It's a Girl!

Saturday was my first day on the labor deck for my "Labor and Delivery" class. I have to admit I was quite apprehensive, as the extent of my pregnant lady/birthing experience is pretty much limited to being around when my little bro was born, oh, say 20 years ago... not to mention that it seems like having a child is a prerequisite to success in my L&D class...

My fellow student Michelle and I rolled onto the floor at 7am to a "packed house" and several imminent births on the status board. I was psyched when I walked into my first patient's room with my nurse to discover that she was a 16 year old Latina girl. As some of you may know, I am quite certain I want to work with the Spanish speaking population, and I've always loved working with teens, so this was like a double score. She was a very mature young lady who easily allowed you to forget she was so young, until she would smile or laugh or yell out and you saw a mouth full of braces... her boyfriend and mom were there to accompany her through labor. I have never seen someone who looked so nervous and lost as that 16 year old boy did when things got rolling. He needed almost as much encouraging as she did. My second patient was almost the exact opposite- a 35yr old mother, 37 year old father, both of Indian descent. Dad was so excited, so nervous, and as prepared as any guy could be for what he was about to go through.

The process of the two labors themselves is something I will probably never forget. I will save you the gory details and just say that it was at once amazing, terrifying, messy, and fascinating. I felt honored to be a part of such a momentous life occasion for those involved. I must admit I did get a bit teary eyed after the second birth- I couldn't help it! The mom was sobbing and I'm pretty sure the dad was in shock. Afterwords the dad had me show him how to hold the baby (which, mind you, I have done probably all of 5 times in my life...) and he said "no matter how much you prepare for this you just can't ever really imagine what it is like... I have so many images in my head I just can't erase them."

The most interesting part of it all was the fact that the births seemed so unnatural in a way. Both mothers were flat on their backs with so many IV lines, monitors, and wires attached to them they were practically strapped down to the bed. As we have discussed time and again in my L&D lectures, we have medicalized birth to the point that we make it more taxing and difficult on women's bodies than it ever needs to be. Instead of using gravity to our advantage by putting the woman in a vertical position, we force her to remain horizontal. Instead of trusting that the birth will not have complications (as the vast majority don't) we prepare for the worse by putting in unnecessary IV lines and preventing mothers form eating or drinking from the moment they step in the hospital until an hour after they give birth- just in case they MIGHT have to go to the OR for a c-section. Blood pressure cuffs stay on the entire labor and go on every 15 minutes (that thing is annoying when you're perfectly healthy... I can only imagine how obnoxious and constricting that must be when you're laboring).

It should be noted that both my patients were working with a doctor (an OBGYN) as opposed to a midwife. Midwives are well known for their emphasis on alternative birthing methods. I ask, alternative to what? Alternative to what some doctor in 1957 decided was easier for HIM in monitoring his laboring patient- sitting comfortably on a stool in front of a conveniently placed, easily visible woman. What have we done to the ultimate natural process of birth?

Blog, revisited

Today is the 18^th of September- Chilean Independence Day. Today is also the first day that I realized more than a year has gone by since I left for South America last August. I am now at that awesomely terribly time-warping post trip phase where I can throw out phrases in casual conversation like “a year ago today I was on a beach in Chile shooting off fireworks.” This phase will proceed for the next four months, at which point I will then transition into the much more depressing phase of saying, “it’s been more than a year since I was in down in South America…” Not that I haven’t been busy, but really? Has it really been a year? I guess things like facebook warp your sense of how long it has been since you actually saw a friend face-to-face. Also, I suppose being continually mentally occupied with all things human body is an excellent source of distraction from one’s lack of jetsetting.

Through the many ups and downs of life after travel, facing new challenges and ever expanding horizons, I have decided to come back to what grounds me: writing. Putting my thoughts down on paper has always been cathartic, but in my travels I found that writing took on a different roll for me. Where my journals were an outlet for all the internal chaos traveling provokes, my communications with friends and family were a more formal space for reflection. In the spirit of “keeping in touch,” I found a casual way to process experiences while I was having them, and unknowingly created a deeper understating of what I was living day to day. Not to mention that my entries often spurred interesting and thought provoking questions and reflections from those who read them!

In the spirit of this self-reflective habit I enjoyed so much while abroad, I’ve started with project “Blog, revisited.” I just made that name up right now, and I think it works quite nicely. When I decided to start blogging again, I also decided to rearrange and redecorate the blog itself… let me know what you think of the new look! Be honest… I don’t know how often I’ll write, or what I’ll have to say, but I thought this time period deserved some pause and reflection. Plus, I think there are just some great stories to be told from the world of nursing that someone really should hear/read. I hope that you’ll enjoy it. Of course, if you don’t, you wont be stopping by very often to read. Don’t worry, I won’t ask… now that this entry has become disgustingly long, I will end. Welcome back!

photos!

So sorry it took me a little longer than expected. I forgot how much of a pain moving in and dealing with reverse culture shock can be. Not to mention that I am starting nursing school already this week and I have been trying to switch off "vacation" mindset get myself remotely in the mindset of being a full-time student again, which has been trying. It still feels a little funny to be here, to be speaking English all the time and to know my way around (well, almost...). I catch myself mentally preparing to have to address problems in my second language before realizing that I do not in fact have to speak in Spanish to the clerk at the help desk or what have you. And every so often a little stutter slips into my speech as I catch a Spanish word right before it pops out of my mouth. Oh and I still can't get used to the sun setting at 4:30pm... But otherwise it is business as usual here in the (very cold) city of Denver. Summer and Montevideo seem far away and the huge stack of nursing school books sitting on my desk are an unavoidable reminder of what awaits me in the coming months. Lots of learning! Lots of new things! Lots of studying... not much sleep!

Anywho, I finally uploaded some pictures from my trip. The easiest way for you and me both was to put them in a photo album on Picassa- in case you aren't familiar with it don't worry, it's really user friendly. Just click on the link below and it will take you to a slideshow type thing where you can click through them as fast or slow as you'd like. There are in relatively chronological order... So enjoy! Hope you like the show:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=c.capsalis&target=ALBUM&id=5430530566148503313&authkey=Gv1sRgCMf-u5yLmNKlIA&feat=email

saying goodbye

On Thursday morning at 4am my plane took off from the Montevideo airport and I felt my time in Uruguay falling away below me as we rose up into the foggy dawn. In order to numb the odd sensation inside of me I immediately reclined my seat and slept for the next 6 hours of the flight. But sitting in the Panama City airport during my 7 hour layover I had plenty of time to think. With no book, unable to connect to the wireless internet, and about 20 different duty free shops but no magazine stands, I was forced to do one of two things- think or sleep. Thus I did plenty of both and came to several sweeping conclusions at this official close of my 4 month trip...

Simultaneously the best and worst part of traveling is having friends all around the world. The worst because a goodbye is never "see you next week." A goodbye is always "I hope I see you again soon" knowing that it could literally be years... And the best because you have this wonderful friendship with someone who lives half way across the world, who speaks another language, and who grew up in a totally different culture than your own. That despite all these differences and distances, these friends are no different than any others you have in your own country. It gives me this sense of satisfaction and amazement when I think about it, because the truth is that the distances are very long but the differences are, in the end, very few indeed. And a good friend, no matter where they are in the world, is someone that you know in your heart of hearts that you will always see some time again.

When I look back over my trip, I am content with what I accomplished. As per usual, my long list of things I want/ed to do down south was not really shortened at all. I still haven't made it to Iguazu Falls or to southern Patagonia. I still haven't gotten to Columbia. In fact every trip to South America only seems to add to my list rather than subtract from it... but that's ok. It is an excuse for more adventuring in the future! For me this trip was deeply marked by the people that were involved along the way. My visits back to my old stomping grounds in Chile and Argentina served to reconnect me with the people that were the cornerstones of my experiences during my year abroad. My time in Uruguay and my unique living situation were nothing if not for the people that I spent it with.

Leaving Montevideo was one of the most difficult goodbyes I have had yet because upon my return to the states I am facing a different reality than I have in past years. I am no longer a carefree college student with time to travel and a savings account best spent on plane tickets. Though I know my return to South America is imminent, I have never before left without some fairly concrete idea of when I would be returning. Though I hate to be dramatic, it was a very odd, and fairly gut-wrenching feeling to leave that way this time. Luckily, the question is not "if" but "when" I will be back, and I have no doubt that as soon as I am able I will again find myself immersed in the distinctly southern rythm that I have grown to know and love.

My last week in Uruguay was a whirlwind and 5 of those days were spent in small beach towns without internet, so I know there is a bit of a gap in my blog postings. Over the next week or so I will be filling in some of those gaps, and also doing several blogs with pictures posted. Then I guess I will sign off of Don't Stop Her Now until the next adventure. Or maybe not. Blogging has grown to be a bit of a habit. Maybe the blog will change directions and I will post my observations from my up and coming first semester in nursing school. Thoughts? Let me know... after all this blog has been as much for you as it has been for me!

I want to thank all of you for reading. I hope you have enjoyed following them as much as I have writing them. In my two day "layover" in Los Angeles these last few days, I found that my friends were referring to my blog postings in conversation. I am happy to know that people have not only read my musings over the last few months, but that they are continuing to serve as conversation points now that I am home again.

Back in Boulder I am unpacking and repacking for my move down to Denver. While I am still adjusting, it feels good to be back and to see my family again. Looking forward to seeing YOU soon! Much love and Happy New Year!
Cate

feliz navidad!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

I am back "home" in the hostel... feels like just yesterday that I left. I enjoyed a wonderful week in Buenos Aires and La Pampa, full of bar-b-qs, poolside sunbathing, christmas shopping (even here I am not immune), and fun filled outings. From Wednesday evening through Saturday night I stayed with Antonela and her wonderful family at their home in Santa Rosa, a city about the size of Boulder that is about 6 hours east of Buenos Aires. I was at her home two and a half years ago when I was living here for study abroad, so it was wonderul to see her parents again, and to spend Christmas with her extended family.

The traditions surrounding christmas here are just similar enough to be familiar, and just different enough to remind you that you are not in the US. On Christmas eve we enjoyed a "mesa fría" [literally 'cold table'] which consisted of a wide variety of cold salads- from beets and pineapple to tuna and mayo. Some of the combinations were new to me, and some were tried and true. Fortunately, being vegetarian, I was not pressured to try the tounge platter...

In many countries in South America, Santa comes at midnight. Dinners are thus timed either to finish right before he comes, or to start right after... The whole shebang happens in a matter of seconds- one of the adults appears saying they swear they just saw a fat man in a red suit run out the front door, and all the kids run into the living room to find their presents. It is not the usual mountain of gifts that you might see under an American tree- instead each person receives a couple of modest gifts, all of which say from "papa noel" even if your aunt hands you the bag and says "I bought this for you!" The modest gift giving is partially due to the fact that here people celebrate "Reyes Magos" or the day of the 3 kings. On the 6th of January kids leave out food for the three kings who pass by the houses and leave presents in the night.

The most surprisingly different tradition surrounding Christmas here, however, is that christmas eve is a big night out for the young folk. For days beforehand, Anto was texting with friends trying to figure out where we would be going out. You see, once the dinner plates are cleared, the sweet breads and toffees have all been eaten, and the presents are all opened, anyone aged 16 and older hits the town. The "kids" go out to clubs, bars, or enormous fields in the middle of nowhere (like we did). Not to be left out of the fiesta, the parents head out to make the rounds at friends' houses too.

The most impressive part of the whole night was probably the tremendous party we went to after dinner. Imagine going to a huge house with a couple acres of property around it, a DJ in the front yard, a DJ in the backyard, another DJ inside and about 2000 people dancing, drinking, and reuniting all over the place. Now imagine that almost every single one of those people either currently attends or graduated from one of the two high schools in your city! It is like a tremendous reunion of anyone age 16-30 who has decided to go out on christmas eve. We rolled up to the gates at about 3:45am (a very normal time to be arriving, mind you) and the place was packed. We stayed for about 2 hours and scooted out under cover of daylight, just before they shut off the speakers at 6am... The whole time I was there, I just kept thinking "I can't believe it's Christmas eve..."

It was a bit wierd, I must admit, to wake up Christmas morning to a more or less normal day, without the frenzy of present opening and the excitement of it all... Instead we ate a bar-b-q in which literally a whole small pig was roasted. It seemed like just another meat filled grill, until Antonela and her cousin started fighting over the tail of the pig and Anto won and I suddenly found myself watching her chomp away on a thuroughly roasted, very familiar looking corkskrew tail. Shortly thereafter the meat platter passed around again and I looked down to see the unmistakable jaw bone, teeth and all sitting there. Anto's dad cheered with excitment upon discovering it as I passed him the platter, and I just focused on my delicious salad and politely declined offers to try some of the "professionally cooked" piggy...

In all it was a great Christmas and I was greatful to be with Anto on such a family oriented holiday. Though I don't know if I would ever really be able to get used to the summer weather and Christmas eve party traditions, everything else was more or less christmas as usual!

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday season. On to New Years!!

cate

fading into the sunset

Tomorrow morning I take off for Argentina again for a week. I will be spending 5 days in Buenos Aires and then heading with Antonela to her hometown of Santa Rosa, a city about the size of Boulder that is 6 hours south of BA. I'll be spending Christmas there with her and her family, then returning to Buenos Aires for another day before I catch my ferry back over the river to Uruguay. To say goodbye to Montevideo, my home of the last 3 months, I went for a sunset walk along the boardwalk with Gaby last night. We found ourselves at my favorite viewpoint of downtown right as the sun was sinking down...

The beach was full of people, and the rides at the small amusement park were hopping too!

Gaby and me

A fisherman trying for a late in the day catch.

What is that glowing red thing in Gaby's hand?!

With only three weeks of my trip left, I am feeling satisfied with the way that things have gone so far. I am looking forward to what is left, and I know that it will go by quickly and slowly all at the same time. Thinking of all of my friends and family at home as the holidays approach. I hope you all are well and enjoying getting in that good ol holiday spirit! Christmas trees and lights are popping up around the neighborhood, but it looks a little funny considering that it is far from winter here. The ones with the fake snow on them really crack me up, especially considering the fact that many uruguayans have never seen snow before! Well, unitl Argentina!

Of Escapades and Naps in the Shade

Last week four gals from the US stayed a few days at the hostel. One night they asked me how to get to Minas, a small town about 2 hours inland from Montevideo, where there is a nature reserve. Turns out I had just been talking about going there for a day but didn't want to go by myself... some things are just best shared. Well we got to thinking and decided that the cheapest (and funnest) way to get there was by renting a car between the 5 of us and hitting the road... which is precisely what we did!

Minas and the surrounding park were absolutely picturesque. Rolling hills and rock formations, miles of unocupied space, and winding dirt roads streching on as far as the eye could see. We enjoyed the journey, always taking the scenic route when there was the option, and I reveled in the freedom of traveling by car rather than long distance bus... It was a beautiful day and we rolled the windows down, turned up the random local radio stations, and stopped frequently to do all the stuff your supposed to do on a road trip. Like buy yummy local pasteries. Or ask for directions. Or stop along the highway to take pictures. Or take a killer nap next to a waterfall... It was also interesting to interact with uruguayans from the coutnryside. While I have found Montevideanos to be very well educated (Uruguay has 98% literacy, the US has about 88%), cultured, and curious, I was not sure how people from other regions would compare. I was very plesantly surprised to find that the people I interacted with were equally well informed and very well spoken.

As for the scenery we encountered along the way, I thought pictures would serve as a much better description. Also, Gomez the hostel cat got a little jealous when she saw that I hadn't put a picture of her on the blog, so she snuck one in there too... enjoy!

It's a hard life being the resident hostel cat...

An old truck along the route to Minas.

The "panoramic route" back from the water fall had some great views.

Salto del Penitente- outside of Minas.

The waterfall from above.

An authentic gaucho... like the slip on knee high boots, chaps and a beret to take my horse to the grocery story kind of gaucho...

Horses grazing on someone's front lawn.

A New President

Buenos Dias Gente-

I have been a bad girl, ignoring the existance of my blog for some time now. I have many things to say, but sometimes I just want the entry to write itself. I have also have been feeling a strong resistance towards tecnology of late, which doesn't help... all the same, here I am now, finally catching up on the blog. As with last time, there will probably be a motherload of entries all at once, so thank you for you patience in advance.

As more than one person from home has asked me about it, I think it is necessary that I write a bit about the presidential elections. Uruguayan elections have a round one, and if necessary, a round two as well. Voting is required by law, and from 8pm the night before elections through 8pm on election day, the sale of alcohol is illegal. There are 4 main parties here, one extreme left, one socialist, one slightly right of center, and one conservative party. To win the vote in the first round, your party must have more than 50% of the votes, otherwise the voting goes to second round. In late October the first round of elections determined two leading parties- the socialist party with 48% of the votes, and the "white party" (the conservatives) with just under 30%. The results meant that the final vote would determine the presidency between a former intelectual revolutionary (who was an active rebel during the dictatorship of the 70's and who spent 7 years in jail for speaking out), and a former militant of the dictatorsihp (and known alcoholic accused of stealing money and land during his military years)...

People are very passionate about politics here. Weeks before the election the boardwalk was filled with people every afternoon from 3pm on, waving their party's flags, cruising down the road honking their horns, and passing out flyers and voting pamphlets. The current president is part of the socialist party, but is more conservative than Mujica, the current candidate. Mujica was born and raised in the countryside, and is probably the most viceraly emotional politician I have ever seen. In an interview a couple of weeks ago the reporter asked him about his family and the man literally started crying on national television... Meanwhile a video on youtube was circulating with the other candidate, Lacalle, conducting an interview while uncontestably drunk...

The second round of voting was last Sunday, and within three hours of the polls closing the results were already in (ah, the benefits of living in a country with only 3 million inhabitants!)- Mujica the socialist won 53% of the votes and Lacalle conceeded the elections to him. Oh boy did people celebrate! Mujica gave his heartfelt, and improvised speach in the heart of the old city, and the streets were overflowing with people screaming, waving flags, and dancing. The boardwalk, which wraps all around the city following the coastline, was a steady stream of cars honking and waving banners and people singing. All of this in the pouring rain...

Needless to say, witnessing elections in another country is always an interesting experience. But I was particularly impressed by the passion and genuine interest people took in the elections- especially the youth. Coming from a country where the youth vote is almost a joke, it was refreshing to see people so involved in the politics of their country. It will be interesting to see how Uruguay develops in the next five years under socialist direction!

soy celeste!

Uruguay has just beaten Costa Rica in an intense game here in Montevideo, officially qualifying them for the 2010 world cup. As people set off fireworks in the street and the mob in the living room causes a rucus, I have escaped to my room to take advantage of the fact that it is empty. With summer approaching and the tourism season picking up in Montevideo, it is less and less often that my 6 person dorm room is disocupied at any given time...

In the last month I have become an all around odd job here at the hostel. Though I am still teaching yoga (which is becoming more and more popular and fun), it is hardly my main job anymore. I now wear the hats of entrepreneur, marketer, bartender, activities coordinator, translator, office organizer, accountant, and countless others. While this makes it sound like the hostel was a complete disaster before my arrival, that is not the case- it just needed a bit of fine tuning. The owners, both Uruguayan, both first time business owners, and ages 25 and 26, are doing a supurb job considering the hostel only opened 5 months ago! However they just don't have the time, outsiders perspective, or, for better or for worse, the deep seated trainings of a capitalist culture available. Thus I have filled this hole and devised several new and, if I do say so myself, rather crafty ways for them to stop breaking even and start getting ahead.

It is an increasingly creative project for me. I have never, for example, created a bar from scratch. Or tried to purchase and price bicycles for rental purposes. Nor have I ever bartended or created a cost/profit balance spreadsheat for a small business before. My mother, who has faught a lifelong and very uphill battle to teach me how to organize myself, would be beyond proud at the number of small organizational feats I have accomplished in the past few weeks... creating to do lists for them and setting up folders and task management tools. Ironically I don't think that, even in the height of my college career, I was ever as organized myself... Somehow it seems infinately easier to organize someone else's life than my own...

[Me in tending my new bar...]

Aside from all of my projects I am managing to find plenty of time to enjoy the beach, head out to surf with Juan, sketch in the backyard, try new inventions in the kitchen, and take siestas most afternoons. I am also really enjoying meeting the wide variety of travelers who appear from all over the world to stay and play a few days. I have learned an impressive amount about geography, linguistics, history, and food culture from my fellow travelers as well (did anyone else know that Welsh is a language?!). I suppose, even when you are traveling with very little movement as I am, every day is still a culural experience...

Well people, I am going to go mix and mingle again. Hope all is well in your corner of the world!

Besos-

cate

Past Blogs

Aloha-
Just a quick little blog how to post... If you would like to review
previous posts from last month (like, say, if you haven't been by
lately and missed my end of October posts) than you can do that by
going to the menu on the left hand side of the page. You will find a
list of months from July (when I wrote my first post) until November.
Simply click on the month and all the entries for that month will pop
up!
Cheers
-cate

mas!

WOW! Three posts in one day! No puede ser [it can't be]! Click on the pictures to make them bigger if you want... same with any other picture posted in the blog;)

Juan, Gabi, Antonela, and me. Living room of the hostel during Anto's visit last weekend!

Me and the Gabster... and the famous mate...

A night on the town starts at the front door

Photo shoot! Killing time as the girls wait for their ferry to leave back to Buenos Aires.

A National Addiction

Since I have refered to it more than once in past blog postings, I feel that I must dedicate a brief blog posting to the national addiction of Uruguayans, yerba mate (pronounced mah-te with emphasis on the first sylable). Mate is a plant that grows in Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. Once fully grown, the entire plant (stems, leaves and all) is harvested and tossed into a grinder where it is chopped into tiny little pieces and comes out looking much like loose-leaf black tea. Mate is enjoyed in Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, and southern Brazil, but not in the form that we are used to seeing in the hip coffee shops in the USA... no, you will never see a Uruguayan drinking a cup of mate with a tinly little teabag as a pick-me-up during coffee break. Instead, having a mate is a shared process with very particular customs.

The yerba mate is poured into a gourd (think hollowed out, dried mini squash) and a long metal straw with a filter on the end is inserted into the mass of leaves. Hot water is then added by the cebador [a word without translation because it specifically refers to the sever of the mate] and the gourd is passed to the drinker who finishes all the water in the gourd and returns it to the cebador. This process is repeaded numerous times as the gourd makes its way around the circle of mate drinkers. It can continue for hours, with the cebador ocassionally changing out the yerba when it looses its flavor, or making more hot water when it runs out.

Uruguayans are known by other mate drinking countries as being the most obsessed with mate. You see them drinking mate in literally every context imaginable- from the super market shoppers, to the gas station attendent, to the joggers on the board walk, nobody is out of mate context. Unlike in Argentina, where mate is more of a tradition shared at home in the early evening, in Uruguay everywhere is a place for drinking mate, and every time of day is mate time. The signature gourd, straw, and thermous appear as extensions of their limbs. There are specific and beautifully crafted leather carrying cases that conveniently hold the thermous, gourd, and yerba container. At any given craft fair a quarter of the tables are devoted to artisinal mate gourds, thermouses and bags. I have even seen people drinking mate while driving (stick shift too!) and, if you can believe it, while riding a bike.

If you're interested in learning more about it you can check out the Wikipedia artcile here. I know many of you have seen me drinking mate, and maybe even tried it before! But for those of you who haven't, I hope this has been an informative post. Thanks for reading!

Bienvenidos a la casa

Here are some photos from around the hostel! Punto Berro, home sweet home!

More to come!

Gabi and Juan, co-owners of the hostel, cleaning up in the hostel kitchen.

Juan kisses Gomez, our resident pussy cat!

Juan, Gabi, and Marlena, the three staff members of the hostel, posing for an impromptu photo shoot in the back yard.

View into the living room and entry way of the hostel. The kitchen is the open door on the right, the back yard is behind me, and the living room is the green room right in front of me.

The backyard of the hostel. Gabi relaxes while Seba plays guitar and we drink mate.

The view from my room. What a nice balcony!

Elena, the Italian girl that also lives in the hostel, chats with Seba while drinking mate in the front porch of the hostel.

Change in plans...

With the change in seasons here in Montevideo has come a sudden change
in my trip plans... In the last few weeks I have settled in to my
hostel home and formed a comfortable routine. My "bosses"- the owners
of the hostel ages 25 and 26- have become my good friends. The yoga
classes are becoming more popular as tourism season picks up and most
of the beds are occupied thruout the week. Several projects I have
organized to add flare and individuality to the hostel are just coming
into fruition. And the more people asked how long I am going to stay
here, the more I didn't like my answer... Thus, after much pondering
(and some helpful reaffirmation from my parents) I have decided to
suspend my travels to Columbia and stay in Uruguay instead! My
situation here in the hostel is just too good to let go of in only one
short month and there is too much to see...

Thus I will be here in my home away from home until January (with the
exception of a short visit to Buenos Aires in December)! In just a
moment I will post some pictures of my residence and my cohabitants,
and maybe even a little map to better orient you to my current
whereabouts... I also apologize for the fact that I no longer speak
English like a native speaker... I just isn't coming out quite like it
should...
I hope you all are well and getting ready to celebrate Halloween in
style up north!
more to come...
-cate

Photos Part 2: Montevideo Action

Some soccer game, downtown, and boardwalk bikeriding pictures!

Photos Part 1: La Paloma, Uruguay

Here are some pics from my trip to La Paloma (finally) and one with me and some friends on a bus in Chile:

Photo link

Always the tech queen, my dear friend Eve has yet again made a
masterful mishmash of photos from her recent visit up here to my
humble little city. I say humble because Eve lives in the sprawling
megopolis that is Sao Paulo... Anywho, check out the video of her
visit on her blog here (and read more of her stuff if you're curious
about the life of a fullbright english teacher in brazil!):

http://evearielle.wordpress.com/

cheers! Oh and PS I will be posting my own photos soon I swear!!

Footie

There is a war going on in the world outside the US. It is a war that
most of you are probably totally unaware of, though information on it
is abundant and easily accessable. It is a war of nations and die hard
patriotism. It is a war that leaves winners extaticly wild and losers
sufferingly ashamed. It has been going on for three years but it will
all end next year... and then it will start all over again with the
same fury and passion. It is the war to win a spot in the 2010 World
Cup in South Africa.

Latin America is currently pulsing with World Cup fever. Weekly games
are viewed by millions of anxious fans watching to see how each result
will affect the standings of their own team in the complicated web of
points and rankings that have literally been 3 years in the making. We
are now in the final stretch of games- obviously also the most
critical stretch since 3 of South America's 5 qualifying teams have
already been guarenteed a spot (Brazil, Paraguay and Chile). The last
spot will be determined in the next few weeks, but one spot was
determined this week in a bitter and historic battle between team
Argentina and team Uruguay. And guess who scored a ticket to the big
face off Wednesday night? Yep, yours truly!!

The stadium where the game was held is in an enormous park in the
middle of downtown Montevideo. It was built in 1930 for the very first
world cup game ever- coincidentally played between Argentina and
Uruguay! It hasn't changed much since it was built, except for the
addition of a sound system about 30 years ago and a new big screen
that was added just last year. It was packed with fans wearing shades
of blue and waving the striped blue and white Uruguayan flag. There
was also a small section holding about 5,000 drum banging, flag waving
argentine fans who proceeded to cheer and sing throughout the entire
length of the game... In an attempt to avoid violence between the
opposing sides, the argentine section was seperated off at the end of
the stadium by several rows of empty seats, metal fences, and riot
police...

The game itself was exciting and high energy for the first 20 minutes
or so. Then it just got slow and both sets of fans anxiously awaited a
goal that didn't come until 75 minutes into the game. I quite enjoyed
listening to all the swearing, singing, insults being hurled at the
refs and in the general direction of the argentine fans, and standard
sports game commentary from the surrounding crowd ('oh go home and
suck on your bottle you big baby!'; 'my god ref who paid you off
this time?! You forgot your head at home!'; 'NO! Pablo you dumbass,
juanito was wide open on the left!'). In all it was an entertaining
and enjoyable experience, though Uruguay lost 0-1 and eveyone filed
out rather dejectly from the stadium.

I left thinking how we really have no national team in any sport that
unites people from all over our country to cheer on team USA. Except
during the olympics I suppose... We also have such a wide variety of
high quality pro sports to follow that I would say we don't have one
single national sport- unlike here where soccer is THE national past
time and is almost like a national religion. But what most impressed
me was the age and history of the stadium. In our obsession with
always having the most modern and advanced arenas, we have lost the
value in the history such a place carries. None of the pro stadiums or
arenas in Denver are more than 20 years old. You cannot take your
grandson to a game in the very same stadium where you first saw your
team play 50+ years ago. There is something amazing about sitting in
the stands where millions have sat before you, watching teams repeat
rituals and cary on rivalries that they have fought out on the same
turf for decades... I will leave you now with these thoughts as this
entry has gotten way too long and I probably lost many of you about
four paragraphs ago when I said World Cup. Hope all is well in the
land of plenty!
-cate

Of yogi tips and tortilla chips

G'day mates-

As of Tuesday I am now officially employed by the awesome staff of Punto Berro Hostel as none other than the resident yoga teacher! Hostels are always looking for a way to set themselves apart since travelers often have numerous options of where to stay in a city. My hosts liked my idea of offering free yoga classes to hostel residents, and in exchange for teaching 4-7 times a week they are giving me a free bed to sleep in every night! I am overjoyed that my invented job has become a reality and it will allow me to stay here through the end of November as I had hoped!

Montevideo is an interesting and unique city.  I think there is less tourism here than in Buenos Aires- Uruguay is not as on the map as Argentina- so people are always asking 'why montevideo' when I say that I have chosen to live here for a few months...
The city itself seems to be 20 years back in time- everything looks sort of antique but new, from the cars to the streets to the people. Uruguay used to be quite a wealthy country in the 50s (they call it the switzerland of South America) but then the economy crashed and now people don't have that much money so they maintain everything in very good condition. Cars that are 20 years old are impeccable, the sidewalks are washed (literally washed with soapy water and a broom), buildings could use a paint job but for being 100 years old are looking darn good. Anyone over 50 dresses in a manner that I can only think of describing as dapper- men in slacks, a collared button down shirt, a sweater vest and maybe a scarf. A euro circa 1950 style... The younger people however are very funky and hip. Skinny jeans are in, skirts with tights and converse, 80s print shirts, etc. Like a mix between hipster, euro, and hippy...

This weekend I have 2 dear friends from Boulder visiting me. Ben is currently living in Buenos Aires and Eve in Sao Paulo Brazil. They teamed up in BA and hopped on the boat over here to take advantage of the long weekend this weekend! It has been so awesome to see them and it somehow reaffirms that yes, this really is real and I really am living in Uruguay. Plus they are pretty much the only people I know around here who could really share my deep appreciation for the fact that the Mexican restaurant we tracked down last night had super spicy salsa and real tortilla chips... funny what you miss when your abroad...   

Well I will leave you all now as I must go prepare to teach my class tonight! Miss you all!
-cate