back in a land where i can communicate!

no, i'm not back in the states yet. i'm back in peru, in lima, and i can finally communicate with people again, and in spanish, no less! i had such a complex in argentina about my spanish. it got better, but it's nothing like here. my first two days here i had probably three conversations with people in spanish during which they mentioned how well i spoke or how clear my pronunciation was, which NEVER happened in buenos aires. it's good to be back in peru!

mostly. i'm also back in a place where i am a true novelty and definitely a tourist (as opposed to just most likely), so strangers are staring again. they stared in ba, too, but not quite as much as here in lima. and here random people keep trying to befriend me, which i've learned is not always as innocent as it seems. (yes, there's a story there. let's just say it started when i met a cute boy and ended with me losing my camera, sunglasses and a little bit of cash. i am a little embarrassed that i got taken in by him but, like i said, he was cute and he was pretty damn smooth. i thought i kept my guard up pretty well and didn't even consciously realize that i was trusting him until it was too late. learned that lesson!)

so no more talking to strangers here, which hopefully won't be too hard, since i'm heading back to san francisco tomorrow evening. i'm actually pretty excited to go home, but we'll see how long that lasts. for those of you whom i'll see soon, i can't wait! for the rest of you (if you're still out there), i do plan to continue this blog, since there are lots of things i never shared and photos i never posted. so more later!

yeah, i´m a smart one

i took my first subte (ba subway) ride today. i´ve been here a month and have only just experienced the joy of a buenos aires subway ride. it was fantastic, except that smart heather here decided it would be a good idea to go from the center of town out towards the burbs on a hot weekday during rush hour. oh lord. not good times...

nerd alert

i was watching television last night. you know, as a cultural study. i´ve found some lovely degrassi-esque shows for teens (that´s not the nerdy part - well, not the nerdiest part) and loads of fútbol and lots of american programs both dubbed and subtitled. i´ve found almost all the popular programs like gossip girl, ugly betty, samantha who, x-files, law and order, friends, the simpsons, etc. i´ve even found the most random movies - the fifth element, xxx, empire records, sweet home alabama, house on a haunted hill, uncle buck. you name it and i´ve found it. except for battlestar galactica. mock if you like, but it´s a pretty popular show. and damn good, too. so last night i was flipping through the channels and, lo! whast did i FINALLY FIND after being here for four weeks? battlestar galactica - subtitled. and, of course, i watched the whole thing.

seriously, that´s spanish?

first, a quick apology to everyone for being way out of commission the last few weeks. the internet has been less than reliable at my new apartment (but everything else about it is damn cool!) and i´ve been pretty busy, anyway. but i´m back! at least for the time being. so let´s dive right in, shall we?

i´ve been in buenos aires for almost a month now and have had a totally different experience with the spanish than i did in peru, for a variety of reasons. reason #1 - the cadence or rhythm of the spanish here in argentina is totally different from peru and mexico. it´s very italian, which has taken some getting used to. reason #2 - the ¨y¨ sounds are not pronounced as such. they are pronounced with either a ¨shh¨ sound or a ¨sjh¨ sound (as in ´asia´), or a combination of the two. reason #3- people here talk ridiculously fast. needless to say, my general response here tends to be not a comprehensive verbal reply but rather a blank stare followed by ¨¿cómo?¨ after peru where i felt like i was improving every second, it has been extremely embarassing, frustrating and humbling to learn to communicate with people here more by error than anything else. (though i can laugh about the interactions afterward, thank god.)

so today i was out taking a walk, on my way to the japanese gardens, when a group of four older folks stopped me to ask me a question. i immediately braced myself for the usual. the woman says one word to me. one word. it sounded like ´ici´, which means ´here´in french. i can´t figure out what she´s saying to me, why she would be speaking in french, racking my brain for anything in spanish that sounds remotely like that. nothing comes, so i break out my standard response - blank stare. she can tell i have no idea what she´s talking about and i mutter an apology in spanish and something about how my spanish is terrible. i walk away a little bit deflated. it´s one fucking word and i´m still useless. and they seemed nice, but were kind of chuckling like, ´well, shows us for asking the tourist in the first place. ´ then a flash of brilliance hits! the word isn´t in spanish or french - it´s in english! EASY! there is a huge home improvement store (like a home depot) nearby called easy. so i turn around, all excited, and say to them in my crappy spanish - ´the superstore?´ ´yes!´ they are just as excited as i am. ´yes, i know it! ´and i happily tell them how to get there. totally made my day!

in other news, spring has sprung here. the sun is out every day and it´s so hot that i learned today not to wear both long pants and tennis shoes, even with a tank top. the parks are gorgeous and the jacaranda´s are just itching to burst into bloom. it´s so nice and i´m so happy to be here! i´m sending sunny vibes to all of you with less than nice weather...