Getting Her to First Base (according to Anna)

Everyone has to have a first. 

My dear friend Maddie from Mizzou has been visiting me in Buenos Aires for the past five days. I decided to interview her about her experience, and found that our first series of days (full of nerves, exhaustion and feeling foreign) have unsurprisingly mirrored one another's...

A Chat with Madeline (sworn in with the Guia T Bolsillo aka the city bus guidebook):

Q: Why did you come a weekend early to visit me? Neglecting how cool I am, of course.

A: Because I thought it'd be a blast to spend time in BA with mi mejor amiga (my best friend), and I'd have no better way to kick off my own trip.

Q: How did you feel your very first day here?

A: Well somewhere during the 10 hour flight, I got a little terrified when I realized I had to find my own way to your apartment. It got a little overwhelming... especially when there were no taxis in sight in the middle of a downpour (welcome to Buenos Aires). I learned to take it one step at a time and then it's more manageable.

Q: Have you felt a progression within these five days?

A: Abso-freaking-lutely! I definitely realized that language has so much to do with confidence when you're speaking, and that you need to be humble about the fact that you don't know everything about the language, yet confident that you will learn eventually. 

Q: Have you refined your expectations for your own trip?

A: I probably came in with the expectation that things would be a lot smoother than they have been or will be. Now I expect that I'll probably order food at the wrong place, or the wrong food at the right place, or something completely disgusting. Basically that there's no way to survive if you can't laugh at yourself at the end of the day. I've also become more comfortable with the fact that I'll have bad days.

Q: What are you most excited about for when you head to the land of wine, mountains and... wine, aka Mendoza?

A: I'm most excited about all the people I'm about to meet. Not just the people in my group, but my host family and the people I'll be taking classes with. 

Q: Do you feel you're capable of preparing the entire city of Mendoza for my arrival come May? 

A: If anyone can do it, it's definitely me. I have all the rumors of the American red-head ready for circulation.

[No follow-up question to that.]

Q: Back to Buenos Aires, what has been the most 'A-HA!' moment you've had thus far?

A: THIS is how I withdraw cash.

Q: The most nerve-wrecking?

A: OH MY GOD, I can't withdraw cash.

Q: And finally, what has been your favorite experience in Buenos Aires?

A: NO offense to you (there was some taken), but my favorite experience was the day I spent alone in BA... which I credit all to you because I couldn't have been as prepared at finding out everything as quickly if I hadn't had your help. It just felt liberating to take a bus where I wanted to go and have fun there, you know wandering around until I found something unique. 

We would put Dora to shame.

Q: Anything else you'd like to add, missy?

A: Thank god I had such a talented, beautiful, intelligent, crazy friend to show me the way to first base. 

[No I did not pay her to say that. However, was it muttered with a hint of sarcasm? Perhaps...]

To read her own perspective of 'Getting Her to First Base', see Maddie's blog!