I had classes with Frank again, and he was a little more comfortable in the 'group' so I got to see more humor out of him. Marta was coming down with a little something, and Paula was sick too, so I've been barricading my body with vitamins and water and have been power-washing my hands every break. I will not get sick just in time to ruin the end of my time here.
I cannot believe that I only have one and a half days left of classes. I sent an email yesterday to the doctor under whom I will be observing, but I have yet to receive a response from him. If I do not hear anything from him over the weekend, I'll give him a call. I have mixed feelings about ending my academic time here: on one hand I am getting a little tired of the school routine and the full days, but at the same time I love being in an environment where every time I have a question about anything grammatical or otherwise, there are people who can always provide an answer. I think I have been spoiled in that way.
Yesterday was the conclusion of the River Plate vs. Boca Super-classic soccer match. The game started just at the end of my private lesson with Germán, so I packed up my things super quickly and sat in the Rotiseria where I get my fall-back lunch of empanadas. They know me quite well now, and were more than happy to let me sit in there an watch the game on their TV even though they were slowly getting ready to close.
The game was pretty good. I missed the first goal that Boca scored within the first 15 minutes of the match. I did see the second though, that was essentially sealed the deal. River just had nothing to offer in response, so the rest of the game went relatively uneventfully. I headed home towards the end of the second half, but caught the last minute outside a television/electronics store along with a small group of men who like me had stopped in their tracks to see the final seconds. Everyone in the Rotiseria (except one poor bloke) were Boca fans and were therefore very happy today. Marcelo supports River though, so I tactfully stated my sympathies for his recent tragedy. He said that River has been losing so much recently that it was not the loss that hurt, but the loss to Boca specifically. It is quite a legendary rivalry.
In the early evening yesterday I talked with my sister and mom using Skype, which was very nice. I also got to say 'hi' to my dog. It was strange to see the house and hear about normal life in a place I know so well - it felt weird to be disconnected from my own home.
That night I had arguably the best meal I have had in Argentina so far. And when I say what it consisted of, you all are going to think "how ridiculous, how can he chose that as his favorite meal," but trust me, it was yuuummy. Betty made some chicken that had a wonderful brown sauce drizzled on top and then spiced fantastically. She also made some homemade french fries that were super, thin, crispy, and still warm from the pan. She served it all up in a very fancy, modern-looking plate that was square and had the chicken on one side and a modest mountain of fries on the other. We dug in and devoured the whole plateful between the three of us (Luke joined in for dinner, Rafael was out cruising the streets, I do not know where).
Today was essentially just as beautiful outside. A little cooler, so that I felt the breeze on the walk to school. Classes were great, I have a photo of Frank giving an excellent 'sad' face... Marta still felt a little under the weather, but Paula was feeling almost completely better.
One of the more exciting parts of the day was when my debit card arrived this afternoon. Now I can withdraw money and pay back my loaned money from Betty as well as go out this weekend gift-searching. I need to buy myself a wallet as well...
I'm heading off now to Paula's house for some dinner before meeting up with the Ecuadorian (that is most likely not the politically correct term, but it sounds nice) friends of Paula and Juan Pablo's.
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