Getting Into the Holiday Spirit!

First, I would like to apologize to our viewers that we have not been providing updates on our adventures. These last few weeks seem like a whirlwind and Karlyn and I continually find ourselves stating, “You mean it was that long ago?” Our time has flown by and now that all the guest have come and gone we find ourselves with only 12 days left in this amazing country. With a country so bountiful, it’s hard to even begin to choose how to spend our time or whom we will share it with. We have been here for over three and half months and it seems like just yesterday we arrived in this foreign city.

Almost four months here and I can say that we are pretty familiar with our surroundings. Each time we have visitors I always ask them for their impressions on Buenos Aires. They have each been completely different, so it’s hard to summarize. However, Karlyn’s mom commented over a hearty meal at La Cabrera that her major reaction was how it seems like we are locals here. We aren’t exactly locals yet, but we really have created a world for ourselves here. We have our favorite restaurants, bars, activities, stores, parks, hotels, and so much more. We know the people who work at our favorite restaurants and have a cozy little community as expats. It’s amazing to see how we have come to make a big city feel small just after this short period of time. Not to say that we have seen everythingwhatsoever, but in terms of what we choose for our daily habits it is a pretty small community.

With most trips, one gets anxious for their stateside return. This time I feel like it is anything but that. The heat has just kicked in and all the summer dresses are starting to pop up on the street. People are anxiously speaking of upcoming trips to Uruguay and Brazil. All the flowers are in full bloom. There are enough pregnant ladies to start a small army. It’s hard not to remark, “If only I had more time….” Karlyn and I are trying to avoid that comment because we really have made the most of our time here. Even though it wouldn’t be bad to have a few more months left to squeeze some more things in.

On that note, I really think Buenos Aires needs a better marketing ploy because Argentina is on par with any European country. I think it’s a must see country that is sadly often overlooked when it comes to traveling. However, I think that is changing a lot now. People are opting for South America more often now, especially with the current economic downturn. People always say you must do this or that in Europe….blah blah blah, but Buenos Aires could easily compare to any of these cities. Don’t get me wrong, I love Europe. I just think people are seriously missing out by not ever traveling to South America. Overall, that has been my main impression after traveling to Brazil, Uruguay, and all over Argentina and yet, that’s just a start to South America. I don’t feel like I even have the ability to say that I feel like I am familiar with South America now because there’s still so much that remains unknown. This has been especially true for Brazil and Argentina, places like Bariloche, Salta, Florianopolis, San Paolo that linger on our list of places to visit. I encourage any one who reads this to make the effort to make the journey to South America. It’s a shame to miss it- not just for the cities, but also for the rich culture throughout.

My only complaint is that it hasn’t started to feel like Christmas yet (and that’s coming from a girl from Arizona, which might be a little humorous). It’s not the weather though. It’s much more than that. We have started to see the sure signs of the Christmas season here- stores popping up all over town with innumerable Christmas decorations, wreaths on doors, occasional lights here and there, trees in various commercial centers, and the recurrent inquisition about how we will spend the holidays. Even with all that, the feeling hasn’t sunk in- perhaps our internal clocks are off here. We’ve been trying to encourage that holiday spirit with non-stop Christmas music and by daily the door on the chocolate advent calendar my mom sent me, but it just doesn’t suffice. Let’s just say we are both looking forward to being bombarded by the heavy commercialism that is Christmas in the United States to hopefully trigger that fuzzy holiday spirit in action.

It is so unusual because even for Thanksgiving it was fine- maybe because for this holiday all you need are good friends, turkey, and wine to keep the spirit alive (although we did dearly miss our absent family members and friends). Thanksgiving turned out to be a total success and as American as you can get here in Argentina. We ended up piling about eight people into a booth and feasting on an enormous, tasty Thanksgiving meal. I, of course, made everyone keep the tradition alive and propose a toast, which is all too common in my family (as many of my friends know a little to well as they are forced to make an impromptu speech in front of all present at my birthday parties). It really couldn’t have been a better Thanksgiving, even being thousands of miles away.

With or without the Christmas spirit, we now have our last few days strategically planned. Today over lunch we painstakingly selected our favorites for meals and whom we would share them with. Each day is now arranged with an activity and each meal is planned accordingly. Sounds a little OCD, but entirely necessary when you are in count down mode. I’ll let Karlyn update you on this itinerary since she has come to be the perfect the travel agent with all the trips we have done! And even with this immense schedule of ours, we’ll make sure to update on our final days (so sad).