"Sin sacrificio no hay victoria"

          So... I realize it has been a while since I blogged and a lot has happened since then. SORRY! (Warning: This will be a long post) *sigh*, where to begin??

          So, I know its hard to comprehend, but I am actually on Summer vacation right now. Which means it is HOT here... and very COLD in CT (weird!). I am so happy and lucky to have another summer vacation. I consider school to be somewhat of a joke, especially in the first few months when I can't read or write, and barely understand anything they're saying. I know it will be easier Feb. 27th when we start school again and I am looking forward to it. It is hard enough starting school in the middle of the year, but adding the fact that I didn't understand everything, made it that much harder. In Feb., I will actually be ready for school in Spanish.

          It doesn't really feel like its almost Christmas because, well, there's no snow. I've been tanning and sitting by the pool, the last thing I've been thinking about is Christmas. Christmas... in two weeks... really? My summer days are very relaxing. Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, I have Swim team in the morning and aerobics at night. Tuesdays and Thursdays, Swim team, along with some Saturdays. Other then that, I hang out with friends, chill by the pool, or even read the newspaper (in Spanish). My Spanish has grown some much. I am almost past that awkward stage. By the end of February, I'm pretty sure I will be past the awkward stage and thats when the real fun and enjoyment of this experience will start. The human brain is absolutely amazing. Sometimes I say words that I didn't even know I knew. It shocks me every time. I've gotten to the point when I honestly believe I have forgotten English. I think of  how to say words in Spanish and then in English, and sometimes I can't even come up with what the word is in English. I define the awkward stage as when your brain turns to mush. You can't really speak any language, English or Spanish. Your brain is taking in some much information that it almost explodes. It is a crazy feeling knowing that I am speaking a totally different language, without really thinking about it. I can't wait until I get my brain back :)

Now onto what has happened in the past two weeks...

We went to Santiago to visit my host Mothers family. Her father turned 98! Here's a picture of him blowing out the candle (singular). They kept relighting the candle for him to blow it out again, I swear they were about to keep relighting the candle another 97 times, and one more for good luck. I didn't know there were so many ways to sing Happy Birthday in Spanish!:D

         The party was just for family only... but I kept wondering, if this is just family why are there so many people!? There were about 25 of us, all family members, and we were still missing a lot of people! A delicious Asado and dip in the pool topped off a great day. 

Went to a Birthday party with my host sister Rosario :)

My host sister is pretty amazing. She is the girl in the spotlight doing the cheerleading stunt (pretty impressive). I went to see her dance studios end of the year performance and it was amazing! Argentina really is the country of dance. Every style of dance, they've mastered it, by age 10! Rosario will be going to New Zealand on Jan. 27th with AFS and I am going to miss her a lot!

This is a video of the entertainment at a 50th Birthday party I went to. A dance company performed ballroom style dances from South America. In this video, the famous Argentinean tango :) I was absolutely speechless after this performance and especially after there other performance of American tango.

This past Sunday I had another swimming competition. I can't even explain how surreal it feels to be swimming on a club team in Argentina when I'm 16. It was a small meet and only included clubs in the Salta area. I competed in the 50 Free, 50 Breast, and 50 Back stroke. 4th place in the 50 free and I WON the 50 Back!! I was very exited! I've been working very hard to get my back stroke times down, and the work payed off. 

Thats me, in lane 3.

First place, 39 seconds. (PS the pools here are measured in meters, therefore it is longer then in the US. My time would normally be 35 seconds.) Looks like I will be competing a lot more this summer especially. 

          Yesterday, I felt it was time to get in the Christmas spirit. I made Christmas cookies for about three hours! I learned quickly that lots of cookies and a little pan equals lots of batches. My host sister and I changed the recipe and added Dulce de Leche. The cookies from my mom's cookie book (One Dough Fifty Cookies) has officially been Argentineanized. I loved being able to share with my host sister what my christmas traditions are normally like. Baking cookies and listening to christmas songs with my mother is our old holiday tradition. It wasn't totally lost. I was able to bake cookies with my host sister and we listened to folk glory, the music typical to Salta. 

          Its has almost been 4 months since I've been living in Argentina and it feels like so much longer. After Christmas and New Years, I already know the time is going to fly by. Just like every AFS experience, there are the ups and downs, it is exactly what completes the experience. With the holidays around the corner it is hard not to miss my family and our old holiday traditions, but I am learning about NEW traditions. I have been given this amazing opportunity to see the world from a completely different perspective. I learn more and more every day, about myself, about a new culture, and a new language. It's hard for me to believe that I have 7 months left. When you compare it to 11 months, it seams like too little time, but I am here and I'm not going anywhere. For the rest of my life I will be able to say that I lived in Argentina when I was 16, for my junior year of high school, and I am so exited that I will be able to say that. Not many people can. :D This experience has already changed me (in a good way). I am so exited for my future, here in Argentina and back in the US. I find the unknown and mystery of what's to come so intriguing and beyond exiting. 

Thank you for reading! I hope I will be able to write again soon. 

If not... Merry Christmas everyone! Feliz Navidad! 

Football

          Now, we all know that football (soccer) is an intense sport every where besides the States, but you don't truly understand until you see it yourself. Yesterday I went to my first live football game! It was between G y T (the same club I swim for) and C J A. Going to a football game here is more then going to a party! It is like nothing i've ever seen. I wasn't able to take my camera because it is too dangerous, so these pictures are from Google search, but at least it gives you a slight idea.

Team Gimnacia y Tiro!

Sadly we lost 0 - 2 :(

          The bleachers were shaking from all of the people jumping, my ears were ringing from the screaming and whistling, and it was amazing. This is definitely one of those experiences that I will remember for a lifetime. I have never seen so many people peeing in public and I have never seen so many police officers! Like heavily armed police officers. At half time they bring out the police dogs and at the end of the game about 10 officers make a wall around the referees with their shields and guns. The hostility between the two teams is just unbelievable!!! In the middle of the game, the players started fighting over a call. First, one player hit another, and then I saw another two men down, with their hands covering their faces. Next thing you know, the fans were trying to jump the fence and everyone was screaming "PUTO"!! It was completly surreal and unlike anything I could ever imagine.

          Another thing to check off of my bucket list! I got to experience what most people in Latin America live for. I love how much they care about this sport. Im probably over thinking this, but it reminds me of the Ancient Roman Gladiator games. I know, but just hear me out. xD In their minds, this is a fight to the death. The fans scream and sing back and forth, and most of the lyrics are full of swear words, but the other songs explain how they are a member of their club for life. As I was sitting in the bleachers, looking around, watching the game, and listening to the songs I only half understood, what I admired the most was their pride. Even though they lost, they idol these men like Gods and will never stop chanting :D

          They have a game almost every Sunday so i'm sure I will have many opportunities to go again, and I can't wait. I'm really trying to learn the songs too! Just another great experience in Argentina! :D And many more to come! Argentina, te quiero mucho!

Chau!

I am really LIVING in Argentina! :D

          "How is Argentina?", I am asked this question at least once a day, but usually more. The answer, Argentina is amazing! I am so happy I was placed in Salta and that I chose Argentina. I love the culture, the food, the music, school, the people, my family, friends, and oh yes, can't forget the parties. :) On Nov. 21st, I will have been living here for three months. It is crazy for me to think that it has only been three months because I feel like I live here. In just three months I have adapted to this new culture and my new environment.  I now not only speak the language, but understand things like how the weather changes, or what is the right time to show up some where (If you didn't know, in Latin America when they say to be there at 12, people show up 2 hours later). One of the hardest and biggest challenges here has been school. Not only is hard to understand classes in Spanish, but they are at the end of the year and instead of learning new things, we have been taking tests and reviewing old material. The year ends on Dec. 17th, and we start final exams on Nov. 24th. I am lucky that my teachers understand that I just can't keep up right now, but I have shown them that I am trying and I have learned that is all that matters. I got a 6 (65%) on a Biology test and an 8 (85%) on a Math test, so I am learning something, thankfully. My friends and I are extremely exited for the year to end and summer to begin. It is kind of strange for me since I pretty much just had summer vacation, but I am definitely not complaining :) We have lots of fun plans for the summer and I cant wait!

          The past three weeks have been pretty much normal. I go to school, go to swim practice, hang out with the family, and go out with friends on the weekends. Swimming is hard but great! I have never understood why I like the sport, but we have a love hate relationship, which most swimmers share. I started swimming everyday now with an occasional 3 hour practice on Saturday mornings. Woohoo! One of the reasons I cant wait until summer, is because we have a practice at 9am and another one at 5pm everyday. Everyone here thinks Im crazy, which I probably am so I dont really disagree. In the US, a lot of kids do 2 or 3 sports for the different seasons, but here, you do the same sport all year round. Im taking advantage of this opportunity because back at home, I only get 4 months to get in shape and compete, but here, I can really improve my swimming :)

I figured I should just tell you more about the past 3 weeks with pictures :D Which is always more fun!

My second time visiting the horse, I havent ridden it, and sadly I dont think I will be able to :( The horse hasnt been ridden in awhile and it probably isnt safe if a stranger were to be the first to try. So, my host family is taking the safe road, which is probably a good thing :)

This is one of my friends (Manuela). This picture was taken before we went to our friends house in San Lorenzo. Her house is beautiful, has a pool, and is perfect for a party. We met all of our friends there and the girls stayed tell the next day. It was a lot of fun! Its always great when all of us get together :)

While Halloween was canceled in CT because of the unfourtunate early snow storm, I went to my first halloween party and dressed up like a pirate with my friend Dai. :) The party wasnt great, but it was still fun to dress up and do anything halloween related. (My friends couldnt believe that it was snowing in Oct., especially since it never snows in Salta)

AFS Reunion! It was great to see everyone from Salta in the same place. This gathering included the exchange students in Salta as well as the departing students that will be leaving in January. My host sister is one of them. She will be going to New Zealand and she is REALLY exited. It was great to be able to talk about our experiences and share them with the other students going abroad. Some of us have had really great experiences and some have of have had more downfalls then others. But the students learned that no matter what, it ends up as a good experience, because the truth is, any experience you have abroad is a good one. You end up learning about yourself and how to deal with different situations, and to me, thats a pretty good experience to have. That is one of the best parts about foreign exchange. It will change your life forever and it sure has changed mine. :) ALREADY!

This is my host mom trying to cook! My host family is similar to my family in many ways, but the one thing being very different is the cooking. My birth mom is a chief and has written 3 cook books, so its safe to say thats some pretty tough competition. My host mom is a lot like me when it comes to cooking. Most of the time it doesnt really work out, or it just ends up tasting a little.... funky. She was so happy to try cooking this meal so I just had to capture it on camera :) It actually wasnt that bad! :D .... but im still not sure what it was exactly.. haha my guess is chicken stir fry??

It is HOTTT!!! Like really hot! But, today and yesterday its been cold and rainy (Which is not normal). The weather here is very bipolar and your never sure how the day will turn out. Right now, it usually gets really hot during the day and chilly again at night. The key, I found, is to wear layers. (There are these little frogs that come out at night, so you have to be careful not to squish one while walking on the street. Thats one of them in the picture on our window.)

The 11/11/11 party this weekend! Im not going to lie, they know how to have fun here in Argentina :)

So.... Hows Argentina?? Well, its pretty amazing. I learn more about myself everyday and my Spanish has improved A LOT. Im studying up on my Spanish grammar and writing down all the words I dont understand to hopefully speed up the process and I am keeping pretty busy, which explains the lack of blog posts. 

Thanksgiving is coming up soon and Im expecting it to be a challenge. My host family knows that its a big family tradition back at home and Im sure they will be fully supportive. AFS has a saying which has definitely come in handy. "You must be aware of the ups and downs, that way at least you wont get whip lash, but you still have to go through it. Its apart of the entire experience."

~Livin' it up and taking advantage of every moment! 

(Stay safe CT!) 

Hola! Here's a quick update :D

          I have been living here for two months now and it's kind of hard to believe. It feels like I just got here yesterday, but it also feels like I live here now... I feel fully settled in my new environment :) The change of meal times, school tell 1pm, 6-7 hours of sleep every night, swimming for 2 hours strait, taking the city bus, and going out with friends on the weekends until 5 or 6am, all of this feels normal and most importantly i'm not so tired anymore. Salta is one os the most tourist filled cities in Argentina besides Buenos Aires. I proved how well acquainted I am with Salta when I was able to answer their questions in Spanish. One of the things I really enjoy (and I didn't think I would at first), is taking the bus and walking everywhere. I feel very independent and grown up as I take the bus to and from swim practice, home from school, or to a friends house. One of the many reasons why I love Satla is because you can go anywhere walking or on the bus, and I find something about that to be highly rewarding.

          So... my Spanish is A LOT better. I understand pretty much everything, and I have even started to understand the actual Spanish, by that I mean, I don't have to translate what they're saying into English, I just think about it in Spanish. This is happening more and more which is definitely a good sign :) I even understand stuff in school now and can actually do most of my classwork.. YAY! And if I can't do the work, I've found a way to write it in English and then translate is verbally to my teacher. It's a lot easier to speak then it is to write so I do that when it's a really big assignment or when it needs to get done fast. Won't be like that for long so I'm trying to enjoy it. My grammar has greatly improved and gets better everyday ( the hardest thing about Spanish = Verbs). My host father says I need two more months and I will be speaking close to perfect Spanish. I can't wait! My brain still can't comprehend that I will be fluent in Spanish by the end of the experience. I'm not sure why I can't believe it, but all I know is it better work! :D

          I'm really exited to spend holidays here. I think it is SOOOO cool that I get to experience a different Christmas, New Years, or Easter tradition and I also can't wait for that. HAHA I'm exited for a lot of things! The other day I got to chat with my bestie Becca. She is spending the year in France on AFS. Her Blog! I can't even explain how great it is to have your best friend with you every step of the way sharing a similar experience.  I love talking to someone who knows exactly how I'm feeling cause she's going through a similar thing. I am very lucky to have her during this experience and especially when we get back in a year. We both agree being abroad only makes you more exited and anxious for your future. A lot of things will have changes once we get back, I mean we will be seniors for crying out loud, and thats what makes it so fun and interesting. We will be able to speak a different language! Yea! I can't think about it... I just get to exited. HAHA (Mom and Dad no worries, you are not forgotten! You are my other shoulders to lean on for support. Thankfully you have been through this to so you know what its like and you know just how to support me! :)

          So.... two months down and nine to go and I am going to cherish every moment because time really does go by fast. I love how this experience challenges me, how much I am learning, the people I am meeting, and the bond I am building with my new family that gets stronger and stronger every day. I feel I have grown a lot in these past two months and I can't imagine what it will be like after a YEAR. Nine months left, I sure I can handle that :D Chau for now!

Ah :) Just another day in Argentina paradise!

(Drinking Mate, Andes Mountains in the background)

Livin' the life? Why yes.. yes I sure am!

          

Another Great Weekend! :D

            4 day weekend!!! This past week I was preparing for my first swimming competition in Argentina. My club, Gimnasia y Tiro, is one of the best swim club around. We competed against Chile, Tukuman, Satiago, and many other provinces in Northern Argentina. I actually found out that some of the competitions are on TV... no pressure. Very exited that I also will get to travel with my team :D Friday I competed in the 100 FREE. The meet was supposed to start at 5:30, but Welcome to Latin America, it didn't start until 6:30. Which means, I warmed up at 6... and my first event wasn't until 8:30. Its hard to stay awake and ready to race after waiting that long... definitely will take some getting use to and a lot more training. 4th place, not bad for my first event :) I was supposed to swim in one more event that night, but the power went out! Saturday I competed in the 50 Breast and 50 free. Here's the thing, I will literally rather swim ANYTHING other then breast stroke. But, here they run things a little differently, everyone has to swim everything. Which means, breast stroke. No surprise that I was second to last in this event. After that, I got to swim the 50 free :) YAY! It was a really close race, still not sure how I did. All I know is I finished in 34 seconds... not bad at all :) (BTW, the length of the pool is a little longer... took me awhile to figure out that I was actually swimming more than I'm use to, at first I thought it was just me, one of Lydia's "blonde moments" as my friends would say) Overall great first competition. I can't wait for more to come!

50 FREE STYLE - 34 seconds

My new swimming buddies! :D <3

            Saturday, after my swim meet, I went home to pack my clothes. My family and I visited Santiago, a neighboring province, an approximate 5 hour car ride. The drive wasn't so bad, but what I'm not use to is a very small car, and five people... =very cozy :) I loved being able to talk more with my family... sometimes all you need is a road trip to spark a good conversation. My host mom is from Santiago. Santiago is very very hot! hot! hot! hot! But very beautiful. We stayed with my host moms sister... which makes her like my aunt. It gets hard to figure out who's who when there are SO many family members. Suz's house is amazing :) On top of the pool and beautiful house, she has a beautiful Golden Retriever who just had 7 puppies!! One of them she decided to keep! The cutest little thing ever! :D

Sol! :) Yes it is Spring, but feels like summer.

SO CUTE!!!

 AWWW!! The puppy is hungry :)

               Sunday we went to my mom's nephew's, my cousin's farm house to eat an Asado. I have learned that Asado is more then just grilled meat, it means so much more. It means family, friends, laughter, conversation, and love. People always ask me if I like Asado and I say, what' not to love!? It's flippin' delicious! For the first time in my life, I can actually say I LOVE meat! 

My cousin, he owns the farm and plays polo!! Which I find to be very cool :D

 YUM!

               In Argentina, especially Southern Argentina, they sing a lot of Folk Glory. It is a more modern version of they're native music and apparently the lyrics have a deep meaning... which I wouldn't really know because one of the hardest things to understand is music, that and jokes (Which I try really really hard to understand, but I'm usually the only one not laughing with a very confused type of face... patience, I will understand eventually, I hope!). All I know is the music is beautiful :D Along with Folk Glory is the Native dance, both can be different where ever you go in Argentina. Sadly videos take a long time to load, so this is the only one, but its adorable! :)

The cutest little boy in the world!

               As you can see, it was just a great time :) Some of my favorite things to do is to spend time with family, learn about culture, and listen to music, therefore I had a really great time. After listening to some music, all of the kids played football (soccer). My cousin has a small football field on the property. It was lots of fun, but I was definitely sore the next day. Once it got dark I got to learn a new card game. Luckily I'm a quick study and was beating them by the end of it :) Go Lydia!!! HAHA

A beautiful house!

 And a beautiful night :)

               Great weekend!!! And more to come!!! I really love everything about Argentina. The more I get to know about the history or understand the language and culture, I just get more and more fascinated and I guess you can say I am falling in love. I have been here for almost 2 months now... which seams crazy! I have 9 more months here and I can already tell time is going to go by very fast. There are definitely some things I miss about home, but the second I even think about being sad, its easy to remind myself of how lucky I am to be here and what an amazing experience this is. I truly believe that by studying abroad for a year, I am learning 10 times more then I would be home or at school. (PS, now that I am understanding more Spanish, I actually have to start doing more work in school, I new it had to come eventually, break time over, time to work!)

PS: If you've been wondering why I refer to my family here like my real family, it's because they really are family. One of the greatest aspects of AFS is that you build a bond with another family. They have opened their house and their arms to me, and wanted to take care of me for a whole year. So yes, they are my new family and I love them more and more every day! :) Plus it makes it a lot easier to say my cousin, or my mom's nephew, instead of saying my host mom's nephew... 

My Routine

            I have been living in Salta, Argentina for 6 weeks. I love everything about it! I can really tell that I have really started the AFS experience. Which means, the ups and downs, whip lash, bipolarness that comes with everything. But I was prepared... it is getting better. I have starting somewhat of a routine and thought I'd share with you what I do in a regular week :)

Monday- I get up for school at 7am and get to school around 8am. School gets out at 1pm and I go back to my house to eat lunch. It depends, but we normally have lunch with the whole family. Then I leave the house at 3pm, usually take the bus (YES and actual city bus, its very easy), and go to swim practice. We swim from 3:30-5:30. 2 whole hours! It feels great! :D We swim about 3-4 miles per practice... I have never swam this much ever. At 6, I take the bus home, and relax!!! Normally try to sleep a bit if I can. My parents get home from work at 9:20ish, and we usually eat dinner at 10pm.. which is early.

Tuesday- 7am, school. At 1pm, I stay at school and eat lunch with friends because at 2:30 I have "gym". "Gym" is nothing like gym in the States. They don't normally start doing anything until 15 min. after it was supposed to start haha It's on Latin American time. Right now during gym class, we are working on a dance. In late Oct., on family day (another holiday), some of the girls are going to perform a dance. I love it! :) It's mostly Reggaeton, but were also dancing to the pussycat dolls "when I grow up". Its going to be amazing and I am VERy exited! Don't worry, I will put up a video of the performance on my blog. After gym at 3:30pm, I go home on the bus. Starting this week I will hopefully be starting a dance class... which will start around 7pm. I have always loved to dance, but dance classes at home are expensive, and here not so much. I'm happy to be able to try something I might not be able to do at home.

Wednesday- Same as Monday!!!

Thursday- Same as Tuesday!!!

Friday- Same as Monday, but I can go out.

Saturday- My family allows me to go out once a weekend, so I normally go out Sat. Don't worry, Im a good girl :D haha

Sunday- This is the day you relax with the family. Sometimes we go do something like visit the Reservoir, or sometimes we just rest and relax. :D Most of the time we have an asado. (Today were having left over asado because we had friends over last night.)

(This is the Reservoir we visited last Sunday :) Beautiful and a lot of fun!) 

I am very exited for next weekend! :D Im not sure what I'm going to do yet... I have to choose between going to visit a neighboring province with my parents, or participating in the swimming competition. I REALLy want to swim :) The event is here in Salta at my club. Four other provinces are coming to compete :) There is another competition at the end of Oct. I'm so exited I get to travel with my team. If I do compete next weekend, I will be swimming the 50 FREE, 50 BACK, 50 BREAST, 50 FLY, and 100 FREE, and possibly 100 BACK. 

I LOVE SALTA!!! :D It is a beautiful city. My brain still can't comprehend that I have 10 more months here. I wonder how I will feel in a year... different? changed? I wonder what 10 months even feels like! Will it feel like it went by really quickly? IDK, but I have 10 months until I figure it out :) 

Oh yeah... While it is getting colder in CT, it is getting HOT here. It is only spring and during the day is gets up to 90 degrees...! Plus, the sun feels a lot stronger here because of the high altitude. It still gets cold at night, but not as much as before. People keep telling me that this is nothing, weight until December (Summer)! The worse part is in school, we have to wear ALL of our uniform. Knee high socks pulled up all the way, And all of the layers! Plus, we can't role up the sleeves either. I can already tell this could be the death of me!!!

Chau!

There are the best of times, and the worst (more like not so great) of times...

            I realized that I have made my time in Argentina sounds a little TOO perfect and I feel the need to correct myself. I am having a wonderful time here, but nothing is perfect. An experience like this is HARD. When you are far away from friends and family, you can't help but feel alone at times. A major barrier is the language. Right now, I understand a lot of Spanish and speak enough to get my point across, but again, nothing's perfect. There are times when someone might ask me a question, and I am tired or couldn't hear them very well, so I ask them to repeat it. But even then, I still might not understand he question. The time I feel most alone is when my friends are talking (and talking really fast) and I have absolutely no clue what they are saying. Plus, sometimes my friends feel it's too long or complicated to explain... so I go on, not understanding what there talking about. This only happens when I don't know the context of what they're talking about and/or they're talking really fast. So, it isn't all the time...
            You might be wondering right now... OMG why is she saying this on her blog!!? But, I want to share the truth of my experience and not just the part that's sugar coated and topped off with dulce de leche. Some of you might even ask... OMG why do you want to go through this and why did you want to go to Argentina in the first place!!? So I took this question into account and made a list.
         
So here it is, the "Why the hell am I here" List.

1. To learn a new language, not just Spanish, but also one of body language.
2. To learn more about myself and discover who I am... which is a lot easier to do when you are far away from the people you rely on the most.
3. To learn and accept a different culture and way of life.
4. To grow(while eating asado) ... (part of #2)
5. To do something different, something that makes me unique.
6. To build a bond with my new family and friends that will last a life time.
7. To strengthen my independence.
8. To help prepare me for my future.
9. To do things I've never done before.
10. And for an amazing experience that I will cherish for a life time.

So there you have it!!! The ten reasons why I'm a foreign exchange student. I really hope I have to answer this question less and less because I think everyone should know the benefits of studying abroad for a year! :D

THE TRUTH:

This IS a challenge, but I WILL pull through. I knew way before I signed up for this that if I wanted to experience the best of times, I also have to experience the hard times. And when I return to the States, I will be a different person... in a good way I promise :)

Thank you for reading, and thank you for your constant support :) It helps knowing I have people who are interested in what I and doing here in Argentina. People interested in the fun and great stuff!!!! :D AND the not so fun but highly important STUFF. 

Besos!!! Chau!!!

Dia del estudiante!

           Many people have been under the impression that I don't do that much work here.... well, I guess that's kind of true. I haven't done much school work YET because we haven't had much school! First of all, there are a lot more holidays here then there are in the States. They have a children day, where all of the kids get presents, and a family day, and a student day. This Wednesday is student day, it is also the first day of Spring. For the past week or so my grade hasn't really had much classes because one, a lot of our teachers are on vacation, and two, my grade is in charge of planning and preparing for the fiesta that takes place on Tuesday. I love the way the school organizes everything. The "junior class" or segundo grado is charge of planning all of the fiestas and events for the year. The events are meant to be a way to raise money for the grade to go on there "senior trip" to Bariloche. Almost every single school in Argentina has a senior trip, and they all go to Bariloche.

Not only is it beautiful, but you can ski and it is also home to the best clubs around, which everyone knows is the real reason they go there. My host brother just got back from their trip because he is in the grade above me. His grade did exactly what my grade is doing, last year. 

          Take a look at the flowers on the hanging off the balcony.. The entire school worked to make flowers out of tissue paper and my class tied them together and hung them. It ended up looking beautiful and really set made it feel like the first day of Spring.

          Student day started at 8:30am and went until 5pm. It is basically like a giant expanded version of class spirit day at Classical. Each class has to do a bunch of things in order to win points. The first category is their house. Each class builds a tent like structure or something that represents their theme. The class I was in charge of did the Simpsons. They had the coach, the TV, and even a kid dressed up as Homer. There were other houses like, the indians, pirates, and wizards, and the Charlie and the Chocolate factory and Alice in Wonderland. All of them were so good! I was shocked at how much effort they put into it. It had me thinking, if we did something like this at Classical, would people actually try that hard.... ? 

           The next thing they could do to win points is their grand entrance. The object is to use as much confetti, smoke, and signs as you could. (We would never be able to do this at Classical, ever!) 

(colored smoke... definitely would be a liability.)

(And confetti... LOTS AND LOTS OF IT! That wouldn't be allowed cause no one wants to clean up the mess, let's be honest. ) This is the picture of my host sister Rosario's class, they were the cave men :)

             Next was the class dances! :D This was my favorite part. It seams like EVERYONE can dance here, and not just dance, but dance very well. Each class put together a dance... most of them were Reggaeton or Cumbia, but there was one that was set to Katy Perry's Hot and Cold.

(In my opinion these girls were the best! Wish I had gotten it on film! Sorry!)

All of the girls in my grade are also preparing a dance, but we don't perform until Oct. 21st. Now that, I will get on tape :) We practice every Tuesday and Thursday. I'm very exited! The girls are very surprised at how quickly I picked up the choreography... lol I even shocked myself!

           And the last major thing you can do to win points is the student queen contest. Yes, it sounds a little superficial... but i guess it kind of is. First, they vote who they think is the best looking girl from each grade and who desires to be queen, and then those girls go to compete with the whole school. All of the girls looked amazing. In most schools, the winner will go on to compete nationally, but my school doesn't. My friend María José won last year, so as queen, she got to pass down the crown. 

The old King and Queen...

And the new Queen and princesses... :D Im not really sure what happened with the King.

Overall, Student day was great and I think we should have it in the US! :D My school is absolutely great and I really like it! It is more then a school and more like another family. Everyone is so kind and caring... I will definitely miss this when I go back to the States. I realized Today (Thursday), just how different my school here is from home. One, everything is outdoors, two, you have 11 different subjects, and three, people are very friendly:) -cough, cough- Not trying to say that people at home aren't "friendly" or anything... nut maybe they could learn something. 

This is a video of all of the students gathered in the court yard!

CRAZY RIGHT???

Valle Escondido!

This Wednesday, me and about 30 friends went to Vickie's house in the Valle. Valle Escondido is where wealthy people in Salta own a country house.

There is a pool...

(The water was FREEZING!!!!! And I was one of the people who was pushed in! Can you say, "Hypothermia!!!!!!!!") 

A golf course...

A soccer/football field...

And the best part.... 

ATV's

Valle was awesome! All of my friends are great :) I've had to adjust to how different they are from my friends at home. Meaning here there crazy, loud, wild, and fun. HAHA They are at home too, but not to this extent. I have adjusted and I absolutely adore all of my crazy friends :) We got there at 11am on Wed. and we left at 11am on Thurs. SO yes, 30 people stayed in one house for 24 hours! (Don't worry, there were parents there... at night). Luckily a friend lives in Valle so a few of the girls went to sleep at her house, and some people went home, but that still left about 20 people. Therefore, I didn't get to sleep on a bed and I woke up Thursday morning and couln't move my neck because I was so sore! That's what I get for sleeping on a tile floor!

One thing I forgot to mention earlier, is how much people like to take pictures! Picture after picture! I have thought I lost my camera like 5 times because it just disappears and I get it back with 100 more photos on it! LOL And they make sure I put ALL of them on facebook! 

As you can tell from the photos, everything is very dry here. Right now it is the end of Winter. It is dry and cold at night, but it is getting a lot warmer during the day. September 21st is the first day of Spring which is also a holiday, student day! Yes, they actually have a holiday for hardworking students here :) I have heard that Salta is even more beautiful in Spring and Summer when everything is green and blooming. The sun is a lot stronger here so during the day it feels very hot. I still can't believe that today was the first day it has rained since I've been in Salta! After it rains is when Salta is the most beautiful. You can see all of the mountains so perfectly! I would show you a picture, but for some reason the camera doesn't capture just how gorgeous it really is, so I decided to just let your imagination wonder. Enjoy. :)

Yesterday (Friday), my family got home from vacation! I missed them a lot and I was very exited to see them :D Now that there home and I can fully unpack my clothes, this really feels like home. 

My Mom and Dad back home in the US are now hosting and AFS student from the Philippines. Datu competed against 150 other students from his city for one placement. He received a full scholarship too. Datu wasn't going to be able to go to the US if someone didn't host him. So when AFS was making the last calls begging for people to host, my parents caved and said yes. Imagine after all that, he couldn't come because no one would host him. Hearing about Datu made me appreciate my host family even more then I already do! AFS is an amazing program that offers students the opportunity of a life time, but AFS isn't possible without volunteers. My host family isn't getting paid to take care of me for a year, but they want to. I couldn't be more thankful! I hope that AFS will grow stronger.... especially in the US. There are so many people that have the ability to host a student and they really should, and there are so many students from all over the world who really want to go to the US on AFS. I love my country and I want other students from all over the world to get to see and live in the US, which is why more people need to think about hosting. :D I hope people who read my blog can share this with friends or ask themselves if they are the right people to host. Spread the word!!! 

Visit http://www.afsusa.org/host-family/ to learn more! :D

I am absolutely loving Argentina! Salta is an amazing city. It is beautiful, the people are kind and friendly, my family is great, and my friends are awesome. I am so happy I have been given this opportunity. I have learned so much and I have only been here for about 5 weeks. Imagine how much I will have grown after a year! I have to thank my Mom and Dad for letting me do this by supporting me, and -cough, cough-, paying. LOL. It is worth every penny :) And thanks to AFS, I have been able to meet people from all over the world, learn a new language and embrace a new culture, as well as learn to see things from a new perspective. :D That is the beauty of foreign exchange!

Chao for now!

SO much to say!!!

First of all, this week was the last week of trimester exams so all the kids are very happy. Not only that, but now it will be a lot easier for me to understand what is going on in class. I was given two assignments this week. (yeah.. 2 :) My English teacher wanted me to write about my experience with 9/11 and translate it to share with the class. I really enjoyed this assignment because it given me a chance to share something about my country with my classmates. They were shocked to hear how close I was to DC when it happened, and I don't think they really knew just how many people we lost that day. My Biology teacher actually gave me homework and I actually did it! My first complete homework assignment in Spanish :D Even though half of it was wrong, it still felt good to have tried to do something in Spanish. 

       We don't have school Monday through Thursday this week because there is a religious festival happening in Salta this week. I'm not sure exactly why, but people pilgrimage here from all over Argentina to participate in this giant precession all over the city which will take place on Thursday. It has been absolutely impossible to walk through the center right now because there are people everywhere. Long lines to confess, have a healing prayer, or simply just walking to get their chance to see the inside of the cathedral. I know the festival has something to do with Virgin Mary because we have prayed to Mary everyday at school this week. They believe that a natural phenomenon has occurred in Salta and that the Virgin Mary has more of a presence here, although it has not been sanctioned by the Pope so it's not quite "official".

I'm still swimming Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesdays for 2 hours. We swim A LOT more then I'm used to because it is a year round, but I really like the challenge. I also started rock climbing this week. My friends know the owner of a rock climbing store and bar, that also has a rock climbing wall. It's a lot of fun! I went Thursday with a bunch of people to celebrate the last day of exams, and I also went Friday night with more people. It's the prefect hangout spot.

On Friday night, after climbing, I went out to dinner with a group of friends. The restaurant we went to is actually owned by one of the "proceptoras" at my school. I'm not really sure what the direct translation is in English because we don't really have "proceptoras" in the States, so I will just use the Spanish name :) Anyways, she just opened the restaurant and it is very nice. Again, another perfect place to hang out! We pretty much had the whole place to ourselves. We pizza, which was more like bread with some cheese and uncooked tomatoes on top, and then I made sure to order empanadas :) They are delicious!

SIDE NOTE! I have come to the realization that when I return to the States in a year, I will waddle off the plane, instead of walking. I don't think I've ever ate this much food EVER! Breakfast (when ever I wake up) and tea time (6pm-8pm) are my favorite times of the day. EVERYTHING is covered in dulce de leche or cheese. It's awful!!!!!! But so delicious. All of the food here is amazing! I seriously haven't tried anything I haven't liked, and I really like Mate. It is pretty bitter without sugar, but not a bad bitter. (It's the best with just the right amount of sugar.) One thing that's also not helping, they eat 4 meals here and they eat so late that their food doesn't digest before you go to sleep. Thank God I have swim practice in 2 hours :) 

On Saturday, I finally got to go on the teleferico :D It is by far the best way to see Salta! The Salta AFS trip was nice enough to organize a time for all of us to go together. First we went up on the teleferic, the view of Salta is absolutely breath taking. Salta is literally a valley surrounded by mountains. You have a view of the massive Andes mountains. In fact, when I landed in Salta we could see the mountains right next to us before we went through the clouds. 

And of course it could never be a true AFS event if there weren't silly songs and games involved. First we played this one game I can't even explain, I'm just happy it wasn't the funky chicken song... that is just plain embarrassing! I mean really, we stick out enough! LOL After the silly game, we split up in to teams for the scavenger hunt. We started to read the list of things we had to do and all of our mouths dropped!!

1. Take a picture with a tourist. (This was one of the easiest)

2. Imitate an officer.

3. Ask a stranger where the bathroom is in a language other than Spanish, English, or Italian. (By process of elimination, Alicia from Germany had to do this one)

4. Sing a song and lay out a hat asking for money. (Yellow Submarine)
5. Interview someone and record a video like you are taping a news broadcast for your country.
6. Explain to a group of people why we are all here in Salta. (That was a very awkward conversation)
7. Imitate someone who is working out.

8. Find materials and make a picture that relates to AFS. (I think that it's supposed to be an AFS student when they first see their new home.)

9. Try and kiss as many people as you can (on the cheek) within 10 min. (I got 3, and then the guys started following me and Alicia, haha they wanted my facebook... run LOL)
10. Go to one of the shops and ask them if they would give you something for free, in Spanish. (This could not be completed if they didn't give you anything)

I am proud to say we completed everything on the list! :D I don't really know which team won, but that wasn't really the point. After the silly scavenger hunt, we had a little picnic (this included cookies, pastries, and of course, dulce de leche!) And after chatting and eating, we walked down the hill, down over 1,000 steps. It was actually really nice :) The walk is beautiful and once you get to the bottom you end up at the monument. We happened to get there at the best time, sunset.

Saturday night I went to a birthday party with friends. One of the things thats very different here is our sense of time. They said to be at the party by 10 to eat, but we didnt get there until 11:30. We danced and danced and danced from 1am until dusk. For about 4 hours we danced, without sitting down or taking breaks. It was A LOT of fun :D My friends are absolutely amazing! People in Argentina really know how to have fun!

(This picture was taken at the monument on Sunday. Sunday's are when we all go to the monument to hang out, drink Mate, and listen to music.) 

I've been in Salta for about 4 weeks now and I love everything about it! :D I am surprised how quickly I was able to fit in and accustomed to the culture. My Spanish is getting better every day. It's cool when I say a word I didn't even think I knew, but I actually know. Since I can communicate a lot easier, I have been able to share more stories with my friends and family. I feel very accomplished when I am able to tell someone a story or share something about my country in detail. My host family gets back from vacation on Friday and I can't wait. I really do miss them and I am very anxious to get comfortable and settled into my permanent home.

Thank you for reading!!! :D I hope my blog helps you love Salta as much as I do. I really enjoy sharing my experiences, it's a great way for me to remember everything that is happening! I am really happy here and I know for sure that at this time in my life, this is where I need to be :D

If you have any specific questions that I have now answered yet, write the question in a comment!

Until next time, Chau

I met an Argentinean celebrity! :)

This Sunday I went to a party for a young girls first communion. They really went all out for the party, with clowns, LOTS of food, and they even hired a famous singer, Federico Maldonado who is from Salta. The reason the family went all out to make the party special is because they aren't sure that the girl is in great health. It was a very sweet party, but can I just say, I REALLY HATE CLOWNS! And why do they have to be at so many parties? Can't we find some other way to entertain ourselves besides needing people to put on shoes that are way to big, way too much make up, a permanent creepy smile, and a nose that squeaks!?

At least these clowns aren't as scary!! :D (I think.. LOL MUAHAHA)

(Vicki, left, is the friend I am staying with until the 16th)

There was a little girl at the party who asked Federico if she could sing one of his songs with him and she was actually pretty good! :D It was absolutely adorable! Sadly the video I recorded wouldn't load.

Check out this video of Federico Maldonado from youtube.

And finally a picture with the celebrity :) <3

In Salta, the moon smiles :D

Overall, this has been a really great week. Things here are very different. For example, kids talk during class and don't have to do classwork the entire time, which makes it actually fun, they watch famous TV shows like Glee and Jersey Shore a season later than we do, and the moon smiles. Since I now live in the Southern Hemisphere, the moon is up-side-down and looks like it's smiling. I think it's a sign :D

For the next two weeks my host family will be in Florida, Disney, and then they are going to Mexico. I already miss them, but it is only two short weeks. When I was talking to other AFS students who have been in Salta for 6 months already, I found out just how lucky I got with my family. Most of them have at least one thing they don't like about there family, but I am more than happy to say that I can't even think of anything I don't like about my family (at the moment LOL). I am staying with my friend and classmate Vicki. I was homeless for a good 5 hours when AFS was deciding where I was going to stay, but then Vicki came to my rescue and said she would love to have me stay at her house. After her mom talked to AFS, and my host mom talked to AFS, and AFS talked to a bunch of other people, I was finally able to go to her house. :)

This week I have had a lot of first's. My first swim practice which was great! Now I am swimming Mon., Wed.., and Fri. from 3:30-5:30 :) Plus I play Volleyball at school on Tues. and Thurs. from 2:30-3:30. I love having some activities to do because it keeps me busy and having fun :) Since I am so use to being busy all the time without much down time, this is a great way to prevent boredom in my opinion, and so far it's working very well :D I also went to my first movie in another country. Although it was in English, it was still in experience. We saw Death 5 in 3D. I normally will never go see a scary movie, but I said that this would just have to be another experience to add to the list. Not to mention I got to wear these insanely attractive and comfortable glasses :)

School has been a challenge for me lately. All of the students had trimester exams this past week and this next week. Therefore, it has made it that much harder for me to understand what they're talking about in class because they're usually covering test material. Plus, the teachers make it feel like I don't exist. I let AFS know that I wasn't even being called up for attendance and now they are talking to the school. It is very important that my school here has proof that I have been coming to school so that AFS knows, and my school back homes knows that they can give me credit for a years worth of school. This week I am going to try extra hard to figure out what is happening in class, or if I have homework.

My class calls themselves Promo 12. It is a huge tradition at my school that the graduating class takes a trip to Bariloche, which is a town near Salta. They spend years raising money for it and organizing it. I love helping my class with the preparations even though sadly I won't be able to go, at least I can be a part of it. This years graduating class, the grade my host brother is in, is going to Bariloche on Monday. At school on thursday they had what we would call a pep rally. To give you an idea of what it's like, imagine this picture, plus paint, shaving cream, silly string, streamers, and confetti.

My host brother is somewhere in the middle of the crowd covered in shaving cream.

I love the weekends because I can just go out with friends and get to know Salta better. I really love it here. During the day, you can visibly see the mountains that surround Salta. I really have never seen anything like it. Even though they are far a way, you can really see the texture. At night Salta is beautiful. In the center you'll find beautifully lit churches that highlight the colonial style architecture. The shopping is also great! There are shops and bakeries and restaurants and anything you would ever need, on every corner. Salta definitely holds up to it's nickname, Salta la linda, Salta the beautiful :)

(Mountains outside of my house :)

(The water fountain at night)

A video from Monday's field day at the school. Some of the girls taught me how to dance to Cumbia, which is the Latin style of dance and music in Argentina :D