Fri 0031 Not sure if going home or not and will prob write bulk of Thu up tomorrow but at La Paz Arriba just round corner from flat, been listening to some pretty decent solo piano+singing since lang exchange petered out. Outside the big window behind piano is a vibrant exciting green neon sign 1920s Hollywood detective film style which I finally noticed an hour or so ago (the top of the word is not visible, it is vertical lettering one letter wide) merely says "PAPAFRITA" and I can indeed see a less dramatic cinema-esque sign says "El Palacio de La Papa Frita" below it. The nominally more dramatic "Teatro Porteno" has a duller sign at right edge of window.
Not sure if pianist going to come back on, tho has if anything been getting busier over last hour altho I think I am the last remnant of lang exch, while held out until an early-Zuhamy-esque Argentinian woman whose name I have sadly forgotten and who had been speaking to me in English for maybe an hour as most lang exchers disappeared left maybe 11ish.
This bar actually feels comfortable except the initial impression was of a pseudo-student-union wanky political activism hangout. I noticed this as was queueing to pay for lang exch at 1830. There's a big banner in Portuguese on wall saying "Les bi as bichas as/os sapatão contra el golpe con marielle" which I don't understand but get broad sentiment of , the bog doors seem to be sex-segregated but are confusingly labelled and have a nearby sign saying macho or racist behaviour won't be tolerated, there's a small painting of two nuns kissing above the bar (though this is just art and not really in same category as other stuff I'm mentioining) and I think I saw a pro-abortion slogan somewhere near bar and various posters for debates or rallies which I didn't examine closely. The paradox here is I'm really a very live and let live guy by inclination and have no real objection to any of the lifestyles or issues involved, I'm broadly nominally on the same side, but I also really fucking despise the social engineering culture-shaping campaigning "you must think like this" attitude I perceive behind all this shit, rightly or wrongly.
Pianist seems to be packing up his music and tho no pissed and it's moderately busy I have spent enough and not that anxious to stay out if no more music. Realised earlier (tho have sent msg with no reply yet asking for clarity) 20% discount is prob going to be airbnb+credit card which means I shouldn't have burned ARS800 odd on cash spend I could have put on card. Not a big deal. All but first of my five beers tonight cost 100 (first 75) and tho it wasn't clear from meetup.com description I was told when confirmed by email had to pay 200 for lang exch, tho this did include mate (the meetup I prob was dubious about week or two back prob meant yerba mate not mate as in sex) - custom seemed to be for table of four/five to pass one cup round, but I'm not too fastidious and tho first sip was bit weird I actually rather enjoyed it and drank my share, good to finally try it too - and tostadas tho I didn't see anyone eat any. Not exactly terrible price but felt a bit deceptive not being in meetup.com listing.
May be another meeting of same group but in Palermo (an hourish walk away? tho woman speaking to last told me I could safely get cab on street there) on Sat night. See how I feel.
Do need to write up night and indeed day properly tomorrow but just bashing this out as linger before leaving. Will say this morning (well midday ish) as was cutting nails I found the "lost" 32GB SD card in my cube tube as dug scissors out. In hindsight I *don't* remember that being open on my bunk when I lost the card, as surely I would have dug through it, but FWIW the card was there, which was a very nice little surprise. It's prob not worth much and I had other copies of its contents but still nice to discover I hadn't lost it.
Couldn't help feeling as sat here alone after chat and listening to music and looking out at central-ish BA that when I was (say) 15 I'd never have imagined I'd be here like this. That's not to say my life is great, but still, things don't always work our better or worse or the same as you might predict, if you had been bothered to predict. I am actually not sure how I might have imagined my life at 42 when I was 15, whether positively or negatively.
Oh, last-spoken-to woman (I guessed she was 27, she was 30 - easily margin of error, kudos, and I erred on right side) said I looked 37ish when told her I was 42. Perhaps she was trying to flatter me but WTF, I'll take it. (She guessed before me, FWIW.)
It's now 0048, nearly finished this pint, clearly no more music tho is quite busy but while I *could* comfortably drink another pint or two, I am not desperate and it doesn't really feel right.
Peruvian chap spoke to earlier during lang exch told me Centro Cultural near here has free jazz every Tue night. Sadly no good to learn that now but will try to remember it for next time am here.
Feels a bit of a shame to leave now but also no reason not to. Tonight has been more social and more musical than I had hoped, I had mentally pencilled in Fri night to try to find some live music/go out late (Sat night I have checkin shit Sun morning and Sun night I have early departure for flight) and I will prob still do that, but it's still super cool to have stumbled on some live music here post lang exchange and not that I was feeling super pressured that takes pressure off even more for Fri night.
Rpeating myself but while feels a shame to leave when it's moderately busy (busier than most of night TBH), there is no music, I've had quite a few beers and it just isn't worth pushing it, I've had a lot of conversation too and not desperate for or optimistic of finding someone to chat to so let's just go.
Will write up more details tomorrow, unless I feel super energetic about writing when get home which I doubt.
0058 Home. Just opened windows for first time and peering out (and also paying attention to orientation as walked up stairs for first time) I can see the flat does in fact look out over the street the entrance is on, I can see (tho not read name of) New Fama just down street and see the paintings on the wall of the building immediately opposite.
Fri 1430 At Bar Polo but let's just bash out bit more to finish Thu entry.
Didn't go out much pre lang exch, just to scope out prices for fernet/alfajores to take home and get bit of food to cook in flat.
Lang exch was quite good, as think already said got to try maté. Everyone moved to new table halfway through so got to talk with few people and I think my Spanish was OK and people seemed to mostly understand my English. Apparently a lot of English language teaching in Argentina favours British English and pronunciation. Lot of US students on exchange (at Belgrano univ) for six months and had one of them in one of my groups but didn't meet any other Brits, not to say there weren't any there.
People seemed to stay on after unlike a lot of other ones been to and had five pints total. A lot of people had left by maybe 10pm but a woman came up and started talking to me (just in English) as already mentioned and we were prob last two. She left - she lived about an hour and a half away - maybe 11-1130 and I stayed on my own as pianist had come back on (she was there during his first half) and I was only a block or two from home and wanted to enjoy the live music.
Prob repeating myself as not re-read older part of this entry but this is a bit of a bashing out of what I did etc not anything really urgent or specially interesting I want to note down.
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