There is an Abyss Somewhere Around Here; I will Find It when I Fall.

Today I stepped in dog(?) poop on the way to school. Because it is everywhere. It was gross. I used up all four of my Shout!wipes on my shoes between my first and second class because I didn't have anything else with which to clean them, and I couldn't deal with them being dirty. Then I used hand sanitizer like, five times in the next ten minutes because the university's bathrooms are unusable. I mean, they exist. But they have neither soap nor toilet paper, nor toilet seats on the toilets: i.e., unusable.

Other than that, though, the University's really cool. I mean, sure the building's old and shabby, but that for sure adds character. That's what I like about this place. The entire school is covered with graffiti and posters for a number of different things (the most recent addition, as far as I could tell, were tons of posters sponsored by the socialist students' union or something that were against the construction of a high-speed train in Argentina, as they would prefer to use that amount of money to create more perfectly-normal-speed-thank-you-very-much trains.) I mean, there's just such a sense of activism and indignation on the walls. It's pretty sweet.

Another thing about the university: So apparently the police aren't allowed to enter university property? Apparently. And so apparently (apparently) students smoke marihuana on campus on a fairly regular basis. Because, I mean, the professors don't care, and the authorities won't know. Crazy! Like, you can't smoke pot on the streets, but you can once you're inside the sanctity of the university. As opposed to, say, IU where you have both university and Bloomington police on campus all the time.

The most exciting discovery of the last few days was WiFi by the window in Sra. Estela's living room, by the window. However, last night she tried to get me to explain this whole WiFi thing, and, okay, that would be hard enough to explain in English to a person in their mid-sixties (or older?) who is completely unaware of technology. Why couldn't I sit at the table instead of by the window? Would whoever this "WiFi" belongs to have to pay for me using it? How had I unplugged my laptop from the wall and it was still working?! Also, she didn't think that many people around here had WiFi - they just had internet. 

These are not easy things to answer.

For history class, we were supposed to ask our host family about what they (and their family) thought about Perón. My host mother seemed shocked: "That's a political question!" Yes, well, we're going to discuss various viewpoints held. "Well, some people liked him, and some people ... didn't. I am not going to answer." Okay then.

For our Spanish language class, we had to ask about who she thought was the most famous Argentine in the TV/movies world. Her answer was Mirtha Legrand, who is 81 years old and has hosted the talk show "Lunching with Mirtha Legrand" for the past 40 years - the longest running TV show in history. (It was earlier called "Lunching with the Stars," but I somehow doubt the format carried through to its possible descendant - bastard child, perchance? - that involves Dancing with them.) Anyway, apparently - according to the teacher - she's ultraconservative and basically all the rich old ladies love her. Okay.

It's pretty obvious that all the COPA students are staying in the wealthiest neighborhoods of the city. And while, I mean, that in and of itself is not a problem - I guess their primary concern was our safety - the ideology is totally different from that of the leftist University students or working class; it's strange. I think since the '40s and Perón, there really have been two Argentinas, and it's bizarre to see the workings of that and be on the advantaged/conservative side of it all.

Yesterday I more or less just stayed at home all day, but I think today the group's going to Palermo to walk around. Provided I can find the location and arrive there on time (which clearly has only been happening a small percentage of the time so far), I do believe I will be going. Wish me luck.

Edit: Never mind. I do not think I will have time to get there. I will do homework instead, or maybe (maybe!) watch an episode of Buffy online.