Saturday, Monday

Because those were the 2 most important days in my past week...Not really but I did things that require writing about.

Saturday
ISA planned a volunteer day for us. A group of 9 students (and 2 other people) woke up ridiculously early on a Saturday morning to help the local food bank, Fundación de Banco de Alimentos. Half of us went to one country club, the other half to another maybe 20 minutes away. Once at the country club, we found a giant blue plastic bin filled with donations that people had already put there. We sorted these donations by type of food and put them on a table. Then we split up and walked around the country club, asking the families of the kids playing in the rugby and field hockey tournaments if they had any donations. People kept telling us that they had put their food in a blue tub earlier. After a lot of walking we realized that the bin everyone was talking about was the one that greeted us earlier; it had just been moved.

When we got back to the table, we bagged up the food. One bag got something from each of the most popular categories: noodles, milk (which does not have to be refrigerated here), and sugar. Once every piece of food was in a bag, it was lunch time. Someone was running a grill outside, selling food for cheaper prices than whatever sandwiches the country club restaurant offered. I tried something new and got a bbq pork sandwich. It was delicious. I don't eat a lot of pork, but I would eat that sandwich every day if I could.

Then we went home and slept. All in all, it was a good day.


Monday Night
Monday night was the first night of Passover. My host mom is Jewish so she had her (adult) children over for a nice, big, family dinner. I asked her if we could invite a friend of mine, who is also Jewish, over because he said he wanted to do something to celebrate the holiday. She said yes.

The food was delicious, of course. While I was expecting to eat different food, I was not expecting to see so many similarities between her family's Passover seder and mine. We ate salads, carrot and apple salad, artichoke hearts, pastrami (instead of brisket), gefilte fish (which was baked in a casserole so I mistook it for kugel when I first saw it), drunken pears (definitely taking this recipe home with me), honey cake. And, of course, matzoh. Lots of it.

The biggest difference between our families (besides the language people speak) is that, at least for one seder, we try to read the Haggadah. We make it to the story of Passover, skipping things here and there, and then we pig out. After dinner we might sing a few songs.

On Monday, no one even had a Haggadah. Before we ate, we sang a few prayers and all tried to sing the Four Questions (out of tune and out of order, even though some of us had the words in front of us).

Really, everything we did -- including being surrounded by a family that loves each other -- reminded me of home. Not in a bad way, because I am still not homesick yet, just in a "this is a good and familiar feeling."

Also, it was my roommate's first Passover. She rocked it. She can eat matzoh and dulce de leche like it's her job.

About the Strike Last Thursday

Wednesday
Why are these cars waiting to turn the wrong way down a one way street? As I walked home today, I noticed a line of cars parked on the far right lane; they all had their right blinkers on (this is really impressive because most cars here just swerve into the nearest available space and most people don't use their blinkers at all). And then I walked farther down the block and saw that there was another block full of similarly parked cars. The line led to the gas station.

It took a few seconds for me to realize that the line for the gas station was longer than usual because drivers knew they would have to drive, or walk, in order to get anywhere tomorrow. The streets are going to be packed with cars with very little space to wait to fill up your tank. 

For those of you who are not currently living in Buenos Aires, there is going to be a bus/public transportation strike tomorrow. Most people here prefer to walk or take some form of public transit, usually buses, to get where they need to go. Most of the time that is perfect. Tomorrow, not at all.

Thursday
I walked to school like I usually do and was surprised to see that the main street was not packed with cars. This was strange because I can see at least 3 buses every minute on the main street. Without buses, everything was much quieter. I never realized how much noise they make. There is regular noise of the motor as well as the frequent screeching of someone slamming on old brakes.

Not a lot of people showed up to school; either they had no way of getting there, or they were taking advantage of the opportunity to skip class without consequences.

My roommate and I took at taxi to a friend's house on Thursday night and stayed there until after well midnight in order to take a bus home (it's much cheaper and just as safe as a taxi).

Reasons
I heard a lot of reasons for why the general strike happened and I don't know which is the most right out of all of them.

1. people protesting having to pay more, higher taxes
2. people upset at the crazy inflation in Argentina's economy
3. a powerplay by some union leaders to show potential presidential candidates just how strong they are

Plaza Italia and Japanese Garden

About 2 hours after I wrote that post last Friday, I made plans to eat lunch with my friend, Johnny, and then explore the city. Lunch was empanadas bought from a bakery (called Argentina) and eaten in a park. When we met for lunch we had two different plans. I wanted to go to Plaza Italia and do some homework; he wanted to explore the Japanese Gardens. Luckily they are right next to each other.

So we get on the bus and disembarked at the Plaza Italia stop. When we crossed the street, we were underwhelmed. I had heard so much about this place. It is one of 2 main reference points for people in the Palermo neighborhood. It has its own subte stop! Plaza Italia is a small, fenced in grassy space with a few paths, benches, and a statue. The exciting things are outside. I didn't have my camera with me, otherwise I would insert a picture to show you just how small this plaza is (2-3 blocks).

We expressed our disappointment and walked through the little park on our way to the Japonese Gardens. As we passed by the Zoological Park and Botanical Gardens, we peeked through the fences and found a flock of flamingos. That part of Palermo is 3/4 park (I don't know if they have a name, because I thought they were Plaza Italia and they are not) and 1/4 street. The unnamed parks were grassy areas with tall trees.

The Japanese Gardens are amazing. They are small enough for you to walk around every square inch of path, but large enough for you to appreciate just how beautiful they are. We explored the beauty for a little while and then sat down at a bench to be productive. The Japanese Gardens are easily the prettiest place I have ever read. Whenever I got bored, I looked up and admired the view. From our bench, we could see most of the gardens.

I really wish I had thought of bringing my camera. I might go back again this week with some friends to take pictures. I think it might be worth spending the 32 pesos again.