Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Keep Mediocrity at Bay

The Tango--passion, lust, heat, love, all combined in ONE dance.
 Va-Va-Vooooommmm!!




You gotta fight every day to keep mediocrity at bay
Gotta fight every day to keep mediocrity at bay

Well you're going through the motions and they can't hear a word you say
Well you're going through the motions, they don't want to hear a word you say
Got to keep boredom at bay and keep mediocrity away

Van Morrison



Buenos Aires---a sneak peak with some low quality digital photos. I took my trusty old Canon, shooting with film (I adore it so much more than digital!!) but I won't get those developed until I make it to New York next month...then a big blog with photos to blow you away will be forthcoming.


This trip was full of highlights and amazing adventures!!

1. Hopping into various cabs and having awesome 80s hits greet us in a loud manner....we heard "Come a Come a Chameleon" SEVERAL times.  Pet Shop Boys, Roxette, Pat Benatar. THE BEST!! Ah yeah!!!


2. Eating empanadas and chocolate blanco caliente (white hot chocolate to DIE for!!) each morning. I will try and post a photo of this, it was DIVINE! And my Spanish wasn't bad either, Alejandro, our driver to the ranch, said I had a PERFECT accent. I don't know if it was my blonde hair or my accent that really merited that compliment, but I will take it. And I WON'T let Michelle forget about it!! (inside joke laugh insert here)

3. Singing Evita outside the Casa Rosada!! Andrew Lloyd Weber would have been so proud of me, I do a mean Madonna impersonation. I looked all over for an Antonio of my own, sadly, none to be found.

4. All the sightings and almost attacks from feral dogs and cats (what BA is known for)...and again, lots of dog walkers. It's a city known for ALL the dogs with owners who have NO time to walk them. Watch those sidewalks, they don't clean up so well.

5. Spending the afternoon on a ranch with real guachos and eating four different kinds of beef in ONE meal! Don Juan, I miss you! Good horses, good food, amazing conversation, and a foosball table from the 40s that I played a game on with Michelle. And yeah, I was the champion, I sang and danced and rubbed it in her face, cause that's how I roll folks! Ah yeah, I rock the foosball table! Seriously, so old and vintage, if I could have brought it home with me, I would have. The photo I took of it will be amazing.

6. Going to the oldest city in Uruguay--Colonia on a Burquebus! Then  finding the most amazing handmade scarves and mittens and yes, LEG WARMERS!!! The 80s are alive and well in Uruguay my friends. The handmade windchimes were SO beautiful, as well as the jewelry of deep blue stones.

7. The antiques at the San Telmo market, I bought an old silver locket, a hat pin, and a Grace Kelly 1950s vintage black hat...what a treasure! I know who I am being for Halloween!

8. Hurricane Ike causing quite a stir, cancelling our flights, making it so we thought we would have to move to BA and I would have to learn how to make empanadas and be a guacho and get a job on a ranch herding cattle.

9. The fact that Michelle and I can spend 5 days together, and then when we get home, we still have things to say to make each other laugh on google chat...seriously, THE. BEST. TRAVEL. FRIEND. EVER!!! If you guys ever need someone amazing to travel with...take Michelle. And that girl can RIDE a horse. I may have kicked her butt at foosball, but she is the true cowgirl!

10. People, colors, smells, sounds, and culture of Argentina!!!


Recoleta Cemetery--Ava Peron's final resting place.

Singers in San Telmo on market day.

Michelle learning the Tango in La Boca.



One of the only surviving photos of the two of us. Michelle was a victim of theft! Crowded market, busy streets, distracted by empanadas, camera in coat pocket...something was bound to go wrong! We have the exact same cameras and usually just take photos of each other and then trade after the trip...so many of me and Don Juan (the guacho I spent the afternoon with at the ranch Los Dos Hermanos) are ALL LOST!!! Woe is me!  This is us on La Caminita


The streets of La Caminita in La Boca---personalities as bright as the colors!


Madonna and Child. I LOVED this statue in La Boca.

With the robbery of Michelle's camera, most of the photos of me and of the two of us together are lost (sniff, sniff)--however, I got this one on a random moment yesterday as we were walking through Recoleta!

And yes, when I got home today, my annual white cake was waiting for me. I've eaten some of the most amazing desserts that the world's countries have to offer, and yet, there is something about plain, white sheet cake with a raspberry filling that is perfectly delightful to me every year in September!

22 comments:

Chelle said...

Cheers to flying out of BA. We made it! I love all these pics, I am glad we had some that survived. Thanks for the fun vacae!

And just so no one thinks I am a total loser at foosball-D'Arcy beat me by ONE point. That's right people, it wasn't the ass-kicking of the century that it sounds like on here. :)

Unknown said...

One point is ALL that separates the Winners from the Losers, my friend!!

And we both know who the winner was.

Boquinha said...

Wonderful! Sounds like a great trip! And it sounds delicious in so many ways. So tell us how you know Michelle and tell us when, exactly, you'll be in New York!

Stina said...

Yay! You're back! It sounds like an amazing trip and you came back to a birthday cake with your named spelled correctly! What more could a girl want!?

Happy Birthday!

Fletch said...

I want some white hot chocolate. NOW!!! Where can I get some? Do you think I could (gasp) make some?

I know I ought to be commenting on all the other hysterical and/or amazing things you did, but I just can't get past the white hot chocolate. I need to get me some of that...

Michael! Muffins! said...

Espero que tuvieras una vez buena! Quiero decir todas las cosas en Espanol, pero no me entiendes, no? :]

Buenos Aires?! Lucky. So. Lucky. I don't think you know that I've learned a lot of Spanish ever since the 9th grade days, having a Costa Rican brother-in-law and all...

High school is SO incredible! I love it. The social end is so boss (cliche?). The homework is so much harder than Crest, but, in terms of the best English teacher ever, you still hold the record. Mine is SO boring--but very knowledgeable, and she knows good books-to my advantage.

Where are you teaching these days? Or are you?

Alisa said...

D'Arcy, this list rocks. I'm glad you're back and so glad for your fun time in BA.

Michelle, I'm sorry about your camera! Man. I am sure D'Arcy's photos will be excellent, however. By the way, that tango pic of you and that guy is totally hot!

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday!

Love the tango picture. Love dancing. I remember the first time I heard someone say dancing was against his religion, it was like having someone tell you they really and truly believe the moon is made of cheese and bread crumbs.

Dancing is amazing!

Lori said...

Wow! Sounds like an amazing time. Look forward to seeing the pictures too. Glad you had fun...what great memories for you!

Rowena said...

Welcome back, happy birthday, and wow what a trip!

By the way, the eighties are sooooo in fashion now.

They must be very stylish down there in South America.

HWHL said...

D'Arcy - this is a breath of fresh air on what - otherwise - has been a very challenging week pour moi.

I am so happy you had such a wonderful time and I can't WAIT to see the pictures! BA sounds awesome! The food sounds wonderful! The people sound wonderful! The tango sounds like upright clothed sex, disguised as dancing, yes? (Hmmm... mental note to sign Hubster and me up for Tango Class ASAP...) :-)

I must ask... the dark blue stones you mentioned... similar to Lapis Lazuli? (LL is one of my favorites... a little obsessed, I am.)

ANYWAY, lest I blab further:
WELCOME HOME!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
GLAD IKE DIDN'T BITE YOU!

Ruahines said...

Kia ora D'Arcy,
Love the Van words! One of my favourites.
Reads and looks as if you had a mostly wonderful trip - except for the theft - and I trust you had a lovely birthday. Welcome Home.
Rangimarie
Aroha,
Robb

Kate Lord Brown said...

Yey! Happy Birthday D'Arcy - and what a way to spend it in eighties heaven. I want to go there!! Beautiful Madonna - legwarmers, hot chocolate ... made my morning!

jo said...

wow! great pictures, and i'm glad you got my happy birthday text. can't wait to hear more about what you did!

Anonymous said...

THanks as always for stopping by my blog. You did comment the other day about my making up stories, and I just wanted to say thanks for that compliment too, while also noting that the only made up stories are the chapters in the sidebar. The text with the photos is true. Well, as true as I can make them considering the quirks of memory.

Thanks again and again for reading.

Sugar Jones said...

Wow! What a fantastis trip. You are such the little globetrotter! I think I'm going to have to start stalking you... how about New York?

Michelle said...

I am so envious! So glad you had a good time.

Unknown said...

Thanks everyone!!! So sweet for all these birthday wishes!


Now, don't stray too far, hopefully tomorrow I can get the post up I have been composing. It's back to controversial topics and maybe, that's right, maybe some politics!!

Pseudo said...

Girst time here. Loved your post and yor blog in general. Great pics. I'll be back.

Anonymous said...

How wonderful! What amazing pictures! Can I go with you next time? I'm a pretty good traveling companion, too, 'tho it's been quite awhile since I've ridden a horse.

And, a belated happy birthday. I hope all your wishes come true.

Marie said...

What an adventure! (But I expect no less of you, and I dare you to top it next time around :)

Happy Birthday, D'Arcy!

djinn said...

Beautiful pics, etc.