Yo todovia te amo Argentina...

Last Wednesday, I got into a little skirmish with the colectivo. Amy and I have been riding the colectivo more and more so we saved our pesos (because the bus only takes coins) and we took it to La Boca. La Boca is a barrio in BA which is known for it's art and brightly colored houses, but it is in a very poor neighborhood and apparently there is a lot of non-violent crime at night. It was an interesting place to visit, but there were SO many tourists that it was hard to enjoy. Every second someone approached you to try and sell you something, so we did not stay too long. We took the colectivo home and when we got to our stop we went to get off. However, I didn't realize the doors opened in, and I literally got stuck behind them. Amy valiantly tried to assist me and during that process she somehow got her own arm caught so I tugged at my foot until I was able to shimmy it out. After a huge spectacle, accompanied by tears and huge laughs, we got off the bus. However, I left my pride behind. I hope to get it back the next time I ride the bus. And don't worry Amy's bruise is almost completely healed and no medical attention was necessary.

La Boca

We left the debacle behind and were looking forward to a nice weekend. Our top plan was to root on Argentina! In true porteña style, Amy and I set our alarm and left for the bar at 10AM. We arrived and Amy quickly got the Argentina flag painted on her face while I waited in line for the beers! The bar was packed with people rooting for Argentina, and lo and behold, there were mucho Alemán in the bar también!! So when Alemania won 4-0, you can imagine the tension in the room. This was not our best moment in BA, we were hoping to root for Argentina until the end. We had to shift gears, so we decided to cheer for South American teams in general and hoped they would have a full showing in the finals. We left the bar after the Argentina match and strolled around San Telmo we stopped for coffee and then headed back to the bar to watch more futbol! (I still can't believe we watched two games in one day). We were pulling for Paraguay, but Espana took the win, 1-0, towards the end of the second half. Our only hope remaining was Uruguay despite the controversy surrounding that game. (Was it cheating or a strategic move? Leave your comments below!) However, while writing this blog, Uruguay lost to Hollandia 2-3. Looks like Sud America is out of the World Cup completely...

Amy and I cheering on ARGENTINA!

Although there was a metaphoric black cloud hanging over Argentina the weather this weekend was really nice- high 60s. We went out for a celebratory meal of burgers & fries for the 4th of July with Simon and Gareth (thanks for representing Estados Unidos with us). We then walked around Palermo and visited some markets in Plaza Armenia and Plaza Serrano, there were a lot of really nice things, especially in Plaza Serrano. We all ended up buying tees from a young designer. After the markets, we visited a graffiti exhibit and then headed home. It was a nice relaxing 4th.

Trying on our new tees from Plaza Serrano!

Also, in this post we want to wish are very good friends, Gareth and Simon buen viaje! We've loved spending time with you and look forward to seeing you again in the future! BA won't be the same without you.

Chau SuperAmigos!