days in Villa Allende, back at the orphanage with Jess, Rosie and Iona. As always it was swell to see them again, and to be able to laze without feeling slobby. Surrounded by guys all the time often I feel that my relaxation time is actually me just being lazy. Not with the girls though.
The kids are pretty funny, but really intense. I suppose that´s stereotyped, living in an orphanage. Yesterday arvo I was having a siesta because I wasn´t feeling so flash and the kids were banging against the barred window and yelling. I told them to go away because I was feeling tired and they opened up the window (from the outside) and started throwing leaves and branches and sticks onto me. OH MY LORD! They have irritation nailed. They were like monkeys against the cage. The girls are amazingly patient with the kids and are still really kind even when they´re fed up. I suppose they have learnt how to deal with it after three odd months.
This morning Rosie and Jess and I came into Cordoba. They have now left the orphanage forever!!! They are so excited about it. It´s been a good experience for them I think but also they have had a pretty tough time there. They have survived nits, never-ending colds, disgusting bathrooms, cold showers, conjunctivitis, and sharing a tiny room between three. I definitely salute them! They´re off to do a language course in Cordoba, before meeting up with their families and doing some travel separately. Iona is going to stay at the orphanage for a few weeks longer.
Reuben and I are off to the small little mountain village of La Cumbrecita. It´s nestled among the Sierra Cordobas and supposedly there´s heaps of amazing walks to precious little balnearios (swimming holes) and cascadas (waterfalls). We´re only there for a day and a half, so just a quiet little getaway. Michael is in Chile at the moment.
So I have a month left! EEEEKKk!!!! I will continue to keep you posted.
I hope you´re all well...was there a heatwave in Aus?
Lots of love!
G
Wowie so a bit has happened since Uruguay, and it seems that my time here is wrapping up and in my mind it´s all coming too quickly.
Reuben and I performed the puppet play in the late afternoon sun under the big tree in the courtyard. The chicos loved it. I was playing the part of Luis, one of the chicos, who doesn´t talk but rather makes very distinct noises. I got them perfected and he was just beaming with pride. His face was classic- this old man absolutely overcome with joy and giving a big gummy smile. Usually I find him pretty annoying, but it was good to be able to be distanced by the performance and still be having fun together.
However one thing I do find disconcerting is the lack of praise I get for doing things and the loads of praise that Reuben gets doing the same things. It´s as if he´s done it by himself!! It´s happened with cooking and also this play. I don´t make a big deal of it, but it makes me a little sad on the inside. Oh wells, such comes from being in a completely male-focused country, I suppose. I don´t agree with it but I think the only thing I can do is suck it up.
I have just spent the last few days in Villa Allende, back at the orphanage with Jess, Rosie and Iona. As always it was swell to see them again, and to be able to laze without feeling slobby. Surrounded by guys all the time often I feel that my relaxation time is actually me just being lazy. Not with the girls though.
The kids are pretty funny, but really intense. I suppose that´s stereotyped, living in an orphanage. Yesterday arvo I was having a siesta because I wasn´t feeling so flash and the kids were banging against the barred window and yelling. I told them to go away because I was feeling tired and they opened up the window (from the outside) and started throwing leaves and branches and sticks onto me. OH MY LORD! They have irritation nailed. They were like monkeys against the cage. The girls are amazingly patient with the kids and are still really kind even when they´re fed up. I suppose they have learnt how to deal with it after three odd months.
This morning Rosie and Jess and I came into Cordoba. They have now left the orphanage forever!!! They are so excited about it. It´s been a good experience for them I think but also they have had a pretty tough time there. They have survived nits, never-ending colds, disgusting bathrooms, cold showers, conjunctivitis, and sharing a tiny room between three. I definitely salute them! They´re off to do a language course in Cordoba, before meeting up with their families and doing some travel separately. Iona is going to stay at the orphanage for a few weeks longer.
Reuben and I are off to the small little mountain village of La Cumbrecita. It´s nestled among the Sierra Cordobas and supposedly there´s heaps of amazing walks to precious little balnearios (swimming holes) and cascadas (waterfalls). We´re only there for a day and a half, so just a quiet little getaway. Michael is in Chile at the moment.
So I have a month left! EEEEKKk!!!! I will continue to keep you posted.
I hope you´re all well...was there a heatwave in Aus?
Lots of love!
G
Monday, November 2, 2009
Ur. U. Guay.
Yes it has come visa-expiration time. To combat this I have found myself outside of the embrace of the motherland, and instead into the rainy mitts of Montevideo, Uruguay! Who woulda thunk it.
November eh? Is that absurd to anybody else? Things have been going swell here. As I wrote before, last weekend was spent in Cordoba. I went out with the girlies till 8am both nights, a very easy feat when your night begins at 2am. Then returned to Ascochinga in time to watch the game between Boca and River, the nation´s most important futbol teams. El Clasico is pretty similiar to the Melbournite´s Grand Final. The place stops and people are swamping to pubs with tvs everywhere. Watching from Ascochinga had a really relaxed feel to it. Somehow I have signed up to being a Boca fan, perhaps having visited the place on a crappy tour bus for a few hours whilst in BA...however the deed is done and now, supposedly, I am a life-long fan. River scored early and defintely were the better team, however Boca scored in the second half leading to a draw. How disappointing.
On Thursday we left Ascochinga (again) to venture to Rosario, a town 300ks from BA along the Rio Paraná. We came close to Rosario on our way to Iguazu, but didn´t pass through.
It´s a beautiful city. Trees line the streets and there are freaking impressive colonial - some with a gothic twinge- buildings and walkways. There is a nice pedestrian mall which is the main drag of the city and whilst checking it out at dusk the place was alive with people of all types enjoying the fading sun. The city feels really relaxed and the nice sunny humid weather we were welcomed with really complemented this. So I had a great time there, exploring the river, attending a halloween party of some friends that we made at Oktoberfest ( a few Americans so the Halloween-theme was uber strong) and drinking muchos cafés. Both the crew from Villa Allende and BA were there too, so it was great seeing everyone once again. Although everyone is different we all get along. I suppose there is something kind of binding being with people who speak your language and share a little of your background. If we were together is Aus it is doubtful that we would all get along, we wouldn´t have to.
I left the old Rosario last night on an overnight bus to Montevideo. Hell?, I hear you ask. Nunca. The words ´coche cama´ , meaning ´car bed´, resembling the most comfortable form of transport available, are a dream. I awoke only at the border to be given my freshly-stamped passport. As the sky turned pale blue there was a storm over the flat land to the south. Lightening lit up the sky and for some reason Toto´s ´Africa´was in my head.
And now, here I am, in the Montevideo Hostel. Hostelling International member, sí. It was raining before which has allowed ample time to upload some photos onto Facebook, enter Lattitude´s photography competition, write this blog, and disect Mr. Lonely Planet Montevideo chapter to see where I shall visit. There´s no rush. I´m here till Wednesday night, then I´m catching a bus direct back to Cordoba. Montevideo has so much to explore and I´m looking forward to the sun coming out so I can walk along La Rambla, the beachside walking path.
Now I may have a shower and grab some food to mung on. I´m meeting up with the dudes at the market at 5pm, leaving a free afternoon of goodness.
Take care ya´ll, thanks for the letters, they are very much appreciated and looked forward to!
Love love love. G
November eh? Is that absurd to anybody else? Things have been going swell here. As I wrote before, last weekend was spent in Cordoba. I went out with the girlies till 8am both nights, a very easy feat when your night begins at 2am. Then returned to Ascochinga in time to watch the game between Boca and River, the nation´s most important futbol teams. El Clasico is pretty similiar to the Melbournite´s Grand Final. The place stops and people are swamping to pubs with tvs everywhere. Watching from Ascochinga had a really relaxed feel to it. Somehow I have signed up to being a Boca fan, perhaps having visited the place on a crappy tour bus for a few hours whilst in BA...however the deed is done and now, supposedly, I am a life-long fan. River scored early and defintely were the better team, however Boca scored in the second half leading to a draw. How disappointing.
On Thursday we left Ascochinga (again) to venture to Rosario, a town 300ks from BA along the Rio Paraná. We came close to Rosario on our way to Iguazu, but didn´t pass through.
It´s a beautiful city. Trees line the streets and there are freaking impressive colonial - some with a gothic twinge- buildings and walkways. There is a nice pedestrian mall which is the main drag of the city and whilst checking it out at dusk the place was alive with people of all types enjoying the fading sun. The city feels really relaxed and the nice sunny humid weather we were welcomed with really complemented this. So I had a great time there, exploring the river, attending a halloween party of some friends that we made at Oktoberfest ( a few Americans so the Halloween-theme was uber strong) and drinking muchos cafés. Both the crew from Villa Allende and BA were there too, so it was great seeing everyone once again. Although everyone is different we all get along. I suppose there is something kind of binding being with people who speak your language and share a little of your background. If we were together is Aus it is doubtful that we would all get along, we wouldn´t have to.
I left the old Rosario last night on an overnight bus to Montevideo. Hell?, I hear you ask. Nunca. The words ´coche cama´ , meaning ´car bed´, resembling the most comfortable form of transport available, are a dream. I awoke only at the border to be given my freshly-stamped passport. As the sky turned pale blue there was a storm over the flat land to the south. Lightening lit up the sky and for some reason Toto´s ´Africa´was in my head.
And now, here I am, in the Montevideo Hostel. Hostelling International member, sí. It was raining before which has allowed ample time to upload some photos onto Facebook, enter Lattitude´s photography competition, write this blog, and disect Mr. Lonely Planet Montevideo chapter to see where I shall visit. There´s no rush. I´m here till Wednesday night, then I´m catching a bus direct back to Cordoba. Montevideo has so much to explore and I´m looking forward to the sun coming out so I can walk along La Rambla, the beachside walking path.
Now I may have a shower and grab some food to mung on. I´m meeting up with the dudes at the market at 5pm, leaving a free afternoon of goodness.
Take care ya´ll, thanks for the letters, they are very much appreciated and looked forward to!
Love love love. G
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