The world is small, Lilly is triggered, and the food is fantastic

If you know me even a bit, you probably either know or could guess that I absolutely adore family dinners. Growing up we used to sit down as a family and eat dinner together every night. At the time I didn't realize how special it was, but looking back, those dinners are such a huge part of who I am today. The talks, the check-ins, the arguments, the lapses when we would all space out in harmonious silence...important things to me to share with people in my everyday life. Last year in New York, Fam Night every once in a while with 3 pieces of my heart from home saved me from falling into depression during the wintertime and made me realize that home really is where the heart is, Sunday morning breakfasts with M and Z every week kept me from dreading Mondays and constantly kept a smile on my face, late-night runs to the taco truck with Savannah whenever I'm home are the best meals and best company in life...the list goes on and on. It is the beginning of week three in Buenos Aires, and already family dinners are a staple in my life and happiness here. A friend who spent the semester here last Spring warned me of the cliquey nature of the program here and cautioned me not to fall into a clique myself. I prefer to call us a family. My roommate, myself, and three of the boys from NYU who live across the street sort of just meshed into a dinner-going group that has evolved into my peace of mind.

That said, let me tell you about the important stuff: the food! I have two favorite restaurants thus far. Las Pizarras is right around the corner from our dorm; las pizarras means the chalkboards in Spanish, and every couple of nights they change the menu and write it on big chalkboards that hang in the restaurant. I've eaten fresh corn ravioli, beet and brie risotto, maracuya (passionfruit) creme brulee, and pear crumble with lemon sorbet there-- not to mention the wine list. My other favorite is a Mexican restaurant called Xalapa, which is a five to ten minute walk from us. Free corn chips and salsa, yummy guacamole and margaritas, and chilaquiles that taste NOTHING like the ones I love at home but are BOMB nonetheless. The last time we went for family dinner there, I'm sure everyone wanted to tape my mouth shut because I wouldn't stop talking about how much the interior reminded me of our breakfastnook at home (pictures of multicolored dried corn on the walls, the same Diego Rivera print we have up, callalilies painted on the deep-yellow walls...).

Classes are in Spanish and I am staying afloat thus far, but it still makes me a little nervous.... It will get better though, I know it will. Despite how much I adore my grupo here, I am speaking too much English and it's frustrating. Tomorrow is my first day traveling about an hour outside of the city to La Juanita (check them out at http://www.helpargentina.org/en/node/1268), where I will be volunteering for the semester, so I anticipate using my Spanish there a lot. The world keeps getting smaller and smaller. Initially I was assigned to a different NGO here who wanted my help with international partnership development and fundraising and databasing work. All stuff that I can handle and am decent at, but not the most engaging, and definitely not a job that would help me get to know this city better. Then I met with the man who pairs up students with orgs, and he basically told me my org didn't need me anymore. Perfect. I started telling him my interests, and he mentioned that he had a place in mind for me. I asked the name, and he told me La Juanita. When I told him that one of my best friends volunteered there, he got super excited, said that they love my friend and he's great, and decided on the spot to send me to work for them. This is not why the world is small.

Two days later, I went to MALBA, a contemporary art museum, to see an Andy Warhol exhibit and to meet up with a friend of a friend. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, she's a very friendly person who I can practice my Spanish with and a community activist here in the city. As she asked me questions about how my time will be spent in her city, I mentioned La Juanita. Of course she used to work with them, and although it has been many years, is very familiar with them and the work they do. And it goes without saying that she knows the other community activist who I met with two days prior to her; he works for an organization called La Base that gives loans to cooperatives in Buenos Aires, half of which are recovered factories. I bought some shoes from one of the coops and spoke with him and learned a ton about recovered factories in Buenos Aires (check out Naomi Klein's documentary "The Take," and my new contact's website www.elcambiosilencioso.com.ar). A new friend here came with me to the La Base office, and though neither one of us is entirely proficient in Spanish, afterwards we spent an hour in a coffeeshop enjoying cafe con leches y medialunas (mini croissants... typical breakfast here is cafe con leche and 3 medialunas) and speaking soley in Spanish.

On a very personal note, I am really trying and learning how to control my triggers. A "trigger" is something that people say or do that triggers you to be upset, to be offended, to lose your cool. Not that I am an angry person, but I have a lot of passion, and I have created such a niche for myself in New York City that I rarely spend long stretches of time around folks that might trigger me. Being here is a good experience for me, because I am realizing that my reactions are not always the most productive. I know that blowing up or shutting someone down for making an ignorant comment will either scare them away from ever broaching the subject again, or will make them hate me, or will cause them to get defensive and refuse to listen to what I have to say, or all of the above. Still, there have been moments (to my shame, I must admit) on the trip already when I have been triggered, and probably not responded in the most productive way. You live and you learn. Correction: I live and I learn. Along with productively handling my triggers is a renewed commitment to "I" statements. :)

Sending y'all some South American love,

L

P.S. Desiree and I just booked boat tickets and hostel beds for this weekend... we're heading to Punta del Este, Uruguay to soak up the sun at the last weekend on the beach before most people return to work after summer break!
P.P.S. So many run-on sentences! Apologies if they bother you. I've got a thing for commas and not pausing for breath until I have spoken my piece. Besos!