The "Study" in Study Abroad

I've been in Buenos Aires for about two and a half weeks now and am settling in nicely. Here's a little bit of information about my university and my studies here in Argentina. 

I'm attending a university called Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, or Di Tella for short. People in Argentina pronounce the "ll" differently than most other Spanish speakers, but they actually pronounce Di Tella dee tell-uh. It's a very small school, especially compared to UNC. I think there are about 1,200 undergraduates and 1,300 graduates (not sure though). It's mainly all in one building, though there is another smaller building that seems to be mainly offices or things that don't pertain to any of my classes.

the front entrance of the school (picture courtesy of wikipedia)

close up of the front entrance - in addition to scary fences, there are also lots of security officers

The cafeteria is actually pretty good! Also, there is a courtyard behind the main building where students/professors park. Inside that courtyard is a little cafe with soup, sandwiches, coffee, etc. It's good for when my professors let us have a break during a long class (3 hours).

the courtyard (the cafe is the little building with awnings) 

I had this yummy little ham & cheese sandwich on my 1st day of class

The street in front of the school

As you can see, my school is in a residential neighborhood. It's much more relaxed than the heart of the city. Also pictured is a little orange bus - that's actually a school bus for grade school kids. Across the street is some sort of arena where people practice polo, so I often see people on horseback. 

Right now my classes are:

1. Literature of Argentina

So far we've read works by Oliverio Girondo and Jorge Luis Borges. I like this class a lot! (Thankfully, since one of my majors at UNC is hispanic literature) My professor is very quirky and funny. He talks to himself and likes to smell the white board markers. That aside, he is also knowledgeable about literature. 

2. Cinema of Argentina 

So far we've watched "La Historia Oficial" and "Un Muro de Silenco" - both about Los Desaparecidos*

This class is interesting, especially since I've never taken a film class before.

3. A history class about dictatorship and militancy in Argentina/the surrounding countries in the 60s and 70s. This class is really interesting but the reading load is intense. It's pretty hard to keep up since I need to read slowly in Spanish if I want to understand. 

4. A seminar on Religion and International relations 

So far we've studied basics of Hinduism and Buddhism. I like this class because listening to comments from my classmates (who are from Argentina) challenges my listening skills. 

*In short, Los Desaparecidos were a group of 30,000 people who disappeared during the time when Argentina was governed by dictatorship. These people were considered "subersivos" and most were taken by the government, tortured, and killed. (Not all of them were politically involved) There's a lot more to it than that but it's very sad and worth researching. This website shows a really interesting series of images where an image of a happy, unsuspecting family is shown next to an image of that same family years later, missing those who disappeared.

http://www.gustavogermano.com/


It's strange leaving a large public university like UNC and arriving at a tiny private university. I like UNC a lot but I can also appreciate some benefits of this system too. Small classes, a good cafeteria, a well kept building, etc. I've been told by some that Di Tella is the best university in Argentina, but others strongly feel that it's UBA (University of Buenos Aires). Either way, it's good to know it's a well respected school.  My classes are pretty small here which is nice too. There is a shuttle that runs all day, so I take the subway to the shuttle stop and then go to school from there. (Unless I miss the shuttle, in which case I walk the 22 blocks or so to class) I don't have to buy textbooks. Instead, I go to the copy center and print whatever is needed for class.

I have a lot of stacks of papers like this

Anyway, I'm liking class so far! I don't have any classes on Friday (for the first time in my life) which is really nice. It was challenging at first to understand the professors but I've gotten much more comfortable with the accent and usually understand pretty well now. Most of my homework consists of reading. So far I think I've been learning a lot and am interested to see how my classes relate to one another. For example, things I study in my history class often show up in the films I watch in my cinema class. So, with that I'm off to do some homework :) 

Thanks for reading!

Finding a home in Buenos Aires

        As of tomorrow, I will have been in Buenos Aires for a week. So here is a post to let everyone know I am still alive and doing well, even on a different continent. I'm starting to feel much more relaxed now that I've gotten used to the chaos of a big city. The first week has been exciting and intimidating at times too.

        I stayed in a hostel in Palermo Soho (a neighborhood) for three nights. It was interesting, to say the least. Some hostels are nicer than others and some are more social than others. While some hostels have a problem of being TOO social, (constant partying, etc) the social life in my hostel was nonexistent. People didn't really spend time there (it was rather small) so it was hard to meet people at first. Eventually I met some nice people from Brazil, France, and England. We sometimes had breakfast or dinner together.

This is the all-girls room (shared with women from Uruguay and France)

This is the coed room (shared with people from England, Canada, and Brazil)

The bathroom in the all-female suite

        The rooms were fairly clean but I shared a room with 5 total strangers, both girls and guys. I don't really enjoy sleeping in a room with people I don't know, I discovered. The last night I stayed in a different room with 3 other girls. But I survived and now appreciate my current living situation much more. The highlight of the hostel: making some friends and staying up late chatting with them. The low points: having my towel disappear (forever), and discovering multiple stains like these on my sheets:

blood? yuck.

         After my time in a hostel, I am VERY appreciative of the room I have now. I had to search for a "departamento," as it is called here, while I was staying in a hostel. I found one that seemed promising and went to visit it in person. When I liked it, I decided to move in the very next day! I now have a private room in an apartment in Palermo Soho. I love the neighborhood because my street is filled with cafes, cute shops, and restaurants. There are plenty of people walking around and it feels safe and well kept. There is a subway stop or "subte" three blocks away. There is also a grocery store three blocks away. I live above a cute little restaurant/cafe. I share the apartment with Mariana and Martin, who are both from Argentina. They are both very kind and friendly.  Mariana is a fashion designer and Martin is a drummer (he performs and also teaches lessons in the house).
These are some pictures of the house that Mariana took:

This is one of the beds in my room (there are actually 2)

This is our small but functional kitchen. I light the gas stove with a lighter.

This is a little courtyard, where the stairs to my room are located. I sort of have my own little tower.

This is one of the balconies.

This is the living room, which also has a projector for watching movies.

This is a little desk in my room.

Here are a few pictures of mine:

My apartment is the top part of this building. The bottom is a cafe called "El Pinguino de Palermo" (The Penguin of Palermo)

The little rooftop area

A clothesline (there are no dryers here)

a little grill

my room is the little white building just beyond the rail

the view of the street

These are the stairs that go from the main courtyard to my room (pictured), all the way to the roof

         So, all in all I am finally feeling settled! Mariana, Martin and I have had dinner together a couple of times now. Sometimes we cook together and sometimes we cook separately but eat together. I'm trying to get used to the dinner time here (9:30 pm roughly) but sometimes I eat a little earlier if I'm starving. It helps to go for coffee around 4 or 5 because I can have a little snack and sustain myself until later. I'm having lots of fun cooking and shopping for groceries because it is so cheap here. Restaurants are still pricy but you can find good deals on groceries. For about $12 USD, I got all of this:

Tea, crackers, eggs, butter, soy sauce, lentils, a bell pepper, green beans, butter, and a tupperware container. Not bad!

Anyway, thanks for reading! I'm off to go to a walking tour with some of the international students. Might as well embrace my inner tourist.