Although we lost a bit of momentum from two very strong weeks, we have continued forging forward through what we hope will be the last months of winter. The kids were generally in good spirits and have become really adept at our morning ritual.  We went to a terrific Asado at the home of Michele’s friend Sharilyn.   Although no other kids showed up, we loved the guitar players, the fried empanadas with lemon squeezed inside and the lamb and pork slow cooked on the grill.  Our planned journey to El Campo (the farm) was rained out by some flooding but luckily the weather was nice for the weekend. Jake had an actual basketball game against another club that he enjoyed.

We went to an Asado at our friends the Costas’ home out near Nordelta which had buena onda.  On Sunday we had a nice 2+ hour lunch at Cafe Olvietti with a glass of wine and then headed to the park for some roller skating.

Monday was the holiday to commemorate San Martin and so we celebrated in proper Argentine style at Keri and Mateo’s asado. So while we missed a trip to the campo, we made the most of it.

The following week we had a big Wednesday night when we went to a movie at 8 and THEN went out to dinner at 10 pm!  Who are we?  We have gone totally native.  We also came to the conclusion that while spending time with our kids has been one of the best things about our journey, it’s also possible to spend too much time with the kids.  That at least seemed like a logical conclusion as we had dinner and drinks, well mostly drinks at Gran Bar Drzaon.

The following weekend Jake and I went for a  bit of a tour of city center while Kate and Michele ran some errands back at the ranch.  It was fun to see all these majestic buildings in the city center but a bit sad.  These buildings were once magnificent and while they retain some of their natural beauty they have slipped into a state of disrepair.  It’s a bit emblematic of the country which has such incredibly natural beauty but hasn’t grown meaningfully in a long while.

The Beatles Museum

We also had some fun stops on the subway and the Beatles “museum” which is really just a large connection of Beatles paraphernalia but fun none the less.  The night we went our with our friend Fer and Belen first to 878 and then to see WarPaint, a US band playing at the Voterix theater.  Dinner proved to be an interesting cultural challenge as I wanted to finish in time to see the show start but had to balance that with the fact that it is considered quite rude to rush through a meal.  I think we made it through with all cultural sensitivities in tact..  After a big night we had a relaxed day of kids sports and then watching Boca play.

Not everything was so rosy this week.  Kate really misses her friends from home and is having a hard time adapting to a new culture at school where the environment is not as inclusive and supportive as that at home.

Kate’s view is that it’s tough sledding but she knows this is a good experience for her and she is bound and determined to get through it. I really couldn’t be prouder.