Short Week with High Expectations

Hey everyone! I hope things are going well and that everyone is enjoying the changing weather. I hear snow has come super early to CO (hopefully that means a good ski season is ahead). :) This week was a rather short one and I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to write about it. The reality is that I left Friday with 7 other girls for a week of 'spring break' vacations in Southern Patagonia! As a result, I have been traveling instead of writing... So, here are the noteworthy events from the week prior to break.

Monday started off as usual. For once I was not hurrying to class and as usual, our pfofessor was late. 30 minutes into class, he walked in and when we did not immediately stop talking and ¨prestar atención¨ (pay attention) we got a lecture about being respectful and how since the professor was present we should be focused on learning. ¨You are no longer in high school, and if you want to laugh and have fun you can go into the hall. For those of you who want to learn, we will begin now.¨ I personally found this rather ironic coming from the man who had shown up 30minutes late to class... Oh life in Argentina... After class I walked straight to Spanish with some other girls from the program. Along the way they stopped at a restaurant to grab food to go. This restaurant is by no means 'normal' for Argentina. First, it is all vegetarian food (which is a growing trend here rather than being very popular like it is in the states). Second, it is food to-go, which is also not very easy to find here. The culture is such that the idea of eating on the run generally isn't as accepted or prevalent. The food looked wonderful though, so I decided to keep it in mind for other days to come if I needed a quick meal. We walked to class and for the first time enjoyed a LOVELY class outside in the sun! It was wonderfully warm and the semi-fresh air was great! I actually got slightly sunburned... whoops. Guess its time to break out the sunscreen. :) Aftrer class I walked home with a few friends and enjoyed a quite lunch (Sole and Paola were sleeping). After lunch and a short nap, I dragged myself out of bed and to the gym. I'm enjoying the time to work out and think. Its a nice relaxation to have. However...my wonderful efforts were thwarted when I came back to the apartment, because the instant that I sat down with my computer I was gifted a café con leche and a large slice of chocolate cake (that we're still trying to eat from last week). After homework, a very late dinner (at 10:30) and of course our weekly show Lie to Me, it was off to bed.

Tuesday morning came way to early and I decided not to go to the gym and instead went in search of specific clothing items (sweat pants) and a bag for our upcoming trip. It was nice to be out before class and enjoy the bustling streets. After a very successful trip, I returned to the apartment to change clothes before class. Walking across town is also becoming a great way for me to get excercise and I rarely take transportation anymore (prefering to walk instead). I walked to class, printed my homework with time to spare. And enjoyed an interesting lecture on Argentinean Development and comparisons of development theories before heading home with a grumbling stomache for lunch. Sole had company over and as luck would have it, they brought us another chocolate cake... This is a never ending process! I enjoyed ravioli and of course a slice of cake as I talked with the company. One woman is actually going to become a host family! This is perfect timing, because another girl in the program is looking to switch and this woman seems wonderful! I worked on a bit of homework and then left for Sociology. For the first time we didn't start class with attendance! It was actually a very worthwhile class and considering that it will be my last class before my partial, I was paying close attention. After class it was back home for dinner and an EARLY bedtime. Paola's 'man friend' joined us for dinner again and brought with him...can you guess? Nope its not cake this time... 3 trays of pastries! For breakfast and snack... Yep I give up! Sole promptly told me to take a tray to class tomorrow to get it out of the house and I was happy to take them. Dinner was delicious and I went straight to bed after.

Wednesday morning is definitely my ¨díá de diablo¨or devil day and I had a very hard time getting out of bed. Made it to the bus stop with time to spare and ran into 4 other girls from my class on the way. We all walked to the office together and enjoyed a lovely breakfast before/during class. Our discussion centered around first experiences at the children's center and it was interesting to hear what everyone else had to say about their first days. I'm planning to go tomorrow, so the advice on what to expect was also helpful. After class I sat to work and study for language class for the next 3 hours. Its really nice to have this break outside the apartment where I feel much more inclined to do some focused reading and studying. Language class came far too soon and Louisa and I began the walk to class. This part of the week, the walk in particular, has become a 30 minute discussion/ranting session for the two of us where we can vent our frustrations to another student who understands what we're going through. This support is invaluable and especially since I've been having a hard time lately I really appreciate having great friends like her around. The spanish exam passed without too much trouble and we were very happy to hear that not only do we not have class during break, but we're getting a break the week after too! What a lovely way to start vacation! After class it was back home for a quiet lunch and power nap before tango! This class was the most intense yet. We worked with only the female teacher, who seems a bit highstrung to begin with, and can get frustrated when we don't know what is going on. Lots of people missed class too, so that made it even more complicated. However, we learned a lot of new steps and I got to work with my friend Sarah since neither of our partners were there. Its shaping up to be a very exciting performance alternating focus between us and the real, native dancers. After class I retired to home and spent the evening working on homework. Lots to do before leaving on Friday...

Thursday was a BUSY day! Just the way I like it. I had class in the morning and then came home for a short bit before Louisa and I were scheduled to meet and go together to the children's home. However, I received an e-mail that my provisional visa had arrived and I needed to go to the office to pick it up. As a result, I grabbed an apple on the go and headed on foot to the office. Along the way I grabbed some vegetarian food from the restaurant (knew that stop would come in handy) and made it to the office with time to print tickets, pick up the visa, and ask a few last minute questions. I quickly scarfed my food and then managed to catch the right bus (the only one of 6) to the hospital. Louisa and I met up and went without incident to volunteer. Interesting sidenote: there is no exact equivalent for ¨volunteer¨ here. The concept of volunteer work is still developing in the sense of going somewhere to serve instead of just doing a collection or some other one-time event. Anywho, upon arriving at the house, the kids were just arriving so we sat down to help with homework. I ended up holding an adorable child so that the young lady who was the teacher for the afternoon could work. She is a senior in high school, but every afternoon she is in charge of helping the children and working with them on lessons. So I sat for the next 2 hours holding this child who was obviously tired but refused to sleep... He'd be fine for a short bit and would then start wailing. Then with a few adjustments he was fine again. This sequence occured about every 10-15 minutes and I felt bad that I couldn't do anything else for him. It was a fun afternoon though, watching the kids and playing with them or helping with lessons. It reminded me a lot of working at the Bridge Project in Denver only less organized and with less supplies or helpers. We left shortly after 5 in order to arrive home before dark and were able to catch a bus right away...must have been my lucky day with busses! I made it home nice and early in time to work on hw, think about packing, and have dinner with Sole and Paola. Pizza night has been put on hold since we all have so much to do. America's next top model was on as usual and Sole and I rejoiced to see our least favorite character sent home. Now its down to 3 and I´m going to miss the finale next week... Definitely not complaining though! I went to bed early with a mind full of activities on the to-do list (for which there is also not a spanish translation). Tomorrow we leave at 6pm and I am SUPER excited. It hit me today that this is the first time in my life I am actually ditching class. I´m not sick, its not a fieldtrip, class has not been cancelled (as we were expecting) and as a result I am actually ditching! For those reading from school or scholastically related organizations, we have also been told by our teachers and advisors here that it is understood we will take time to travel and that this is an experience we should take advantage of while we are here. In other words, its basically condoned and it is the only time I plan on purposefully missing while I am here. :)

Anywho, I can't wait for all the great adventures and places to see in the next 10 days. I'll probably try to split up the adventure/spring break blog into parts because othewise I imagine it could get rather long... Look for the next post in the coming days! I hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for keeping up with me. It feels really nice to know that so many people care about what's going on in my life that if I miss a blog or put it up late people are writing for an update and want to keep up with the adventure. :) Please all take care of yourselves. I hear swine flu is coming back with a vengeance... Can't wait to talk to you soon!!

All my love!