Copied from a Blog called Sexy Spanish Club in Buenos Aires
http://sexyspanishclub.blogspot.com/2006/12/chau-means-i-am-your-slave.html
"Anyway, one interesting thing I read in 'Eat. Pray. Love.' by Elizabeth Gilbert was about the origins of the standard goodbye we say/hear here in Argentina: Chau. It is, like the Portuguese Tchau, based on the Italian Ciao and you might be entertained to know that it is an abbreviation of a medieval Venetian intimate salutation: "Sono il suo schiavo!" which means "I am your slave!"
Thought you might want to know.
Chau
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Hey Folks,
I am out of the hospital!!!! And Kevin is taking me out to dinner this evening. Yippee! I do, however, remain tied to the hospital until we leave because I need iv antibiotics every 8 hours. But we get closer.
AnnKelly
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
We have reservations to return to the states tomorrow evening and will be back in Albuquerque Monday afternoon assuming all goes well. (Note that I accidentally said Tuesday and this is a correction to Monday).
Chau
I am out of the hospital!!!! And Kevin is taking me out to dinner this evening. Yippee! I do, however, remain tied to the hospital until we leave because I need iv antibiotics every 8 hours. But we get closer.
AnnKelly
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
We have reservations to return to the states tomorrow evening and will be back in Albuquerque Monday afternoon assuming all goes well. (Note that I accidentally said Tuesday and this is a correction to Monday).
Chau
Friday, December 29, 2006
Random Thoughts
Wednesday night I walked over to Palermo Hollywood for supper. I have managed to get a place to sit at decent restaurants because I am going out at the unfashionably early hour of 10PM. By 11PM there are long lines for almost every restaurant. Unfortunately it’s not all that much fun to go to a nice place to eat by yourself. One of my restaurant criteria is – is there enough light for me to read my book? Right now I am reading Absurdistan by Gary Shteynyngart and enjoying it immensely.
On my way home, there were incredible fireworks over the Rio Plata. I have no idea what was going on but - if you know those big chrysanthemum golden fireworks - there were maybe 50 in the air at one time. I didn’t bring my camera so I went home and got it and of course they stopped as soon as I got back to a place where I could see them. There were lots of other remarkable sights that night with no camera but perhaps that’s good.
A Funny Story – I swear it’s true.
On Monday, I was sitting at La Biela, a beautiful outdoor café in Recoleta. Behind me and to the right were seated a group of the most exquisite Argentines. They all had perfect hair, teeth, clothes. The men were in their forties or fifties and the women looked ten to twenty years younger or had had enough quality work that they appeared so. Many people walking by in front of La Biela stopped to point and look at them or to wave to them. They were obviously some of Buenos Aires beautiful people. They were TV perfection itself.
I, however do not do well in the heat and humidity – I get red faced and sweaty – I didn’t feel worthy of being in their presence. However, since I didn’t have Kelly, I had to take up the slack by snorkel-necking and making up scenarios for them – I was trying to decide if they were TV personalities from the news or an Argentine soap opera or perhaps famous sports figures; race car drivers or soccer stars from the last several decades. After a while I went back to Absurdistan and drifted off.
Then I felt a tap on my shoulder. One of the men from the table of beautiful people had come up to me and asked in English, “Excuse me – Your name is Kris Kristofferson?” With all the savoir faire I could muster I said, “No...Kevin”. He said “I’m sorry” and went back to his table. Over the next twenty minutes or so I could feel them staring at me. They finally left and all smiled and said goodbye as they went past. They stopped at the corner and looked back, shaking their heads, clearly not believing me.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
One of the nice things about moving to the apartment close to the hospital is that I no longer have to take cabs - I can walk. Taking cabs all the time was making me a nervous wreck. I really looked forward to riding in the Subte – the BA subway. It’s a far more civilized way to travel. I do have to say though that BA cabbies are the most remarkable drivers. You are never more than a micron away from other vehicles on all sides regardless of the speed. I am always expecting an imminent crash but it hasn't happened. The whole time I have been here I haven't seen a single fender bender.
Chau
On my way home, there were incredible fireworks over the Rio Plata. I have no idea what was going on but - if you know those big chrysanthemum golden fireworks - there were maybe 50 in the air at one time. I didn’t bring my camera so I went home and got it and of course they stopped as soon as I got back to a place where I could see them. There were lots of other remarkable sights that night with no camera but perhaps that’s good.
A Funny Story – I swear it’s true.
On Monday, I was sitting at La Biela, a beautiful outdoor café in Recoleta. Behind me and to the right were seated a group of the most exquisite Argentines. They all had perfect hair, teeth, clothes. The men were in their forties or fifties and the women looked ten to twenty years younger or had had enough quality work that they appeared so. Many people walking by in front of La Biela stopped to point and look at them or to wave to them. They were obviously some of Buenos Aires beautiful people. They were TV perfection itself.
I, however do not do well in the heat and humidity – I get red faced and sweaty – I didn’t feel worthy of being in their presence. However, since I didn’t have Kelly, I had to take up the slack by snorkel-necking and making up scenarios for them – I was trying to decide if they were TV personalities from the news or an Argentine soap opera or perhaps famous sports figures; race car drivers or soccer stars from the last several decades. After a while I went back to Absurdistan and drifted off.
Then I felt a tap on my shoulder. One of the men from the table of beautiful people had come up to me and asked in English, “Excuse me – Your name is Kris Kristofferson?” With all the savoir faire I could muster I said, “No...Kevin”. He said “I’m sorry” and went back to his table. Over the next twenty minutes or so I could feel them staring at me. They finally left and all smiled and said goodbye as they went past. They stopped at the corner and looked back, shaking their heads, clearly not believing me.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
One of the nice things about moving to the apartment close to the hospital is that I no longer have to take cabs - I can walk. Taking cabs all the time was making me a nervous wreck. I really looked forward to riding in the Subte – the BA subway. It’s a far more civilized way to travel. I do have to say though that BA cabbies are the most remarkable drivers. You are never more than a micron away from other vehicles on all sides regardless of the speed. I am always expecting an imminent crash but it hasn't happened. The whole time I have been here I haven't seen a single fender bender.
Chau
Kelly Blog
Healthy greetings to all from the reluctant star of the blog.
Keep those comments, emails and thoughts blastin’ down here because they sure are working. No matter how terrifying the pain, current procedure, future speculation, what ifs, your love and care for me allowed me to find the courage not to succumb to the panic nor any negative thoughts what so ever. That path only led to disaster. Thoughts of all of you helped me to get through a minute. Two minutes. Enough minutes that whatever was happening was over, if only for the moment. I must say that I never knew that I had the stuff it takes to move through the other side of something like this. So I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.
There is a better and better chance that I will be released tomorrow, with a return to Albuquerque possibly as early as next week. Wow. The concept amazes me. I have an odd relationship between the sick me and the well me. On Christmas day I was the sick me. On Christmas evening, when the surgeon came in and pulled the tethers to the bed and ordered me to put on street clothes for a date with Kevin at the hospital café, I astonishingly became the well me. And when I saw the hospital cafeteria, jeez, I sort of thought that they gave me way wrong meds. It was the first time tears leaked. Just a few. I think I am waiting until I get home. Brenda is already on notice. That meal remains a dream.
Here is the course of my days. I wear the sick me hospital gown and feel puny. Negative thoughts not allowed. I put on the healthy me clothes and walk, with Kevin or by myself, down to the café and feel, well, tired but ok. It really is pretty weird.
Today I feel like the regular old me and that feels just right.
Kevin. You all have an idea of the enormous amount of work Kevin has done for me. I am speechless.
Love and more kisses than you can imagine,
Ann Cecelia/Kelly
Keep those comments, emails and thoughts blastin’ down here because they sure are working. No matter how terrifying the pain, current procedure, future speculation, what ifs, your love and care for me allowed me to find the courage not to succumb to the panic nor any negative thoughts what so ever. That path only led to disaster. Thoughts of all of you helped me to get through a minute. Two minutes. Enough minutes that whatever was happening was over, if only for the moment. I must say that I never knew that I had the stuff it takes to move through the other side of something like this. So I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.
There is a better and better chance that I will be released tomorrow, with a return to Albuquerque possibly as early as next week. Wow. The concept amazes me. I have an odd relationship between the sick me and the well me. On Christmas day I was the sick me. On Christmas evening, when the surgeon came in and pulled the tethers to the bed and ordered me to put on street clothes for a date with Kevin at the hospital café, I astonishingly became the well me. And when I saw the hospital cafeteria, jeez, I sort of thought that they gave me way wrong meds. It was the first time tears leaked. Just a few. I think I am waiting until I get home. Brenda is already on notice. That meal remains a dream.
Here is the course of my days. I wear the sick me hospital gown and feel puny. Negative thoughts not allowed. I put on the healthy me clothes and walk, with Kevin or by myself, down to the café and feel, well, tired but ok. It really is pretty weird.
Today I feel like the regular old me and that feels just right.
Kevin. You all have an idea of the enormous amount of work Kevin has done for me. I am speechless.
Love and more kisses than you can imagine,
Ann Cecelia/Kelly
Son of Update
Things going well. No time for long blog. Working on getting things set up for Kelly to come home.
Chau chau
Chau chau
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
More Update
First off, I had to set my older sister, Judith, straight. Chau in Argentina is spelled CHAU not Ciao. If you have ever had an older sister, you may understand what they are like. They assume that because they are older, they are correct.
The thing about Phi Beta Kappa was in remembrance of our mother who was a Phi Beta Kappa and never let my three sisters, all excellent students, forget that she was and they were not. The worst rub for my sisters, however, was that I, a terrible student, was also.
Today was a very good day. I was a little worried about Kelly yesterday because she had a low grade fever and looked a little puny. Today she has gone 24 hours without a fever and seems nearly her old self. We walked all over the hospital grounds and she didn’t wear out at all.
For the medically minded among you, she did have positive blood cultures for Staph aureus. She is being followed by and ID doctor or as they say here, an infectologist. I don’t know the sensitivities yet but she will need to be on antibiotics for a while. No idea why she got this. She had an echocardiogram that was completely normal today. It may have been related to the Imitrex injections that she gives herself in the butt from time to time for migraine headaches. Seems a stretch but nothing else jumps out.
If she goes for another day or so without a fever (and I think that she will), she can be released and come in once a day or so to get antibiotics by IV. I have rented an apartment close to the hospital for another week. If she does well with that after a few days she can come home and I will set up her antibiotics through our hospital at home. Best guess at this time is that we will be able to come home in another 5 or 6 days if everything goes OK.
I have spent the past two days searching for a place for myself. I moved out of our apartment yesterday into Che Lulu, a kind of hippy hotel just a step above a hostel -shared toilet and showers.
It has been fun here in that there are shared breakfasts with people to talk to. I had a good discussion about healthcare policy this morning with a German woman, who had also been hospitalized here in Buenos Aires and had a good experience, and two Canadian men. Unfortunately I have to move out of here tomorrow as this hotel and everywhere around is full for the New Years.
I was very anxious about finding a decent place (or for that matter any place) to stay on such short notice – all the hotels are full. I had images in my mind of finding nothing and ending up walking down the two foot wide sidewalks of BA wearing a backpack with my guitar slung over my shoulder, pulling two large roller bags. Fortunately, this morning, I saw a notice on BA Newcomers, a Yahoo news group, about an apartment for rent near Hospital Aleman. Its very modern, light, has internet and a phone and will work just fine.
So I’m feeling better. Yesterday I had decided that if we ever get home again I was going to pull the blinds, have everything delivered and never go further than the end of the block ever again. Now I may even consider going as far as Bernalillo 15 miles from our home – but not without travel insurance.
Chau
The thing about Phi Beta Kappa was in remembrance of our mother who was a Phi Beta Kappa and never let my three sisters, all excellent students, forget that she was and they were not. The worst rub for my sisters, however, was that I, a terrible student, was also.
Today was a very good day. I was a little worried about Kelly yesterday because she had a low grade fever and looked a little puny. Today she has gone 24 hours without a fever and seems nearly her old self. We walked all over the hospital grounds and she didn’t wear out at all.
For the medically minded among you, she did have positive blood cultures for Staph aureus. She is being followed by and ID doctor or as they say here, an infectologist. I don’t know the sensitivities yet but she will need to be on antibiotics for a while. No idea why she got this. She had an echocardiogram that was completely normal today. It may have been related to the Imitrex injections that she gives herself in the butt from time to time for migraine headaches. Seems a stretch but nothing else jumps out.
If she goes for another day or so without a fever (and I think that she will), she can be released and come in once a day or so to get antibiotics by IV. I have rented an apartment close to the hospital for another week. If she does well with that after a few days she can come home and I will set up her antibiotics through our hospital at home. Best guess at this time is that we will be able to come home in another 5 or 6 days if everything goes OK.
I have spent the past two days searching for a place for myself. I moved out of our apartment yesterday into Che Lulu, a kind of hippy hotel just a step above a hostel -shared toilet and showers.
It has been fun here in that there are shared breakfasts with people to talk to. I had a good discussion about healthcare policy this morning with a German woman, who had also been hospitalized here in Buenos Aires and had a good experience, and two Canadian men. Unfortunately I have to move out of here tomorrow as this hotel and everywhere around is full for the New Years.
I was very anxious about finding a decent place (or for that matter any place) to stay on such short notice – all the hotels are full. I had images in my mind of finding nothing and ending up walking down the two foot wide sidewalks of BA wearing a backpack with my guitar slung over my shoulder, pulling two large roller bags. Fortunately, this morning, I saw a notice on BA Newcomers, a Yahoo news group, about an apartment for rent near Hospital Aleman. Its very modern, light, has internet and a phone and will work just fine.
So I’m feeling better. Yesterday I had decided that if we ever get home again I was going to pull the blinds, have everything delivered and never go further than the end of the block ever again. Now I may even consider going as far as Bernalillo 15 miles from our home – but not without travel insurance.
Chau
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Monday, December 25, 2006
Navidad
Its about 8:00PM Christmas night in Buenos Aires. This is by far the most pleasant day we have had weather wise – mid 70s with low humidity, a mild breeze and low humidity.
I spent most of the day with Kelly/Ann. She continues to improve. Her pain is nearly completely gone and still no fevers or anything else of concern.
STOP THE PRESSES - Kelly just called. (She says sorry Rachael that she cut you off)
I was going to say that we had not seen Carlos, the surgeon, today but that Kelly was obviously doing so well that it was not important. I knew that he was the one on call for his group and after seeing the insanity in the air last night, I figured that there was probably lots of work for a neurosurgeon in BA this holiday.
After I left he showed up, pulled the drain from her wound, stopped her IV fluids and insisted that she get dressed and call me to come to take her downstairs to the cafeteria. This was a huge deal for her mental health and mine - to actually be able to do something normal.
It was even better. It turns out that the hospital cafeteria is one of the better restaurants in this area of BA - go figure.
Of course it has a full bar and, as a patient, you can get a table and sit outside and read with your beer or wine in a wonderful courtyard. (I'm not sure that that would work at the VA - no one would ever leave).
Kelly wasn't all that hungry but just to get out was a great Christmas present.
We still don't know when we will be able to leave and I don't want to rush anything. I will let you all know when I know.
Of note since I alluded to a bad cab ride last night. Two cabbies today almost refused to charge me - one because he was of German ancestry and I was going to Hospital Aleman where his two kids were born and the other because I told him I loved Astor Piazola, the great Argentine Tango composer
I am leaving this apartment tomorrow and moving to a small hotel in Palermo Soho. I think I'll have internet there but I am not sure. If the Blog stops, I don't.
Thanks to all of you for your great support and comments. They mean a lot to Kelly - Ann Cecelia. This has been a great way to keep everyone informed but has also been important for me to feel in touch and not so isolated.
Love to you all.
I spent most of the day with Kelly/Ann. She continues to improve. Her pain is nearly completely gone and still no fevers or anything else of concern.
STOP THE PRESSES - Kelly just called. (She says sorry Rachael that she cut you off)
I was going to say that we had not seen Carlos, the surgeon, today but that Kelly was obviously doing so well that it was not important. I knew that he was the one on call for his group and after seeing the insanity in the air last night, I figured that there was probably lots of work for a neurosurgeon in BA this holiday.
After I left he showed up, pulled the drain from her wound, stopped her IV fluids and insisted that she get dressed and call me to come to take her downstairs to the cafeteria. This was a huge deal for her mental health and mine - to actually be able to do something normal.
It was even better. It turns out that the hospital cafeteria is one of the better restaurants in this area of BA - go figure.
Of course it has a full bar and, as a patient, you can get a table and sit outside and read with your beer or wine in a wonderful courtyard. (I'm not sure that that would work at the VA - no one would ever leave).
Kelly wasn't all that hungry but just to get out was a great Christmas present.
We still don't know when we will be able to leave and I don't want to rush anything. I will let you all know when I know.
Of note since I alluded to a bad cab ride last night. Two cabbies today almost refused to charge me - one because he was of German ancestry and I was going to Hospital Aleman where his two kids were born and the other because I told him I loved Astor Piazola, the great Argentine Tango composer
I am leaving this apartment tomorrow and moving to a small hotel in Palermo Soho. I think I'll have internet there but I am not sure. If the Blog stops, I don't.
Thanks to all of you for your great support and comments. They mean a lot to Kelly - Ann Cecelia. This has been a great way to keep everyone informed but has also been important for me to feel in touch and not so isolated.
Love to you all.
Merry Christmas
As of midnight, Christmas Eve, Buenos Aires time, nothing has changed with Kelly - and that's the best news. No news is definitely good news in this case. Because of that, you get to hear more about my day. You should always be happy to see that I'm talking about myself since that means there is nothing new on the medical front and you can feel free to skip the rest.
I left Kelly about 9:00 PM. I hadn't eaten since the morning, I was starving and panicked because I had absolutely no food or wine at home. I wondered around for a long time, got totally lost and then found myself again while trying to find a grocery store, convenience store, restaurant or anything that was open on Christmas Eve, Nocha Buena. Its a cruel trick that a city that never shuts down - everything is open 24 hours - suddenly shuts down so completely that you can't even buy a pack of Chicklets. I was damned if I was going to spend Christmas Eve with absolutely no food, wine or good cheer.
After about an hour I finally found an Argentine restaurant that was open for a special Nocha Buena dinner for 60 pesos - $20US. I was very hungry and so asked the guy outside what the deal was. He said, "Oh - You are alone for Nocha Buena - Me too." He then introduced himself, clapped me on the back and took me inside. He sat me next to a young couple who looked even more lost than me.
Inside there was a spread of food that was about 60 feet long
as well as grills on either side that had piles of raw fish, beef, chicken and pork so that you could pick what you wanted and have it grilled for you. The place was packed - the picture only shows a little bit.
The couple next to me were from Manaus, Brazil.
They were in Argentina on their honeymoon. He spoke a little English and a tiny bit of Spanish. She spoke only Portuguese; it always surprises me that Portuguese speakers can be completely lost in Spanish but she could not understand a word. It was their first time ever out of Brazil and the only other time that he had been out of Manaus was to go to a rock concert in Sao Paulo. We talked about all of our families and showed photos - they of their wedding and family and I of Kelly and Lewie since that was all I had on the camera. Its funny that some of the nicest conversations that I have had traveling have been with people who are also in a foreign country, with whom I do not share a language, but with whom I can peck away using bits and pieces of a third language.
I had a great time there and took a cab home, got ripped off for 4 pesos ($1.20) by the cabbie - he tried to stiff me for 10 pesos ($3.00) but I stayed my ground.
Then it was time for Christmas. Christmas here means lots of fireworks for hours. The picture is from outside my window at the apartment.
I left Kelly about 9:00 PM. I hadn't eaten since the morning, I was starving and panicked because I had absolutely no food or wine at home. I wondered around for a long time, got totally lost and then found myself again while trying to find a grocery store, convenience store, restaurant or anything that was open on Christmas Eve, Nocha Buena. Its a cruel trick that a city that never shuts down - everything is open 24 hours - suddenly shuts down so completely that you can't even buy a pack of Chicklets. I was damned if I was going to spend Christmas Eve with absolutely no food, wine or good cheer.
After about an hour I finally found an Argentine restaurant that was open for a special Nocha Buena dinner for 60 pesos - $20US. I was very hungry and so asked the guy outside what the deal was. He said, "Oh - You are alone for Nocha Buena - Me too." He then introduced himself, clapped me on the back and took me inside. He sat me next to a young couple who looked even more lost than me.
Inside there was a spread of food that was about 60 feet long
as well as grills on either side that had piles of raw fish, beef, chicken and pork so that you could pick what you wanted and have it grilled for you. The place was packed - the picture only shows a little bit.
The couple next to me were from Manaus, Brazil.
They were in Argentina on their honeymoon. He spoke a little English and a tiny bit of Spanish. She spoke only Portuguese; it always surprises me that Portuguese speakers can be completely lost in Spanish but she could not understand a word. It was their first time ever out of Brazil and the only other time that he had been out of Manaus was to go to a rock concert in Sao Paulo. We talked about all of our families and showed photos - they of their wedding and family and I of Kelly and Lewie since that was all I had on the camera. Its funny that some of the nicest conversations that I have had traveling have been with people who are also in a foreign country, with whom I do not share a language, but with whom I can peck away using bits and pieces of a third language.
I had a great time there and took a cab home, got ripped off for 4 pesos ($1.20) by the cabbie - he tried to stiff me for 10 pesos ($3.00) but I stayed my ground.
Then it was time for Christmas. Christmas here means lots of fireworks for hours. The picture is from outside my window at the apartment.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Kelly Update III
I saw Kelly and the surgeon, Carlo Rica, for a while this morning. She has had no problems at all - no fever, eating well and in a pretty good mood. The surgeon thinks that she will need to stay in bed another day and then start walking and getting back to usual daily activities.
Several of you have tried to call her without success and this is because she is still in the ICU. They are very strict about visiting there and there are no phones for patients. I can only see her there from 12-1PM and 5-6PM.
As of 4:00 PM here – 2:00 in Atlanta and 12:00 in Albuquerque - Kelly was still in the ICU. This is solely because her bed is not ready in her room. The surgeon felt fine sending her back to her room first thing this morning. They tell me that she should get to her room in an hour or so.
These are views out the windows in Kelly's room and a view of Kelly's room last night before the surgery. She didn't mind a photo of the room but did not want to have her face in the photo. Perhaps today. I thought that she looked beautiful.
Several of you have tried to call her without success and this is because she is still in the ICU. They are very strict about visiting there and there are no phones for patients. I can only see her there from 12-1PM and 5-6PM.
As of 4:00 PM here – 2:00 in Atlanta and 12:00 in Albuquerque - Kelly was still in the ICU. This is solely because her bed is not ready in her room. The surgeon felt fine sending her back to her room first thing this morning. They tell me that she should get to her room in an hour or so.
These are views out the windows in Kelly's room and a view of Kelly's room last night before the surgery. She didn't mind a photo of the room but did not want to have her face in the photo. Perhaps today. I thought that she looked beautiful.
Kelly Update II
Kelly had an MRI done Sat afternoon to try to find the source of her infection. This showed a lumbar paraspinal and intraspinal abscess (a pocket of pus around her lumbar spine) that was very concerning because it was compressing the lower part of the spinal cord. There really is no other option but surgery. I was very happy that they managed to get the head of neurosurgery at Buenos Aires University and his partner to come in and drain it at midnight Saturday night before Christmas. Works for me
The surgery took about 2 hours. Everything went well. The repeat MRI showed the abscess completely gone. She has a two inch incision over her lumbar spine. They had to do laminectomies (cut through the bone to get through to the spinal canal) on L2 and L3. There was no sign of infection of the bone and the abscess did not go through to the spinal cord itself. She has had no post-op fever.
The best news is that her pain is nearly gone except for the incision pain. She will be in intensive care until later Sunday and then move back to her room. If all goes well she should be able to leave the hospital in a couple of days but its really too early to say.
Now, my main concern is getting her out of the hospital. She has noticed that all the doctors here look like movie stars (Its true - even more so than at the Albuquerque VA –although you may find that hard to believe). And, they are nice and very affectionate.
I haven’t had much sleep for the past two days so I think I’ll sign off before I stop making sense more than I already am.
Chau chau,
Kevin
The surgery took about 2 hours. Everything went well. The repeat MRI showed the abscess completely gone. She has a two inch incision over her lumbar spine. They had to do laminectomies (cut through the bone to get through to the spinal canal) on L2 and L3. There was no sign of infection of the bone and the abscess did not go through to the spinal cord itself. She has had no post-op fever.
The best news is that her pain is nearly gone except for the incision pain. She will be in intensive care until later Sunday and then move back to her room. If all goes well she should be able to leave the hospital in a couple of days but its really too early to say.
Now, my main concern is getting her out of the hospital. She has noticed that all the doctors here look like movie stars (Its true - even more so than at the Albuquerque VA –although you may find that hard to believe). And, they are nice and very affectionate.
I haven’t had much sleep for the past two days so I think I’ll sign off before I stop making sense more than I already am.
Chau chau,
Kevin
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Kelly Update
I posted Kelly's musings below. Last night, her pain was not getting better and she developed a fever and so I took her to the ED at Hospital Aleman - German Hospital - http://www.hospitalaleman.com.ar/hospital/index.htm . We stayed most of the night in the observation unit then went home. Her labs indicate an infection; possibly of the kidneys but its not completely clear yet. She seems to have back pain independent of that. We went back this AM to finish the tests and decided together with her doctors that it would be best for her to stay in the hospital for now so that they can finish the tests, and treat her pain more effectively. I won't elaborate here but I will say that - you wish you could get healthcare like this as a stranger in the US. She has a very nice private room overlooking a courtyard. The telephone number to her room is 5411-4827-7000 ext. 2530 - this includes the Argentina code 54 and the Buenos Aires code 11. I would not try to call her unless your Spanish is good and you know how to make international calls. She is not expecting calls and I put it in just for reference.
I'll keep you posted. Remember that no news is good news and I may not have internet access often.
Chau,
Kevin
I'll keep you posted. Remember that no news is good news and I may not have internet access often.
Chau,
Kevin
Scattershot Notes from me, Ann Cecelia aka Kelly
I. Organ Recital
Ok, ok, I do not want to hear from you A+P folks about little details such as the back and its relationship to an organ. The term organ recital comes from my father and his friends. When they get together they allow only 15 minutes for discussion of personal ailments and then they have to move on to better topics. I shall allow less time, but those of you are not in the mood should skip this paragraph. I will tell you all that your comments have helped enormously. Kevin and mb have been checking several times a day and reading them to me. I feel much cheered and loved. Thank you. This started Monday. Tuesday morning I woke up and was lying quietly, trying to be in a relaxing position when all hell broke out. My legs started flailing uncontrollably, jerking, twitching, and yes, I have to say that I have now experienced a whole new level of pain. I had absolutely no control over my body, I suppose a bit like a seizure, but fully conscious. Yikes! This was accompanied by nausea and prodigious sweating. Now, aren’t you glad there is a cap on organ recitals? I must say that it was so scary and painful that I tuned into a panicked whimpering little animal whispering help me help me. This I hope I never experience again. Kevin has been absolutely fantastic. He managed to get me muscle relaxers but no narcotics for the pain as they are difficult to get here without a doctor’s prescription. The pharmacist told him where to find a doctor but only a nurse practitioner was there so it was no go. So any of you with Percocets, send them on to me in Albuquerque. Although by then I expect to be much better. Each day has been a bit better, and I even went out yesterday to lunch. The cab we took was driven by a very bad driver in his late seventies. Wow. Talk about jerky. He would floor, then stomp the gas. Great for whiplash, He drove not in the lanes but over the lane markers so he could decide which lane would move fastest. He also drove about 5 mm from the bumpers of the cars in front of him. I thought that mb was going to either clock him on the noggin and commandeer the cab or simply jump out. This may be why I am worse today. So I shall stay in, be quiet and try to find one comfortable position. This has evaded me since last night.
Kevin has been a rock as has mb. They have spent much time fetching, carrying, and entertaining me. And Edie always brings a smile to my face. I am a bit depressed today at the lack of progress, but their good cheer and entertaining nursing keeps me going. I did consider the hospital, but there was no way that I could climb down 35 steps to get to an ambulance. We also thought about going home early, but geez o pete, a 20 hour travel day chills my heart. And anyway, I might as well be in bed here as in Albuquerque. I do not expect anymore uncontrollable muscle spasms, so here I shall stay.
II. Miscellaneous Notes That May Repeat Comments by Kevin
I loved traveling to Salt Lake City so we could go from snowy winter to lovely blue-sky summer.
As we waited to clear customs MB had a great conversation with 2 young (21?) women from Tokyo. They had flown from Tokyo to Atlanta then to Buenos Aires. They had a 4 hour or so layover in Buenos Aires, and then would be on their way to Paraguay to do missionary work. The hours of travel time was mind boggling, but they were young and very excited by their trip. They did not speak English, but MB is pretty fluent in Japanese, much to their surprise. Now, a note about mb and languages. While she does not speak much Spanish, when she does speak it is with a Japanese accent. And that REALLY confounds people. I love it.
My first impression of Buenos Aires was a big assault. Noisy, dirty, teeming with people, very alive, but an assault on all the senses.
Let me tell you about the stairs in this place. The second floor is mb and Edie’s bedroom and bathroom, the third floor is our bedroom and bathroom, and the fourth floor is the roof top terrace. There are 21 skinny, twisty (2 turns) squeaky old dark wood stair steps to the second floor. There are 14 more steps to our room, but these are skinny concrete steps without a banister. Then 14 more concrete, banister less steps to the roof. 49 steps. It is the house of stairs. I was thinking that I would end up with buns o steel, but instead I ended up with back spasms. When I get home I am going to start climbing more stairs.
A few Edie notes. I find myself turning into my very fabulous Uncle John Peter Paul Kelly who was always fearful of danger around those he loved. I find my self fearful of Edie falling down the stairs, falling off the roof, getting kidnapped etc. I do believe that I can relax now since she does not seem to be doing any of these things. What she does do, as Kevin mentioned, is open up a whole world to us. Watching people plaster Edie with smiles is a wonderful experience. Suddenly people passing by are not just people but individuals and a connection has been made between us. I love this connection. Edie has been invited into many of the apartments in this wonderful little village where we stay. Everywhere she goes she uses what Spanish she knows, mostly polite greetings and thanks. People’s faces really light up when she says gracias or olla. Very nice.
III. Comments Returned
Ok, I know that I should probably return comments where you made them, but this is me being efficient. Or something
Mike: I loved hearing from you. I was going to spin you a story about how the roof top tub was some special decorator kind of thing, but you are right, it is a water trough, although it does have hot and cold running water and a light. It is pretty fun to use in the evenings but you do have to wear clothes. Just in case you were wondering. About 5 floors of a big apartment complex overlook the terrace. This building is flat concrete, not much charm, and most of the windows just open with no protection what so ever from falling objects or people. Some of the windows have cages on the outside, but I think this is more to keep the pigeons from flying in the apartments than anything else. Sure would not be up to code in the US. Are you all in Atlanta yet? I will try to call on Christmas if I can. It will be with Skype, so it will be less than perfect, but very cheap.
Karen: keep up the Spanish. Do you want me to try to find a Spanish book for practice? When Kevin was learning Spanish, he would read Harry Potter books in Spanish. And for Italian, it was Pinocchio. Kid’s books are great for learning languages.
Susan and Terry: Ummm. Keep Terry’s pants where they are. Maybe keep them hidden. I still cannot figure out why Terry bought the huge pants in the first place, let alone take them to Spain.
Folks, these pants were so big, and had such a low crotch, that Terry could (and did) pull the waist band up over his shoulder. He looked like a giant sausage or something. And he did this in PUBLIC! He and Susan both got in Terry’s pants and waltzed there way around the room. Lovely. As for the women’s short shorts, no thanks again.
Tokyorosa: Such a pleasure to hear from you. Did you take photos of the snow? Did Lewie play in the snow? If you did take photos, could you email one or two to us? I heard it was pretty beautiful. As for tango, I may have an out due to the back, but now that I cannot, perversely, I really want to. Maybe next week. And believe me; I am so trying to get well
Pam: We did go to Plaza de Mayo and I think I did see the mothers. We did not speak with them because there were stadium-sized speakers cranked up so loud that the concrete vibrated. They were announcing a demonstration at 4:00 that afternoon - A continuous wall of noise. There were squadrons of police and soldiers in bullet-proof vests, some with shields and helmets, and everything was partially barricaded. There was a big artillery tank creepy in shape and a pretty big, even creepier, weapon on the roof. Most amazing was the sight of 3 soldiers inside the tank, seated around a gas cook stove making tea. It was not possible to stay, between the noise and the impending demonstration it seemed smart to find something else to do. How are you feeling? Did your voice return? Last time we spoke, I had no voice and you had a cold. Hope you are feeling better.
Judith: Enjoying being out of school? It has got to be a big relief. Keep your emails/posts coming because you always make me laugh.
Susan J and Colleen: It was fabulous to hear from you both. Thanks for not having new princess glasses. That was a very kind thing to do. Colleen, your email was the first we had heard about the snow. - sounds lovely. Here it is about 90, humid, with beautiful blue skies. Very weird.
Later all.
Ok, ok, I do not want to hear from you A+P folks about little details such as the back and its relationship to an organ. The term organ recital comes from my father and his friends. When they get together they allow only 15 minutes for discussion of personal ailments and then they have to move on to better topics. I shall allow less time, but those of you are not in the mood should skip this paragraph. I will tell you all that your comments have helped enormously. Kevin and mb have been checking several times a day and reading them to me. I feel much cheered and loved. Thank you. This started Monday. Tuesday morning I woke up and was lying quietly, trying to be in a relaxing position when all hell broke out. My legs started flailing uncontrollably, jerking, twitching, and yes, I have to say that I have now experienced a whole new level of pain. I had absolutely no control over my body, I suppose a bit like a seizure, but fully conscious. Yikes! This was accompanied by nausea and prodigious sweating. Now, aren’t you glad there is a cap on organ recitals? I must say that it was so scary and painful that I tuned into a panicked whimpering little animal whispering help me help me. This I hope I never experience again. Kevin has been absolutely fantastic. He managed to get me muscle relaxers but no narcotics for the pain as they are difficult to get here without a doctor’s prescription. The pharmacist told him where to find a doctor but only a nurse practitioner was there so it was no go. So any of you with Percocets, send them on to me in Albuquerque. Although by then I expect to be much better. Each day has been a bit better, and I even went out yesterday to lunch. The cab we took was driven by a very bad driver in his late seventies. Wow. Talk about jerky. He would floor, then stomp the gas. Great for whiplash, He drove not in the lanes but over the lane markers so he could decide which lane would move fastest. He also drove about 5 mm from the bumpers of the cars in front of him. I thought that mb was going to either clock him on the noggin and commandeer the cab or simply jump out. This may be why I am worse today. So I shall stay in, be quiet and try to find one comfortable position. This has evaded me since last night.
Kevin has been a rock as has mb. They have spent much time fetching, carrying, and entertaining me. And Edie always brings a smile to my face. I am a bit depressed today at the lack of progress, but their good cheer and entertaining nursing keeps me going. I did consider the hospital, but there was no way that I could climb down 35 steps to get to an ambulance. We also thought about going home early, but geez o pete, a 20 hour travel day chills my heart. And anyway, I might as well be in bed here as in Albuquerque. I do not expect anymore uncontrollable muscle spasms, so here I shall stay.
II. Miscellaneous Notes That May Repeat Comments by Kevin
I loved traveling to Salt Lake City so we could go from snowy winter to lovely blue-sky summer.
As we waited to clear customs MB had a great conversation with 2 young (21?) women from Tokyo. They had flown from Tokyo to Atlanta then to Buenos Aires. They had a 4 hour or so layover in Buenos Aires, and then would be on their way to Paraguay to do missionary work. The hours of travel time was mind boggling, but they were young and very excited by their trip. They did not speak English, but MB is pretty fluent in Japanese, much to their surprise. Now, a note about mb and languages. While she does not speak much Spanish, when she does speak it is with a Japanese accent. And that REALLY confounds people. I love it.
My first impression of Buenos Aires was a big assault. Noisy, dirty, teeming with people, very alive, but an assault on all the senses.
Let me tell you about the stairs in this place. The second floor is mb and Edie’s bedroom and bathroom, the third floor is our bedroom and bathroom, and the fourth floor is the roof top terrace. There are 21 skinny, twisty (2 turns) squeaky old dark wood stair steps to the second floor. There are 14 more steps to our room, but these are skinny concrete steps without a banister. Then 14 more concrete, banister less steps to the roof. 49 steps. It is the house of stairs. I was thinking that I would end up with buns o steel, but instead I ended up with back spasms. When I get home I am going to start climbing more stairs.
A few Edie notes. I find myself turning into my very fabulous Uncle John Peter Paul Kelly who was always fearful of danger around those he loved. I find my self fearful of Edie falling down the stairs, falling off the roof, getting kidnapped etc. I do believe that I can relax now since she does not seem to be doing any of these things. What she does do, as Kevin mentioned, is open up a whole world to us. Watching people plaster Edie with smiles is a wonderful experience. Suddenly people passing by are not just people but individuals and a connection has been made between us. I love this connection. Edie has been invited into many of the apartments in this wonderful little village where we stay. Everywhere she goes she uses what Spanish she knows, mostly polite greetings and thanks. People’s faces really light up when she says gracias or olla. Very nice.
III. Comments Returned
Ok, I know that I should probably return comments where you made them, but this is me being efficient. Or something
Mike: I loved hearing from you. I was going to spin you a story about how the roof top tub was some special decorator kind of thing, but you are right, it is a water trough, although it does have hot and cold running water and a light. It is pretty fun to use in the evenings but you do have to wear clothes. Just in case you were wondering. About 5 floors of a big apartment complex overlook the terrace. This building is flat concrete, not much charm, and most of the windows just open with no protection what so ever from falling objects or people. Some of the windows have cages on the outside, but I think this is more to keep the pigeons from flying in the apartments than anything else. Sure would not be up to code in the US. Are you all in Atlanta yet? I will try to call on Christmas if I can. It will be with Skype, so it will be less than perfect, but very cheap.
Karen: keep up the Spanish. Do you want me to try to find a Spanish book for practice? When Kevin was learning Spanish, he would read Harry Potter books in Spanish. And for Italian, it was Pinocchio. Kid’s books are great for learning languages.
Susan and Terry: Ummm. Keep Terry’s pants where they are. Maybe keep them hidden. I still cannot figure out why Terry bought the huge pants in the first place, let alone take them to Spain.
Folks, these pants were so big, and had such a low crotch, that Terry could (and did) pull the waist band up over his shoulder. He looked like a giant sausage or something. And he did this in PUBLIC! He and Susan both got in Terry’s pants and waltzed there way around the room. Lovely. As for the women’s short shorts, no thanks again.Tokyorosa: Such a pleasure to hear from you. Did you take photos of the snow? Did Lewie play in the snow? If you did take photos, could you email one or two to us? I heard it was pretty beautiful. As for tango, I may have an out due to the back, but now that I cannot, perversely, I really want to. Maybe next week. And believe me; I am so trying to get well
Pam: We did go to Plaza de Mayo and I think I did see the mothers. We did not speak with them because there were stadium-sized speakers cranked up so loud that the concrete vibrated. They were announcing a demonstration at 4:00 that afternoon - A continuous wall of noise. There were squadrons of police and soldiers in bullet-proof vests, some with shields and helmets, and everything was partially barricaded. There was a big artillery tank creepy in shape and a pretty big, even creepier, weapon on the roof. Most amazing was the sight of 3 soldiers inside the tank, seated around a gas cook stove making tea. It was not possible to stay, between the noise and the impending demonstration it seemed smart to find something else to do. How are you feeling? Did your voice return? Last time we spoke, I had no voice and you had a cold. Hope you are feeling better.
Judith: Enjoying being out of school? It has got to be a big relief. Keep your emails/posts coming because you always make me laugh.
Susan J and Colleen: It was fabulous to hear from you both. Thanks for not having new princess glasses. That was a very kind thing to do. Colleen, your email was the first we had heard about the snow. - sounds lovely. Here it is about 90, humid, with beautiful blue skies. Very weird.
Later all.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Homies
We have been homebodies for the past few days. Kelly's back pain was so bad that we almost went to the hospital. Gradually it is loosening up so it looks like we won't have to do that - we hope. I learned a lot about the Argentine health care system in the process.
Healthcare is free to all here but the national system is overburdened in many ways. There is a longstanding double standard of private hospitals that cater to the richer Argentines and many of the foreign population - Hospital Britanico, Hospital Aleman, Hospital Italiano, Hospital Clinica Y Maternidad Suizo, and etc. Per my browsing of various Argentine and expatriate news groups, most Americans here are much happier with the Argentine healthcare system than the US. (This is not unreasonable since most studies show the US ranks as low as you can go in terms of what your get for what you pay - the US system is the poster child of why freemarket/profit driven healthcare is a terrible way to deliver healthcare to a population).
In Argentina, people who can, go back and forth between the private and public healthcare systems (a good model for the US). With the private system here, you are given a bill up front and you decide if you can pay it. The private healthcare system here is much less expensive than in the US and there are also a number of HMO type health plans that are available, some of which rank higher than any US HMOs. The general agreement is that if you are truly ill and need complicated services, you are better off in the private system. However, there can be a shortage of beds in the private system so that you end up in the public system by default. Because of this, some expats here carry insurance to fly them back to the US or wherever, if they are extremely ill and cannot get a bed in a private hospital. (If you can pay, there are plans that let you choose where you want to go regardless of medical necessity.) Some of the bed shortage is due to marketing Argentine surgery services to those in other countries. Some insurance companies will even discount co-pays if you come here to have a surgical procedure done.
In the meantime, I have been taking a crayon coloring class.
Yesterday, MB went to the Recoleta cemetery where Evita Peron is buried.
I spent the day today figuring out the subway - 20 cents will get you almost anywhere in the
city in a few minutes. I went to the botanic gardens which should be known as the feline gardens. There are cats everywhere -same in Recoleta cemetery per MB. People take care of the cats and no one seems to get upset if they roll a baby in a stroller into the park and a cat gets in.
There was a demonstration downtown as I was coming home. One thing that surprised me was that the demonstrators were setting off huge firecrackers - as loud as the loudest you hear at a 4th of July display. I thought there was a bombing but no one else including the police seemed to even notice this. Fireworks seem to be an accepted part of everyday BA life.
Healthcare is free to all here but the national system is overburdened in many ways. There is a longstanding double standard of private hospitals that cater to the richer Argentines and many of the foreign population - Hospital Britanico, Hospital Aleman, Hospital Italiano, Hospital Clinica Y Maternidad Suizo, and etc. Per my browsing of various Argentine and expatriate news groups, most Americans here are much happier with the Argentine healthcare system than the US. (This is not unreasonable since most studies show the US ranks as low as you can go in terms of what your get for what you pay - the US system is the poster child of why freemarket/profit driven healthcare is a terrible way to deliver healthcare to a population).
In Argentina, people who can, go back and forth between the private and public healthcare systems (a good model for the US). With the private system here, you are given a bill up front and you decide if you can pay it. The private healthcare system here is much less expensive than in the US and there are also a number of HMO type health plans that are available, some of which rank higher than any US HMOs. The general agreement is that if you are truly ill and need complicated services, you are better off in the private system. However, there can be a shortage of beds in the private system so that you end up in the public system by default. Because of this, some expats here carry insurance to fly them back to the US or wherever, if they are extremely ill and cannot get a bed in a private hospital. (If you can pay, there are plans that let you choose where you want to go regardless of medical necessity.) Some of the bed shortage is due to marketing Argentine surgery services to those in other countries. Some insurance companies will even discount co-pays if you come here to have a surgical procedure done.
In the meantime, I have been taking a crayon coloring class.
Yesterday, MB went to the Recoleta cemetery where Evita Peron is buried.
I spent the day today figuring out the subway - 20 cents will get you almost anywhere in the
city in a few minutes. I went to the botanic gardens which should be known as the feline gardens. There are cats everywhere -same in Recoleta cemetery per MB. People take care of the cats and no one seems to get upset if they roll a baby in a stroller into the park and a cat gets in.
There was a demonstration downtown as I was coming home. One thing that surprised me was that the demonstrators were setting off huge firecrackers - as loud as the loudest you hear at a 4th of July display. I thought there was a bombing but no one else including the police seemed to even notice this. Fireworks seem to be an accepted part of everyday BA life.
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Musings
Kelly has had terrible back spasms for the past 2 days so our agenda has changed – slowed down from its already glacial pace. With all our stairs, this is not a good place to have back pain.
We knew that we were pushing it with our getting up at the crack of 10:00AM and out the door by 1:00PM - then going into our interval training – walk for 15 min then sit down at a café and eat and drink for an hour or two - then repeat.
Its good to stay on Albuquerque time here. The nightlife does not start until midnight – 8:00PM Albuquerque time - which gives us a chance to go out at night. All the litle kids are up late here. Four to ten year olds are all over the place at 2:00AM. Even Kelly has managed to stay up that late.
Buenos Aires does have much more of a European feel than other Latin American cities. A good proportion of the city has Italian roots and there are lots of Germans, Spaniards and Portuguese as well. Its not 3rd world but not first world either. The UN rates the standard of living as 37th out of 177 countries; between Poland and Hungary. The US is 8th.
There was a major economic collapse here in 2001 which devastated much of the Argentine poor and middle class. The rich had their money invested internationally and so did not suffer so much. Since things are so much cheaper now, the rich are better off than ever.
Lots of people here blame the US for encouraging unchecked borrowing and development. Because of this, it’s accepted that as a US tourist you get charged more for things. Most things are so cheap that it makes no real difference and its done in a business-like, nothing personal manner so there are no hard feelings. We haven’t run into any anti-American sentiment here although as a cabbie told me, “Everyone hates Bush.”
Traveling with Edie is a real change. In some ways having a two year old really slows you down. I tend to walk very fast in cities. I’ve had to learn to dawdle. On the plus side, she has opened up so many doors for us. The neighbors here treat us like we really belong here because Edie and their kids are playmates. They keep bringing us food and its clear it has nothing to do with Kelly, MB or me.
We knew that we were pushing it with our getting up at the crack of 10:00AM and out the door by 1:00PM - then going into our interval training – walk for 15 min then sit down at a café and eat and drink for an hour or two - then repeat.
Its good to stay on Albuquerque time here. The nightlife does not start until midnight – 8:00PM Albuquerque time - which gives us a chance to go out at night. All the litle kids are up late here. Four to ten year olds are all over the place at 2:00AM. Even Kelly has managed to stay up that late.
Buenos Aires does have much more of a European feel than other Latin American cities. A good proportion of the city has Italian roots and there are lots of Germans, Spaniards and Portuguese as well. Its not 3rd world but not first world either. The UN rates the standard of living as 37th out of 177 countries; between Poland and Hungary. The US is 8th.
There was a major economic collapse here in 2001 which devastated much of the Argentine poor and middle class. The rich had their money invested internationally and so did not suffer so much. Since things are so much cheaper now, the rich are better off than ever.
Lots of people here blame the US for encouraging unchecked borrowing and development. Because of this, it’s accepted that as a US tourist you get charged more for things. Most things are so cheap that it makes no real difference and its done in a business-like, nothing personal manner so there are no hard feelings. We haven’t run into any anti-American sentiment here although as a cabbie told me, “Everyone hates Bush.”
Traveling with Edie is a real change. In some ways having a two year old really slows you down. I tend to walk very fast in cities. I’ve had to learn to dawdle. On the plus side, she has opened up so many doors for us. The neighbors here treat us like we really belong here because Edie and their kids are playmates. They keep bringing us food and its clear it has nothing to do with Kelly, MB or me.
Monday, December 18, 2006
Puerto Madero
Like four big blocks facing the Rio Plata; first comes La Boca, then San Telmo, then Montserrat and then Microcentro. Beyond are the more recent and upscale Recoletta and Palermo - Palerermo Viejo, Palermo Soho, Palermo Holywood and on and on- if you have a good name like Palermo, you might as well use it. In front of San Telmo, Montserrat, Microcentro and stretching towards Recoletta is Puerto Madero. This is the old city docks area. After the port moved further up the Rio Plata, the area fronting the river was basically the city dump. Now it is in the process of being reclaimed with a goal of a 'Fisherman's Warf' area. There is a huge expenditure of money and many of the old structures are being torn down to give rise to new Hiltons and Sofitels. There are a ton of new luxury skyscraper apartments being built, banking on the fact that $200,000 - $300,000 US will get you the same as 1-1.5 million US in New York. There ar
e lots of security guards around - I mean lots. If you are white and obviously from the US you can't help but feel like, if someone tried to pick your pocket, they would be lying face down in the pavement before you knew what was happening. Honestly - does not make me feel more secure. Nonetheless, they did take a dump and turn most of it into a nature preserve in the middle of a huge city.
San Telmo Fair
On Saturdays and Sundays there is street fair in San Telmo. There are lots of street artists and antique booths and stores. If you want big heavy old Argentine furniture, this is the place to go. Its fairly touristy but most all the tourists when we there were Argentinian. This is the neighborhood where the Bush twins partied and Barbara Jr., had her purse stolen as she was surrounded by secret service agents. You have to give credit to that thief for hutzpah. Street markets and fairs seem to be everywhere, many supposedly much cheaper than San Telmo. I think they are similar to the Paris flea market, the way it was 40 or 50 years ago. I imagine it won't be long before US antique dealers start filling shipping containers with this stuff to sell in Houston and LA.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
San Telmo Dinner
Dinner was in a moderately fancy restaurant with a giant, very rococo room inside and tables outside on the street. There was a party going on inside that had something to do with a big soccer win - Soccer - Argentine football is the main religion here.
The food was fantastic and cost us about $6 US each. So far, I have been pleasantly surprised by how good the food is in Argentina. I expected the beef to be good - its true that every steak I've had so far is about the best I've ever eaten. I'm not that much of a beef eater and so was very happy to see that there are vegetables everywhere. A giant mixed salad costs about a buck.
Edie as usual was a big hit - especially with Diego our waiter.
Photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/drke51/BuenosAiresI
http://picasaweb.google.com/drke51/BuenosAiresII
Hit "slideshow" if it lets you in. If not, I will send the link another way so you can see our photos.
Friday, December 15, 2006
Pasaje Santamarino
Claudio from ByT Argentina was waiting for us when we arrived at Pasaje Santamarino where our apartment was located. Pasaje Santamarino is a 10 foot wide, right angled, tiled passageway between two streets, Chacabuco and Mexico. It’s a strange, formal hallway lined by apartments and businesses, some of which are open to the sky and some of which span the passageway. It was built in the early portion of the last century and is about 300 feet long. It is closed on either end by huge iron gates that are locked at all times and make a loud tropical bird chirping noise when left open for more than 15 seconds.
Pasaje Santamarino is in the barrio of Montserrat, the oldest neighborhood in the city. The streets are very narrow but set in a regular crosshatch pattern. The streetscape is fairly trashy with soot stained buildings fronted by huge carved doors that open up to either abject poverty or opulence – no way to tell from the outside.
Anyway - back to Claudio. We waited for about 10 minutes until Marisa, the owner’s agent arrived to let us in. Claudio spoke some English and Marisa none. With starts and stops we went through the contract, exchange of money, kisses all around - everyone kisses here; big, burley policemen kiss when they meet on the street . Then Claudio and Marisa were on their way and we were on our own.
By this time we were starving. Marisa told us about a place down the street called “Tu Casa” which she said would feed us well - actually she said “Mi Casa” and I thought that she was inviting us to her house to eat.
We went to Tu Casa and had – a superb grilled fish with boiled potatoes, a ham and cheese sandwich, a plate of great, rich lasagna, 2 hamburgers, french fries, and two pitchers of very good wine for about $15 total with tip
641 Chacabuco
Our apartment is three storeys high with a roof deck as well. This means that if you go up to the roof to read and realize you left your glasses down in the kitchen on the first floor you have four flights down and four flights back up.Its a great place for Edie because she cannot get to the street and there is an endless supply of little girls for her to play with - 'my girls'. They are fascinated with her blond hair. The fact that they speak different languages seems to make absolutely no difference.
Thursday, December 14, 2006
There
We arrived at EZE, BA International Airport, about an hour late. The sun was shining and the sky was clear but it had obviously rained recently as there were puddles all over the airport from where the roof had leaked. We were all surprised by how small the airport was for a city of 12 million people.
Getting through customs was no problem. We picked up our bags and got in line to send them through security scanners. One of the scanners broke and they just let everyone go through without the scan. Absolutely could not have been easier.
The car shuttle place, VIP Cars, was immediately past the scanners and had our name on a placard outside. I ran to the bank next door to get $1,000 Argentine pesos (= $300 US) from the money machine without problems. Then we were loaded into a van that could take all 4 of us with luggage on the 45 min ride to the city. Cost with tip - 30$ US.
On the way in, I chatted it up with the driver. Cabbies and drivers are always willing to talk politics. He said that he thought that Kirchner, their president ,was OK - A little authoritarian but OK. Kirchner is through with his second term this year and cannot run again. Many believe that his wife, Cristina, a senator, will run in his stead and then he will run again in the next elections. So far, everyone I've talked to thinks that this is a good idea. People especially seem to like her and there are definite comparisons with Evita and Juan Peron.
Getting through customs was no problem. We picked up our bags and got in line to send them through security scanners. One of the scanners broke and they just let everyone go through without the scan. Absolutely could not have been easier.
The car shuttle place, VIP Cars, was immediately past the scanners and had our name on a placard outside. I ran to the bank next door to get $1,000 Argentine pesos (= $300 US) from the money machine without problems. Then we were loaded into a van that could take all 4 of us with luggage on the 45 min ride to the city. Cost with tip - 30$ US.
On the way in, I chatted it up with the driver. Cabbies and drivers are always willing to talk politics. He said that he thought that Kirchner, their president ,was OK - A little authoritarian but OK. Kirchner is through with his second term this year and cannot run again. Many believe that his wife, Cristina, a senator, will run in his stead and then he will run again in the next elections. So far, everyone I've talked to thinks that this is a good idea. People especially seem to like her and there are definite comparisons with Evita and Juan Peron.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Getting There
Kelly and I left home for the Albuquerque airport about 8:30 AM on Wed., 12/14/06. We had no trouble getting through the baggage check and so were left with about an hour and a half prior to our flight. We both got helpings of the excellent green chile chicken soup available only at the airport. This was necessary to tide us over as far as our green chile needs go for the next two weeks. Any New Mexican will understand.
The flight to Salt Lake City was beautiful and uneventful. I saw Cabezon and so won $5.00 from Kelly – an inside joke. It was cold and gloomy and the mountains around SLC were covered in fresh snow making a nice contrast to where we were headed.
We arrived in Atlanta with about an hour and a half wait for out flight to BA. We hooked up with MB and Edie who came in from Nashville - Edie was so excited to meet me that she fell on the floor and went to sleep.
Then we waited and waited. There was some problem with the air conditioning in the plane and so we were about an hour late getting off the ground. It seems to be par for the course with long airplane trips anymore that something goes wrong. This at least was better than our last trip to Paris when the crew forgot to close the airplane door while on the ground and there was a huge flood in the plane that not only made the carpets soggy throughout the flight but also soaked the baggage in the cargo hold below.
The flight was uneventful. The stewards and stewardesses seemed more harried than usual – I imagine reflecting cutbacks on their workforce and more work. I found it hard to get their attention to get water. We were all dehydrated by the time we arrived. I wasn’t able to sleep and spent most of the night looking out the window. There were lots of lights below as we flew over Cuba but very few as we flew over western Peru and Bolivia and the eastern Andes. I could see the snowcapped peaks of the high Andes far off to the western horizon.
There were clouds over western Argentina but they broke up as we approached BA. The countryside around BA is very flat. From the air I could see lots of small, very well kept towns with dirt streets lined with poplars.
The flight to Salt Lake City was beautiful and uneventful. I saw Cabezon and so won $5.00 from Kelly – an inside joke. It was cold and gloomy and the mountains around SLC were covered in fresh snow making a nice contrast to where we were headed.
We arrived in Atlanta with about an hour and a half wait for out flight to BA. We hooked up with MB and Edie who came in from Nashville - Edie was so excited to meet me that she fell on the floor and went to sleep.
Then we waited and waited. There was some problem with the air conditioning in the plane and so we were about an hour late getting off the ground. It seems to be par for the course with long airplane trips anymore that something goes wrong. This at least was better than our last trip to Paris when the crew forgot to close the airplane door while on the ground and there was a huge flood in the plane that not only made the carpets soggy throughout the flight but also soaked the baggage in the cargo hold below.
The flight was uneventful. The stewards and stewardesses seemed more harried than usual – I imagine reflecting cutbacks on their workforce and more work. I found it hard to get their attention to get water. We were all dehydrated by the time we arrived. I wasn’t able to sleep and spent most of the night looking out the window. There were lots of lights below as we flew over Cuba but very few as we flew over western Peru and Bolivia and the eastern Andes. I could see the snowcapped peaks of the high Andes far off to the western horizon.
There were clouds over western Argentina but they broke up as we approached BA. The countryside around BA is very flat. From the air I could see lots of small, very well kept towns with dirt streets lined with poplars.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)