Cool Contest: Brasil v. Argentina

So the past couple weeks have been pretty quiet here in Córdoba. I started some of my classes at the program center on Monday, and will start my university class in April (the art department is having building issues, so they just decided to chill til next month). So far I've made a couple new friends who are from different parts of the world, but I'm still waiting to really hang out with Argentines. I'm hoping that when I start my art class I'll make some new contacts, because I feel like part of the point of my being here is to make Argentine friends! However, it's hard to do this when you're constantly hanging out with American kids (all of whom I love, however).

Fortunately, we ARE in a foreign country and are therefore forced to have contact with Argentines on a regular basis. While I've not yet made any long-lasting Argentine friendships, some very cool Argentine people have made guest appearances in my life here. We usually end up chilling with some locals in whatever place we go, which has been great. I think part of our appeal is that we're foreign and therefore new, but I also believe that Argentines are just incredibly friendly and genuinely curious and open people. I'm grateful for that, because it's made my life in Córdoba so much more interesting.

Last night, for instance, we went to a place called Casa Brasil to listen to live Brasilian music. The Casa Brasil is kind of like a community center for Brasilians abroad, and unless you know exactly what you're looking for it's kind of a Diagon Alley-type situation to find it (three taps on this brick, four to the left). The only distinguishing factor that tipped me off to its existence was the distinctly Brasilian beats coming from inside as I passed the door. I kind of slinked inside, still unsure as to whether I was actually entering someone's home, and thankfully saw my friend Olivia waiting by the door. Man, am I glad I didn't get sketched out and leave! The music was awesome. I adore Brasilian music. The beats, the instruments, the Brasilian men who play them, I love them all. We drank a traditional Brasilian drink that involved a lot of lemon-lime deliciousness and generally soaked it all in.

The show was great, and afterwards we hung out with the band for a while and shared some Quilmes and conversation. Things at the Casa wound down but it was still really early (only 3 am!) so we all headed back to the band's hostel. Low and behold, our friend Hendrix was there playing the guitar in a jam sesh with the band! The whole night turned into a singfest with half the hostel, Argentine guys, hostel employees, and British man included. The British man more just sat on a couch by himself, but he still counts.

It's random nights like these that truly make my time here special. You never know where you'll end up at the end of the night or who you'll meet. It's an aspect of life that I've never really experienced before, this spontaneity. Sure, I've definitely had a lot of random nights with my friends back home, but here everything is new. There's a 90% chance every day that I'll go somewhere I've never been before or do something I've never in my life done, which is something I'm growing to truly appreciate and love. I'm learning a lot of life lessons down here, which is kind of the point I guess. Who knows what tonight will bring. Whatever it is, I'm down for the ride.