Buenos Aires

Here I am, in Buenos Aires. It is Sabado, I have been here tres dias. Thursday morning, after my 10 hour flight from Dallas arrived in Buenos Aires, I changed my clothes in the airplane bathroom, made it through customs, found a cab, chatted the whole way into the city, and met Lauren at a small cafe in Palermo Viejo for coffee. We chatted for a while, I let the city sink in un poquito, then we caught a cab to a bed and breakfast, Yira Yira, in Recoleta. This place was really sweet. Huge wrought iron door w/ a bronze buzzer, marble stairs and an antique iron elevator. Our room had glass french doors that opened into the living room and another set on to a balcony. The living room was in the center of 4 bedrooms and a courtyard, rows of arched brick lined the ceiling, it had definately been modernized, but just enough to save the integrity of the existing architecture. It was like something out of dwell. The past 2 mornings we found ourselves in the courtyard with new travelers from Spain, Argentina, Canada, and France. So this morning was especially exciting we were speaking French, Spanish, and English over bananas, coffee, toast, and apples w/ caramel, jam, butter, and mayonaise. Oh and fresh squeezed OJ every morning. Thursday we went to Parque Palermo, a botanical garden with, deep breath, the most amazing trees, trees with different kind of trees that grow in trees with roots hanging down like ropes, I guess the ones that Tarzan uses to get around the jungle.
Huge old trees, all different kinds, conifers, palms, oh and a little cactus area w/ huge cacti. This park is home to dozens, maybe hundreds of the sweetest ferel cats. Reminds me, machine was in my dream the other night.
Friday we walked and walked and walked, but not as much as Thursday. Yesterday we went to an Iglesia o Basilica y un cemeterio. Kind of touristy, but hey, why not. I have a great tour guide who knows all the "authenitic" places, I had to actually request to be a tourist this day. We had coffee and read, finally heading back to the b and b around 4:30pm. Around 5pm it started to pour. Lightning and thunder, mmm mmm mmm. We watched 'Into the Wild' w/ the other guests.
Later that night we went to a tablao, a place to get drinks, tapas, and watch live flamenco. Whoahohoho. Wow, this was amazing, the music, the singers, the dancers. Maybe its on youtube or something, I dont think I can describe it. It was very intense. We met up w/ some Americans we had met the previous night when we were out for dinner. They had been there two weeks and were looking for something cool, Lauren suggested the tablao. It was a good idea, no cover, small venue, agua con gas in the cool bottles where you have to press a lever to get the water to come out.
Today is Saturday. After we checked out of the B and B, we took a cab to Palermo Viejo, LPs neighborhood, got out at a corner cafe, sat outside and had a coffee. The serve cafe con leche in these tiny little cappucino cups with little sweets or toast. Its fun to get one, then walk a couple blocks, or a couple hours, and sit and have another.
Got to the apartment, dropped off the bags and got dressed for tango class. Lauren was actually going to take me to an intermediate class in only spanish. But I found out there was a beginner class starting a little after the intermediate class, so I watched a bit of hers, then went to the other class. It was me and 2 older men. The teachers were great, one was translating for me. I had a whole hour of class that was great, then when Lauren's class was done, she came in my class and I got to dance w/ her, only, when my instructor saw we were together, he quit giving me so much attention, got all wierd and confusing, and basically my lesson was over. He lost it and became a baby, we speculated he had had a crush on Lauren. But it was fun nonetheless.
After that. We saw 'No Country for Old Men' in the theater. I've seen it, and love it, it was Lauren's first time. We walked home and grabbed dinner on the way.
Buenas noches.