criplomats

Lea, Jill, Marko, and I braved the heat this week and visited Casa Rosada, along with other members of the diplomatic corps — it’s the equivalent of our White House. Very pretty! Lea, Marko, and I went for drinks afterward at Invernadero across the street from our apartment.

Yesterday Lea and I had lunch at El Preferido – yummy — then I spent the afternoon at the Argentine Tennis Open watching the qualifying rounds. It was hot hot hot but I really had fun!

John and I had lunch at La Croza today and really enjoyed it. In my off time this weekend, I’ve finally attacked my Antarctica photos — it’s a lot of work but it’s so fun to remember the trip! It makes me want to go back again!

I got a fun care package for Valentine’s Day from Alison and PeeWee – thank you!

Here are a few more photos from Casa Rosada:

It’s been very hot all week but the heat broke today and it’s been absolutely lovely. I’m enjoying it while I can — it’s supposed to climb back up close to 100 this week. Lea and I went to a great little restaurant today, Catalino, and sat outside on their garden patio. The food was delicious – we had two dishes that had amazing fresh figs.

I had several routine doctors’ appointments this week, plus a bonus root canal and temporary crown – yikes! Right before Christmas, I broke a tooth but didn’t have time to do anything about it before we left on a cruise.

I finished Ambassador Yavonovitch’s “Lessons from the Edge” and highly recommend it. I also read Liz Cheney’s “Oath and Honor” and recommend it, as well.

Yesterday John and I met some embassy colleagues for a special tour of an amazing art exhibition by Renata Schussheim. I had never heard of her, but we really enjoyed her art and her theatre costumes. We also enjoyed walking through the cultural center that’s devoted to youth and the arts – it’s a gorgeous space with practice rooms for dance, music, and relaxing.

After the exhibition, John and I had a delicious lunch at La Ferneterria, then I had a two-hour chat with my friend Ruth from the cruise.

Here are a few pieces from the Schussheim exhibit:

This week was pretty calm! Lea and I had lunch last Sunday at Birken – nice to sit outside. Work was busy as usual, as I was covering for American Citizen Services and the section in general.

Today my book club met at Roldan – always nice to sit outside there and watch the horseback riding lessons going on! It was a beautiful day with a great breeze to counter the heat of the summer. We discussed this month’s book, “Cloud Cuckoo Land.” I also started Ambassador Yovanvitch’s “Lessons from the Edge.”

John and I enjoyed “The Holdovers” and also dipped into “True Detectives” and “Criminal Record.

Yesterday John and I had a yummy seafood lunch at La Pescadorita in Palermo, and stopped for dessert at Invernadero. I had a good convo with Pam and Ann today on a video chat – love catching up!

I love so much of the architecture in Buenos Aires – when you stop to look, you can see all kinds of lovely details. Sadly, many buildings are in disrepair. I saw these two features over doors last week as I was leaving lunch with Lea in Palermo.

Monday was a U.S. holiday and I thoroughly enjoyed the extra day off! I had a video chat with Ann and Pam on Sunday, and continued that on the holiday with an additional chat with Pam, Karen in Brazil, and David. Nice to catch up with folks!

In addition to our boss being out, Lea also is on vacation this week, so I did some work in the American Citizen Services unit to help out. I always enjoy that.

There’s a definite summer vibe to the office – lots of folks take summer hours, meaning they work more during the week and leave early on Friday. John’s been doing that, but I prefer the shorter days and quiet Friday afternoons. This week, the Marines did a fundraising lunch and were grilling and selling choripan – delicious! (Chorizo sausage link on a bun with chimicurri). John and I sat outside with some other folks to enjoy ours.

John and I watched “Children of the Flower Moon” this week – it’s long so it took us several days to get through it. We started the new season of “True Detective” with Jodi Foster, and watched an episode of “Suits” (an old show we never have watched before) and “Poker Face.”

Yesterday John treated me to a delish lunch at El Refuerzo in San Telmo after my hair appointment – it was really good and kind of off the beaten path – I liked that they had a more creative menu than many restaurants in town. We’ll definitely be back!

John treated me to an excellent lunch at La Cabrera yesterday, then bought me this fabulous piece by Tony Valiente at the Mercado de Pulgares (flea market). I’ve enjoyed meeting Tony over the last year or so, but hadn’t stopped by to visit him in a while; I’m glad to add this crazy piece to our art collection. Folks like Tony are one of a kind – he reminds me of the people Mark Sloan wrote about it “Self-Made Worlds.”

Work this week was busy as we both tried to catch up after being out of the office. I’m the acting Consul General while my boss is out, as well as my normal duties. John and I had lunch with our friend Jenae one day to talk about our respective trips to Antarctica over the holidays – she also had a great trip. She had a penguin jump into their Zodiac boat!

Thursday night I met Lea, Katherine, and Bhavna at a wine bar – we had fun just catching up and chatting. The wine bar was interesting – it was self-serve: you put your table’s plastic card into the wine fridge’s slot, select the amount of wine, and it automatically dispenses, not unlike a Coke machine. I laughed so hard and wish I had a video of it!

This morning I had a great video chat with my friend Stacie in Paris – we worked together in DC, then she was in the country next to me while we were in Africa. She’s working hard to prepare for the Summer Olympics in France – I do not envy her, as it’s a Herculean effort to protect the huge number of US citizens who will travel there for the games.

Last Sunday I met Lea for good seafood at La Mar, then read Ruth Rathblott’s “Singlehandedly.” We met Ruth on our cruise and really enjoyed meeting her. I enjoyed her book with its thoughtful take on disabilities and how we all hide something.

John and I watched an excellent movie last night with Peter Dinklage, Marisa Tomei, and Anne Hathaway – really fun and charming.