Market/City and Tango Day

Today was one of the most fun days I’ve had on this trip so far! Starting out the morning right, I went to a café with some friends and enjoyed a nice cup of coffee and some pastries. Afterwards I gathered up the guys and we went out to start our market trip! We first went to the first market called San Telmo. It was pretty close by and was absolutely beautiful inside. The stores were awesome to look through and I bought some really neat stuff! Practicing my Spanish has been fun for me especially making conversation to purchase an item. When we got through the entire market, we took an uber to the Feria de Mataderos. This was a larger market about 30 minutes from the first. Our uber driver didn’t speak any English which was another great opportunity to attempt to speak in Spanish. We successfully had a conversation and were able to communicate with him throughout the ride. The Feria de Mataderos was amazing. There was live group dancing in the center and a whole array of shops surrounding it. I also made some fun purchases and conversations out there! Going back to the hotel, we took another uber who also didn’t speak any English. This time was a little more difficult to keep up with and could have just been the exhaustion of the day.

Next, we took tango lessons! I’ve danced ballroom for 3 years so I had some experience behind me, however in a super small room with 40 people was a unique experience! The lesson was a lot of fun, despite the lack of space, and we made it work! Then we went out for the dinner and tango show. The dinner was yummy! It was a bit light but covered me for the show. The show was magnificent, I did my best to follow along with the story, hearing key words and using context clues, but it was a bit difficult. But just being able to watch the show and enjoy it was a surreal experience. I’m super excited to see what the rest of this trip holds!!

Jake Fagone

Comments

Day 14 (?) - To Shrine,

Today we arrived back in the United States after a long almost two weeks of being out of the country. The flight today has allowed me to do a good amount of reflecting on the tour. I won’t lie and say that these past weeks haven’t been without issues but they have brought some of my most incredible memories. Adjusting to a new culture and trying to get around a city that speaks a different language than me was a tough barrier to get through for the first few days. I was incredibly blessed to have a group of people who allowed me to learn alongside them (with David’s help translating) was an experience I will never forget. Instead of writing a post talking about how grateful I am for everybody on this trip, I’d like to write about my favorite memories (in order of how I remember them) 1. Getting to Argentina completely exhausted and pushing through to walk through the streets and be blown away by the architecture of the buildings for the first time (this will be a common them...

Day 2 - Drake Hammack - Buenos Aries!!

Today we landed in Buenos Aires and got our first taste of the new sights, sounds and cultures we get to experience on this tour. After finishing a long 9 hour plane ride -and getting through customs- we took taxis to our hotel which lies right in the middle of downtown. Just walking through the streets of downtown was a great experience, many beautiful buildings surround the area. Some standouts for me were the museum and the cathedral. Packed in between the wonderful architecture were so many little shops and food vendors it was hard to choose which ones to stop at and which to walk by. Eventually the group I was with stopped at a bookstore. The store was decorated from top to bottom in antique signs and furniture, and the whole store had that old book smell. We even found a shelf full of classical music recordings, full of a bunch of composers and pieces a bunch of music nerds on a choir tour instantly recognized. After leaving the bookstore we found a small restaurant to grab ...

Day 10 - Liliya F. - Big Hot Dogs

Hello! I started this day off right with the best drink ever invented: espresso and condensed milk. Vivian and I tried this drink during one of our first days in Buenos Aires and I think it may have changed the course of my life forever… it aligned my coffee chakras. It was a beautiful morning in San Juan; the weather was perfect and the sun was warm and it made for a cheerful walk to and from the hotel. We had a short performance at a historic home for some of the locals and some members of the other choirs that are participating in the San Juan Canta festival. The home belonged to one of the former presidents of Argentina and his impact is still clearly felt and beloved by the people of San Juan. The home itself had been turned into a well groomed museum and was open for members of the public to get a glimpse of Argentinian life during the 1800s. We sang four of our pieces: Domine, Leron Leron, Soneto De La Noche, and De Colores. Each of the pieces included brief introductions about ...

NAU Shrine of the Ages Blog: Adventures in Argentina

Search This Blog