Acá viene el sol

This week I had some great new experiences mixed in with lots of studying! I had 3 midterms on Monday, which was rough but I was happy to have them over with. On Tuesday my friends & I went to a tango club called La Catedral, which ended up being one of the most amazing nights for porteño culture that I've had here so far. The underground atmosphere was incredible--the club is in a converted barn, and it's the perfect place to sip wine, listen to live music (but only after 2am) and watch authentic milonga that's so different from the commercialized version of tango now common in Buenos Aires. Trying to dance it ourselves was a lot of fun too!

There was no class on Wednesday for día del estudiante (Argentina has lots of extra holidays!), so a friend & I decided to explore Abasto for the first time. It has an impressive shopping center, a row of colorful, intricately painted buildings, and the Museo Casa Carlos Gardel, dedicated to the musician & tango legend of the early 1900s. It was exciting to see a new side of Buenos Aires, especially on a gorgeous day when I got to break out the flip flops!

Friday was a bittersweet day. In the afternoon, some friends & I went to an art exhibit in Puerto Madero, which ended up being more like a really cool looking playground of nets suspended in the air--I have never appreciated fine art so much!

Later on, a big group of us got together for a hearty Argentine dinner to celebrate our friend Coleton, who left for Peru on Saturday morning. It was a great way to spend the night, filled with tears (mostly on Coleton's part), food, and friendship. Adiós amigo, we'll miss you lots!

On Saturday, we played two soccer games and won them both! This new season is looking up : ) After a morning of playing hard and soaking up lots of sun, it finally felt like springtime.