las cenizas

2012 may have come early for those of us in the Southern Hemisphere.

Last Saturday, el volcán Puyehue erupted in southern Chile, resulting in the evacuation of near 4,000 people in the area. However, the destruction didn’t stop there. The volcanic cenizas soon arrived to the Argentine Patagonia; particularly affecting the cities of Bariloche and Villa La Angostura, both located less than 100 kilometers from the volcano. Bariloche has over a meter of volcanic ash on the streets, and the techos of some houses have even collapsed because of the weight of the cenizas. But just a few days later, and some 1,700 km northeast from the eruption site, volcanic cenizas arrived in Buenos Aires. Zero visibility, a light layer of ash on the parked cars on the street, a musty overcast, and the pesky little cenizas even snuck their way onto my desk through my open window. Flights coming in and out of BA were cancelled for a good week, forcing Allegra and her novio to take a 40(!!!!!)-hour bus ride back from El Calafate. I think it’s safe to say that they’ll never set foot on a bus again for a very, VERY long time. 9,000 km west of the volcanic eruption, cenizas have arrived in Australia. AUSTRALIA. I mean seriously, what is happening to this world?!

Besides this little taste of mundial destruction, BA has been BA: busy, fun, and unpredictable. I have begun hacking away at my bucket list with Paloma since she leaves next Saturday…#depression. Our traditional post-cena wine dates last week included Möoi, sipping on our best friend, Santa Julia; and 878, where we stepped it up with some classier vino and some torrontés crème brûlée (which quite possibly may have been the greatest thing I have ever tasted...EVER).

One of my favorite places to go out at night is Club Cultural Matienzo. It is in Colegiales, very close to Belgrano, and every night they have a different event going on. Whether it is live music, tarot readings, or a local art exhibit, each night provides me with a fun time meeting new people and doing something new. On the first piso is the stage and some seating, where the events generally take place; second piso is the art exhibit with some more seating; and on the top piso they have this awesome outdoor terraza, covered with murals of crazy things only starving artists would think of drawing. Thursday night I went with Paloma, Rana, and Cassie, where we sat on the terrace, sipping on cheap, alternative cerveza while attempting to blend in with the starving artist community of Buenos Aires. I think I have found my people.

Friday afternoon Paloma and I went to Parque Tres de Febrero, BA’s Central Park. Lunch consisted of many empanadas from our favorite empanadaría, Tatú, and torrontés that we bought in Cafayate. There was a great deal of overcast due to the high concentration of cenizas in the cielo, but we had fun relaxing in the park and running away from a particular man shouting piropos at us. We did a little shopping afterwards, where I FINALLY bought a few things to add to my nonexistent winter wardrobe. Friday night we met up with Danny, Jay, Luisina, Lale, Mauri, and Noe at Noe’s apartment for a previa, and then heading to Mandarine Club for some boliche time, where La Champions Liga happened to have a little concierto! After our minor situation last weekend with the ladrones, Paloma and I were EXTREMELY cautious (and possibly borderline paranoid) when it came to guarding our bags, but didn’t let it ruin our night. I believe we got home around 6AM…totally normal. Muy buena onda esa noche.

Saturday was the first cloudless (and ceniza-less) day since the whole ceniza fiasco began, so Paloma and I went to Tigre. (It was my primera vez!) It’s about a forty-minute train ride from Belgrano, but once we got off I felt like I was miles away from the city. Tigre lies on the Paraná Delta and is a popular weekend destination for many porteños. Upon our arrival, Paloma took me directly to Waffle Mundo, where we each snacked on a delicious waffle, topped with dulce de leche, frutillas, crema y bananas. So. Delicious. We spent the remainder of the day wandering around the markets along the port, enjoying the semi-clean aire. As we headed back to the train station, a thick, grey cloud began to take over the beautiful pink/purple/orange…welcome back cenizas. Saturday night Luisina invited us to a birthday party, which pretty much consisted of drinking some Malbec and Fernet, lots of dancing, and of course choripan at the end of the night. Typical.

We struggled to drag ourselves out of bed on Sunday, for we had to get a relatively early start (…around 12) to get to la Feria de Mataderos. Mataderos is a barrio a little over an hour from Belgrano by colectivo (very close to Liniers, where the barrio boliviano is), and on Sundays they have this fantastic market that puts Recoleta and San Telmo to shame. Last Sunday also happened to be the 25th anniversary of the Feria de Mataderos, so there were even more vendors, performances, street food, and people than normal. Wonderfully overwhelming is how I would describe the market. There is literally EVERYTHING there, including a dulce de leche liquor. (Is this real life?) We did some shopping, took some pictures with a donkey/mule/pony-like creature (pictures to come), and obviously wound up eating some choripan. (Seriously, I don’t know what I’m going to do without chori in my life.) I finally gave in and bought my first leather bag for $80 AR! I love this place…and my new bag.

My two Argentine loves: Fernet y choripan

This week has been relatively uneventful as it marks the beginning of finals. Two classes down, two to go. Yesterday I grabbed lunch with Sara at Mark's where I had my first filling sandwich in a very long time. (Chicken, guacamole, tomatoes, and brie cheese…there are no words.) Afterwards I headed to Dada, a restobar in Plaza Serrano that turns into a fashion market in the early evening. Got a few winter essentials as well as some knock-out turquoise earrings. True life: I am a market junkie. Tonight I leave for Mendoza with Cassie and Paloma (hopefully the cenizas won't get in our way!), where we will be drinking LOTS of vino, horseback riding (our little Kentucky girl has never ridden a horse before! The irony will be epic), eating lots of asado, exploring the Andes, and maybe becoming a bit of a daredevil!

Chau,
audgentina.