Wednesday, November 5, 2014

PROMOCIÓN DIRECTA Y HELADO!

(Direct Promotion and Ice Cream!)

Today was perhaps my busiest day this semester.  This morning I went to the eye doctor. Everything was good. After that, I started to seriously study for my History test. I drilled the questions into my cerebellum as much as I could, but I also had to work on a group presentation.  I went to UBP early today to work on it and to study with some classmates.

Finally, it was time.

When it comes to presentations, I like to go first because once my presentation is out of the way, I can enjoy the rest. But today, our group had to go 3rd.  I had angst. However, we did a pretty good job. From there I had to go directly to take the History test. Moment of truth...

It was really easy! Why was I so worried??? I finished in about 7 minutes, and when the professor gave me the answer key, I found out that I did not miss a single question!!!! I GOT A 10!!! With my two test scores being 10 and my 95% attendance, I officially have Direct Promotion for History and therefore am exempt of the final.

Franklin came out a little later.  He got a 9. Pretty good Franklin!  We waited for Elsa and when she came out she got a 9 too! We were all pretty happy. So Elsa asked if we wanted to go get ice cream at Caseratto. Sure!!!  When we arrived, Mimi, Beatriz and Catherine were there. We said hello and ordered our ice cream. It was delicious!!! A very good way to end this busy day. Now I want to relax. But...

I have a Literature exam tomorrow...

Saturday, November 1, 2014

ONE MORE MONTH?!?!?!?

Today, November 1st, is the first day of my last month in Argentina.  WHAT?!?!?!?

I cannot believe that three months have gone by already.  Don't get me wrong- I'll be happy to go back home, but can Time please go slower?? Please?

Has it really been three months? My only thought is:


Anyway, once again I want to thank everyone who made this trip a reality.  Honestly and truly, I wouldn't be here without you. In about a month, I'll be back to thank you all in person!  In the mean time, I have one more month to enjoy Argentina and I have to take advantage of every moment...

Well, it was raining today, so I didn't do much of anything.  I'll take advantage of every moment...tomorrow!  Happy November :)

Friday, October 17, 2014

Kanna chan! Tanjoubi Omedetou! Lomos for everyone!

(Note: Tanjoubi Omedetou is Japanese for Happy Birthday)

Tomorrow is Kanna's birthday. So, to celebrate, she wanted to eat dinner at Decks tonight. (I'm glad she liked it last time!) After making a Facebook event, we organized how many people were coming, and waited until dinnertime. When I got there, Kanna and Yui were already waiting! Yui told me she was going to eat a whole lomo this time. Soon enough, more people came. When the food was ready, I waited for everyone's reactions. They liked it!  It's very silly, but I feel proud of my host family for having the best lomos in Córdoba. As the time got closer, we sang for Kanna and when we finished eating, I walked them to the bus stop.  They were going to go party, but I was too tired and too full to go with them. Besides, I have to get up early tomorrow to go to la Cumbrecita with Elsa.  Some other time. Anyway, Kanna seemed to have a good birthday dinner. I'm glad.



Monday, October 13, 2014

Villa María- La Vida Tranquila- Here to stay?!?!?!?

This morning the train woke me up very early - around 6 am.  I couldn't go back to sleep, and I didn't know what time Caro and her grandparents usually wake up, so I decided to check on the wifi.  Still not working. So I turned on the TV and watched El Chavo del Ocho (sound familiar, dad?) 

A little later, Caro's grandfather woke up and went to the kitchen to have breakfast and read the paper.  I joined him, ans we talked.  We talked about Villa María, about his family, about the past, about a lot of things.  We talked for about two hours until Caro and her grandmother got up. We ate (small toast and coffee) and Caro and I went back to her house. Since today was a national holiday (Columbus Day, though here it's called Día de la Raza), the whole day was very relaxing- we bought pasta to make for lunch, Caro's mom showed me pictures and videos from Caro's sweet 15, After lunch, I took a nap on their Paraguayan hammock.  Then Caro and I went to running.  We ran 2 km and did some other exercises. There were a lot of people exercising too. I told Caro it was so peaceful in Villa María, that I would like to stay! Later we went back to her grandparent's house and relaxed until it was time for me to go to the Bus Terminal.

When we got to the terminal, I couldn't see my bus. I kept looking, but I couldn't find it.  I went to the help window to ask, and they told me it had just left! WHAT??? Now I really am going to stay in Villa María! The man at the help desk told me that I could get a new ticket for another bus in an hour (free of charge).  I said thank you and texted Caro and my host family.  Caro came to pick me up and we went back to her house, so that I wouldn't have to wait at the terminal.  She lives 2 minutes away.  I borrowed their shower so that I could freshen up, and when we went back to my terminal, I had my ticket replaced and I got on the bus.  Goodbye Villa María.  I truly enjoyed it.












Sunday, October 12, 2014

VILLA MARÍA!!!!! NEW LOOK!!! WEEKEND WITH THE CATENAS!!!!!!


Today's the day! Today I woke up and went to the Bus Terminal at around 8:45/9ish. I bought a 2 liter Coke to contribute to the asado. Then, with ticket in hand, I waited for my bus to arrive- it didn't take long.  I put my backpack with the luggage and got on.  The drive wasn't bad at all- around three hours or so.



When I arrived in Villa María, I called Caro to ask her where she was.  She was behind me! I met her younger brother Italo and we went to the grocery store to buy a couple of last minute things for the asado.  We found asado-flavored potato chips...only in Argentina! After shopping, we Caro took us to the riverside, where her family was waiting.




Meeting Caro's family was fun.  They are so friendly! We waited a little for Caro's father to show up with the tables, but once he came, we got started with the asado.  I learned how to do it step by step (future blog post).  When it was ready, we all sat down to eat-- THERE WAS SO MUCH!!!!!! And it wasn't over yet, because after the meat, Caro, her grandmother and I went to go buy artisanal ice cream. And after the ice cream, we ate a fruit tart (pasta frola) made by Renzo, Caro's older brother. It was delicious!!! As you can imagine, we were so full!  I took a walk with Caro's parents while the rest played cards.  We planned to go kayaking tomorrow. That will be fun! We also talked about Caro (naturally- what else would parents talk about?) When we came back, we cleaned up and they took me to their house so that I could put my things down.  They have a keyboard! I was so happy! After a little while, we went out again and went to the hair salon they own.  Caro cut my hair and gave me a new look!  I like it!



Afterwards, we continued my "tour." Villa María is a small town, but it is important.  A lot of agricultural and economic assets.  It's also very peaceful.  We stopped by the Jesus statue--sure it's not Christ the Redeemer of Rio de Janeiro, but it's still good!  We visited the Cathedral, and other places. Finally, Caro and I got some empanadas and ate at her grandparents' house.  That's also where we settled down for the night.  The wifi didn't work well, so I was getting ready to sleep, but I noticed Batman was on TV (I have always always always loved Batman!), so I watched it until I was too sleepy. Can't wait for tomorrow.













Thursday, October 2, 2014

INTERNATIONAL FAIR AND MERIENDA WITH CARO!!!!!!!

It's the International Fair!!! I've been looking forward to this day for months! Today I went to UBP early to add some finishing touches to my stand. I wore my Samford polo and HCAS nametag to look official.  I think I looked pretty good! When I arrived I finished my stand and the fair began. UBP Students and people from Córdoba came for information on studying/researching/working abroad. Since I was representing a university, mainly students came by my stand.  I told them about Samford's location, it's schools, our exchange program, the culture, and I would answer their questions too.  I also made a sheet for them to leave their contact information if they wanted more information (I learned that from many a Preview Day with Dr. Ledgerwood!). I enjoyed myself.  As an Ambassador, I really enjoy talking about my school, and the whole fair was really fun.  When I wasn't busy at my stand, I went to visit my friends in "other countries." I visited Japan, where Yui and Kanna were making origami at their Kansai Gaidai University stand;  I visited Elsa, Hiem, Lulu, Audrey and Valentin in France...they had cake! I visited Paola and Edgar in Mexico, and Yassi in Austria.  The Quebec group had delicious food from Quebec at their stand.  Everybody was representing where they were from.





As the fair continued, there were other things happening.  Popcorn for sale. Talks about study abroad and postgrad research, Traditional Mexican Dance. We had fun. Then it was lunchtime.  All of us participating in the fair got a free lunch (Thanks CRI!). After lunch, we went back to our stands.  In the afternoon, things slowed down a lot, and everyone wanted to take a nap.  However, I quickly woke up when I saw Carolina show up in her Samford shirt!  She came to check out the stands for post graduate opportunities and to help me out a little bit too. 

 To finish the fair, the Canadians played music and sang for us.  Very chill. Very relaxing. There were also raffle competitions, but I never win. At the end, there was traditional Japanese dancing.

After the fair, Caro and I went to complete our new tradition: every time we see each other, we have to have a merienda together! So we went to Caseratto and had coffee with cake. We also began to plan a weekend for me to go to her hometown of Villa María to visit. I can't wait!







Wednesday, September 24, 2014

PARCIAL DE HISTORIA! AHÍ VENGO PROMOCIÓN DIRECTA!!!

(HISTORY MIDTERM! DIRECT PROMOTION HERE I COME!)

Today was the history midterm.  Elsa and I had studied for it so I felt prepared.  When I took the test, I was relieved that it was multiple choice and matching.  I love multiple choice and matching!  I was unsure about only one question, so I tried my best.  When I finished, I turned it in and professor Martinez gave me the answers so that I could figure out my score. I only missed that one question. Meaning... I got a 10!!!!! Great! If I keep this up, I'll have the direct promotion, thus exempting me from the final exam and letting me out of class 2 weeks early! I was pretty excited.

Sunday, September 21, 2014

Urban Expedition 2014!

Saturday, September 20

Today I went to the church because the youth group invited me to a scavenger hunt.  We met up at the church and got into groups.  At first I was nervous because I didn't know many people, but I recognized a couple of people that I met last week and I was getting to know new people. We were split up into groups and given a picture.  The picture was of a place in the city where we had to go to receive our first clue. I'm glad I was in a group of Argentinean people because I had no clue where the picture was taken! So all of us ran out of the church and made our way to the Plaza de Intendencia.  When we got there, we met Marcos (Hey! We've got the same name!).  Marcos told us that in order to get the clue, we had to ask a stranger to juggle 5 balloons! One of the girls with us boldly walked up to someone nearby and asked.  He said ok and we got our clue!  Soy muy pequeño, y paseo con los perros. ("I'm really small, and I ride on dogs..."). Paseo de las Pulgas! (the flea market where artisans sell their wares.) 

So we quickly walked to our next destination, while asking people to answer survey questions and doing silly tasks (these questions and tasks count as bonus points in the scavenger hunt.) When we got there, we eventually found Flor, who told us for the next clue, we had to be artisans and make something to sell here.  One of the girls made a bracelet out of wire and sold it for 25 cents! Yes!! Next clue went something like: Soy perezoso y me gusta la miel. ("I'm lazy and I like honey"). The answer was bear, so it had to be Museo Caraffa! (Caraffa Museum of Fine Arts has a statue of a polar bear in front of it.)

As we quickly moved towards the museum, we continued to do bonus tasks.  Like sweeping the street, giving free hugs, and other things. When we got to the museum, Mica was waiting for us.  This time we had to dance in the street at a red light in order to get the next clue. So after a little group discussion, we decided to do the Macarena during the red light.  The people in the cars were laughing and probably wondering what in the world we were doing!



After the dance, it took us a while to receive our next clue, because it was starting to get dark and we couldn't find it. As we looked, we continued to do bonus tasks.  I ate hot sauce.  Mati raced someone and gave a piggyback ride. And then we found the clue. John 10:11 Yo soy el Buen Pastor: el buen pastor su vida da por las ovejas. ("I am the Good Shepherd...") We had to go to Paseo del Buen Pastor (it's a place downtown where a lot of people go to hang out.)
When we got there, THERE WERE SO MANY PEOPLE!!! Apparently there was a concert going on. Anyway, in order to get our last clue, we had to convince a group of people to sing a song for us. That was difficult. But we finally did it, so we got our last clue: telling us to meet up in Plaza San Martín.  We had to hurry! As we went, we kept doing bonus tasks, like making a human pyramid and asking someone to sing a verse from a love song. We finally made it to the Plaza. We were the 2nd group there. When all the groups came, we all went to the church together. 
At the church, there was an asado waiting for us!!! Good. I was sooo hungry! As we ate, the judges were looking at all of our photos and videos (that's how we proved we did what we did) AND OUR TEAM WON!!!!!!!!!!!!! We won some chocolates. I had a really good time.  Not only because we won, but because I got to get to know the city better and I made new friends. 
Some new friends






Friday, September 19, 2014

Viernes al pedo

*Note: In Argentina, al pedo means "not doing anything, unproductive, lazy, etc." en pedo means "hopelessly and ridiculously drunk."

Today I hardly did ANYTHING!!!
I slept in, I didn't even really eat breakfast, I did a little homework, I was on Youtube and Facebook...
Oh I also ran a mile and bought some meat for an asado tomorrow. I had lunch and dinner... That's pretty much all I did today- Tsk. shame on me!

Oh well. Tomorrow will be better.

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Merienda with Carolina!

*Note: Merienda is an afternoon snack, between lunch and dinner.

After class, Elsa asked if I was coming, and I said not today. I waited on Carolina to get out of the HR event.  She and her friend from middle school, Bruno came out and we left together. We rode the bus for about an hour to get downtown, and the fact that Av General Paz was closed because of a protest made it even longer! But we didn't mind.  Caro and I were catching up and talking about our lives and future plans. Bruno is pretty cool, although a little reckless. Whenever the light was red, he would cross anyway while we waited for it to change.

Anyway, we went to a pastry shop called Lapana.  I met another one of Caro's friends from middle school- Emi. Emi had actually gone to the US to visit Caro for a week last semester, but we never met. She's nice. Bruno had gone to talk to a friend he recognized across the street.  We ordered and chatted.  Apparently Caro wants to go back to the US for a while. We had a lot of fun.
Merienda is just a "snack!"
Bruno joined us later and when we finished, he had to leave. So Caro, Emi and I went across the street to Paseo del Buen Pastor (Remember I wanted to visit here?) We sat on the steps to keep hanging out and chatting.  Carolina kept asking me all of the questions she was asked in the US: "How do you like it here? What's your favorite thing about Córdoba? What struck you as different here? Have you visited ____ yet? All of these and more! We were sitting in front of a statue of Rodrigo, an iconic Cordoban singer who tragically died in a car accident.  One of his best known songs was called "Soy Cordobés" (I'm Cordoban). We took a picture.
Took a picture with Rodrigo. Soy Cordobés!
After a while, we were planning on other activities when it started raining.  So we walked to the bus stop and waited for the bus to show.  When it did, I said goodbye and went home. I really enjoyed today.

Shopping again with French people! What a crazy day!

Today again, I decided to meet up with Elsa at the the Dinosaur mall. Today she was going to buy a cellphone and a present for Audrey, since it's her birthday today. Hiem came too. What would a French girl like Audrey want? They decided a scarf was a good idea. Elsa told us that there were scarves in the store she bought her flip flops in, and Hiem said she wanted some flip flops too. So we went. When we walked into the department store, Elsa was going directly for the scarves, but Hiem stopped immediately to look at a blouse. And a shirt. And some pants. Dépêche-toi Hiem! (Hurry up!) ;)

We arrived at the flip flop section.  Hiem didn't like them. Moving on. We found the scarves, and they started looking for one that was Audrey's style.  They found some good ones, but not at a good price. So we looked in other places, and they finally found one!


They were planning to go eat sushi with the birthday girl.  They invited me, but I was already booked. So we parted ways.  I went home, ate a quick lunch and went to UBP.  I was going to meet a professor from the architecture program. She had asked around if there was anyone willing to give English classes and my name popped up. So we chatted and organized for our classes that will start next week.  I also saw Carolina! She was on campus today because there was an HR event today. We started catching up, but when I saw my classmates walking by, they reminded me that I had class. Caro and I decided to meet up later and have merienda (afternoon snack).

After class, I was hanging out with my friends, when a bunch of journalists came to take pictures and interview Keisuke.  I have no idea why, but they were doing a story on him! It was so funny watching them take him aside, put him in poses and take pictures! What a crazy day! but it's not over yet...

Keisuke (his back is turned) "studying" for the journalists.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Test Prep and French Power!

Today in History we played a review game because we have a test next week. On Monday, the professor gave us a study guide and told us to look over it for the game. Today, we made groups and competed in a quiz show type of game.  The professor read us the question, and we had to raise our hand first to answer and gain a point. However, if we had the wrong answer, we would lose a point!

Elsa, Keisuke and I were a team.  We called ourselves the Napoleons (Elsa's idea!). We started out rough, but soon enough we were on a roll!  Elsa knew a lot of the questions and she got us in the lead! We had our usual class break and when we started up again, the professor said we couldn't use our notes anymore, but that there was no more wrong answer penalty. As we played on, I helped keep us in the lead.  The Napoleons won and we got a box of chocolates.  We split it among ourselves and class was over.

Professor Martinez is a really good teacher. I hate history, but he makes it interesting.  He's engaging and personal, objective and sincere. And he didn't leave the other teams just watching us get chocolate.  He bought smaller goody bags as "consolation prizes"so that everyone had chocolate. He's really good.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Tango Lesson Number One

Today was a good day at school.  I studied with Elsa (direct promotion, here I come!) and then I took an easy "quiz" in Lit. In culture we had a good conversation about the geography of Argentina. and then I went home.  Here's the good part.

I got ready and went with Sofia to a Tango lesson.  There's a place that gives free lessons! So I went, and I loved it! I met some of Sofia's friends, and I made some new ones of my own.  Since I'm such a novice, I went off to the side of beginners and we learned the basic step.  It was similar to what I learned in Buenos Aires, but different. Ẃe practiced and practiced and practiced the basic step.  I was the only beginning guy, so I danced with most of the beginning girls.  I was finally starting to get the hang of it when it was time to go! So I'm going to practice with Sofia and go back next week. It was so fun!

It's incredibly late, but now I'm finally caught up. Happy reading :)

Monday, September 15, 2014

I'm so happy :)

Today I had a really good conversation about Jesus.

I like shopping with French People!

Last night, Elsa asked me if I could go with her to the Dinosaur mall today because she needed to do something. I said sure and met her there this morning. We did what she needed to do, and as we were leaving, she mentioned she wanted to look for some flip flops, so we looked around. We went to 3 or 4 stores and she looked at the shoes, considered the price, and moved on. Sometimes we would comment and say these are cute, those are terrible, etc. Finally, she found some flip flops that made her happy at a good price, so she bought them. I'm glad that she's feeling happier. 

Afterwards, we went to her house to drop off the shoes and have a cup of water, and then we went to UBP, 

Elsa found some flip flops!

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Second Week at Church

Tonight was great. I went to church again. I was a little late for Bible study again, but I could follow along.  Then the service- All good.- I met some of the youth group and some other transfer students from the US. Next Saturday we're having a city-wide scavenger hunt followed by an asado. I'm excited! I walked to the bus stops with my new US friends- who happen to be Sophia's friends! - and went home.

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Visiting Elsa

I woke up at 2 pm today. I ate some leftover meat from the family's asado last night, and decided to visit Elsa. I wrote her a letter in French basically saying that I was sorry about what happened and if she needed anything just ask. And I got her a liter of ice cream. Ice cream always helps, right?

So I found my way to her house, and her host mom told me that she had gone out. Oh yeah, Hiem mentioned something like that last night. So I left the letter and ice cream with her host mom and went home. Hours later, Elsa messaged me and thanked me for stopping by and leaving those things for her, and she invited me over. So I went back to her house and we chatted and just spent time together. She's still pretty shaken, as expected, but she's getting better. 

Hugs, Elsa. Don't worry.


CLAP your hands!

Tonight I decided to live the party life again. Mind you, I'm not really a party animal, and the last time I went out was a month ago, but I decided to go because it was to celebrate the birthdays of 4 of my friends. So at 11 pm, I was outside of CLAP, a disco/bar 10 minutes from my house by bus. We were waiting for the birthday people so that we could go inside. Elsa came by- all sad- she had been robbed. Some people took her home and we were all very sad for her.

Hiem (one of the birthday girls) and me
Keisuke and Hiem came, so we went inside, CLAP is primarily a bar, and there was a space for our party. We waited around half an hour for the other two birthday people to arrive.  Finally, Audrey and Yurika showed up and we could celebrate! There was pizza, there were drinks, and there was cake. The cake was fantastic!!! At around 1am, the bar transforms.  All of the tables and chairs are moved away and people are packed like sardines. There was a band playing National Rock, and after them a DJ started playing your typical party/club music. It was fun for about 45 minutes, but I didn't really like being so crowded.  I stayed until 4 am. Then I went out to the bus stop and waited 45 minutes for the bus to arrive! I made it back home and it's about time I get some sleep.



Friday, September 12, 2014

Day at the Museums

Today I went to visit some of the museums in this city.  There are many museums in Córdoba, so last week (when the volleyball game and picnic were cancelled) I planned out my day today.  I would go to five museums today- The Religious Museum of Fray Jose Antonio de San Alberto, The Juan Tejeda Museum of Religious Art, the Historical Provincial Museum of the Marques of Sobremonte, The Genaro Perez Museum of Fine Arts, and the Historical Museum of the UNC.  So for the first one:  It took me a while to find the Religions Museum, since it's hidden on the side of a church. I finally found it.  It was a small museum...originally a home for orphaned girls that this bishop made.  I was only allowed to take pictures in the courtyard, and of the plaque on his tomb. The guide showed me the kitchen, the craft room, the prayer room, and explained how life was here. It was interesting. 











Then I went a couple of blocks to the Juan de Tejeda Museum of Religious Art. The museum was easier to find than the other one, even though it is also attached to a church.  The museum is part of the old San Jose de las Carmelitas Descalzas Monastery (pictured below the entrance of the museum). It was also kind of small, and once again, I could only take pictures in the courtyard.  This museum showcases almost 200 pieces of religious art, from figures of the virgin Mary to portable altars, crosses and ceremonial robes. On the walls, many quotes from Mother Teresa were written, and the view from the courtyard is beautiful.  There are palm trees there, as well as other foliage, and you can see the cathedral from there. The brochure says that this is the same view that the nuns in the 1700s saw. All in all, it was a pretty neat place.

The view that the nuns saw.
You can see the Cathedral from here!
Only God is enough
















Historical Provincial Museum
Marques Sobremonte
Then I went to the Historical Provincial Museum of the Marques of Sobre Monte, also a couple of blocks away. This museum was interesting.  Once again, not what one thinks of a museum, but interesting nonetheless.  This used to be the house of the Marques of Sobremonte, Rafael Nuñez, the first governor of colonial Córdoba. Again, only pictures of the courtyards outside. Inside, there were fancy 18th century rooms- the study, the living room, the prayer room, the music room- all very elegant.  Upstairs were the men's and women's bedrooms.  The ornate wooden and golden beds were fantastic.  As I moved on and passed the Courtyard of Honor, where a 200 year old tree stands firmly, I found the kitchens, the armory, and the slaves' quarters.  The slaves slept on sackcloths full of hay, or on a net of wood or animal skin woven on the bedframe.  A stark difference from the beds upstairs. However, it seems that the slaves in Córdoba weren't there for field work.  They were artisans, welders, carpenters, and house slaves. This museum was interesting.


The tree in the middle of the courtyard is over 200 years old
and still gives fruit





Genaro Perez
Then I went to the Genaro Perez Museum of Fine Arts. I was finally allowed to take pictures!  The museum is named after one of Córdoba's influential artists, Genaro Perez. When I entered, the guard told me that the lower level is the main collection, and the upper level are the exhibitions that change. Downstairs, there was a room with the art of Genaro.  He was a pretty good painter.  My favorite work was the ceiling of the room. There were also sculptures and other kinds of art there.  This was more like the museums one would think about. There was a class of kinder-gardeners taking a tour of the museum as well.  I guess it's good to start appreciating art early.  It was pretty good.

The ceiling was painted by Genaro Perez.
I laid down on the floor to get it all!



Finally, I went to the Museum of the UNC (Universidad Nacional de Córdoba) However, they only do guided tours, and I didn't want to wait until the next one.  Some other day.  So I went home.  I really enjoyed visiting these museums.  It's fun not just partying and having fun, but also learning and doing educational things. Next week I'll go to more.