After a crazy day of traveling I finally made it to Buenos Aires! My flight left from Chicago to Miami, and since the Bulls are playing the Miami Heat, the pilot wouldn't let any Bulls fans board the plane til everyone else had boarded. Then my flight from Miami to Buenos Aires was delayed because there was some kind of cargo on board that they needed paper work for to leave the country. The plane was about to take off when the pilot received a call saying that we had to turn around and come back to the gate to get the paperwork before we could leave. Everyone wanted to know what the special cargo was, but the pilot wouldn't tell us what it was and neither would the flight attendants. The guy sitting next to me thought it was snakes on a plane, and after hearing that I couldn't fall asleep for the longest time. The plane took off an hour later, but the flight wasn't too bad. Each passenger had their own TV on the flight and there were plenty of entertainment options, ranging from movies and TV shows to games to play on the monitor. If you exhausted your options on the TV there were also tons of beautiful Argentinian people to look at, which could keep you entertained for hours.
When I got to the airport in Buenos Aires, I had to get a visa before entering the country. There was only one line in the airport for visas and immigration, and everyone that landed at the airport had to go through the line. It took three hours to get through the line, and people were not happy about it. Some people missed their connecting flights, and other just didn't want to wait in line for that long. They started protesting and marching through the airport, and the people in line around me were yelling at the airport workers and security guards. It was a big long mess, but I was standing in line next to this guy named Hector from Chile so we waited together and talked to pass the time. He lives in a desert and told me stories about how there are volcanoes and earthquakes near his house. After hearing about every natural disaster, I made my way to the front of the line, got my visa, and got the hell out of the airport.
When I met with my study abroad group, the program coordinator took us to our apartments. We all live in the Recoleta neighborhood, but there are three apartments between the ten of us. My roommates and I explored our neighborhood, and the first thing we found was the closest liquor store so we were set for the night.
On our second day, we took a tour of the city by bus. We drove to Plaza de Mayo, La Boca, and Puerto Madero. On the tour we saw some of the cities most notable buildings, statues, and plazas. We drove all over the city, and made several stops to get out and walk around. The city feels big, but the streets aren't as crowded as Chicago. A major difference here is that it seems like everyone has a dog. Dog walkers crowd the streets and sidewalks; some people walk up to ten dogs at a time. Dogs are everywhere in this city...I think I might have to conquer my fear of dogs while I'm here.
The city is beautiful and there's so much to do. I can't wait to see what the next ten weeks have to offer!
