COUNTRY: Argentina
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Youth & Care Work
Written By: Anna Craven
Welcome to Buenos Aires!
Having all arrived here on Saturday and Sunday after long flights with many stop overs, we're all slowly settling in to life in this incredible city, living in the roadhouse and getting to know the local ways. As Sophie, Jess, Emily and Natalie arrived earlier than myself, they managed to wander around our beautiful neighborhood Recoleta, visiting the famous cemetery and the 'Floralis Generica' - the large metal sculpture located in Plaza de las Naciones Unidas (both of these are just a short walk from home).
I arrived the next day and we immediately began our Spanish lessons down at the R2A Spanish school, which are beneficial because the porteños (residents of BA) have a very distinct accent, making speaking what Spanish we know very difficult.
Life in the roadhouse is a complete change from life back in Aus. Sharing a room with 3 other people, let alone a house with 25 others, is daunting, fun and challenging. Furthermore, cooking for ourselves every night in the busy kitchen has proven to be the best way to exercise culinary imagination. There are always people to talk to, of different ages, backgrounds and reasons for living in BA, so advice for living in such a unique city is never hard to come by- whether it be where to find the best fresh veggies, delicious empanadas, fun local bars and the best flavor of ice cream in the parlor across the street.
This long weekend, we plan to hire bikes on Friday so that we can see more of the city than you would by walking. On Saturday, we'd love to visit the tourist-hub of La Boca, then on Sunday explore the San Telmo markets. Next week, we begin our volunteering with LIFE organization, which we're all looking forward to, and will be continuing with our Spanish lessons.
There's so much information, culture, language and sights to digest that we're all exhausted! However, we can't wait to breathe, live and digest all the Buenos Aires has to offer.
- Anna (with Emily, Natalie, Sophie and Jess)
I lived in an apartment rental in buenos aires for 6 months in 2007 and I loved the city. You have to walk the hole city because I think that where turist usually goes (Recoleta, La Boca, Retiro) are not the most beautiful areas, I recommend to you visiting San Isidro, Tigre, San Fernando, Parque Leloir, Nuñez, Devoto, Beccar, Adrogué, etc. they are the prettiest areas on my opinion
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