Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo

Hola todos,

Today I went to el Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo (the National Museum of Decorative Art). I honestly didn't think it would be that great, and was hesitant to even go when I found out that it cost 3 pesos (as opposed to 1 peso, or free). But I'm so glad that I did go! I spent three hours there, and feel like I could spend a hundred more in there. =)

The place used to be a mansion, and a lot of the things inside belonged to the family who lived there. There are marble statues, beautiful leather-bound books, lots of little portraits for lockets, teacups and saucers with bright colors and a wallpaper-like scheme, beautiful furniture (including a gondola-shaped bed with a canopy and chairs and curtains embroidered with flowers), a huge theater, a little marble sculpture depicting a battle between angels and demons and people from earth looking on, beautiful chandeliers (the shadows make sort of a leafy pattern on the ceiling)... Needless to say, I loved it.

Both of the exhibitions featured there were great. One was of silver craftsmanship (there were lots of silver mate cups and other dishes), and the other was of Finnish art. The Finnish printed cloth and dresses were beautiful. They made me really want to check Finland out! =)

There were no photos allowed inside the museum, but if so inclined you can go on a visita virtual (virtual tour) on the website. The virtual tour is in Spanish, but the website navigation is easy enough to figure out (just click on the names of rooms), and there's an informational section in English:
Here's a nice room to start with. =)

After that museum, I went to a park across the street and looked at the statues. I'm really going to miss having all these statues around.

Finally, I went to MALBA (Latin-American Art Museum) again to see the author of El país de las mujeres (Women's Country), Gioconda Belli, speak. The talk was really interesting, and I saw some more great art at MALBA. The highlights were a rug which the artist transposed the image of a shadow onto, and an exposition of Alfredo Prior's work (really beautiful, abstract stuff, a lot of it themed around Greek mythology).

It was a full, amazing day! =)

Here's a belated picture of el Día del Estudiante (Students' Day), when me, Fede, his friend, and a bunch of people from my exchange program went on a picnic in los Bosques (Forests) de Palermo.

Besos!
Kaeli

Cosas favoritas y galerías de arte

Hola lectores fieles (faithful readers),

I'm sorry I haven't posted for a while! I was sick for a whole week and after I recovered I did a lot of touring around and a lot of attempting-to-do-homework.

I'm really loving Buenos Aires, and wish I could stay here for at least five more months! Some of my favorite things about the city now are: the rioplatense (River Plate) accent (which sounds a lot like Italian and has a lot of "j" sounds: lleísmo), the beautiful statues, the flower kiosks, the 15-minute grace period for lateness (forget about rushing around to be exactly on time for class, work, and almost anything — I'm going to miss that!), the tiles on the sidewalks (they've grown on me), the dogs, the vines on people's balconies, the delicious desserts (ice cream, which comes in different flavors and has a different texture; dulce de leche; arroz con leche; and delicious pies), empanadas, jamón y queso blanco (infinitely better than ham and cheddar), medialunas (my new favorite breakfast ever), the occasional maté (tea), and the oft-repeated phrases:

• ¿Qué sé yo? (But what do I know?) accompanied with a gesture.

• Ah, ¡Qué lindo! (How beautiful!) whenever someone mentions a faraway place (even another province).

• ¡Ciao ciao! ¡Un beso! (Bye! A kiss for you!) - a common way to say goodbye.

Not to mention all the really nice, helpful, talkative people. =)

Some more specific updates:

Last week was la Semana de arte (Art Week), and I went to art galleries around the city (in San Telmo and Barrio Norte) on Thursday and Friday. Some of the art was amazing. I saw about 40 different galleries, and drank some free champagne, wine, and espresso. It was great! Some of my favorite galleries were:

Cualquier Verdura (Whatever Vegetable) is great. The first floor is a huge gift-shop set up like a house. The kitchen is stocked with colorful and vintage cookware and jars, the closet and bedroom with 70's-style and exotic purses, jackets, and pillows, and there are knitted cacti and books all around. I like the way things are labeled: nuevo, antiguo, industria argentina, y nos da pena vender (new, old, made in Argentina, and "it pains us to sell this"). I hadn't realized that the whole upper floor was for sale, but looking at the website, I see that it is!

In the basement were three works commentating on homelessness. They represented unlivable spaces: pieces of spray-painted wreckage, one with ironical loving messages written on the pieces, and one with spines from a tree. They were really cool.

Here are some pictures of things in the kitchen: http://picasaweb.google.com/cualquierverdura517/ProductosDeCocina#

Galería de Arte Wussman has some really cool, bright, woven pieces by Luciana Malfatti: http://www.wussmann.com/popup/pentapack/02.php

At Asociación Amigos Erik Van Der Grijn (I think... It might have been a different gallery) I saw some great photos: one of an "American breakfast" full pancakes, sausage, and eggs, an "Argentine breakfast" of sunlight and trees, one of some old ladies sitting in front of a window with a swimming pool behind it, and some nice pictures of families.

I loved Claudia Brito Sousa's work at Galería Palatina. I like the colors and textures of the paintings, and the scenes depicted reminded me of Shakespeare. http://www.galeriapalatina.com.ar/

My favorite gallery of all was Raíces Americanas (American Roots). There were some amazing, strangely-colored paintings of wars between Indians and colonizers. There aren't any pictures of it here, but it's an impressive website anyway! I'll have to go back to this one again. http://www.raicesamericanas.com.ar/

After going to lots of galleries with some friends on Friday night, we all went to El Ateneo, an old theater that was converted into a bookstore. It was pretty cool, but the painted dome at the top was a disappointment: they didn't paint the very top of it — just left it black! I prefer the librerías on Corrientes y Callao because the books are much cheaper and they play better music. =)

After the bookstore we went to a kind of fancy restaurant called Cumaná. I had pizza with tomato and basil, an empanada, and some really great house wine.

Over the weekend I hung out with Fede. We talked a lot, watched movies, went out for ice cream a few times, and walked around a beautiful, foresty park.

I've spent the last few days trying to work on my essay for literature. It was a really frustrating experience: although I tried very hard, I'm worried about even passing. The other American students feel the same way. Hopefully we'll all pull through! I'm glad, at least, to have that one overwith, although I have about 5 more tests to come (in the next month).

Sorry there aren't any pictures of my own. I really miss my camera and will either fix or replace it this week!

Besos!
Kaeli

Viaje a Patagonia

Hola todos,

This weekend I went on a trip with my program to Patagonia — the cold, southern region of South America. I saw lots of animals in Puerto Madryn and visited an espacio para la memoria (memorial space) in Trelew.

Our flight from Buenos Aires left at 4:00 am! It took about an hour. Once we got there and got settled in our hostel, we set out for our first activity: buceo (scuba diving!). We put on neoprenes — thick bodysuits to keep us warm in the freeeezing water — and went out in the Pacific in a speedboat to find some lobos del mar (sea wolves). I wasn't sure exactly what those were, but after a 20- or 30-minute boat ride, I found out! They are cute, brown, seal-looking things! I'll try to post a picture of them later.

I had a cold, and wasn't sure if it was a good idea to go swimming in that cold or put a snorkeling mask on. But I didn't want to miss the opportunity, so I did it! We went to an area where the sea wolves/sea lions hang out and swam with them for a while. They're cute, and like to play, brush past people, and be pet — a lot like dogs on land! I braved the water (cold as ice!) and pet a few of them. I got creeped out when one brushed past me, though. Their fins have spidery-looking fingers and their eyes are glassy brown. Cute, but fishy! lol. When we got back in the boat, we were all super-freezing and drank hot mate (a type of tea) and coffee to warm ourselves up and ate some alfajores (like Little Debbie cakes, except richer!). I took some pictures from the boat, but unfortunately my camera got a little wet and fizzled out. =/ I still have my cell phone camera, though, and Fede said I can use his camera if I want.

Later that day we went to a beach to watch some Franco-Austral whales. The water was really deep, and the whales were only about 20 feet away from the shore. They're huge and have big callouses on their skin. They didn't really do anything interesting — just swam back and forth. But it was surreal to see them, and nice to sit on the beach.

On Saturday we went to la Península Valdés to see more Franco-Austral whales from a boat. We watched a few hembras y sus crías (female animals and their offspring). The babies tried to copy what their mothers did — they turned upside down so that their tails popped out of the water, jumped, and swam under the boat. The whales are curious about humans, and like to watch us as much as we like watching them! =)

Later that day we saw some penguins. There were about 40 of them in the grass, grooming themselves and sleeping. When you see them up close, their feathers look spiky. They reminded me of hedgehogs!

For dinner me and some friends bought some pasta and sauce to make at the hostel. It was warm, cheap, delicious, and one of the highlights of the day! lol. My cold kept getting worse and worse as I spent more time out in the wind. =/ I got lots of sleep that night, though, which helped.

The next day we went to Punta Ninfas (Nymph Point) to see elefantes marinos (sea elephants). They are like giant white sea lions. To get to them we had to climb down a huge sandstone cliff and walk maybe a quarter of a mile on a rocky beach (I love beaches with rocks). It was exhausting for me — being sick — but worth it! We sat with some pregnant sea elephants on the beach and watched them and a few of their babies. They scooched along on their bellies, scratched themselves with their fins (which have five little fingers and claws), made burping noises, and fidgeted with their tails (which also look sort of like hands). They were bizarre and cool, lol.

I love the landscape in Patagonia. There are green shrubs for miles and miles, blue skies, and desert animals like hares and guanacos (orange llamas! — my favorite animals of the trip).

Our final mini-trip was to Trelew, where a famous prison break and a massacre took place. Hundreds of political prisoners were sent to the high-security prison in Trelew in the early 70's. The idea was to get them away from the big cities where they had a lot of support and influence. The guards were prepared for a prison break attempt, but expected it to come from the outside. Instead, though, the prisoners (with some support from people in the town of Trelew) planned a fuga (a prison break) from the inside. They made fake guns and military uniforms, got themselves punished on purpose in order to see more of the prison and construct more detailed maps, got a prison guard to cooperate, and arranged for trucks to pick them up. The escape was partly successful, but because of one misinterpretation of a signal, some of the trucks didn't come. The most important leaders left the prison in a car, and the others, when the trucks they had planned for didn't come, called taxis!

The first group got onto a plane with their military uniforms and told the passengers that they were drilling responses to terrorist attacks. They stalled for as long as they could to wait for the others, but it wasn't long enough. Only 6 of the 25 people that escaped from the prison successfully made it onto the plane and safely into Chile. The 19 that arrived to the airport in taxis but missed the plane were captured, tortured, and massacred by the marines. After almost 40 years, the guilty parties are in the process of being punished right now. Many of them had escaped to the US, where one of them still lives (and works for the Pentagon).

If you're interested in this topic, I recommend the documentary "Trelew," which is what we watched at the espacio de memoria (in the airport where the prisoners escaped).

Today is a holiday — el Día del estudiante, Student Day — so I don't have class! I'm going to los Bosques de Palermo/Palermo Forests with some friends. I'm still kind of sick, but I've never been to these forests, and it should be fun. =)

Hasta luego!
Kaeli

Federico, Cementerio Recoleta

¡Hola, todos!

 

After a month of living here, I feel at home in Buenos Aires! =) I have a better idea about how things work around here now, love the area, and have met lots of friendly and interesting people.

I took my first parcial (midterm) for my Latin American Art History class yesterday. I think I did decently but not great. The difficulty I had was in naming specific paintings, which I hadn't studied at all — I'd only studied artistic genres, historical events, and artists. I'm not too worried, though, because at any rate it should be clear that I'd done the reading; the other students I talked to hadn't memorized painting names, either; and the professor told us that if we did too horribly, we could retake the test. My next tests are for History of Latin America in the 20th Century and a paper for Latin American Literature. Wish me luck (¡suerte!)! =)

In other (and more exciting) news, I have a new boyfriend! His name is Federico (Fede for short) and I met him in my History class. =) Here's a picture of him from not too long ago (he's the one with glasses): 

 

 

He's Argentinian, majoring in International Relations, and heavily involved in Model UN — he's gotten to travel all over the place because of his involvement: to Poland, Mexico, and even to Cuba! We've been going on dates and talking all the time about politics, social justice, traveling, and ourselves. I'm really happy! =)

On Wednesday we went to el cementerio de Recoleta (a famous cementery where lots of important people are buried): it was his first time there, too. It was raining when we went, and we had to make time for lunch and to get to class, so we didn't see the most famous graves, but we did get a general feel for the place. Most of the graves are mausoleums with coffins displayed inside — it is one pretty creepy place. There are lots of beautiful statues, there, though, and interesting inscriptions. Here are a few pictures!

This is what most of the graves are basically like. I took a picture of this one because there was a Windows magazine slipped under the door. Think the spam will stop when you're dead? Don't be too sure! lol.

 

This weekend I'm going to Patagonia to hike in the snow and have various other adventures!

¡Hasta pronto!
Kaeli

La embajada norteamericana

Hola todos,

Yesterday my friend Fede showed me all around Palermo, one of the neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. We saw a bunch of stylish shops and tall buildings, ate Mexican hamburgers (yay!), and got delicious ice cream (dulce de leche all the way!) at a mall. He asked if I'd seen the American embassy, and I hadn't, so he took me there to show me.

When we walked past a building with lots of tall, black, iron gates and security guard booths behind them, he asked if I recognized it. I didn't. It looked like a jail, and if that were the embassy, I thought it must be the back entrance or something — the ugly side behind the colonial, Greco-Roman-style front. I'd been to the Spanish embassy here: a medium-sized, inviting building with regular cultural events (that's where I saw the discussion about Arab Women in Film), and had seen the Korean embassy: a bigger building than the Spanish one, that did look less inviting, but nothing like a prison. But what we were looking at wasn't a jail or the back of the embassy — that was it!

I looked at the big embassy building (indeed colonial and Greco-Roman-style) from a distance through the gates and saw some men and women chatting, wearing stylish businesswear, through the windows. There was a sign that said something like "American citizens and special guests only" on one of the gates and a ribboned-off section on the sidewalk where you could stand to wait for an American visa. An older guard with some missing teeth patrolled outside. I wondered if he were American or Argentinian, but Fede told me without my asking that they were private security guards.

I wanted to take a picture of the place to show you all how grand, intimidating, and exclusive it is. When I took my camera out, Fede said, "You can't take pictures here. This is the American embassy! I don't want the guard to bother us." My concept of what embassies were like was still almost entirely based on the Spanish embassy I'd visited, so I thought for sure he was joking (it really sounded like a joke...), and started to take the picture. When I saw the guard walking in our direction, though, I put my camera down.

He said (in Spanish), "There are no photos allowed here. There are no photos allowed here. Did you take a picture? Don't you see the signs?" (Signs on the gates — I hadn't read them, because I'd been too impressed by the gates themselves and the building!) He looked at my camera, and I showed him that I hadn't gotten a picture of anything except my purse — I'd moved my camera down when I saw him coming. "This is the American Embassy!" he said. I said "Lo siento! No me di cuenta." I'm sorry, I didn't realize! I wondered if he could tell that I'm American, or if that would matter to him at all. I was glad when he walked away!

Fede said, "I told you you can't take pictures! This is the American embassy!" I said, "I'm sorry! I thought you were joking!" He told me it makes complete sense why you can't take a picture: you could use the information for a terrorist attack. "If you want to take a picture you have to stand over there (on a hill) and just zoom in."

After the embassy Fede showed me the embassador's house. Another grand, gated palace with guards. It had the American seal in the middle and an American flag flying high. It was at the intersection of Avenida Del Libertador (Liberator Avenue) and John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

Fede said that every 4th of July there's a huge party (either at the embassador's house or the embassy, I can't remember), where only very important people are invited, and someday he wants to go.

The exclusivity of it all reminds me of Aladdin and the palace and guards in the movie. I wish our embassy were more friendly-seeming, in a country where we are generally known as "American imperialists." The gated, policed, imperial palaces don't help us to challenge that image!

It's less of a wonder to me now why some people here think it's so great to live in America (when, at least in Buenos Aires, it's very similar, cheaper, and safer to live here!). The symbols of America here are so rich, important, and huge (American embassy, American restaurants and stores, American concerts and shows).

Again, though, it's a similar atmosphere, cheaper, and safer (than Chicago, Chicago suburbs, even Galesburg) to live right here. America's real asset, I think, is freedom: freedom of speech, choice, action. That's what we've got that is special, and that's what we need to defend. The other things — cost of living, people's general well-being (health care, stress levels, happiness), and safety — are things that are lacking compared to small- and big-town Korea and the capitol of Argentina in my own experience, and many other places according to what I've read. My personal project for America is to advance equality opportunity (which unfortunately needs advancing in most places). I hope we can shape ourselves up!

Today I'm going to do a bunch of homework and go with another friend (the receptionist!) to a different area, Recoleta.

Hasta luego!
Kaeli

Madres, abuelas, y H.I.J.O.S.

Hola gente linda,

Today I went with my American friends and professors to the Plaza de Mayo to see the mothers march and chat with them afterwards.



La asociación madres de la Plaza de Mayo (the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo) are a famous group that have done tremendous work for social justice. The founders of the group were mothers whose children "disappeared:" were kidnapped and tortured by the military regime. (I wrote a bit about the disappeared in my blog about la ESMA.) When people went missing in the early 70's (almost all of them 20-30 years old and middle-class), many of their mothers tried desperately to get any information they could about where their children were. They asked neighbors, police officers, churches, kiosk vendors — anyone who might have a clue. But the people they asked couldn't help them, and often directed them to another useless contact. Many mothers were searching, and when they realized that they all had similar problems and goals, they formed a group to look for their children together.

Las madres risked their lives many times by being open about their children's disappearance and demanding to know where they were. Three of them were killed by the regime.

For a long time the mothers thought and hoped that their children had been imprisoned or exiled and were waiting to have a trial somewhere. It was years before they learned of the torture their children had suffered and the practice of kidnapping and appropriating victims' babies.

When they got this information, las madres (and abuelas: grandmothers) did all they could to locate the children of the disappeared to tell them about their true identities and families. 95 appropriated men and women have been located by the mothers and grandmothers so far. Through denouncements, identity doubts, and a national blood bank they are working on, they hope to find still more.

Every Thursday at 3:30, las madres, abuelas, y hermanos (brothers and sisters) of the disappeared, and well as those who support their cause and efforts, march at la Plaza de Mayo — between la Casa Rosada (the Pink House, like the White House) and el Palacio Municipal (the Buenos Aires government building). Today I marched with them!




The mothers and supporters marched, some with pictures of the disappeared and other signs, while one mother read family members' letters to the disappeared and called their names. After each name was announced, supporters yelled "Presente!" —  "Present!" Siempre presente, always present.

After the march, we went to las madres' headquarters and three of them talked with us. They told us about their initial convictions that their children were alive, their initial search. They told us about the three women abducted for their activism in the organization: one of them a nun who publicly denounced concentration camps that she'd discovered. The church didn't help them: the church was always with the government. They told us about their children, young university students.

One mother told us about the day her daughter was kidnapped. The mother was playing Scrabble with her friends when her daughter called and said "Mom, come home" in an urgent voice. The mother went home and saw the police in the house. The police rummaged through all of their things, stole money and valuables, and were very rude. They demanded to know where the mother's husband was — he was at work. They found a book about social movements and asked why they had it — it was one of the kids' university books. They found a forgotten picture of Perón from the 1950's (forbidden during the coup d'etat), and said that they were peronistas, too, but on the right, not the left. Then they kidnapped the girl, who'd done activism against the regime.

The remains of one mother's child were found this November. She was very happy her son was found, and glad to learn that although he was killed in an explosion, he was in a building away from the bomb — some people were in a building with the bomb, but he was further away. She said that you can recognize a face in the skull, in the teeth. She is happy to have her son again, and talks to him.

All of the mothers have endured a lot. Some committed suicide when they discovered what had happened. Their strength and achievements are worth so much.

At the end of the chat, one of the mothers said that it makes her glad to see others doing activism work like her own children did, and to see people smiling and free.

It was a privilege to meet such strong women and be a part of their march today. =)

Here are some pictures of the disappeared: about 30,000 people were kidnapped and killed.

This is a picture I took a few weeks ago at el Facultad de Derecho, the graduate school for law. It lists the students who had disappeared. The first student listed has my same birthday and current age (21).

This is one of the mothers' slogans, printed on the scarves that they wear: Illuminating the Past, Denouncing the Present, Challenging the Future. "Hijos" means "children." The letters stand for Sons and Daughters for Identity and Justice and against Oblivion and Silence.

Thanks, everyone, for your readership! Feel free to ask questions or comment.


Ciao!
Kaeli

La bella y la bestia, desmayándome, y el barrio coreano

Hola gente linda,

There has been a lot of excitement since the last time I wrote! First, some pictures:

I'm not sure if you can tell from this picture, but some of the dogs here are GIANT. I've seen at least 12 domesticated dogs the size of wolves in the last month! And lots of dog-walkers walking bands of 10 dogs all at once!

Another thing you can see in this picture are the tiles on the sidewalks: some of them aren't completely stable, so you have to watch your step! The plus side, though, is that they're not all litter-filled— people wash the sidewalks with hoses every day.

Here's a view of some of the skyscrapers and a famous flower sculpture.

There are beautiful statues all around the city. This is once is near the Museo de Bellas Artes!

On Saturday I went to another FILBA (literature festival) event: a panel of authors who discussed their ideas about sexuality in writing. It wasn't very good because the most arrogant one of the authors hogged the stage. I'm glad I went, though, so I don't have to wonder what I missed.

Sunday I saw La bella y la bestia (Beauty and the Beast), a Broadway musical, with three American friends. The costumes, special effects, songs and dances were amazing! During the scene where everyone praises Gastón at a bar out in the country (which I have to say, reminded me a lot of small-town Galesburg), all the dancers clinked their glasses together as part of the music. It was really cool. The dinner/"Be My Guest" scene was a super-glittery cabaret show. ¡Muy lindo! (Very beautiful!) My favorite special effects were when the beast and Gastón fought outside in the rain: the castle balcony and stage-light rain looked amazing. And when the beast turned back into a handsome prince, he levitated and spun completely around (vertically) three times!

I learned some new phrases from the show, too: "provincial life," "bad temper," and "I have to get out of here!" All good things to know, lol.

My first class on Tuesday was canceled, so I stayed up late chatting, listened to music, and lazed around 'til the afternoon. That was exactly the kind of relaxation I needed.

The second half of Tuesday was a bit of a misadventure. I ran some errands in the late afternoon and ended up in an area I didn't know very well. Although I knew the number of my bus and the general area of the bus stop, I wasn't able to find it, so I took a taxi back to class. Luckily taxis are cheap here— it only cost me 15 pesos (about 4 dollars) to make the 30 minute trip to my class. The class goes from 7-10:00, and I hadn't eaten anything since lunch that day— I just rushed out and did my errands. And at about 8:00, I started feeling really faint! I told the guy sitting next to me, "No me siento bien. Pienso que voy a fallecerme." Although I'd used a pretty hilariously wrong word (I said that I didn't feel good and might "pass away," instead of "faint"), he understood what I meant and was really a lot of help. He literally ran to a kiosk to buy me some water and told the receptionists at the school that I needed a medic. The water helped, and the medics said that my blood pressure and blood sugar were low, so I just needed to eat something and rest. I did that, and am now todo bien (all well!). It was embarrassing having fainted in class, but some good did come of the misadventure: I met a really nice receptionist, Mariano, who asked me on a date!

Today, my day off, I set out to find Korea-town. Wikipedia says it's on la Avenida Avellaneda, which is within walking distance from my house, so I figured I'd just walk the street and look for Korean shops and food. After not running into anything for quite a while, I asked someone who directed me to a bus that would take me a lot farther. Through the windows on the bus, I found it! There were hundreds of discount clothes shops with clothes that took me right back to Korea: the flowered shirts old ladies wear, stylish hats, belts, and socks, and lots of t-shirts with unintelligible English (one girls' shirt said simply: "I hate you!" lol). There weren't as many Korean restaurants as I'd hoped for, but I asked a few people and found a good one. I ate kimchi (spicy pickled cabbage), spicy soybean soup, and rice. It was delicious! I've been craving exactly those things (and spicy food in general) for quite a while!

In other exciting news: four people in the last two days told me that my Spanish is very good!

Tomorrow I'm going to walk and talk with the mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. More to come about that! =)

Saludos!
Kaeli

Art Museums, Anthropology, and Blackbow Concert

I went to el MALBA — The Museum of Latin-American Art in Buenos Aires — on Wednesday. I had expected it to be bigger (there were only about six big rooms full of art), but I loved a lot of the stuff that was there. My favorite works were two paintings by Emiliano Di Cavalcanti, a Brazilian painter (one of my new favorites!); Andy Warhol's paintings (which are not Latin-American, but were in a featured exhibit); a painting by David Alfaro Siqueiros, a Mexican muralist; and three photos that show Marta Minujin repaying Latin-America's debt (to Andy Warhol) in "Latin-American gold:" corn (if you search for "Marta Minujin," you can see them).

Last week I had visited a different art museum: el Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (the National Museum of Beautiful Arts). I'd read on some blogs that it's very unimpressive and can be skipped, but I had to see for myself! It did turn out to be a disappointment. The organization and lighting in the museum is really bad, and I didn't like much of the art. But I did see two great paintings that made the trip worth it for me: Le Moulin de la Galette by Vincent Van Gogh: an impressionistic beach scene with a couple at the forefront, and Femme Elongee (that title might not be exactly right) by Pablo Picasso: which to me seemed to illustrate a woman tossing and turning in bed, and her lover trying to minimize the distance between them.

Wednesday (the day I went to el MALBA), was also the first day of a literature festival called FILBA. The opening event was a lecture by Mark Augé, a famous French anthropologist. You needed a ticket just to see a projection of the lecture on a screen! — seating in the auditorium was by invitation only. I got my ticket (for the projection) early and read in a café for a few hours (with coffee and a medialuna/croissant) before the lecture.

When I came back at 6:30 there was a long line to wait for seating in front of the screen! I asked someone if he was in line, and he said, "Yes, but we're all going to the same place." Because of my accent, he asked if I was French. I told him I'm American, and we started talking. He is a journalist, and studies anthropology like me. After a while he asked if I like rock music. When I told him that I do, he gave me two free tickets to a rock concert for the next day! (I think he'd gotten them for free because he's in the press.) After more talking, and waiting for the seating to open, he asked if we were in the right area for the auditorium. I pointed to where the auditorium was, and he said, "Oh. Well let's go!" I told him that I only had a ticket for the projection, and he just said, "Come with me." He told the woman at the door who he was, asked if I could come with, and she said yes! It was really great to be there!

Before the anthropologist spoke, a poet told a story about the beginning of the earth. The auditorium went completely dark at the beginning to help us imagine the world before light. It was a really cool effect, and I felt so lucky to be there to see it instead of just watching a dark screen outside! lol.

Mark Augé, the anthropologist, had a heavy French accent, and it was easy for me to understand his Spanish because he pronounced every word carefully. He talked about "no-places" like shopping malls and McDonald's, and said that these places represent worldwide oligarchy and don't have much culture to them. He talked, too, about identity and the internet: we can all wear multiple masks on the internet and create our own worlds. "No-places" and internet culture are things that have interested me for a while. The lecture was really good. =)

The concert was by Blackbow, an Argentine band a lot like Guns 'N' Roses, with my friend Raluca. I saw the journalist, Juan, jumping around in the moshpit from the start. He jumped around so much that his shoes broke! I drank Quilmes, the Argentine beer, for the first time and also danced (although not in the moshpit!). Juan talked to me in English, which I thought was sweet, and we exchanged phone numbers. He said that he has free theater tickets for later and invited Raluca and I to go. A very exciting night! =)

The music was great, and the rock scene here is almost exactly the same as it is in the US. I was interested by the shoes (Raluca called it an obsession, lol. What can I say? I'm very interested in culture!). There were lots of people wearing Converse (some pairs completely dirty, and some impeccably clean), and other people wearing boots and super-high heels.

Most of the rest of my weekend, I think, will be spent reading about Latin-American history! I might also go to some literature festival or library bicentenario events. Time will tell!

Chau!
Kaeli