Mosquito-ville
There are mosquitos here. Big. Fat. Aggressive. Very aggressive. I have an allergic reaction to them. Case in point: my first mosquito bite (left hip) was aggravated, red, larger than the size of a quarter [coin], and higher than a quarter. I still have a mark on my hip (and now, two new bites on my right hip -- at least I will be coordinated...). The bites on my arms look like mumps. Last Monday, I woke to two red spots. First, [amusingly] I thought a baby vampire had found me. Second, [much less amusingly] I worried I was developing skin cancer, despite all the sunblock I use. So I freaked about for 30 minutes, then went to my Spanish class. By the end of the class, two mumps were starting to form. Amazingly, I was able to refrain from scratching them and breaking the skin. They are now only 80% healed. It takes about 10 days or so for a mosquito to heal, on me. I fear going somewhere and getting dengue or yellow fever. I killed one a few nights ago, and it left a large blood splat on my shoe and on the wall. Damn mosquitos. Avon´s Skin So Soft lotion is rumored to detract mosquitos and other insects, and I´ve seen an Avon store here. I intend on seeing if they have Skin So Soft. Damn mosquitos. There are many, stronger words to I use to describe them in my head, but I don´t want to lower the tone of my blog...
Went on a picnic to an ecological reserve park, yesterday. It´s on the Rio de la Plata, and Uruguay is on the other side of the river. As Buenos Aires has no proper beaches, that I´ve heard about or read about, the local porteños flock to the park. We had to walk about two miles into the park in order to find a tree with shade that was unoccupied by others. It was nice to watch the sailboats on the river, and it reminded me how much I would like to do some sailing.
It is interesting to note that within five or so miles of the park, there are smokestacks.
Surprisingly, there were no mosquitos in the park. Or maybe just no mosquitos that found me.
After we were herded out of the park at closing time, we went for a walk in the immediate neighborhood, Puerto Madera. PM is a rich part of town -- full of new condos, swank and slick cafes and restaurants, many purebred dogs and lots of obvious money. It was also the first place I had a drink that had ice in it. However, I was pleased to pay the $12 pesos ($4 USD) in order to have a Bombay gin and tonic. It was delicious. After you cross a little bridge and walk a couple more blocks, the BA that I´m starting to know returned. There are other rich neighborhoods that I´ve seen (including Barrio Norte which reminds me of Park Avenue, with its grand old facades, sleek marble lobbies and well-groomed concierges; Palermo Soho, with its hip and ultra-stylish residents and shops and restaurants and clubs), but PM is very sleek and is very reminiscent of new communities found in Seattle and Portland.
Random BA fact: McDonald´s delivers. Many restaurants and cafes deliver. Even the heladerias (ice cream shops) deliver.
Went on a picnic to an ecological reserve park, yesterday. It´s on the Rio de la Plata, and Uruguay is on the other side of the river. As Buenos Aires has no proper beaches, that I´ve heard about or read about, the local porteños flock to the park. We had to walk about two miles into the park in order to find a tree with shade that was unoccupied by others. It was nice to watch the sailboats on the river, and it reminded me how much I would like to do some sailing.
It is interesting to note that within five or so miles of the park, there are smokestacks.
Surprisingly, there were no mosquitos in the park. Or maybe just no mosquitos that found me.
After we were herded out of the park at closing time, we went for a walk in the immediate neighborhood, Puerto Madera. PM is a rich part of town -- full of new condos, swank and slick cafes and restaurants, many purebred dogs and lots of obvious money. It was also the first place I had a drink that had ice in it. However, I was pleased to pay the $12 pesos ($4 USD) in order to have a Bombay gin and tonic. It was delicious. After you cross a little bridge and walk a couple more blocks, the BA that I´m starting to know returned. There are other rich neighborhoods that I´ve seen (including Barrio Norte which reminds me of Park Avenue, with its grand old facades, sleek marble lobbies and well-groomed concierges; Palermo Soho, with its hip and ultra-stylish residents and shops and restaurants and clubs), but PM is very sleek and is very reminiscent of new communities found in Seattle and Portland.
Random BA fact: McDonald´s delivers. Many restaurants and cafes deliver. Even the heladerias (ice cream shops) deliver.
posted by Shana @ 1:15 PM
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