Hectic week in my new 'hood

On Sunday I moved from Caballito ("Little Horse" - ode post coming in January since I really did love it there!) to Barrio Norte ("North 'Hood") without much complication. I really like this neighborhood, the new apartment is lovely, Amy is as chill as chill can be, and I am especially in love with the huge kitchen. I immediately started cooking and haven't stopped since. This picture really doesn't do it justice, but here is the kitchen:

Here's a shot of the living room, which also doesn't fully emphasize what a nice, large, airy, bright room it is (note Amy's awesome Christmas tree):

Here is a picture from our balcony (we're on the 5th floor which in the U.S. would be the 6th):

And here is our constant companion, adorned in Christmas lights:

This week has been pretty hectic. Luckily it hasn't given me a chance to be sad about missing the Christmas season in Seattle (that plus the gorgeous, warm weather and mosquito epidemic just doesn't make it feel like Christmas, despite Amy's decorations). I moved/unpacked, had some friends of a friend over for dinner (just in from the U.S. - welcome newbies!) during which we also made and decorated sugar cookies, quite possibly the most Christmas-y thing I'll do this year despite the fact that we had chocolate frosting, dulce de leche, and green sprinkles as our only decoration options. We did the best we could. (Amy holding "Christmas cactus man," Jameson working on his mad design skillz, Natalie in the mirror):

In addition to all the other stuff plus a full work week, I also had about six must-dos (special shout-out to my Mom for letting me off the hook on one of them) that all seemed to take at least 2-4 hours which included picking up a now-out-of-town-friend's paycheck, paying off the beach house, going back to Caballito for my bed (and then hoofing it up 6 flights of stairs, fun times), having a going-away dinner for yet another friend, and seeking out the various bits of gear I felt I needed for the upcoming vacation. Which leads me to... the pants.

It's ironic that I would finally give in to a quintessential Pacific Northwest fashion trend way down here in the southern hemisphere, but I quite literally do not own a single pair of pants (I'm a dress girl and even hike in chacos and a skirt) and I am about to go closer to Antarctica than I'll ever be again in my life. So, yesterday I broke down and bought.... wait for it.... absurdly expensive, brand-name, water-proof, wicking, zip-off pants. Observe: (Clare there is something special in this photo just for you)

They might look non-offensive, but one friend already threatened to withdraw from our relationship now that I own pants-that-zip-off-to-become-shorts. Also did I mention they are insanely expensive?? At least if I had bought them in the U.S. I would be a normal size; here the woman's XL didn't fit me and I had to go for a men's L. Ouch. But, they're high quality and will now last me through many days of PNW hiking and camping, where I will finally fit right in with the other nerds.

Beth and I leave tomorrow for El Calafate and on Saturday we'll be trekking the Perito Moreno glacier. Christmas Eve will find us white-water rafting down the Argentinean/Chilean border, and beyond that we're going to fill in the gaps as we go. I have made the scary decision to take my video camera with me, and my New Year's resolution is to learn to edit them together, for reals this time.

I will try to blog from the road but if I don't get to it I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas/Happy Chanukah/Bah Humbug.