I made it home! I arrived home Sunday morning at like 5:30 in the morning after a 10 hour flight. At least I had a friendly seat-mate...he was headed to the states as an exchange student for the next year. Even though his English was probably better than my Spanish (maybe?), we spoke in Spanish the whole time. It was nice to sit next to someone friendly and talkative!
Santiago was great! I really loved the city, although that might have had something to do with how absolutely beautiful the weather was. It was around 65 degrees and sunny the whole time we were there! Argentina had been so cold compared to that. When we arrived in Santiago (after our 10 hour bus ride through the Andes), we had been planning to go straight to Valparaiso. The bus was so late arriving, though, that there weren't any more buses to Valparaiso. So, we found a hostel and decided to stay in Santiago for 4 nights as opposed to the 2 we had originally planned. And I'm so glad we did! It's a really great city.
Our first day, we went on a four hour walking tour all around the city. It was an incredible way to learn about the history and politics of the city. There've been a bunch of protests going on for education reform. One protest involved calculating how much it would cost the government to pay for college for the country for an entire year. After the determined the number, they promised to run around the government building for that many hours. So you'd see people running by carrying black flags or Chilean flags.
Day 2 we spent going back to some of the sights from our tour: Pablo Neruda's house (the Nobel Prize winning poet who had an obsession with boats so designed his houses like boats), the Pre-Columbian Museum, the churches, etc. The weather was beautiful again, and the city was great! That night, we decided to go see Captain America...or Capitan America. It was in English with subtitles. We were running late for the movie, and the only place we could find for food was of course a McDonalds. In true American fashion we had McDonalds and a movie...a movie called Captain America no less!
Day 3 we spent taking a day trip to Vina del Mar and Valparaiso. As soon as we got to the bus station, some tour company managed to convince us to go with them and ride around in their bus. We fell for it far too easily, but it was a good way to see both cities! It ended up being kinda hilarious. We drove around with a group of mostly Brazilians (Portuguese speakers), some Spanish speakers, a few French folks, and us. And every time someone new got on the bus, the guide re-introduced us all and where we were all from. And then he explained that the Americans in the back understood Spanish perfectly, so no one should worry! He then proceeded to speak Spanish, throwing in a Portuguese word every now and then, and throwing in an English sentence when he felt the need. All in all, I liked seeing the cities, but I probably would have preferred to wander through them without the funny tour guide! Oh, also, this tour did not let us stop for lunch until 4:00 in the afternoon. Seriously, fat Americans cannot handle that nonsense. At one of our stops, Jay and I ordered empanadas, but as soon as we'd ordered them, it was time to go! The guide said he didn't mind waiting, but we ended up holding the whole bus up for like 5 minutes. Then I had to walk onto the bus with a bag of steaming hot empanadas that smelled up the bus and made everyone jealous. Fat Americans, fat Americans, fat Americans. Don't mess with our food.
For my last day in Santiago and in South America, Jay and I went on a wine tour at a really cool vineyard! Concha y Toro was the vineyard, and it was beautiful. We also did a tasting section of the tour that involved 4 different wines paired with some delicious cheeses! As a part of the tour, the vineyard gave us each a wine glass that says Concha y Toro and also gave us the cutting board that our cheeses were on that has their name on it as well! Of course the tour lasted longer than it was supposed to, so then Jay and I had to run to get a taxi, to take the metro, to run to the hostel, to wrap his shirts around the wine glasses, to pack those and the cutting boards, to call a cab to the airport and GO!
So I made it home safely! It's been a bit weird being back in the states. I'm used to wearing the same clothes over and over again, so I get a little freaked out every time I open my closet door. Not that I have THAT much clothing....but I do when compared to living out of a backpack for 2 months. I also hadn't driven in 2 weeks.
So no more blogging for the next few weeks! I assume no one really cares about the excitement of my life in Covington, GA. But have no fear, I will pick it back up once I arrive in Spain! I fly out on August 31st for 3.5 months in Seville, Spain.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Extended visit in Mendoza: wine, horses, and unfortunate hot springs
I am currently on a bus headed from Mendoza, Argentina to Santiago, chile! As i write this, i look out my window at the beautiful snow capped andes mountains...such an incredible view! I was supposed to be on this bus yesterday according to our original plan. The pass from Argentina to chile through the Andes was closed yesterday and all weekend as well. So jay and I were stranded at our very comfortable hostel in Mendoza for one more night.
On Saturday morning, we arrived in Mendoza super early, around 7 I believe. Neither of us slept particularly well on the bus from cordoba, so we were sooooo happy when the hostel let us check in early and go to sleep. Important note: this hostel had a heater in the room. A serious plus. After our nap and some lunch, we went on a half day wine tour of 2 bodegas: one of young wines and the other being a family operated winery. We also stopped at an olive oil factory, which was fun.
On Sunday, we decided to go horseback riding with 2 other people from our hostel, one from holland and the other from Pennsylvania. Horseback riding was great! We drove like an hour to a spot in the mountains where a nice argentine gaucho had a ranch. After sipping mate (popular argentine tea that you drink with a group, sharing the same mate cup), we began our journey through the mountains on the horses. Mine was a really sweet horse named solito. The ride was beautiful! The mountains themselves were beautiful and we also were able to see some condors, which we weren't able to see in cordoba. At the end, jay's horse kind of fell on him....but all is well. Only a few bruises, nothing more!
On Monday, we hoped to head on to chile, but since that didn't happen, we went to some hot springs-also in the mountains. They were an epic fail. I left my bathing suit at my hostel in Tela, Honduras, so I brought a tank top and running shorts to wear. They had a sign up saying that women could not wear shorts and had to wear a bathing suit. So jay and I had to walk down the road so I could buy a crappy bathing suit that was like $20. When I went to put it on, the strap snapped off of the top. The bottoms were not quite as conservative as your typical American bathing suit. So, I was wearing a sports bra and skimpy floral bikini bottoms. People in Argentina don't seem to have a problem with butts like we do in america, but I was very aware of my slightly exposed tush while we were there. It really wasn't that skimpy, but just enough to make me uncomfortable. In any case, it was total b.s. that they wouldn't let me wear my shorts since they let men wear normal shorts...or even whitey tightees as I saw on one man. The springs were also not natural and were too crowded. There was a covering over them that blocked out the beautiful mountain view. Conclusion? Be wary of the brochures you find advertising lovely hot springs outside of Mendoza, Argentina.
Yesterday evening, I ended up spending the evening hanging out with people in the hostel. We ordered empanadas to be delivered, and just enjoyed hanging out. One girl I met is in Argentina teaching English on a Fulbright grant. I loved picking her brain about that. It sounds really cool, and who knows, I might try to apply for one!
On to chile! Hopefully, jay and I will be able to get a bus from santiago to valparaiso, where we had hoped to spend last night!
On Saturday morning, we arrived in Mendoza super early, around 7 I believe. Neither of us slept particularly well on the bus from cordoba, so we were sooooo happy when the hostel let us check in early and go to sleep. Important note: this hostel had a heater in the room. A serious plus. After our nap and some lunch, we went on a half day wine tour of 2 bodegas: one of young wines and the other being a family operated winery. We also stopped at an olive oil factory, which was fun.
On Sunday, we decided to go horseback riding with 2 other people from our hostel, one from holland and the other from Pennsylvania. Horseback riding was great! We drove like an hour to a spot in the mountains where a nice argentine gaucho had a ranch. After sipping mate (popular argentine tea that you drink with a group, sharing the same mate cup), we began our journey through the mountains on the horses. Mine was a really sweet horse named solito. The ride was beautiful! The mountains themselves were beautiful and we also were able to see some condors, which we weren't able to see in cordoba. At the end, jay's horse kind of fell on him....but all is well. Only a few bruises, nothing more!
On Monday, we hoped to head on to chile, but since that didn't happen, we went to some hot springs-also in the mountains. They were an epic fail. I left my bathing suit at my hostel in Tela, Honduras, so I brought a tank top and running shorts to wear. They had a sign up saying that women could not wear shorts and had to wear a bathing suit. So jay and I had to walk down the road so I could buy a crappy bathing suit that was like $20. When I went to put it on, the strap snapped off of the top. The bottoms were not quite as conservative as your typical American bathing suit. So, I was wearing a sports bra and skimpy floral bikini bottoms. People in Argentina don't seem to have a problem with butts like we do in america, but I was very aware of my slightly exposed tush while we were there. It really wasn't that skimpy, but just enough to make me uncomfortable. In any case, it was total b.s. that they wouldn't let me wear my shorts since they let men wear normal shorts...or even whitey tightees as I saw on one man. The springs were also not natural and were too crowded. There was a covering over them that blocked out the beautiful mountain view. Conclusion? Be wary of the brochures you find advertising lovely hot springs outside of Mendoza, Argentina.
Yesterday evening, I ended up spending the evening hanging out with people in the hostel. We ordered empanadas to be delivered, and just enjoyed hanging out. One girl I met is in Argentina teaching English on a Fulbright grant. I loved picking her brain about that. It sounds really cool, and who knows, I might try to apply for one!
On to chile! Hopefully, jay and I will be able to get a bus from santiago to valparaiso, where we had hoped to spend last night!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Getting to know the Jesuits
After a few days in cordoba, we're headed to Mendoza! I liked cordoba...filled with religious history. The Jesuits pretty much created the city of cordoba, so there's a whole Jesuit block...church, university, and intense high school. The Jesuit churches are interesting. They want to be European, but have a bit of a south American flare. Our tour guide at the university was precious. She'd studied English in school, but had never been to an English speaking country, so she spoke super slowly and super clearly, enunciating every word. We were the only people on the tour, so we became best friends forever. Funny translation moment: she was talking about the cats that are randomly around the university are always meowing really loud. She said that the cats really just want to be 'cherished' or something to that effect. Cherished? Probably petted. I love awkward language moments.
On Thursday, we left cordoba and went to Alta gracia for the day. A small town famous for the museum of Che Guevara and it's Jesuit estancia, a old church/ranch thing that the Jesuits used to provide for their evangelizing of the continent. Slightly less cool than I was hoping, but still cool. We did the tour in Spanish, which was intriguing. Compared with the tours we did last summer in Cadiz, Spain, I understood so very much more. I really did feel pretty good about understanding the guide's Spanish.
The hostel in cordoba was nice. The guy that owned it told us everything we needed to see in cordoba and marked it all on a map. We met several groups of people who were taking or had taken a weeks worth of spanish classes in hopes that they would be able to get around and understand what people were saying as they traveled the continent for the next several months. I hate to break it to them, but I've been taking Spanish for years. It ain't that simple. A week is not going to get you even semi-comfortable with the language!
Today, jay and I took a chill day around the city. He'd been a bit sick, so we didn't go on a hike in a national park with condors. Instead, we went on a walk in cordoba's little park...an unattractive hunk of grassless land that led us directly to the zoo. So we spent about 2 hours looking at hippopotami, zebras, lions, etc, and even saw a show with a seal...in Spanish, a lobo aquatico. Literally? A water wolf. We finished the evening by going bowling on the top floor of a mall...space bowling to be specific. Jay barely beat me the first game, but let it be known that I dominated the second.
Now we're on our second and final overnight bus headed to Mendoza-wine country.
Sorry for the late post. This was written on Friday night but not posted til Monday evening!
On Thursday, we left cordoba and went to Alta gracia for the day. A small town famous for the museum of Che Guevara and it's Jesuit estancia, a old church/ranch thing that the Jesuits used to provide for their evangelizing of the continent. Slightly less cool than I was hoping, but still cool. We did the tour in Spanish, which was intriguing. Compared with the tours we did last summer in Cadiz, Spain, I understood so very much more. I really did feel pretty good about understanding the guide's Spanish.
The hostel in cordoba was nice. The guy that owned it told us everything we needed to see in cordoba and marked it all on a map. We met several groups of people who were taking or had taken a weeks worth of spanish classes in hopes that they would be able to get around and understand what people were saying as they traveled the continent for the next several months. I hate to break it to them, but I've been taking Spanish for years. It ain't that simple. A week is not going to get you even semi-comfortable with the language!
Today, jay and I took a chill day around the city. He'd been a bit sick, so we didn't go on a hike in a national park with condors. Instead, we went on a walk in cordoba's little park...an unattractive hunk of grassless land that led us directly to the zoo. So we spent about 2 hours looking at hippopotami, zebras, lions, etc, and even saw a show with a seal...in Spanish, a lobo aquatico. Literally? A water wolf. We finished the evening by going bowling on the top floor of a mall...space bowling to be specific. Jay barely beat me the first game, but let it be known that I dominated the second.
Now we're on our second and final overnight bus headed to Mendoza-wine country.
Sorry for the late post. This was written on Friday night but not posted til Monday evening!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Leaving Honduras and Making it to Argentina!
I made it to Argentina! But first, a bit about leaving Honduras...
Thursday was Megan's last day of camp, meaning that I had all of the second graders by myself for the day....a bit crazy. Thursday was also the day that the kids started to realize that their teachers wouldn't be around forever. They started getting sad, and so did I! Their hugs were so cute when they said goodbye to Megan. On Friday, after our Fiesta Friday party (cake, ice-cream, pinatas, and Montuca Sound System- a Honduran band, and water games), I got so sad saying goodbye to everyone!! There were a few boys in my class who had been pretty badly behaved in the beginning of camp. They improved drastically, and I loved them by the last week! On Thursday, I played basketball with a few of them, and they thought it was hilarious that 'la miss' was playing with them. On Friday when we said goodbye, they gave me hugeeeeee hugs...making me cry. After they left, I went to give Maria, A particularly sweet student, a hug. I was crying, so she started crying too. How pathetic of me, I know. I had really become attached to some of these kids though!
I had also become attached to Cofradia. At some point that last week, I went into a store to buy a baleada. I was sitting there by myself waiting and felt so comfortable being a gringa in Cofradia...like really comfortable. So needless to say, it was a bit sad leaving Cofradia, the friends I made there, and my students!
But no time to dwell on any sense of sadness, because I was on to the next adventure!
I flew out of San Pedro Sula on Saturday afternoon, stopping in costa rica and panama city, and ultimately making it to buenos aires at about 5:30 on Sunday morning. After going through customs, etc, i took a taxi to jay's apartment. I slept maybe 45 minutes max on the plane, so jay and I both napped for about 2 hours before beginning to see the city! We went to the market in San telmo, ate churipan, went to the cemetery in recoleta which also had a market, and a famous bookstore called el ateneo-it's a theater turned bookstore. We went to a fancy restaurant for dinner and I almost fell asleep in my food because I was so tired...but still enjoyed the food! I slept like 11 hours that night in an attempt to recover.
On Monday, jay and I continued touring and eating our way through buenos aires, seeing el caminito en la boca and cafe tortoni. I also got a small taste of buenos aires nightlife with a group of jays roommates and also Liam Miner from Davidson...he's studying for the semester in b.a. Yay for davidson connections around the world!
On Tuesday, we toured the teatro colon and also did a wine tasting that jay's roommates gifted him for his birthday. I felt very cultured and fancy doing so. As a general note, I feel very fancy in pretty much everything I do since I've left Honduras. Life was so simple there compared to this! It's also cold, which is kinda no fun. It was so hot in Honduras, but I do love the summer.
Right now, it's about midnight on Tuesday night/Monday morning and jay and I are on an overnight bus to cordoba! I will post this when i arrive at the hostel. Let the backpacking/hostel-living begin! Yay for siblings traveling around the world together. Taxi drivers think it's precious.
Thursday was Megan's last day of camp, meaning that I had all of the second graders by myself for the day....a bit crazy. Thursday was also the day that the kids started to realize that their teachers wouldn't be around forever. They started getting sad, and so did I! Their hugs were so cute when they said goodbye to Megan. On Friday, after our Fiesta Friday party (cake, ice-cream, pinatas, and Montuca Sound System- a Honduran band, and water games), I got so sad saying goodbye to everyone!! There were a few boys in my class who had been pretty badly behaved in the beginning of camp. They improved drastically, and I loved them by the last week! On Thursday, I played basketball with a few of them, and they thought it was hilarious that 'la miss' was playing with them. On Friday when we said goodbye, they gave me hugeeeeee hugs...making me cry. After they left, I went to give Maria, A particularly sweet student, a hug. I was crying, so she started crying too. How pathetic of me, I know. I had really become attached to some of these kids though!
I had also become attached to Cofradia. At some point that last week, I went into a store to buy a baleada. I was sitting there by myself waiting and felt so comfortable being a gringa in Cofradia...like really comfortable. So needless to say, it was a bit sad leaving Cofradia, the friends I made there, and my students!
But no time to dwell on any sense of sadness, because I was on to the next adventure!
I flew out of San Pedro Sula on Saturday afternoon, stopping in costa rica and panama city, and ultimately making it to buenos aires at about 5:30 on Sunday morning. After going through customs, etc, i took a taxi to jay's apartment. I slept maybe 45 minutes max on the plane, so jay and I both napped for about 2 hours before beginning to see the city! We went to the market in San telmo, ate churipan, went to the cemetery in recoleta which also had a market, and a famous bookstore called el ateneo-it's a theater turned bookstore. We went to a fancy restaurant for dinner and I almost fell asleep in my food because I was so tired...but still enjoyed the food! I slept like 11 hours that night in an attempt to recover.
On Monday, jay and I continued touring and eating our way through buenos aires, seeing el caminito en la boca and cafe tortoni. I also got a small taste of buenos aires nightlife with a group of jays roommates and also Liam Miner from Davidson...he's studying for the semester in b.a. Yay for davidson connections around the world!
On Tuesday, we toured the teatro colon and also did a wine tasting that jay's roommates gifted him for his birthday. I felt very cultured and fancy doing so. As a general note, I feel very fancy in pretty much everything I do since I've left Honduras. Life was so simple there compared to this! It's also cold, which is kinda no fun. It was so hot in Honduras, but I do love the summer.
Right now, it's about midnight on Tuesday night/Monday morning and jay and I are on an overnight bus to cordoba! I will post this when i arrive at the hostel. Let the backpacking/hostel-living begin! Yay for siblings traveling around the world together. Taxi drivers think it's precious.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)