La universidad de viajar: Holy Zonda

So after telling various family members that I was going to update my blog either yesterday or the day before... I clearly decided to do other things instead. But don't you worry--I have thoroughly received punishment for not following through with my word. I have been forced by Mother Nature herself into this internet cafe where I am currently writing thanks to the Viento Zonda. Basically, it's a really, really strong wind that brings dry air and dust from the ocean off the coast of Chile into the region of Mendoza. When the wind reaches the Andes, it descends into Mendoza and the nearby provinces and blows up a mountain of dust, leaves, and every other item of trash left on the streets. The wind is super, super hot and when it is over (sometimes they last for more than 12 hours), the temperature drops SIGNIFICANTLY. So imagine a somewhat apocalyptic scene where the whole city is covered by a dark grey cloud, dust/leaves are violently tossed into the air, and everyone is running around trying to find some sort of cover. Now add the image of a random giant pile of leaves on fire in one of the plazas in the center because... well, I don´t really know why there was a pile of leaves on fire. Meanwhile I'm running around trying not to inhale too much and constantly looking up to make sure an old tree doesn't drop a branch on top of my head... and if you can imagine, STILL RECEIVING PIROPOS (catcalls from men--refer to an earlier post for more information regarding piropos). Holy ZONDA! What a crazy, crazy experience... Every orifice of my body is saturated with sand/dust/random-god-knows-what from the city streets and the ocean beyond.

Aside from this fun Zonda adventure, I have been keeping myself thoroughly busy since the last time I posted (I guess that is a continual theme in my life on this continent). I can successfully cross of a number of goals, as well as add a few more (and then cross them off). I have taken a class about wine (one that, I kid you not, tasted exactly, and I mean EXACTLY, like red peppers that had been cooked on top of a pizza: Finca Quora, Pecado, from Salta, Cab Sav from 2008), spent 24 hours straight without speaking/writing a single word of English (except when those words happen to be the same... for example they say the word "chance," "pullover," and "heavy with frequency in Mendoza) and, a goal that I didn't include but should have, spent pretty much an entire day drinking mate in the Plaza Independencia. Not to mention the fact that I have gone to over 6 folk concerts over the last week! And I just can't tell you in words how incredible these performances were...one better than the last! Something about the musica folclorica really creates a fire inside me. My blood pulses better with a soundtrack of flutes, guitar, charango, and cajas pounding in the background.

Perhaps the coolest thing I have done recently was going to the hot thermal springs in Cacheuta, a mountain town about 40km southwest of Mendoza close to the Chilean border/in the Andes. I went with a friend of mine from the program, along with her boyfriend (he's from Mendoza), and we spent a day TAN LINDO (so so beautiful) in the hot springs. You just lounge about outdoors in an incredibly refreshing, tropical bath that happens to be on the slope of the world's longest continental mountain range (along with being unbearably beautiful and dramatic). Needless to say, I had a pretty good time. On the bus ride to the springs there weren't enough seats to fit all of us, so there was also some random guy sitting on the stairs cracking open cans of Andes (the Budweiser of Argentina, but way better) after Andes and offering a gulp to all the other passengers on the bus. Meanwhile Elsa (my friend), Olaf (boyfriend), and I attempted and succeeded to drink mate after mate after mate, which, though it sounds easy, involves pouring near-boiling hot water into a gourd that you must first fill with dried yerba (the mate leaves).

So that's all for now, folks! Stay tuned for more intense action/wine in the life of Limor...