Our trip to the Costanera (more on day 3)

Here are photos of our trip to the Costanera on January 10. I didn't write much about it yesterday because I was so tired from the long walk, the heat, and the sun. The Costanera is the river bank along the lagoon, and we walked for several hours -- observing the people, several historic monuments, the hanging bridge, and the beach. We ended up at a restaurant on the beach, watching a beach volleyball tournament. One of the lifeguards decided to give a short lesson on Argentinean history to some of the students. This has been an interesting facet of our trip here for me -- I have only lived in Buenos Aires. As you know, Marisa Kalbermatten, the other professor on the trip, is a native of Santa Fe. So I am surprised at the reaction to our group -- the santafesinos, the people of Santa Fe, are touched and delighted that a group of U.S. students are studying Argentinean culture and identity. And they want to tell us everything they know about their history -- so we keep getting many different versions from waiters, taxi drivers, and . . . lifeguards. This is fascinating to me as a scholar who has studied Argentinean national identity. I keep listening to the different versions and perspectives on Argentinean history, thinking about what it means culturally. This is one of the issues I'm planning to discuss in class tomorrow: how are ordinary Argentineans presenting their national history to us? What is most significant to them when they talk about the founding of the nation?

Not all that many people speak English, of course. So all of the students are having to use their Spanish. Even though there are several advanced Spanish speakers in the group to help translate, nearly everyone has had to speak at some point. So it has been wonderful to watch everyone apply what they have learned in our classes at Gustavus. Very satisfying for their professors!

It is hard for us to believe that it is so cold back at home -- as we slather on sunscreen and crank up the a/c. (Yes, we're pretty smug about it).