Missing la Argentina

I've really been missing Argentina for the last week or so. Not that this emptiness and longing is new or anything, because it's not. It comes around quite often actually, but it's usually not this strong. I don't know what has been so different about this last week that has pushed me over the top in my yearning to go back and to even start thinking that the impossible could be possible this year. AKA: I was venting to Darin the other night about my good ol' Republica Argentina and how much I would love to go back and you won't believe what we did next. We actually got on the computer and started looking at plane tickets for the end of April. ha! What were we thinking? I don't know. Okay, I do know. I was hoping that we would have picked a special day to look at tickets and that they would only be $500 a piece. I was dreaming of us getting a $10,000 tax return so that I could buy tickets guilt free, OR even get a $2,000 tax return and not be going back to school in the fall so that I would again be guilt free and could click the "BUY NOW" button and have no regrets.  Nope, didn't happen. But seriously, $1,400!!???!!!  Who can afford that? Especially if you want to go with someone.

But it's okay, my day of glory will come. I should really change the title of this from "missing Argentina" to "I would LOVE to go back to Argentina, NOW."  The word "miss" makes it sound like I'm not happy with my life now, and I totally am. I LOVE my current life (I would just love it more if I were walking the streets of Posadas with mi esposo instead of sitting in Spanish classes TALKING about Argentina...).

I'm learning that I need to enjoy the NOW. I can't keep living in the past or dreaming of the future. I've gotta love the now. College.Work. Husband. Church. Blog. But that doesn't mean I can't cherish every memory :). And cherish I will. So in honor of my undying love for Argentina I will tell you some of the things that I love about this country (or at least the North, I can't vouch for how things are done in the rest of the country)...

• These are Argentine monedas:

There is a shortage of monedas in this country. Monedas are what you need in order to get on a bus because the bus drivers don't have monedas to give you back if you give them a bill. However, it is hard to keep a good stash of them on hand, or even get them in the first place. So on to why I LOVE Argentina... you go to the supermarket, you hand them your 25 pesos to buy your items and instead of getting money back as your change, they give you candy! Yes! I mean, who likes a hand full of pennies and nickels anyways? I'll take yummy chewy fruity candies any day! This is something that I DEFINITELY think should be implemented in our grocery stores (not that any of us use cash to buy our goods anyways... but I sure would if they started giving me candy instead of pennies!). 

• I miss having the scenery of these HUGE termite hills to examine while walking down the street. Not that I would wish these anywhere near my actual home, but maybe on a running trail or something. I mean look at the things! They are awesome! Amazing that little insects can do something like this!

• Fruit and vegetable stands!!!!  I LOVE LOVE LOVE these things. And they are all over the place which is great. You need an onion? You walk a block and buy one. No hassle of getting in the car, driving around for 15 minutes to get there, buy it and get back home to finish your stir-fry. So convenient! (The only negative is that they don't give you candy when they don't have monedas to give you as change :(. They just round up your purchase. Or down, perhaps).

Summary: 3 things I love about Argentina:

The suspense when you are at the cash register, "will I get monedas or candy this time?"

Massive termite hills to decorate the land.

Fruit stands!!

More to come in the near future :).