Kind of as a follow-up to the post about my host family, I've been meaning to write about dinners here (the aforementioned adventures, haha). And after tonight's dinner--which was super animated and entertaining--I thought I might as well do it now. (Although this will be my last one for the night...we actually have class in the morning tomorrow! It's our last day of classes :O so hard to believe...see below, haha)
Anyway! Dinner here with my family is always really fun :D Some nights are more crazy than others, but it's always really enjoyable for me. One of my favorite parts (if not my favorite) of the day. With all our different schedules, it's the only time I see everyone together (which is typical of dinner in most places and households, I'm pretty sure). In one sense, I have to remember that this is also the only time that my family sees everyone together during the day, as well. However, they've been really good about including me in the conversation, praise God. (It also helps that I've been able to understand more as the month progressed XP)
But yeah. First off, the food is always yummyyy. And I know I might just be saying that because I have pretty low standards for food in the sense that I will eat and enjoy pretty much anything (familiar or not), but if that's the case...then I'm glad to have low standards. :) and it doesn't have to be gourmet cuisine or anything (because it normally isn't--just everyday dinner food, same as in my own house). Today, we had soup with something that actually reminded me of tapioca XP but smaller and yellow. When I asked them, they just said it was soup...haha. Oh well. (in addition to salad and beef) I also like when my host mom makes tarts and milanesa :) but yeah. I like everything she (or my sisters) make.
(Also! I'm really thankful that they're fruit fans...we have fruit every night after dinner :D and it's always between apple, orange, and clementine...I've been going for the clementine every night, haha XP)
But even more than the food, I enjoy the conversation. It's just so...fun, haha. :) It's probably due to the fact that there are five of them, and they're pretty different, and together they're just so entertaining, haha. Both my siblings and my parents. The topics of conversation are different every night and usually vary widely within the same night...let's see, I remember naming the capitals of European countries, talking about their family friends...well, I guess most of the topics are escaping me =\ but they're so varied, haha. Keeps dinner very interesting.
I mean, tonight we touched on Toy Story 3, biology and ATP, Argentinian sayings by Martin Fierro, my siblings' teachers, pregnancy, and...I don't know what else XD Tonight was one of the more crazy and fun ones, haha. For one, we were all here (since my siblings aren't always all here for dinner), and it was just one of those nights when we talked a lot more and stayed at the table longer. Everyone was in a pretty good mood, even though they kept raising their voices because they just got fired up, haha XD They were being so silly. I start laughing just thinking about it :P and I can't quite describe why, haha.
Like I said, it's just really fun. I usually just like listening to all the things they say, and my input is probably made up mostly of laughter. But I'm okay with that :)
One other night, I remember they were asking me about Houston, and I got to use Sofi's iPhone to show them my neighborhood in Bellaire. They recognized the Burger King near my house XD That was fun.
...I also realized that tonight was my second to last dinner with my host family, ever :( I'm going to the symphony tomorrow night, and the times overlap...and then we're flying out on Saturday night! Ahhh! So sad. I wish I had more time here. XD I never want to leave anywhere, haha.
But yeah. It's just incredible, remembering that one post way back when, on my fourth day, when I said I couldn't believe it had already and only been four days...and now I'm sitting here with three days and two nights left in Buenos Aires! As cliche as it is, time really has zoomed past me. I can't believe I won't be here much longer...life back home in Houston (and the volunteering and shadowing that await me) seem so foreign to me right now, to be honest. And more boring XP Haha. Not the people, mind you--but Houston just can't compare with Buenos Aires as a city. :) which leads to me not wanting to leave just yet.
All the same, I know and trust that there is a time for everything, and my time here has been well-spent, I will not lie :) praise God for that! And I trust that the rest of my summer will be awesome and fruitful in a different but also awesome way. But until then.... :)
Goodnight!
//random note...it's funny, but we don't have cold water tonight XP only the hot water faucets work (although cold water comes out of them for a while, too). So...just thought that might entertain any readers familiar with the UTD Res Hall this past year. :P Either way, I hope we get it back by the morning! Small prayer request.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
by foot.
One thing I absolutely adore about Buenos Aires (and also cities in China! This is definitely a similarity between the two) is its pedestrian-ness. Not necessarily in the sense of always yielding to pedestrians (since that isn't quite the case), but more so in the sense that I can walk essentially anywhere within a relatively short amount of time (less than half an hour, which is pretty short to me!). :D
I just love walking places. Anywhere I can, actually. (And for the times I can't, there's the bus or the subway, which each cost less than 1 U.S. dollar XD) And here in Buenos Aires, I can definitely take advantage of it! I walk to class every day (it only takes about 15 minutes), and after class, I walk home as well...from different places, too! Since we've been meeting at different places around the city for our culture class, haha.
It's also fun to walk around because I get to gaze up at all the beautiful architecture here :D more on that later. But it's so awesome. I try my best to walk down different streets after class every day, so by now, I've walked down most of the possible streets to get back to my house from the Fundacion XD I love seeing all the different shops (more on that later as well), as well as all of the other pedestrians (doggies, too! :D). As you may (or may not) know, Buenos Aires is filled with immigrants (and lots of them are students studying abroad such as myself), so it's definitely interesting to see all of the different faces here.
One thing I will really miss about living in Buenos Aires is, honestly, the ability to walk everywhere. Texas (at least Houston and Dallas) is completely the opposite. Everyone commutes...and it might just be me, but I prefer walking to car rides any day. :)
On another note, I went to visit the Yangs' (Maria, Gui, Fer) old house today! XD and your church, too. Just to look from the outside and take pictures. Your house is now divided between a door and a clothes shop =\ haha. Afterwards was asado for lunch! Mmm. But note to self: do NOT go to parrillas by myself again. WAY too much food for me :( I hate hate hate wasting food, but I couldn't finish a single thing (my morcilla or my asado) today! But it was yummy. :)
After class I had ice cream XD Mmm. But I had so much that I felt compelled to walk it off...for an hour XD (only on AVENUES, mind you!) It was totally safe and well-lit and populated :) Haha.
Hence this post!
I just love walking places. Anywhere I can, actually. (And for the times I can't, there's the bus or the subway, which each cost less than 1 U.S. dollar XD) And here in Buenos Aires, I can definitely take advantage of it! I walk to class every day (it only takes about 15 minutes), and after class, I walk home as well...from different places, too! Since we've been meeting at different places around the city for our culture class, haha.
It's also fun to walk around because I get to gaze up at all the beautiful architecture here :D more on that later. But it's so awesome. I try my best to walk down different streets after class every day, so by now, I've walked down most of the possible streets to get back to my house from the Fundacion XD I love seeing all the different shops (more on that later as well), as well as all of the other pedestrians (doggies, too! :D). As you may (or may not) know, Buenos Aires is filled with immigrants (and lots of them are students studying abroad such as myself), so it's definitely interesting to see all of the different faces here.
One thing I will really miss about living in Buenos Aires is, honestly, the ability to walk everywhere. Texas (at least Houston and Dallas) is completely the opposite. Everyone commutes...and it might just be me, but I prefer walking to car rides any day. :)
On another note, I went to visit the Yangs' (Maria, Gui, Fer) old house today! XD and your church, too. Just to look from the outside and take pictures. Your house is now divided between a door and a clothes shop =\ haha. Afterwards was asado for lunch! Mmm. But note to self: do NOT go to parrillas by myself again. WAY too much food for me :( I hate hate hate wasting food, but I couldn't finish a single thing (my morcilla or my asado) today! But it was yummy. :)
After class I had ice cream XD Mmm. But I had so much that I felt compelled to walk it off...for an hour XD (only on AVENUES, mind you!) It was totally safe and well-lit and populated :) Haha.
Hence this post!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
in the roar of Your waterfalls.
Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
-Psalm 42:7
There's nothing like miles of waterfall stretching out of your sight, the sound of rushing water filling your ears, the cool spray sprinkling your face...to remind us all of how tiny and small and insignificant we are. And yet, in spite of all of that...the God of the universe still looks at us and says, "I love you. You are mine." :)
Praise God for natural beauty and wonder and for Iguazu falls <3
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
-Psalm 42:7
There's nothing like miles of waterfall stretching out of your sight, the sound of rushing water filling your ears, the cool spray sprinkling your face...to remind us all of how tiny and small and insignificant we are. And yet, in spite of all of that...the God of the universe still looks at us and says, "I love you. You are mine." :)
Praise God for natural beauty and wonder and for Iguazu falls <3
no signal.
You know, as much as I use my phone (mostly for texting, I know >.<) back in the States, I really enjoy not having a cell phone at all here. :) Most likely because I don't want to be distracted at all from all the beauty of this city by something as silly as a small LCD screen and keypad, but also because...I don't know, it's just nice. Feels...liberating, I guess I would say.
Reminds me a bit of when we were in Seguin for ASB, although that was only a week without my phone, since I had zero signal. I recall a similar feeling of enjoying the fact that I didn't have to worry if anyone was calling me or texting me or if I had to return the favor. And it didn't/doesn't bother me at all. I mean, I have no desire to text (although knowing myself, I'll be punching keys all the time as soon as I'm back, sigh >.<), and I like it. I like pre-cell-phone life (don't get me wrong, I am also extremely appreciative of the facilitation of communication it offers!).
But yeah. Maybe I'm just weird, but when I'm in a cafe or on the street and I hear the beep of a dying battery or the ding-dong sound that is characteristic of my text alerts back home...somewhere inside of me, there's a slight smile and a sigh of relief that I don't have to worry about it.
Reminds me a bit of when we were in Seguin for ASB, although that was only a week without my phone, since I had zero signal. I recall a similar feeling of enjoying the fact that I didn't have to worry if anyone was calling me or texting me or if I had to return the favor. And it didn't/doesn't bother me at all. I mean, I have no desire to text (although knowing myself, I'll be punching keys all the time as soon as I'm back, sigh >.<), and I like it. I like pre-cell-phone life (don't get me wrong, I am also extremely appreciative of the facilitation of communication it offers!).
But yeah. Maybe I'm just weird, but when I'm in a cafe or on the street and I hear the beep of a dying battery or the ding-dong sound that is characteristic of my text alerts back home...somewhere inside of me, there's a slight smile and a sigh of relief that I don't have to worry about it.
mi familia.
Today was a pretty chill day...no class in the morning, so I just uploaded pictures to this thing and picked up my laundry. Went to El Cuartito, a pizzeria recommended by my family, which wasn't super amazing, but like all food here, very very good regardless :D and at a great price! After Spanish class, I wandered around to Plaza de los Congresos to take some pictures and then back home.
The evening was more hectic/eventful. I cooked dinner for my family tonight, which consisted of bao zi, some sushi, fried egg rolls (all of which were bought from the grocery store in Chinatown), and fried rice, which I made myself. Personally, I thought the rice turned out not as great, since it cooked differently (a normal pot, not a rice cooker!) and such, but I think it's what my family liked the best out of the four, since they've never really had Asian food before XP Oh well! At least now they can say they have, whatever they may think of it, haha. All the same, they were incredibly gracious about it and did their best to finish it. :)
After dinner, thanks to the beauty of webcams and video chat on Gmail, my families got to meet each other! :D (well, except for Daddy, who's still in China, and my older host sister, Sofi, who was out with friends) It was really great to see Mommy and Michelle :) and fun to introduce my families to each other, haha. My host family thinks my Mommy looks super young (which she does XD)--they even thought she was one of my friends from school, not my mom! Hehe.
And it was so hard to talk for a while...three languages running through my head at once! Haha. I could barely think in Chinese, so I spoke mostly English with Mommy and Michelle, and then I had to translate between my families--I'm not quite that fluent yet XP at least not with all three languages at once. But it was fun :) then just chatted with them for a bit while my host family did their own things.
--
So, I know I've said it several times before, but I absolutely love my host family. They're so friendly and unique and dynamic. Hehe. And hilarious, especially during dinner...but more on that later XP For now, I think I'll just introduce them.
I have a little sister, Belen (accent on the second syllable), who's 14 and really friendly. Out of my three siblings, I think I've talked to her the most. Even on my first day here, I got to talk to her for an hour or more, like I mentioned, when we were searching for Treasure Island (the book, not the place XD). She's crazy about Casi Angeles (whose music I also like--it's catchy!) :P I think if she were a little older and closer to my age, I'd be closer to her. I just feel like she's so easy to talk to!
I have a younger brother, Fede, as well. He's 17 and so silly. He's always doing random things or making faces or saying things that make me laugh, and I'm pretty sure it's just who he is XP I've gotten to talk to him a few times, which was nice. He plays rugby for a team in Buenos Aires, and I really wish I could've gone to watch him play...! But they only had one game this month, and it was during my urban orientation that first Sunday. :(
My last sibling is Sofi, who's 20 and works with little kiddos at a daycare (in addition to college). Honestly, I'm not very close to her, partly because she's pretty busy and also (I think) just because of her personality. To me, she seems pretty different from the rest of my family (at least in terms of interacting with me), but maybe she's just not a huge fan of hosting students? I don't know.
Then there are my host parents. Fede (yep, same name XD), who is such a great person and really easy to talk to as well (I think his accent is probably the easiest to understand/least prominent as well, which helps!). He probably helps me with practicing my speaking the most because he'll always ask me to tell him something (but he also tells me a lot about Buenos Aires and other things in return :D). My host mom, Andrea, is such a character as well. She knows a lot of people in the neighborhood (most likely from owning DDesk, haha) and is an AWESOME cook. She helps me with a lot of things (like what buses to take, lol) and is also fun to talk to.
And I can't forget: Mateo! The dog :) aka "the fourth child," according to my dad XD He's a cocker spaniel and very soft and cute. He tends to growl a lot (when my siblings mess with him or when he doesn't like the cars passing by), but overall, he is very sweet.
It's hard to put into words why I like my host family so much/why they are so awesome. I think one big reason is because dinner is so yummy and fun XD (but I'll save that for another post). But I think another reason is because...I don't know, I feel like I just click well with them (except for Sofi, kind of). And I feel like I already know them...or know their personality types? As weird as that may sound. I wouldn't necessarily classify them, but they're definitely the type of people I would get along with, no matter what country I was in.
Like...I feel like Belen and my host dad are the most open to me and the most willing to help me with my Spanish. They've probably talked to me the most one-on-one and do it out of sincere interest. It's really nice :) Fede is, like I said, just plain silly, and someone I would have liked to have as a real brother, I think. Daily doses of goofiness.
And it's funny, because with my host mom, I feel like I enjoy being around her so much because she reminds me a lot of my own mommy...at least in that she's also silly, even though she's a mom. :) They both make random noises to demonstrate things sometimes, and they both enjoy talking about different topics. Maybe it's a mom thing, who knows? :P She also says "Yupi!" a lot. It doesn't even really mean anything XD kinda like my "Whee!", I guess. Hehe.
With Sofi, I think it's harder to say because I haven't gotten to talk to her much. I feel like she's the type who has a relatively short temper and gets frustrated easily (reminds me of myself, actually :X ). And I think it might just be because I'm a host student, but I feel like she isn't as welcoming as the rest of her family (but then again, what is the need for comparison?). But she is still an awesome person, I'm pretty sure. I wish I could get to know her a little better.
Wow, guess this ended up being pretty long! Haha. But I still wanna blog...especially since we don't have class tomorrow morning XP We'll see if I can make it to a post about dinners or this past weekend...if not, good night!
The evening was more hectic/eventful. I cooked dinner for my family tonight, which consisted of bao zi, some sushi, fried egg rolls (all of which were bought from the grocery store in Chinatown), and fried rice, which I made myself. Personally, I thought the rice turned out not as great, since it cooked differently (a normal pot, not a rice cooker!) and such, but I think it's what my family liked the best out of the four, since they've never really had Asian food before XP Oh well! At least now they can say they have, whatever they may think of it, haha. All the same, they were incredibly gracious about it and did their best to finish it. :)
After dinner, thanks to the beauty of webcams and video chat on Gmail, my families got to meet each other! :D (well, except for Daddy, who's still in China, and my older host sister, Sofi, who was out with friends) It was really great to see Mommy and Michelle :) and fun to introduce my families to each other, haha. My host family thinks my Mommy looks super young (which she does XD)--they even thought she was one of my friends from school, not my mom! Hehe.
And it was so hard to talk for a while...three languages running through my head at once! Haha. I could barely think in Chinese, so I spoke mostly English with Mommy and Michelle, and then I had to translate between my families--I'm not quite that fluent yet XP at least not with all three languages at once. But it was fun :) then just chatted with them for a bit while my host family did their own things.
--
So, I know I've said it several times before, but I absolutely love my host family. They're so friendly and unique and dynamic. Hehe. And hilarious, especially during dinner...but more on that later XP For now, I think I'll just introduce them.
I have a little sister, Belen (accent on the second syllable), who's 14 and really friendly. Out of my three siblings, I think I've talked to her the most. Even on my first day here, I got to talk to her for an hour or more, like I mentioned, when we were searching for Treasure Island (the book, not the place XD). She's crazy about Casi Angeles (whose music I also like--it's catchy!) :P I think if she were a little older and closer to my age, I'd be closer to her. I just feel like she's so easy to talk to!
I have a younger brother, Fede, as well. He's 17 and so silly. He's always doing random things or making faces or saying things that make me laugh, and I'm pretty sure it's just who he is XP I've gotten to talk to him a few times, which was nice. He plays rugby for a team in Buenos Aires, and I really wish I could've gone to watch him play...! But they only had one game this month, and it was during my urban orientation that first Sunday. :(
My last sibling is Sofi, who's 20 and works with little kiddos at a daycare (in addition to college). Honestly, I'm not very close to her, partly because she's pretty busy and also (I think) just because of her personality. To me, she seems pretty different from the rest of my family (at least in terms of interacting with me), but maybe she's just not a huge fan of hosting students? I don't know.
Then there are my host parents. Fede (yep, same name XD), who is such a great person and really easy to talk to as well (I think his accent is probably the easiest to understand/least prominent as well, which helps!). He probably helps me with practicing my speaking the most because he'll always ask me to tell him something (but he also tells me a lot about Buenos Aires and other things in return :D). My host mom, Andrea, is such a character as well. She knows a lot of people in the neighborhood (most likely from owning DDesk, haha) and is an AWESOME cook. She helps me with a lot of things (like what buses to take, lol) and is also fun to talk to.
And I can't forget: Mateo! The dog :) aka "the fourth child," according to my dad XD He's a cocker spaniel and very soft and cute. He tends to growl a lot (when my siblings mess with him or when he doesn't like the cars passing by), but overall, he is very sweet.
It's hard to put into words why I like my host family so much/why they are so awesome. I think one big reason is because dinner is so yummy and fun XD (but I'll save that for another post). But I think another reason is because...I don't know, I feel like I just click well with them (except for Sofi, kind of). And I feel like I already know them...or know their personality types? As weird as that may sound. I wouldn't necessarily classify them, but they're definitely the type of people I would get along with, no matter what country I was in.
Like...I feel like Belen and my host dad are the most open to me and the most willing to help me with my Spanish. They've probably talked to me the most one-on-one and do it out of sincere interest. It's really nice :) Fede is, like I said, just plain silly, and someone I would have liked to have as a real brother, I think. Daily doses of goofiness.
And it's funny, because with my host mom, I feel like I enjoy being around her so much because she reminds me a lot of my own mommy...at least in that she's also silly, even though she's a mom. :) They both make random noises to demonstrate things sometimes, and they both enjoy talking about different topics. Maybe it's a mom thing, who knows? :P She also says "Yupi!" a lot. It doesn't even really mean anything XD kinda like my "Whee!", I guess. Hehe.
With Sofi, I think it's harder to say because I haven't gotten to talk to her much. I feel like she's the type who has a relatively short temper and gets frustrated easily (reminds me of myself, actually :X ). And I think it might just be because I'm a host student, but I feel like she isn't as welcoming as the rest of her family (but then again, what is the need for comparison?). But she is still an awesome person, I'm pretty sure. I wish I could get to know her a little better.
Wow, guess this ended up being pretty long! Haha. But I still wanna blog...especially since we don't have class tomorrow morning XP We'll see if I can make it to a post about dinners or this past weekend...if not, good night!
Monday, June 28, 2010
bus.
(Written on the way to Iguazu this past Friday)
So here I am, on the bus, with a little less than four hours left until we get to Iguazu! Passing by a lot of countryside, so nothing too exciting there. Let me just say that these seats are incredibly comfortable (what I imagine first-class seats on airplanes to be like, I suppose), and they also recline back really far--virtually to 180 degrees! So awesome, haha.
I feel like this is also somewhat like a plane because we get our own individual TV screens. So last night, instead of journaling (to be fair, they turned off the lights before 10 pm!) I watched Hachi and Sherlock Holmes. Both were pretty good, but I especially liked Hachi--such a tearjerker!
Afterwards, I was almost moved to tears again when I thought about how it's similar with God and us--except God's love and loyalty is even more unfathomable than that of Hachi, who waited nine years for his deceased master to return.
What's even crazier to me is that God is always there, waiting for us to come back to Him, our first love! He loves us more than we can imagine--Jesus tells us in Matthew 18 that, like a shepherd who would leave 99 sheep to find the one who was lost, He is relentlessly pursuing the lost with His unfailing love.
For Sherlock Holmes, it was a bit harder for me to see a Jesus connection, but I guess I would just say that in a similar manner, God's plan is so intricate and perfect (and is much greater than "magic"), and though we can never fully understand it, we don't need to. Just gotta trust, because we know that He is working for our good! :D
//edit. Saturday morning, I also watched Marley & Me. Another good dog movie :) I really liked these quotes from the end.
When Marley is about to be put down, John Grogan (Owen Wilson) tells him, "What made you into a great dog is that you loved us no matter what." It really hit my heart as a glimpse of how Jesus feels about us--and he's not just a dog! But He really does love us, no matter what. :)
Another good quote from the movie at the end/from John Grogan...Slightly paraphrased, I feel that it does a good job of showing how Jesus looks at each one of us:
"Jesus doesn't care if you have fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to Him. A humble heart is all He asks for. Jesus judges people not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside (1 Samuel 16:7!). He doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give Him your heart, because He has already given you His, for always and forever. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel extraordinary? I know for a fact that JESUS always can!
It's really quite simple, and yet we humans, thinking we are so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not. Sometimes it takes a trial and ruin and pain to bring us to our knees and to help us see."
:)
So here I am, on the bus, with a little less than four hours left until we get to Iguazu! Passing by a lot of countryside, so nothing too exciting there. Let me just say that these seats are incredibly comfortable (what I imagine first-class seats on airplanes to be like, I suppose), and they also recline back really far--virtually to 180 degrees! So awesome, haha.
I feel like this is also somewhat like a plane because we get our own individual TV screens. So last night, instead of journaling (to be fair, they turned off the lights before 10 pm!) I watched Hachi and Sherlock Holmes. Both were pretty good, but I especially liked Hachi--such a tearjerker!
Afterwards, I was almost moved to tears again when I thought about how it's similar with God and us--except God's love and loyalty is even more unfathomable than that of Hachi, who waited nine years for his deceased master to return.
What's even crazier to me is that God is always there, waiting for us to come back to Him, our first love! He loves us more than we can imagine--Jesus tells us in Matthew 18 that, like a shepherd who would leave 99 sheep to find the one who was lost, He is relentlessly pursuing the lost with His unfailing love.
For Sherlock Holmes, it was a bit harder for me to see a Jesus connection, but I guess I would just say that in a similar manner, God's plan is so intricate and perfect (and is much greater than "magic"), and though we can never fully understand it, we don't need to. Just gotta trust, because we know that He is working for our good! :D
//edit. Saturday morning, I also watched Marley & Me. Another good dog movie :) I really liked these quotes from the end.
When Marley is about to be put down, John Grogan (Owen Wilson) tells him, "What made you into a great dog is that you loved us no matter what." It really hit my heart as a glimpse of how Jesus feels about us--and he's not just a dog! But He really does love us, no matter what. :)
Another good quote from the movie at the end/from John Grogan...Slightly paraphrased, I feel that it does a good job of showing how Jesus looks at each one of us:
"Jesus doesn't care if you have fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to Him. A humble heart is all He asks for. Jesus judges people not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside (1 Samuel 16:7!). He doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give Him your heart, because He has already given you His, for always and forever. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel extraordinary? I know for a fact that JESUS always can!
It's really quite simple, and yet we humans, thinking we are so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not. Sometimes it takes a trial and ruin and pain to bring us to our knees and to help us see."
:)
a bit of a fright.
(I lied, a couple more before I go to sleep XP fyi, the posts from now on will probably be very out of order, I'm sorry to say...what else can you do with scattered thoughts?)
Though it's been nearly three weeks, I still remember my first time walking home. It was after our urban orientation that first Sunday afternoon, so the sun had already set. As it was only my second day here, I didn't quite realize that my street was not a major one--instead, it was quite dark and empty (also because it was a Sunday night, I'm pretty sure).
I got so scared that I almost started running home. And I kept praying. I was reminded of that story (don't mind the reposting part of my note) about the girl who is protected by two large men (angels, in my opinion) in a dark alleyway...
and before I knew it, I was home. :) praise God!
Moral of the story: Walk down avenues at night. They're much more well-lit.
And trust God. :)
Though it's been nearly three weeks, I still remember my first time walking home. It was after our urban orientation that first Sunday afternoon, so the sun had already set. As it was only my second day here, I didn't quite realize that my street was not a major one--instead, it was quite dark and empty (also because it was a Sunday night, I'm pretty sure).
I got so scared that I almost started running home. And I kept praying. I was reminded of that story (don't mind the reposting part of my note) about the girl who is protected by two large men (angels, in my opinion) in a dark alleyway...
and before I knew it, I was home. :) praise God!
Moral of the story: Walk down avenues at night. They're much more well-lit.
And trust God. :)
weeks two and three.
Saturday, 6/12.
Rainy day, boo. (My dad was telling me how when the weather gets gray here, it usually stays for at least several days, which kinda happened that week. I like sunshine! :( )
Anyway! Rain did not deter us from trekking out to Plaza San Martin (which is showing every single World Cup game on a giant screen) to watch Argentina's debut in the 2010 World Cup!!! (vs. Nigeria)
:D So exciting. There were definitely not as many people as would show up in the later games due to the inclement weather (aka cold and wet), but we stayed for the entire first half and got to scream and jump during Heinze's awesome header goal! :D (Haha, I love this)
Saskia and me with Zakumi before the game! :)
After the first half, everyone else wanted to go inside somewhere, so we found a cafe where we watched the second half of the game. Argentina won (of course! XD), 1-0 :)
Later that day, I got my laundry done at a lavanderia (my first time doing that XP), trekked around in the rain (which soaked my sneakers...dumb idea), and watched the U.S. vs. England game at home. At night, all five of us went to watch a modern dance set to the music of Carmina Burana, which is some of the most epic music ever!! (I also went to see the piece done by the DSO in the spring, which was amazing. :D). The performance was filled with such strength and beauty...really breathtaking.
Sunday, 6/13.
Maija and I woke up early and crossed the border to Colonia, Uruguay! And spent the day there at museums and just walking around. More on that day later. It was chill but still enjoyable :) Returned that evening.
Monday, 6/14.
Had my first milanesa with Saskia at lunch, which is sometimes translated as wiener schnitzel or chicken-fried steak, but I've never quite had anything like it--it's yummy!
For our culture class (second week's focus was on the arts), we went to the Palacio Barolo, a magnificent building that had 23 stories! It was really beautiful (just a single representation of all of the wonderful architecture that's EVERYWHERE in this city :D), and we got to go to the top of the tower and see Buenos Aires from a 360 degree view. Whoo! Good thing I'm not afraid of heights XP
Tuesday, 6/15.
We took our second tango class at the Centro Cultural Borges. It was very different than our first one (where we made up three of the four students!), but it was helpful because we actually paired up and got a little more used to the feeling of following the man's lead. It's hard! XP
Afterwards, I wandered around Palermo (another barrio) with Saskia until we found La Dulce Esquina, on recommendation from Jenny :) I watched a World Cup game (Brazil and...someone, I don't remember) while munching on the drink she demanded I get, a capricho (?) and some chocolate cake. Nom nom.
In the afternoon, we met at the Bicentennial House, a museum erected this past year in honor of Argentina's bicentennial (yep, we really hit the jackpot by coming this year XD), and it had a temporary exhibition on women and their role in (Argentinian) society and history. Pretty interesting...might write more on that later.
Wednesday, 6/16.
After Spanish class, I visited St. Pilar Church, which was pretty impressive, and then Recoleta Cemetery...I've never seen a cemetery like that! The graves are more like small houses, very decorated and ornate. I also visited Eva Peron's grave, hehe.
I also stopped by the Museum of Beautiful Arts, which is very large and awesome (and free!). I wish I had more time there, but we met up for class at the Museum of Latin American Art in Buenos Aires (MALBA; my translations suck >.<) later in the day, so I did get to see more cool art. Art in general is just something else completely. I can't comprehend it or create it very well, but it's pretty awe-inspiring what some people can come up with :)
Thursday, 6/17.
I woke up early to watch Argentina beat South Korea, 4 to 1!! :D At Plaza San Martin once again (at 8:30 a.m.!), which was standing room only this time. Craziness XD Had a fried creamed corn empanada (first time for that flavor) for lunch, along with a smoothie (called "licuado" in Spanish and translated in all sorts of ways here...haha, such as "softie" and "juice" XD). They're really expensive here, too! =\
Anyway, after lunch was an appointment at the Museum of Xul Solar. He was one trippy but creative artist! His artwork is really out there, but I don't know, I kind of like it :) although I can't begin to understand it, haha.
That night, I went with the girls to El Beso, a place where people get together to dance tango...and we realized just how noob we are at tango >.< I danced with one person, but most of the time, we just sat there. Sigh...but I liked being able to just watch the others dance. Such skill!
Friday, 6/18.
I met up with Saskia and Andrew early in the afternoon to head to Jorge Newbury Airport (the other one in the city) for our flight down to Calafate. (Needless to say...) our flight was majorly delayed, but it's okay! We got to go to this REALLY amazing restaurant called Siga La Vaca (Follow the Cow! XD) and then flew out to Calafate. As I said, more on the airport adventures later...haha.
Saskia wanted me to take this picture...of four flights leaving at the same time. XP
Saturday, 6/19.
I'll probably blog more about our weekends in the next few days (and include more pictures), so I'll just briefly touch on what we did in Calafate (as well as Iguazu the most recent weekend!). We woke up early to go out to Lago Argentino and went on a boat to see all the glaciers and icebergs! So breathtaking and unique. I was definitely in awe (and freezing cold, too!). :)
Sunday, 6/20.
Since we got our return flight extended until later in the day, we went on a horseback ride through the nearby countryside with some genuine gauchos of the Patagonia! It was really cold but definitely a blast. :D (I can't NOT enjoy myself around horses XD). After lunch, we went briefly to ice skate on REAL ice! On part of the lake. That was pretty sweet, too :) after which we headed back to Buenos Aires.
Monday, 6/21.
Holiday! Day of the Flag in Argentina, so no classes for us :) Instead, Saskia and I went on a bike tour of San Telmo and La Boca, some of the older barrios in Buenos Aires. Fun stuff! La Boca, especially, with all its colorful buildings.
We also visited the ecological reserve here...which I didn't know existed in the city XP Yay green space!
Later in the afternoon, I visited the Artisans' Fair in Recoleta and bought some souvenirs. Yay trinket shopping! :D
Tuesday, 6/22.
Our schedule switched for the second two weeks, so Spanish class is/was now in the afternoon. Thus, we met with Dr. Demello Tuesday morning for a short lecture on national identity (the theme of our third week) and then went to an exhibition of photos from the Chaco Central, a region where a lot of indigenous people in Argentina (and neighboring countries) still live today.
We had Spanish class with our new professor, Mercedes, in the afternoon, but thankfully, we got out early to go watch the second half of the Argentina vs. Greece game (Plaza San Martin, once again)! So exciting. And once again...SUPER crowded XD
After dinner, I went with the girls to go watch Toy Story 3 in Spanish! It was so good (I cried! XP), and I actually understood a good portion, praise God :) I would definitely see it again (in English, preferably XD)!
Wednesday, 6/23.
No class in the morning => I slept in. I also took the free time to go visit the Buenos Aires Zoo! :D Hehe. What a kid, I know (Haha, when I told my family later at dinner that I went to the zoo, my host mom told me that my siblings hadn't been in many years XD oh well!). There were a lot of these curious little animals wandering around the zoo grounds, and they were like a mix of rabbits and dogs? I don't know how to describe it, haha. But it was fun, and good weather to boot :)
At 3, we all met up to go on a tour of graffiti and street art around the city (especially in Palermo). It was really neat! A ton of different artists and styles--very impressive and different, especially coming from a culture where graffiti is banned and usually only carries negative/violent meaning with it. On the contrary, street art here is not banned (and sometimes even requested!) and helps to brighten up old buildings. Neat stuff :)
Thursday, 6/24.
I took the free morning (again XD) to bake chocolate chip cookies for my family! (However, I found out yesterday that when they got home later that day, they were kinda upset that I used the gas oven without them there to supervise, so my surprise plan kinda backfired :X boo...but praise Jesus, I wasn't harmed at all! Because apparently it's really easy to get burned >.<)
After Spanish class, Maija, Andrew, and I hopped onto a cochecama ("bed-bus"? Haha, for overnight trips) to go to IGUAZU!! :D I watched a couple of movies and slept the rest of the way.
Friday, 6/25.
We arrived in Iguazu around midday. After dropping off our things at our hostel, we went on an excursion into the forest to do some ziplining and rappeling!! So awesome :D (again, I'll do a longer post for Iguazu because of all the fun stuff we got to do). At night, we went on a tour to Garganta del Diable (Devil's Throat), the main waterfall attraction at Iguazu National Park, by the light of the full moon. Gorgeous :D
Saturday, 6/26.
We spent the day at Iguazu National Park, wandering around and taking pictures at all the different waterfalls. In addition, we went on a short boat ride in the late afternoon that took us right up to a couple of the smaller waterfalls next to San Martin Island, and we got totally soaked! XD So much fun. Afterwards, we headed back to the hostel and then back to the bus station for our return to Buenos Aires.
Sunday, 6/27.
Arrived back in Buenos Aires around noon on Sunday. On the way home, I was EXTREMELY blessed in the form of grace from strangers :) (but that's for another post)
After lunch, I headed back to Plaza San Martin to watch Argentina beat Mexico!! It was actually my first full game at the Plaza :D and so much fun. The energy here is really like no other. I love it :)
After the game, I went to Citi Opera to watch La Bella y La Bestia (as mentioned a couple of posts back). So good!! The costumes, sets, designs, and singers were all so amazing :D Mmmm Disney.
WHEW! And then today...
Monday, 6/28.
Visited the Chinatown of Buenos Aires! XP It's tiny, haha. I tried the tapioca here! It tasted a bit funky, but oh well. At least now I know. It was a bit startling to hear the vendor talking to me in Chinese, haha XP Also went to the supermarket there to get some stuff for my family--gonna cook some Chinese food for them for dinner tomorrow! :D (please pray for me XP and that they like it!)
Definitely took advantage of public transportation on my way back...supte --> bus --> Fundacion, haha, since I was running a bit late. After Spanish class, we went as a group to do some volunteer work with...I forget the name of the organization, but they basically take care of some 8-10 kids after school in this small building in La Boca (?). All we basically did was spend time and play with them. I'll write more about that later, but it was pretty interesting. (and getting hit on...not so much -_-)
WOWW. I finished! Can't believe it. Er, well, updated my basic summaries, anyway XP Now onto those topical posts I keep talking about...tomorrow, since it's getting late. Hopefully they won't be as long as this one!! Goodnight, all :)
Rainy day, boo. (My dad was telling me how when the weather gets gray here, it usually stays for at least several days, which kinda happened that week. I like sunshine! :( )
Anyway! Rain did not deter us from trekking out to Plaza San Martin (which is showing every single World Cup game on a giant screen) to watch Argentina's debut in the 2010 World Cup!!! (vs. Nigeria)
:D So exciting. There were definitely not as many people as would show up in the later games due to the inclement weather (aka cold and wet), but we stayed for the entire first half and got to scream and jump during Heinze's awesome header goal! :D (Haha, I love this)
Saskia and me with Zakumi before the game! :)
After the first half, everyone else wanted to go inside somewhere, so we found a cafe where we watched the second half of the game. Argentina won (of course! XD), 1-0 :)
Later that day, I got my laundry done at a lavanderia (my first time doing that XP), trekked around in the rain (which soaked my sneakers...dumb idea), and watched the U.S. vs. England game at home. At night, all five of us went to watch a modern dance set to the music of Carmina Burana, which is some of the most epic music ever!! (I also went to see the piece done by the DSO in the spring, which was amazing. :D). The performance was filled with such strength and beauty...really breathtaking.
Sunday, 6/13.
Maija and I woke up early and crossed the border to Colonia, Uruguay! And spent the day there at museums and just walking around. More on that day later. It was chill but still enjoyable :) Returned that evening.
Monday, 6/14.
Had my first milanesa with Saskia at lunch, which is sometimes translated as wiener schnitzel or chicken-fried steak, but I've never quite had anything like it--it's yummy!
For our culture class (second week's focus was on the arts), we went to the Palacio Barolo, a magnificent building that had 23 stories! It was really beautiful (just a single representation of all of the wonderful architecture that's EVERYWHERE in this city :D), and we got to go to the top of the tower and see Buenos Aires from a 360 degree view. Whoo! Good thing I'm not afraid of heights XP
Tuesday, 6/15.
We took our second tango class at the Centro Cultural Borges. It was very different than our first one (where we made up three of the four students!), but it was helpful because we actually paired up and got a little more used to the feeling of following the man's lead. It's hard! XP
Afterwards, I wandered around Palermo (another barrio) with Saskia until we found La Dulce Esquina, on recommendation from Jenny :) I watched a World Cup game (Brazil and...someone, I don't remember) while munching on the drink she demanded I get, a capricho (?) and some chocolate cake. Nom nom.
In the afternoon, we met at the Bicentennial House, a museum erected this past year in honor of Argentina's bicentennial (yep, we really hit the jackpot by coming this year XD), and it had a temporary exhibition on women and their role in (Argentinian) society and history. Pretty interesting...might write more on that later.
Wednesday, 6/16.
After Spanish class, I visited St. Pilar Church, which was pretty impressive, and then Recoleta Cemetery...I've never seen a cemetery like that! The graves are more like small houses, very decorated and ornate. I also visited Eva Peron's grave, hehe.
I also stopped by the Museum of Beautiful Arts, which is very large and awesome (and free!). I wish I had more time there, but we met up for class at the Museum of Latin American Art in Buenos Aires (MALBA; my translations suck >.<) later in the day, so I did get to see more cool art. Art in general is just something else completely. I can't comprehend it or create it very well, but it's pretty awe-inspiring what some people can come up with :)
Thursday, 6/17.
I woke up early to watch Argentina beat South Korea, 4 to 1!! :D At Plaza San Martin once again (at 8:30 a.m.!), which was standing room only this time. Craziness XD Had a fried creamed corn empanada (first time for that flavor) for lunch, along with a smoothie (called "licuado" in Spanish and translated in all sorts of ways here...haha, such as "softie" and "juice" XD). They're really expensive here, too! =\
Anyway, after lunch was an appointment at the Museum of Xul Solar. He was one trippy but creative artist! His artwork is really out there, but I don't know, I kind of like it :) although I can't begin to understand it, haha.
That night, I went with the girls to El Beso, a place where people get together to dance tango...and we realized just how noob we are at tango >.< I danced with one person, but most of the time, we just sat there. Sigh...but I liked being able to just watch the others dance. Such skill!
Friday, 6/18.
I met up with Saskia and Andrew early in the afternoon to head to Jorge Newbury Airport (the other one in the city) for our flight down to Calafate. (Needless to say...) our flight was majorly delayed, but it's okay! We got to go to this REALLY amazing restaurant called Siga La Vaca (Follow the Cow! XD) and then flew out to Calafate. As I said, more on the airport adventures later...haha.
Saskia wanted me to take this picture...of four flights leaving at the same time. XP
Saturday, 6/19.
I'll probably blog more about our weekends in the next few days (and include more pictures), so I'll just briefly touch on what we did in Calafate (as well as Iguazu the most recent weekend!). We woke up early to go out to Lago Argentino and went on a boat to see all the glaciers and icebergs! So breathtaking and unique. I was definitely in awe (and freezing cold, too!). :)
Sunday, 6/20.
Since we got our return flight extended until later in the day, we went on a horseback ride through the nearby countryside with some genuine gauchos of the Patagonia! It was really cold but definitely a blast. :D (I can't NOT enjoy myself around horses XD). After lunch, we went briefly to ice skate on REAL ice! On part of the lake. That was pretty sweet, too :) after which we headed back to Buenos Aires.
Monday, 6/21.
Holiday! Day of the Flag in Argentina, so no classes for us :) Instead, Saskia and I went on a bike tour of San Telmo and La Boca, some of the older barrios in Buenos Aires. Fun stuff! La Boca, especially, with all its colorful buildings.
We also visited the ecological reserve here...which I didn't know existed in the city XP Yay green space!
Later in the afternoon, I visited the Artisans' Fair in Recoleta and bought some souvenirs. Yay trinket shopping! :D
Tuesday, 6/22.
Our schedule switched for the second two weeks, so Spanish class is/was now in the afternoon. Thus, we met with Dr. Demello Tuesday morning for a short lecture on national identity (the theme of our third week) and then went to an exhibition of photos from the Chaco Central, a region where a lot of indigenous people in Argentina (and neighboring countries) still live today.
We had Spanish class with our new professor, Mercedes, in the afternoon, but thankfully, we got out early to go watch the second half of the Argentina vs. Greece game (Plaza San Martin, once again)! So exciting. And once again...SUPER crowded XD
After dinner, I went with the girls to go watch Toy Story 3 in Spanish! It was so good (I cried! XP), and I actually understood a good portion, praise God :) I would definitely see it again (in English, preferably XD)!
Wednesday, 6/23.
No class in the morning => I slept in. I also took the free time to go visit the Buenos Aires Zoo! :D Hehe. What a kid, I know (Haha, when I told my family later at dinner that I went to the zoo, my host mom told me that my siblings hadn't been in many years XD oh well!). There were a lot of these curious little animals wandering around the zoo grounds, and they were like a mix of rabbits and dogs? I don't know how to describe it, haha. But it was fun, and good weather to boot :)
At 3, we all met up to go on a tour of graffiti and street art around the city (especially in Palermo). It was really neat! A ton of different artists and styles--very impressive and different, especially coming from a culture where graffiti is banned and usually only carries negative/violent meaning with it. On the contrary, street art here is not banned (and sometimes even requested!) and helps to brighten up old buildings. Neat stuff :)
Thursday, 6/24.
I took the free morning (again XD) to bake chocolate chip cookies for my family! (However, I found out yesterday that when they got home later that day, they were kinda upset that I used the gas oven without them there to supervise, so my surprise plan kinda backfired :X boo...but praise Jesus, I wasn't harmed at all! Because apparently it's really easy to get burned >.<)
After Spanish class, Maija, Andrew, and I hopped onto a cochecama ("bed-bus"? Haha, for overnight trips) to go to IGUAZU!! :D I watched a couple of movies and slept the rest of the way.
Friday, 6/25.
We arrived in Iguazu around midday. After dropping off our things at our hostel, we went on an excursion into the forest to do some ziplining and rappeling!! So awesome :D (again, I'll do a longer post for Iguazu because of all the fun stuff we got to do). At night, we went on a tour to Garganta del Diable (Devil's Throat), the main waterfall attraction at Iguazu National Park, by the light of the full moon. Gorgeous :D
Saturday, 6/26.
We spent the day at Iguazu National Park, wandering around and taking pictures at all the different waterfalls. In addition, we went on a short boat ride in the late afternoon that took us right up to a couple of the smaller waterfalls next to San Martin Island, and we got totally soaked! XD So much fun. Afterwards, we headed back to the hostel and then back to the bus station for our return to Buenos Aires.
Sunday, 6/27.
Arrived back in Buenos Aires around noon on Sunday. On the way home, I was EXTREMELY blessed in the form of grace from strangers :) (but that's for another post)
After lunch, I headed back to Plaza San Martin to watch Argentina beat Mexico!! It was actually my first full game at the Plaza :D and so much fun. The energy here is really like no other. I love it :)
After the game, I went to Citi Opera to watch La Bella y La Bestia (as mentioned a couple of posts back). So good!! The costumes, sets, designs, and singers were all so amazing :D Mmmm Disney.
WHEW! And then today...
Monday, 6/28.
Visited the Chinatown of Buenos Aires! XP It's tiny, haha. I tried the tapioca here! It tasted a bit funky, but oh well. At least now I know. It was a bit startling to hear the vendor talking to me in Chinese, haha XP Also went to the supermarket there to get some stuff for my family--gonna cook some Chinese food for them for dinner tomorrow! :D (please pray for me XP and that they like it!)
Definitely took advantage of public transportation on my way back...supte --> bus --> Fundacion, haha, since I was running a bit late. After Spanish class, we went as a group to do some volunteer work with...I forget the name of the organization, but they basically take care of some 8-10 kids after school in this small building in La Boca (?). All we basically did was spend time and play with them. I'll write more about that later, but it was pretty interesting. (and getting hit on...not so much -_-)
WOWW. I finished! Can't believe it. Er, well, updated my basic summaries, anyway XP Now onto those topical posts I keep talking about...tomorrow, since it's getting late. Hopefully they won't be as long as this one!! Goodnight, all :)
summaries.
Here begins my series of weekly summaries before delving into more random (and most likely out of order >.<) topics. Man, looking at my planner of notes from each day overwhelms me with how behind I am on blogging...Whee!
Saturday, 6/5. We arrived at Ezeiza Airport (the international airport of Buenos Aires) at 8ish a.m. After passing through customs, we met up with Dra. Demello and Bea (from the Fundacion where we're taking classes) who took us to the Fundacion, which is a building adjacent to/inside Centro Cultural Borges and Galeria Pacifico, a shopping mall! Hehe. There, I met my host mom, Andrea, and she drove me back to my home for the month. Then we dropped by the store she owns (a libreria, which sells office supplies and the like, called DDesk), where I met Fede, my host dad. Belen, my little sister, dropped by, and we went walking in search of an English copy of Treasure Island (which still eluded us after three bookstores, bleh). However, I got to talk to her (she's 14), which was pretty fun, even though I'm sure my Spanish was super poor, since it was my first day here. Back home, I met my other siblings, Fede (yep, same as my dad) and Sofi. I chilled at home all afternoon and later went to Freddo, where I got my first taste of Argentinian ice cream! Strawberry (which goes by the name "frutilla" here, instead of "fresa," which I learned in Texas XP) and dulce de leche.
Mmmm.
Sunday, 6/6.
In the afternoon, I met back up with the other students and Dr. Demello (UTD professor for our cultural class) for an urban orientation of the city. We walked down Florida Street, a really famous pedestrian street filled with shops :D
and we visited the Casa Rosada (Pink House), which serves kind of the same function as the White House in the States.
We also visited Puerto Madero, the newest barrio ("neighborhood"), before heading back home.
Monday, 6/7.
Our first day of class! And I overslept, how sad :( For some reason, the alarm on my sister's watch (which I brought to Buenos Aires in lieu of my normal Swatch) didn't go off, so I was awoken by my mom knocking on my door. (In the setup of our house, my room is separate from the rest of the building...like I exit the kitchen to enter my room. It's kinda cool and actually really convenient for host students like myself :D and since it was my brother's room, he's sleeping in my sisters' shared room for the month XP)
Anyway...Eep! I took the bus to the Fundacion (although it's normally close enough to walk to, and it only takes 15 minutes or so), and I turned out to be the second one there (out of 5), so it was fine, praise God. :) Bea was our Spanish teacher, since our real teacher was feeling under the weather.
(Regarding our classes (which run Monday to Thursday, praise God for free Fridays :D) : the first two weeks, we had Spanish class in the morning from 9:30 to 12:10, followed by a lunch break and cultural class in the afternoon with Dr. Demello. The five of us were divided, 4 and 1, into two Spanish classes based on our levels of Spanish and the teachers' availability. The cultural class had more flexible of a schedule, and each week we focused on different things.)
Week one was human rights, so we had Professor Troisi, a professor of history in Argentina, come to speak to us about the modern history of Argentina (late 1800s to 1980s ish/present-day). It was...pretty overwhelming, to say the least. More on human rights later...I feel a long ramble coming for that one >.< After class, Maija and I went to a cafe to finish our grammar homework before heading home for dinner with the family.
Tuesday, 6/8.
We had a fire drill during Spanish class! Throwback to middle and high school, haha. Since we're linked to the Galeria, everyone who was shopping had to evacuate as well, hehe XP But we all just poured out onto Florida Street, which is crowded all the time anyway.
For our cultural class, we went to Memorial Park (Parque de la Memoria), which commemorates the "desaparecidos" (the disappeared) who were kidnapped during the aforementioned military reign in Argentina. The memorial there was reminiscent of the Vietnam War Memorial...interesting.
On my way home, I walked down Corrientes Avenue, which was full of bright lights and lots of theaters--fun! And...I got my first alfajores. YUM :D
Wednesday, 6/9.
We met Cecilia, our real teacher for our Spanish class, since she was thankfully feeling better! She's pretty awesome--really helpful and friendly. After Spanish class, I went with the girls to a tango class! It was fun and definitely different. XD More on tango later...
For our culture class, we watched the film La Historia Oficial, which also focused on the time period of the desaparecidos...it was good but pretty sad.
For dinner, I ate by myself! The only time that happened...and only because my family got a kinda last-minute invitation to eat at my mom's parents' house for one of their birthdays. I ate at El Cisne (The Swan), and it was pretty good. Got a bit lonely after a while, only because there was a lot of food that I was trying to finish, and it took me a while :X haha. But it was an adventure all the same, especially figuring out what to order (and it wasn't all a problem with the language, haha). My waiter was really friendly, although the English menu he kindly provided me with (after the one in Spanish, thankfully) was ridiculous XP and not useful at all. They translated desserts as prostrates (LOL) from "postres" in Spanish, most likely.
My dinner from that night XP
Thursday, 6/10.
We got to talk to Elia Espen, one of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, whose son was one of the "desaparecidos"...pretty sad. And intense. So many emotions linked to all that we saw and learned that first week in culture class...Afterwards, we went to the Plaza de Mayo to watch the mothers march, as they continue to do every Thursday afternoon.
Friday, 6/11.
We went to the ranch, Estancia Santa Susana! We got to ride horses, eat asado for the first time (at least for me), and watch some tango and live music during lunch :) More on that day here.
Picture of a picture, but still XP Horses!
Whewwww. What a mouthful. And that was just one week o.o
More posts tonight? Hm...
Saturday, 6/5. We arrived at Ezeiza Airport (the international airport of Buenos Aires) at 8ish a.m. After passing through customs, we met up with Dra. Demello and Bea (from the Fundacion where we're taking classes) who took us to the Fundacion, which is a building adjacent to/inside Centro Cultural Borges and Galeria Pacifico, a shopping mall! Hehe. There, I met my host mom, Andrea, and she drove me back to my home for the month. Then we dropped by the store she owns (a libreria, which sells office supplies and the like, called DDesk), where I met Fede, my host dad. Belen, my little sister, dropped by, and we went walking in search of an English copy of Treasure Island (which still eluded us after three bookstores, bleh). However, I got to talk to her (she's 14), which was pretty fun, even though I'm sure my Spanish was super poor, since it was my first day here. Back home, I met my other siblings, Fede (yep, same as my dad) and Sofi. I chilled at home all afternoon and later went to Freddo, where I got my first taste of Argentinian ice cream! Strawberry (which goes by the name "frutilla" here, instead of "fresa," which I learned in Texas XP) and dulce de leche.
Mmmm.
Sunday, 6/6.
In the afternoon, I met back up with the other students and Dr. Demello (UTD professor for our cultural class) for an urban orientation of the city. We walked down Florida Street, a really famous pedestrian street filled with shops :D
and we visited the Casa Rosada (Pink House), which serves kind of the same function as the White House in the States.
We also visited Puerto Madero, the newest barrio ("neighborhood"), before heading back home.
Monday, 6/7.
Our first day of class! And I overslept, how sad :( For some reason, the alarm on my sister's watch (which I brought to Buenos Aires in lieu of my normal Swatch) didn't go off, so I was awoken by my mom knocking on my door. (In the setup of our house, my room is separate from the rest of the building...like I exit the kitchen to enter my room. It's kinda cool and actually really convenient for host students like myself :D and since it was my brother's room, he's sleeping in my sisters' shared room for the month XP)
Anyway...Eep! I took the bus to the Fundacion (although it's normally close enough to walk to, and it only takes 15 minutes or so), and I turned out to be the second one there (out of 5), so it was fine, praise God. :) Bea was our Spanish teacher, since our real teacher was feeling under the weather.
(Regarding our classes (which run Monday to Thursday, praise God for free Fridays :D) : the first two weeks, we had Spanish class in the morning from 9:30 to 12:10, followed by a lunch break and cultural class in the afternoon with Dr. Demello. The five of us were divided, 4 and 1, into two Spanish classes based on our levels of Spanish and the teachers' availability. The cultural class had more flexible of a schedule, and each week we focused on different things.)
Week one was human rights, so we had Professor Troisi, a professor of history in Argentina, come to speak to us about the modern history of Argentina (late 1800s to 1980s ish/present-day). It was...pretty overwhelming, to say the least. More on human rights later...I feel a long ramble coming for that one >.< After class, Maija and I went to a cafe to finish our grammar homework before heading home for dinner with the family.
Tuesday, 6/8.
We had a fire drill during Spanish class! Throwback to middle and high school, haha. Since we're linked to the Galeria, everyone who was shopping had to evacuate as well, hehe XP But we all just poured out onto Florida Street, which is crowded all the time anyway.
For our cultural class, we went to Memorial Park (Parque de la Memoria), which commemorates the "desaparecidos" (the disappeared) who were kidnapped during the aforementioned military reign in Argentina. The memorial there was reminiscent of the Vietnam War Memorial...interesting.
On my way home, I walked down Corrientes Avenue, which was full of bright lights and lots of theaters--fun! And...I got my first alfajores. YUM :D
Wednesday, 6/9.
We met Cecilia, our real teacher for our Spanish class, since she was thankfully feeling better! She's pretty awesome--really helpful and friendly. After Spanish class, I went with the girls to a tango class! It was fun and definitely different. XD More on tango later...
For our culture class, we watched the film La Historia Oficial, which also focused on the time period of the desaparecidos...it was good but pretty sad.
For dinner, I ate by myself! The only time that happened...and only because my family got a kinda last-minute invitation to eat at my mom's parents' house for one of their birthdays. I ate at El Cisne (The Swan), and it was pretty good. Got a bit lonely after a while, only because there was a lot of food that I was trying to finish, and it took me a while :X haha. But it was an adventure all the same, especially figuring out what to order (and it wasn't all a problem with the language, haha). My waiter was really friendly, although the English menu he kindly provided me with (after the one in Spanish, thankfully) was ridiculous XP and not useful at all. They translated desserts as prostrates (LOL) from "postres" in Spanish, most likely.
My dinner from that night XP
Thursday, 6/10.
We got to talk to Elia Espen, one of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, whose son was one of the "desaparecidos"...pretty sad. And intense. So many emotions linked to all that we saw and learned that first week in culture class...Afterwards, we went to the Plaza de Mayo to watch the mothers march, as they continue to do every Thursday afternoon.
Friday, 6/11.
We went to the ranch, Estancia Santa Susana! We got to ride horses, eat asado for the first time (at least for me), and watch some tango and live music during lunch :) More on that day here.
Picture of a picture, but still XP Horses!
Whewwww. What a mouthful. And that was just one week o.o
More posts tonight? Hm...
Sunday, June 27, 2010
the last sunday. :(
Mm, so many things to write, and so little time! I'm pretty tired right now, but at least we don't have morning class tomorrow (once again) XD praise God! Regarding my posts, I think I'll revert back to the boring record-everything-that-happened just for my own sake (and for anyone out there who might like that style of blogging), and any remaining thoughts I can capture on various topics.
And regarding my trip...only six more days! This is our last Sunday here. I can't believe it :O
BUT. Argentina won!!!!!!! :D More on that later. See you Saturday, Germany :P
(after which I went to watch La Bella y La Bestia :D the musical! So beautiful :D)
Now off to my room to blog sans Internet, so there might be some posts tomorrow morning typed tonight. Might. XP Good night!
And regarding my trip...only six more days! This is our last Sunday here. I can't believe it :O
BUT. Argentina won!!!!!!! :D More on that later. See you Saturday, Germany :P
(after which I went to watch La Bella y La Bestia :D the musical! So beautiful :D)
Now off to my room to blog sans Internet, so there might be some posts tomorrow morning typed tonight. Might. XP Good night!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
wataaaah!
Another short post. It´s almost our last weekend here! Many sighs. But I´m really excited because we´re going to go see some awesome waterfalls! At Iguazu. We´re heading out tonight on a bus...that lasts twenty hours o.o Haha, I hope it goes well XP Getting back Sunday in time for the big game! Argentina vs. Mexico. Ohhh snap.
Wow, lots of fragments, sorry. But on the bus ride, I´ll try to blog some (except handwritten, haha) and I hope to have some more updates ready Sunday night :) Key word: hope.
On another note, I made chocolate chip cookies for my family this morning!!! :D More on that later. Gas stoves are...fun? and a lot of guessing temperature XP
Chau!
Wow, lots of fragments, sorry. But on the bus ride, I´ll try to blog some (except handwritten, haha) and I hope to have some more updates ready Sunday night :) Key word: hope.
On another note, I made chocolate chip cookies for my family this morning!!! :D More on that later. Gas stoves are...fun? and a lot of guessing temperature XP
Chau!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
night owls.
It's crazy to think how late people (at least the youth) in Buenos Aires stay up when they go out for the night (reminiscent of Ke$ha singing, "'Cause when I leave for the night, I ain't coming back"...). Just this past Sunday night, my brother had some friends over--just as I was falling asleep, coincidentally, since our flight from Calafate arrived a bit late (no surprise there)--and they got to our house at around 2 a.m. This afternoon, I was asking him when they left, and he told me that they stayed until 6:30 a.m.!!!!
I guess it's just a foreigner's point of view, but I can't understand that at all...so crazy o.o The only time I've stayed up that late was probably after-prom...and church lockins. But it's a part of the lifestyle here. My dad was telling me about how a lot of teenagers and young adults come to Buenos Aires on weekends just to partake in the night life here. Whether it's going to friends' houses or bars and clubs out in the city, the norm here (especially on weekends, but not limited to them) is to go out at 1 or 2 a.m. (which, in the U.S., is closer to when clubs close down for the night) and stay out until 6 or 7 in the morning. Intense! No wonder my siblings were all asleep when I first got to my house (late Saturday morning) XP
I guess it's just a foreigner's point of view, but I can't understand that at all...so crazy o.o The only time I've stayed up that late was probably after-prom...and church lockins. But it's a part of the lifestyle here. My dad was telling me about how a lot of teenagers and young adults come to Buenos Aires on weekends just to partake in the night life here. Whether it's going to friends' houses or bars and clubs out in the city, the norm here (especially on weekends, but not limited to them) is to go out at 1 or 2 a.m. (which, in the U.S., is closer to when clubs close down for the night) and stay out until 6 or 7 in the morning. Intense! No wonder my siblings were all asleep when I first got to my house (late Saturday morning) XP
a funnie.
So one day, after lunch, Saskia and I were walking up the stairs back to class. As we neared the top of the stairs (we have to climb two flights) and reached the gallery that we pass through before we get to the classroom, we heard (in a very mechanical voice) something along the lines of, "Hola chicas, como estas?" and something a bit more, but I forget now.
Startled, and wondering whether or not that had been directed to us/if I had heard correctly, I turned around (as did Saskia), and we saw one of the security guards doubled over in laughter, leaning on the rail. I couldn't even see his face, he was laughing so hard...haha XD
Turns out he was just using his walkie-talkie to mess with us. I don't know why, but it made me laugh so hard. And Saskia says she can't hear "Como estas, chicas?" the same way again.
:P
Startled, and wondering whether or not that had been directed to us/if I had heard correctly, I turned around (as did Saskia), and we saw one of the security guards doubled over in laughter, leaning on the rail. I couldn't even see his face, he was laughing so hard...haha XD
Turns out he was just using his walkie-talkie to mess with us. I don't know why, but it made me laugh so hard. And Saskia says she can't hear "Como estas, chicas?" the same way again.
:P
Monday, June 21, 2010
halftime (well, a little over).
Talking to my little sister today, I realized that I'm already (more than) halfway done with my time in Argentina! :( Booo. It's been so, so amazing (and yes, I still need to blog about nearly all of it -_- forgive my slowness! Hopefully I'll still remember and find some time...starting tonight, haha). I just don't want it to end...at least not yet. As of now, I have 12 days (!) left in this beautiful, amazing country. Excited to see how they will turn out :D
But yes...even with all of the things I've seen and done these past two weeks, it still is hard to believe I'll be back in Houston so soon. Maaaan.
On another note, my little sister is listening to Hot 'n Cold by Katy Perry XP and now Lady Marmalade...haha, the English songs in my siblings' iTunes is amusing.
Time to write an essay about this dude! Argentinian artist by the name of Xul Solar. His artwork is pretty awesome, actually :D Just lazy to do my homework, sigh.
But yes...even with all of the things I've seen and done these past two weeks, it still is hard to believe I'll be back in Houston so soon. Maaaan.
On another note, my little sister is listening to Hot 'n Cold by Katy Perry XP and now Lady Marmalade...haha, the English songs in my siblings' iTunes is amusing.
Time to write an essay about this dude! Argentinian artist by the name of Xul Solar. His artwork is pretty awesome, actually :D Just lazy to do my homework, sigh.
Friday, June 18, 2010
deep south.
Greetings, everyone! Another short post, but just wanted to say hola from here!
Hehe. We´re currently in Calafate, Argentina, and we´re going on a cruise-type excursion tomorrow to go see glaciers! :D So, so excited. Time to bundle up! Think it´ll be snowing all day tomorrow, too... XP
And...we´re heading out at 7 a.m., so it´s bedtime for me. First time in a hostel and such XP but more on that later...as well as our airport adventure (OMG Aerolineas Argentina....!!) and all that other stuff I´ve been wanting and saying I´ll write about, haha.
Chau chau!
Hehe. We´re currently in Calafate, Argentina, and we´re going on a cruise-type excursion tomorrow to go see glaciers! :D So, so excited. Time to bundle up! Think it´ll be snowing all day tomorrow, too... XP
And...we´re heading out at 7 a.m., so it´s bedtime for me. First time in a hostel and such XP but more on that later...as well as our airport adventure (OMG Aerolineas Argentina....!!) and all that other stuff I´ve been wanting and saying I´ll write about, haha.
Chau chau!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
behind...but bed time!
A quick hola to all/any readers out there!
Sorry for being pretty behind with my posts =\ I have a lot I want to write about, but so little time! I would spend some more time blogging tonight, but I want to sleep early (ie. very very soon) so I can wake up and go watch the first half of the ARGENTINA VS SOUTH KOREA game in Plaza San Martin once more XD Vamos!!
Goodnight :) will do my best to post some...sometime soon, haha.
Sorry for being pretty behind with my posts =\ I have a lot I want to write about, but so little time! I would spend some more time blogging tonight, but I want to sleep early (ie. very very soon) so I can wake up and go watch the first half of the ARGENTINA VS SOUTH KOREA game in Plaza San Martin once more XD Vamos!!
Goodnight :) will do my best to post some...sometime soon, haha.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
greetings.
So, as you may (or not) know, people here greet each other with a kiss (or two) on the cheek; often, same goes for goodbyes. Especially for people living in the U.S. (and perhaps even more especially for Asians, known as a whole for having a reserved and timid nature), this may seem a bit odd or too intimate. However, I kind of like it. Like Maija and I were saying to each other, it's just nice to acknowledge everyone and have them acknowledge you when you enter and leave a place (or also when you meet people...ie when friends of my siblings visited the first weekend I was here). With a culture that doesn't emphasize this acknowledgement, it's so easy to just slip in and out unnoticed. I don't necessarily think we should start kissing each other back home, but just keeping in mind the importance of saying hi and bye might help...whether we are at a party, home, church, fellowship, or wherever. Or maybe it's just me. :P
wisps.
So, thanks to the name of this beautiful city, I've gotten a couple of people asking me about the air here and if it's good (clever :P). Honestly, regarding the actual air, I don't think I could say so. I have already fallen in love with Buenos Aires, but one thing I cannot stand (here, China, the U.S.) is--as many of you may know--cigarette smoke/smokers. And unfortunately, a LOT of people here smoke. No joke. Especially women! Ugh. Walking around all day, usually right behind a smoker or two, inhaling billows of secondhand smoke, is no fun. But praise God, I'm managing without choking up or...well, I guess I can't even avoid it, haha. Probably the only thing (besides my poor Spanish speaking skills) that I don't like about being here.
And. I am super, super thankful that no one in my host family smokes. :) Thanks, Jesus!
And. I am super, super thankful that no one in my host family smokes. :) Thanks, Jesus!
gauchos.
(written last night)
Today (Friday), we got the chance to get away from the city and travel to Estancia Santa Susana, one of the local ranches, to experience a bit of gaucho life. As a proud Texan, I guess it was time I saw some "real" cowboys! The countryside was just like any other country (likened in my mind to China and somewhat of ASB, since we were in Seguin), with lots of horses(!) and open space. We got to ride horses (albeit at a very slow rate) around, after which I got to taste asado for the first time. :) Here, asado = really delicious roasted meat, usually accompanied with sausages. I tasted blood sausage! It looked burnt, it was so black, haha. A very interesting taste...not sure how much I'd be able to eat at once, but it was pretty good. Also got to see Argentinian tango for the first time. So intense and beautiful :) Afterward, the cowboy also did some tricks of his own (what I would call gaucho tap dancing, haha) to live music by another man playing the guitar and singing. Live music and food! :)
Afterwards, we watched a short show where two gauchos competed in a race-type competition where they tried to hook a small ring on a stick as they charged under a frame (refer to my pictures...I try to use those to compensate for my poor explanations XP). Before we headed out, I got to ride with one of the gauchos around the pen at a pretty fast pace :D kind of like after the Medieval Times-ish show in China last summer. Wheeee! Like I was telling my classmates, two things make me swoon: horses (and taking me riding on one :D) and/or serenades. X) Mmmm. A girl can dream, right?
Though we got to travel to a ranch, I still wonder about the daily life of a gaucho, back then and also now. Do they eat lots of meat every day still? What do they do besides chores and tours? Hmm. I may never know. But still, our first real outing was a lot of fun :)
And! I have yet to try mate (Argentinian herbal tea), since we were supposed to get it today. But! My host mommy told me a place where I can find some...that will come in another post, hopefully.
Today (Friday), we got the chance to get away from the city and travel to Estancia Santa Susana, one of the local ranches, to experience a bit of gaucho life. As a proud Texan, I guess it was time I saw some "real" cowboys! The countryside was just like any other country (likened in my mind to China and somewhat of ASB, since we were in Seguin), with lots of horses(!) and open space. We got to ride horses (albeit at a very slow rate) around, after which I got to taste asado for the first time. :) Here, asado = really delicious roasted meat, usually accompanied with sausages. I tasted blood sausage! It looked burnt, it was so black, haha. A very interesting taste...not sure how much I'd be able to eat at once, but it was pretty good. Also got to see Argentinian tango for the first time. So intense and beautiful :) Afterward, the cowboy also did some tricks of his own (what I would call gaucho tap dancing, haha) to live music by another man playing the guitar and singing. Live music and food! :)
Afterwards, we watched a short show where two gauchos competed in a race-type competition where they tried to hook a small ring on a stick as they charged under a frame (refer to my pictures...I try to use those to compensate for my poor explanations XP). Before we headed out, I got to ride with one of the gauchos around the pen at a pretty fast pace :D kind of like after the Medieval Times-ish show in China last summer. Wheeee! Like I was telling my classmates, two things make me swoon: horses (and taking me riding on one :D) and/or serenades. X) Mmmm. A girl can dream, right?
Though we got to travel to a ranch, I still wonder about the daily life of a gaucho, back then and also now. Do they eat lots of meat every day still? What do they do besides chores and tours? Hmm. I may never know. But still, our first real outing was a lot of fun :)
And! I have yet to try mate (Argentinian herbal tea), since we were supposed to get it today. But! My host mommy told me a place where I can find some...that will come in another post, hopefully.
passion.
WHOOO! Argentina won their first game today! :D SUPER EXCITING, to say the least. This is such a great place to be during the World Cup!
But yes. For now, I'll leave it at that, but I'll come back to this post for sure to ramble more about futbol and Argentina (and the rest of the world...outside of the United States, haha) and seeing a national passion firsthand. :)
In the meantime, I'll post a couple of things I wrote last night before sleeping...starting my "series" of subject-focused posts (or attempts to do so). Whee!
But yes. For now, I'll leave it at that, but I'll come back to this post for sure to ramble more about futbol and Argentina (and the rest of the world...outside of the United States, haha) and seeing a national passion firsthand. :)
In the meantime, I'll post a couple of things I wrote last night before sleeping...starting my "series" of subject-focused posts (or attempts to do so). Whee!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
organization.
Hola! Day 6 is winding down, but before I head to shower and sleep, just felt like posting a short one. I was randomly thinking about my blog earlier today and how I really want to use it to record and organize all the thoughts that have been bouncing around since I got here (and maybe even before). There´s been SO much to see and do and learn in these past few days, and I can barely keep track of it all in my head! >< Anyhoo, to try and organize my thoughts a little better, I think I´ll write a bunch of shorter (which is still a relative term, mind you) posts focused on different subject matter, instead of trying to cover 20 topics in one jumbled post (like my previous one, haha). And I´m not even sure if this explanatory post was necessary...but I guess just a warning? In case you´re a subscriber or something and you start getting a flood of posts from my blog. That is, if I get around to recording all my thoughts...haha.
So it´ll most likely be more of me talking (read: rambling) about different aspects of Buenos Aires/my trip thus far and what I think of them...as opposed to the here´s-every-single-thing-I-did-today type of rambling (reminiscent of my old xanga, haha). Just an fyi. And maybe that will help me learn to write with more focus...since my mommy told me that my writing is not very good -_- sigh.
BUT. For those of you who might want a more straightforward reading (probably without quite as much opinion) of what we´ve been up to, here are the blogs of some of my fellow Argentinians for the month ;)
Saskia´s blog, if you´re feeling ambitious enough to read in español
and Maija´s blog, which has both español and English!
Enjoy :)
With that, I´m gonna head off to sleep...tomorrow we´re going to visit an estancia (a ranch) and meet gauchos, real Argentinian cowboys! :D I´m pretty excited. Lots of pictures and even some horseback riding??
Alright, that´s it for now. Good night, all! :)
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me :) -Psalm 3:5
So it´ll most likely be more of me talking (read: rambling) about different aspects of Buenos Aires/my trip thus far and what I think of them...as opposed to the here´s-every-single-thing-I-did-today type of rambling (reminiscent of my old xanga, haha). Just an fyi. And maybe that will help me learn to write with more focus...since my mommy told me that my writing is not very good -_- sigh.
BUT. For those of you who might want a more straightforward reading (probably without quite as much opinion) of what we´ve been up to, here are the blogs of some of my fellow Argentinians for the month ;)
Saskia´s blog, if you´re feeling ambitious enough to read in español
and Maija´s blog, which has both español and English!
Enjoy :)
With that, I´m gonna head off to sleep...tomorrow we´re going to visit an estancia (a ranch) and meet gauchos, real Argentinian cowboys! :D I´m pretty excited. Lots of pictures and even some horseback riding??
Alright, that´s it for now. Good night, all! :)
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me :) -Psalm 3:5
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
cuatro and counting.
(sorry, i´m terrible with blogpost names. actually, just blog names in general, as you can see. please pardon.)
hola, todos! i can´t believe it´s already, and yet only, been four days since i arrived in buenos aires. :) sunday afternoon was exploring some of the city, and classes started yesterday. hehe, the spanish classes remind me of the ones back in the u.s...we´re going over el subjuntivo, for any spanish takers out there. oh, grammar.
in the afternoons, we´ve been focusing on human rights and argentina, and there has been a lot of information to take in about the modern history of this beautiful country (1940s ish to present day). it really tears me up inside to think of the torture that humans inflict on each other. and all for what? power, or fame, or money? i feel like it´s been a recurring subject in the past few months, with the loft service on sexual trafficking, gettysburg (yes, a bit more random, i know), and now human rights. more on that later (or such is the hope and intention).
this city is large and so, so beautiful :) i´ve barely seen a glimpse of it, too! the setup actually reminds me of china, kind of...with the abundance of apartments and small stores right next to each other. everything´s so specialized :) hehe.
and i´m thankful every day for my host family. they really are so wonderful. sunday night was finger puppets and crosswords in spanish (which, for the record, are extremely hard) with my host mom :P and after class and wandering the streets, i get to stop by and see my parents at their office supplies shop. :) my little sister adores casi angeles (and now i want to learn their songs! so i can sing along, haha), and my brother makes me laugh quite a bit, probably unintentionally. i don´t know my older sister quite as much, but hope to do so. still adjusting to the late dinners (at 9 or 10!) and lack of vegetables XP
oh yes! and sunday night walking back from our orientation was super scary. my street was really dark and empty...i sped walked the whole way, haha. praise God for bringing me back safely! there is such a difference in the lifestyle of the city between weekdays and weekends, haha.
to my brothers and sisters, please pray for my quiet times. its been a bit hard to wake up early enough, and during the day there is so much to see that i find myself rarely dwelling on Jesus and abiding in Him =/
(and i know this is random, but is it just me, or are the song of thanks in 1 chron 16 and the beginning of psalm 105...extremely similar?)
well! i will stop here. this is getting way too long, even for me to want to read, haha. i hope all is going well with you, my dear reader! :) until next time.
hola, todos! i can´t believe it´s already, and yet only, been four days since i arrived in buenos aires. :) sunday afternoon was exploring some of the city, and classes started yesterday. hehe, the spanish classes remind me of the ones back in the u.s...we´re going over el subjuntivo, for any spanish takers out there. oh, grammar.
in the afternoons, we´ve been focusing on human rights and argentina, and there has been a lot of information to take in about the modern history of this beautiful country (1940s ish to present day). it really tears me up inside to think of the torture that humans inflict on each other. and all for what? power, or fame, or money? i feel like it´s been a recurring subject in the past few months, with the loft service on sexual trafficking, gettysburg (yes, a bit more random, i know), and now human rights. more on that later (or such is the hope and intention).
this city is large and so, so beautiful :) i´ve barely seen a glimpse of it, too! the setup actually reminds me of china, kind of...with the abundance of apartments and small stores right next to each other. everything´s so specialized :) hehe.
and i´m thankful every day for my host family. they really are so wonderful. sunday night was finger puppets and crosswords in spanish (which, for the record, are extremely hard) with my host mom :P and after class and wandering the streets, i get to stop by and see my parents at their office supplies shop. :) my little sister adores casi angeles (and now i want to learn their songs! so i can sing along, haha), and my brother makes me laugh quite a bit, probably unintentionally. i don´t know my older sister quite as much, but hope to do so. still adjusting to the late dinners (at 9 or 10!) and lack of vegetables XP
oh yes! and sunday night walking back from our orientation was super scary. my street was really dark and empty...i sped walked the whole way, haha. praise God for bringing me back safely! there is such a difference in the lifestyle of the city between weekdays and weekends, haha.
to my brothers and sisters, please pray for my quiet times. its been a bit hard to wake up early enough, and during the day there is so much to see that i find myself rarely dwelling on Jesus and abiding in Him =/
(and i know this is random, but is it just me, or are the song of thanks in 1 chron 16 and the beginning of psalm 105...extremely similar?)
well! i will stop here. this is getting way too long, even for me to want to read, haha. i hope all is going well with you, my dear reader! :) until next time.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
buenos dias, buenos aires :D
hey everyone :) first, just want to thank you guys for all the prayers. all five of us got here safely at 8 a.m. today!! praise God :) at least for me, no queasiness and even got to sleep for most of the ride! (highly unusual; sleep usually comes in two hour segments or less)
(plus! i got to meet a really cool guy on my one hour trip from houston to dallas...who has traveled to 30+ countries and he's in his early thirties!! what an inspiration. shoutout to you, eric, if you're reading this!)
but yes. we are HERE :D and it´s exciting!! i love love love my host family. my parents are hilarious and really caring and my siblings (especially the two younger ones) are pretty silly :) yay!
today, i just got to chill with them. did a lot of walking in the late morning. it's so hard to think in spanish! takes proactive efforts, haha. for some reason i keep wanting to respond in chinese...which makes it even harder -_- haha. i think because i'm CSL (chinese second language) and STL (spanish third language??), haha.
alright, laptop is about to die. more updates to come soon, hopefully :)
take care, everyone! :) please continue to keep us in your prayers. every day is an adventure, and i don't want any to pass by without seeking whatever God wants to show me :)
(plus! i got to meet a really cool guy on my one hour trip from houston to dallas...who has traveled to 30+ countries and he's in his early thirties!! what an inspiration. shoutout to you, eric, if you're reading this!)
but yes. we are HERE :D and it´s exciting!! i love love love my host family. my parents are hilarious and really caring and my siblings (especially the two younger ones) are pretty silly :) yay!
today, i just got to chill with them. did a lot of walking in the late morning. it's so hard to think in spanish! takes proactive efforts, haha. for some reason i keep wanting to respond in chinese...which makes it even harder -_- haha. i think because i'm CSL (chinese second language) and STL (spanish third language??), haha.
alright, laptop is about to die. more updates to come soon, hopefully :)
take care, everyone! :) please continue to keep us in your prayers. every day is an adventure, and i don't want any to pass by without seeking whatever God wants to show me :)
Thursday, June 3, 2010
argentina, here i come!
so! in twenty four hours i will be on a plane, headed to buenos aires, argentina, sometimes referred to as "the paris of south america." i'm so excited :) will be gone for precisely a month. not much to say in this first post...just creating a blog for whenever i travel. hopefully i'll be able to update this...semi-often XP mostly packed, but still pretty clueless on how i'll be spending my time outside of classes. definitely need to brush up on my (conversational...and evangelism?) spanish.
got information about where/who i'm staying with for the next few weeks :D i'm going to have three host siblings! around my age. and they replied to my email :)
so...here's to improving my spanish, exploring a beautiful city and country, eating amazing food, meeting new people, and maybe even witnessing about my faith to someone within the next month :D
(found this. kinda neat :) http://www.losnavegantes.net/puente.html )
read john 14:27 this morning when i was still feeling a bit stressed from my lack of packing and preparation (some of which is still true at this moment).
[Jesus says,] "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid."
let God's peace reign. no matter where you are :)
got information about where/who i'm staying with for the next few weeks :D i'm going to have three host siblings! around my age. and they replied to my email :)
so...here's to improving my spanish, exploring a beautiful city and country, eating amazing food, meeting new people, and maybe even witnessing about my faith to someone within the next month :D
(found this. kinda neat :) http://www.losnavegantes.net/puente.html )
read john 14:27 this morning when i was still feeling a bit stressed from my lack of packing and preparation (some of which is still true at this moment).
[Jesus says,] "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid."
let God's peace reign. no matter where you are :)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)