The picture of the subway-riding dog, as promised
I have not had a huge amount happen in my life over the last few days, things seem to be winding down, but since I do not leave until Friday, I have tried to organize this week with a few last minute activities to keep myself occupied.
Last Friday there was only one class, that was called 'images,' but really just covered identification of certain tumors and growths in a cerebral scan. So for the title, the class was quite specific and brief. What I did learn was interesting, though. I had some pizza and salad for lunch.
In the afternoon, I took it upon myself to go out and explore a little on my own. I went to the Abasto, a shopping mall nearby since it is a large complex and I had been told before that it was worth seeing. It was quite nice, very much like the standard mall (an infrastructure not high on my list of vital attractions) but there were a couple of amusing and interesting encounters.
That is right: Kosher McD's in Buenos Aires
After the mall I went Tango-ing, and I shared the class with two porteños, who despite their fully Argentinean existences, did not know how to Tango at all. It was quite the experience to be better (a very relative term in this instance) than a native at this so very Argentinean activity. It was enjoyable, we had some laughs and I got to feel a little satisfaction when I realized I had learned a small amount of that difficult dance.
That evening I went out with Paula, Andrés and one of Andrés' friends to a party. It was my last night to go out for the evening and so I was really glad to spend it with those two friends of mine. We had a blast, laughed and danced our way through the night.
Self-timer shot before heading out
Waiting in the biting cold outside the party
Saturday was pretty uneventful since I slept in super late, and Sunday was likewise quite sedentary. I broke down and did a little bit of packing, of the old school stuff (papers and books of which I amassed quite a pile) as well as newspaper clippings and other mementos that I want to bring home to help remember the trip. I had tentative plans on both days, but neither day things worked out as I had hoped. "Flaky" is a terrible term, but I have come to realize that there is a large portion of the world that does not share my (apparently hypersensitive) attention to plans. Maybe it is weird that when a plan is proposed, I actually think that it will happen, yet it has happened repeatedly.
I was happy to have the hospital to go to this morning, although my body protested the early wake-up. Today, the students gave presentations. They had been split up into two groups last week and given cases (in English) on which they were to present today. The idea was to focus on the relay of information and the process of data collection and synthesis than an actual diagnosis or suggested treatment plan, but that was not disallowed. So, I got to hear two very differently styled group presentations. It was fairly hard for me to keep up with parts, since the students in general talked in the expected, nervous-state accelerated speed, but it was interesting. One of the groups had prepared a PowerPoint presentation, the other used the chalk board to illustrate family history and patient information.
I had made plans for the afternoon with a friend, but after waiting for the entire afternoon, things fell through. I apologize, I was/am a little peeved still, so it is hard for me to write completely objectively about it all. However, I have confirmed plans for tomorrow, and I am very excited for what is going to happen. It is down to the tricky stage, monetarily, where I want to be careful in my spending/withdrawing since I do not want to be restricted in my last few days, and yet I would prefer to not change a large amount of Pesos when I go to Guatemala.
I have heard a little bit about how my time in Guatemala is shaping up to be, and it promises to be exciting and very different from my last few months here. Naturally, climactically it will be significantly warmer (bittersweet), but also I have a couple of volunteer possibilities so that I can keep myself busy, useful and also meet new people. I am quite interested to see how the Guatemalan Spanish differs from Argentinean, since I have heard a couple of different opinions as to accent and for example the usage of 'vos' or 'tú.'
Thursday, I am hoping to have a little dinner here at Betty's house with a couple of friends, just to have one last time to say 'thank you' to everyone and say my good-byes. I leave at midday on Friday, so there will be no real chance to see anyone then. I am really looking forward to it; it should be very good closure to this chapter in my life.
Alright, coming down to the final Argentinean posts, I keep saying it because I am trying to come to grips with the reality. This is first time I have spent this length of time separated from my family and the native language of English, it will be interesting to shake up the routine a little.
Chao.
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