Kokochi

We find it funny now...

As with most travels, there are always a few glitches here and there to be expected. We've had our share this trip. Each time, we found a solution, but it sure was a pain in the neck. We just got over our last one, and realized that the number of things we've had to deal with is actually comical, like we're in some movie making a joke about travel mishaps. This is what's happened so far:

• First day in Lima, Peru, Dav got cash from the ATM and forgot his card. We went back the next day, and thebank kindly kept his card, but canceled it so it's useless.
• I realized I didn't 't have a PIN number with my credit card since I ordered a new copy a few months ago and the usual number wasn't linked to it. So no cash from that card.
• My ATM card is on some weird "Star" system that the majority of ATMs here don't accept. It's ridiculous how hard it is to access our money, not because of Buenos Aires, but because our of our card situation.
• Our Buenos Aires apartment is supposed to have full internet and phone access, but we found all the hardware is non-functioning. We think it's because of a big lightening storm that occurred just before we arrived. The owners of the apartment called a repair guy, but we've yet to see him. We currently hobble onto local wifi that is rather finicky.
• Tesla threw our rented cell phone off the balcony, but I was out dropping off laundry and had the key that is required to get out of the apartment so Dav couldn't 't leave to get the phone. A homeless man picked it up. Later, somehow a man brought the homeless guy back and we paid 50 pesos as a "finder's fee." The display screen on the phone is broken though.
• We went out last night and somehow lost the one set of keys we have. Remember you need keys not just to get in, but to open the door to go out. We had a babysitter who busted open the door so we could get in, but then we weren't able to properly shut it. Luckily, Dav figured out how to get a locksmith in the morning who took care of everything for 70 pesos.

It's all good now, but can you believe it? We just have to laugh...now that we have cash, a semi-working phone, and new keys. Plus, we're moving to a swankier apartment tomorrow so the internet should be working there. : )

Pablito!

So lucky we are. A few years ago, Pablo and Santi joined Campalicious at Burning Man. We had tons of fun, but hadn't communicated since. And thanks to Elida and Amir, we were fortunate enough to get in touch with Pablo who grew up and lives in BsAs! It just so happened that when we finally emailed one afternoon, Pablo (very left) was heading to a drumming event with his friends, so he invited us. It was an early evening thing, and with a DJ mixed in with the drumming, it set the mood for the evening perfectly. As folks poured out into the streets after the event, I could sense it was the best warm-up for later events such as a fun dinner or a night out. We went home - but super happy. Total thanks to Pablito!! Big bucket of gelato we bought because we needed change for a cab. Not a bad purchase at all. Next is Tesla trying out swings... with that beautiful cathedral behind her.
And one of the merry-go-rounds that Tesla is fond of. She doesn't quite know what to make of it all, but she knows she wants to be on it.

Scenes so far from Buenos Aires

Our very first (late) dinner in BsAs at the Italian restaurant just below our apartment. There was a jazz singer, and a lot of late-night diners. I forgot T's blanket there, but when we went back the next night since it's so convenient, they promptly brought it back to us. There was a tap dancer the next night. When was the last time you've seen a tap dancer as dinner entertainment? A bakery I stumbled across when I walked out one evening with T on my back to find a grocery. Rachel, these are for you : ) Building facade and restaurant front I found charming when walking around. Chicken and egg stand at an indoor market, and giant gum tree that was astounding. Views from our afternoon lunch table at a famous cafe under a giant gum tree. So far, schedule-wise, lunches for us are happening later and bigger as the locals take it. If I can take dinner, it's light. Local vege/fruit stand, and freshly baked bread right in the supermarket!
Overall, I'm enjoying this city after taking time getting things settled here. Tesla is happy going along with whatever we do, which is a big deal since babies/toddlers do better with regular schedules. We take care for naptime and bedtime, but still; so far each day has been different. We're exploring new neighborhoods and discovering where the kiddie parks are - T LOVES merry-go-rounds now. This is a wonderful context for this time off, but most important to me is simply having the time together as a family.

Buenos Aires - first impressions

Nice! Cosmopolitan and full of life! Very European-like! And our apartment is sweet. Totally reminds me of the cute "appartements" in Paris. We have grand old window doors that open onto traditional balconies. The rooms are a lovely yellow and the furniture is nice (super comfy bed). Location-wise, we are smack in the middle of San Telmo, which is like Greenwich Village of NYC. Lots of antique & art stores, cafes, and a giant street market on Sunday. Still, much to discover since we explore slowly with Tesla and naptimes. Just wanted to say that I have a great feeling about this city. : )

Finally, a few pics from Lima

Ceviche for breakfast. A corner store with old-school woodwork. Tesla getting serenaded to at dinner. Yummy fish dinner we shared Tortilla dish. And view from our apartment window onto a pretty busy street with all that honking! Me and Tesla with puffier/curlier hair than usual. Our apartment's simple kitchen. Italian lunch: we arrived early and had the whole place to ourselves. See video above for how Tesla enjoyed waltzing around. Notice the snippet of the restaurant's high chair that is beautiful and all in wood. Enjoying a sunset on the coast of Lima.
The sunsets were beautiful. This was from the Barranco neighborhood. Tesla loved running around, getting covered in dirt eventually. We opened a bottle of wine to share, and Tesla ran off with the opener.

I spoke too soon...

Well, I had a bout of an unaccustomed bug entering my system. Who knows for sure where exactly it came from since we've been careful about what and where we eat. Ironically, I'm convinced it was that lunch from the super modern mall. Dav and I have shared all meals, and shortly after lunch, he said his tummy felt funny, but it passed. Another hour later once we got home, I started feeling knots, then intense, ugly nausea. I must have thrown up 20+ times over the next 4 hours. At night, I was finally able to keep Gatorade down, which relieved me because I could feel dehydration kicking in. Once I peaked and knew I'd be better by morning, I felt deep exhaustion. I could barely stand up. Poor Dav. Instead of a romantic sunset stroll with our baby together, he took Tesla out by himself since she was getting stir-crazy. Then when he wanted to shop for food and drinks, I made him take Tesla too because I had no energy to entertain her by myself. He fed her, put her to bed, and then slept on the 2nd bed that had all our clothes all over it so that I could rest better. So sweet. Babycakes, I owe you one! I feel weak, but much better. Alright...now, on to Buenos Aires!

all is well other than technical problems

I would have posted earlier but kept running into problems. First, I downloaded new pictures to my laptop, but for some reason, my laptop won't connect to the wifi even though it sees it, and Dav's Mac connects fine. I've been to the local internet cafe to use their cable, but even that proved difficult, and Dav had do to tech support for about 20 minutes so I could connect. I'm maintaining some of my work duties, and I was so happy to get caught up with work that I forgot to post my pictures before disconnecting the delicate set-up I had. Then, I decided to update directly from Dav's Mac sans pictures, but oddly my saved post wouldn't appear. This morning, finally, I'm posting from Dav's Mac successfully. Pictures will have to wait. We're on vacation after all, so I'm not stressing. : ) Update-wise, after snoozing the first afternoon recovering from the trip here, we're feeling fine. Traveling with a toddler is a big effort indeed, but we made it, and Tesla is happy. We have shopped at the local supermarket, had amazing ceviche for brunch, and have walked around a little. We're happy that we have 5 days here again after Buenos Aires because we want to visit the beach, museums, and ruins, which we won't get to this time since we are leaving tomorrow. This has been the perfect pit-stop to break the long trip to Buenos Aires. I'm mentally slowly unwinding, and am now very excited and very ready to be in Buenos Aires tomorrow! For now, we're just chilling, and I love that we have 100% time for Tesla. Some notes so far: * Drivers are crazy. They won't stop for you, so be careful. Everyone honks for seemingly no good reason; this makes street life quite colorful. * Meals are later than what we're used to. We arrive in restaurants before anyone else which is great so Tesla can run around without bothering anyone. * I wish I spoke at least a little Spanish. I'm pretty pathetic here...I use French words out of desperation. * Now that I'm caught up with work, and won't have much each day, I'm finally realizing, "holy cow, I'm in Lima, Peru!!!" Never thought I'd be here. I relish seeing new places. * Amenities work fine in our apartment, but we're in a nice area in a nice place. There is a lady who guards the entrance way even though there is a locked gate. I've seen guards at several nice-looking houses too. * We're not in a first-world country for sure, but I love that. It's good to see outside our usual bubble. * It's humid here. I forgot how puffy/curly my hair gets with humidity. We've discovered that Tesla must have my hair since she's got some curls going too. Pictures will follow. * There are beautiful sunsets here. * Last night we discovered on the first floor of our apartment building a nice restaurant where we had a wonderful dinner while 3 ladies entertained Tesla. Perfect. [update] We just got back from a walk to a neighboring section of the city, and had lunch at a super modern mall that reminded us of La Jolla, San Diego. It targets tourists since we got menus in English. It's built in the cliffs that overlook the ocean so you can walk around with the ocean breeze. Quite spectacular. And all along the coast line as we walked were sleek ocean-front apartment buildings that looked like they belonged in Miami. I didn't expect to see such a fancy neighborhood.

To Lima and Buenos Aires!

We are about to leave for Peru and Argentina to visit/live. We'll be back at the end of March. We've been a bit busy in preparing, especially since we jammed in the Tahoe trip just before. I'm looking forward to luxurious family time, new experiences, and seeing how a month off feels. We'll have wifi so I'll be posting :)

Fun project

During our Sunday night dinner at Tahoe, Dav realized we had enough folks to do this. It was fun to do although hard for Dav to herd everyone after a large meal and lots of wine. Some folks added their unique interpretation :) It is part of Dav's 52 Things project. Here is the group chilling and preparing the dinner that got us in the mood for the shot:

She is testing us!

We've had hints that Tesla is starting to test us...which is weird since I still see her as a baby happy simply being cared by us. In Tahoe, there was a dog and lots of activity, so of course Tesla resisted bedtime. However, we have learned that keeping bedtime is a very good idea even if, as in Tahoe, she loves being the center of the party and shows no hint of tiredness. We've found that as soon as we remove her from the activity, she realizes she's ready for bed. So one night, Dav took her into our room with the pac-n-play to put her down, but came out saying, "you gotta go in; she's calling mama." I went in to comfort her, and within seconds, she started wailing, "daaaaaddddyyyyy!!!" which made me think, "wait a minute...you're playing us to stay up!" This was confirmed when I firmly said, "ne ne" (which means sleepy time) - implying that I would not call daddy and this was it; it was bedtime. Then she did a grand show of crying...finally yelping out, "poopoo!!!!!" which she has learned will make us change her diaper. When I still didn't buy it, she cried, "peeepeee!!" I pretty much burst out laughing at how cute of a desperate attempt she was making to stay up. Poopoo and peepee? Poor girl really didn't want to miss out. Standing firm was key though. I sat with her until she got sleepy, but since I didn't take her out of her pac-n-play, she gave up and focused on bedtime pretty quickly :)