I've been trying to write more, and it's spilling over onto the ol' blog

A couple of observations

1. Chile has an awful lot of homeless dogs running around.
2. Buenos Aires has so many people with dual citizenship that Spanish political parties apparently find it worthwhile to campaign here (the PSOE, anyway).
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Well, I haven´t written anything of any great length for a while, so I'll try it out now, and maybe it will work out. I had a great time in Chile. For the first time I really felt like I might be in Latin America- I didn't blend in like I do so easily here. It's much dirtier and not nearly lacks the grandeza of this city. Coming back to Buenos Aires really was like coming back to Europe. Strangely enough (and this is a great thing, really) it also felt like coming home, to a place where I have a routine, a life, a familiarity with the way things work. I like that I'm acostumed* to the bus routes, the layout of the city, the subway, and that I have a well-established mental map of the city. I glad I'm staying here for a while.

I met the other guy from Hendrix who is studying here for coffee the other day and it's amazing how differently we see this place. I think it's just what your goals are- I really wanted to see what was different and unique about this place, live a different lifestyle, and learn whatever the hell I can. He, like so many other exchange students that I met, really don't see to give a flying fuck about all that. I find that extremely dissapointing. Why the hell are you here if you aren´t willing to give up any part of yourself? People seem to have a real problem with the fact that part of traveling and exploring is that you're going to be uncomfortable, and accepting that fact. Maybe I'm intolerant of that attitude because so much of my life has been spent being uncomfortable with pretty much everything.

But here and now, I'm just as comfortable as I ever was back home, with all the worries, and inconviniences, and all the pleasantries and small joys that this place offers. This is an incredible city; I wish I could show it to you all.

Anyway, I hope everyone is well. Just as I've been continuing the ol' life journey thing here, I can see (er, not literally) that you all, of course, have been doing the same. It would be a surprise to see what has changed if I came back in August; I can't imagine where everyone will be by Thanksgiving. Dad and Ramona on the ranch with the dogs, Mom with multiple projects going, Bry and Erin freezing their asses off and waiting to move. Anyway, it won't be too long.

In the meantime, I have some exploring to do: Northwest Argentina, Bolivia, and Patagonia.

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*Cognates have become increasingly difficult to distinguish, so I spell them wrong sometimes. I think this is right, but it might be spelled with a U and not an O. Se me olvidó.