More Fun Times

Hello again,

Sorry for not putting up a new post for a while; I've been slacking in my blogging duties. Over the past week, things have been very nice. After going to Jesus Maria last weekend, we had a pretty standard week of classes this past week. To get to the university campus by 9:00, I have to catch the bus by 8:00, which means I have to be up around 7:00 or so, which is a full hour and half earlier than I would have to get up for a 9:00 class at Union. So that part of my schedule is less than ideal, but I suppose it's a small sacrifice to make. For my Argentinian cinema class, we watched a movie called Nueve Reinas (Nine Queens) which is a tremendously entertaining crime caper from around 10 years ago. I'm sure you can get it with English subtitles, so I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun, twist-filled film. As a full group, we also saw another movie this weekend in theaters, called Tesis Sobre un Homicidio (Thesis on a Homicide). This was apparently a very highly anticipated movie here, and had some well known Argentinian actors, including the star of Nueve Reinas, which was an interesting little coincidence. It was about a university professor who teaches a class on crime and criminal justice who becomes in trying to solve a homicide. Although it was a well-made movie, I wasn't very fond of the movie's ending, but it was still an interesting experience, especially because it didn't have subtitles or anything, so we really had to listen carefully and pay attention to know what was going on. Adding to our authentic Argentinian experience was our outing on Friday, for which the whole group went to a restaurant that also has tango shows. So we enjoyed a nice dinner and then watched several talented performers sing and dance quite impressively. The whole night felt quite Argentinean, although I think that place does get a good amount of business from tourists, both domestic and international. Still, a very enjoyable evening.

Nice looking Jesuit mission.

This past weekend, on Saturday, we went to the town of Alta Gracia, which is about 45 minutes to an hour to the southwest of Córdoba. According to Wikipedia, it has 43,000 residents, so it's a nice, small-ish town with plenty of history. We first toured an old Jesuit residence from the 1600s that has been converted into a museum. The Jesuits had a big presence in the whole Córdoba province when it was first being settled, so there are various Jesuit museums and such throughout the area. This one was quite pretty, and had some nice interesting exhibits that we were able to explore on our own. We've visited several historical sites that belonged to the Jesuits, so much of the same sort of information pops up each time we visit such a place. Still, it's interesting and usually very nice to look at, at the very least.


After that, we grabbed lunch at a nice restaurant in town and then went to visit what is possibly the main attraction in Alta Gracia - the childhood home of Che Guevara. Che Guevara was born in the city of Rosario, but he lived in Alta Gracia from the ages of 4-16, and they have converted his house into a museum that attracts a fair number of visitors. That was moderately interesting, especially since I didn't know a whole lot about him, aside from the basics. One of the more interesting exhibits was an add-on that had photos of Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez visiting the house about 10 years ago or so, and signing the guestbook and everything. The exhibits tended to focus on the life of Che before he was very well known and how his childhood shaped his future, since this was the place he really grew up. Overall, Alta Gracia was a nice trip; I particularly enjoyed the more relaxed and condensed feel of the smaller town, as opposed to the busy sprawl of Córdoba. I guess I'm just not really a city guy at heart.

The welcome sign to the museum/house of Che

Me and Che.

We've got another standard week of classes now, but Thursday evening, we will leave for our first overnight/multi-night excursion - ¡Buenos Aires! Although I'm no stranger to long rides, I'm still not looking forward to the ~8 hour bus ride there. Still though, it should be quite a fun time, and I'm looking forward to it. Buenos Aires is the 4th biggest metro area in the Americas, so it'll be interesting to see what it's like and explore everything. Thanks for reading, and I'll keep everyone updated!

PS - A couple bonus photos of my house and the street I live on, just for some context. As you can see, my neighborhood's pretty suburban and residential, although it does get busier and a bit more urban-like a few blocks away.