candokid

There’s no place like home.

Nothing will beat the feeling of coming back home to your old stomping grounds. The place you truly know. Back to family and friends, and most of all – familiarity. It’s like pulling into a calm harbor after spending a long time out in the open seas. You let your guard down because you know you are in a safe place. Coming home is like seeing your best friend that you grew up with all your years since childhood, welcoming you back to the place that knows you best and saw you grow up from being that young adolescent boy everybody knew to the grown man today, ready to take on the world.

You start to reconnect with your roots and remember the person you were before. There were these mixed feelings about how coming back would be and there was the fear that things would be very different from before; The fear of change . However, as quickly as the warm buzz of being home starts to dissipate, you begin to realize that not much has actually changed about it like you had thought. The real change that has taken place is YOU.

The only constant in life is change . That ancient saying by Heraclitus never really made sense until now. And as hard as I try to hold on to my special image of home, the place I would often think about and all the people while I was away, it’s come to my realization that as we continue to grow older, your idea of home as the place you always remembered it only serves as a distant memory. As we explore new places, encounter different people and cultures, and tackle new challenges and experiences in life, the former training ground, home, has not changed much while you were away, only you are seeing it now with new eyes.

Yet still, we carry this ideal image of home in our minds as a place of warmth and comfort. It’s because no matter where we go or where we end up, home will always be that place you know that’s just waiting there for you to return someday to welcome you back and see how the world has shaped you into a new man every time.

I'm back in San Diego at last, and now one year older. Last Monday I turned 25. I guess the only significance in the age is that it is a quarter century of life, and also you can rent cars as an "adult." ;) It hasn't been too crazy being back like I thought it would be, but having Simone here has been great and catching up with family and old friends has also been wonderful.

So since I've been back, I've been meeting up with people, going to the beach, and even went to Vegas! I arrived at LAX fairly early around 1030am on the 10th of September. Joey and Armando picked me up and we headed to Jason's place to hang out. We met up with Jason and John R. (buenos aires) and had a nice day at Jason's place with some quality beers - fat tires, blueberry, etc. and some medicinal stuff jason had. We indulged in some wonderful mexican food as well, which really hit the spot after 2 years! Spent a few days catching up with Cjay, the cousins, hanging out with the friends with Brasil Day in PB, a nice dinner from Carley at her place with the friends, and a old skool party at Joey's like normal.

This past weekend was spent in LA. Simone and I went up to LA on thursday night to crash at my aunt's place who lives 10 minutes from the park. It was nice to catch up with them. They bought us some delicious pizza, coronas, had some good conversation and fed us B.L.T.s for breakfast! It's great being back in the states and getting so much hospitality from family. What can I say about Disneyland.... AMAZING. We had the best time ever at Disneyland. It was really the happiest place on Earth. We went from ride to ride, had some delcious food, and topped it off with the night time disney show, Fantasmic, which was really cool. The night ended as we drove to Jason's place in Hollywood (I was exhausted and trying not to fall asleep at the wheel).

Next morning we woke up fairly early and headed towards Hollywood Boulevard. We wanted to see the Hollywood walk of fame and see some of the celebrity stars on the street, along with the Chinese Mann Theatre and Kodak Theatre (where the grammys and emmys are held). It was a lot of fun as even I had never been there before. It's definitely a different vibe than San Diego and it was lots of fun to take pictures and see a lot of characters dressed up in front of the theatre. We had a little healthy lunch at a health food store nearby then headed back to Jason's place. Next stop - Hollywood Hills. Actually, that was a quick stop to get a good shot of the Hollywood sign on the Hollywood hills. It was a really hot day so we didn't stay for too long. We headed towards Glendale where we picked up John (carless - dui) and headed to Venice Beach. Unfortunately we hit Saturday LA traffic and were stuck for about an hour trying to get to the beach. So we ended up detouring and driving through the entire LA city center, switched a bunch of freeways, almost got into a car crash, and finally ended up in Venice Beach.

Venice beach was really interesting. I had never been before, but I'd heard so many things about it. It kind of reminded of me of the San Telmo Fair in Buenos Aires for the fact that there were lots of hippies selling things, street performers, and very "unique" people. After walking through the boardwalk and enjoying some entertainment and mexican food we decided to head back to Hollywood and then back to San Diego for Robin's birthday. We got home after fighting some more traffic in LA, but were so exhausted that we called it an early night.

Last couple of days have been pretty tranquilo. Hanging out with the family, watching movies, buffets, etc. Today Simone and I are planning on heading to Balboa park to check out some of the museums that are free on tuesday. Afterwards hopefully we'll be heading to old town to get some margaritas and food with andrey and robin, and then see where the night takes us. I have to apply to work at REI today. I hope it works out!

Cheers

So the countdown begins....

 

Less than 48 hours until my planes touches down in Los Angeles International and I am once again on US soil. I've been kind of lost in my feelings and thoughts about how it will be to come back home after such a long time away. It's been almost 2 years.... 1 year and 10 months to be exact, that I've been living in Buenos Aires and traveling around South America.

I don't think I'll be able to do justice to the people I've met and places I've been, by trying to summarize my time here in a timeline-like entry. It'd be simpler to say, life-changing. In so many ways I've changed. The experiences I've had, comfort zones, lifestyle, adaptability and change, perspective on life, people, and work,interests, goals...

I can't say if the decision I made to move down here or the decisions I've made along the way have made me better or put me in a more favorable situation, but I can say that I have no regrets whatsoever because everything I've done in my life has lead me up to this point. It's just a new page I'll be turning after what's been an interesting and exciting chapter of my life. Like I've said many times in the past, it's no so much the places I've been, but the people that make the experience. It's the people that you meet and share the moments with in that particular place, in that particular moment in time. If nothing else,you'll always have the memories that you shared with those people in that place in time.

It's been so strange for me because I've seen so many people go through it - stressed with packing, sorting out tickets, taxes, and transportation, saying goodbyes - and now it's finally my turn. I'm ready for this next chapter in my life...I know it's just a short while, but it'll be interesting to see how fast I adapt to change, especially after being away for 2 years!

I've been really enjoying my last few days as they have been full of friends going out of there way to see me before I go, reminiscing on good times had, and just enjoying the moment we spend all together in this place. Tonight I have my last BAFA game (for now at least) and then afterwards going to be having a chill night of pizza, wine, and friends!

The day is winding down and I can't think of anything better to do than to take a hot shower, have a nice dinner, and just chill at home and watch a movie tonight. The last couple of days have been very eventful as there have been many despedidas in the Salta House - Marion (France), Fanny (in 2 days, Friday to France), Henrik (Denmark) , Alice (travel then France), and Leo (Mar Del Plata). 

There was a big party last Friday at the Salta House and it was spectacular. Deniz made a delicious dinner consisting of mixed veggies, green thai chicken curry, and lentils. The night was spent listening to really good music and dancing in the basement/kitchen. Before we knew it, the sun was coming up and it was time to say goodbye to Leo. A few of us went with him to Retiro bus station to see him off. We all immediately passed out with the sun shining when we got home.

Saturday I had to put in a lot of effort. I was running off of 2.5 hours of sleep and I had a futbol match at Soler. After the match I was kind of in a hurry to get back as my friend Robin, who is from San Diego but doing some student teaching in Santiago, Chile, is here to visit for a week. As still recovering from the night before, I decided to take it easy and chill out at home.

Sunday was  a beautiful day. Ended up waking up to the sun already out, getting some lunch and then towards the afternoon some of the housemates and I headed for San Telmo to enjoy the feria and to buy some souvenirs! There was so much to do and see and I could tell that Robin was really enjoying it! As dusk fell, we headed back to the house and went to the terazza. Gustavo helped make a wonderful asado and we ended up staying up late again all talking until about 3ish. Robin was feeling under the weather with migraine pains.

Monday I didn't have to work. So instead I slept in late and pretty much relaxed at home until it was time to go to la bomba. The french girls came up with the idea to go to the Pan Americana Hotel off 9 de Julio and we had to dress up a little nice to pretend like we were guests there. Up to the 23rd floor we went where they have an indoor heated pool and bar, along with a terazza with one of the best views from on top of the city overlooking everything at sunset. La bomba was absolutely insane. Great times as usual and afterwards we headed to La Puerta Roja. Talk about a flash from the past! I haven't been there in ages and it was good to see some of the old faces working there. Ended up coming home around 3ish.

Yesterday I worked overtime and hung around the house. I took a little nap and then puffed a little with Lucho before heading to futbol at 8. What an experience... it was great playing but I was having a hard time running the whole time with a dry throat and mouth. Lucho filmed the match and he ended up getting some really good footage. As it was Marion's last night in Buenos Aires, we decided to have a little get together at the house. As we normally do, we ended up drinking in the living room until about 230am when we finally headed out to Fusion to see Kyle and have a good time. It was pretty empty in the place, but still managed to enjoy playing pool, cheap drinks, and dancing to some good music on the empty dance floor except for us. We ended up getting back around 530 or so and I was sooo tired.

Today I stayed at home most of the day. In the afternoon at about sunset, Lucho and I took the bikes for a spin down to Puerto Madero. We had a fun adventure through the parks, streets and fountains and finally came back about an hour ago. Now it's time to make some delicious burgers, relax on the roof, and watch a movie! Cheers

It's been a while since I've consistently updated this thing. I guess I was sort of confused as to what I was going for... to blog about my daily activities and exciting adventures or to write about the things I have going on in my mind and/or things that interest me. The result is the new layout and name I have for my blog "The Urban Jungle," as well as a new blog I've created entitled "The World Is A Playground," (http://michaelcando.wordpress.com) dedicated more to my creative writing and general thoughts about the world and the things that interest me the most.

Looking back on the last year and the amount that I am able to recall, I am sort of regretting now not documenting more of it down in here. At the same time, I feel that that is due to the way I have been living my life and experiencing so much more than I ever had before. I feel like this last year I have grown enormously, especially being in a loving relationship with my girlfriend, Simone. As well, I've been fortunate enough to have saved money to do some traveling through Punta Del Este, Uruguay for Christmas, Salta in the north of Argentina, all over Bolivia and Peru as well. I definitely busted my ass though working many many hours to save and even picking up a private conversation English student once a week in Palermo, which is great as my student Diego is a very easy and relaxed student. We just meet up Thursday evenings for an hour and a half, which normally turns into 2+ hours talking about life and whatever is going on at the moment. And then of course there is BAFA, Buenos Aires Futbol Amigos. The club has grown significantly as we've even added a new day to the weekly games, made jerseys, have a website (www.fcbafa.com) and are in the planning stages of monthly or possibly bi-weekly tournaments. I've been having a lot of fun and hoping that in my stead, Dave, Marcelo, and the rest of the BAFA crew will keep the spirit alive!


I find myself now facing the last month of my time in Buenos Aires til I have a long "vacation" back home in San Diego for about 3 1/2 months and then hopefully to Germany to be with Simone for about 3 weeks in January (that is, if I can get a job and make some money while I'm back in San Diego). I'm hoping that this last month I'll be able to document the lifestyle I've grown so accustomed to and the place I have called home for the last year and 10 months.

Although I will truly miss Buenos Aires, the people, and the spontaneity that is sure to keep you on your feet, I am looking forward to seeing family and friends that I have been missing and catch up on what's been going on. I am also looking forward to getting in a lot of relaxation, eating a lot of good food and spending time at the beach. Truth be told, I can not say what the next year will have in store for me, just that although I don't want to think about it, money will be playing a bigger role as I am slowly, but surely paying off the credit card debts, but the student loan debts are starting to make their presence ever more apparent. I am toying with possibility of moving to Berlin to be closer to Simone, yet also to try living in a new culture with a new language....and a new currency...EUROS :)

I realize how much I miss looking back on here and reliving the adventures I've had and all the wonderful times. This time around though, I'm going to focus on living it as much as I can as well as documenting it. Here's to brighter horizons!

Today was departure day for my best bud in Argentina, BJ. It was just like any other normal day though, just as we would normally have it. Woke up and let the sun shine into the room. Had our morning mate with our friend Lucho. Walked around the neighborhood and had some ice cream, and even stopped by to say hello to our old landlord and roommate, Pamela. I really have gotten used to seeing people make the big change in their life and head back home. This one was especially hard as it finally hit me as I gave my best bud one last hug as he headed out to the airport. BJ has been my sidekick through the thick and the thin here in the madness of the city, much like Robin was before. As time progressed and he learned the ways of the city, it became a big amusing game that we played, constantly learning the ways of the Argentine people, and him always knowing what I was thinking or going to do before I did it was always a welcomed reminder that I have someone here who has my back and knows who I am and where I really come from. I know he will be fine, just like Robin is now, where he ends up. We would always catch ourselves in the moment and always remind each other how lucky we are to be where we are living the amazing life we were living. The last thing that I told him before he left was, Bj, it doesn't really matter where you are or who you are with, but to make it a good life regardless of the circumstances. He can bring the happiness and the sense of satisfaction with life wherever he goes. Bring the buena onda and buenas vibras with him.

After we parted ways, Simone and I checked out the apartment where we were thinking of living. WOW! That is all I have to say about this place. It's a huge, beautiful apartment located on Independencia and Defensa, so close to everything in San Telmo. The apartment is simply incredible. There is a huge kitchen, huge living and dining room with a tv, balcony, leather italian sofas, art work, a bike storage for my bike, and in our room we have a HUGE bathroom with a bathtub, a closet 4x the size of our current one, queen size bed, and the corner master bedroom is surrounded with windows looking onto the avenue. It's one of those amazing ones with the balcony that people see from the street and think, wow, I would love to live there. And the great thing is that it is cheaper than all the other places we looked at. The owner is in Italy, and recently his wife came and redecorated everything! Downside is that we are going to be paying dollars which continues to skyrocket amidst the peso, but $450 between 2 is definitely not bad at all. I'm looking forward to the new experience of living with my girlfriend, although it will only be about 3 months, it will be a big learning experience regardless.

So now I find myself in a new stage in my Buenos Aires life. With most of my English-speaking friends gone for the motherland, I am surrounded more by foreigners and Argentines, where our common grounds for communication is Castellano Spanish. It will be a great way for me to practice more of my Castellano and hopefully get better soon

The passing of time and my intent in really trying to live in the moment and take advantage of the beauty around me has found me here, a few months short from my last documentation of my life in Buenos Aires. Actually, if I'm being honest with myself, the other reason could be that I have just been downright lazy and haven't found the passion to write in a while.

I will say that what's going on in my life right now is noteworthy, so I find myself back here. Just a few days ago my good friend and mentor, Barry "Bazza" Barrayarza said his final goodbye to Buenos Aires as after 14 years in this "theatre" or "laboratory" of a city as he would call it, he has finally decided to make a change and head to beautiful California. I guess the common thing in my life right now has been change and departures. I've had to say goodbye to a lot of good friends recently as they start new adventures in their lives. My good friend, John Rodriguez, finally decided to head back home to California a few weeks ago too as just like most of the expats here, found difficulties trying to make a decent wage. My old french roommate, Pauline, just left about a week ago to return to the little town life in France with her boyfriend and start a new beginning as she intends to change her course of studies for something more meaningful to her, teaching. Coming up real soon, in about a week, one of my best friends and side kick here in Buenos Aires the last 8 months, BJ, will be making the trip across the atlantic back to California as well to start up his own business with his family, Colorfornia Homestyles.

It's beginning a new chapter in my life here in Buenos Aires. As summer and fall fade to the incoming chills of winter, it brings a new perspective yet again to my everchanging surroundings here in the city of good airs. I find myself back again in my old stomping grounds of the Salta house, yet with new people and a new onda. I see the city and people here with new eyes again as I recollect what I was experiencing and feeling here just a year ago, never with the thought that I would still be here one year later!

Yet as time quickly passes without much notice, as the seasons change and faces change, as the scope of my understanding of the chemistry of different people and cultures continues to grow, I can't help but be thankful again for where I am in my life and with the people I have surrounding me. Although time passes and people come and go, the friendships and memories will always remain and I still think I am the luckiest guy alive....although not in the best health, or with much money.... I have so many wonderful people to call my friends and family, great lessons that I've learned along the way, and memories that I will alway look back on with much fondness.

Happy Easter!

Time flies when you're having fun. That's what they say, right? I like to think that time flies when you are living your life, through the good, the bad, the bitter and sweet. The year 2008 has come and past and it's time for new beginnings. The last day of 2008 in Buenos Aires was a wet one, and as my roommate Pam said, it's the cleansing and preparation for a new start in the new year. As I look back at the last 365 days of my life, I reflect on so much that has passed and again am thankful for where life has taken me.

2008 started off on the beaches of Praia Mole on the island side of Barra da Lagoa in Florianopolis, Brazil. I remember sitting there on the beach staring off into the horizon, and watching the time slowly pass as the sun came down thinking about how fortunate I was to be in that place. I still had a year left in South America and was so excited for all the new experiences and challenges that awaited me on my South American Adventure!

This past year found me immersing in a new language and culture, crossing borders while exploring foreign lands, and being in some of the world's most beautiful wonders of the world. Getting myself into crazy jobs selling futbol tickets for the boca jrs. mafia, telemarketing to accountants back in the states, tutoring/ teaching english to chinese-argentine kids in the rich buenos aires, throwing house parties to pay rent, and student advising at a Spanish School!Discovering my passion for futbol,making lifelong friends from far off countries, and finding myself in a relationship with my beautiful girlfriend, Simone.

I've gotten myself into some trouble along the way, but always found my way back onto the right track. Through the long nights and happy endings, a few pieces of advice that I can extract that have helped me: Always seek growth as a person by putting yourself in situations that are new and sometimes uncomfortable. Push the boundaries of what you know and understand by striving to full take advantage of opportunities that are right in front of you. Always think positive, because no matter how bad it gets, it can always be worse....and what good does it do to be see the worst in things, anyway? Be kind to everyone you meet along the way, you never know when that kindness will come back to you, sometimes when you need it the most!

I still can't believe it's been over a year away. Although I truly miss my family and best friends back at home (you know who you are), I realize that what I'm doing now is what I'm supposed to be doing. And where I am is where I'm supposed to be. It seems like forever since I've seen you all, but know that I love and miss you all very much, and would love to be there in an instant to see and be with you guys. It maybe be soon, or it may be a while til I see you again, back in San Diego or a rendezvous somewhere out in the world.

I've gotten used to constant change and readapting. Buenos Aires is such a transient place as people are always coming and going and nothing is ever certain here. I think it's not such a bad thing because if things keep on changing, then you are always growing. I have no idea where this next year will take me or where I will be when 2010 comes around, but i'm excited for what it will bring. This new year I am looking to continue growing, maturing, and seeing the world as it happens around me through a 360 point of view and fully take in the experience with all my senses.

I hope this new year brings you good health and success in all your endeavors.

So here I am it's in my hands, and I'll savor every moment of this.

The time is around 5:16 as I begin this entry. I am just about to start my Sunday if you can believe that. The last 24 hours has been somewhat a psychedelic blur as I am reminiscing the bright lights and beating rhythmic sounds that from last night and early this morning. I am referring to Creamfields Buenos Aires (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creamfields#Buenos_Aires) It is a huge dance electronic music festival which has featured big names in the past such as Paul Oakenfold, DJ Tiesto, Chemical Brothers, and Gorillaz Soundsystem. This year the highlights for me included Bajofondo, DeadMau5, Gorillaz Soundsystem, UNKLE live, David Guetta (who I will get back to in a sec), Steve Lawler, Erick Morillo (badass), Satoshi Tomiie, y finalmente, Bad Boy Orange (representing Bahrein, WHAT!?!). It was incredible! So many people everywhere...lying passed out on the ground amidst thousands of empty bottles and cups, music worshippers in a trance like stand with their eyes closed and bodies swaying with hard beat and every chilled out chorus.

At one point a few of us tried to get into the David Guetta (French DJ)  tent, which even from a distance looked like it was going to be a challenge. We pushed our way through the enormous sea of people, trying to get in close enough to feel the soundwaves. We got as far as the border of the tent until we realized that maybe it wasn't such a great idea. The tent was clearly filled to overcapacity as people we flooding out of the tent, some in a hurry as in their drugged up state, they couldn't take sweltering heat from underneath the tent as well as the moshpit swaying of the crowd. There were some that were drugged up to the point that they couldn't control themselves and were swaying their arms about, hitting people. Decided it wasn't a fun atmosphere for us, so myself, Hannah, and our Argie friend headed out, but it seemed like forever as we literally swam and pushed our way out of the sea of sweaty people! Felt so good to feel fresh air again!

Some highlights included meeting a random Canadian girl with the crew and selling her something tiny that had slipped out a it's little paper container, which after scouring the grassy terrain, I managed to miraculously find, paying 52 pesos for 2 hamburgers, 2 fries, and 2 waters, first time water trip with Jenny and Baptiste, mountain of porros, DJ tents with room to dance and strut your stuff, waiting for an hour and a half at 6am trying to find a taxi to take us home.

All in all it was an incredible time. Thanks to all my friends who were there with me!

I find myself here, at nearly 6:30 in the morning, unable to sleep. Elections are over and the votes have been cast. The United States of America, nay, the World has a new leader. His name is Barrack Obama. Over the last few weeks and months even, we've been mildly privy to the  whiplash which had been propandized all over the media. Luckily to a much lesser extent than what our friends back home on the mainland have been exposed to. Yet we've been keeping a watchful eye on what's been going on in American politics, especially in the race for the whitehouse.

It's seemed like over the last year that I have been living in Argentina, there have been many deficits in the American way of life such as in gas prices, international relations, and the economy for example. Such deficits have had me questioning a return back to the United States and from an outside perspective of the United States as a country while living in a foreign country, I feel I have a better sense of where the U.S. actually stands in terms of its' international presence as a declining world superpower.

Yet the hype of new leadership and promise for CHANGE somehow seemed to spark my interest, as it seemed for the first time in a long time, there was a chance to make the United States stand out once again as the "shining beacon of hope" that it used to respresent in the world. In Obama I see our country as a unifying force, and hope to see it mend its differences within, as well as in the international scene. I derive my pride in these elections from a particular quote I like citing an article form CNN.com:

"Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz called the U.S. election an "example of democracy at its best," citing Americans' "plethora of opportunities" to learn about the candidates' policies and stance on key issues. It also paid tribute to Obama's unifying influence, saying, "Whites and blacks, Jews and Muslims, all decided to give their votes to a candidate who is young, black and lacking in governmental experience," and expressed its hope that the President-elect would "rehabilitate the status of a superpower that remains unrivaled in its influence over the peace and welfare of all humanity."

We, the United States have so much potential to make the world a better place. Obama has filled what was once an empty cup in the world, with hope. Hope that wars will begin to find their end, stabilized economies will provide food on the table, the environment will have a resurgence in prosperity, and that people the world over can fully realize and enjoy true freedoms.

I'm so proud of my country right now. So happy that they made the right choice. And so hopeful that the promise of CHANGE brings a renewed faith the world over. Obama 08'

Patagonia bound in just a few hours....

Headed down to Calafate in Patagonia, followed by Puerto Natales in Chile and then Torres del Paine National Glaciar Park to do the W Circuit Trek, which is on the top 50 things to do before you die list! 

Super excited and will update as soon I get back! CHEERS! LA PURA VIDA!!

So it's hump day. Wednesday. I feel like I've accomplished a lot more  or less. I finished work and got some overtime hours in. Cooked some good food. Met some new people at our house. Responded to a bunch of facebook messages and emails that I've been lagging on responding to. Now it's still pretty early, about 9pm. I am kind of bored and there's not too many people around that are free. It's kind of nice to finally have some free time to just relax....

I think tonight is going to be a tranquil night...cook up some good food, watch the Sigur Ros movie, some wine and maybe some ice cream! yum, it's nice to take care of myself for once.

It's about 9:15pm and I am awoken after a nap by the sound of sweet Beatles music playing below my room in the courtyard and the wonderful aroma of fresh French crepes being cooked downstairs in the kitchen. What a way to be greeted back into the conscious world!

Jenny and Pauline are preparing a Thai dinner and French crepe  desert for the house as Robin is leaving later on tonight at 3am for Ezeiza Int'l to fly to Peru and begin his travels with family. I am excited for this ethnic mouthwatering feast that awaits us, but probably not as much as I am for Robin for the adventure that he is about to embark on. The plan is to rendezvous with him, Dana, and their mom in Cordoba in about 2 weeks for Oktoberfest, but if not we will be meeting up in south Chile, in the Patagonia countryside of Calafate and Puerto Natales to do some hiking and trekking in the glaciar, lake, and mountain districts.

"Let the world change you and you can change the world."

The triple threat birthday SUPER FIESTA was in my opinion the best party we've had at the Salta house. There was an enormous and wonderful turn out of good friends, it was surprising that we knew almost all of the 150 or so people who came out to help us celebrate our birthdays. After the delicious steak dinner we headed over to Robin's house to throw back some beers and wine before heading to the party where they were going to charge for booze. We had a fun group gather to our place and it quickly transformed into a drunken photo shoot, good times!

We were rolling pretty deep to the party, our entourage and all...but what can you expect, you have 2 out of 3 of the celebrants in our crew. The party was bumping, people were dancing, laughing, and having a good time. At one point during the night Robin appeared on the roof above the terrace, overlooking the entire party. He had his top hat on, sunglasses on, and was leading the dancing via the rooftop! People were cheering for the birthday boy...it was a really funny sight to see. BJ and myself joined him on  the roof and we all sat there overlooking the party and the city of Buenos Aires in the backdrop at night. What a great party and how surreal is it that we're all here together celebrating on such a beautiful night! Quickly the crowd followed us onto this small rooftop and a little dance party started on top of the dance party. At one point during the night it started to sprinkle-rain a little bit and rather than run for cover, we encouged the party to keep raging through...let's dance in the rain!

Downstairs people were hanging out near the bar, throwing down handles of whiskey and chillin out. At some point, Barry, Bj and I decided to call it an early night, around 6am. Sunday was a great day, Robin's actual birthday. I'm quite sure that anyone that went to our party on Saturday night didn't get out of their bed or homes until sometime after 3 or 4pm. It was raining pretty consistent and hard. We decided to make it a chill day and headed over to Robin's and watched the film, "Motorcycle Diaries" over some delicious pizza and mate. Later that evening we met up and had an ethic dinner a few blocks away at "Monolo's" which had a huge Paella meal, which Robin, BJ, Alyssum and I split and even then couldn't finish! Afterwards we took all of our leftovers and found some homeless people and gave them a great meal.

So what else left to do......well, we wanted to stay up until 3am to stay awake with Taelor until she was to catch her taxi for her 620am flight. So we did what anyone else would do....walk around on the streets of Buenos Aires kicking around empty plant pots and having some remedies on the side of the freeway, alongside the widest street in the world. NO BIG DEAL!!! jeje. We found ourselves singing songs and contemplating things in life. We eventually made our way back to Alyssum and Taelor's hostel where we just chilled out until we had to part ways for the time being until we run into each other again somewhere in the world!

It's been a great week, week and a half celebrating the birthdays and having wonderful friends in town. Thanks to all, much love.

What a birthday week it's been! Turning 24 has been a much different birthday experience than previous ones I've had. I know it's only one year older, yet I feel that it's much more than that. My 23rd year of life has been a wonderful one. I've learned more and experienced more than I think I have than any other year of life before. I was never really self-conscious about my age before, and I guess I am feeling a it little bit now...nothing too serious though, I feel young and healthy and there's a lot to look forward to this year and many years to come.

I spent my birthday this year surrounded by some of my closest friends here in Buenos Aires. Two of my friends from back in college in San Diego, Taelor and Allysum have been in town for about a week so far, to visit and also help celebrate my birthday as well as Robin's which is tonight at midnight. I gathered about 20 of our futbol players and rented out the entire Soler Cancha (soccer field) and we played two games of 5v5. While we were playing, Cacho (the guy that runs the place) cooked up a delicious asado (bbq) with ribs, steaks, chicken, peppers, bread, and drinks. It was great to be surrounded by all my fun futbol buddies from our futbol group, F.C. Bafa (REPRESENT!!!) and share a good meal after som fun games.

Later that night we had a previa (pre-drink) at my place which then was moved over to my buddy Camara's place since he was also having his going away party. At one point in the night I just stopped and reminisced with Robin. Looking at the great group of people present, enjoying and having a great time with mucho buena onda (good vibes) I was just feeling so appreciative that we are fortunate enough to have such great and inspirational friends around us to celebrate the good times here in Buenos Aires. So where to go next....no other place to ring in the birthday than our regular bar, La Puerta Roja. It was an increible and memorable night filled with drinks, laughs, and good friends.

The next day Taelor, Allysum, Robin, Barry, BJ and I met up at our place and we decided to indulge in some remedies. It was Sunday which is my favorite day to be in San Telmo. We walked around and enjoyed the San Telmo fair, listening to some of the street musicians, picking up some food, and finally ending up at the bike rental store. Got ourselves equipped with some bright orange bikes with little bells on them, clearly indicating we were foreigners! :) , and headed out for a two hour bike ride around Puerto Madero. It was just a really beautiful and relaxing day...we ended up enjoying some time at an open park until it started to rain a little bit and we headed back. At one point crossing the docks, there were dark clouds on the horizon and a beautiful rainbow burst through. Twas really lovely. Decided to head back for a tranquilo noche, so we got some delcious ice cream at a local helado place and headed back to the house. I smelled something burning back at the house and thought it was the neighbors upstairs burning something so I yelled up towards the roof to let them know something was burning. Everyone started laughing, and little did I know that it was because in fact my friends cooking some brownies as my birthday cake! hahahaha. It was a beautiful night....we bought some gourmet pizza, a few bottles of wine, and all snuggled up on two beds full of pillows and watched "Sprout," my favorite surfing dvd. It was a great, relaxing birthday, thanks guys!

On Monday we spent the day at the park as well in Puerto Madero just enjoying the warm spring time weather back in Buenos Aires. When night fell, we headed over to Konex Center for La Bomba De Tiempo, which was actually outside on the stairs for the first time in many months since it was the start of spring. We danced the night away and had a blast in the dance pit. Of course we had to follow it up with La Rica Vicky peruvian food! That pretty much ended the night!

We just finished playing a hard and fun game of futbol. My futbol buddies ended up surprising me with a authentic Argentina futbol jersey, it's so awesome!!!! So stoked. Earlier in the game, Robin and I both went up for a header and collided, him receiving a huge blow to the forehead and me to the temple. It was scary cause I guess I blacked out for a few seconds not responding, but all is good now. We are going to have a nice steak, salad, and wine dinner, and then start the party for tonight. I've gotten clearance to once again throw a huge SUPER FIESTA back at the old Salta house we lived in. Fittingly to celebrate Robin's, our friend German's, as well as my extended birthday we have a dj, bar, and rooftop dance party which is sure to bring over 100 people. Our notorious well-known and requested SUPER FIESTAS is back for a special ocassion! Can't wait!!!!

Til next time... (surely filled with fun pics from tonight) CHAUUU!

For a while I used to wonder, "why do they call it Buenos Aires?" It's a pretty smoggy city with lots of pollution. Yet morning sunrise after sunrise, and sunset after sunset, it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful the colors of the horizon blend together so brilliantly like a light show in the sky. Breathless

The last couple of weeks have flown by without taking much notice on my part. As the seasons change and spring has come back around knocking on Buenos Aires' door, the realization has set in that we are reaching our fourth season here for a full rotation in Buenos Aires living. The great part in all this is that it is said that spring time is simply beautiful and the best time to be around here. The fact is that the last 9 months is like a cookie jar filled with sweet memories. Our friend Nicole said that her time spent in Europe all seems like a dream to her.

The way I like to think about it is this... One day in the far off future (I hope), I will be somewhere else in the world looking back at my pictures from Buenos Aires. I'm sure I will be reminiscing and thinking about all the wonderful times here, wishing I could just jump into the images and relive them all again. Now the gift of foresight in this case is mentally training my mind to think in this certain way such that I am creating these photos in the present.

I remember one time back in San Diego we had a motivational speaker come speak to my friends and I about something similar to this. He said, "I want you to close your eyes and think about yourself 10 years from now. What are you doing, or better, who are you? Have you done all the things you've wanted to do. Seen all the things you've wanted to see. If your answer is no, I'm going to give you the greatest gift of all. Open your eyes. I'm going to give you those 10 years back so that you can make your life what you want."

It's like the present is a gift so to speak and so I've been doing my best to grab a firm grip on this bull called life because it's been a pretty wild ride so far.

And as my good friend Bj likes to say, wherever you are, there you are . So here I am. And all the images of people and places tend to all blend together as in a full 360 view of things, the things I've been lucky to experience here have made a significant impact on my being. The important thing to remember here, or anywhere in general, is to accept new experiences fully - using all of your senses. Be keen to the way it SMELLS a distinct and pleasantly refreshing cool after it rains, FEEL your satisfaction reaching your stomache's' capacity as you scarf down an incredible Peruvian meal, SEE todlers riding the subway lines, dirty and undernourished begging for food and money. HEAR the roar of the city as Argentina takes the gold medal in their beloved passion, futbol. TASTE these new and exciting experiences for what they're worth, but know that no experience bears more weight than others. It's about they way you feel at a certain point in your life, wherever you are. It could be thousands of miles from home, or in the comfort of your childhood home. Be excited for the future for it is whatever you want it to be, yet remember that the present is the future of the past. So live freely in the present.

Thanks to all the wonderful people who contribute to the photo album in my head that is running a 24 hour reel, constantly capturing the experiences and reminding me to keep living them.

                     

                                                   

                          to            
              (Accessorized for warmth)                                                   (Yet feeling like it's summer!)

From bundling up and layering on the unfamiliar scarf, gloves, and cap combo to brace for the chilly winter winds..... back to wearing my reefs, board shorts (because I like to pretend I'm going to the beach), and sunglasses enjoying the strangely mild climate. Buenos Aires has been experiencing a range of weather this "winter." However the last week or so has been much more enjoyable and it reminds me of when we first arrived in Buenos Aires last December when it was so gorgeous out that everyone would just love to be outside - walking around, relaxing in a plaza listening to live music, or maybe just taking a nap in the park. The Argentines tell me that these recent weather patterns and conditions are much like the spring time around here, which hits sometime around September. They say its the most beautiful time to be in the city as amdist the business of the city, one can find some peace in the day admiring the natural beauty of the people examining day to day life in motion. As well,  one can appreciate the perfect weather, as in every direction at sunset you are surrounded by lots of greenery in the parks and docks, the sounds of people chit-chatting and laughing, the flashing lights of day's end traffic, but most importantly the dusk sky which resembles an artist's stroke of a brush that paints the horizon a cascading blend of light blues, pinks, purples, reds, and orange. If you find yourself at the docks around this time, it is definitely a sight to behold - as if the sky is giving you a preview of Heaven's Gates.

                               
     (Looking out of E.M.O.                             (Sunset dockside,
          headquarters!)                                                    Puerto Madero)

                                             
                                               (Beautiful mid-day picnic in Parque Las Heras)

This beautiful weather has been keeping me pretty active over here. The last couple of weeks I've been enjoying a little break between jobs (will get to my first day of my new job later) and keeping pretty busy doing some volunteering, playing futbol and pool, and having fun with friends. Robin and I celebrated the 4th of July over at our friend Justin's place with a bunch of Americans keeping it relatively low key. I thought about how 4th of July was spent last year and it brought back many fond memories of good friends at the beaches along the Pacific, drinking all day in the sun having fun with all the beachgoers and not remembering what happened the next morning. =) Those were some fun times and I was thinking about what everyone was probably doing back home. I heard nothing too crazy happened, especially since drinking had been banned on the beaches.

             
          (Nadine drew self-portraits of her and myself)                    (These kids are a handful, but fun! :P )

                  
               (The Futbol Amigos, cada Martes y Sabado!)            (Two of my students I tutor, Andy & Denny)

Along with the United States' independence day on the 4th, Argentina celebrated its independence day on the 9th (Remember that Argentina's and the world's widest street is called 9 de Julio). It just so happened that the 9th of July fell on a Wednesday so since pretty much everyone (except for Robin and the rest of the poor folks who work for U.S. companies) had that Wednesday off, it meant that Tuesday would be a night of sheer debauchery. I spent the night hanging with some new friends from the U.S., but mostly with my Argentine buddies Rodrigo and Ciro. We started the night off actually at "Taco Tuesday"here at a place called California Burrito Company or CBC for short. They have some delicious burritos which are more similar to Chipotle than an authentic Mexican joint, but tasty nonetheless. The night was pretty much a blur as we raged through 3 bars and clubs alongside the amped up Argentines, young and old, dancing and drinking the night away!

      
   (Bruce Lee & I at 4th of July party)                                       (A couple friends "acting natural" at party)

                                         
                                                      (Salud!! Para la independencia de Argentina!)

Recently things have kind of slowed down for me. I started my new job today working for a company called Viva Corporation. I mentioned earlier in a previous entry that it's a medical transcription company based out of California and I work from home as part of the Quality Control team. I met the staff today who are really friendly and seem like a fun bunch. There are two of us trainees, myself and Eva (I actually hung out with her a few weeks back at a club - six degrees of separation, right!?!) for the next few days which should be packed with information, but I'm definitely glad to be actively working again. I got hooked up with the job from my good futbol mate, Dave, whom I am really grateful to have met. One of the coolest parts about the job (aside from the fact that it's the most exciting job ever ;P ) is that they direct deposit my paycheck directly into my bank, Wells Fargo in CA twice a month. That is so convenient for me and actually changes up the equation for my time here as it provides an option for paying off some debts at home, thus enabling me to remain down here for longer time. However as I've said before, I really have no concrete plans for the immediate or long term future...things just seem to happen when they are supposed to and I like living my life that way now.

      
       (La Puerta Roja.....GREEN with some friends)      (Electric rock guitarist jammin' in Plaza Dorrego)

                           
                                      (Hey MTV.....Welcome to my CRIB!!!)

So yeah, things have been going well over here. I'm really enjoying the weather, despite being  a little sick, and I'm looking forward to working and meeting a lot of new people. As well, my friend Vanessa Amador from college is studying abroad here this semester and just got into town so that will be great to hang out with her again. Also another friend Vanessa Penaflor from high school just got here and is here for a month or so doing some volunteer work. I'm so excited for all the visitors and friends coming to travel/live Argentina. Here's to appreciating the good things in life....

                                   
                                       (Racing in a taxi down Corrientes towards 'El Obelisko' )

Salud

For the last couple of weeks I've had friends tell me that I gotta check out Chinatown here in Buenos Aires. It's actually called "Barrio Chino," which means Chinese neighborhood, and it's located a couple train stops away in a distinct part of the Belgrano neighborhood. I had read an article on it from the BsAs event website What's Up Buenos Aires (http://whatsupbuenosaires.com/wuba2/) so I decided to check it out finally as  I'd been craving some delicious chinese food for some time and also wanted to pick up some authentic (more or less) ramen noodles and spices to make some curry!

                                                   

So I went with a couple buddies last Saturday with the weather kind of overcast and damp, on the verge of sprinkles. It was quite nice in my opinion seeing as I was feeling very mellow (probably because of alcohol the night before) and was in the mood to do some photography. The first stop we made was at a pretty extensive asian supermarket, fittingly called Casa China. It was great ; They had everything I was looking for - curry paste, coconut milk, ramen, sushi, all sorts of spicy sauces and asian beers...... even seaweed! Needless to say, I spent more money than intended, but it was definitely worth it!

       

Starving and eager to try some delicous chinese cuisine, we looked for an appetizing, yet reasonably-priced restaurant to satisfy our fill. Not looking to search too long, we opted for the latter as our qualifer of which restaurant we were going to eat at. I mean, the menu was hand-written on lined notebook paper and taped onto the window for crying out loud! But you can't necessarily judge a book by its cover. The article I read even suggested going to eat at a local looking place, where the locals eat. Well... this place looked like a local spot, but there weren't really any locals there. Come to think of it, I think we were the only ones there! My meal definitely hit the spot - egg drop soup and some sort of vegetable chow mein concoction consisting mostly of bean sprouts, cabbage, carrots, pork, onion, and a medley of other veggies that I think was one of the healthiest meals I've had in some time!

                                                  

                               

Afterwards we went wandering the streets checking out some of the many shops in the neighborhood, decked out with chinese hanging ornaments, loads of toys and gadgets, and souvenir type of gifts. We even got to see an almost-fight between an Argentine woman and a Chinese woman, scream out all sorts of obscenities at each other (some of which we could kind of make out) mostly dealing with prices and haggling I presume and shouts like "Why are you here, go back to your own country!" It was pretty amusing to say the least! Had a lot of fun taking pictures and just exploring another side to Buenos Aires I'd never seen before.

                    

I'm almost completely done with all my Asian food supplies, so I might need to be making my way back there again sometime soon! And maybe this time I will try a restaurant where there are locals and hanging corpses of animals to be eaten in the windows....uuuuuuuhhh!! =O