Hey everyone! Here comes the next addition in my attempt to catch up!
Monday began bright and early as I still had to finish writing responses to this week's home work assignment for history. However I finished with just enough time to get ready and go to class. Once there I immediately asked myself why I had gotten up early to make it to class "on time". The professor was of course about 30-45 minutes late as well. He then collected all our assignments and proceeded to call every student by name through the list to observe how many absent days they had acquired and if they were eligible to participate in the class still... Here if you miss more than 25% of the classes you fail the class and have to take it again. For history that meant more than 6 missed classes and it was amazing to me that the approximately 35 Argentineans we had started with were down to less than 15!!! At any rate, we spent the rest of class going through and analyzing students. He didn't even bother to look at the 8 of us and we left shaking our heads and wondering why we had bothered going to class...oh yeah, to turn in our assignments. :( As usual it was off to spanish class. We're down to just 2 more after today and then the final. I can't believe its almost over. Feels like just yesterday that we had arrived from BA and were trying to find our way to spanish class during the first week (remember how frustrated I was with the busses? How much time I spent waiting on them?). After class I went immediately home to work on studying for Sociology. With all the history over the weekend, I hadn't had much time to study for my huge exam! If I pass this exam with a 78% or better and pass at least 75% my class work I won't have to take the oral final!!! Therefore, lots of enticement to study. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) Sole had a couple friends over for dinner (including my uncle Fernando) so I didn't get quite as much studying done as I would've liked before dinner. It was absolutely delicious! We had some type of fish with a white sauce on top, mushrooms in a white wine sauce on the side, bread, and salad. It was SUPER good! Right after dinner it was off to bed for me.
I woke up Tuesday morning and managed to get some studying done before heading off to Development class at the office. As my schedule has gotten gradually busier with the extreme amount of studying, I have begun taking the trolley more often and walking less in order to save time. Its also hard to convince myself to walk when its in the 80's or 90's outside. Class went pretty smoothly. We're talking about the period of Peronism, which I find fascinating, so it was a good class. Then it was straight back home to eat and study. I missed my siesta studying and then went to class hoping that I had prepared enough for the exam. We reviewed a few things before beginning and then the prof handed out our tests... I felt like it went pretty well, but I can never be sure. I know I lost a few points (left one space blank) but overall I felt like it was a decently easy exam. Now I just have to wait for the results... After we met with our group quickly to work out details of the project and headed for home. Christa and I are going to meet on Thursday afternoon to complete our part and mail it in. Hooray for doing an entire project through e-mail! After the exam I went home to work on my final project for Childhood. With all the other work this week, I hadn't even started it! I have a presentation and paper due tomorrow and haven't even started it. The good news was that I had my topic: Child Labor (focused on Argentina). After a good few hours of researching, pasting photos, word, and powerpoint, I was finally finished at 3am!!! Nearly an all-nighter here in Argentina. I went to bed exhausted and knowing that my alarm would ring WAY too soon!
I was up Wednesday morning around 6:30. :( Class was good though to see all the presentations and then I stayed at the office for a bit reading and working more on history timelines... Then it was off to spanish, which went as usual and had nothing super exciting. Then I went home for a nap and even skipped lunch to get a longer nap before Tango. Tango was nothing exciting (although our professor was back). She gave us more theory and technique notes for the exam and we continues practicing basic steps. At the end I was EXHAUSTED and only wanted to go home and sleep. Which I pretty much did. Sole had to work late, so we didn't eat until pretty late. I was practically asleep on the couch when they called me to dinner.
Thursday I woke up and dragged myself to history. Then it was back home for a quick lunch before going to my last volunteering session. :( I can't believe its over too! I am really going to miss these cute kids! We had fun playing with them and coloring to practice english words. Then I rushed home to meet with Christa in a cafe to work on our part of the sociology project. We managed to finish in a decent amount of time with the help of a few snacks and ICED coffee!!! Then I went back home to sit infront of the tv and relax! I watched a few shows with Sole and then headed to bed to catch up on all the sleep I've missed. It was nice to sleep in and since I did not have TOO much going on the next day.
In the next update look for all the details of our San Rafael getaway!
Have a great week!!! I hope to hear from you all soon.
All my love!
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
WInding Down and Appreciating New Lessons
Hey everyone! SO...as you all know I'm VERY behind on these blog entries... Terribly sorry for those of you who constantly check this for new information. :( I will try my very best to get caught up soon, especially since I am heading for home 2 weeks from today! Can't even believe it. But, let me take you back to the very first week of November...
Monday morning in history started with a discussion about the book we blazed through over the weekend and then we left for spanish. After the traditional stop at our favorite vegetarian restaurant we were off to spanish class. It was the same as usual. Exercises in class and a little bit of home work. Its hard to believe we're winding down the semester already and getting close to the end. After class I walked home and enjoyed a lovely lunch and nap. With no sociology class tomorrow (courtesy of passing both the partials and not needing to take the make-up exam) I didn't have much to study for. However, I did have the history exam hanging over my head for Thursday... As a result, I spent lots of time working on the massive timeline I seem to be developing in order to get my thoughts in order for this class. Overall it was a relatively relaxing evening with little excitement.
Tuesday I didn't have anything to do until Regional Development at 1pm, so I slept in and worked on some more work in the morning. After it was back to the house for lunch and a nap. I'm still amazed at how much I sleep here and I know I'm going to miss siestas when I get back. In the afternoon I worked on some more history and spanish home work. I also attempted to come up with a plan for my final project in my childhood class... We are supposed to have our ideas formulated by tomorrow, but I just haven't found mine yet. I also got to register for my DU winter classes today!!! It was super exciting to pick them out and have plans finalized. What a gift to already know when my finals are for the end of the quarter. All the uncertainty here has really made me appreciate the organization of DU and our USA schooling system. As much as I love my life here and all the people, I don't think I could ever stay another semester just because I can't imagine putting up with another semester of the school system. It was a relatively early night with such early classes as usual on Wednesday.
Our class went smoothly as usual at 8am and after Louisa and I didn't have much to do so we walked to spanish SUPER early and sat in the sun talking about our lives, the semester, things at home, classes, etc. She's such a wonderful friend and I'm really excited to hang out with her when we get back. Lucky there are so many CO students in the program both from DU and CC. I guess the rivalry will remain strictly for hockey... :) After a lovely few hours "studying" and practicing our spanish skills, it was time for spanish class. Our professor wasn't there on time (the very first time for her) and so we all sat and talked for nearly 45 minutes about the classes we'd registered for, what we're looking forward to back in the US, the first things we're going to eat or do. I swear these conversations get longer and more detailed every time we have them. We spent a good 20 minutes just talking about all the things we're looking forward to with school. What an insight this experience has given me into the type of school system I can function in. How different the 2 places are. For example, when I get back to DU, I know that I will receive a detailed syllabus on the first day of class with dates of exams, projects, final, and other important/non-negotiable information. The professor will be in class on time and probably early, If class is going to be cancelled, I will likely receive an e-mail before. Should the teacher not show up in the first 15 minutes, I have every right to leave because class is then considered cancelled. I will have a book to read from instead of disorganized photocopies that may or may not be in the photocopier. And the list goes on. It made me very grateful for the education and opportunities I do have back in the states. After spanish it was back home for the usual quick lunch and nap before Tango. Class went just fine, although the teacher didn't show up...so we were taught by some of the students and worked on basic steps. I feel like this instruction would've been very useful at the beginning of the semester with all the technique and basics, but I understand that they were just trying to get the choreography done for the show. After a shorter class I left to go find my sociology group at Congreso, but to no avail... Instead I somehow missed them. We have a rather large project due next Tuesday, and I am hoping to get as much done as possible before then. Unfortunately I still don't know what part I'll be responsible for. At the apartment, I had possibly the more Argentinean afternoon yet. While studying history and searching every author on Wikipedia (which is a perfectly acceptable source here) I drank mate (the local tea) and ate crackers with dulce de leche. It really doesn't get much more Argentinean than that. :) I feel pretty prepared for the exam tomorrow and honestly I'm just looking forward to being done with it all. THe evening was rather relaxing and I was in bed at a very decent hour.
Thursday I arrived in history very nervous and spent our usual time waiting on the professor studying my notes and reviewing concepts. Class was interesting with a little new information about some of the modern thinkers and the slides are supposed to be in the photocopier later this week... We'll see if that actually happens. The next partial is coming up along with the rest of what I have dubbed "Hell Week with a Focus on History". After class, we waited until everyone had left and then the professor began with me. Asking questions about the 2 books we had read by "Maquievelo" and "Moro". I was nervous to describe them, especially cause one of my friends, Nico, was in the class listening too...but it went smoothly. The professor also collected our timelines and breezed over them looking for dates and people. She said mine was very complete and for the first time in that class I felt proud of my work. I felt awful for 2 of my other friends though, Deven and Caitlin. Both of them didn't pass the first partial and we had all thought from an e-mail that was sent to us that they would get a second chance today too, but unfortunately that wasn't the case, and the professor told them that they would just have to take the make-up exam. :( It didn't seem fair at all that Dylan and I (who had clearly gotten a second chance) would pass the first exam and the other 2 wouldn't. After class it was back home for a birthday celebration in honor of my Aunt Paola. Sole made a wonderful lunch and surprised her with a couple friends at the house. It was a lot of fun and even though I didn't say much the whole meal it was nice to be included and to just be there. I've gotten pretty attached to my Argentinean family and I know its going to be super hard to say goodbye. After lunch it was off to volunteer work. I arrived slightly late, but happy to be there. Unfortunately a not so lovely sight awaited me. Hundreds of donated eggs had been placed in the study room and since a vast majority of them were destroyed, broken, or at least cracked, they had attracted an enormous amount of flies... It was like walking through a buzzing cloud to get to the tables and it almost made me sick to keep swatting at them for 2 hours or to try to walk around the room. Some of the women were going through the crates and throwing away the ones that were completely destroyed, but lots of them remained and when the kids started leaving at the end of the day each child was sent home with a crate of eggs. Usually I look forward to my time at Brazos Abiertos, but today I couldn't wait to leave. With the heat and the flies I had had enough! I happily left at 5 and came back to the apartment for a much needed nap. I then proceeded to relax through the evening and watched an absurd number of movies on TV before heading off to bed.
Friday I spent a decent amount of time working on assignments for history and catching up on sleep. I didn't really feel like going out, so I stayed in for the night. It was nice to finally have a day to just relax and chill. Of course I did also spend time studying for my Sociology exam that is upcoming this next Tuesday. The next few weeks will certainly be trying, so it was really nice to have some time to lay back and breathe before diving right into it.
Saturday I again spent the time studying and working on home work and other assignments. Between all I have to do this next week, my hours were certainly filled. By the time it reached the evening, Sole thought I had had enough time studying for the day and practically sent me out of the house. "You're going out tonight," she said, "Too much studying isn't good for your brain." So with that I left to meet up with a friend Lisa for drinks and to chat. It took us forever to find one another and by the end I was frustrated, but we finally connected and sat down for peach daiquiris and a brownie dessert. It was really fun and we sat and talked for a few house about upcoming exams, classes, the semester, etc. I think its just starting to hit everyone how fast the semester has gone and yet we don't really have time to think about it yet with finals bearing down upon us.
Sunday was completely devoted to history studying. In the afternoon I met up with 2 friends at our favorite local bakery for a study session of history and to complete our timelines. It was quite the project and took us nearly 5 hours!!! Needless to say when I got back to the house I had a history headache, but was no where near done. Turns out that the professor had decided he wanted a written piece about each of our book discussions along with the home work for Monday. As a result, I spent the late hours of Sunday night and early into Monday morning finishing my written version of the assignment from last week, my timeline, and the assignment for the next day. Oh that which does not kill us makes us stronger...or just hate political theory...or appreciate the US system... The lessons I'm learning. :)
Things to look forward to in the next week/blog: Sociology Global (could mean the end of the class for me), Childhood Final (written and presentation), a weekend escape with the program to San Rafael. :)
Hope everyone is doing well! I miss you all bunches and can't wait to see you in a short time!
All my love!
Monday morning in history started with a discussion about the book we blazed through over the weekend and then we left for spanish. After the traditional stop at our favorite vegetarian restaurant we were off to spanish class. It was the same as usual. Exercises in class and a little bit of home work. Its hard to believe we're winding down the semester already and getting close to the end. After class I walked home and enjoyed a lovely lunch and nap. With no sociology class tomorrow (courtesy of passing both the partials and not needing to take the make-up exam) I didn't have much to study for. However, I did have the history exam hanging over my head for Thursday... As a result, I spent lots of time working on the massive timeline I seem to be developing in order to get my thoughts in order for this class. Overall it was a relatively relaxing evening with little excitement.
Tuesday I didn't have anything to do until Regional Development at 1pm, so I slept in and worked on some more work in the morning. After it was back to the house for lunch and a nap. I'm still amazed at how much I sleep here and I know I'm going to miss siestas when I get back. In the afternoon I worked on some more history and spanish home work. I also attempted to come up with a plan for my final project in my childhood class... We are supposed to have our ideas formulated by tomorrow, but I just haven't found mine yet. I also got to register for my DU winter classes today!!! It was super exciting to pick them out and have plans finalized. What a gift to already know when my finals are for the end of the quarter. All the uncertainty here has really made me appreciate the organization of DU and our USA schooling system. As much as I love my life here and all the people, I don't think I could ever stay another semester just because I can't imagine putting up with another semester of the school system. It was a relatively early night with such early classes as usual on Wednesday.
Our class went smoothly as usual at 8am and after Louisa and I didn't have much to do so we walked to spanish SUPER early and sat in the sun talking about our lives, the semester, things at home, classes, etc. She's such a wonderful friend and I'm really excited to hang out with her when we get back. Lucky there are so many CO students in the program both from DU and CC. I guess the rivalry will remain strictly for hockey... :) After a lovely few hours "studying" and practicing our spanish skills, it was time for spanish class. Our professor wasn't there on time (the very first time for her) and so we all sat and talked for nearly 45 minutes about the classes we'd registered for, what we're looking forward to back in the US, the first things we're going to eat or do. I swear these conversations get longer and more detailed every time we have them. We spent a good 20 minutes just talking about all the things we're looking forward to with school. What an insight this experience has given me into the type of school system I can function in. How different the 2 places are. For example, when I get back to DU, I know that I will receive a detailed syllabus on the first day of class with dates of exams, projects, final, and other important/non-negotiable information. The professor will be in class on time and probably early, If class is going to be cancelled, I will likely receive an e-mail before. Should the teacher not show up in the first 15 minutes, I have every right to leave because class is then considered cancelled. I will have a book to read from instead of disorganized photocopies that may or may not be in the photocopier. And the list goes on. It made me very grateful for the education and opportunities I do have back in the states. After spanish it was back home for the usual quick lunch and nap before Tango. Class went just fine, although the teacher didn't show up...so we were taught by some of the students and worked on basic steps. I feel like this instruction would've been very useful at the beginning of the semester with all the technique and basics, but I understand that they were just trying to get the choreography done for the show. After a shorter class I left to go find my sociology group at Congreso, but to no avail... Instead I somehow missed them. We have a rather large project due next Tuesday, and I am hoping to get as much done as possible before then. Unfortunately I still don't know what part I'll be responsible for. At the apartment, I had possibly the more Argentinean afternoon yet. While studying history and searching every author on Wikipedia (which is a perfectly acceptable source here) I drank mate (the local tea) and ate crackers with dulce de leche. It really doesn't get much more Argentinean than that. :) I feel pretty prepared for the exam tomorrow and honestly I'm just looking forward to being done with it all. THe evening was rather relaxing and I was in bed at a very decent hour.
Thursday I arrived in history very nervous and spent our usual time waiting on the professor studying my notes and reviewing concepts. Class was interesting with a little new information about some of the modern thinkers and the slides are supposed to be in the photocopier later this week... We'll see if that actually happens. The next partial is coming up along with the rest of what I have dubbed "Hell Week with a Focus on History". After class, we waited until everyone had left and then the professor began with me. Asking questions about the 2 books we had read by "Maquievelo" and "Moro". I was nervous to describe them, especially cause one of my friends, Nico, was in the class listening too...but it went smoothly. The professor also collected our timelines and breezed over them looking for dates and people. She said mine was very complete and for the first time in that class I felt proud of my work. I felt awful for 2 of my other friends though, Deven and Caitlin. Both of them didn't pass the first partial and we had all thought from an e-mail that was sent to us that they would get a second chance today too, but unfortunately that wasn't the case, and the professor told them that they would just have to take the make-up exam. :( It didn't seem fair at all that Dylan and I (who had clearly gotten a second chance) would pass the first exam and the other 2 wouldn't. After class it was back home for a birthday celebration in honor of my Aunt Paola. Sole made a wonderful lunch and surprised her with a couple friends at the house. It was a lot of fun and even though I didn't say much the whole meal it was nice to be included and to just be there. I've gotten pretty attached to my Argentinean family and I know its going to be super hard to say goodbye. After lunch it was off to volunteer work. I arrived slightly late, but happy to be there. Unfortunately a not so lovely sight awaited me. Hundreds of donated eggs had been placed in the study room and since a vast majority of them were destroyed, broken, or at least cracked, they had attracted an enormous amount of flies... It was like walking through a buzzing cloud to get to the tables and it almost made me sick to keep swatting at them for 2 hours or to try to walk around the room. Some of the women were going through the crates and throwing away the ones that were completely destroyed, but lots of them remained and when the kids started leaving at the end of the day each child was sent home with a crate of eggs. Usually I look forward to my time at Brazos Abiertos, but today I couldn't wait to leave. With the heat and the flies I had had enough! I happily left at 5 and came back to the apartment for a much needed nap. I then proceeded to relax through the evening and watched an absurd number of movies on TV before heading off to bed.
Friday I spent a decent amount of time working on assignments for history and catching up on sleep. I didn't really feel like going out, so I stayed in for the night. It was nice to finally have a day to just relax and chill. Of course I did also spend time studying for my Sociology exam that is upcoming this next Tuesday. The next few weeks will certainly be trying, so it was really nice to have some time to lay back and breathe before diving right into it.
Saturday I again spent the time studying and working on home work and other assignments. Between all I have to do this next week, my hours were certainly filled. By the time it reached the evening, Sole thought I had had enough time studying for the day and practically sent me out of the house. "You're going out tonight," she said, "Too much studying isn't good for your brain." So with that I left to meet up with a friend Lisa for drinks and to chat. It took us forever to find one another and by the end I was frustrated, but we finally connected and sat down for peach daiquiris and a brownie dessert. It was really fun and we sat and talked for a few house about upcoming exams, classes, the semester, etc. I think its just starting to hit everyone how fast the semester has gone and yet we don't really have time to think about it yet with finals bearing down upon us.
Sunday was completely devoted to history studying. In the afternoon I met up with 2 friends at our favorite local bakery for a study session of history and to complete our timelines. It was quite the project and took us nearly 5 hours!!! Needless to say when I got back to the house I had a history headache, but was no where near done. Turns out that the professor had decided he wanted a written piece about each of our book discussions along with the home work for Monday. As a result, I spent the late hours of Sunday night and early into Monday morning finishing my written version of the assignment from last week, my timeline, and the assignment for the next day. Oh that which does not kill us makes us stronger...or just hate political theory...or appreciate the US system... The lessons I'm learning. :)
Things to look forward to in the next week/blog: Sociology Global (could mean the end of the class for me), Childhood Final (written and presentation), a weekend escape with the program to San Rafael. :)
Hope everyone is doing well! I miss you all bunches and can't wait to see you in a short time!
All my love!
Even MORE Photos!
Hey everyone! So I uploaded more photos today and now they are up to date again. I did change the name of the album to Study Abroad #2, but all the pics are there. I just FINALLY finished up with my finals this week and my family came out to visit, so I have not had ANY time to write. :( That is part of the plan for this weekend! Hopefully look for more blogs soon!
Miss you!
All my love.
Miss you!
All my love.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
More Photos!
Hey everyone,
As some of you may have guessed (since my latest post has to do with Halloween) I am WAY behind on the writing part. However, the photos are current and up to date. There is a new album entitled Weekend Getaways that has the latest photos from last weekend's wonderful escape with the program to San Rafael. Look for more after this coming weekend's escape to Chile!
I hope you are all doing well and I promise to try and catch up on the blog entries as soon as possible.
Miss you all!
All my love!
As some of you may have guessed (since my latest post has to do with Halloween) I am WAY behind on the writing part. However, the photos are current and up to date. There is a new album entitled Weekend Getaways that has the latest photos from last weekend's wonderful escape with the program to San Rafael. Look for more after this coming weekend's escape to Chile!
I hope you are all doing well and I promise to try and catch up on the blog entries as soon as possible.
Miss you all!
All my love!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Searching for the silver lining (ie NOT letting my History class get to me)
Hey everyone! I obviously have found myself quite behind and am now doing my best to catch up. This past week was one of the most academically trying and frustrating that I have ever experienced (and I'm sure even writing about it will find me frustrated again). Anywho...there were also many good points to the week as you shall soon see!
Monday we arrived in history class as usual to await our professor. When he waltzed in at 10:15 (roughly his usual 45 minutes late) and began writing on the board, what showed up were the 'final' dates for the rest of this semester. We all knew that dates for the partial, 'recuperatorio' = make-up exam, and project presentations had been moved. We now found out that they were all moved to the same week right after classes are 'over'. Its honestly frustrating, but at least we for sure don't have the presentations on Wednesday and when I have other class comittments. However, we are going to have class on Wednesday instead. So, I will have class from 8:20-10, 9:30-12 (yes I'm aware there is an impossible overlap), 1-3, and 5:30-7... It is going to be a LONG day. Ohh, and in between the 2nd and 3rd classes is when I have to take my "make-up" oral history exam for the one I missed when I was sick. Talk about a crazy day! After the prof was done explaining the dates and times, he read off our homework for the next Monday and sent us on our way. What a gift that class was out early! I had plenty to do before Spanish. Today was our general birthday celebration and I still had to wrap my gift etc. So in was back home for me. I quickly wrapped my gift and then went to the store to buy food for the party. I was in charge of apples and dulce de leche, which is about like apples and caramel. With everything ready, I hurried off to class. We had a great time! Sitting outside under a tree, we spread all the food out on a picnic blanket and shared stories from our favorite birthday and a wish for the next one. There were all kinds of treats and 2 people even made cake! Carrot cake (which no one here has ever even heard of before) and mocha cheesecake (which was AMAZING)! We also exchanged gifts with our "invisible friend" and I received a delicious bottle of white wine and a bar of chocolate from David. :) I think I'll plan to save the wine for the end of the day Wednesday if the partial goes well. After class I walked home and hardly ate lunch (as a result of all the sweets from class) and took a nap before getting up to study into the evening. History, I've decided, is nearly impossible.
Tuesday I woke up with the intention of studying before class and did for a bit, but not much. Then it was off to the office for class. It is getting so hot outside that its hard to convince myself to walk anymore, so I actually gave in and took the trolley. After class I did walk home and enjoyed a lovely lunch and a quick nap before sociology. Class began with an hour long presentation by another teacher about how to draw a proper concept map from reading an article. Apparently we need this information for the group project we're supposed to start working on. After the presentation, our regular teacher announced that she had our second partials graded and we could either have them then or wait until after class and work on some information first. Of course everyone wanted the exams back, so we spent the next hour handing out exams while she was also trying to explain how the rest of the classes would be laid out for the semester. Next week is set to be the make-up exam, and so if we had passed both partials we don't need to come (which is super nice) and then the following week is the global exam over the 2 mid-terms and the information for our group project. If I pass that test with a 78% or higher I won't have to take the final. When the students heard the percent needed to skip the final, they started arguing fiercely with the professor about the level required. This continued as she attempted to hand out exams. I finally got mine back and was SO proud and excited to see an 88.5% (grade 8) written in the top right corner! I not only passed the second exam, I jumped up 2 and nearly 3 levels from the first one! All that reading and studying last week had paid off!!! I was so excited to tell Sole, but when I got home, no one was around. Instead I began attempting to study history again so that I could do well on the exam tomorrow morning, but that studying was not going well. There is just so much information and so many people that I get them confused in my head. After dinner I pretty much went right to bed so I would be ready to get up and face the day tomorrow.
Wednesday... oh Wednesday... One of the worst days I've had... Childhood went well in the morning (early, but well) and I booked it out of there as fast as possible to catch a bus into town and to class. I ended up on a bus that took the most indirect route possible and finally asked to just hop off at a stoplight (which you technically aren't supposed to do). I quickly walked the block to school and the 6 flights of stairs up to the classroom... I sat through the lecture trying to catch onto what the professor was talking about... and hardly catching any of it. After class, we waited patiently for her to get her notes in order and then she simply started asking us questions about the material and the authors...One question per person back and forth and when one didn't have the answer, she'd turn to the other looking for a response. Clearly we weren't doing very well and with every question, she got more specific and we got more confused. After about half an hour of half answered questions and failed attempts on both our parts, she decided that we would stop there. "I don't know if its the language or the material," she said, "but how about you study some more and we'll try this again next week?" She also asked us to make her timelines to bring to class on the next Thursday when we attempt the exam again. Its her idea of how to better organize the authors and all the thoughts. I have never been so upset in my life. I left the classroom practically in tears behind my sunglasses. While waiting at the bus stop, we bumped into some other girls from the program. and they were really comforting about the whole thing. It amazes me how close we've all gotten here. What a blessing to have all these other students to share experiences and trials with. I made it to spanish and my friend Louisa could tell something was wrong. I explained to her before class and we grudgingly walked into the room... She's so supportive and caring. All through class I sat unusually quiet and at the break my professor asked me if I was ok. I clearly was not, and told her all about the morning. With every sentence about the history class she seemed to get more frustrated and by the end of my explanation she was fuming! She's usually very calm and pleasant, and I've never seen her so upset. She started spouting off about how unkind this treatment was and that they should understand we're a special case being from another country and trying to learn the language and that we were being discriminated against. I wasn't sure if I agreed with it all, but I was thankful for her support. We all went outside for break and I was sure she was talking to the other professors about the situation. When we got back to class, she put a notebook in front of me and asked me to write down the professors' names, name of the class, etc because she is planning to come sit in on the next exam to make sure we are treated fairly. I was in shock! This was not what I had planned and I certainly didn't want it to look like I had gone over the professor's head complaining ... But she would not be swayed. So I wrote down the information. We finished class without any other exciting events and I went home for my quick lunch and 20 minute nap before Tango. When I got home what a wonderful lunch awaited me! I was SO excited. Sole always seems to know when I'm going to need a pick me up type meal. She had made omelets! Egg, ham, and cheese. I was so happy. My short break passed in the blink of an eye and I found myself on the way to tango with 3 other girls from the class. We walked and talked about the week. I wasn't the only one who had become seriously frustrated with professors or the system and its so nice to have each other to confide in or rant to, cause we certainly need it at least once a week. When we got to tango, hardly anyone was there. I knew not many people were coming since it was the practice after the show, but I was surprised that there were only about 7 of us. The first part of the class was spent taking notes about the theory and structure of tango for our written exam on the 18th of November (one more thing to add to the hell week) and then we practiced simple patterns for a bit. It was a lot of fun and I wondered if we had started with steps like this how much better we would've looked in the show. After class I walked home with a bunch of friends and we stopped for ice cream on the way. It was pretty good and just what we needed in a hot afternoon after a rough week. When I got home I was exhausted. With no desire to study I relaxed and watched tv while I waited on dinner. After dinner it was straight to bed. My academic week was finally over.
Thursday since I didn't have class I enjoyed sleeping in and relaxing during the morning. My only commitment for the day was volunteering so after lunch I headed over. The children were their usual happy selves and bounced around the study room and outside. It was hard to get them to sit still long enough to work on their hw, but some seemed to accomplish their assignments. Louise and I were also preoccupied over the babies that were in the room today. One is a few months old and her mom and siblings live at Brazos Abiertos. The other one couldn't have been more that a week or 2 old. Her mom had been pregnant with her when we arrived and I was shocked at how tiny this little girl was! I sat in awe holding her while the kids worked on hw. I had no idea where her mom even was! It makes me so nervous to watch the younger kids no more than 7 or 8 years old carrying around the babies. They can hardly lift them and I'm so afraid they'll get distracted and drop them. We had a good time though with all the caos and children everywhere. After they had eaten a snack and started to file home we decided it was time to leave and Louisa and I walked one of the girls home. On the bus we caught up about the week and discussed plans for the weekend. Tomorrow is the program Halloween party and lots of people seem to be going, so that will definitely be fun. When I got home I took a much needed nap and then set about working on hw. I began on the timeline for history and also tackled other hw for spanish. Before I knew it it was time for dinner and we ate and I was off to bed. Still after 3 months I'm constantly exhausted... Although today it could have something to do with the heat! 102º and sunny here in Mendoza...if this is the spring, I think summer might kill me...
Friday Sole was busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen and I did my best to stay far out of it. Did I mention she's cooking/making most of the food for the halloween party? So I worked on hw all morning and into the afternoon while Sole and Paola worked away in the kitchen. All said and done she cooked vegetables, 4 chickens, 4 pot roast, and made different sauces as well. We're going to have sandwiches and snacks at the party. At 6pm I left with them to go to the house and decorate. The part is being held out in a neighborhood a little north of town and its beautiful! The house was really nice and we set to work with the decorating. Meagan, the girl who is staying in the house helped to and in about 20 minutes we blew up a TON of balloons. The only problem, was that they were black and tasted awful! By the end both my fingers and my mouth were black too. :) After decorations, we sat down at the kitchen table and cut break for the sandwiches. The lady who owns the house had bought "pan arabe" arab bread for the sandwiches and it needed to be cut open. They are kind of like mini pittas. We must have cut at least a couple hundred open before taking a break to dress for the party. With a complete lack of costume options, I had lots of help from Sole and Paola. All said and done, I was Batechica (Bat Woman) and used a mask, black tights, black mini dress, and a black shirt with HUGE sleeves. It actually came out pretty nice. The party was a blast! There were lots of people there and we ate amazing food and danced to music played by DJ's until after midnight. Then it was time to decide what the next step in the plan was. Most people were either headed north to a foreign exchange party thrown by the organization at UNCuyo or south to Aristedes. I personally would've been fine with either option, but I had somehow left my phone at the house earlier and wanted to go back and get it before anything else. No one wanted to come with me on the way, so I went alone back home and by the time I got there I wasn't really sure I wanted to go anywhere. I talked to Sole about it and she said there was no way I was going to the party in Las Heras by myself. It was too far away and too late and not in a good spot of town. So I changed clothes and met up with some friends on Aristedes. However, 5 minutes after I got there, a couple people wanted to leave and go to the other party. Since that had been my original plan and I now wouldn't be alone, I piled into the taxi with them and we set off. Sole wasn't kidding! It was super far away. We had a good time though hanging out in our group and dancing. I got to know the girl who is interning at the program office, Lucia, and we had a really good time talking. I also danced with one of the guys from here (quite the exception for me) and he seemed really nice. As it got later, a few of us decided it was time to go home and we piled into a taxi to head for bed. I crawled in later than planned, but was glad I'd gone out again. Its starting to hit me how little time I really have left here. I want to take advantage of it before its all gone.
Saturday morning did not exist for me. I definitely woke up after 12pm and started in on hw. My plan was to finish everything except the history so that I could spend all of Sunday on history hw. As per their usual disorganized disaster, my history teachers had yet again failed to communicate on the hw front and as of Friday night by mail they had sent us the new assignment: read the 150 page Essay on Civil Government by Locke and answer the following 13 questions in preparation for a class discussion... I swear everyone in that class is ready to overthrow the monarchy of power... Not to mention that when they change the hw at such a late hour, there is no option to go to the photocopier for the book at all... Hence I found myself without the reading material and with very little time to get it done. However, Deven being the WONDERFUL guy that he is offered to let me borrow his book Sunday when he's done. So most of Saturday was spent in my room working on hw and studying. I didn't go out Saturday night either, because I was just too tired and wanted to really make use of my day on Sunday instead of sleeping through half of it.
Sunday morning I continued to work on my timeline for history and then around 12 I went to Deven's house to pick up the book. We ranted a bit about the absurdity of the class and then I headed back home. Its gotten so warm here that I've been forced to break out the shorts, but I have never felt so self conscious in my life. If I thought the attention was bad in the winter...its NOTHING compared to the spring. Oh well, I'm not going to roast to death in jeans and a sweatshirt in an attempt to avoid some of the attention. When I got home, I set right into reading. With only breaks for meals and brief walks around the apartment it took me the rest of the day to finish the book. I spent nearly 9 hours (not counting time out for meals) reading this book! When I went to bed, it was after midnight and I had only scrawled notes in answer to the questions (hoping that like before he would only ask us to discuss and not to turn in our responses). What a week of frustration over school! I just have to keep reminding myself that this is a learning experience and I am growing from all the trials I've had to overcome (especially with the history class). I never thought I would appreciate the US or DU system this much more just by experiencing the system here!
As you can see school is starting to get to me a bit...all of a sudden we seem to be running out of time to finish everything and with the extra wrench of the swine flu earlier in the semester teachers are having a serious issue adjusting. Oh well. Overall I'm still having a great time and learning lots. Spring has hit with a vengeance and everywhere you look the trees are green and some of them are flowering in pink and purple! Its absolutely beautiful and I still have a hard time realizing that I'm here! I hope everything is going well for all of you at home. If you're in Colorado I wish you luck with your crazy October snow days! Its quite surreal to be here in 100º sunshine while classes are being cancelled at home for feet of snow... Watching the messages on facebook has been an interesting mix this week of complaining about the oppressive heat in Mendoza or the absurd amounts of snow in CO. I think I'm in for quite the weather shock when I come home in a few months. :)
Miss you all bunches, stay healthy, and remember I'm thinking of you!
All my love!
Monday we arrived in history class as usual to await our professor. When he waltzed in at 10:15 (roughly his usual 45 minutes late) and began writing on the board, what showed up were the 'final' dates for the rest of this semester. We all knew that dates for the partial, 'recuperatorio' = make-up exam, and project presentations had been moved. We now found out that they were all moved to the same week right after classes are 'over'. Its honestly frustrating, but at least we for sure don't have the presentations on Wednesday and when I have other class comittments. However, we are going to have class on Wednesday instead. So, I will have class from 8:20-10, 9:30-12 (yes I'm aware there is an impossible overlap), 1-3, and 5:30-7... It is going to be a LONG day. Ohh, and in between the 2nd and 3rd classes is when I have to take my "make-up" oral history exam for the one I missed when I was sick. Talk about a crazy day! After the prof was done explaining the dates and times, he read off our homework for the next Monday and sent us on our way. What a gift that class was out early! I had plenty to do before Spanish. Today was our general birthday celebration and I still had to wrap my gift etc. So in was back home for me. I quickly wrapped my gift and then went to the store to buy food for the party. I was in charge of apples and dulce de leche, which is about like apples and caramel. With everything ready, I hurried off to class. We had a great time! Sitting outside under a tree, we spread all the food out on a picnic blanket and shared stories from our favorite birthday and a wish for the next one. There were all kinds of treats and 2 people even made cake! Carrot cake (which no one here has ever even heard of before) and mocha cheesecake (which was AMAZING)! We also exchanged gifts with our "invisible friend" and I received a delicious bottle of white wine and a bar of chocolate from David. :) I think I'll plan to save the wine for the end of the day Wednesday if the partial goes well. After class I walked home and hardly ate lunch (as a result of all the sweets from class) and took a nap before getting up to study into the evening. History, I've decided, is nearly impossible.
Tuesday I woke up with the intention of studying before class and did for a bit, but not much. Then it was off to the office for class. It is getting so hot outside that its hard to convince myself to walk anymore, so I actually gave in and took the trolley. After class I did walk home and enjoyed a lovely lunch and a quick nap before sociology. Class began with an hour long presentation by another teacher about how to draw a proper concept map from reading an article. Apparently we need this information for the group project we're supposed to start working on. After the presentation, our regular teacher announced that she had our second partials graded and we could either have them then or wait until after class and work on some information first. Of course everyone wanted the exams back, so we spent the next hour handing out exams while she was also trying to explain how the rest of the classes would be laid out for the semester. Next week is set to be the make-up exam, and so if we had passed both partials we don't need to come (which is super nice) and then the following week is the global exam over the 2 mid-terms and the information for our group project. If I pass that test with a 78% or higher I won't have to take the final. When the students heard the percent needed to skip the final, they started arguing fiercely with the professor about the level required. This continued as she attempted to hand out exams. I finally got mine back and was SO proud and excited to see an 88.5% (grade 8) written in the top right corner! I not only passed the second exam, I jumped up 2 and nearly 3 levels from the first one! All that reading and studying last week had paid off!!! I was so excited to tell Sole, but when I got home, no one was around. Instead I began attempting to study history again so that I could do well on the exam tomorrow morning, but that studying was not going well. There is just so much information and so many people that I get them confused in my head. After dinner I pretty much went right to bed so I would be ready to get up and face the day tomorrow.
Wednesday... oh Wednesday... One of the worst days I've had... Childhood went well in the morning (early, but well) and I booked it out of there as fast as possible to catch a bus into town and to class. I ended up on a bus that took the most indirect route possible and finally asked to just hop off at a stoplight (which you technically aren't supposed to do). I quickly walked the block to school and the 6 flights of stairs up to the classroom... I sat through the lecture trying to catch onto what the professor was talking about... and hardly catching any of it. After class, we waited patiently for her to get her notes in order and then she simply started asking us questions about the material and the authors...One question per person back and forth and when one didn't have the answer, she'd turn to the other looking for a response. Clearly we weren't doing very well and with every question, she got more specific and we got more confused. After about half an hour of half answered questions and failed attempts on both our parts, she decided that we would stop there. "I don't know if its the language or the material," she said, "but how about you study some more and we'll try this again next week?" She also asked us to make her timelines to bring to class on the next Thursday when we attempt the exam again. Its her idea of how to better organize the authors and all the thoughts. I have never been so upset in my life. I left the classroom practically in tears behind my sunglasses. While waiting at the bus stop, we bumped into some other girls from the program. and they were really comforting about the whole thing. It amazes me how close we've all gotten here. What a blessing to have all these other students to share experiences and trials with. I made it to spanish and my friend Louisa could tell something was wrong. I explained to her before class and we grudgingly walked into the room... She's so supportive and caring. All through class I sat unusually quiet and at the break my professor asked me if I was ok. I clearly was not, and told her all about the morning. With every sentence about the history class she seemed to get more frustrated and by the end of my explanation she was fuming! She's usually very calm and pleasant, and I've never seen her so upset. She started spouting off about how unkind this treatment was and that they should understand we're a special case being from another country and trying to learn the language and that we were being discriminated against. I wasn't sure if I agreed with it all, but I was thankful for her support. We all went outside for break and I was sure she was talking to the other professors about the situation. When we got back to class, she put a notebook in front of me and asked me to write down the professors' names, name of the class, etc because she is planning to come sit in on the next exam to make sure we are treated fairly. I was in shock! This was not what I had planned and I certainly didn't want it to look like I had gone over the professor's head complaining ... But she would not be swayed. So I wrote down the information. We finished class without any other exciting events and I went home for my quick lunch and 20 minute nap before Tango. When I got home what a wonderful lunch awaited me! I was SO excited. Sole always seems to know when I'm going to need a pick me up type meal. She had made omelets! Egg, ham, and cheese. I was so happy. My short break passed in the blink of an eye and I found myself on the way to tango with 3 other girls from the class. We walked and talked about the week. I wasn't the only one who had become seriously frustrated with professors or the system and its so nice to have each other to confide in or rant to, cause we certainly need it at least once a week. When we got to tango, hardly anyone was there. I knew not many people were coming since it was the practice after the show, but I was surprised that there were only about 7 of us. The first part of the class was spent taking notes about the theory and structure of tango for our written exam on the 18th of November (one more thing to add to the hell week) and then we practiced simple patterns for a bit. It was a lot of fun and I wondered if we had started with steps like this how much better we would've looked in the show. After class I walked home with a bunch of friends and we stopped for ice cream on the way. It was pretty good and just what we needed in a hot afternoon after a rough week. When I got home I was exhausted. With no desire to study I relaxed and watched tv while I waited on dinner. After dinner it was straight to bed. My academic week was finally over.
Thursday since I didn't have class I enjoyed sleeping in and relaxing during the morning. My only commitment for the day was volunteering so after lunch I headed over. The children were their usual happy selves and bounced around the study room and outside. It was hard to get them to sit still long enough to work on their hw, but some seemed to accomplish their assignments. Louise and I were also preoccupied over the babies that were in the room today. One is a few months old and her mom and siblings live at Brazos Abiertos. The other one couldn't have been more that a week or 2 old. Her mom had been pregnant with her when we arrived and I was shocked at how tiny this little girl was! I sat in awe holding her while the kids worked on hw. I had no idea where her mom even was! It makes me so nervous to watch the younger kids no more than 7 or 8 years old carrying around the babies. They can hardly lift them and I'm so afraid they'll get distracted and drop them. We had a good time though with all the caos and children everywhere. After they had eaten a snack and started to file home we decided it was time to leave and Louisa and I walked one of the girls home. On the bus we caught up about the week and discussed plans for the weekend. Tomorrow is the program Halloween party and lots of people seem to be going, so that will definitely be fun. When I got home I took a much needed nap and then set about working on hw. I began on the timeline for history and also tackled other hw for spanish. Before I knew it it was time for dinner and we ate and I was off to bed. Still after 3 months I'm constantly exhausted... Although today it could have something to do with the heat! 102º and sunny here in Mendoza...if this is the spring, I think summer might kill me...
Friday Sole was busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen and I did my best to stay far out of it. Did I mention she's cooking/making most of the food for the halloween party? So I worked on hw all morning and into the afternoon while Sole and Paola worked away in the kitchen. All said and done she cooked vegetables, 4 chickens, 4 pot roast, and made different sauces as well. We're going to have sandwiches and snacks at the party. At 6pm I left with them to go to the house and decorate. The part is being held out in a neighborhood a little north of town and its beautiful! The house was really nice and we set to work with the decorating. Meagan, the girl who is staying in the house helped to and in about 20 minutes we blew up a TON of balloons. The only problem, was that they were black and tasted awful! By the end both my fingers and my mouth were black too. :) After decorations, we sat down at the kitchen table and cut break for the sandwiches. The lady who owns the house had bought "pan arabe" arab bread for the sandwiches and it needed to be cut open. They are kind of like mini pittas. We must have cut at least a couple hundred open before taking a break to dress for the party. With a complete lack of costume options, I had lots of help from Sole and Paola. All said and done, I was Batechica (Bat Woman) and used a mask, black tights, black mini dress, and a black shirt with HUGE sleeves. It actually came out pretty nice. The party was a blast! There were lots of people there and we ate amazing food and danced to music played by DJ's until after midnight. Then it was time to decide what the next step in the plan was. Most people were either headed north to a foreign exchange party thrown by the organization at UNCuyo or south to Aristedes. I personally would've been fine with either option, but I had somehow left my phone at the house earlier and wanted to go back and get it before anything else. No one wanted to come with me on the way, so I went alone back home and by the time I got there I wasn't really sure I wanted to go anywhere. I talked to Sole about it and she said there was no way I was going to the party in Las Heras by myself. It was too far away and too late and not in a good spot of town. So I changed clothes and met up with some friends on Aristedes. However, 5 minutes after I got there, a couple people wanted to leave and go to the other party. Since that had been my original plan and I now wouldn't be alone, I piled into the taxi with them and we set off. Sole wasn't kidding! It was super far away. We had a good time though hanging out in our group and dancing. I got to know the girl who is interning at the program office, Lucia, and we had a really good time talking. I also danced with one of the guys from here (quite the exception for me) and he seemed really nice. As it got later, a few of us decided it was time to go home and we piled into a taxi to head for bed. I crawled in later than planned, but was glad I'd gone out again. Its starting to hit me how little time I really have left here. I want to take advantage of it before its all gone.
Saturday morning did not exist for me. I definitely woke up after 12pm and started in on hw. My plan was to finish everything except the history so that I could spend all of Sunday on history hw. As per their usual disorganized disaster, my history teachers had yet again failed to communicate on the hw front and as of Friday night by mail they had sent us the new assignment: read the 150 page Essay on Civil Government by Locke and answer the following 13 questions in preparation for a class discussion... I swear everyone in that class is ready to overthrow the monarchy of power... Not to mention that when they change the hw at such a late hour, there is no option to go to the photocopier for the book at all... Hence I found myself without the reading material and with very little time to get it done. However, Deven being the WONDERFUL guy that he is offered to let me borrow his book Sunday when he's done. So most of Saturday was spent in my room working on hw and studying. I didn't go out Saturday night either, because I was just too tired and wanted to really make use of my day on Sunday instead of sleeping through half of it.
Sunday morning I continued to work on my timeline for history and then around 12 I went to Deven's house to pick up the book. We ranted a bit about the absurdity of the class and then I headed back home. Its gotten so warm here that I've been forced to break out the shorts, but I have never felt so self conscious in my life. If I thought the attention was bad in the winter...its NOTHING compared to the spring. Oh well, I'm not going to roast to death in jeans and a sweatshirt in an attempt to avoid some of the attention. When I got home, I set right into reading. With only breaks for meals and brief walks around the apartment it took me the rest of the day to finish the book. I spent nearly 9 hours (not counting time out for meals) reading this book! When I went to bed, it was after midnight and I had only scrawled notes in answer to the questions (hoping that like before he would only ask us to discuss and not to turn in our responses). What a week of frustration over school! I just have to keep reminding myself that this is a learning experience and I am growing from all the trials I've had to overcome (especially with the history class). I never thought I would appreciate the US or DU system this much more just by experiencing the system here!
As you can see school is starting to get to me a bit...all of a sudden we seem to be running out of time to finish everything and with the extra wrench of the swine flu earlier in the semester teachers are having a serious issue adjusting. Oh well. Overall I'm still having a great time and learning lots. Spring has hit with a vengeance and everywhere you look the trees are green and some of them are flowering in pink and purple! Its absolutely beautiful and I still have a hard time realizing that I'm here! I hope everything is going well for all of you at home. If you're in Colorado I wish you luck with your crazy October snow days! Its quite surreal to be here in 100º sunshine while classes are being cancelled at home for feet of snow... Watching the messages on facebook has been an interesting mix this week of complaining about the oppressive heat in Mendoza or the absurd amounts of snow in CO. I think I'm in for quite the weather shock when I come home in a few months. :)
Miss you all bunches, stay healthy, and remember I'm thinking of you!
All my love!
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