back to the city...

Looking back on my time in Buenos Aires, it’s hard to say what was the most rewarding aspect of the experience—especially since I still have another month left of my semester, and a few weeks of travel after that. There have been so many meaningful moments—and a few wild ones—that will stay with me forever. But ultimately what was most significant about my time here, was my purpose. I came here to push myself, to liberate myself, and even now I feel like I’ve found what I was looking for—more or less.

It’s impossible to know exactly how I’ve changed—at least while here in the moment—but I can say that heading back to New York, I feel that I’m in a very different place than when I came to Buenos Aires. Until I had to register for Fall 2009 courses, I hadn’t even thought about returning to New York. My life next semester was an abstract notion overshadowed by my disconnected present circumstance.

Then it was time to face the music, to own up to the fact that the Fall semester was coming, and that this one was ending. I realized that every move I made after that point was heavily influenced by this past semester—changing interests and priorities, new inspiration, new friends and wider experience.

Now occasionally my thoughts drift off to New York, to ambitions I have returning back to the city. What will I do differently? I’m excited to be back in that familiar setting, to pursue it, to explore it with the kind of vigor that I’ve recently applied to Buenos Aires. I’m optimistic that my new stamina for adventure, and recent sense of freedom, will open up many new things for me upon my return.

New York Madness

I’m also bringing back the knowledge of travel—self-collected and obtained through texts—to New York City. I’m eager to slow down, to notice, to draw, to appreciate all the intricacies of that eclectic place I call home. I can’t wait see my good friends, eat in my favorite restaurants, and walk through my old stopping grounds, but I’m also ready to search for new places, to notice new details, to meet new strangers too.