This February began with my adventure in Alta Gracia. When I was writing about it on the blog I was vague because honestly I didn´t really know anything about it besides that it was an organized event to go to in Cordoba Province and that two awesome exchange students live there. I am so Glad I went. It was so much fun! The main reason we were there was to go to this festival called las colectividades which is really just a celebration of the world. There was a tent for each country which then had decorations, people in costumes, food and drink, and sometimes dance floors. But We did so much more than just go to the festival each night. It began with a storm, a huge storm that luckily Bas, Lucy, Elena, and I (the exchange students coming from Catamarca and Santiago del Estero) just missed. By the time we arrived in Alta Gracia it was raining heavily but we didnt understand why everyone was so late. It turns out that Cordoba capital was left without electricity and so many trees fell over that the bus terminal wasnt working anymore so then some exchange students couldnt even make it. After reorganizing We split up into host families. I was with Nele from Germany in Karly´s (Lives in Alta Gracia) first host family the Maurellis! Alta Gracia and Cordoba is soooo different from Catamarca. It was colder, greener, humider,cleaner, and there were hills not mountains. I know Alta Gracia so well now. Its a small town in Cordoba of about 50,000 people but its only 50 minutes from the capital but its also very historic and to me it looks like it could be a small Italian town. They have one of the oldest dams in South America that the natives built so the town is centered around a park with the lake, and a huge clock tower. Its really pretty and very safe. We did so many excursions that week and it was great to see some of the exchange students from far away that I met on the south trip again. We had pool days, We got to be a part of the opening parade on tv in our blazers and with our flags! Then when we got inside the festival grounds we got on TV again! Then We took a look around and the only continent that wasn´t really represented was Asia, so that was kind of sad because I really miss Chinese food, but I did have some great ethnic food while I was there so it was all good. Then we had a great time dancing in the Brazil tent with the Brazilian Dancers. We were dancing as a group and for the first time in Argentina no one was dancing but us, but we didn´t care we were having a great time. Then Over the course of the week we went to Che guevara´s house which was HUGE for me since my curiosity with South America began with the Movie "The Motorcycle Diaries" It was so cool! They had all of his trips mapped out since he did the big one, but also ones across Argentina. Then also the Museum that showed the historic system of the Jesuit farms in Cordoba which I believe is a site of Humanity. We also got to attend a rotary Meeting which was nice and cool to see how a different club meets. We also got to meet the Mayor and talk with him about the History of Alta Gracia and what our first impressions of argentina were. That was funny since Everyone agreed on "there´s a lot of dogs in the street" Which was later a part of the radio interview. We also got to Go for a hike and then stop at a rotarians house who made us homemade bread and mate which was delicious. We even got to go to a section of Corodoba province where there are Germans. historically its where some Germans fled to after the WW2, but it was still cool to see all the things in German and everything look like a little alpine town. (Later on in the month I went back there with my family and we had dinner and artisan beer which was delicious!) That Saturday Rotary took us out dancing, that was also alot of fun. Alta Gracia was soo awesome and I have so many memories and I thanked the rotary club so much. Mauro (from Alta Gracia, district comittee and went on the south trip as a chaperone) told me that it was an exchange students idea to have the club show Alta Gracia to exchange students like that. Im glad that my club is now doing something like that too. We´re hosting the next weekend but one key difference is that here at the weekends we´re not allowed to leave the premises. So I´ve invited some exchange students to come a little early so I can show them arround before we go to the weekend meeting.
After Alta Gracia I changed families again. I´m now living with one of the Rotary Counselors (not mine, but essentially he´s the head of exchange for our club). Its a big house ( with a pool, whoop!) and sadly I have no host siblings in Catamarca, they are all studying at the University in Cordoba. They all went on exchange though, and one even went to Howland, Ohio! In the district just north of 6690 I think. I met them when I went to the weekend to Cordoba. They are all very nice and cool. One of them even went to live in Honolulu which is neat. Other things this month are: Well I´ve just been constantly doing things with friends since at home all I really do with my host mom is watch movies, and I feel now I need to be more social. So I´ve been trying to organize more things like Baking days or just hanging out or you know getting an ice cream. And since the Aussie lives close to me now I´ve been doing more activities with him. This is because he lives near me and When I got back from Alta Gracia I asked him how he was doing with getting to know Catamarca and what he had done with his host brother and his answer was sleep, eat, and facebook. That his first two weeks his brother never took him to see the main monuments of Catmarca. So I´ve been changing that. Then We went to a little Brazilian style Carnival in Valle Viejo which was cool. The Other Day I was on my way home and I was speaking English with Lucy who´s from New Zealand who was my sister for a weel and I´ve been helping explain Spanish to her ever since and then these two guys start speaking to us in Perfect English and it turns out theyre studying English at the university and we exchanged numbers and theyre so nice and hilarious so Ive been making some new friends here and there like that. Its normal to do that here where as in the us if someone were to be like Hi, Im your friend. Most people would be like What? I dont know you... But here everyone is everyone´s friend so Its fine. Then I recently registered myself for the gym and natatorium so that I can attempt to return home fit. I went for the first time today and I am so out of shape but Im so happy now. I have room for improvement and soon the univiersity will start with Geography! And then we have the weekend coming up. And then in April the North trip. I cant believe I only have 5 more months. Thats scary to me. I wish I could stay and see more of Argentina and learn even more. But I guess I can always come back in the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment