La Ciudad, el Teatro, el Tango, y Café con Leche

It's the end of my first week of classes, and I already feel like I've been here for weeks! I'm really enjoying it here, and have had some pretty wonderful experiences. I feel like I'm really starting to get to know at least my area of the city a lot better, I'm getting a hang of the bus system (well, the few that I use) and the "subte" (subway), my intensive Spanish class is going well, and my host mother is wonderful!

Last Sunday was our first orientation day, when we had the city tour. I figured I'd post a couple of my favorite pictures from that, before talking about all of my other adventures.

El Caminito en la Boca

A fun area to see during the day, with all of the colorful buildings and street tango dancers, but we were told to never go to this neighborhood at night.

Puente de la Mujer en Puerto Madero

The "Woman's Bridge" in the newest and one of the most expensive areas of Buenos Aires.

On Monday we had our Spanish placement exam and a second orientation meeting. I ended up testing into a higher level than I thought I would, so I guess that's good! My professor is great, although she does like to give quite a bit of homework (she even told us that). I can understand pretty much everything she says, and my grammar and writing are pretty decent as well. I do feel as though I'm lacking a bit in regards to speaking. I can communicate pretty well the majority of the time, but my speech can sound somewhat broken, and I don't always conjugate verbs correctly when I'm thinking that quickly. But that's why I'm here! Hopefully by the end of five months, I will be able to speak much more fluently in Spanish. :)

Often after class, I will go to a cafe with friends to hang out and study. Siempre, café con leche.

This past Thursday evening, ISA organized an Argentine Tango class for our group of students at a place called La Viruta Tango. It was an absolute blast!! I'm not exactly a pro yet, but the teachers were great and we were able to learn and practice some of the basic steps. I wish I had pictures from the class, but I was too busy dancing! During the semester, there is a Tango class that is offered, so I might be able to take that :).

And Friday... oh what a wonderful day! I was able to go to a performance by Camerata Bariloche, a string ensemble, with my Spanish class at Teatro Colón, for free! For those of you who don't know, Teatro Colón is considered one of five best concert venues in the world, regarding the acoustics of the theatre. And my goodness, when the ensemble started playing, it was like the music was resonating from all around you. It was absolutely wonderful. And not to mention, how incredibly beautiful the theatre was! The pictures that I have don't do justice to show the extent of beauty in this venue, but it at least gives an idea.

Just gorgeous! Going to Teatro Colón is definitely one of my favorite things that I've done so far, and will likely remain quite high on my list. I hope to return again before I leave, but we'll have to see about ticket prices!

This weekend I am going on an excursion with ISA to el Tigre, a town just north of Buenos Aires, on the delta of Rio de la Plata. It's supposed to be a nice place to get away from the city and relax, with all kinds of markets and beautiful things to see. It should be a fun day, and I'll post a few pictures from it soon!

Avenida 9 de Julio

My school!

Just a regular day, walking down Avenida Cabildo

View outside the cafeteria of my school

The skyline is neverending

My cozy little room!