Villa General Belgrano and the First Day of Classes

Hola amigos!

This was our first long weekend; of course, I hadn't started teaching yet so it was just like any other week. Martín and I decided we'd go check out Villa General Belgrano. My first attempt didn't work out due to a paro (about which you can read below), but we successfully got on our buses the next day and met up in Villa General Belgrano.

Villa General Belgrano is a German-influenced town located about 2 hours southwest of Córdoba (and 3 hours northwest of Río Cuarto); it has the 3rd largest Oktoberfest party in the world, according to Wikipedia (Guess where I'm going in a few months?). Martín and I walked around and got some Cuban cigars (hey, we've got to take advantage of them while we can). Later, we met up with some of Martín's friends who are also studying in Córdoba. We walked around, had a great German snack for dinner, and then drank a missile (2.5L) of beer. It was excellent. You can see pictures here!

Martín, Sugarloaf and Me

Picada alemana, complete with kraut (which I ate)

Martín and I with our "missile" of German beer

Martín stayed in Río IV and got a taste of some wicked empanadas from Otra Vez (the owner, Nora, wants to learn English, so maybe I can swing a hot deal). We then went to Siga La Vica, an all-you-can-eat asado restaurant. I got a full bottle of wine, unlimited salad bar access, and unlimited Argentine meat for 65 AR$ (appx $16 in U$D). Oh, I also got dessert. I love this exchange rate. Later, Martín and I met up with Samantha (last year's Fulbrighter here) to go out. We ended up going to Elvis, a rock-and-roll bar that was a giant sausage fest.

On another note, today was my first day actually in classes at the university. It was a speaking course, and they were talking mainly about friendship. I introduced myself and asked if the students had any questions, and then I just facilitated discussion. Next week I may try to plan some activities related to the topic (men and women, opposite-sex friendships, etc.), but today an introduction was nice. The students seem pretty cool, and their knowledge of English is very good for second-year college students.

Normally, I would have class with the same professor tomorrow, but there's going to be another paro, this time with university professors. Hell, at least this time the strike keeps me from having to work. Man, I'm getting so lazy...