Tag: jtmanley

By jtmanley

On Saturday, April 20, I think I might have had the best cultural experience in Buenos Aires so far. I went to see Bizet's opera Carmen, one of the most noted and performed operas, at Teatro Colon. Buenos Aires' main opera house, Teatro Colon is widely considered one of the best concert venues in the world.

As an opera aficionado, I will not bore you will a full-scale review of the opera itself (which was brilliantly executed by the performers and orchestra in case you wanted to know). As a Baltimore-Washington Metro Area native, I've always enjoyed going to the Kennedy Center. As a GW student, I take pleasure in being able to walk less than 10 minutes to enjoy the free Millennium Stage performances , the Washington National Opera, and the National Symphony Orchestra. But going to Teatro Colon might have taken the cake. ...continue reading "Night at the Opera"

By jtmanley

On April 2, Argentina observed the Día del Veterano de Guerra y de los Caídos en la Guerra de las Malvinas (Day of the Veterans and Fallen of the Malvinas War). President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner gave an impassioned speech where she reiterated the Argentine position that the Malvinas/Falkland islands (currently under a sovereignty dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom) belong to Argentina and that the dispute should be resolved through diplomatic dialogue. But just six days later, news from the United Kingdom put the issue back in world headlines.

On April 8, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher died at the age of 87. Prime Minister Thatcher, the first woman to hold the position, led the Conservative government from 1979 to 1990. On April 2, 1982, Argentina and the United Kingdom went to war over the Malvinas/Falklands islands. The two-month war, which resulted in a British victory, was decisive in the downfall of the Argentine military government  and the re-election of Thatcher Ministry the following year. But for Argentines, the loss of 650 of its young men, many of whom were forced by the military government to fight, has not faded from memory. ...continue reading "The Iron Lady & Argentina"

By jtmanley

While students back home celebrated spring break the week of March 11, I had to wait until Semana Santa (Holy Week) to have an entire week of fun and leisure. For Semana Santa, my friends and I decided to go to Mendoza, Argentina for two days and Santiago de Chile for three. Although there were some bumps in the road when it came to transportation and lodging, we had an excellent time overall.

One of the first things that stood out to me was the sheer amount of people that left Argentina for vacation. The traffic leading to the Retiro bus station was a quilombo (i.e., a mess) any way you looked at it. And after slowly swimming through a sea of people to get to my stop, only a unannounced three-hour delay separated me from my journey to wine country! After arriving in Mendoza, things cooled off. The city is really small, but we enjoyed our time there. Sometimes, you need a break from major city life to keep you sane. ...continue reading "Two Ways to Semana Santa"

By jtmanley

The week of April 1 was truly tragic. After leaving Santiago de Chile around 7 p.m. on April 1, I arrived less than two hours later to a Buenos Aires that was hit with heavy rain that would continue for two more days. During the hour-long cab ride from Ezeiza airport to my apartment I do not remember even five minutes without it.

The heavy rainstorms caused severe floods in the Province of Buenos Aires, specifically the area of La Plata. I think the most striking thing to everybody in Buenos Aires and the Province was the storm's death toll. Close to 60 people died due to the flooding, and over 1,000 people were evacuated in La Plata. In total, Buenos Aires received upwards of 7.5 inches of rain on April 1, 3.7 inches greater than the normal average for the entire month of April, making it a record-breaking weather event. ...continue reading "Le Déluge in Buenos Aires"

By jtmanley

Although UCA did not cancel classes for Pope Francis's inaugural mass last Tuesday, they decided to start classes at 9:30 a.m. instead of their usual 7:45 a.m. I really wanted to watch the event, but I needed all the extra hours of sleep possible. Even though this was the second week of class, I felt a little more pressure because of something called the add-drop period.

At UCA, international students can sign up for classes in any faculty of their choosing. After their initial registration during orientation week, they are given until March 22 to decide their final schedule. As a GW student who has to figure out credit amounts and transfers, I was glad that I had time to shop around. As an international student, I am required to take a Spanish class. Furthermore, there are excellent courses in the Program of Latin American Studies (PEL) that are available to international students. But as a requirement for my GW program, I have to take two regular courses if I take a PEL course. Spanish does not count towards that requirement. Now I like the regular courses at UCA. In fact, this was one of the reasons I chose this program: direct enrollment with UCA students in their classes. The problem I had was finding the second course! ...continue reading "The Benefit of the Add-Drop Period"

By jtmanley

Well, last week was busy to say the least. March 11 marked the start of the 2013 academic year at UCA. March 13 marked the beginning of His Holiness Pope Francis's papacy. These two events have definitely become highlights of my time here in Buenos Aires. It is amazing that so much happened during the week that marked one month since I left for Argentina.

It was great to get back into the academic swing of things. For many students it is hard enough to pay attention in class at GW. I know many would cringe at the idea of listening to a professor lecture in Spanish, but I was surprised at how easy you can adapt to change. Like most skills, foreign language ability improves dramatically when you're forced to use and rely on it. I think a big shout-out to my amazing Spanish teachers in middle school, high school, and college is in order. ...continue reading "Habemus Papam and Classes"

By jtmanley

One major event sent shockwaves throughout Latin America and the rest of the world this week. On Tuesday, March 5, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez passed away after an arduous battle with cancer. As millions of people throughout the region reacted to the news, I knew that I witnessing a seminal moment in modern Latin American history. President Chávez, 58, had governed Venezuela since I was 6 years old. During his 14 years in office, he was lauded for his focus on poverty, social justice, and support for greater Latin American integration. A leftist, he helped create the political space for others throughout the region to come to power. One of those people is the incumbent Argentine president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

President Fernández de Kirchner took the death of President Chávez very seriously. Many commentators noted the closeness that Chávez had with her late husband and predecessor Néstor Kircher and the consolation he gave her when Néstor died in 2010. After she learned of her friend and colleague's passing on Tuesday night, she canceled her public schedule, declared three days of national mourning, and ordered all flags be flown at half-mast. She immediately took off for Caracas, making her the first of 55 heads of state and government to attend Chavez's state funeral. ...continue reading "Cristina and the Americas Mourn President Chávez"

By jtmanley

A few weeks ago, it rained pretty heavily. Buenos Aires is hot and humid during the summer, but there is something about a rainy day that makes this exchange student a little bored. So how did I cheer myself up? I went to the mall. Yes, the mall.Did I buy anything? No, but it was pretty good to get a better understanding of one of Buenos Aires' neighborhoods instead of looking at grey skies from my ninth floor apartment!

Abasto is a section of the Balvanera neighborhood. One of the central attractions in this part of town is the Abasto de Buenos Aires, a former wholesale fruit and produce market that operated for almost a century from 1890s to the 1980s, only to become a huge mall (called a shopping en castellano porteño) in the 1990s. The mall is home to many stores and a children's museum, yet what makes Abasto a unique landmark in Buenos Aires is its exterior and interior design. Abasto uses an Art Deco style that is not as common as the more ubiquitous French and Italian styles in many neighborhoods. ...continue reading "What’s it All About, Abasto?"

By jtmanley

The Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina (UCA) held an orientation for its international students this week. There are around 175 international students studying at UCA during the first semester which runs from March to July. In the GW Argentina program, there are five students studying at UCA. After a week's worth of presentations, which came after our own GW orientation during our first week here, I am pretty sure about what I want to do here academically. ...continue reading "Orientation Week at UCA"