An introduction and El Vuelo

So here goes. I hope everything is going well in the states. I am writing this blog to tell all my firends and family about my great argentine adventure. Wow I don´t know where to begin. My beautiful Mother was so kind to drop me off at Dulles international airport for my flight to Argentina. I got the cheapest ticket I could find which ment I got to get to know the gate of Miami international and I got to do some people watching in Lima before I got to Buenos Aires early monday morning. For the most part the journey was pretty uneventful but with a few ups and downs. I went through security in IAD and apparently I don´t know how to wait in lines. I seem to have the uncanny ability to pick the line that goes the slowest. This was the case as I passed through security. But once I got to the security guard checking my ticket it was well worth the wait. First of all this guy wasn´t your typical security guard (aka some fat white woman or young black man) he was an older gentleman of african descent. When I got there I was greeted with a smile and I couldn´t help myself but feel happy as he checked the passports of the family of latin americans in front of me in line. And he talked to them as he checked thier tickets, he asked them about thier family and how they were all related. I couldn´t help but feel that if our security guards were more like that man, if they just oozed with a cheery ether. Then perhaps we wouldn´t need quite so many of them and the world would be a better place. I was flying to Miami and I should have figured but just about everybody else that was flying there spoke English as a second language. In fact when I got to miami my connecting flight was on the complete other side of the terminal so I got to walk and it was a bit of a walk. I think I got about 2/3 of the way there before I heard any english and that was just by chance from a cashier at some restaurant. And I if I remember right they did just about everything in English and Spanish. I don{t know exactly why but there was an old grandma in the row infront of me speaking to her apparently her son and she was just so happy and speaking in floridian spanish I couldn{t do any thing other then smile. And then the guy sat next to me (I was in the window seat). He was a big fat guy that subsequently fell asleep and for whatever reason seemed to list starboard and unfortunately I was his starboard. Though it really wasn´t that awkward just a little uncomfortable at times. I figure it would be the airplane equavlient of between a rock and a hard place, between the window and a big sleeping fat guy. When the flight attendant passed giving my immigration forms she looked at me and hesitated, looking at me. I would like to think she was taken aback with my stunning good looks, but I am more inclined to think that she was trying to decide if she should speak to me in English or Spanish. Then she spoke to me in spanish and was suppriesed when I responded. Then she asked me if I spoke spanish which I confirmed. Which to me seemed the wrong order of operation, wouldn´t you want to establish the mode of communication first and then communicate... But I am not to judge. Anyway, as I got off the plane they announced like three times to not forget anything as you get off the plane. So of course I forgot my jacket. And I didn´t remember until I was well off the plane and about 40 minutes after we arrived. I went back to the airlines to see if I couldn´t get my jacket but they said no that I would have to make a "reclamo" when I got to Buenos Aires. But in a way it was a blessing in descuise, because for now I´m using Karina´s fathers jacket which I think is better because I blend in a little bit more then I would have otherwise. So I waited in Lima peru and I really had nothing to do, and I didn´t for whatever reason want to use my computer nor read my books so I had nothing to do but people watch. It was quite fun to watch all the people who would go into the masuse shop there by the terminal and wonder about thier story. Finally I got to board the plane and It was the first nice plane. To Lima I was on a 737 and 757. But to Buenos Aires I was on a 767 it had a screen on the back of the seat infront that showed movies and games and distance to destination and that kind of stuff. Finally I got to Buenos Aires and there is a 140 doller one time entry fee for US citizens. So I waited in line to get through immigration and I thought I had to pay that there, but they said I had to go in another line to pay. So I did. What I didn´t see was that the other line also had a special immigration booth where you did your stuff. So I paid the fee and got back in the other line. And unfortunately while I was paying the fee a whole bunch of Germans decided to get in line and a 20 minute early arrival became a 40 minute delay because I didn´t pay the fee first. This made Karina a little nervious as she had to wait. She told me she was going crazy everytime someone with glasses walked out of customs. The one day I´ve been here has been amazing. I got to meet all of Karina´s family, and they all generally like me. Karina didn´t want to tell her family that we were dating until I got there, so I told them. They all were mildly supprised I think but all generally happy for the both of us, and in thier very Argentine way they started asking all kinds of questions. Many questions for which we didn´t have answers because we haven´t gotten there in our relationship. I suppose they already had us married in thier heads. This made for a few awkward moments but overall everything was alright. Anyway, Karina is awesome and beautiful. In her own cute way she does everything she can to take care of me. For example this morning we went to the train station and I said good bye to her while we were waiting for the train she went and got me some Halls cough drops, here they are eaten more like hard candy, she got them for me because she is afraid I will get sick with out a heavy coat (it´s only about 50 degrees, so not that cold, but...) and the cough drops have vitamin C. She was very cute. ... And she is an amazing kisser. :)