A Little Bit Of Indiana in Buenos Aires

This past week, I got the honor of showing my parents and my dad's boss around my city of Buenos Aires. Knowing that they all came from the cornfields of Indiana to Argentina for a half business (and a little more than half pleasure) trip- I had to be on my best tour guide behavior. Not only was this quiz time for me, but it was also time for me to watch as they went through cultural shock just like I did- and let me tell you, it was pretty funny (even though they are all world travelers). The overwhelming traffic (jams), the first sip of Mate, and of course the non-stop Spanish twittering are usually the most apparent. Luckily, their tour guide (me), spoke English. I felt pretty up to the task considering that IES had set up a bunch of tours through the barrios and famous plazas of Argentina, but remembering it all was going to be a challenge. 

First, we went to the Recoleta Cemetery where we looked at the famous city-like graveyard. We wove thorough magnificent headstones, as far as the eye could see, got a lost a few times, and continued wandering. I really don't think they minded though, because every building was as breath-taking as the next. I told them all of the ghost stories as well as showed them graves of some of the most important people of Argentine history, including Eva Perón. 

The next day we went to Plaza de Mayo, which I have talked about before. Not only were there the beautiful buildings that surrounded the plaza (as usual), but there was actually an Italian fest right on Avenida de Mayo that was in full swing, complete with Italian sausages, gelato and music. Festivals in Buenos Aires never disappoint. It was a great weekend! 

On Monday, it was back to school for me. Luckily for me, I had a field trip to the Immigrants Museum which is located within walking distance from IES in Puerto Madero. Once we arrived at the museum we knew that it was going to be cool. So, if you don't know anything about the great immigration to Argentina, I'll give you a little sneak peak (all which I learned in my history course). Basically, back awhile ago, the Argentine government wanted to make Argentina more educated and cultured- like the Europeans. So what did they do? They invited all people from Europe, especially Italians, Spaniards and Germans to come to Argentina where they would be housed, fed and assisted in finding a job and a house. Cool huh? Well, we went to the museum where we saw all of their documents and historical artifacts where we in fact found the immigration card of THE Albert Einstein. Who knew? 

When parents come to visit, its the best- especially because you get to try out the best Argentine restaurants and get a break from those 18 peso sandwiches you have been eating for the past two months.

Thanks Mom and Dad!