Overdue Life Update

My apologies, I haven't written a proper life update in a while and it occurred to me that some of you might care what I've been up to. A lot is going on in my life!


I finished Fitness Challenge #2! That was awhile ago but I realized I posted a 50% finished update and never said I finished! I did skip 2 days total, but for 60 days and  fitness challenges, I think 2 days is a pretty good record, don't you?

I still have not started my job in Buenos Aires. This is probably one of the most frustrating things I have ever been through. I got the job at the end of December and here I am, 3 months later, still not working. All the papers arrived in the country a few days ago and were passed over to the legal translators and lawyers. I was thrilled, thinking I was almost there. However, my Missouri background check may or may not be accepted, I might need the FBI one which will take a good 20+ days more to arrive here. We're not sure, I'll find out at my appointment on April 6th. If they say no, I will probably burst into tears on the spot or punch someone. Perhaps both. Let's hope none of that is necessary.

I am not currently in Buenos Aires, I'm actually in the middle of a two week trip through La Pampa region of Argentina. I have officially started working on the Argentina Go! Girl Guide. I am thrilled, to say the least. In 8 months the Argentina Go! Girl Guide will be out and available for purchase, written by yours truly. Please buy one then come visit me!

This trip includes 5 cities (6 if you include the few miserable hours I spent in Paysandu, Uruguay, which I do not- see: Dear Uruguay).

My first stop was Colón. I know what you are thinking, but it's not pronounced like the body part! I did, however, humour Emily by purchasing her a keychain that says "Colon tiene magia" (Colon has magic).
It's a tiny beach town. The river beaches are pretty nice and the town is so small you can leave your stuff on the beach while you swim. However, I was unimpressed with Colón until I went on an ecotour that involved a boat ride to an uninhabited island between Uruguay and Argentina. The tranquility and natural beauty was stunning.

The beach in Colon

No people, no buildings, just me on an uninhabited island

Next was Santa Fe. I was very happy to get to a pseudo-city but quickly saddened to find they practice the "no work between 1 and 5" rule. That means you can do NOTHING during that time. No eating. No entertainment. Nothing. However, it was a city on the river with a decent night life and some cool sites.

I didn't stay here, I just enjoy the sign. Very Don Quijote.

Fountains near the river at night

I spent 1 day in Paraná. It's a cool town but in many ways just mirrors Santa Fe, which is only 40 minutes away.

Church next to Plaza 25 de Mayo in Parana

One of the many ice creams I have consumed during my trip.

Currently, I am in Rosario and absolutely loving it. Not only has this been my favorite city on this trip, it is one of my favorite cities I have ever visited. The architecture is beautiful, the monuments are amazing, I saw Che's birth home and the people are awesome. I'm staying with a married couple I found on couchsurfing, they are excellent. I feel guilty because they treat me so well. Tomorrow is my last day, I wish I could stay longer! I'll definitely be back.

Monument in Parque Espana. I climbed ALL those stairs.

At Che's birth home, holding a sign that says "(El Corazon de) Jose Velez estaba aqui. -the heart of) Jose Velez was here. 

The pedestrian walkway at night

In short: I am getting paid to travel and write a book and eating ice cream at least once a day. My life is wonderful.

  

Knowing When to Say Goodbye

It was this time last year that I decided to move to Buenos Aires. Of course, it took me months to plan the move and actually leave, but I did it. I heard this song the other day and I felt like I could really relate to the lyrics:

I'm bored of this town, bored of this scene, bored of these people, yeah.
I'm an expert at pretending that everything is OK,
But I'm just a kid and it seems as if I've signed my life away.
I need to get out and see what the rest of the world is about.
This town ain't big enough for the one of me, I'm making a move.

My mom and cousin Jodi- 1/2 of the family I have in STL

The thing is, as much as I appreciate St. Louis as a city, the only reason I started seeing it as the place I wanted to end up was because of my ex and his family. I loved him and that family so much that I knew that no matter where I went in the country or the world, I'd want to come home to them. I'm not ashamed to say that and I definitely don't think there is anything wrong with that. St. Louis is a great place to live, especially if you have a family to stay for, but I don't anymore. Of course that's sad, but it is also liberating.  

Being away from St. Louis allows me to see my city for what it is. A place full of free activities, amazing parks, excellent food, open mic nights and the St. Louis Blues. I will always be proud to say I am from St. Louis, but I have no intention of living there ever again. 

Ryan (3) and I on my last day at St. Cecilia's

St. Louis simply wasn't enough for me anymore. I don't want it to sound like I hated St. Louis, the people or even my life there. In fact, it wasn't like that at all. I went to college in St. Louis and adored it. I will forever be a proud Webster graduate. I freed myself of terrible office life and landed a dream job as a bilingual preschool teacher and translator for an amazing school right out of college.  To this day I would still say it was the best job I have ever had. My time at St. Cecilia School is something I am so grateful for and I will never forget it. It was truly incredible to be able to wake up every day and always want to go to work. Those preschoolers needed me and I needed them back. I know I wouldn't have made it through all the miserable stuff I was dealing with this time last year without them. I felt so lucky to be a part of my students' lives. I also loved the community of the teachers. I adored being the youngest teacher and feeling both new and respected. Quitting that job was one of the most difficult things I have ever done. So, why did I do it?

As a teacher, you watch kids grow up. You tell them they can be anything. If they love Miley Cyrus (as so many of them did), you tell them that they can be as famous as her. If they love to draw, you tell them that they can be an artist. Children and Spanish are two of my greatest passions, so in some ways, I was living the dream. However, as you grow older, you realize that you may have more than one dream that needs to be realized. I had dreamt of moving abroad, speaking Spanish every day and taking on a whole new social and professional challenge. In the past, I had settled for trips abroad so I could stay based in St. Louis, but it was time to let go. 

I wanted to to earn a college degree.  I earned two.

I wanted to see another country. I saw 4. 

I wanted to get a job that used at least one of my degrees. I got to use them both. 

I wanted my job to feel like a honor. Nothing is a greater honor than to be a part of the life and development of such amazing children. 

Fishbowl Margaritas on Cherokee Street

No one could say I had failed. However, for me, success is continual. If I stayed, I'd never know if I could have done more. I had to show my kids that being drastic and dreaming big pays off. That is why I dedicated a half marathon run to them before I said my goodbyes. That is why I left a city, a job and memories that I loved so much. I had other dreams to conquer, and I still do. I miss St. Louis all the time. I miss my friends, college days, Cherokee street Mexican food and runs in Forest Park. I freaking miss the City Museum and it kills me to think my kids might forget who I am. But you have to know when to say goodbye, not matter how much it hurts. You have to know when you have accomplished all you set out to and when it is time for a new challenge. 

I need to get out and see what the rest of the world is about.
This town ain't big enough for the one of me, I'm making a move.

What bittersweet goodbyes have you been through?

Baking Myths (or What My Mama Taught Me)

My mother is a baker. I will never get sick of saying that. Some people may love saying their mother is an accomplished lawyer, doctor, accountant, etc. I, however, am so incredibly proud to have a baker as a mother.

Pretty much everyone's mother bakes, but can yours make a bouquet of flowers out of icing? Does she have maraschino cherries on hand at all times? Did you grow up not knowing that Chips Ahoy cookies even existed until you were forced to eat that at a friend's house? I doubt it. My mother went to baking school and she taught me everything I know about baking. Which is why I would like call bullshit on a couple of baking myths.

If you eat cookie dough or cake batter you will get salmonella poisoning from the raw eggs

That is ridiculous. That is something some woman who tripled her chin eating cookie dough made up so other women would live in fear of partaking in one of the most joyous parts of baking - licking the spoon clean. I'm not saying you should make a habit of eating raw eggs or choose cookie dough as a meal (though I have), but there is absolutely no reason you cannot eat raw cookie dough and cake batter. I have been anxiously awaiting the beaters from my mother's KitchenAid mixer since I was a small (abeilt incredibly pudgy) child. I eat at least a half dozen cookies in raw dough every time I make a batch. If you can handle the calories, you can handle the eggs.

You must be 100% exact with all baking measurements or your baked good will explode and/or taste like dirt

Okay, I'll be honest, baking is much more exact than cooking. You don't see a whole lot of "dash of this" or "add salt to taste" in baking recipes. However, people act as if without measuring cups, bakeries would shut down, birthday parties would be cancelled due to lack of cake and everyone would just have to eat Oreos for the rest of their sad, treat-less lives. Let me tell you a secret- I bake without measuring cups all the time. And you know what? My mom approves. Do you know how many times I have misplaced the cursed 3/4 cup measuring cup? Or the whole damn ring of cups, which is meant to be convenient but really just results in the loss of all the tools instead of just one? I have eyed many a measurement and I have never had anything explode or disappoint the hungry audience. Of course, my mom taught me how to do that and I definitely kept her on speed dial for these occasions, but the point is- it can be done. 

You cannot bake without the proper tools

While you are going to need some basics, you definitely do not need top of the line stuff. I was spoiled with my mom's fancy baking tools, the ever-present 10 pound bag of flour, the freezer full of butter and above all, her KitchenAid Mixer (insert photo of me hugging that beautiful piece of machinery here). However, I grew up, moved out and had to work with what I had. In college, I whipped up a batch of chocolate chip cookies with some dollar store measuring cups, 1 wooden spoon, a cereal bowl and a Halloween punch bowl. They were delicious.

I also conquered Cookie Day 2010 in my tiny Argentine kitchen. I made 300 cookies in a kitchen no bigger than a closet (seriously, see my Apartment Tour video). I mixed those babies by hand. Here's a list of the tools I used:

• 1 shallow but wide salad bowl
• 2 deep but narrow plastic bowls, both of which cracked during the mixing process
• 2 soup spoons
• 1 teaspoon
• 1 plastic pitcher with vague measurement markings
• 2 flimsy baking sheets

This was the result:

300+ Cookies. 1 Day. Limited supplies.

So, in conclusion, I call bullshit on the aforementioned baking myths. My mama taught me well. However, there is one thing she was never able to teach me and that is how to properly decorate with icing. 

Sorry Mom, some things aren't hereditary and cannot be taught.

Anyone else love to bake? Or perhaps just love to eat the tasty treats other people make?

No Ladro en Español

For those of you who do not know, I have a dog named Padfoot. Yes, like the Harry Potter character. He's a very special dog, the kind that involves a lot of explanation. He has always been special but moving to Buenos Aires has only made him more so.

After being shaved he tried to run from my camera.

Let's take a look at Padfoot's issues before we moved.
Padfoot was abused, left in a garbage bag in the woods along with his brother and mother. He was rescued and I received him as a gift when he was almost 9 months old. I later found out that if dogs do not socialize with other dogs and humans before 8 months, they will be slightly off, forever. Curses.
So, my little Padfoot has some oddities, such as his long list of fears:

• Cameras. Flash or no flash, he will run away and hide. He knows the sound of a digital camera turning on, he recognizes all camera like objects. That is why, in the 3 1/2 years I have had him, I have taken so few photos. The only ways around this fear are to use a cell phone, webcam, zoom in from far away, or ambush him and hope to snap one photo before he sprints away.
• Basketballs, Kickballs and Ping Pong balls. Please note that tennis balls, footballs and soccer balls are not on this list, he seems fine with those. My best guess is that the fear has something to do with the sound the balls make when they bounce. If he hears them, even in the distance, he will go absolutely apeshit and try to get close enough to destroy them.
• His reflection. He simply cannot grasp the fact that it is himself. He seems to become filled with confusion driven anger at the sight of his reflection. He is infinitely perplexed by his inability to smell or touch this other dog.
• The Drummer Boy. No, not a person with drums, but the song. He truly hates the song. It is amazing that I can turn it on, watch him bark like crazy, then turn it off and see him calm down immediately.
• Unfamiliar exit strategies. Seeing as he was abandoned, his whole abandonment complex is not all that surprising. However, it is not all exits that bother him. In all the places he has stayed and lived, he has understood that if I exit through the front door, I will return. However, glass doors tend to freak him out. If I exit through anything bur the front door, he assumes he is being left, forever and ever, with no hope. He also will not accept being tied up outside a store or even our own house, for that too equals infinite abandonment in his mind.
• Rain. This is a common fear among dogs. What I find interesting is his need to be in tiny spaces during rain storms. I also like to be in small spaces when I am upset, it was something I realized when I was a kid. Padfoot mimics this and follows me from room to room, hiding in closets and under beds.
• Falling Snow. Note the "falling". He's totally fine with it on the ground. In fact, he loves snow on the ground. However, if it begins to fall, he will bark at it and jump in the air, attempting to snatch it all from the air. 

Padfoot loves sledding with Abby and I.

Padfoot moves to Buenos Aires

All those fears remain now that we are in Buenos Aires. However, I believe his ride beneath the plane shook him up a bit but more than anything- it's the language barrier.

Yep, I said it, it's the language barrier. In the United States, Padfoot ignored other dogs. He did not want to play with them and if they attacked him, he would lay down in defeat. However, ever since our arrival to Buenos Aires he has become incredibly aggressive towards local dogs. He nearly chokes himself at the site of them, lunging toward dogs 3 times his size, growling and barking viciously.

Padfoot walking alongside Francis, his US buddy.

 I thought it was the plane ride, until I took Padfoot on a walk with Francis, my friend Sara's dog, who is also from the United States. Padfoot was 100% normal. He basically ignored Francis and was totally calm. 

On two other occasions, Padfoot has encountered dogs on the streets and taken a liking to them. When I began talking to the owners, I realized immediately that they, too, were from the United States. 

So now, I imagine Padfoot frantically barking at other dogs and the translation being something like "WHERE AM I?! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING? WHAT DOES IT MEAN?!". I imagine him, walking the streets of Buenos Aires, in a state of pure panic. My poor, lost puppy. I hope that after 7 months he has at least learned how to tell the other dogs "No ladro en Español!" (I don't bark in Spanish).

Do you think dogs have a language?

Rags to Riches

A little while ago a PR rep contacted me saying that she understood that I was a freelance travel writer living in Buenos Aires. She offered me a free night at the CasaSur Art Hotel (one of her clients) so that I could do a review, if I was interested.

Of course, I was. On Tuesday I stayed in a 5 star hotel right here in Buenos Aires. I already finished my glowing review for Travelated, it will be up on the 27th and I will post a link here. However, I thought I'd post some of my non-travel writer thoughts as well as photos. I made an album on facebook with all the photos I took, feel free to check it out.

Let's just start off with saying I have stayed in a hotel room maybe 3 times in my adult life. I am frugal. A stay at this hotel was exciting enough, but seeing as I am a travel writer, I was treated to the absolute best. The hotel has 4 levels of rooms, the best being the Executive Suite which takes up the entire 12th floor and is over 700 square feet. Guess which room I got?

I could tell when I showed up at the desk that the employees were surprised to see me. Of course, they had been told a travel writer would be staying that night and checking in 3 hours early so she would have plenty of time to explore the premises. They had not, however, been told that writer was 23 and covered in tattoos. And hey, let's be real, I don't even look 23. To their credit, they hardly skipped a beat and they made absolutely no cracks about my last name which is, unfortunately, the same as the hated president.

When the bellboy, Gastón, took me to my room I did not immediately realize my room was the entire floor. When I entered, there was a huge bedroom suite. It had an LCD TV mounted on the wall, a desk by the window, a mini bar, and a massive king sized bed with endless pillows. There was also a pretty sizable bathroom with a sweet rain shower and mildly confusing bathroom fixtures. The decor was so modern that it took me a minute to figure out how to turn the faucet on.

Once I had seen the bedroom, he showed me the really awesome part of the suite, which was the lounge/business area. This side had another TV, bathroom and mini bar. Instead of a desk and bed there was a couch and a little table. Next to the couch was my own personal espresso machine with 4 different types of coffee. There were not one, but two balconies. The smaller of the two faced the main street, Callao Ave. It was a really cool view from 12 stories up, I spent some time sitting out there soaking up some sun. Of course, the back balcony was what truly amazed me. It was enormous, it had to be, it held a personal jacuzzi and 2 spa lounge chairs.

Once Gastón left I was able to drop my professional travel writer face and just show my pure, amazed joy. I walked through the suite with a huge smile on my face, already knowing I would have a very hard time leaving it the next morning. On the table in the business suite I found a plate of fresh fruit waiting for me. Second breakfast with some espresso you say? Don't mind if I do! It took me a while to figure out the machine, turns out I don't make coffee all that often either. Right as my first cup was brewing, I heard some weird musical tune. After a couple seconds I realized it was the phone. The manager, Mariano, was calling to welcome me. While I believed the welcome letters and even the free welcome drink at the bar were something all the guests received, I got the feeling only the 12^th floor guests got special phone calls.

After I enjoyed my fruit and espresso I changed to go to the Relax Room, which is a spa area in the basement of the hotel. I had my own private Jacuzzi but I wanted to check it out so I could review it for the readers. I also saw the pseudo gym, just a treadmill, bike and some free weights. Oh well, I got the feeling no one staying at that hotel had any intention of working out.

The spa room had the same spa lounge chairs I had upstairs, but also had a giant shelf of towels, robes and water bottles. Being a budgeter at heart, I made sure to grab several bottles of water for later. I saw two buttons by the Jacuzzi, I pushed one and the jets started. I chilled out in the water for about an hour, reading on my Kindle. (I had it wrapped in a little hand purse which I had looped around my wrist, my pseudo-protection from dropping it and destroying the latest love of my life). When I had had enough, I went to push the other button, which I assumed turned the jets off. Wrong. There was a giant shower head thing above me that I had not noticed. The button I pushed sent a powerful waterfall out of it. Luckily, I was not hit, but it certainly caught me off guard.

Pretty Liz on the balcony!

After the Relax Room I went and tested out my shower. Please keep in mind that at home I have a sad little shower with mediocre pressure and water that only gets to slightly above lukewarm. The shower was glorious and so was my discovery of the slippers and robe which I put on, for no reason other than I felt like I should.

I read and watched some TV, testing out all the soft surfaces and taking in the delicious smells of all the fresh flowers spread about the room. Eventually I ventured out of the hotel to check out the area. I already had a vague idea of where I was, near the famous Recoleta Cemetery. I noticed lots of other hotels, all with huge entrances and scary guards. I was happy to get back to CasaSur, which looked more like an apartment building and the only men around were the familiar bell boys. I picked up some medialunas while I was out and also stopped by the convenience store to pick up things that were in my mini bar. I knew I’d want them later, so I saved myself the money by buying the at a normal store.

The cheese spread management sent me.

I informed the desk that my friend Liz would be visiting. When I opened the door to her a little bit later, she exclaimed, "Oh my God you have the whole floor!". I had so much fun showing her around. We had some espressos and ate a few of the medialunas I bought while we got some sun on my balcony. After that we hung out on the comfy couch in the AC, another luxury I do not have in my apartment. It was lovely to have a visitor and pretend like I lived there.

After Liz left I watched some TV and started convincing myself to go back to my apartment for a bit to take care of my dog, Padfoot. While I was watching TV the turn down service came. A guy swooped in, put all kinds of new fluffly towels in the bathrooms, replaced the dirty coffee cups with new ones and handed me a fancy white chocolate. Less than 10 minutes later, there was another knock at the door. A woman stood outside with a huge platter of cheese, dried tomatoes and nuts with the biggest glass of red wine I had ever seen. She told me it was compliments of the management. This was a clear attempt to win me over and let me tell you, it was working. I sat down and gorged myself on fancy cheeses and some delicious Malbec. Cheese is outrageously expensive here, so I savoured every bite. 

After tending to Padfoot I returned to the hotel to relax in my giant bed and read a bit before heading down to dinner. I was given a free dinner as part of this deal, so I was planning on making the most of it. The cheese plate had served as my appetizer, which is good since all the appetizers on the menu had meat. I immediately ordered another glass of red wine and a bottle of water. I hate paying for water here, but during my meal I ordered 4 different drinks (wine, 2 bottles of water and an iced coffee) just because I could. For my main course I ordered Lobster Risotto. It was creamy, delicious and not at all lacking in lobster. For dessert I ordered -- you guessed it -- ice cream. The Crema Americana and Dulce de Leche were rich and creamy. I especially enjoyed discovering that the cone bowl was able to balance on the plate due to the layer of dulce de leche beneath it. Genius.  

I was absolutely stuffed after dinner so I didn't even want the snacks I had bought earlier. Instead I decided to enjoy the cool night outside in my jacuzzi. I spent the next hour and a half reading and relaxing, playing around with the water settings and looking at the night sky. It was amazing. 

My favourite photo of the night, playing in the jacuzzi.

When it got too dark to read, I went inside to do some yoga and get ready for bed. Of course, I never wanted to sleep because my room was too awesome. I ended up jumping on the bed, watching TV and reading some more. I fell asleep around 3am, though my alarm was set for 9am. You'll hear more about my 9am hotel room workout when you read my Sunday Fitness Challenge Update. Let's just say that when my alarm went off it was pouring rain and my bed had quite a firm grasp on me, but I still stuck to the rules of the challenge and did the work out. After working out and showering I hit up the free breakfast, where I had fresh fruit, medialunas, toast, coffee, orange juice and cocoa puffs. 

I had to check out at noon, which was so incredibly sad. However, the front desk held my bags and let me go down to the Relax Room to read in the jacuzzi for about another hour. Awesome. When I was leaving, Gastón made another appearance. He was in a rush to ask me some last minute questions, about where I went to school and how I ended up being a travel writer here. He said he had looked at my check in card and saw I was only 23 and didn't understand how that was possible. I am pretty sure he is in no way allowed to be looking up my info like that, but I was flattered that he was interested enough to look. 

It was definitely an excellent 24 hours. My full review will be up on the 27th, but I think it's clear the hotel will be a good review from me! I'll sign off with a few photos of me jumping on the bed. Sorry about the quality, keep in mind I had to set a timer to take these!

Casa Rosada Adventures

A couple days ago I went to the Casa Rosada (Pink House-- the government house here. The presidents don't live there anymore but they used to). My friend Magu's mom, Mirta, works there and let us check out some non-tour sights, mainy related to the Perons. These photos are from her blackberry but I thought you guys would want to see them anyway.

In Evita's private elevator

Sitting at Evita's desk with her photo.

Full view of the fancy desk. Note the barrier I was allowed to duck under.

Hanging out on Peron's balcony. No big deal.

And on the 5th Day, We Rest

Actually, we'll generally be resting on the 7th day (just like the God) but as this is the first week of Emily and I's Fitness Challenge and Friday is the agreed upon rest day, we shall rest today. I actually started doing the Shred last Saturday so it has been 6 days for me on that, 4 for the yoga.

The challenge is going great. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday I even managed to go to Boot Camp and do my challenge stuff. My sheet is full of stickers. I'll save the details for my Sunday update.

I've had a pretty excellent couple of days. Here's some highlights/small victories:

• I was interviewed for Cheap Talk Radio. (I start at 31m)
• I finally got my Christmas present package from Abby. She included some squeak toys for Padfoot (one of which he immediately destroyed) and this amazing book called How to Be an Explorer of the World. It has all kinds of adventures and exploration challenges. It's so much fun and totally me, a combo of art, scrap booking, collecting and general child like joy.  
• I always seem to get double Hendren love. When I came home from picking up Abby's package I had one waiting from Mama H. She sent me Monster Cookies and (of course) treats for Padfoot too.

•  I went to the Cosa Rosada, which is like the White House (Cosa Rosada means Pink House). The president doesn't live there anymore but they used to. Magu's mom, Mirta, works there and she was helping me out with some paperwork. She took me and Magu to some restricted areas, we got to stand on Peron's balcony, ride in Evita Peron's personal elevator and sit at Evita's desk. Mirta also made me a beautiful necklace with bird charms all over it, just because she is nice. Magu and her mom might be the two cutest and sweetest people alive. 
• I managed to get ALL my paperwork in order and Fed Exed to my mom and the FBI (my mom has to get an Apostille, I need a background check from the FBI).
• I'm about to have wine and chat time with Liz who is finally back in BA. 

•  After wine, Liz and I are meeting up with Sara to try the new pizza place by my apartment and going to the movies. I even made it to the movie theater earlier to buy our tickets in advance.

•  I got my Kindle! I am so amazed by it, I feel like a grandmother who is constantly talking about the magic of technology. I bought The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. When I finished my first week of the challenge I can buy myself another book. Yes! 

•  Fed Ex just happens to be next to this amazing ice cream place that makes legit sundaes, a rare find here. The guy recognized me from my visit to Fed Ex/the ice cream shop last week (mildly embarrassing?) so he challenged another employee to make a better sundae for me. This resulted in the guy going totally over the top with the portions and extra fruits and cone cookie things. Kindle and ice cream = Heaven.

The Great Pumpkin Pie and Other Adventures

I apologize for my hiatus. I have been incredibly busy as of late but I have missed my blog! To make up for my time being MIA I am writing a nice long update with crazy amounts of photos.

I wrote two more articles for Buenos Aires Stay on What to Do with Children in BA and Buenos Aires Culture and Children and I am now their principal expat blogger and their Childcare in BA special.

I had a little haircut party in my apartment. My friend Nina is a hairstylist and came over to dye Jenny's hair and cut mine and Phil's. We all look excellent!

I celebrated Thanksgiving in Argentina. As it is 85+ degrees every day we skipped the turkey and opted for a potluck that in no way involved any traditional food other than the apple pie. There were only 2 US citizens present so no one seemed to mind.

However, I couldn't give up on Thanksgiving completely so I took on the daunting task of making a pumpkin pie from scratch. Argentina lacks canned pumpkin puree, premade pie crusts and spices like nutmeg and ginger are not as easy to find as in the States. The pumpkins here are also not the familiar orange ones from home. This baking adventure was so time consuming I worked on this pie on 3 separate days. I photographed most of the process so I can walk you through it.

This is the pumpkin I had to deal with. No jack o lantern making possibilities here, just lots of jokes related to the incredibly phallic appearance.

I don't have a proper knife so I cut through the pumpkin with a steak knife (not easy or safe) and boiled the chunks.

Once the cubes were boiled I had to cut off the skin and squeeze the water out by hand and then leave in a colander to drain before I could mash it up to make the puree.

This is where I should have a photo of me rolling out the dough and baking the crust but I actually made the dough at someone else's house. My lovely boss Janet let me use her kitchen and supplies for that part.

I then mixed the pumpkin puree with eggs and sugar and poured it into my partially baked crust.

After making the pie filling I made a streusel topping with flour, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Nutmeg in Spanish is "nuez moscada" in case you ever need to know, as I did not.

45 minutes of baking and this was the end result. I was nervous to try it, but is is delicious. Success!

It's hot and not at all Christmasy here, but I have really amped up the Christmas music listening and I also bought a tiny little tree for 18 pesos and flashing lights for 10. I was too broke to spring for decorations. I might make some for the tree and my apartment if I have the time and energy this week. Jenny is leaving soon (another "Sick of Goodbyes" post is forthcoming) so she wrote me a Christmas card that I promised not to read until Christmas day. It lives under my tree for now.

I received 2 long awaited packages from my mother. She bought me lots of summer clothes because so many of mine were lost in the move and also sent the few pieces that survived it. The two boxes also had Reeses, 2 jars of peanut butter, drawings and a card from my 7 year old cousin Jodi and a ridiculously long letter from my Mama. I won't lie to you, I cried at the sight of my mother's handwriting. We both are devastated that for the first time in my 23 years of life I will not be home for All Day Cookie Weekend. I love my mommy and I miss her dearly. The letter was the best part of the package. 

This week was my last week as an Au Pair for the Ressia family. I'm still very much in contact with the family and will continue to see them and even do some paid work for them but we ended official au pair gig. I was pretty sad to say goodbye but I know I'll see them soon. 

This weekend was very eventful. On Friday I went to Jorge's fancy office end of the year party. A bus took us about an hour outside the city to a club. We arrived and there was a man in a suit playing the violin. Jorge and I almost collasped in giggles when the man raised his bow and began to play "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". Absolutely ridiculous. After some classical music with the violin they switched to random 90s dance music including "What is Love?" and other favourites. After that a Merengue band from the Dominican Republic performed. So strange but I had a good time. 

On Saturday I woke up early just to take on the pie making challenge and then babysat for most of the day. After that I went to the BuenaOnda Moonlight Yoga event, which I always enjoy. It's an hour and a half long yoga class at night followed by a homemade vegetarian meal. Afterwards Jenny and I went out for drinks. We ordered a couple shots called "Ball of Fire" and I swear the bartender looked like a chemist. It took no less than 5 minutes to make the concoction and the finishing touch involved putting the shots on an iphone for the light and he poured the vodka in and tiny rainbow coloured balls of some other alcohol danced their way to the top. I wish I had a photo of those crazy shots!

Today Jenny and I woke up early, considering that we went to bed around 4:30 and met up with Jorge. It's Jenny's last weekend so we went to Parque de la Costa, a theme park about an hour train ride away from Buenos Aires. The weather was great and the lines weren't too long so we had a great time, as you can see in this ridiculous photo. (Jenny and I are on the far left)

After all that awesomeness, I am exhausted but I was determined to finish this blog before passing out tonight. I will not wait this long between updates next time!

Also, because I'm obsessed with Christmas and especially my Cookie Day tradition with my mom, I'm curious- what Christmas traditions do you have that you would be sad to live without?

Travelated Articles

I realized I never wrote about a few things in my blog because I wrote about them on Travelated instead. So, I'll post the links for anyone who cares about the following experiences:

Barra de Navidad, Mexico
Colonia, Uruguay
International Potluck (at my apartment in Buenos Aires)

Here's some photos for those of you who are too lazy to read the articles:

View from a 4th story rooftop bar in Barra de Navidad.

A place we stopped to rest while bike riding in Colonia.

Blurry photo of some potluck guests.