Communicate Like Cousteau

One of my goals for this Remote Year is to host 1 public speaking workshop per city.  12 cities, 12 workshops.  In LA, my workshops were called Communication Community.

 

On Remote Year, I’m calling it “Communicate Like Cousteau”.  (RY3 code name = Cousteau)    Jacques Cousteau was a true Renaissance man.  A revolutionary scientist, explorer, filmmaker, conservationist, photographer, author, etc.  

Remote Year 3  is comprised of 70 professionals from around the world, who are all incredibly bright, innovative and adventurous.  We have artists, engineers, writers, photographers, entrepreneurs, etc.  And, we are ALL explorers.  Pioneers of the digital nomadic world.

Cousteau was also an orator who often gave speeches about his ground-breaking work and political views.  I think Cousteau would be proud of us.  And, I hope we honor his name.  

Workshop #1: Cordoba, Incutex TechPub

In Córdoba, the first workshop was held on March 23rd, in the Incutex co-working space's conference room, the TechPub.  We had 9 in total, and the theme of the night centered around the late, great actor, comedian, and philanthropist Robin Williams.  There will never be another like him and I like to use him as an example of just how far you can push yourself in public speaking.  He was a master.  

We started off with some improv games, and for vocal warmups, we impersonated some of Robin's most famous movie quotes from Aladdin, Good Will Hunting and Good Morning Vietnam.  "Bueeeeeenaaaaas noooooooches, Cooooooooordooooobaaaaaa!"

Members of the group got up and told short stories based on something they are passionate about.  Super proud of these people for pushing themselves!

• Laura - Goal of traveling to all 50 states but the requirements are that she must stay over night and must do a cool event!  
• Travis - Tried over 40 times to get the most epic zip line frisbee YouTube video but the alas, 2 golden opportunities were left on the table as the frisbee was dropped!
• Brecht - Was involved in the Belgium version of 'Boy Scouts' and has filled various leadership roles, including organizing fun activities where the kids would play baseball and get crazy dirty!
• Tanya - Reminisced about how delicious the fresh cucumbers from her garden back home are and how she can't wait to return and get back to her gardening!
• Eric - Talked about his love of mountain biking and going to the top of mountains in California so he could fly down the hills!  He very much prefers downhill riding to uphill.  ;]
• Kelly - Comes from a very active family and always needs to be doing something!  She found her love for endurance running, and now has finished a 50k race!  Very impressive!
• Patrick - Shared the story of how Turd Bird was born, and how he hosted a WrestleMania style cage match event in his friends' backyard!

And lastly, we had a keynote speech from Melissa, who shared a hilarious life story that was honest, relatable and inspirational.  Melissa involved the audience in the speech and had us in stitches with her humorously daring topic!

Workshop #2: Buenos Aires, La Ninina

The 2nd workshop was a little more challenging to host. Our co-working offices didn't quite have the space for the type of event I wanted.  I had to go outside the inner circle, which presented logistics and linguistic challenges!

La Ninina is a local cafe in the Palermo district of Buenos Aires and a favorite amongst my fellow travelers.  They have a gorgeous 1st floor private room that screamed 'BOOK ME!!!' as soon as I saw it.  There is a window overlooking the kitchen, which reflects a lot of light into the space and creates a comfy ambience. 

For this second workshop, the group doubled in size.  18 total attendees.  I think using EventBrite to track invitations AND having the event at such a cool venue helped to bolster the numbers.  And, perhaps word got around that these events are actually fun?  

The theme of the night centered around the late great musician: Prince, who was an incredibly talented musician who liked to take risks.  While some of Prince's quotes are less than inspiring (See list) I really liked this one, as I feel it is very apropos to the fear of public speaking:

Prince: "The most important thing is to be true to yourself, but I also like danger. That's what's missing from pop music today. There's no excitement or mystery."

To warm up the audience, I had them alternate verses of famous Prince songs: Kiss and 1999, which was hilarious because none of us can hit the high notes like the legend himself!  We then had an interactive discussion about the various ways to use our voices to enhance our speech.  After the discussion, I invited audience members up to tell a short story.  Following the stories, we had a brief critique of the storytellers, talking about both positive aspects of their stories, and offering a few areas for improvement.  Here's a recap:

• Richard - Heartwarming story of cooking mac n cheese for his family, almost losing a finger in the process, and his mom’s home-cooked redemption.
• Arestia - Wowed the audience with a wonderful story of a documentary film she worked on featuring an Olympic equestrian rider and the stunning farm location they got to film on.
• Adam - Story of riding old, rickety motorbikes in Vietnam, and then having to hitch a ride in a chicken truck where they got pooped on.
• Sam - How she became a young firestarter, trying to burn a piece of paper for a school project and almost burning her house down while her father took a nap.
• Abby - Spoke about the preparation of her valedictorian speech for her high school graduation, and how she does NOT have a passion public speaking.
• Johnson - Suspenseful tale of being on a boat in Croatia with a girl and having to swim down to the bottom to rescue an anchor that got away!
• Miranda - Her story centered on her clumsiness while mountain biking with friends on a tiny children’s bike, swerving to avoid a boulder, busting open her head, and getting rocks implanted in her skin.  OUCH!
• Tom - Giving a best man speech in Sri Lanka, and trying to be so cute by giving the first half of the speech in Sri Lankan, inadvertently insulting half the audience!
• Jonathan - Remembered the first time he had sex, and his mother somehow knowing that it happened, and asking him personal questions about it afterward!  Hilarious.
• Kelly - Story about how she and her friends were mistakenly locked in a prison for 3 hours as college students!  Girl has done HARD TIME.
• Mihai - A skiing adventure gone awry---the story of him driving 1.5 hours out of the way of their desired ski resort while his buddies were snoozing!
• Charles - Had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand, as he recalled taking the test to become a magician at the famous Magic Castle in Hollywood!

Overall, I'm extremely pleased with how the first 2 workshops have played out.  I'm excited to host the next one for La Paz, Bolivia, and giving myself more time to plan and prepare.  I'm also looking to open the workshops up to the local community, which will be a way for me to push myself out of my comfort zone.  

Stay tuned to hear how it goes!

Córdoba City Recap: 7-in-One!

My last post about lovely lady Córdoba.  A little sad.  But, time to move on!  I’ve already got plenty to write about for Buenos Aires.  Here are the 7 best blog posts I never got around to writing.

A rare 7-in-one!  (Dad, this is even better than a 5-in-one!)

Fire Juggling

I previously posted about street performers, like Eillen the juggler.

But, the mic was dropped when I saw fire jugglers.  Look at how high he’s hurlin’ ‘em!  He would often drop them though.  Nothin’ like a little fire near fuel!  Oh well, more danger, more pesos, I s’pose.    

He had a dancing fire partner too.  

Night Photography with the Nocturnal

I love shooting at night, especially from great heights.  My roof was 13 stories up, and kinda sorta had 360 view of Nueva Córdoba.  I loved the city at sunset.  And I loved laughing at the crazy college kids stumbling in the streets after midnight.

One night I realized I was not alone up there.  I recognized the flying patterns.  Then, of course, the sounds.  Bats.  Lots of them.  I suspect they perched right under the soffit of the building.  I could only see them when they would dart out, and swoop near me.  But, we had a respectful relationship.  They didn't bother me and they added to the weird ambience up there.  

Milo Lockett

A trendy restaurant / bar with awesome illustrative decor and stunning, affordable dishes.  Also, the site of our Farewell Party, After-Party.   

Derryl Carter, this guy can dunk a basketball and take some serious snaps!

Lightning Storms

This topic deserves a whole blog post, but maybe I’ll post more pics to my Facebook later.  

The last two nights in Córdoba, there were crazy lightning storms.  But, they were far enough away and there was only a slight drizzle where I was at.  Seemed unlikely I'd be zapped.

Shooting lightning is like fishing, or shooting meteors.  You rarely ever get the big one.  But, you never stop trying.

Multiple times, I was 2 seconds away from capturing Zeus’ best, but was either cleaning my lens, or resetting the exposure.  It was an epic storm that I’ll remember my whole life.

Waffles One Love

Mmmm...gracias a mi profesora espanol Vicki for this recommendation!  Waffles One Love: waffle sandwiches.  Que rico!  Once I learned how to convey “no mayonesa”, I was in heaven.  “Dos One Loves, no salsa de verdeo, para llevar.”  

I was meant to fall in love with this place.  I even have a waffles 'remera azul claro'!  Vicki would be proud.

Running

My peaceful place was Parque Sarmiento.  Music made me feel at home again.  Argentineans are pretty fit people and on any given night, you’d find 50-100 runners and walkers at the Parque.

Fun little mental game to play while running: Translating song lyrics into Spanish.  My marathoners, you may want to add this to your list.  It might get you through 20 - 26!

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

One block away from my apartment, on the corner of Belgrano and Laprida is a restaurant / bar called “Don't Worry”.  

And, on my block (the corner of Belgrano and San Luis) is a restaurant / bar called “Be Happy”.

Are they related?  Is Bobby McFerrin a part owner of these fine establishments?  

Do they even realize the cultural significance!?!?!

Or, is this just a Córdobean cultural coincidence?

Unsolved Mysteries: Argentinean Edition.

Tango Show, WHOA!

Thursday night was our Farewell Dinner Party for Córdoba.  We had dinner at ‘El Arrabal’, featuring a brilliant Tango Dance show by beautiful dancers!!  

I’ll let this video speak for itself.  Es muy caliente!

And, some party pics!

Sarah and I.

Our lovely leaders, Travis &  Samantha, aka Tramantha

Patrick...it's great to see this guy finally loosen up.

"They're matching!"

Some of our group who took tango lessons while in town.

Mike & Jess, who I would say earned Best Dressed!

Lisa & Abe!

Kelly & Tom!

And, the birthday girl, Samantha!

Loungin' at Late

Córdoba is known for nightlife.  Countless cool clubs, restaurants, lounges, etc.  Tonight was my first night at “Late”.  #lovedit  

Late is a pretty big place, but the outdoor back patio is where it’s at.  So many places in Córdoba have phenomenal decor.  It’s effortless.  Yet, exceptional.  And I am so inspired by Argentinean musical taste.  Destroyer: Chinatown?  Brilliant.

Derryl, Danielle, Miranda, Brecht, Patrick, Anhton, Tom, Casey and I had a ton of hearty laughs, ate delicious dishes, played impromptu & inappropriate Pictionary, and stormed the stage and jammed to Michael Jackson.  We were undoubtedly the loudest table at the place. But I think they loved us.  (Nope)

When we were dancing, one guy usurped the DJ table when the DJ left for a minute and turned the music down.  “This is not America, here we throw oranges at this.”  Hmmm...I think he meant throw tomatoes, but I’m still not even sure if he didn’t like the song, or he didn’t like us dancing on stage?

Sorry, but you can’t put MJ on and expect us to NOT DANCE.  You can take the Americans out of America, but you can’t take America out of the Americans. 

Not to mention, we had an Aussie with us.  And a guy from Brussels.  Show some love for Brussels, amigo!

Salt & Vineg--errr, Asado Flavor?

If you know me well, you know that I can take down a big bag of Lay’s Salt & Vinegar Chips in one night. (Right, Dad?  Not proud.)  

When I entered my first supermercado (grocery store) in Córdoba, I noticed a familiar color set.  Classic Lay’s amarillo, Sour Cream & Onion verde, and of course, that powder blue color that makes my mouth water:  Salt & Vinegar azul!  

After looking closer, I noticed something unfamiliar.  No jar of red vinegar or ramekin of salt.  

Instead, a seared steak on a wooden cutting board.  Sabor, Asado.  (~“Flavor, Roast”)

My mouth stopped watering.  Pavlov effect over.  Soul crushed.  

But I figure, maybe this Asado flavor is just as bueno as Salt & Vinegar?  If they’re willing to give it the powder blue color, it must be mouth watering, si?  So, I forked over the 40 pesos and headed home for a taste test.

An Asado in Argentina is a big deal.  It’s pretty much a BBQ...a big get together with tons of grilled meat.  But, the Asado flavor is not like BBQ flavor chips.  The best way to describe the taste is: if you were to grill a steak, trap the juices in a cup, and then pour those juices over classic Lay’s chips.  Steak juice chips!  

I was weirded out at first, and then warmed up to them.  I may not finish an Asado Lay’s bag in one night, but I wouldn't NOT want to eat them in bed while reading.  (Like I'm doing in the pic above)

Don’t judge.  

Junction: International Fusion Event

Our first monthly, big networking event!  Remote Year invites ~50 local business people to join us for a schmoozing night.  First, a cocktail mixer; second, a series of ‘lightning presentations’ (3 min career related speeches by various remotes and locals); and lastly, a sit down dinner.  

Last Thursday was our first Junction and I was asked to be a lightning presenter.  They put me last, which was an honor.  Most of the presenters talked about their specific businesses, but my topic was more motivational: “Find Your Career Zen”.  Master Nomi would be proud!  

Side note: it was ~40 degrees C, aka ~105 degrees F in this small room and everyone was drenched in sweat.  I felt like I played 2-on-2 before speaking.  Below, I'm attempting to strip my soaked shirt off my stomach. 

This was an awesome event!  At my table was one of the other presenters, Marcelo from a local studio MindSmack.  It turns out, Marcelo and I have practically identical resumes!  We hit it off big time, and I know we will keep in touch and maybe even work together in the future.

Loreda, Me, Samantha, Marcelo

Score one for Remote Year!  These Junctions are incredibly valuable networking opportunities.  It's a global market and you can learn a lot from your international counterparts.  #networking

Some pics of the event locale: Paradojas, in the Barrio Guelmes area of Córdoba.

And a rare #selfindulgent #selfie.

Celeb Sighting in Córdoba!

I left LA a little over 3 weeks ago, and didn’t expect to spot a celeb for another 49.  This past Saturday, I went on a wild goose chase down to Plaza San Martin to find a “convertidor de voltaje”.  2+ hours, 6+ miles, 8+ clumsy Spanish convos and no voltage converter.  

BUT, I spotted a huge crowd of ravenous fans, all amped up to get autographs...  

…of...

Ronald McDonald!

This guy is a legend here.  No joke.  They LOVE McDonalds!  “Que rico!”  

Can’t say I blame them.  I love Chicken McNuggets and Fries.  I just don’t like the way it sits in my stomach a half hour later, or the way it makes my car smell when I get into it the next morning.  

But, I don't drive a car anymore.  

And, now I’m totally craving McDonalds!  Who's with me?

Cousteau Clean Up Crew!

Today was the first community service event for Remote Year 3!  

Shortly after we arrived in Argentina, we assembled a positive impact committee to organize events in each city.  Travis and Arestia masterfully spearheaded a Park Clean Up Day, which was a huge success.  Parque Sarmiento is the largest public park in Córdoba, and my favorite running location.  It gets a lot of use by the locals every day, and there are many events there on the weekends.

We were divided into teams of 4.  Heather, Johnson, Kelly and myself tied for 1st place with 8 total bags!  I spent a good amount of time combing the shore of the lake, which was so gross.  I won’t even get into the stuff I came across, but let’s just say, it needed to be done.

Together, we picked up 61 large trash bags full of nasty junk!  We made a big difference.  I hope future Remote Year groups will carry on this tradition and keep Parque Sarmiento clean!

Photo Credit: Gonzalo Martinez

Popty Ping!

Did you know that the Welsh word for microwave is ‘popty ping’?  Es perfecto!

But, what does that have to do with my travels?  

Dos cosas (2 things):  

1: My fellow Remote Elizabeth Garrison, aka Translator Liz, aka @translator.liz, was the one who told me about popty ping.  She lives in Manchester England and speaks several languages.  Translator Liz is awesome and wields a wealth of weird words!

2: I came home the other night, turned on my bedroom light and ‘POPTY PING’!  The light bulb exploded.  Said light was hanging directly over my bed.  Shards of glass sprinkled down on my sheets and floor.  

Buenos tiempos!  

I started picking out shards from my sheets one at a time, largest first.  I could still sleep in the sheets after I swept through, just had to spot the sparklies.  

Hmmm.  Way too many sparklies.  Sleeping would surely result in blood shed.  Plan aborted.  Sheets rolled up.

Thankfully, I had spare sheets in my closet.  Popty ping problem solved!  THANK YOU, Remote Year!!!  

Check out this awesome Popty-Ping video!

And, another video about weird Welsh words: 

The Amazing Race - Córdoba

Dancing in front of Paseo del Buon Pastor; entrance to the Córdoba Cabildo, aka Town Hall.

Our first full Sunday in Cordoba featured a team scavenger hunt called The Amazing Race.  Almost everyone was hungover (not me) and exhausted (me) from the excursion to Villa Carlos Paz the day before, and dancing at el nightclub til 5am anoche (me).  I just wanted a full day off to relax, but #fomo is a real thing and #thestruggleisreal.  

I put on my big boy pants, cuz I’m 38.  My teammates: Patrick (LA), Jacek (Austria), Liz (England) & Kirsten (Canada).  We came in dead last, but we definitely had the most fun!  We got ice cream, rode ponies, played with a box of puppies, saw a children’s clown show, etc.  Btw, none of those things were on the list.

Here are some highlights:

Posing like a boy band in front of the Iglesia Catedral de Córdoba.

Sliding down the cement at the Córdoba Cultural Center!

Praying inside the Capuchin Church.

The Pony Posse; our last stop La Rueda de Eiffel; and me praying inside Capuchin Church.

Stumbled on to a bizarro children's clown show. More on this in a future post... 

Can't resist a box full of puppies!

The event was from 4-7pm.  We came in around 7:15.  When we got to the finish line at the park, we pretended to run in all exhausted-like.  I think they believed us...not really.  

But, the journey IS the destination.  

Enjoy the ride!  Stop and smell the roses.  And, stop and pet the puppies.

The group celebrating in Parque de las Tejas!

You Can’t Always Get What You Want

At the end of my first week in Córdoba, I was physically and mentally exhausted.  The newness had taken its toll and I just wanted a solo supper and a quiet night.  I had eaten empanadas for almost every meal, but noticed the restaurant next door had fajitas!  

First Friday and I’m feelin’ like good ole familiar fajitas!

Went into the restaurant, and ordered up the pollo (chicken) fajitas.  The waitress looked confused, but I pointed to the menu.  No problem, right?

Problem.

The hostess comes over and attempts to explain that the fajitas are for 2 people.  I’m thinking, “No big deal, I’ll have leftovers.”  But, I can’t quite put it into words.  It’s my first Friday, my brain is fried, and oh yeah---I don't speak Spanish.

She points to the “Quesadilla Soho”.  Ok, I can’t read most of these words, but I see camarones --- shrimp.  Pressure mounting.  “Si, bueno.”  I’ll have the shrimp quesadilla.  Hrmph.  

My quesadilla comes out.  It’s shrimp, mussels (mejillones), peppers, onions, and mozzarella in a soggy tortilla with enough mussel broth to make Gordon Ramsey’s head explode.  Good ole familiar shrimp & mussels quesadilla, just like Mom used to make.  At least there was guacamole.  Guac makes everything better.  

Sometimes, you can’t always get what you want.  But, you gotta try sometimes.  

And, you gotta learn Spanish.

Paseo De Las Artes

Every Saturday and Sunday in Nueva Córdoba, they have an art walk.  And, lucky for me, Paseo De Las Artes is only 2 blocks from my place.  

This seems somewhat similar to the Venice Beach Boardwalk, sans the sound of the ocean and the smell of marijuana.  Strolling the street fair is a sweet way to spend a Saturday or Sunday.  

I even bought a couple souvenirs.  15 pesos ($1 USD) for a finger puppet?  

Deal.

"Mate", aka "Yerba Mate" is the drink of the Argentineans.  It is a daily, social ritual, sharing mate with friends is like having a cup of coffee in the States, or an afternoon tea in England.  Mate is drank out of a specific type of gourd, and drunk through a metallic straw.  This guy had some of the best setups Ive seen!

Mihai, fellow Remote from Romania, working a puppet!

Move over Jim Henson!

This guy belongs in Venice Beach!

Very cool style!

Some Remote Year friends, Mihai, Jonathan, Adam, Samantha, and Eric.

El Papagayo - 7 Courses of Scrumptious!

Last Thursday, we went to one of the finest restaurants in town: El Papagayo (The Parrot).  We all chose the 7 course menu, which took about 3.5 hours to roll out.  Gordon Ramsey would be proud of these stunning dishes!  But, I know he would have called an immediate meeting to ream the staff out for the Pork Neck being under seasoned.  Here’s the lineup:

1. Snacks (The amuse bouche was to die for!  I think it was a tuna nicoise with noodles, and some sort of a creamed egg with chives)
2. Beef Carpaccio, Grilled Squid, oyster sauce and pickles
3. Roasted pumpkin, chevre, burnt milk salad with egg yolk and amaretti meringue (Delicioso!)
4. Grilled prawns with romesco and spanish chorizo (My favorite dish!  Seasoned perfectly!)
5. Pork neck, sweet potato, beets and vanilla
6. Mazamorra with peaches (Almost like a sweet creamed corn)
7. Seasonal fruits, white chocolate crumble and verbana ice cream

They put us in this enclosed room overlooking the restaurant, most likely because they knew we would be the obnoxiously loud foreigners, which we definitely lived up to.  

An incredible evening with a diverse group hailing from Luxembourg, England, Germany, the Netherlands, India, Pittsburgh, New York City, Denver and Los Angeles.  All in all, this fine dining experience came out to 580 pesos + tip, which equates to roughly $42 USD.  Well worth it!  

Where I Work: Incutex

I am one of a few lucky Remotes to live 1 block away from our shared workspace.  It’s called Incutex, and we have pretty much taken over the 5th floor.  (See above pic: view from my apartment rooftop)   

Incutex is a co-working space that houses startup companies and entrepreneurs.  It’s a secure, modern facility with fairly solid wifi---the most important ingredient for remote working soup.  The wifi is not perfect, but guess what?  It wasn’t even close to perfect back in the United States!  

My fellow Remotes busy at work!

More Remotes: Kevin, Mr. PalmTree, (Lindsay, behind Mr. PalmTree) & Casey (left to right)

Incutex has a sweet lounge at the end of the hall called the TechPub.  This is where we have Remote Year meetings & special events like ping pong tournaments!  

​
Overall, I dig the workspace here in Córdoba and hope we get similar accommodations in the other cities!

My NutriBullet Bit the Bullet :[

1 checked bag, 1 carry-on and 1 personal item.  

For 1 year of travel.  

It makes sense to leave behind any non essentials.  But, somehow, it seemed essential to bring my brand new NutriBullet blender.  Cousin Kevin could not stop clowning me!  Wicked weird, but what can I say?  I like starting my day off smooth.  

The NutriBullet blender is not that big, and fit into my checked bag, no problem.  And, once I got some fresh frutas & vegetales here in Córdoba, it was GAME ON!  ‘Who’s weird now?’, I thought, as I’m sippin’ sweet smoothness.

But, suddenly, my smoothie smelled like…smoke?  And, then I saw...sparks?  Uh oh.  Apparently, my NutriBullet is no bueno with the voltage here in Argentina.  Guess I should have read question #10 on the NutriBullet FAQs page.  

On the bright side, even though the blender fit into my checked bag---it was a bit heavy.  I knew I needed to shed some lbs before the next flight, and I'm not about to get rid of essentials like Power Bars & Gummi Bears.

No Hablo Español

Mi nombre es Matt, o--en Córdoba, Argentina, me llamo Matías.  When I arrived in South America 9 days ago, I did not even know how to say the most basic things like, “My name is Matt.”  It just shows how incredibly busy I was pre-RY3.  No time to learn a new language when you’re packing your life into a storage unit.

But, a little over a week in Córdoba, and I feel light years ahead of where I was.  For one, I’m taking weekly Spanish lessons with our “profesora” Vicky (above).  And, two, I’m spending a lot of time in Duolingo, a phenomenal App that makes learning a new language like playing a game.

In the first Spanish class, we focused on “presentación”, aka introductions.  Vicky reviewed some basics and then asked the class for other questions we might ask a person we just met.  I blurted out, “Are you single?”, which drew a roar of laughter.  I didn’t really mean it to be funny--it seemed muy importante!  Thanks to Vicky, I now know how to say “Estás soltera?” and I feel much more equipped to hit the streets of Argentina.

For real though--being a non-Spanish speaking foreigner is incredibly humbling!

I pride myself on being a strong communicator, but now I can't even talk.  Now, I have a much deeper respect for foreigners who don’t speak the native tongue.  I highly encourage my fellow Americanos to have more empathy for people who don’t speak English.  IT AIN’T EASY being on the outside looking in.  Be kind, mmkay?  

Street Jugglers

Meet Eileen.

She is one of many street performers that dart out into the crosswalk at red lights here in Nueva Córdoba.  You see them on almost every major street.  Often they are riding a unicycle while juggling, or there will be two of them on unicycles juggling back and forth.  Mighty impressive!  Tip-worthy?  No doubt.

Interesting contrast to America, where most beggars just stand at the corner of the street with a sign.  Maybe they could learn something from these Argentines.  I know I’d be more inclined to tip if someone put on a show vs simply scrawling some sad stuff on a sign.  :[    

Empanadas & Chimichurri Chicken

“If you’re a vegetarian, you are in the wrong country.”  This classic quote had everyone in stitches!  We had a speaker from a local tourism company talk to us about Córdoba culture, cuisine, etc.  And, what we learned was: Argentina is known for their beef.  Yay for me!

Argentina is also known for empanadas.  These little pastries are filled with everything from beef, to chicken, to corn, to spinach, and my personal fave: Brie cheese (and apple, cranberry, sweet potato, etc.)  Almost every place you go sells empanadas---even little convenience stores.  

But, today I stumbled upon the best chicken I have ever had in my life.  Yeah, I said it.  I mean no disrespect to any chef in the US.  (I love you, Mom!!!)  And, I will admit, it is possible that because I haven’t eaten a lot of familiar foods lately, that my palette has been desensitized.  But, this rotisserie chicken was the best.  The most important ingredient: Chimichurri sauce, something Argentians are also known for.  

THE BEST PART:

This take-out restaurant, Le Poulet, is only two blocks from my apartment.  

And, this dish costs 40 pesos, ~$2.60 USD.  :]

Can't Stop Starbucks!

I moved to a South American country ~6000 miles from home, and the local Starbucks is closer to my apartment than back in the United States.  #globaldomination  

“It’s the Start of Remote Year as we know It!”

Remote Year is comprised of ~70 “Remotes” and 2 Staff.  Travis King is our Community Manager, and Samantha Thomas is our Operations Manager.  They are both incredibly sweet people, and GREAT leaders.

Travis wrote a song for us and sang it during orientation: a spin on the R.E.M. song, “It’s the End of the World as we know it”.  I didn’t get the whole clip but here is the final chorus.  He incorporated all of the Remotes’ names into the fast paced lyrics and absolutely blew us away!  This is the type of amazing thing that exceptional leaders do.  They invent creative ways to inspire and engage their communities.  

This song gives me the goosebumps.  And I’ve only been here 6 days.  

Imagine what I’ll be feeling in 350 days from now...