Let's start off with a round of the game "What the HELL are they selling?"

...because I really don't think they're selling ice cream.

So it was bound to happen. After a few days of being sick, rained on, and feeling lonely, I got nailed with a major dose of homesickness. It shouldn't have been that big of a surprise, considering that it's happened before, will probably happen again, and is most certainly a part of the human condition. The fact that I'd even read about this beforehand didn't even help. In reality, there are 5 emotional stages of moving to (or living in for an extended period). Even found an article online about it:

http://moving.about.com/od/internationalmoves/a/culture_shock.htm

Looking at that list, I think I hit steps 2 and 3 at roughly the same time...something like "I don't want any more fucking empanadas...when what I REALLY need is a cheeseburger from the Waterfront in San Diego...on Kettner Street...Two blocks from my old...*sigh*"

I'm grateful that in this case it didn't last very long. A few things help to jolt me out of the funk. First of all, the sun has FINALLY come out...which means all of you who have been begging for more pictures will finally be getting them. Secondly, I've been drinking mate like a madman and it seems to have kicked this cold's ass. Thirdly, I'm actually starting to feel like I have some friends here. Between the local Buenos Aires expatriot website and a nice couple (Gina-Marie and Javier) who have befriended me regardless of the fact that I did not rent their apartment, I am expanding my network of English speaking friends. That's not to say that I don't like speaking Spanish with the locals, but being that my skills are far from perfect, it takes constant attention and mental focus to have a halfway decent conversation in Spanish. There's something to be said for the effortlessness of a casual English conversation, even if it's with a complete stranger.

So today, I think I entered Stage Four. I successfully took the bus (more on those later) to the Jumbo store in Palermo (as you can guess by the name it's huge), bought some stuff for the kitchen for which my landlord has promised to reimburse me, went to the gym, bought chicken and vegetables so I can test out my new kitchen gear tonight, and had some more fucking empanadas for lunch...exquisite, beautiful, amazingly tasty, flaky-crusted and perfectly-spiced, fucking empanadas. We were on the outs for a few days, but we've gotten back together and are wondering why we ever parted...especially when they are prepared for me by this sweet old toothless man across the street who actually told me that I have to order them in even amounts, because if I buy three instead of four, "the third will not have a partner." And, yes, they're far better than any burger at the Waterfront...

I guess now I can write that book called "What to Expect When You're Expatriating"

More tomorrow!