Vacation in Córdoba

Hey everyone! So I know you're all waiting with baited breath to hear what happened next here in Mendoza. :) So, without further adieu... The winds had not subsided at all on Friday night when it was time to leave, but we headed to the bus terminal anyway. Our bus left slightly late and we were on our way to Córdoba. 7 of us were in the bottom level of the bus in what is called the "cama" or bed section. Its kinda like first class on a bus. We were fed a pretty decent dinner and then they started the movie of the evening, which was Slumdog Millionaire. I hadn't seen it yet, so this was very exciting for me. Also lucky, was that it was in English with Spanish subtitles, so I didn't really have to think to watch it. I crashed out pretty quick after the movie and slept like you would on an airplane. Next thing I know, the attendant is waking me up for breakfast (which here is crackers and jelly, coffe, and an Alfajor-a cookie/dulce de leche sandwich covered in chocolate). Yum! After a short while longer, we arrived at the terminal, unloaded, and set off in search of a taxi. Since there were 8 of us with bags, we split into 3 cars and eventually arrived at the hostel to check in. Only 1 room was ready, so we put all our stuff in one spot and relaxed until we could split up, take showers, and take a nap. Then it was off exploring the town in search of lunch and shopping. We had a great lunch at a little café and then went to the mall. Ice cream was of course obligatory on the way back to the hostel. That evening we met up with the other students who had arrived on Friday and all 12 of us went to dinner. Then it was back to the hostel to change for a night on the town. Like I had mentioned, Córdoba is famous for its nightlife, and I was SUPER excited to go dancing...however, after people had changed and we'd waited a bit to figure out plans, I seemed to be the only one who wanted to go. Everyone else was too tired etc. I'd nearly resigned myself to staying in, when all of a sudden, my friend Deven (who had been asleep on the couch) woke up and asks, "So are we leaving anytime soon?". Much to my surprise, he and I left 5 minutes later to meet up with some others at a bar not too far away. As part of the culture, timing in Argentina is VERY different than in the US. In Denver, we'll be at a club around 11pm and it closes at 2am. In Córdoba, we left the hostel at 1am, went to a bar, didn't make it to the club until 3am, and stayed until it closed at 6am. It was a LONG night, but definitely a blast all the same.

There were only 4 of us that went to this club for a regaton (Argentinean rap) festival that night; 3 girls and Deven. Another part of the culture here, is that it is completely ok to stare at people...for what we would consider an inordinate amount of time...and this was certainly the case at the club. Everyone kept asking us where we were from, and Cati just kept saying Germany (both because Sarah and I could pull off the look and because US girls have a reputation for being "easy"). However, the problem was that lots of people spoke German (and we don't). So they would start talking to us and we would promptly run away... The conversation essentially went like this: "Somos de Alemania (we're from germany)". "S*** he speaks German too! We need to pick a different country...like China!" It was highly entertaining and all 4 of us had a great time together.

The next day we relaxed in the hostel for the morning and then all met up for an all you can eat buffet not to far down the street. The food was delicious and there was a wide variety of items to choose from. Of course we all took a siesta/nap after lunch and then headed to a local craft fair to explore. Then it was back to the hostel for free empanadas (gormet hot pockets essentially) and conversation with the other guests. It was a great time to hang out and relax. We talked to a lot of people from all over the world and then a group of us sat talking and getting to know each other better until 3am.

Monday we decided to go exploring and when we decided that hiking was too far away, we caught a $1, 1 hour bus ride to a town called Carlos Paz. It was BEAUTIFUL and nestled in a valley with a lake. Some of us decided quickly that the group was simply too big to stick together, and so 4 of us split off in search of lunch, which we found at a cute pizza and sandwich shop in the center of town. For 2 medium pizzas and 4 bottles of water it cost us a grand total of 50 pesos (about $4 per person). We spent the afternoon wandering up and down the pedestrian street looking into shops and found another craft fair as well. The rest of the group trekked up the nearest hill to a monument on top and got some beautiful pictures. We all met up in the afternoon and headed back to córdoba. Back at the hostel we had 2 hours until our bus left for Mendoza, so we relaxed and watched Batman Begins in the sitting room. Then it was off to the bus terminal and home to Mendoza. The food again was great on the bus and I slept pretty well until I woke up in the morning with an Alfajor on my crossed arms. We arrived in Mendoza to a dreary, rainy day and everyone happily split off to their separate houses to get more rest.

All in all, the vacation was great and much needed. I got to know a bunch of people from our program and saw some really pretty places. The rest of the week is devoted to scholastic adventures, testing classes, and selecting which ones I'm officially going to take. With a little patience, that should all be resolved by the beginning of next week.

I hope you are all doing well!
All my love.