dia tres

today was the first day of my "real" program with the company and school in BA (thats the cool way to say buenos aires). i started my language school and had orientation to the program as a whole with all of the activities and trips laid out to some extent. i admit i am getting quite tired and so for that reason im going to get right to the good stuff (which you should know usually includes lots of food)...

- woke up and grabbed delicious dulce de leche pastrys for two pesos at the mercado... yum and again im gonna be huge. don't worry tho, the second i get back to "the states"(thats my new word that i use as often as possible now that i have canadian and english friends... i love it!) i have to start training for the nike womens half marathon so ill shake all of this cheese, pizza, pastries, coffee, wine, and beef right off of me....maybe?

- attended orientation and am looking forward to volunteer work with children, mate dinner date with a group of friends, wine tasting on wednesday, first "real" day of school tomorrow, and iguazu this weekend!

- i have friends:) such nice friends from all over the world! sound like a good reason to travel more now!

- i have taken up a new slogan for the month- "i am eating my way across argentina". literally, it gonna happen and i love the idea.

-attended a fabulous and inspiring talk today from the madres del plaza del mayo. they are a group of mothers and grandmothers whose children and grandchildren (30,000 in total) were taken away form them 33 year ago during the government regime. the children were tortures and taken to concentration camps never to be seen again. these madres have been protesting and asking for change every thursday in a 30 minute march for 1,700 thursdays now in hopes of instilling a new democracy that will make right, politically, socially, and educationally, the laws of argentina so that their children will never be forgotten. the main women that spoke to us today was 97!!! and she was a spitfire... if only i can have that much passion for something at 97! the madres block the roads and march though the plaza every thursday in addition to building schools, memorials, libraries, and supportive homes for argentinean children. how cool is that? (im going to join the march this thursday or next... so exciting)

-marienda is the meal between lunch and dinner. america, i know your fat but we should bring this tradition back to "the states" its the best ha! a little pizza or empanada... or in our case all of the above and ice cream. woops.

-(shh i visited volta helado again tonight with friends and we had a great girl chat for two hours all getting to know eachother:)

- i had a spanish oral placement test today and i am in the intermediate class i believe so that should be great and quite funny hearing my terrible accent... that will change tho, hopefully!

ffffsssshhhuuuu... well so much for bed early. goodnight my friends! talk to you tomorrow!