LA MUUUUUUUUUUUURGAAAAAAAAAA

"Volvio la murga, a seducirlos otra vez, sin que se dieran cuenta....."*

One of my top three favorite things about life in Cordoba (along with my great living situation and the previously mentioned veggie empanadas) is the murga. What is a murga you ask? Well, Wikipedia defines it as a group that makes music in the street for everybody, most often during the Carnaval season or other big party days. There's all sorts of styles, the two main ones here being: murga uruguaya, which is a choir that wears elaborate costumes and makeup and sings songs that almost always have both humor and social critique, and murga porteña, from Buenos Aires,which is much more about flashy dancing, loud drums and razzle-dazzle. (Think "You Got Served") Here in Cordoba there are TONS of murgas, most a combination of those two styles. It was my former guitar teacher who led me to my murga, Ni Lerda Ni Perezosa (Not Slow or Lazy). The name is, it must be admitted, ironic, because we have the reputation of being slow, lazy, and very, very flaky. Still, I love it. With the murga, I've had the chance to perform in the beautiful outdoors:In tons of plazas: at the opening of a public library, at protests dancing down the main avenue of Cordoba, at quinceneras and even at a wedding! (Here I am with Barby, another girl from the murga, and the bride and groom:) In some ways I'd say it's filled the hole left by the wonderful frisbee team at Vassar. Like the Boxing Nuns, we get in a circle and do a cheer before we go out, we wear matching-but-not-matching outfits, there's always the debate about whether the group wants to "get serious" or keep flying by the seat of our pants, and finally, it's made up of a pretty diverse collection of people (despite the reputation all murgueros have of being dirty hippies). In Ni Lerda, for example, we have med students, high schoolers and our resident poet, Felix, who is in his 60's and has quite the sense of humor (his nickname for me is "Sonrisa," or "Smile." This is much better than what he used to call me: "The Other German Girl." Blonde Barby had already taken the first spot).
Here are a few of the members strategizing before we hit the stage- guess which one's Felix:We even have a canine companero, Felix's loyal companion Eureka!
This past Sunday, we had our "corso," which means a free party for everyone in the plaza, ideally during the season of Carnaval. It was, of course, kinda badly organized, but really fun. We set up the stage (here is Vientito, the murga's resident clown, trying to mount a banner):painted our faces :
and settled in for what basically amounted to a neighborhood variety show! There were other murgas, like Patas Pa' Arriba (Feet in the Air):
a kids' murga (here's their percussion section):one adorable murguerito who insisted on being in the middle of the action:
a reggae band that played a little too long, jugglers and fire-breathers, a Nirvana-esque rock band, and, at the end, the ceremonial burning of the "Rey Momo"As it's been explained to me, Momo is like the Idiot King of the Carnaval, and when he goes up in flames, it's a symbol of a total destruction of hierarchies, equality and fiesta for everyone!
The only downside is when the wind picks up and blows flaming pieces of the Rey Momo onto the dancing public... I'm not sure what that's a symbol for.

*The murga returned, to seduce you again, without you realizing it...

Off the Ledge

Hey everybody! First of all, an update. Since my near-suicide first post of '09, I have been filling my life with reading, work, murga, cooking things (like a soup that actually tasted like soup!) and lots of hanging out with the housemates, including an outing to hippie town San Marcos Sierras with awesome new Finnish roommate Vappu (the blondie awaiting her mate in the pic)
As a result, I am doing much better in Cordoba! I still miss the good old days in Austin, and it's still way too freakin hot, but am slowly burrowing back into my Argentinian existence. One of the things that is keeping me busy is the search for private students to fill my time and my pocketbook (hey, something's gotta pay for my lollipops, veggie empanadas and phone cards!). So far, it's not going so hot. The following are my Do's and Don'ts for starting your own English business.
Abby's Private Teachin' Tips

Do:Put up fliers in the schools. The less snobby ones will let you, and most kids have a pretty hard time with English here.
Don't: Expect said kids or said kids' parents to call you immediately. They're busy doing other stuff. But they will call. Eventually. Some day.
Do: Advertise the fact that you are a native speaker and have experience with all levels and ages.
Don't: Get discouraged when an uppity Irishman puts up fliers in YOUR neighborhood advertising the exact same things in the exact same words PLUS other stuff you didn't think to write.
Do: Answer the phone, it could be a potential student!
Don't: Answer the phone if you have just woken up. It could be a grumpy old lady with a billion questions you have no idea how to answer!
In conclusion, please let me know if you know anybody living in Cordoba who wants English classes. Maybe internet advertising is the trick?

A Reluctant Return, now time to RALLY

A week has passed since I left Austin and journeyed back to Cordoba, and my only excuse for not writing earlier, dear reader, is that it has been quite the bumpy transition back! My visit to Austin was better than I could have imagined, full of tacos, tea, and TV time (as well as Thundercloud, tex-mex, trips, treks on the bike, tender moments... I could go on all day). All the quality time with friends, family and framily renewed my heart, but also made me as melty and squishy as a marshmallow when the time came to return. It was like exiting the womb for the second time!
Nobody wants to read a depressing post, so I'll keep it short and un-dramatic: the first week has been HORRIBLE!!! I got sickish the night before I left and have been PLAGUED by stomach pains since then, it's BLISTERING hot and humid and there is no air conditioning to be found (but plenty of MOSQUITOS), the few friends I had have dropped off the face of the EARTH, and all I can think about is sitting on the couch with the Loomis ladies, watching Gossip Girl and eating Eliza's homemade CREPES!
Okay, okay, there's also been some good stuff. Friday night I got to see Manu Chau, for example, and I still have a few friends, mainly my roommates, who are awesome and have been super tolerant with my mood swings. Each day is a little easier,work is picking up, and yesterday I got some great advice about choosing to be positive, so that's the new gameplan! I've made a list of goals for this year to keep me focused, cause goodness knows 10 months may seem like a long time, but in the blink of an eye I'll be back on that couch in Austin, wishing I was still in Argentina.