Week 2

As I write this I realize we have only been in the country for 16 days.
By now most of us have learned how to balance looking up at the beautiful architecture and glancing down for dog poop on the street.
We have become walkers again, only relying on four wheels after a night out or a more than 40 minute walk. We have sipped mate together and grabbed alfajores from the kioscos that are on each block. Some days Spanish is easy, other days a chore, and Spanglish flies from most of our mouths.
Many of us are feeling our purses and wallets become lighter, as our budgets become tighter. It has been difficult balancing work and fun, but we are gradually learning the ways of the porteños.
Saturday the 19th about 14 of us met Profesora Oropeza at Bio, an all organic restaurant in Palermo, probably the healthiest meal we will have in Buenos Aires. And in Argentine fashion, we satisfied our sweet tooth's after wards at a cafe.
Monday the 21st was una Dia de Felicies para La Primavera, the whole city celebrated and all the girls received flowers at the kioscos. Around 8:30 that night in the Recoleta there were and car horns honking, dish pans banging, and hands clapping together in protest. It was amazing standing at the window, listening to a city raise their opinions against the government. But within 5 minutes it was over.
Entonces, when in Argentina... one must do as the Argentineans, so on Wednesday night about 15 of us went to the Boliche (club) Museum to dance and be exhausted the next morning.
As each day passes, we fall deeper in love. And when we take the time to look back, everything seems to be moving by too fast. In less than two weeks time we will be kissing our Argentine families goodbye and watching Buenos Aires disappear as our plane to Chile climbs higher and higher.
Unimaginable.
Let´s not think about it.

Semana Dos En Buenos Aires!

What an adventure this has been so far! We have had yet another amazing week here in BA, as time here has been filled with memorable experiences (and really good food). Last Sunday we ventured away from from the tall buildings and restless traffic into the heart of La Boca. The colorful buildings were mesmerizing and the streets were packed with tango dancers, artists, and street performers, eager to welcome us... and earn a few pesos. It was delightful to see the sense of pride that the Argentines possess for their country. All but four of us are currently enjoying the lush atmosphere of Iguazu Falls, which will be, unquestionably, a life-altering experience. I have chosen to stay behind because I have grown attached to my "Argentina Family", and wish to spend as much time with them as possible, while completely immersing myself in the Spanish language. Looking forward to another fantastic week! Below are a few pictures of La Boca. I am also including a photo of myself with my Argentina-siblings. It is amazing how quickly my Spanish is improving, and I think the other students could say the same.

Ciao! Suerte!

-Cynthia Blount

Megan and I enjoying La Boca!

Alejandra, Luciano, and myself. Couldn't have asked for a better host-family!

Week 1

It has been a week since our journey began on that Friday morning at LAX and I’m sure I speak for all of us when I say it feels like we’ve been in Buenos Aires for much, much longer. We are at the point where every experience we’ve had thus far has been new and exciting because even a seemingly normal task like ordering food or getting to school is completely different from what we are used to.

After we arrived in Buenos Aires and spent the first night together in a hotel, we toured the city of Recoleta and visited the famous cemetery or also known as the Necropolis. It lives up to that name because it is more like a city rather than the lawn with headstones that we are used to seeing. After that, it was time for us to meet our host families. As we all sat in the break room at school, waiting to be picked up by are new moms or dads, the air was filled with nervousness and excitement, and one by one,(and the occasional two) we left that room and went to our homes.

We have school four days a week and we usually have an activity afterward. So far, we went to the Museum of Fine Arts and tested our “suave” at Tango lessons. When we are free to do whatever, I've spent most of my time exploring the city and taking in as much of this experience as possible. Everything about this trip has been awesome and I’m sure that each of the many weeks we have in both Buenos Aires and Santiago will be equally amazing and profound as the first.

Week 1 in Argentina

After weeks of waiting with anticipation and anxiety, we have finally arrived to Buenos Aires! We arrived on the morning of Saturday the 12th, and right away made our way to the hotel to regroup. Tired and jetlagged, we decided to stay up and try to adapt to the local time. The next day we took an amazing tour through the local cemetery, called “The City of the Dead.” It lives up to its name. The cemetery is made up of structures, almost like small houses, as far as the eye can see. As we walked throughout “the city,” we got to see the beauty and complexity of some of these buildings that were made to house the dead.
Following our tour of the cemetery, we ate lunch and headed back to the school to meet our host families for the first time. It was an experience that embodied so much emotion, it makes it hard to duplicate in words. One-by-one we were called out from the break room, and introduced to our host families. It was exhilarating, but equally nerve-racking. My host-mother and I took a taxi home, and upon arrival I received a tour of the house. I couldn’t ask for a better host mom. She is extremely nice, and spoils me to the point that I get uncomfortable.
Classes started on Monday, and immediately we jumped right in with Spanish. Everyone was a little quiet at first, but once the layer of ice broke, we opened up. We carried a certain zest with us through-out the rest of the week. I get the feeling we are going to learn a lot in our Culture class. Our professor is well-informed, and has personally experienced a lot of what she is teaching us. Clara Oropeza, our director of the trip and English professor is very knowledgeable and easy to approach. It makes this experience feel safer knowing you can always talk to her if there is a problem. So far there haven’t been any major mishaps. I’m so glad I decided to come along on this adventure and I’m thrilled for the future and what’s to come!

Buenos Aires

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