Week 5. Settling In

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Mate'. It's a big deal here. No, we haven't tried it yet. I enjoy herbal tea so I think I will like this too. 

According to AI, Mate' is a traditional Argentine drink made from dried yerba mate leaves and steeping in hot water. Because you don't strain the leaves before drinking, you need a special medal straw called a Bombilla. I've seen folks drink this from special cups like that above but they also seem to carry a thermos of hot water if they're not at home drinking it. It also contains caffeine. Not that I care about that but ...

Ever have a job that provided co-workers that were irreplaceable, people that you know are supportive and will include you in all they are doing? That's what we are experiencing here in Buenos Aires. So grateful.

Getting extra training on my projects this week (one for legal and another for Communications). Some of these things will be ongoing so that's good. But really, we are getting more and more settled and enjoying getting to know the city and our actual jobs. 

Purchased some fresh fruit and vegetables Saturday. There are little shops like these on almost every block. The fellow at this one insisted on choosing the vegetables for me. He saw it as a point of pride and good customer service. The bananas were not what I would have chosen but it makes me smile that this man wanted to be sure I got the best he had to sell. 

Thursday was Sassy Sisters again and it's the best meeting I have all week! These women are quite remarkable. We are all just regular people who have chosen to spend some of our senior years serving others. Huge choice to make.

One of the Uber drivers this week was named Alejandro. I told him about my grandson Alejandro, that he's cinco anos. The driver chuckled and then insisted on helping me out of the car when we arrived at our destination. I guess I looked too old to get out by myself? Thank goodness I didn't tell him I have a grandchild in her 30's! He would probably want a gurney! 😼

Here in BA, they use a lot of CCTV, facial recognition technology. It was used when we first arrived. I saw my photo and it was obviously taken in the airport as we were walking to our gate. Creepy. Made the realization today that our US Constitutional rights do not apply here. Never thought of that before. Makes me feel more grateful for what we have as US citizens.

Love you all! 





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