Lazy Sunday

One of the things I love about Latin America is that there is always free, goofy entertainment for the kids. This picture is from the park outside of Recoleta Cemetary where there is an arts and crafts fair every weekend. Vendors line the sidewalks selling all kinds of crap, I mean, stuff, but here, on the grass was a little puppet show with lots of kids sitting, clapping, laughing and watching (with some parents). It was a really sweet scene.

It was kind of a lazy day, a bit on the chilly side. I'm all unpacked and settled in my apartment. I had a bit of a hard time sleeping last night, even though this gigantic king size bed is REALLY comfortable, and the comforter, matress and pillows are just perfect. I'm still on SF time and after taking a nap yesterday afternoon, going to bed too early to really sleep (because I fell asleep watching Latin American Idol) and then waking up after a few hours sleep, I ended up getting out of bed this morning around 8:30 or so, and finally making it out of here around 10:30.

I went to the gym after my breakfast. There is a big chain of gyms called Megatlon. Last summer (winter), I didn't bother going because Larry told me they didn't allow monthly memberships, or it was too expensive or something. But I regretted not working out. Even though I tried to walk a lot, the beef, wine and ice cream eventually won out and I returned to San Francisco fighting to stay from moving up one waist size in my jeans. Now my jeans are loose and I want to keep them that way. That means lots of fruit and veggies, lots of fiber, lots of exercise and ice cream no more than once or twice a week (that daily habit I developed last year was not good).

Anyway, I wasn't sure how it would go at the gym, but it turned out to be quite simple. I arrived and told the young man at the desk I wanted to join. He asked for how long and I said 5 months. He then pointed to the printer which he was in the process of fixing with lots of paper all over the place and said something about it not working (I assumed) and told me I could register tomorrow. He did say I could just go and work out today though.

There were two turnstiles to enter the gym. I guess the idea was that you put your card on the turnstile and it lets you in. But, since things don't always seem to work here, there was a backup at the turnstile with a line of people waiting for a guy at the computer to figure something out. The guy behind the desk told him to let me in, and he asked the woman waiting at the turnstile to move while he buzzed me in. And up I went.

I entered the men's locker room and saw that all of the lockers had locks on them. Now I was confused. I didn't know where I was going to leave my stuff. I started getting changed and noticed another guy who was changing to up to a window in the locker room and leave his bag with a guy in another room. I then saw someone else come in and go to this little window and get his bag, so I figured that was what I was supposed to do. And that is what I did. The guy told me my number and when I finished working out I went to the window and told him my number and he gave me my bag. I guess tomorrow when I register, I can ask about lockers, but my guess is that you rent them, and it's probably better to go with the free bag check.

I then found my way down to the machines and had a pretty good workout, even though I was a bit unfamiliar with all of the machines and Argentine gym etiquette.

After that I came home and had some of the lentils I made yesterday with a nice piece of crusty multigrain bread and a half glass of wine. I bought I bottle of Malbec yesterday, but I have decided I don't really like Malbec. Or at least I didn't like this bottle. I've had some Malbecs that I liked, but it seems to me that they are not consistent and some of them are just too strong for me.

After lunch, I read in my guide book a little bit about points south, figuring that since I'm here for a while, I might head down towards the tip of South America. Still not sure - I will have to research that more.

After that, I decided to take a walk.

I knew that the artisan fair would be on outside of Recoleta Cemetary, and headed over there. It was nice and sunny and there was a lot to look at. After that, I found a little mall and went and bought some decent knives for my apartment and sat down at a cafe and had a submarino.

A submarino is a hot chocolate, and today was the perfect day for it. It comes as a glass of hot milk with a bittersweet chocolate bar on the side. You put the chocolate bar in the milk and stir it as it melts, until it becomes hot chocolate. I could develop a submarino habit, so I need to watch that as well, but it is so much better than coffee in my opinion, especially on a cold day.

Now I am back in my apartment. It's nice and toasty and my bed is calling me to get under the comforter with a book, which is what I am going to do. I may head out for a meal later, or go to the supermarket and buy something else to cook.