Here I am: my last night in Buenos Aires. What a semester! 4 1/2 months of all sorts of adventures, stories, new friendships, and learning.
Today was a "perfect" last day, not in the sense that everything went perfectly, but in the sense that it was very Argentine. It started at midnight: Sam and I had gone to Cafe Tortoni (a famous cafe known for its tango ambiance) for dessert. We were very excited because the 64 stop was right outside, which is the bus that happens to go to both our houses. However, we waited and waited and one finally showed up! However, it passed by the stop without stopping, so because we were freezing we waited some more and then took a taxi. The driver took me the longest route home, which was annoying. However, I got to see a new area of the city!
This morning I woke up planning to go to the Planetarium: couldn't find the bus stop for awhile and then once I did find it, I did some more waiting (patience has been something I've been working on all semester :-) . Got to the Planetarium but Annie and Sam weren't there yet. Of course I couldn't call them because I didn't have minutes on my Argentine phone. Annie was stuck at Plaza Italia because her original bus didn't come, and Sam was en route. Eventually we made contact with each other and ate pizza at Kentucky Pizza Kitchen and had a great conversation about the differences between Argentina and the U.S.
Finally, we made it back to the Planetarium only to find out that it was full until 6pm (this is at 3pm that we were there), so we went for Plan B, the Japanese Gardens. We walked around a little and then sat on a bench just to spend time talking and enjoying the Garden.
To end the day, I went to my host "nieces'" church, where they were having an Independence Day (July 9 is one of their two independence days) service. There were dancers and singers and so much energy! I will definitely miss the way Argentine's worship so openly. One of the songs we heard was a tango song which I had heard in my Tango class but hadn't realized the Christian undertones. The service was followed by an empanada tasting party, where people from all over Argentina, and even Peru and Uruguay made empanadas typical of their "homelands." I talked to the pastor from the Methodist church I went to a few times and as usual custom has it in Argentina, he talked 2 inches away from my face (our noses were practically touching) The night ended with a great big wet kiss from my host niece Irina :-)
Even though everything does not work out as planned in this country, I usually have a good time wherever I am. I will miss this place!
Tomorrow after a brunch with Marta and Ariel, they will drive me to the airport. At 4pm I get on a plane to Santiago, Chile to Toronto, Canada, and finally to Newark, NJ! Please pray for a safe flight.
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