Hola! Un Beso

Not Actually Argentina but uruguay is close enough even for a day trip: Day Trip to Colonia, photo courtesy of Lisa Harowitz

Hello I am Crissy Gardner. I am a Gallatin student studying abroad in Buenos Aires. My concentration is focused around Creative Writing and Urban Studies. I am currently taking intensive intermediate Spanish, Democracy and Dictatorship in Latin America, and a creative writing workshop.  I am hoping to drop the workshop in leau of translating a book of poetry from the Argentine poet Tamara Kamunszan as part of an independent study. I have traveled to Argentina in hopes of connecting, interestingly, with my Mexican roots. My mother's family is from Mexico and are mostly spanish speakers. I hope that I will become one as well while I am here. So far my language acquistion is going smoothly. I seem to be losing english almost as quickly as I am gaining spanish. I also am here to experience a very different culture than I've encountered before. Buenos Aires was a city that I rarely thought about visiting before I decided to study abroad. Upon arriving I had a wonderful time generally. However there have been a few set backs, today I had my first bout with food poisioning (i think.)

I'm still not sure which books I'll be reading. I have the art of travel and the motorcycle diaries. I might steal some ideas from my fellow portenos here and I'm thinking about picking up a Pico Iyer book I read a chapter of his entitled "La dolce vita meets the Hyper" in my creative writing class here and I've enjoyed his insights about Buenos Aires circa 1996.

Well that's it for now. "Un Beso" as they say here.