inolvidable.

inolvidable: means unforgettable, and is the name of one of my fave non-reggaeton songs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjpSX6fCPDc) after the decontrol of last week, i had a relaxing yet inolvidable weekend both here in buenos aires and outside of the city in the provincial suburbs!!! on friday night, my friend thomas and i saw a professional ballet at the world famous teatro colón, a venue truly as magical as i had been expecting. being budget-wary students, we ended up choosing the cheap 30 pesos tickets and found our seats way up in the top level of the theater. the organization and the acoustics of the theater are so amazing however that we might as well have been sitting in the front row!! we decided to be nerdy theater-goers and purchased a pair of binoculars just in case, which did come in handy when thomas felt like getting a, ahemmm, closer look at the limber ballerinas.....just kidding. i've never been a huge ballet person but this was definitely an exception, partially because the mere experience of sitting in the teatro colón is unforgettable and spine-tingling, not to mention the choreography was quite stunning and the orchestra pit was equally impressive. thomas and i were reprimanded on three different occasions by the ushers for taking photos of the dancers and the theater, but we slyly continued anyway. they watched us like hawks throughout the performance but after the third scolding, we really had to get it together and find some sneakier moves. here are some pictures i managed to snap. overall, an amazing night. you simply can't beat professional ballet for a mere $7!!

the next morning after the thunderstorms had cleared up, i met up with my friend will and an argentine friend agustín to head out the the buenos aires suburbs, where an old friend of will's cousin lives with his family and had invited us to spend the day with his family. we took an hour bus ride out of the city into argentine suburbia, which easily looked like anything in the united states. will's friend cesar picked us up near the bus stop and we drove to he and his family's beautiful home, nestled in a stunning country club complete with clay tennis courts and horse stables for the polo matches that take place on the grounds. the day could have easily been titled "sarah's dream day" because the main event was, yup you guessed it, an ASADOOOOO. i was in absolute heaven. we started the meal with traditional choripán sandwiches..... 

pigging out a little bit on my chorizo yumminess 

.......then continued onto the main course, which included some peculiarities...... first on the list was a little argentine delicacy down as chinchulín. i slightly panicked when cesar placed the little specimen on my plate and playfully refused to tell me what it was. NOT A GOOD SIGN. nonetheless, i dug into the meat and chewed and chewed until i could chew no longer, that was one tough little cow intestine!! yesss, i unknowingly consumed cow intestine. next up on the menu was another peculiar little argentine food known as morcilla de sangre. aka, blood sausage. though you might be surprised, versions of blood sausage are actually quite common throughout the world, much to the horror of my fellow american students. if you are able to train your mind to forget about the whole blood element, the morcilla really isn't all too bad. but sometimes, you just can't get over the fact that you're ingesting congealed cow blood. hey, that's life. though i enjoyed taste-testing some new foods, the normal cuts of sirloin steak were a welcome break and i had fewer reservations to say the least!! the day in the suburbs couldn't have been better: 

i had seven slices of these......

phenomenal food (and don't forget the quilmes!!), great company and the friendliest argentines i've met so far, a full day of ONLY SPANISH (sometimes a rare occurrence when there are always so many other american students around me), soccer in the backyard with cesar's adorable kids, spring-like weather, and the opportunity to just breathe and get away from the main city. such a great invitation and opportunity, hope i get to go back before the semester ends!!