visit to the barrio

today, we went to moreno which is just outside of the provincia of buenos aires. it took us about two hours in the train and would take you about 40 minutes by car to get there from the microcentro. this was my second time in the barrio, but the contrast between downtown buenos aires and moreno struck me just as hard this time around as it did during my first visit. its a bit crazy to think that in palermo, recoleta, belgrano, and the microcentro, people more or less have all of the amenities we have in the united states and europe. in moreno, they lack things like running water, paved roads, and natural gas connections. the purpose of today's visit was to help prepare for and attend a ceremony to celebrate the signing of the contract between the inter-american development bank and the foundation for which i work for the loan needed to go forward with the natural gas project. for me, it was inspirational and sad at the same time. the majority of the people in attendance were from the barrio with there also being representatives from the foundation, the inter-american development bank, the natural gas company that has been working in conjunction with the foundation to get the project going, and (i believe) the president of a well-known bank in buenos aires that will be making a loan to the foundation that will complement funds donated/lent by the idb. on one side, you had people in suits looking at blackberries and on the other side, the vecinos. the difference between the two parties was impossible to ignore. i think it's amazing that businesses and ngos like the idb are coming forward to help carry out projects of this nature, but to me its quite sad that we're in this situation at all. i hope and i pray that i can do something to change things or at least make a contribution to the movement for change, but as someone said to me today, businesses are businesses, the world bank and other like-minded ngos are businesses, and at times, governments are businesses. everything's a business.

internship evaluation: halfway point

it's been quite the interesting experience working in an ngo.  meeting a lot of really intelligent people, all with different backgrounds, but all with an interest in what the ngo, albeit at varying degrees.  the volunteers, with the exception of two from argentina, are from outside of the country -- many from the u.s. and most of the others from france.  it's been quite cool learning about how an ngo works in terms of how it gets funding, how it carries out a project, as well as the ins and outs of day to day activities.  it can be quite awesome at times, talking to people who are so passionate about their job.  not once did i observe someone so passionate while i was in investment banking.  i saw people passionate about money and maybe determined to make money, but i didn't see the passion i see in some of the people at the foundation.  with that said, there is also a lot of bureaucracy and it can be a bit frustrating at times when you want something to happen and it doesn't for some reason or another.  what makes it all the more frustrating is the fact that were i at an institution like an investment bank, i can be sure that things that take us at the foundation a week or two to get done get done in a matter of a day or two at an investment bank.  but all in all, after having completed about half of my three-month internship, i have to say that i've been satisfied with my work for the first time in i cannot remember how long.

parque nacional quebrada del condorcito. la provincia de córdoba, argentina. march 8, 2011.

mendoza

today i returned to buenos aires after having been in mendoza for the past four days.  it's funny -- this is the second 4-day weekend we've had in buenos aires in the past month with the first one having been for carnaval.  seems like its a ploy by cristina to win votes in the forthcoming election and an easy way to jump-start the economy via tourism.  anyways, it's been a good opportunity to explore parts of argentina i haven't yet seen.

mendoza is known for its wine with malbec being probably the most popular variety.  it's also known for the andes and aconcagua.  needless to say, the weekend was great.  drank lot's of wine, saw some pretty amazing scenery, rode a horse for the first time in my life, and got to see a new city and a new culture.

in terms of observations, i'd have to say the people i met in mendoza were extremely kind people.  i had the opportunity to walk around the crafts market on the city's main plaza on saturday and sunday and on more than one occasion was asked where i was from, what i was doing in mendoza, what i was doing in argentina, etc.  the fair had a cool laid-back hippy vibe and reminded me why i was in argentina.  it was so great to see everybody out on the plaza drinking mate and hanging out with friends.  no one seemed like they were in a rush to do anything.  could have been because it was a public holiday but i'd bet its like that in mendoza on most days.

another observation -- i had the change to visit a few wine bodegas.  basically, they do the same thing at each bodega.  you walk in, they give you a tour/tell you about the history of the vineyard, and then comes the wine tasting.  for the most part, the tour is a bit impersonal and you realize that just like almost everything else in this world, wine is a business.  one of the vineyards we went to was different.  it felt more personal than the others and less businessy.  i think the friends i went with would agree when i say that they seemed like they made wine because they genuinely like making wine.  in a world where it seems like few people enjoy their job, i think that this is something to aspire to -- that is, liking what you do.

an observation

almost everywhere i've gone in argentina, i've asked people whether they've been to buenos aires. i usually get the same answer almost everywhere i go -- porteños are boludos, very superficial, care too much about their appearance, blah, blah, blah. all in all, probably true to some extent.

just got home from being out with a friend of mine. she studied english in london for about a month with her sister. i said that next time she goes outside of the country, she should go alone so that she could practice her english. "go alone to england?!" she said. "everyone there is so cold." i told her that british people for the most part may be cold (sorry british friends lol), but there's no way everyone in england can be so cold. it'd be impossible.

one thing i've learned over the past year or so being in argentina is that no matter where you are, whether you're in london, buenos aires, chicago, new york, etc. you can always find good people. i think of all the amazing people i've met during my time in argentina and i am really thankful for this. really makes me think that i can go anywhere in the world without knowing anyone and be okay.