Thursday, Sept. 29th, 1:10 a.m.
The truth is that I don't know where to begin. So much has happened and continues to happen that I feel very overwhelmed (with my life in general, not just with the blog). I feel like I haven't really processed what's been going on - I've just been going, going, going and I will attempt to use this space to step back and evaluate the past few weeks.
To start with, I'm back in America. I arrived in SF on Tuesday morning. But that's not what I want to talk about first. First I want to talk about my last few days in Buenos Aires, which were like a dream.
Marina and I returned from Rio about 8 days before she was due to fly out. Our first night back was stellar and it only got better from there. We essentially had the time of our lives for a week, seeing friends, going out to eat, going dancing, and enjoying our beautiful apartment. The first night we got back we had tapas at a little bar and then dinner at a fabulous Italian restaurant called El Último Besoi (The Last Kiss), complete with chocolate soufflé and a bathroom with a real bathtub with rose petals in it. Marina and I always seem to find ourselves in touchingly romantic places...
We also took another private tango lesson from our best friend in Buenos Aires, Mayte. She is a great dancer who dances professionally in a show in Buenos Aires right now. This will be relevant later. We also went shopping like crazy, replaced our leather jackets, bought more tango shoes (well, Marina did), and went on a series of dates! One day we got five separate text messages from boys. We felt très popular.
Marina left late on Friday and I left late on Monday. The days between I can only describe as a whirlwind of strange and wonderful memories. The days were clear and perfect, the nights were crisp and long, and I didn't sleep for 72 hours. I will try to describe events as they happened, but the truth is that this weekend will always remain for me one of those rare, intense, peculiar experiences one occasionally has in life - the kind of series of moments which make us catch our breath and trip over ourselves and record it all perfectly within our souls, all at the same time.
To begin with the more mundane, Friday I finally went to UTDT, the University where I will study next year with my Rotary scholarship. I met with the woman in charge of international students and clarified my choices in terms of study next year. I will apply as a non-degree-seeking student, which means that luckily I get out of the regular admissions essays (which I wouldn't had to write in Spanish), and instead only need a statement of purpose. I will be able to take any classes I want because I'm non-degree-seeking. UTDT also has an extremely intriguing 2-year master's degree in International Studies, but I think I will hold off on that until a little later on down the line. For now I'm just going to take it easy and take upper-level undergraduate courses.
Friday Marina and I also had lunch with Mayte, and she inspired us with her tale of how she became a dancer. She basically started training intensely two years ago, and is now performing. She had a lot of struggles and challenges on the way, though, people who made her balance ashtrays on her head so that she walked straight and level (essential in tango), days when she wore her heels so long her feel swelled, producers who gave jobs to girls who they slept with instead of the most deserving, etc. Welcome to the performing arts.
And then Marina left. :( It was very strange and sad to see her go. After two months straight of living together, confiding in each other, dancing, shopping, eating out, talking about life, talking about boys, developing our personalities, and partying, it was time to say goodbye. It is particularly odd because she is going to Washington, DC and I'm going to the West Coast, so we are going from seeing each other every day 24/7 to not at all. I will be lucky if I get to visit her at Christmas.
Friday night after Marina left I hung out with Guido, an Argentinean friend who -- get this -- will be working at Sierra Tahoe this winter. I might get to visit him, isn't that crazy? Anyway we talked and watched TV and just chilled ... didn't get to sleep until 6am, beginning of the no-sleep-zone.
Saturday night was amazing. I can't even begin to describe the amazingness of it. I will try later. It involved tango. No sleep again. Sunday basically more of the same, and more no sleep, and Monday I flew back to SF. I think I slept on the plane, but not a lot.
I feel like someone has put a spell on my life. Things have been working out lately and coming together for me in a magical way; it's almost intimidating. From the moment I came to San Francisco, it's as if God had told everyone to be nice to me and everything that happens to be good.
Well, I haven't recounted the most major change in my life, which is that I have decided to begin training as a dancer. It's a decision that is a long time coming, but I'm finally going for it. More on that later when I'm not so tired. Life is incredible!
