We’re in the heat of the summer and even though bikini season is in full swing here in Argentina and Uruguay, we’ve got our eyes on the future in 2009.  But that doesn’t mean that 2008 won’t come back to haunt us so that’s why I’m here to remind us of the best and worst of 2008 so we can take from the good things and learn from the past so that we don’t let history repeat itself.

BEST OF BA 2008

Democrats Abroad Debate Parties
It was great to see people of all nationalities come together to cheer on the dems in the debates.  Great feats of organization, hand holding, tears of joy, etc etc.

Hair Flowers
Nothing says, “I’m a passionate woman who may have just come from a Latin country” like a flower in your hair.  These little trendy accessories have been around since the Spanish Inquisition however, they’re gaining in popularity again.  Ole!

That perfect little summer dress - in so many shapes and sizes.
What goes better with your little flower in hair accessory than a lovely lazy summer dress.  2008 saw so many designers reinventing that simple dress - some even went very sassy.  Luckily, the right one is out there for anyone who visits this city in the next few months!

Global Awareness
So it’s catching on…earlier this year I reported on the passing of the law for the province of Buenos Aires to start banning the plastic bag. It’s getting easier to see sustainable design here in BA - although we have a long long way to go here, something is better than nothing. I wholeheartedly give my blessing to the continued success of this trend in BA.

Google Maps Reach Argentina
Just a few months ago if you typed in an address in Google Maps for something in Buenos Aires, you would see a big blank page.  Finally, they got the hint and even put in the directions of the streets.  Above and Beyond the call.  Thanks! Google Maps.

WORST OF BA 2008

Poopypants!
Okay, I have to admit, I’ve been seeing these since I first moved here, but I just don’t know how this trend hasn’t stopped.  Seriously peeps, can we not move on?  Friends don’t let other friends wear poopypants.  It’s just not right.

poop! poop!

Fights with the Campo
Mid-year, President Christina took on farmers as they fought for their rights and taxes. This led to the farmers to blockade major routes and stop products from getting to Buenos Aires city.  Shops were without meat, vegetables, low on flours, sugars and other products that come from outside of the capital. Let’s not do this again.

Spare some change?
In the last few years, Argentina (not only BA) has had some problems with spare change - mainly - there isn’t any.  From small shops to large firms, banks and everyone but the bus companies - everyone’s having trouble finding monedas.  But with this economy’s ups and downs it’s worthy to note that the change isn’t even worth the amount of money that it takes to print.

Fires in Ushuaia
Surprisingly, very little notice was given this year to a tragedy at the southernmost city in the world.  Literally hundreds of hectares of forestland have incinerated in the past month due to raging fires in Patagonia.

Visa Fees Announcement for Yanquis
Even though it’s starting in 2009, looks like the Kirchner camp is trying to make a few bucks by playing the reciprocity card.  As of March, 2009, countries that charge a visa application fee will be reciporically charged upon entering the country.  This means you, United States. lookie.

When I first came here three years ago, I heard a Brasilian classmate of mine talking about how much he loves Uruguay.  He went on and on about Colonia de Sacramento - how it was just like Brasil - and after a few months in Buenos Aires, I needed to go to Uruguay to renew my tourist visa and the cheapest and least time consuming option was to check out this place otherwise known as “Colonia”.

I purchased tickets at the Buquebus offices on Cordoba 879, however there are offices all over the city.  (Check out their website for more info). Anyway, it was my first time going to Uruguay and I opted for the whole day experience including the ferry ride, a lunch and a tour.  It came out to just over 120 pesos each person.  The ferry ride was with the “slow” ferry that crawled at what seemed about two miles per hour across the River de la Plata over the course of three hours.  Both my boyfriend and I got seasick and were at the point of cabin fever on the way back and forth on this ferry.  He was totally green, and it was gross.

The lunch was - nice.  Nothing special.  In fact, there are lots of easy to find restaurants all over this tiny city with a great selection of food and ambiance.  The tour ended up being part walking tour and part busride - both pretty interesting, but nothing to write home about.

There’s another ferry that takes under an hour from Buenos Aires to Colonia, however.  It costs a little extra, but if you’re like me and get seasick easily, it’s well worth it as you don’t feel the waves as much.

Another option is to go to Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay and in my opinion a large step up from Colonia, which is mostly dead during the weekdays and fills up with people renewing their tourist visas on the weekends. Montevideo is an actual city - with real nightlife and things to do, places to go and trendy restaurants to be seen at.

Over the last few years, Punta del Este - a city along the coast of Uruguay, has become the PLACE to be for Argentina’s rich and famous.  During the peak season of December through March, prices are sadly exaggerated and upon entering the city limits, dignity flies out the window for the four month nonstop show that is like “Spring Break ‘82 Reunion” mixes with “Spring Break ‘06″.

The combination is way too fake tan, botox and boob jobs for me, and there’s no surprise that the party has moved down the road to the new and exclusive village of Juan Ignacio - also recently featured in the New York Times travel section.

Punta can be beautiful - in the off season.

See the article here called “Winter in the Sun” by Paola Singer.

It seems like Juan Ignacio has a lot of charm, and it’s sad to think that in the next few years, it will be just as worn out as Punta del Este is now.  So here’s my tip.  Find a place called Punta del Diablo, Uruguay, before it too, gets trendy.  They’ve got some wonderful wildlife sanctuaries as well as a charm that extends from the warmth of the local people.  For more information visit the town’s site online.

Once upon a time in the 70s and 80s, Mar del Plata was THE place for the rich and famous of Argentina to have a weekend home near the beach.  Every summer this city just a few hours south of Buenos Aires along the Atlantic Coast would turn into a mini Buenos Aires with an ocean view.  Hotels would fill up, the glamour ous casino would experience its hay day and bars, cafes and expensive restaurants filled as this mini-Cannes would become the temporary home to Argentina’s elite masses.

Since the last economic crisis in 2001, Mar del Plata became more affordable to the middle class of Argentina and to this day hotels sell out completely during the peak summer months of November through March.

This year marks the 23rd annual Mar del Plata Film Festival - one of the most prestigious film festivals of South America.  Participants include filmmakers not only from Argentina but from the entire world, classifying this festival in the category “A” by the FIAPF, making its counterparts the festivals in Cannes, Berlin and Venice.

This year three movies to keep your eyes on are

1. Panorama by Thomas Clay (Spanish: Soi Cowboy) projected on the 12th and 13th of November
2. The Hurt Locker by Katheryn Bigelow starring Ralph Feinnes and Guy Pearce. Bigelow herself will be attending the event. Check the Mar del Plata Film Festival official website for more information.

From the official festival website:

The Cinema Festival is the annual meeting between the audience and the traditional and avant-guard cinematographies that are screened in the many parallel sections.

Since 1996 up to the last edition in 2007, many foreign personalities have attend the festival, among them Gina Lollobrigida, who was payed tribute for being the most popular celebrity to attend the first festival in 1954, Jacqueline Bisset, Elsa Martinelli, Raquel Welch, Renee Zellweger, Francisco Rabal, Amparo Soler Leal, Lina Wertmüller, Percy Adlon, Arturo Ripstein, Pilar Miro, Dino Risi, Alfonso Arau, Antonio Ferrandiz, Abbas Kiarostami, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Catherine Deneuve, Geraldine Chaplin, Sonia Braga, Emily Watson, Julie Delpy, Nikita Mijalkov, Sally Potter, Alex de la Iglesia, Liv Ullman, Jeremy Irons, Alan Rickman, Philip Noyce, Istvan Szabo, Gerard Depardieu, Volker Schlöndorff, María de Medeiros, Helen Mirren, Vittorio Taviani, Mario Monicelli, Hanna Schygula, Kathleen Turner, Héctor Babenco, Ken Russell, Bob Rafelson, Norman Jewison, Susan Seidelman, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, Krzystof Zanussi, Michael Winterbotton, Abel Ferrara and Juliette Binoche.

To get to Mar del Plata, there are several buses running daily and nightly from the Retiro station as well as a slightly more expensive option of a train from Buenos Aires.  Reserve your hotels in advance as the Davis Cup is happening at the same time.  (Keep your eyes peeled for Guillermo Vilas!).

Surf’s up!

Don’t forget your bathing suit and some suntain lotion, because there are miles and miles of beautiful beaches, lots of shopping and nightlife around the city and great seafood to be eaten!  Right about now you can also catch a glimpse of the migrating Southern Right Whales by going out to the pier with the Jesus statue that looks like Rio’s Corcovado.

And don’t be fooled by the Port.  Although there are plenty of restaurants to find fresh seafood, the Port of Mar del Plata is more buffet style, not so awesome places to eat (imagine “Long John Silvers” food chain).

So my suggestion is to move slightly away from the port.  For excellent seafood a must try is the Taberna Baska at 12 de Octubre 3301.  One of their specialties is my favorite - “chupirines en salsa negra”, squid cooked in its own ink sauce.  Fabulous.

If you’ve got a car or rent a car while you’re down there, its worth a trip to drive just a 15 minutes south of the Farol, the lighthouse to the beautiful cliffs. If you’re not into landscape, there’s plenty of shopping to be done in the city center where they have a street similar to Florida Street in Buenos Aires - no cars allowed, just shopping shopping shopping.

If you’re looking for shopping but are looking for something a little more exclusive, go to the old city center of Mar del Plata, on Guemes Street.  You can find some really nice cafes, restaurants, bars, almacens and ice cream shops to enjoy a lovely warm afternoon.  But be sure to not overdo going to cafes during the afternoon and evening hours, because the real time to be seen at the cafes in the city so fondly called “La Feliz” (Happy) is at breakfast.

The typical Argentine sits at the cafe in the morning with his cafe con leche and tres medialunas (what other people know typically as croissants). but where you go says a lot about who you are.  There are two main cafes that are THE place to be seen in the morningtime.  Confiteria Boston that looks out over the ocean is right at the same level as the boulevard where people take their morning walks along the oceanfront just on the Bahia Varesse. Up until a few years ago, medialunas from this place where considered the BEST in Argentina, however there’s another place that has risen to the challenge with a little more sophistication and sweetness. Tio Curzio is a two story restaurant and reception hall located in a restored old mansion looking out over the ocean with an elegant patio, great views and medialunas that are addictive from the very first bite.

Of course, when you arrive to Mar del Plata, you’ll definitely see a lot of advertising for Havanna for the famous alfahore Havanna was born in this city.  Go to any of the cafes to try some of their delicious goodies and coffees.  Anything Havanna is a great gift from this little city by the ocean.

Just like in Buenos Aires, there are tons of great ice cream shops and pizzerias - which makes the city a great place to go weather you’re by yourself, with some friends or with your family.

For more information on the Film Festival, with listings of the programs and dates and times, go here: http://www.mardelplatafilmfest.com/.  But before you go, make sure you have lodging since the Davis Cup is being held in Mar del Plata at the same time this year.  That’s a big deal, so check things out before you go.

I’ve been to Mardel several times over the past three years, so check out my Flickr Mar del Plata set.

Hey Everyone! So today’s the big day! Here’s the scoop.  Tuesday is the day we’ve been waiting for! Democrat or not, go watch the returns come in with the crowd from Democrats Abroad Argentina at Sacramento Bar with Yanqui Mike and the gang!

Then buy yourself a t-shirt, because I (yes, me!) won the design contest that the Dems Abroad held last month!  So I’ll be there with a huge smile on my face.  The only thing that will make it better is if Barak Obama wins this election. Yeh! Go Barak!

Here’s the address for El Sacramento - El Salvador 5729 (at Bonpland)
Palermo Hollywood – Buenos Aires

Doors open: 9 pm

See you there!

I just found this hotel.  Now I want to go to Mexico City, just to stay there. It’s called the Condesa, Districto Federal.  mm mm mmmm. http://www.condesadf.com/

I’m having a great time today catching up on all of the writing that I wasn’t able to accomplish this past week.  If you’re wondering why there have been no posts this week, it’s because I was super busy with work.  Trying to make sense of php, flash, databases, and a HUGE problem with the wireless on my own computer (grr) made my week pretty long - and my eyes very tired.

I had a lot of inspiration, but very little energy to write at all.  So it’s a rainy and cold weekend, I just had 7.5 hours of sleep and I want to scream to the world everything that I’ve been thinking aout this week.  First of all, I’ve been making a pretty big effort to make at least one bread product per week.  Last week it was probably the most successful bread recipe that I’ve encountered so far - the King Arthur’s recipe (below). It came out perfect.

Secondly, one of the blogs that I subscribe to was talking about making the most perfect cinnamon rolls, and being that this blogger does some exquisite looking pastries, I thought that perhaps they knew what they were doing - so I followed the site to this recipe, and to be honest, it wasn’t really all that.  Ok, the rolls were probably the most beautiful rolls that I’ve ever made, but they were just too sugary for my liking. It was just so much brown sugar that there was a caramel at the bottom of the pan.

Confession time:  Not everything that I bake turns out perfect, but I try to make the best of it.  Last year for Christmas, I decided to make a brioche and fill it with brie and dried fruits.  The brioche came out beautiful, but baking the brie inside the bread gave this terrible flavor of foot fungus that made this a small disaster.  Luckily I made a tiramisu as well.  Anyway, I had some leftover brioche dough and the next morning, rolled out the dough, sprinkled it with cinnamon, a touch of nutmeg and little pinches of cold butter all along the rolled out rectangle.  I rolled, cut and put onto a cookie sheet for a half an hour and must confess, those were probably the most perfect tasting cinnamon rolls that I’ve ever made in my entire life.  And it didn’t take nearly as long as the recipe above.  Google brioche recipe.  Find the most simple one you can.  Improv the rolls, I’m sure they’ll come out great!

This week, a really nice expat networking group called Internations will be having their monthly event.  If you’re a foreigner living abroad it has some very nice resources and some lovely, professional people are involved in this group.  You’ll have nothing to loose.  Thursday’s the event!

Title: Internations.org Get together
Location: Fitz Roy 1612, Cream Bar, Palermo
Description: The following is the official invitation message from Internations.org:

We are very pleased to announce our next InterNations Get-Together in Buenos Aires. This will be a great opportunity for you to be able to meet your fellow InterNations members, grab a drink a coffee or a bite to eat, and get to know each other a little better.

When?

Thursday, September 11th, 9:00pm—open end

Where?
Cream Bar
FITZ ROY 1612, PALERMO (at Gorriti & Fitz Roy); phone: +5411 4771 – 9926

We are also happy to announce the following specials for InterNations members especially for this event:

1) Two for one drink specials on selected drinks, beer and wine until closing.

2) 20% discount on all food items.

3) There will also be a raffle for one dinner and two drinks on the next visit.

We hope you are all able to attend. Help us make InterNations your place for living and laughing in Buenos Aires.

This event is for InterNations members only so be sure to tell all your friends to go to www.internations.org to join today!

Fiorella, Samuel and Sandra,
Start Time: 21:00
Date: 2008-09-11