Besos.

The heat of the Haitian sun still on our skin, Eric and I stepped off the plane and onto Argentine ground. With the whirl of the Buenos Aires airport spinning around us, Eric and I quickly realized that we were truly in a new place - and were about to embark on an adventure that was all its own.

In our first few days of exploring, we discovered:
* It's winter in Buenos Aires! Since Argentina is in the Southern hemisphere, their seasons are opposite of our seasons in Minnesota. They have a mild winter (temps ranging from 35 - 60 F), but we were surprised by how chilly it felt. Needless to say, one our first tasks was to find light jackets for both of us. [Sidenote: mission accomplished. Mine is cute and black with big, funky buttons - Perfect.]
* The Spanish spoken here is Castellano - a unique and beautiful version of Spanish, with lots of "sh" sounds. I'm excited to learn it.
* This city is b e a u t i f u l. Eric and I are both really enjoying learning about the history of Argentina, and of Buenos Aires - as its hard to separate history from all that we're seeing all around us. There are tremendous European influences in the architecture of the city - French, Spanish, German, Italian. In fact, they say that Buenos Aires was designed "with an eye toward Europe". We have found ourselves, on countless ocassions, walking down beautiful cobblestone or surrounded by grand, lovely buildings and shaking our heads in disbelief that we are in South America.
* The streets are lined with cafes and little stores and delicious pastries. Dulce de Leche (delicious carmel) seems to be their speciality. YUM.
* Everyone (everyone) greets with a kiss (un beso). From middles school boys to business associates to old friends - besos all around. A simple lean to the left and kiss on the right, starts and ends every interaction. I love it.
* There is much to see and much to learn here. The history and culture of Argentina is complex - with great divides between the rich and the poor, the lighter skinned and darker skinned, the city and the country.

With open hands and hearts, we begin to see and experience and walk and learn and greet and love all that there is for us here. With open hands and hearts, we begin.