An Entry from my Journal: Trip to Argentina

Mwaha. My grandfather said that he wants me to take our dvd player, but I'm finding that my carry-on is a bit smaller than I reckoned with.
And darn. I forgot to eat breakfast. I get too excited and then don't eat... Or I subsist on salad... THAT'S been done before.
:-)

On the plane, I won't be sitting by Gabe; he's a few seats back.

He said something offensive a few minutes ago in a joking manner, and when I responded that I was happy that I didn't have to spend the next 12 hours sitting next to him on a plane, he said, "You're gonna WISH you were sitting next to me when some 300 pound guy sits next to you who reeks of body odor and won't stop hitting on you!" LOL

On looking for a pair of shorts for myself with Gabe trailing behind me in the store, we saw a mini skirt on the rack. He stopped, shocked, and said, "Oh look! A dust rag! People are paying money for those things?"
LOL

11:27pm. 7/18/07.
Passing through the Caribbean w/Cuba on the left and Belize on the right.

NOTE TO SELF: 12:11pm.
Push the bathroom door IN. Otherwise, you spend an eternity in the hallway in your pajamas looking like a fruitcake.

1:14am. 7/19/07.
Weee.... We're turning. I love planes!

1:15am. 7/19/07.
Frank Sinatra isn't nasal voiced, but he sounds kinda funky coming from the earphones of a guy two seats over...

1:24am. 7/19/07.
This is my third episode of House, and I love it.

2:03am. 7/19/07.
I hate planes.

8:12am. 7/19/07.
They're awesome during the day, though! You can see for miles.

8:42am. 7/19/07.
My watch says it's 6:42, but BA is two hours ahead. Going to be a gorgeous day. After all, they're serving fruit and COFFEE.

8:45am. 7/19/07.
I looked in the mirror and scared myself silly. Looked like a raccoon.

8:49am. 7/19/07.
Country music! You get your own tv and earphones and remote, and the tv has different shows you can watch, as well as audio, where you can listen to different stations. Nice. I'm listening to the Country music station right now and I believe it's Garth Brooks...
Nearing BA.
There is absolutely no where to put one's head on a 12 hour plane flight in very uncomfortable straight-backed, over-stuffed, overly-crowded seats. Gr. And gosh, my body says it would just now be adjusting to life, as I'd be drinking coffee and reading my Bible about now. lol

8:56pm. 7/19/07.
I hate Gretchen Wilson.

12:26pm. 7/19/07.
Our bus leaves for La Cumbre (from here in BA) at 10pm. We got ten hours to waste here! Gr.
The people are all interesting, and I think they're mostly nice. They've been quite helpful. Though.. they can't seem to GET the fact that I don't SPEAK SPANISH. Can you read the words that are comin' outa my mouth?! No Hablo Espanole!
This guy just came up and started asking me in Spanish some question about a building he was looking for or something... All I could do is smile and shake my head. And tell him I didn't speak Spanish. But we've already established how well THAT works!
Gabe is trying to figure out how long it will take to get to Le Cumbre, but we can't get a hold of our friend Esteban.

INTERNET SPOTTED.

2:52pm. 7/19/07.
Argentinians don't worry about matching, apparel-wise, and it's really ticking me off.
I think I'm doing pretty well, considering the fact that I got 2 hours of sleep last night!
Interesting. There was a huge group of people gathered on one side of the park as we passed, and upon closer inspection, we discovered that they were dancing and singing "Allelujah" over and over again. Quite a few of them had guitars and they were all in a huge circle, singing a Spanish worship song. So cool!

"Good morning, beautiful..." just came on the cd player. I love that song! If I close my eyes, it's like a peaceful refuge from the largest city in Argentina... Sigh.

6:57pm. 7/19/07.
Gabe and I got cold sitting outside in the park, so we went and got a cup of hot coffee. Yay! Cafe con leche. (Coffee with milk) However, I played my fiddle at the park for lots of people before we left and they took pics with their phones and stuff. My style is so different from theirs that I'm not sure if they liked it or just thought it was cool because it WAS different.
Now I can say I've played in BA!
Since Mr. Gabe and I have had so much time on our hands, we've fashion-watched.
Younger guys don't "do" hats. Though I did see one with a hat like Aaron's and did a double-take. Hats down here are for geesers. And guys like the classy-casual style: jean jackets, button-up shirts, designer jeans, and nice shoes. Except that they don't usually fix their hair or button their shirts or roll their jeans up so they don't get holes in them, so I call it the sloppy-casual look. Heh.
Girls like stripes; jeans that make you wonder how they got them on (possibly spray-paint?); rolled cuffs; high heels with jeans; faded clothing. They don't usually fix their hair either, just like the guys. Also, girls like leg wraps, kind of like polo wraps for horses! LOL And trench coats. Heeh.

I'm reading Mrs. Pollifax and the Lion Killer. I like this one.

What I like about this interesting culture is that they actually start milling around and running errands about at about 7 in the evening and are up 'til really late. Best part? They sleep late too. Everyone does!
(And I'm cheering them on.)

10:49pm. 7/19/07.
Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition! I mean, praise the Lord, we finally have a good bus and comfy seats!! YAY!!
Goodnight!

"Old ladies are the same the world over: sweet and incompetent!" -Gabe

8:54am. 7/20/07.
I don't get motion sickness easily, but GOSH this bus is making me miserable. If I ignore how I feel though, the country is very gorgeous! Cold, but golden brown with fallen leaves, and strangely enough, lots of evergreens.
The few houses we're passing are very European.

8:58am. 7/20/07.
We're in the mountains! Rather, on the edge of the mountains where snow perpetually exists. It's getting colder.

10:22am. 7/20/07.
Destination finally reached! Boy, is it cold here or WHAT! And I forgot my jacket jacket. I mean, I brought a jacket, but not a good one.
Uh, something else I forgot: in greeting, everyone kisses everyone's cheek. Which means I've got to kiss guy's cheeks and stuff, and that's just a bit of a qualm with me.

Besides that, the guys are so gentlemanly, I almost don't know what to do! They carry your bags, open doors, say ma'am, (in Spanish), wow!
LOL

FUNNY QUOTE: "Argentinian germs are very dangerous. I think we should make it a 3 second rule."
Gabe, when I dropped a cashew on the hotel floor.