Always on my toes!

If there are two things that are suffering the brunt of my travels, but undoubtedly becoming stronger as a result, they are my brain power and the balls of my feet!

Yesterday was a difficult day for me. First day of Spanish class reminded me I'm not as much of a know-it-all as I thought I knew! Somedays are Spanish days. That's when the switch is on and the juices are flowing and expressing myself in intelligent conversation is muy facil (very easy)! And then there are English days, when the switch is faulty and the juices have the consistency of molasses and I just can't get myself out of this comprehension rut! That was yesterday.

So today I made a pact to speak completamente en espanol! And when surrounded by the right people, it is totally possible and so rewarding! Traveling on my own with a bunch of strangers, all of us expecting to make tons of friends, is interesting. I really don't wanna hang out with all Americans, and especially some of these Americans who went abroad apparently for the parties only! But I've found the people in my program that I get along with best and enjoy spending time with are the ones who want to speak Spanish all day and go exploring like me. It's minute, I know, but we came here for the same reasons so we must have something, some deeply precious and imperative thing, within us that's in common. Right?

The best part about today though was attending my first tango class!! As part of the orientation, ISA got us all into this suave little milonga in Palermo for lessons tonight. I definitely went out and bought mediaslargas con dibujos (tights with designs) for just this occassion! [Insert shout-out to Diane Machin here!] Of course our instructor was as breathtaking and rico suave as his superb dance moves, so needless to say all the girls were swooning while the guys tried pathetically to put on a facade of bravado and machismo in competition. Now I'm no tango expert, but Mom and I definitely attended at least one Argentine tango class in Oceanside before I left. So as far as my companeros were concerned, I was PRO! After trading many partners, bumping into other flustered couples, stepping on feet, and trying to catch the eye of our rico suave instructor, the smooth tranquil tango music faded away, only to be replaced by bombastic Salsa tunes!!

Now, my Spanish is only so so. I know this, and believe me I struggle with it everyday from the moment I wake up. But DANCE?? Ahora estas hablando mi lengua! (Now, you're speaking my language!) I'm a performer. This is where I thrive. This is why I came to BA! Passing partners up and down the dance floor, being spun and dipped, shaking my hips to the absolute maximum of their range of motion, I completely forgot that couldn't understand the lunfardo (tango slang)! I was communicating! Through rhythms and music and smiles and hands and eye contact. WE WERE COMMUNICATING!

What a victorious night! My feet couldn't be nor have they ever been more sore. It wasn't the dancing that got me though. It was the walking 20 blocks home on cobblestones in cheap heels that did it! I was so proud of figuring out the #15 collectivo (bus) to get there, I didn't think about how to get back! But I found the Subte (subway) easily and made it to the main avenue of Belgrano only to epically fail at finding the #107 collectivo! Perhaps I should explain why the bus system is so confusing. I don't want you all thinking I'm a retard. I mean I went to college people! First of all, when you get on the bus, you tell the driver at which street you want to get off. Then he pushes a button, you put your centavos in the machine and find yourself a seat. If you've made it this far that's half the battle because bus stops in BA are not like those in the States. There are no clearly marked signs. Sometimes its nothing more than a number stuck on a tree or street sign! And even if by some miracle you're waiting in the right place, you still have to flag down the bus driver and jump in as the doors are closing and he's already accelerating. Once on board, you better know exactly when your stop is coming because there's no string to pull to notify the driver, no map showing the route, no announcements overhead, and if you miss that brief few seconds that the bus slows to a single digit speed and flings its doors open for our exit, who knows where you'll end up?! Sometimes the drivers don't stop in the same places or at all there stops on the route. If no one's waiting to get on or needs to get off, why bother right? Factor in asking questions in Spanish without drawing attention to the fact that you're an American with no idea how to get around, and you've got yourself a conundrum!! NOW you understand why I've been walking so much?? Es muy complicado no?

So yes, this city keeps me at attention with constant challenge and exitement, sometimes frustrating, sometimes thrilling, and so far lways rewarding!