You know you're in Argentina when...

I had another great weekend with many funny memories that could only happen in Argentina. My friends and I have been talking about things that make you realize that you're in a foreign country. For example, when you get cat-called on the street by really creepy men or grabbed by strange Argentine men in a bar or club. Or, for example when I attempted to purchase a plastic knife and spoon for my lunch I had brought to the school cafeteria with me on Wednesday. My friends and I had all brought food with us while we were studying for our Globalization exam later in the day. I bought a block of cheese, avocado, bread, and yogurt at a grocery store before thinking it would be easy to get plastic silverware at the school. I was so wrong! I asked the people working at the cafeteria for the plastic spoon and knife and because I did not purchase food there they said no. I asked if I could pay for them and they still said no. I then then decided to go to the cafe in the other part of the building. They too said I could not purchase plastic silverware for food purchased outside of the building. So, I bought a coffee and took a spoon to stir it with and figured I would just use the other side of the spoon to cut my cheese with and save my avocado for another day. An Italian guy from one of my classes then came into the cafe and I told him what had happened. He figured they probably just didnt understand me and then asked if he could have a knife. They told him they cant give a knife to anyone who doesnt have food that requires a knife. He had just bought medialunas (crossaints) and asked if he could have a knife to cut them. They said yes, so he cut his medialuna with a knife and then gave it to me. What I would have done for better customer service in that situation! There really is no place like the U.S. when it comes to customer service. Unlike the U.S. here. when you order food that is bad or do not like it, they will not take it back and give you something else without charging you. Or in another situation... When I was in Mendoza and went rafting and canopy gliding, we were supposed to receive breakfast which was included in the price we paid. We met for both trips at a hostel/hippy camp that had tables a bar and small cafe for people to go to between excursions. We arrived late due to Dia de los Esudiantes where ever student in Mendoza just happened to be camping and blocking the highway and for some reason we couldn't go around them for about 30-40 minutes. So, we did not receive breakfast but they asked before we left to go rafting if we wanted empanadas when we got back to have before we went canopy gliding. We said yes figuring they were providing us with lunch since they didnt serve us the breakfast we were supposed to have. When we got back, they had empanadas and pizza waiting for us and also provided us with drinks. Since, we were already running behind we had to leave for canopying shortly after, so they rushed us to eat. As we were about to leave, the man from the cafe/bar chased after us to tell us we owed 20 pesos each for the lunch we didnt even get to finish plus 7 pesos for the drinks. We didnt have time to argue so we just paid. It was pretty aggravating, but I just accept the fact that seriously nothing is free here! Anyways...you can the idea that things are never perfect when your studying abroad.
This weekend was a great time! Thursday I had to buy a new cell phone to replace the one I had lost that of course didnt work until Friday because the lady put the wrong sim card in it, and I thought at just wasnt activating. When I went back to the store where I bought it the man working apologized for the mistake and had my sim card waiting for me. I really wasnt shocked by the situation. Its another part of being in Argentina, assuming that your cell phone will be guaranteed to not work at least once every couple weeks. Thursday night I went to another intercambio with Argentines at the same mate bar I went to about a month ago. I was trying to explain something in Spanish to one of the Argentines I met last time and he made fun of the way I was speaking...which I was not too happy about, but I just let it ago. At one point we were talking about words in English that sound the same but are spelled differently, which are homophones. When we figured out the word, one of the Argentines who is in charge of our program here said to me that he thought we were talking abour phones for homosexuals. I was laughing pretty hard. I guess it made up for all the times I was laughed out for mispronunciations in Spanish. After the intercambio, I went to dinner with my Argentine friend Brenda and Liz. Brenda has helped me so much with ajusting to Buenos Aires. If I ever have a question about anything or want to know where to find things in the city she always finds our for me. She has been a really great friend and we always have fun when we go out together. Friday was a beautiful day. I ran to a park in Palermo and ran around a lake there called Lago de Palermo. I met a brother and sister from Ecuardor who gave me advice about getting to Peru which was very helpful. I also went to El Museo de Artes Plasticos which was pretty neat and was only a peso to enter. Friday night I went to Brenda's to watch the Soup which apparently is popular in the U.S. but I haven't seen because I hardly ever watch t.v. here. Saturday I went to Colonia which is an old historic city in Uruguay which was included in my program. Its only a three hour on the Buquebus which is basically just a ferry that goes from Buenos Aires to Uruguay. My friends here and I always laugh because everytime we go on a trip with our program they tell us its a day that we can relax and everything will be "tranquilo" (relaxing), which in reality means less work for the people who take us there. There was a city tour that was offered but my friends and I just decided to go off on our own and explore. We had lunch at a small cafe and then headed to the beach that runs along the river. We spent pretty much the rest of the day there relaxing and actually had a great time. Of course, we couldnt make if through the whole day without something funny/strange happening. While we were laying on the beach a skinny old man in a speedo came up to us and starting talking to us about "Christiano Apostolico" and attempted to convert us to his religion and told us his name was Char. He kept asking us if we learn about God in the U.S. and kept telling us we need to go to his church. Eventually we had to just ignore him so we didn't have to talk to him anymore. When we were leaving, my friend Tess decided she would change back into her bathing suit behind a tree on the beach so she didnt have to feel bad for changing in the nearby restaurant without buying anything. As she was changing, a man on the top of the cliff above where she was "hiding" starts cat calling her, and of course she started freaking out. I attempted to guard her and when I looked to my left I saw Char peering behind a rock trying to watch Tess. We were obviously creeped out and the rest of us decided to just change in the bathroom of the restaurant. Another girl Jessica and I were the last two out of the bathroom and the rest of the group was waiting outside with Char who had decided to sit with them while they were waiting. When we walked out my friends were very anxious to leave. They told me as walking away that the creepy old man kept telling them his name "Char" and then proceeded to dig through his back pack and just happened to pull out a condom and set it on the ground in front of them. We were all really creeped out and got away as quickly as possible. He has become the joke of our trip now and gave us something to laugh about on the three hour boat ride back to BA. Sorry this entry is so long...turns out I had a ton to write this week. I hope everyone enjoys it...my life here can be pretty comical. I finally found a way to upload pictures more effectively through picasso. They should be up this week. Chau!