The Amazing Race Came to Cordoba City... But There Was a Twist

The Amazing Race, spanning 36 seasons, has ventured across different Argentine provinces like Buenos Aires and Mendoza. However, in a notable turn, Season 36, Episode 6 marked its debut in Cordoba City, with an intriguing production twist that I'll delve into shortly.

For some reason, witnessing locales we've frequented over the past 12 years on television felt significant to us.

As depicted in the screenshots I captured from the episode, the majority of the challenges unfolded in downtown Cordoba and Nueva Cordoba.

As you can see, the aerial shots of the city were amazing.

The teams read their clues by the Cañada, which is basically a canal that crosses the city and is generally a great place to take photos, when you're not racing on "The Amazing Race."

The teams also visited Plaza Bicentenario to get their next clues.

One of the challenges involved riding these stationary bikes that  actually crush plastic bottles to prep them for recycling.

The teams also went to Plaza Sarmiento, which had been turned into a farm for this particular challenge. There were bales of hay and even a guy dressed as a gaucho (Argentine cowboy). I'd like to point out that no one dresses like this in Argentina. In fact, in the 12 years I have lived in Argentina, I have never seen a gaucho. That's not to say they don't exist, but it's not the norm in the city. Think of it like this. Cowboys are synonymous with the United States. Right? But how often do you see one walking around New York City. Alright, maybe the Naked Cowboy in Times Square, but that's an exception.

Also, I'd like to mention that Parque Sarmiento doesn't have bales of hays or a contraption like this. Actually, you might see some hale in the former site of the Cordoba City Zoo, but that's about it. Most of the time, you'll simply see people jogging or enjoying a nice picnic.

Another challenge that followed was this rally car race where teams had to drive a specific path and finish the course within a short amount of time.

Then, they had to complete a puzzle that depicted the route they had driven before moving on to the next challenge.

The following challenge involved the teams going to this stadium (I don't remember the name of it) and playing soccer. But the players had to score a goal while wearing these inflatable bubbles.

For the final challenge, contestants had to learn what parts of the cow the different types of meat in front of them came from. Afterwards, they went to another location and placed them in the correct order. 

And finally, with their final clues, it was time to head to Plaza San Martin to meet Phil at the mat.

The contestants were greeted by Phil and an Argentine dressed in ancient colonial uniform. I can only assume that he was playing Jose de San Martin, a military commander.  But again, it goes without saying that this was simply for the show. You won't see people dressed like this in Argentina. 

Now, onto the twist I mentioned earlier. Despite airing in April 2024, the episode was actually filmed three years prior.

This revelation came to light when one of my students mentioned being acquainted with the individual overseeing the car racing segment (pictured below).

According to their friend, the show filmed in Cordoba City in 2021, which astounded me. While I had assumed "The Amazing Race" typically filmed their seasons six months to a year before airing, the idea of Season 36 being shot so long ago never crossed my mind. This may well account for Cordoba City's pristine appearance in the episode. When I say pristine, I refer to its lack of overcrowding, clean streets, and relatively graffiti-free environment. 2021 marked a period when the Covid pandemic was beginning to recede. So the locals were just starting to come out of their homes and socialize again.

Also, given that neither the contestants nor the locals were attired in winter clothing, it suggests filming likely took place in late 2021, during Argentina's spring/summer season.

Regardless of the filming timeline, it was heartening to witness Cordoba City receiving screen time. I can only hope this exposure encourages more visits from Americans and potentially attract American businesses to Argentina's second-largest city. Naturally, they'll need to contend with the recent increase in thefts and dengue cases, but that's a tale for another occasion.

Big Mamma's: A Rollercoaster Ride of New York-Style Pizza in Cordoba City

Earlier this year, we stumbled upon a new pizzeria in Cordoba City, but this wasn't just your run-of-the-mill pizza joint. Big Mamma's boasted New York-style pizza! I mean, seriously? Could it be that my prayers had finally been answered? American-style pizza right here in Cordoba City? 

Now, let me tell you, Cordoba hasn't exactly been a stranger to attempts at this before. A few years back, there was the Chicago American Grill, dishing out large-sized Chicago pizza slices with American flavors. Then came PIBI, claiming to offer New York-style pizza. But let's be real, compared to some of the top-notch American pizza joints in Buenos Aires like Hell's Pizza and Sbarro, Cordoba's attempts at American pizzas were, well, mediocre at best.

Still, this was a new spot, and my hubby and I just had to give Big Mamma's a shot. So, we placed an order for some pepperoni and regular cheese slices through one of the local delivery apps.

We were feeling a tad nervous, having shelled out close to 30,000 Argentine pesos for 8 slices (34.25 USD), with no clue if they'd actually resemble genuine New York-style pizza. What if they turned out to be those puny Argentine pizzas that barely satisfy one person, let alone two? And would the cheese taste anything like the cheese back home, or would it be more akin to feet, like most Argentine cheese pizzas?

When the order finally arrived, our anxiety levels shot up even higher. In the States, the delivery person usually hands you one big box containing an entire pizza. But here, our delivery driver had more than one box. It turned out that the restaurant had simply divided the slices into multiple boxes, making it easier for the delivery guy, who was zipping around on a motorcycle instead of a car like they do back in the States.

At that point, though, hunger trumped any concerns about pizza packaging. All we cared about was whether those slices would be big enough and taste as good as the ones back home.

Sure, the cheese was a bit runny, and the wax paper underneath got stuck to the crust, but man, those pizza slices were delicious!

Each bite was a revelation, eliciting tears, smiles, and sounds one might typically reserve for the bedroom. Big Mamma's seemed like a winner, or so we thought.

Now, pizzas weren't the only items on Big Mamma's menu. They also dabbled in burgers and sandwiches, featuring flavors like pulled pork (my personal favorite!) and the Philly cheesesteak sandwich. So, on our next order, we decided to try the Philly cheesesteak, and boy, was it a letdown.

Philly Cheesesteak

I've had my fair share of Philly cheesesteaks, and let me tell you, they don't usually come with cheddar cheese. It's not that I have anything against cheddar per se, but the cheddar cheese here in Argentina isn't really cheddar at all. It's what we'd call American cheese. As a result, the cheese completely overwhelmed the taste of the meat (and not in a good way), and the steak strips were way too fatty to enjoy.

This made me apprehensive about trying the pulled pork sandwich next time, but surprisingly, it turned out to be pretty darn good. My only gripe? Big Mamma's advertises it with cole slaw, but the last few times I ordered, there was no slaw in sight.

Pulled Pork Sandwich

A few weeks later, we decided to go for pizza again. Obviously, pepperoni was at the top of our list, because, let's face it, Argentines aren't big on pepperoni. In fact, most Argentine pizzerias don't even know what pepperoni is. So ordering pizza with pepperoni was a rare commodity.

Well, imagine our dismay when, in what must have been our fifth order from Big Mamma's, we discovered something seriously off about our pepperoni. I found myself pulling at what felt like strings. To this day, I'm not sure if it was dried-out edges or burnt pepperoni, but those edges were downright inedible, as you can see in the photo I provided.

I figured maybe it was just a one-time fluke. Wishful thinking, right? Nope. I encountered those inedible pepperoni edges two more times.

So, a few weeks ago, we decided to give Big Mamma's another shot, opting for two different flavored slices alongside a couple of regular pepperoni and cheese slices.

One was a barbecue chicken slice with bacon called the King Kong, and the other was a meatball with cheddar slice.

The King Kong Pizza slice was a Huge Disappointment

We had high hopes for both toppings, but alas, we were met with disappointment. The barbecue chicken slices had a measly four or five chicken pieces, and the bacon bits weren't much better. Plus, the barbecue sauce was more of a drizzle than anything else, nowhere near the generous slathering they'd teased on social media. And the letdown continued when we tried the meatball with cheddar slice.

The meatballs tasted like your typical ground beef in Argentina, which is to say, something comparable to rotten meat. And the advertised meatball pizza slice gave the impression that it would come with whole meatballs, but what we got was a few sad, burnt-looking, and foul-smelling meatball pieces. And as for the cheddar, we expected it to be baked into the crust, like a stuffed crust cheese pizza from Pizza Hut. But nope, just another lackluster drizzle of cheddar on top.

The slice on the right is the meatball slice

And as for the regular pepperoni cheese slices? They had this weird, plasticky appearance that left us wondering just how old those pizza slices were.

But did we learn our lesson? Nope.

During our last order, the slices came with burnt crusts.

I'm not sure what's gone wrong with Big Mamma's. Did they change management? Did they throw in the towel? Or did the locals persuade them to switch to churning out the same bland, mediocre pizza that's all too common around here? Who knows? But what I do know is that they've started adding items to their menu that make zero sense, like meat or chicken skewers or even chicken steaks and pork chops. I wouldn't be surprised if they started serving empanadas too, completely defeating the purpose of their New York-style food gimmick.

In the end, if we do end up ordering from Big Mamma's again, it'll probably only be for the pulled pork sandwich or the regular cheese slices, if we're desperate enough.   

 

Reflecting on a Challenging Year and Welcoming 2024 with Optimism

2023 was a whirlwind of emotions. Oh, who am I kidding? With my dad's dementia, neighbors vandalizing our property and a Big C health scare, 2023 has been a category 5 hurricane!

However, as the year drew to a close, the hubs and I joined hands, supporting each other and celebrating small victories that brought us closer together. Despite the difficulties faced, we decided to commemorate the year with good food, movies, and music. 

If you're wondering which movies, here are the top 3 that we watched on New Year's Eve.

• Evolution
• X-Men Last Stand
• 2012

We actually started pigging out the day before when the hubs returned from a trip to Buenos Aires. He brought home a couple of burgers from Wendy's and some chicken tenders in his luggage. He also brought two slices of cheese pizza and two slices of pepperoni pizza from Sbarro's.

The next day, we planned on making bacon, eggs, and pancakes for breakfast. Unfortunately, we woke up late, so we came up with a much simpler, but tasty brunch menu.

New Year's Eve Brunch

Then, we started prepping the food and desserts, which was a much simpler menu than the one we prepared for Christmas, and yet it took longer to make for some reason.

The hubs prepping our meal.

We boiled some chicken and coated the pieces with a bit of TGIF Barbecue sauce. The result was quite delicious.

We accompanied the BBQ chicken with some rice, some fries, and a cucumber salad.

Our dessert menu consisted of apple muffins, an assortment of candy, some Panettone, and a fruit salad. Actually, there's a funny story behind the fruit salad. In a moment of distraction, the hubs accidentally washed the fruit salad, which was already prepared. We ended up losing about 45 percent of the fruit salad in the sink, but what remained was refreshing.

Like some of the previous holidays we recently celebrated, New Year's Eve became a testament to our shared strength. As we watched the ball drop in Times Square (courtesy of a live stream), surrounded by food and alcohol, we toasted not only to the new year but also to our resilience in overcoming the challenges thrown our way.

And yes! In our household, the New Year is only official when the ball drops. That's 2 am Argentine time.

But as the hubs and I hugged and cheered, I started crying. I haven't done that since New Year 2021. Back then, I lost it emotionally because 2020 had been stressful because of Covid and the long-term quarantine. I was definitely okay when we welcomed 2022 and 2023, but this New Year 2024 celebration had me bawling my eyes out.

Luckily, some alcohol helped. Don't worry. I have my drinking under control.

Now that the new year is upon us, we carry forward the lessons learned from 2023, knowing that together, we can overcome any obstacle that comes our way. 

Our Expat Christmas of 2023

2023 has been a tumultuous journey for us. Yet, despite a couple of unforeseen hurdles, the essence of Christmas persisted.

The challenges seemed ceaseless—adaptation hurdles, insane father, abusive neighbors, and the longing for familiarity became our constants. However, we were determined to infuse the spirit of the season into our lives and have the best Christmas possible.

That's not an easy thing to accomplish in a land far from home, where traditions differ and snow-kissed landscapes remain a distant dream. But our Christmas tree, adorned with mementos collected over the years, became a symbol of joy.

So, in our humble abode, we meticulously prepared a simple feast and more sweet treats than a human body can withstand. 

The hubs looking beautiful as always as he preps the potato balls

The photo above is a lasagna dish we made. This is what it looked like before it went in the oven. We had to use a round glass plate because we were using the rectangular glass tray for our brownie mix. More on that later. The Christmas tree was made out of cheese and it held up pretty well after it came out of the oven.

Lasagna, potato balls and coleslaw

Christmas trees made out of brownies, icing and Rocklettes

Christmas tree made out of muffins, cherry ornaments and Kit Kat trunk

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

I always wanted to make a gingerbread house, but we didn't have the ingredients to make one. So, we came up with a Kit Kat Christmas shed.

The Argentine summer made it difficult to set up the Kit Kats. The bars kept melting in my hand. But in the photo below, the bars broke.

Despite some setbacks, our Christmas Shed came out decent

But the sweet treats didn't end here.

The hubs surprised me by ordering root beer from a Chinese store from Buenos Aires. Root beer is not available in Argentine supermarkets, so it cost him a pretty penny. But it was worth it so that I could enjoy a root beer float.

And that's not all. The hubs also ordered a couple of Christmas themed candies that are as difficult to find in Argentina as root beer.

The aroma of spices intertwined with memories of Christmases past, creating an ambiance of comfort and warmth that transcended borders.

Also, being the TV/film buffs that we are, we spent most of December watching Christmas themed movies. But this year, we tried to stir clear of Hallmark movies because frankly, most of them are cliche and boring.

So, here's our Christmas movie list of 2023

• Sint - It's a Christmas horror flick
• Thanksgiving - Another horror flick
• Christmas as Usual 
• Bad Santa 2 - Really funny
• The Sacrifice Game
• Christmas on Cherry Lane - Gay themed Christmas movie. Hallmark, but ok.
• EXmas 
• Le Calendrier
• It's a Wonderful Knife
• While You Were Sleeping
• The Associate 

In the backdrop of a year that tested our mettle, celebrating Christmas 2023 reinforced the significance of resilience and adaptability. While the challenges of living abroad and family issues have persisted, the festive season served as a beacon of hope, reminding us of the unyielding power of love and togetherness.