Arrival in Buenos Aires

$160 surprise reciprocity fee
ouch
another disadvantage to flying I guess

but immediately met with nice people
a lady on the bus offered to pay for my trip to the center with her
fare card, since i didn{t have any metal money.

then when i got off the bus, a gentleman helped me find the best place

to buy a SIM card and waited while I installed it to make sure it
worked.

Then the bus driver of the second bus made sure I got off at the right
corner and told me which way to walk

then I have the most amazing host from couchsurfing, a pretty cool use
of social networking. He{s a second year medical student who loves
soccer. I just try to be the ideal guest, cooking, cleaning and
staying out of the way of his pharmacology studies.

and today, first full day in Buenos Aires, absolutely wonderful.
slept in, first run in a week through giant parks with giant statues
what strikes me the most about the city is how well everyone dresses
it definitely makes people more attractive, as much as i hate to admitt it
people take pride in their appearance here and it shows
i{ll need to upgrade my wardrobe for sure

there is also some Paris flavor
lots of dog poop and sidewalks that smell like pee
but also wonderful bakeries and ice cream shoppes
flower ladies, bocci grampas, chess parks, and so many monuments

after enjoying my first warm shower in a month
the weather here is ideal. 60s in the day, low 50s at night. I{m sure
it{s too warm for me during the summer, though maybe not?
I stopped by the Argentine AAA to get a road map
so that I can follow along on my bus journey tomorrow (BA -- Mendoza)

joined a Spanish tour of an amazing little cemetary
Could understand most of the stories, but some key words went over my head.

stopped into a whole in the wall where the afterwork croud was
enjoying 40oz beers, and convinced them to change the channel to the
Spain Portugal game. Initially there was resistance because they were
watching a division II Argentine game, and so we were flipping back
and forth between both games. But then some more of their friends came
in who were more excited about Spain than Chicagolitos, and I got to
watch the whole second half, OT and the shootout. Espana! they
deserved to win for sure. hoping for Espana Alamania final.

tomorrow I{ll by my bus ticket and find some more varieties of dulce
de leche. tried the ice cream and the candy but would love to try the
pure stuff, on bread I guess.

Happy Birthday Brother Silas!

My host took me out to one of his soccer games, and I had a very poor
showing. Legs absolutely flat after my first run in a week this
morning. Also not used to the style of play, always pushing forward,
lots of dribbling. Got megged at least twice. My pride is wounded and
I felt bad representing the entire USA. Hopefully I{ll get a chance
for redemption in Mendoza. I{ve got to show them that we really can
play futbol.

then I made them fajitas with zuchini
I get super hungry by the 10pm dinner time
think I had 8 fajitas...