My Home is My Laptop

I feel I am at home - my laptop has arrived from NY. It might sound pathetic to some, but given my lifestyle over the last 10 years (changing countries, apartments, constant traveling) I can hardly point to one location that I can call home. Especially now when I honestly do not know where I will live in 18 months. Homeless by choice. So having my bookmarks, itunes podcast subscriptions, a decent monitor and a functioning keyboard is quite handy. My laptop is my sanctuary.

Español - me encanta mucho?

Spanish... Oh, I have so many comments about Spanish and my studies!

1. First of all, my Spanish did not improve significantly while traveling in S. America. I understand more now, but I do not speak any better. Why? Because I did not really speak much to locals, it just did not happen for me. I spent most of the time with fellow travellers whose first language was predominately English. Why travellers do not speak with locals in Ecuador, Peru or Bolivia, it is a completely different topic. So for three months I was using my basic Spanish to answer where I was from, buy a bus ticket, ask for directions, negotiate prices and order food. Nada más.

2. I first heard Spanish in Spain. And I loved how they pronounced certain soft sounds. When I got to Mexico I was told "to loose" my soft "c" in gracias. After three months in South America, soft "c" and other similar sounds sound funny to me! It is incredible given that Bar[th]elona was the reason I started my studies.

3. No news to people who know me personally, but I realized I am impatient with my Spanish! I want to speak not translate. I am OK with the accent, but I don´t want to speak English in my Spanish bad interpretation! I am being ridiculous! I calculated I only studied Spanish for 92 hours in my life! How many hours did I spend studying English? Years and years, not to mention 4.5 years living in the US. So I took a placement test yesterday and I am in level Intermediate 2 (the 4th level out of 8). If for some students in my class subjunctive tense is repetition, it is news to me. Also I have to study by myself passive voice as it was part of Intermediate 1. I also studied simple past by myself because I missed it in Oaxaca, Mexico. I am trying to convince myself here that I have no reason to be impatient and upset with myself.

4. What else did I realize yesterday in the class besides that I am confusing all the endings and accents (á, é...) (at first I thought accents are for decorative purposes only, how wrong I was!). I realized I am lazy!! Yeah, I would have been perfectly happy to slack off for a month in BA. Why did I decide to study? Now I have to do homework and systemize all the tenses and conjugations I learned in the past. I only paid for a week of schooling, so maybe I will take vacation during my vacation?

5. Spanish is hard. If I knew there were 17 commonly used tenses (in different modes) I would have never picked up that book in the first place! And then different endings, irregular verbs that become regular in some tenses and regular verbs that change to being irregular. Ah, ah and on top of that all Spanish-speaking countries have particularities. If only pronunciation would be different. For example, in Argentina they say "vos", not tú for you, and verbs are conjugated slightly differently. Then the use of words is different. Name of fruits changes differently, verbs are used differently... My basic "I take pictures" has at least three version I know of. Yes, I am complaining, it is my hobby just as taking pictures.

Leaving for classes...

Settling down in BA

My somewhat painful apartment search is over. Today I moved in into a 10-room house shared by international students in San Telmo area of BA. We have got one Argentinean, one Polish, one Dutch, one German, two Swiss, one Mexican, one American and me (one room available for those who´s been counting). The Mexican guy is a chef who cooked dinner on Saturday and suggested we create a menu, collect money and he would cook. Is it heaven or what? My tiny room costs $300/month, which is cheaper than some popular hostels, but more expensive than my 6-bed shared dorm in Palermo. I get my privacy, wifi, TV with cable, cool roommates and a rather cool home. I am excited!

So why was the apartment hunt painful? I am yet again "lucky" with timing. As I was told it is the beginning of a school year, so there are bunch of long-term international students arriving. The majority of landlords are requesting a minimum 3-month stay. So with the lack of supply and high demand I did not really have a lot to choose from within my budget.

Also I initially wanted to live in Palermo or Recoleta (more expensive areas than San Telmo) as advised by some friends here. The funny thing is that I did not really like Palermo. It is the coolest area in BA with all the fancy stores, design shops, restaurants and bars. It is very nice, but it is absolutely too cool for me. I am not nearly as cool, never have been, never will be. Palermo is like Soho in New York. Unless you have the money to spend, I think it is crazy to live there.

Recoleta is more like Upper West Side of New York with 10-12 story high buildings and doormen. It is definitely a nice area, but I did not feel the character there. Maybe not yet.

Then I arrived to San Telmo and fell in love. I think San Telmo is more like Lower East Side in New York - dirtier, graffiti everywhere, narrower streets, smaller buildings, more down to earth crowd, artsy, hip. In other words - amazing. Now I am on a mission to learn all about the area. Hopefully, pictures will follow.

On Monday I start my Spanish classes. Ideally I would have classes in the afternoon, so I can go out at night, sleep through the noon and then go to school. Given the club scene, restaurants, neighborhoods and other activities in Buenos Aires I cannot imagine a better lifestyle.

Buenos Aires aka BA

I am starting my blogger´s life in Buenos Aires. I have yet again changed my mind about the itinerary. I decided not to go north from Rio due to off-season, costs and personal considerations. I figured settling down for a month before two months in Africa and another two months in India can do me good. I also can actually learn some Spanish. Four weeks of 20 hours per week combined with Spanish environment could really boost my Spanish (vs say 2 weeks).

So after some hostel hopping (my new traveller´s slang - you change the cities, but spend a good chunk of time in a hostel meeting new backpackers) in Rosario and Córdoba I have arrived this morning to BA. From an overnight bus (finally I found that bus service that so many were talking about - yes, you can wine with your food or whiskey after!) straight to craigslist and a phone booth. I am looking to rent a room in a shared apartment for a month. The result of the first day? I am SUPER SUPER tired. I figured I spent as many nights on a bus as in a hostel. More than that, all hostels had one thing in common - shitty mattresses. My back hurts! And tonight won´t be any better. I can´t wait to find the accommodation for this month with a decent bad and a wardrobe!!! But first things first - I want to stupidly sleep in front of TV for a day or two. I want to get myself out of backpacker´s state of mind for a month.

My first BA observation while running around (I hope to publish a lot - sort of "daily life in uberhyped BA") - BA has gone absolutely wifi. It seems that all buildings are wifi, most of the corner coffee shops are wife. It is a laptop geek paradise. WHERE IS MY LAPTOP?

Iguazu Falls

I am not a big fan of waterfalls. I am more impressed by the mountains. Call me weird. So I was curious how much I would enjoy the waterfalls. Skipping all the details let me tell you they are (of course) amazing, just like everybody says they are. The roar of the falling water, perfect rainbows, water clouds do overwhelm. Besides hiking through both Brazilian and Argentinean sides, I took a boat trip on the Argentinean side. We approached "little" waterfalls (little compared to Devil´s Throat) and I got soaking wet. The waterfalls are so strong I could not open my eyes to look at them. Then I saw that the boats actually do not even approach the waterfalls that close...

Amazing experience, an absolute MUST for anyone coming to this region.

Set on flickr

Three months have passed. My conclusions and observations

Skipping my two month conclusions, I am going straight for "wisdom" of the three month long non-stop travels. Obvious conclusions, really...

1. Travel´s spoiler is a human tendency to compare things and experiences. I wish I could turn off my "oh, I have seen better and tried better" mood now and then. The more travelled I become, the harder it is to get impressed.

2. I found that traveling fast is sometimes the way not to get bored. Getting back on the road is a great feeling just by itself, no matter what the next destination is.

3. I feel more and more "homeless". Envy people who actually have a home to come back to. I don´t have anything remotely similar. I do not even have bulletproof plans for the next 24 months in terms of locations. On one hand it makes me immune to homesickness. Three months on the road and I am not yet tired of traveling - do not miss comfort, routine, known environment, wardrobe, etc (miss my perfume though!!!). I miss certain people and moments, but they (ppl) are all over the world, so I cannot point to a certain location where I would rather be now. But I am still jealous of that "coming back home" excitement. Still I would NOT change a thing in my travel plans.

4. I realized I underestimated the people factor. I am definitely having more fun when I meet travelers I truly enjoy. Again, duh, it is obvious, but somehow I expected that the scenery would overweight the lack of communication (I even wrote about it in February!). It did not really happen. While going on my little road trips in the US (California, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Arizona, Alaska) I never felt lonely.

5. I think I learned more about cultures of other backpackers than about those of countries I am visiting. I had no idea about the British and Irish drinking culture...

6. Somehow my backpack got wider. I believe it means I can go shopping in Buenos Aires.

Rio de Janeiro

This is something magic about Rio. Even if you are not 19-23 years old as the vast majority of my hostel is (99.9% majority), it is hard not to have a blast here. I cannot quite define what makes it special, but it is a happy city.

I cannot imagine living a normal live (ie working) in Rio. The beach and the sun dictates the life of Rio. No sun - no life. The only imaginable lifestyle is to wake up around 11 am, by noon to roll out chairs on the beach and kill the afternoon playing fresco ball and butt-watching. By 4 pm it is time for an early evening caipirinhas or somewhat waterish local beers. After a disco nap one can get ready for a fancy dinner in Ipanema and the night out in the city till the morning. Other six days of the week repeat the Rio cycle.

Ipanema beach during weekdays is the main attraction of the city. Young, rich and beautiful kids at Post 9 could be photographed straight into the fashion magazines. I am convinced that there are no overweight people in Rio. More than that - cariocas (that's how Rio residents call themselves) are all in great shape! Also, apparently cellulite is not in Brazilian genes or it magically disappears under the Brazilian sun. Yes, Brazilians are HOT to a point of disbelief. What do they eat? What do they do to get this Green gods' perfect bodies??

Post 7 (the first part of Ipanema beach) I call penguin point. Dozens of surfers in their black wetsuits (hence the name) are waiting in the water for their next big wave.



Sometimes it is better to forget about the camera and just take the city in. I cannot capture the true Rio, I would rather watch - retirees playing volleyball on the beach, stunning bodies playing foot-volley, surfers biking along the promenade holding their boards with one arm, beach vendors secretly staring at ridiculous bikinis, amazing street fruit markets, pricy stores of Ipanema, street performances of capoeira, jiujutsu training in the park.

I feel like Rio (and Brazil in general) requires a proper comeback - not on a backpacker's budget or wardrobe. The city offers fun and cheap nightlife options, but there is so much more than the Lapa street parties and Favela's funk parties.

I spent almost two and a half weeks in the Rio area with four days in Ilha Grande, a tropical island a couple of hours away from Rio. I feel I am finally learning to relax and enjoy doing nothing. Quite an achievement for me!

Other highlights
- rip off for an empty football match on Sunday before the S. American cup finals
- rip off for horrible humus in Leblon ($8 for a small container of humus in a take-out restaurant)
- window shopping in Rio Sul shopping center. I cannot think of better looking stores (millions of them)... Maybe it is my shopping starvation speaking
- meeting Alex and our night out - minimal by Dj Oxia till 6 am & meeting a local gay couple (hair stylist and make-up artist) with a morning tour of their 3-bedroom apartment.
- chicken empanadas
- all you can eat churrascarias (meat restaurant, sushi bar included)
- Friday afternoon jazz in a Santa Teresa bar
- day sleeping on the beach

Rio de Janeiro set on flickr