Don't take garbagemen/women for granted. They went on strike for a few days here, which was pretty frightening for someone who had never experienced anything like that before (see above photo). Piles of steaming garbage bags in front of every other restaurant and storefront. Combined with this week's heat wave and the complete lack of smog regulation in Argentina, it basically convinced me that the waste removal industry has the power to jumpstart the plague any given week. Thankfully, they finally picked it up and we can all go on breathing again.
So it's now officially spring in Buenos Aires, which is a big deal for people here as they finally get to see some green on their streets. They have Spring Day, which is just another excuse to party during the week. It's kind of like St. Patty's Day in that it's in spring, many wear green and drink a bunch. Many trees are fragrant at this time of year, which helps to mask some of the air pollution that the increased sunlight intensifies. Walking around, you can see "Feliz Primavera!" written on numerous windows and facades.
As promised, here's some photographic evidence of my job down here:
This photo was taken at the end of winter/very beginning of spring so the trees hadn't started leafing yet. This is one half of the giant duplex that makes the building I work in. It is located to the north of Buenos Aires proper, and, as you can notice, has a big soccer field in front of it. There is a high school across the street from the duplex, and every boy at the school practices futbol pretty much every day without exception. It's neat to be able to watch the future Messis and Militos of Argentina do some "joga bonito" while walking home after a long day at work.
Photo taken just before the security guard turned around and told me to put the camera away.
The view of the office from my classroom.
My "classroom."
I use the company's conference rooms to conduct my classes. Though I have used three different rooms since I started work due to business meetings and what not, the cozier "blue room" you see above is the one I use most often. You can see the ever-present bottle of water, cup of mate cocido (cooked yerba mate), coffee, and book (Atlas Shrugged) keeping me company as I anticipate the next batch of students.
But what would a blog post of mine be without a FOOD UPDATE?
Lunch Time!
I eat lunch most of the time around the corner at one of the best and cheapest buffets I've ever experienced:
The ambience (can you feel it?).
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Salad Bar
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Tartas (yum)
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Hot Ish: Pollo con Papas, Milanesas, Jamon y Huevos
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Cold Ish: Marinated beef tongue, ham salads, wraps.
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PARRILLA (That's what I call made fresh to order)
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A full plate and a drink for between 19 and 27 pesos (~5-7 USD). As pictured: ~$5.
That's my work post. I'll post some fun stuff next time.
Chau
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