My First Asado

Today we had an excursion to two museums.  They were both in a town called Alta Gracia which is within an hour's drive west of Cordoba.  When we were heading there, I could have sworn we were driving back through Indiana:

But it wasn't too long before we saw mountains in the distance.

We arrived at Estancia Jesuítica and, of course, had to do the most touristy thing that we tourists do: GROUP PICTURE!

Estancia Jesuítica--built in the 17th century.

We left Estancia Jesuítica and headed to Museo Che Guevara (the house where revolutionary Che Guevara grew up).  I didn't take any pictures there (sorry!) because there weren't very interesting things to look at but it was filled with new information to learn.  I'm not dissing the museum at all; it just wouldn't have produced very intriguing pictures.

After the two museums, our program treated us to lunch in a fancy upper room of a hotel!  It was pretty snazzy.  They served me my first three-course meal!

Empanadas

 Lasagna

Creme Brulee

'Twas all very tasty, indeed.  With our tummies full, many students fell asleep on the bus ride back to Cordoba.  We got back to Cordoba around 4:30pm.

Random tidbit:  They use military time here...but only in writing.  Verbally, they do not say "at fourteen hundred," they say "at two" but for some reason they choose to write everything in military time.

A friend of mine from the program, Libby Sternhagen, said she wanted to go to el centro and have her first cerveza (beer).  I went with her and we had a nice chat in a quaint restaurant--I would probably call it a diner, but I don't think they really have diners here.  I've yet to see one anyway.

At 9:00, Gabi, Yaco, Nancy, and I all went to the house of one of Gabi's friends, Alba, for asado.  This is a very traditional meal made of a roast.  It is common to invite many people over for the asado and that held true for this meal--there were thirteen people there in total.

Credit: Turismopradoverde.com.ar

I believe it is common for families to have an asador in their backyard or patio.  Most that I have seen have only the smaller grill that is behind the man in the photo.  And have I mentioned the meat is all fresh here?  Yeah, really fresh.  Everything here is so fresh and savory!  It was a late night for me (we left Alba's house at 1:00am) but that's custom here!  

Un beso!

Jessica

5 Everyday Things You Should Know

Nothing much happened today so I thought it would be a good time to write an entry about some general differences that I have noticed throughout my ten days here in Argentina.

1. There are close to no rules whatsoever in the roads.  Seriously.  The taxi driver on his way from the airport to our house scared Nancy and I out of our wits.  On roads with more than two lanes there are usually painted dashed lines but most people drive on them like the line is the track for their car!  The buses stop with literally ten inches between it and the vehicle in front of it.  And I know I tend to exaggerate when something is way too close in proximity for comfort, but I am 98% certain that a ruler could not fit between vehicles here.  There are some stoplights but I'd say a ratio of intersections to stoplights would be 16:1.  Mostly when there isn't a stoplight cars travel in close groups behind each other so they have the right-of-way.  If they are alone, they honk their horn before entering the intersection.  But you know what?  I've yet to see or hear of any car crashes and yet to see any road rage.  There aren't many stop signs here (hence my not taking a photo of one), but this is what they look like:

Credit: worldwale.com

2. The poorer population here own two-wheeled carts drawn by a horse.  It's kinda cool when I hear horse hooves clopping down the streets (some of which are brick).

3. Everyone here kisses each other!  On the cheek.  Whether it's woman to woman, man to man, or stranger to stranger, it's considered rude to not greet them with a kiss.  I mean when you walk into a store you don't have to greet the owner with a kiss, but if you're introduced to a friend's friend on the street, you better be prepared to lean in to kiss their left cheek.  (I've yet to see anyone go for the right cheek first, though some people kiss both sides starting with the left.)  And it's not really a kiss on their cheek but more of laying your cheek on theirs and making a kissing noise.  The Argentinians are very touchy!  Which brings me to point numero four...

4. The nonexistence of the personal bubble.  No one here is afraid to be standing next to you, right next to you, lying on you, right there.  Yep, there they are, right there.  Hello, sir.  Is that shirt new because it feels like it.

5. I'm not sure why this one didn't occur to me before I came here but nonetheless it surprised me when I took a look at the bathroom faucet.  Notice anything different?

F is for frío (cold)!  And the hot water?  C for caliente.

I hope these have been of some interest for you!

Jessica

I scream! You scream! We all scream for four degree weather!

Today I attended a different church than the one I went to last week.  The one from last week didn't have any music--well that's not fair; they played two songs on a CD player.  And maybe a whopping three of the fifteen people in attendance sang along.  If you didn't get the hint, I wasn't impressed.  The church also lacked a feeling of community.  It didn't seem like anyone knew each other!  So when I came across a different church nearby on my walk yesterday I thought I'd give it a try.

And I'm so glad I did!

This church (forgive me, I cannot remember the name) definitely stepped up the game regarding community.  When I got there after walking the, oh, maybe twelve blocks, there were about seven other people there.  I was worried that I had found another church like the first.  But, as I don't have a watch and didn't have my phone turned on, I had no way of knowing that I was about twenty minutes early for Mass and they were only saying the rosary, not starting the Mass.  *Whew!*  Once I realized there were extra chairs set up at the end of the pews I thought, 'This is a good sign; they have a lot of people!' and I was right.  The church was nearly full, the music--though acapella--was sung by a small choir at the front as well as the whole congregation (with the exception of those of us who didn't know the song because their music isn't in a book).

Random tidbit:  The music at this Mass, last week's Mass at the other church, and the music at St. Bernard's in Crawfordsville's Spanish Mass has not been in any of the song books.  The choir has music and the congregation seems to know the songs pretty well and sing it from memory.  Is this a common thing for latino services?  

After Mass was over I hung around in the church admiring different paintings and statues of saints.  (I found another St. Therese here but didn't have my camera!)  While I was taking in a beautiful sculpture of the crucifix, one of the smallest nuns I have ever seen came up next to me and out of the corner of my eye I saw her go back and forth from studying me to studying the crucifix.  We both stood there a couple moments more then she broke the silence.  "Es hermosa, no?" (It's beautiful, isn't it?)  I agreed.  She proceeded to tell me bits of history about the church, about half of which I understood.  She asked me if it was my first time in that church and who I was with.  When I replied that it was my first time and I was there alone, she replied, "Es bueno que te encontré!" which either means 'It's good that I met you' or 'It's good that I found you.'  I'm not sure which meaning she had in mind but either way, I'm glad that she "encountered" me, too.  Before parting ways, she told me her name is Dora and that she hopes to see me next week.  She certainly will!

On my way home I stopped by a panadería and bought a danish with spiced cherry jelly--heavenly!--and four pesos worth of small biscuits which are common to have with tea for merienda or breakfast.  I went home and had lunch with Gabi who just returned with Yaco from Buenos Aires around 6:00am.  After lunch, I skyped with my parents and showed them the wine I bought last night.  I think they were surprised but not in a bad way, so we're okay!  (Love you guys.)  Nancy and I then decided to go to the Feriál Artesanal (Artisan Festival).  Gabi said it's a pretty cool place to go to buy handmade things and they always have interesting things to look at.

Well we found out that what we went to was not what we were looking for.  What we found was a small tent near the mall (which is where we thought it was supposed to be) that sold only food.

Feriál Artesanal--food version

We decided to go the mall afterwards.  Nancy has been on the lookout for a purse and I for some boots or a sweater with alpacas on it.  We didn't have any luck--the only alpaca sweaters were for kids!--but take a look at one of their malls:

The awesome entrance to the third floor which is all an arcade/children's area!

Without luck in finding out sought-after items, Nancy and I decided we should celebrate National Ice Cream Day (US) even though we aren't in the states.  We're proud of our heritage, right?  So let's eat ice cream to that!  We tried to find a Grido ice cream place around the area and actually couldn't which is crazy because they're everywhere!  We decided we'd hop on a bus and stop at a kiosko near our house to buy ice cream...even though it was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit.  Near the bus stop where we were waiting to be picked up was this amazing building:

And no, mom, I don't know it's name.  Sorry!

And here's us enjoying our patriotism in our four degrees (Celcius) weather:

Un beso,

Jessica

Sunshine, Puppies, and Wine--What more could a girl ask?

This weekend has been full of fantastical things!  Such great things as sleeping in, keeping warm, recovering from my cold, and eating delicious food!  Seriously, I think I hardly left the house this weekend.  But you know what?  It was fantastic.

Fridays we don't have school so I slept in until 11:00.  Marvelous feeling!  I woke up to clouds in the sky for the first time since I've been here.  Thursday afternoon when we met our speaking partners was the first time I even saw clouds here.  So being a cloudy, blustery day in the Hundred Acre Wood without the wood, it was a fine day to stay in, catch up  on my blogging, and chat with Daniel and Nancy.  That night, Nancy went out with friends but I stayed behind and went to bed early via NyQuil to try and finish up my cold.

Saturday was an absolutely gorgeous morning.  Just look at that sun streaming down!

The view out my bedside window.

Clear blue sky

Random tidbit: I'm going to have an entry explaining the house later, I promise!  But I'll go ahead and explain the above picture.  Nancy and I share a room where the large window is over the garage.  We are able to go from the street, through the garage and up the stairs to our room without ever having to trouble people inside the house if it's late at night.  Pretty nifty.  It's almost like our own place!

After lunch Saturday I decided to take a stroll around the neighborhood.  I came across an opportunity to take a picture of something that is very common here.  Some houses have garages (I'd say maybe one of three) or some place to park on their property, but many cars are parked on the street.  However, I have also seen cars do this alot:

Class A example of Perpendicular Parking.

...and I really don't understand why...

So!  I continued my journey and passed by a pet store where these cute little guys were playing with each other!

Too cute!

Later, Nancy and I took a walk around the neighborhood to see the crowds celebrating Día del Amigo (Day of the Friend) which is a holiday to celebrate friendship!  It's my understanding that throughout the week, people can buy their friends gifts in a "Secret Santa" fashion then on Día they reveal themselves.  Many people meet in restaurants and bars.  Why don't we have a friendship day in the US?  ...Alright maybe we do?  I honestly don't know...But why isn't it a huge celebration like it is here?  It's an awesome idea.

So anyway, Nancy and I were out and about and what kind of store did we pass?  Well, here's what I bought:

Legal!

Chyeah!  Pretty cray.  For you wine connoisseurs out there who are interested, it's Cavas del Artesano made in Mendoza, a province of Argentina.  It's a merlot.  I really had pretty much no idea as to what I should buy other than not white wine.  Sorry, Aunt Julie, but I just can't do that stuff.  --But yeah!  I bought my first alcoholic drink all by myself.  It's pretty good, maybe a little more tart than I prefer.

That night I slept well.  ;-)

Abrazos,

Jessica

Ice Cream is Good for the Soul

Tuesday, 16 July
Tuesday was my first day of class.  When we got to our program's center, we waited to hear in which level we would be placed for classes: Spanish 4 is the highest level and Spanish 1 is the lowest.  I thought for sure because of the way I spoke in the oral interview and how I used the wrong tense endings for almost every single verb in the written exam that I would be placed in Spanish 1.  But lo and behold I am in Spanish 2!  Woo!  I did a mini celebration in my head that I had passed up Spanish 1.  Nancy is also in Spanish 2 but is in a different class than I.  This surprised me as I thought she would for sure be put in Spanish 3 (most of my friends are in Spanish 3).

We all parted ways for our classes and I found that I was placed right where I need to be.  My professor, Romina Rauber, said that the first week will be a bit easier because it's mainly review but that it will get more challenging in the next three weeks.  This course is our "intensive" course and only lasts our first four weeks here then we will begin our other courses (such as my Literature, Conversation, Grammar, etc. courses that I signed up for).

After class, I headed to el centro for a libertería (a store like Staples) and bought a notebook for class and made some photocopies of some important documents I had gotten from the school.  I got three copies for 1 peso--about 20 cents!

Random tidbit:  Here in Argentina there are stores for very specific things.  They don't have supermarkets like we do in the United States.  I mean there are some general stores that sell both food and health items but honestly I think I've seen maybe two of them so far in the city?  Yeah, that's really different here. They have panaderías which sell bread, ferriterías which are hardware stores, carnecerías which sell meat, and so on.  They even have perfumerías which only sell perfume.  What'd I tell you?  Very specific stores!  Kioskos sell candy and bus cards and snack foods.  They're like a gas station without the gas.  Kioskos are literally everywhere here.  All of the stores here are very small.  For example, the libertería in which I bought my notebook felt crowded when there were four people in it.

When I had finished at the libertería, I have something to admit.  I wanted to try the ice cream here because ice cream stores (I don't think there's a word for that, actually) are on about every other block in the city.  But when I went into the store Grido, I was very overwhelmed by all the choices and all the people in there.  I figured I would end up with something I hate like chocolate or something in it and decided to leave...and go over to the McDonald's across the way.  I know, I know.  McDonald's?  Jessica!  You're in a foreign country for foreign things not things from home!  I get that, I really do.  But I was just too overwhelmed in Grido so I went for something with less ice cream choices and less people in line.  I was in and out in two minutes with my small vanilla ice cream.

So McDonald's was one small partial fail for Jessica for the day, but in retrospect I did not fail that day: I found my way around el centro by myself (sorry Kathie Sadowski!  You told me to never go anywhere by myself) and bought things I needed, was able to order the correct food, and took the correct bus and made it home after my first day of class in a new country.

That evening before dinner, Gabi and Yaco left for vacation in Buenos Aires.  They will be gone until Saturday night or Sunday morning.  In the meantime, Daniel, Yaco's dad will be here in the house with us.  He's a great cook and a wonderful guy.  Very funny, too!  I'm looking forward to getting to know him better.

Wednesday, 17 July
Really the only notable thing about this day was that I woke up with a slightly sore throat which got worse throughout class and so I decided to get some ice cream at Grido!  I successfully ordered one scoop of banana ice cream with dulce de leche on top.  It. Was. Amazing.  I cannot describe the deliciousness it held.  I would have a picture for you all but sadly my camera battery was dead.  ...Not to worry, though, I'm sure there will be more.

Thursday, 18 July
This was the day of my first Spanish exam.  There is going to be an exam every Thursday.  (We don't have classes on Fridays!  Woo!  At least not for the intensive classes we are in now.  I think once the other classes start up in August we will have Friday classes.)  Our exam was just an oral explanation with a partner about our region in which we live in our home country.  Most of my class is made up of United States students but we have two girls from Brazil and one girl from I believe Belgium (if not, the Netherlands).

The exam was pretty easy.  Then after class, we had an hour and a half before we had to meet our directors in order to meet our Speaking Partners for the first time.  In our program, each student gets paired with a student from UNC who is studying English.  The idea is to help each other better learn the language the student is studying.  It's pretty neat really.

Four girls and I passed the hour and a half in el centro walking around and buying some dulces (sweets) in a café and browsing through books in a librería (you guessed it, a bookstore).

We then met our Speaking Partners in the park around 5:00.  My partner's name is Romira...I think.  Whoops!  Sorry!  She is thirty-three years old so it's a little different for me as everyone else has partners our age.  We went to Romira's nearby apartment because it was so cold and windy that day!  I was grateful that a boy from my program and his speaking partner went with us because I feel like there would have been a lot of awkward silences between Romina and me as I was still not feeling well (my sore throat was still prevalent and my whole body was very weak).  We had merienda (a mid-day snack time that's very common here.  It usually consists of tea and bread/crackers/or sweets) at her house then around 7:00 she asked us if we'd like to go to a student meeting to chat and have mate.  I said that I wasn't feeling very well and should probably head home to rest.  They walked me to the bus stop and waited until the bus came--that was a very kind gesture and I thank them for it.

When I got home, I had some hot tea (the tea here is always piping hot which I am not used to drinking).  Daniel (Yaco's dad) served a delicious dinner of fried potatoes scrambled eggs with a side of shredded carrots mixed with salt and something vinegary.  I think I could eat those potatoes and scrambled eggs every night!  Another dish he made for us the other night was a salad he improvised made of red peppers, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, a pinch of salt and just a bit of the "something vinegary."  It was absolutely to die for!  I will definitely be making that salad when I get back to the states.

Once my dose of NyQuil kicked in, I turned in early (11:30pm) after talking to Lindsay via Skype.  I was completely out when Nancy left to meet up with some friends in el centro to go to un boliche (a night club).  I only knew she came home at 5:00am because of our squeaky bedroom door but I went straight back to sleep and slept until 11:30am this morning!  My throat feels better today.  I have a bit of a headache and I'm a little weak in my neck and shoulders but I'm much better than the past two days.  I think today's going to be a very relaxed day.  And now I'm caught up on my blogging.  Woo!!  I hope you all have enjoyed reading so far.  Sorry there haven't been many pictures lately--I promise there will be more!

Abrazos,
Jessica

The Bus Leaves the Station

Monday, 16 July

I woke up at 7:45am for the Big Day: my placement exam.  Nancy and I had a breakfast of toast and hot tea then we walked to the bus stop (sevenish blocks away) with the exam on our minds.

It ended up that Nancy and I got on the wrong bus to go to the University--I guess I had it in my mind that all the buses just went the same route.  ...Clearly I'm not from the city.  At any rate, the bus that we hoped would be going to the south part of the city where UNC is just kept going west, west, west...  We got off the bus at some random point in the city and walked about two blocks before we hailed a taxi driver who was very kind and took us directly where we needed to go.

Random tidbit:  Our taxi ride cost about 20 pesos (or 4 US dollars) and the bus costs about 4.50 pesos every time you get on (which is close to 1 USD).  The bus here is the way to go!  It's pretty easy to determine how much something here in Argentine pesos costs in USD because you just divide the peso amount by five.

The exam really wasn't all that bad.  We had a written part about 40 minutes long, a part where we had to write exactly what the instructor said in Spanish, then after we turned in the written half we were directed into different rooms in which there were two instructors who asked us questions in Spanish and we had to answer in Spanish.  The oral exam was alright but I think my nerves got the best of me.  They asked easy questions like 'why are you here' and 'where are you from' and 'what do you like to do in your free time.'  Many times I responded with, "Un momento, por favor" (One moment, please) or "Otro vez, por favor?" (Come again, please?).  But the instructors here are super nice and understanding so they smiled and said (in Spanish), "Of course!  No big deal.  Take your time."

After the exam we went to lunch in the cafeteria which is a huge gymnasium.  Everyone at my table save one student broke their plastic fork within twenty minutes of sitting down.  Then after lunch, we were free to leave.  I decided to go into el centro with three other amigas from the program.  We walked I don't know how many miles to go to el centro comercial (the shopping mall).  It is so far from UNC!  (Probably a quick bus or trolley ride though.)  There, with the help of another student translating a bit of the conversation, I got my cell phone to use down here--no U.S. calls; way too expensive!  It was nice to get to see other main parts of the city.

Me looking awkward next to Río Sequía which runs through the city.

We started back for our separate homes around 5:30 and I got on bus A3.  A student from Alta Cordoba (my neighborhood or bárrio) told me after the exam that I need to take A3 or A10 to and from the neighborhood.  So I swiped my card and sat down for a very long ride.  It was the first time I had taken the "right" bus so when I saw parts of the city that I didn't recognize I didn't think anything about it.

...Maybe you can see by my foreshadowing where this is headed...

Evidently I took the right bus but the wrong way.  After a very long ride (probably 40 minutes) when there was only one woman and myself left on the bus, I got up the nerve to ask the driver, "Pasa por Alta Cordoba?"  My heart sank when he said no, that he was parking in the bus station and I have to get off and wait for A10 to come out of the station to start it's route.  So there I was, in the part of town that our program director told us not to be in, waiting at this random bus stop with two men and later an elderly woman.  I tried very hard to hold back my tears and buried my face in my backpack.

But God was looking out for me.  I happened to lift my head right at the moment when A10 pulled out of the station (some 10-15 minutes later).  This time (and every time since) I asked the driver right away if the bus will be going to Alta Cordoba.  He replied yes and I took my seat for an incredibly beautiful drive through the city at night.  Many buildings were aglow in varying colors and the evening life from 7:00-9:00 is amazing!  That is certainly the time to be out.

Of course I had no idea when I should get off the bus so I prayed that God guided me when to leave and that he did.  I got off at precisely the right moment and found myself in the plaza just west of my house.  The plaza was absolutely thriving!  There were vendors for candy, bread, jewelry, a small carousel, a miniature pony for kids to ride, people were packed into the restaurants and bars around the plaza and in the lawn itself.  It was incredible!  Every evening that I've passed at that time so far, it's been exactly the same way.

I walked the six blocks to my house and up to our room where I sat on my bed and let some tears roll.  Nancy came up and asked me if I was okay so I told her how scared I had been and she gave me a hug.  Ten minutes later, Gabi came home and came up to our room and asked how our day was.  When I told her of my fiasco, she knelt beside me and gave me a big kiss on my cheek and hugged me around my shoulders.  That was just what I needed.

I think the "fiasco" made me stronger in that I realized I can find my way in this huge city by myself.  I really felt good about myself later that night.  Nancy and I met up in the plaza with Chad (another student in the program) around 10:00 and we went to a nearby restaurant.  We ordered a liter of Heineken and they gave us some sushi on the house.  I liked the sushi but as for the Heineken...Chad said I need to try a dark beer.  We decided that we are going to try to make that a regular Monday ritual: we'll try to sit at the same table and call it the gringo table.

Abrazos,
Jessica

Awesome Comes in a Bag

Sunday, 14 July

Sunday morning.  With one of our windows in our room cracked open, Nancy and I woke to the sound of many church bells chiming out across the neighborhood.  The usually noisy streets were almost still and only the sound of bells could be heard.  What a wonderful way to wake up.

I had tried the night before to research online what time Mass is held in the church nearest our house (about five blocks away) and found one site that said 10:00.  So Nancy and I headed out at 9:40 but only to find that the church gates were locked.  I saw a sign on the church doors that read "Domingo 11:00-23:00" but I highly doubted that Mass lasted 12 hours so I didn't know what time the service started.  We went back to the house and when I saw it was 10:45, I headed back out and found that it indeed starts at 11:00.  As for the meaning of the sign, I'm not sure; I was out of there at noon.

Sunday, like Saturday evening, was another very nice laid back, chill kind of day.  Nancy and I hung around the house with Yaco and Lucho and Gabi most of the day.  Nancy taught Yaco and Lucho how to play the card game "War" though it was a very different way than I've ever played it.  Then Yaco showed us some more of his magic tricks.  This kid is so in to magic tricks, I can't explain.  He absolutely loves card tricks but he finds all kinds of magic interesting.  He and Lucho showed Nancy and I a coin trick in which the magician has the coin in one hand then flips both hands over and the coin is in the other hand.  I was completely fascinated by it and Lucho was more than happy to teach me how to do it!  I felt totally awesome and when I showed Gabi, she was amazed and didn't know how I did it so I feel pretty confident that when I make my tour in the States I'll capture my audience.

With Yaco and Lucho doing all the teaching of new tricks, I wanted to teach them something in return. I knew that Yaco likes the drums so I decided to teach everyone Cups (like in the movie Pitch Perfect). They LOVED it and picked it up pretty quickly!  I then showed them how they can drum anywhere with two pens or pencils on the table using your wrists and the tips of the pencils.  Yaco liked this one for it's versatility and variety and soon he was making up all kinds of sick beats.  (Nancy and I tried to think of how the use of 'sick' as I just used it translates into Spanish but we ended up saying interesting. I hope my slang vocabulary builds while I'm here!)

After Lucho headed home, it was time for dinner.  Gabi prepared patties similar to hamburgers only the patties were vegetarian made of lentils, flour, and brown rice.  They were very tasty!  A little dry compared to other veggie burgers I've had (perhaps because we had it without bread or condiments?) but they had a very nice flavor.  She served the patties with papas de puré (mashed potatoes) and get this: it's a custom here to put mustard and/or mayonnaise on your mashed potatoes!  When Yaco began squeezing the bag (yes, the bag) of mayonnaise onto his potatoes, Nancy and I just looked at him a little concerned.  But, when in Rome...  It was actually really quite tasty!!

Random tidbit: I think all condiments here come in either a bottle like in the States and in a bag with a screw cap--your choice!  I would definitely choose the bag.  Awesomesauce.

After our heavy dinner, Gabi said we should walk a bit of it off.  We jumped on the offer when she said she'd walk us down the route to take to get to el centro from her house.  It's really quite close which is nice.  We enjoyed the brisk walk in the cool night air and got to see just a smidgen of the night life on this side of town.  I don't think I'm ready to jump into the night life here yet but I do plan to at some point.  It's so much a part of the culture how can I not?

Abrazos,
Jessica

P.S.  Shout-out to my dad: Feliz cumpleaños, papi!  Happy Birthday, Dad!  I hope it was a great one.  I wish I could have been there but I know it's good that I'm here and I feel that you think so, too.  Love you, Dad.

El Centro ("Downtown")

Saturday, 13 July

This was our day of orientation.  Nancy and I had breakfast (toast and jelly and hot tea) then Gabi drove us to the National University of Cordoba (UNC), our school.  I'm not sure, but I think driving it took nearly 15 minutes?  During the orientation, the two directors told us (all in Spanish) about safety, health, transportation, typical class environments, if you have problems with your host family, etc.  Those kind of things.  

It made me feel better that I could understand much of what one of the directors was saying because the night before with my host mother I did not catch a lot of it.  Thankfully, Nancy (my roommate) knows more Spanish than I and Gabi even knows a lot of English.  After orientation, the directors took us to a small restaurant close to UNC.  This also helped to boost my confidence about my Spanish because I sat with a whole table of students who are at my level of speaking.

When we left the restaurant, we were sent off with two other guides who were to give us a tour of the city (the downtown area called 'el centro.')  It was really pretty neat to see all the buildings and plazas--there are tons of plazas here!  The plazas are similar to a small park; they have music, fountains, art, and lots of people.  Sometimes people sell things there, too.  If I understood our guide correctly, there is usually a church and a bank next to the plaza.  There are so many churches here also!  Especially in el centro.  We visited a church but I do not remember the name of it.  It may have had something to do with Buen Pastor (the Good Shepard) or the Franciscans but I'm not sure.  I'll probably find out at some point.

(Update: I found out it's name is Saguro Corazon--Sacred Heart.)

I've made it a goal to take a picture of every statue of St. Therese of Lisieux that I come across as she is the saint whose name I chose for Confirmation.  Well, I found her there in the church!  I have a feeling I'll be seeing a lot of her here...

St. Therese of Lisieux

When Nancy and I returned home, we met Yaco's dad who stayed for dinner.  He seems pretty awesome and laid back.  The rest of the evening was very laid back.  Nancy taught Yaco how to play the card game Speed and he seemed to really enjoy it.  At 10:00 we ate dinner which consisted of steak and calabanza de puré (mashed pumpkin) and it was very tasty and filling.  Yaco had a friend, Lucho, come over to spend the night and while they played in the other room, Nancy, Gabi and I sat at the table chatting about everything under the sun.  Nancy and I decided to give her our gifts that we brought her; Nancy brought two kinds of chocolate from North Carolina and I brought two postcards (one of Indy at night and one of an aerial view of Crawfordsville) and a bag of Popcorn Indiana which Yaco and Lucho devoured during their movie.  Nancy and I went to bed at 1:00 after a nice, relaxing evening in.

Abrazos,
Jessica

Arrival in Chile and Argentina!

Just a note: I'm writing this on Sunday, 14, July, in order to catch everyone up on all that happened in the past four (only four??) days.

Friday, 12 July

When the plane landed in Chile at 6:55am, it was very foggy and pitch black.  I thought the fog might lift when the sun rose and it did after a long while.  It was clear in time for our departure flight to Cordoba at 9:25am.

While in the Santiago airport, our group of study abroad-ers found another group of students who were in our program.  That's when I met my roommate, Nancy Reynolds.  Evidently she had Facebook stalked me and knew what I looked like because once that group found out we were studying abroad with them, one girl shot out of her chair and ran towards me exclaiming, "Jessica!" and she gave me a hug.  I think I just responded with a, "Hi?" and that was when she stalked me and introduced herself as my roommate. ...No worries though; she's not a creeper.

It was very hard to stay awake for those two hours but we were all so excited when we were called to board.  When I sat down in my assigned window seat I thought, "Oh Lord, this is it.  This is real."  The flight to Cordoba was short (an hour and a half) but it was totally awesome.  We flew over the Andes mountains and that was absolutely fantastic!  They are beautiful!

The Andes Mountains

Our flight touched down in Cordoba at 11:50am local time (10:50am in Indiana).  After breathing my first breath of Argentinian air, I took my first run through customs.  It was a little intimidating but I didn't have any problems.  My luggage didn't get lost either so that's a plus.  We were met at the airport by the two Spanish Studies Abroad directors, Alejandra and Vicky.  They told us we would need to meet at the University Saturday at 9:30am and helped us hail a taxi which took us to our new homes.

Nancy and I were a bit alarmed by our taxi ride to the Cavallone residence as there don't seem to be any rules to driving on the road unless you by chance come upon a street light.  (I think there are more in the center of the city but in our neighborhood I've seen maybe two.)  I was very nervous on the way to meet our host family and neither Nancy nor myself knew what to say when we got there.  Nonetheless, once the taxi driver dropped us off (note: in Argentina, you don't tip cab drivers) we walked up and knocked on what we thought was the front door.  It ended up being the garage door but Gabi, our mother, heard us and opened the front door.  She greeted us with a giant smile and a kiss on the cheek (as is the custom in Argentina).  Everyone kisses everyone whether it's man to man, woman to woman, or stranger to stranger.

Gabi told us her twelve-year-old son, Yaco, was at the theater with his grandfather but he would be there later.  Gabi's mother was visiting from a town an hour away and she greeted us in the same way as Gabi.  Gabi showed us to our room and we immediately began to unpack.  After a bit, we went downstairs to the kitchen and chatted with Gabi and her mother.  We also tried mate for the first time.  Mate is a tea drink that is very typical here in Argentina.  Everyone and their brother drinks mate here.  Before I came here I was hoping that I'd like it because it's such a large part of the culture here; however...something about it kind of tastes like coffee to me and I don't like coffee.  I think I could finish a cup but I'll have to get used to it.

Mate (Credit: alu.ua.es)

After chatting, Nancy and I went up to our room and crashed.  For two hours I think we were both dead to the world.  It was around 8:00pm when we woke up and not long after, Yaco knocked on our door and introduced himself.  Gabi made dinner at 9:00pm (which I guess is sort of early here) which consisted of pasta and maybe some cheese and something that was orange and chopped and had some other vegetables in it.  I wish I knew the name of it but I didn't think to ask.  Not too long after dinner, Nancy and I went back to our room and I think I was in bed at 11:30pm.

It was a great day and I was exhausted, that's for sure.  I was certainly ready for that bed.

Abrazos,

Jessica