It's My Birthday I Can Cry If I Want to

    Today had a most unfortunate start to it. I went to sleep last night around 2:30am, and was woken up at 3:15am or so by one of the dorm helper people because half of the ACA people had to leave this morning to go get our student visas and she thought i was on the list--i was not. Then i actually had to get up at 8am... I am so tired i feel a little drugged, my head is all swimmy and when i move it too fast the whole earth seems to spin. So that's an interesting way to start my next twenty-one years of life. Maybe it will teach me to just go to sleep earlier.

   Its an other one of those sleepy, sad, grey days and boy is it chilly outside. Although, its actually colder in the classrooms than it is outside. Go figure. We ACAs are plotting to just bring our blankets to class to keep us warm. Half of ACA was gone as i said, so all of my classes today only had a max of maybe 20 people, on Wednesday it will be our turn to get up at 3am and take the bus. Thank god! This means i can hop over into Uruguay and get USD cash out of the ATM. Here in Argentina you can only get pesos from the bank and for a terrible rate. The official rate is 5 to 1 but if you know where to go you can get a little above 9 to 1, and that makes a world of difference. The second day i was here i exchanged 80$USD and even after getting school supplies, food, a pair of jeans, and a plethora of other things i still have about 100$ pesos...and if you know how 100 pesos can stretch very far.

   Well....i made it through the day unscathed, not thrown in a pond...er fountain, and i convinced my friends NOT to announce my birthday over the loud speaker--thank god! Actually it was a really relaxed day, pretty non stereotypical for a 21st but i liked it. Now....i want to go to bed and make up for my weekend of sleepless nights. Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes!!

Time Lords

    I'm not actually going to talk about Dr. Who but i like the title anyways. But for the record bowties ARE cool ;) Now time...its funny because at home i am actually a morning person, much the the shock of everyone who has ever had the misfortune of waking me up...BUT its true none the less. I just like to be awake in the morning, catch the dawn, creep around the house (or my dorm room) and reflect on how awesome it is to be alive...unless its rainy and cloudy then i simply go back to bed. I digress. Here, literally since day one i haven't gone to sleep before 11:30pm. Now to some people like my brother, boyfriend, and absurd, but loveable roommate Kat (WWU) 11:30 is early...well i'm beginning to agree. I would like to blame my new sleeping habits on being in a foreign country as well as my roommate who is an insatiable night owl--I realize that word may not entirely reflect the meaning i want but i really don't care-- So its 1am and i'm sitting here writing because as far as most of my readers are concerned it's like...9pm and I aim to please.
   My roommate Vanesa (yes only one s) stared at me in shock as i finished my third book this weekend. For some unknown reason i have become ravenous for any book i can get my hands on. It's like the stress of learning Spanish has cause a craving for simple English literature where i can finally read and use (in my head) the big "intelligent" words, which i do so adore. A few of the ACA girls are also avid readers and to my extreme delight (my siblings will understand this) one of the girls has with her an e-copy of A Dance With Dragons. I couldn't be more pleased. Finally! Someone has that crazy, gigantic, expensive book and i get to borrow it. Happy birthday to me!!
   Oh something that made me laugh, in Spanish they don't double letter most things like my roommates name for example. So when they write my name down it looks like "Rebeca", which i personally find a bite comical.

Impatient Soy Bean

     I am getting so frustrated! I just want to be fluent. Right. Now! I understand most of what people say but i fins myself making little comments like oh si...si si....hmmm. Because i don't know the words for what i want to say. It makes me feel crazy!Yes it's been a week and yes i know i'm being ridiculous but its making me crazy. But i guess on the other hand when i do say something and its correct i'm just pleased as punch. So far my roommate is the easiest to understand, which is a miracle because she speaks faster than anyone else.
I met someone the other night who is trying to learn German and i just about fell over. The only thing i could think of was "Thank God!" So far i see German products all over the place but no one speaks it...I guess i shouldn't be so disappointed, i mean i came here to learn Spanish not German.
    
       Much to my dismay i learned upon arrival that in Entre Rios (which is a province) they mainly grow wheat, soy, and corn. So....pretty much everything here has one of those three in it. The juice, has soy milk in it. Its like my most nightmare i'm pretty sure i'm going to just turn into a soy bean. Doesn't ANYONE get that too much of ANYTHING is bad for you? *sigh* Clearly that knee-jerk reaction against...oh like everything, is setting back in. Don't worry i'll get over it. Its just been one of those weekends.  Anyways. If anyone really loves me can they please express mail me my boyfriend? That would be great...

Here are some pictures from the Local Supermarket

Argentinians really like their soda. Although strangely enough half of them are sweetened with steavia.

 

This is kind of a syrup...it does in sparkling water. Its like much less good German syrup stuff. This is all herbal though. And its bitter. I kind of like it. 

 

Right cause who would have expensive cream?!

 

These people REALLY like their dulce de leche.

 

The sweet pastries are AMAZING. if i come back fat its because of these. 

 

The wall of Mate in every type and flavor

She Duck!

     So far classes have been good! Not too bad and not too easy, i really like most of my teachers. The funniest moment from class this week was in my composition class and one of the guys was asking how to say the legs of a table in Spanish. Apparently the word is pata which is also a duck (female) so i asked her "isn't that a duck?!" and she looks at me and starts laughing "you mean a she duck?" it was really funny. I guess it would be funnier if you had been there but anyways.
     Elena and i went out yesterday to take pictures of campus and the town and we ended up finding me a pair of cheap jeans! ...did i talk about this already? Well regardless I'm so happy to have more pants :).
   
     So far i am most excited about the dancing here. Almost everyone that i have met here knows all these cool Latin dances and they are SO good at them. A few of my fellow ACA girls know them so they have been teaching me and i dance every chance i get. I LOVE IT. My goal is to be able to know them and do them well before I leave Argentina. Also i decided i like their way of greeting. Honestly, hugging is so much more personal and the "kiss" on the cheek is still a way to break the personal space barrier without having your whole body touching the other person. I'm going to trying to start it up in the USA....it probably won't take but i can try!

     Today was a town-wide Holiday so no classes! My friend Callie woke me up at 10am and we went on a long walk. It was sooo nice! It was even sunny today. I just can't get over how much i love South America. Its nothing like i expected but i love it. It makes me think i never want to go back to the US. Speaking of Americans, for some reason it is painfully obvious that we are Americans...everywhere i go people stare or start talking about us. Its like we are a kind of novelty or something, but i guess we kind of are.  Maybe after a few months Argentina will rub off on me enough that is not so painfully obvious. Although everyone keeps saying its because i'm blonde....i could have sworn my hair was brown. What do i know though?!

   In case you want a different perspective here is the link for my friend Elena's blog. She is a great photographer (I'm learning) so maybe check out her pictures! http://veggielocomoco.blogspot.com.ar/

But here is what i have.

 

This is my dorm, the "new dorm" can't say how new it actually is...

 

The pink dorm, with the blue in the background (the pink dorm has the laundry room)

 

This i believe was once their church now it is.....something

 

Flag avenue as i like to call it

 

Back side of the Pink dorm

 

This is like a little Prayer circle or something like that

 

This is right outside the Portico, its the internet cafe...so if i have bad internet on Skype you know i am NOT here.

 

Cool iron fence outside of campus. Fences are around everything here

 

This is in the Plaza...this is where my friends are threatening to throw me in on my birthday....The water is actually brown...YUCK.

 

Colors of Spring :)

Boldo Sucks

      What is Boldo exactly....i really don't know. But its an herb for tea and its TERRIBLE.
Also when you're roommate says wanna come to the gym, she actually means want to come have a crazy Brazilian women yell encouragement at you while you slowly die. So sore. everywhere. My. Goodness.
   Also....I forgot what i was going to tell you...but i'll work on a subcribe thingy as suggested by my amazing little sister (who is amazing and beautiful). Yup. Oh...when planning a weekend trip, don't plan it last minute or it will cost you a 100$ fee (in pesos). Expensive way to learn even if its only like 18$USD.
That is all. :)

Just Keep On Drinking..

      Title caught you off guard right? Well let me explain...the water here in Argentina is actually a little bit salty, so you drink it because you are thirsty but because its not very refreshing you just sorta keep on drinking. Its a problem. You just sorta get to this point where you accept water just isn't the same here and get over it. 
    2nd day of classes...EVERYONE is sick. Muahahaha...this is funny because i got sick before i left for Argentina and i told my mom it was ok because then i wouldn't be sick when everyone else got sick. I'm convinced i infected everyone on my plane because i was the only one coughing and sniffing then 5hours later i heard a bunch of people starting to cough and sniff. I am patient zero!!! And i don't care if it wasn't my fault keep your medical opinions to yourself. But now all the ACA students are getting sick and i'm almost done being sick. Ha!
Ooo look at the adorable lolipop i found today! Also its called a chupete or something like this.

    I mentioned in my Alles kommt aus Deustchland post that things here are often color coated to distinguish between genders. Well its really weird, the bathrooms en el Comedor, the ACA stuff given to girls was all pink and the guys all got blue. We got Spanish Bibles and the women all got purple ones and the guys got gold. Also the first girls dorm they had here is pink and the old guys dorm (which is now also a women's dorm) is blue. Like...the outside of these buildings are stereotypically baby blue and pink. 

     So by now you are ready for me to admit that i under packed...well here is your chance to gloat. I SO UNDER PACKED!!! Oh. My. God. So...i had two pairs on jeans (2 pairs what on earth was i thinking!??!) then i left one at Caity's house (for those of you who don't know my family she is my amazing older sister). Luckily I made friends with an awesome girl, Karla, and she gifted me a pair of jeans that didn't fit her. Also i only brought my running shoes as my close-toed shoes (again, seriously?!). So...its rainy and cold, like 40 degrees cold and i only have two pairs of warm pants, one pair of shoes and one hoodie...for 9 months. Apparently i should have requested a new brain because this one failed to recognize that although summers are hot as hell here, i am here mainly for spring and fall which are cold and rainy. But hey i wouldn't be me if i hadn't forgotten to bring my pants. Pants, for some absurd reason, are the main thing i forget to bring in multiples, or at all for that matter, when i am packing. So...If you are headed down to Argentina anytime in the next 9 months I beseech you, please bring me a pair of NORMAL shoes, a pair of jeans and a hoodie. I'm dying.

Ok dad this is for you, you asked for some pictures and i'm working on it. But here is what the surrounding Land looks like.

This is what i see looking down the street right outside the University Portico 

This is the field i pass by on my runs on their aerobic track as they call it. Its all flat and grass. Also here is my messy room...because i have no shame i am posting a picture of it anyways.

I am the top bunk. 

 

This is my Ashland shrine. It makes me feel happy. In case any of you are wondering why i have an unopened manila envelope...its my birthday present from Nathan. I have been so good and have not opened it early! Next Monday i get to open it finally :)

  

Alles kommt aus Deutschland

This will be a running post because i keep finding German stuff here in South America and i always get super excited when i find it. Its like my birthday every time i find a German product.. so here is what i have found so far.

 

They have nutella! But its in a glass jar.

 

I brought one stabilo pen with me and just had to get a few more. 

 

Kinder Surprise Eggs (gender colored...meh) And Milka!!!

Almost everything here is gender coated...in the caf there is a blue and a pink bathroom its weird. Caity, you would hate i.

 

Milka Cow!! In the Super Mercado...haha

¿Quieres bailar?

Food, Friends, Classes and the Weird Kissing Thing  

      Hoy es lunes...and that means classes started this morning! On Monday i have Grammar for two hours, History, and then Folklore for two hours. Starts at 8:30am and i'm done by 4:25pm. Tuesdays I have fonética starting at 10:30am, History, and Current Events and classes are over by 3:25. On Wednesdays I start at 8:30am again with Grammar then in the afternoon i have Composition and Geography ending by 4:25pm. Thursday  starts at 10:30am with Conversation and then only Geography in the afternoon ending at--can you guess?--4:25pm. Then guess who has no classes on Fridays?! Ever. 


      So i said before the food wasn't that bad right? Well i may need to make a qualification. The food doesn't taste that bad, but is generally very unhealthy.

 

In case you are unsure as to what this is...this is the giant flap of cheese i pulled of my "pizza". And in the case you can't tell how thick it is, its like an inch thick. Yuck.Pretty much i eat rice and beans and salad because they really only serve white carbs and weird Adventist cookie thingies. I'm not really into eating slabs of cheese but that's just me...ok i mean maybe if its really good cheese on really good bread. But that is not the case.

   Friends. I'm making new ones every day and learning more about the ones i've already made. Here is a picture of me and Elena at El Dia Del Estudiante yesterday.

 

On Saturday night all of us WWU students went to a new friend's house and watched Buscando a Nemo.  I have now seen that crazy film in three languages. It was really funny, and fun.

Here are some photos from Saturday and El Dia Del Estudiante

Now you are all wondering about the last part of this title:the weird kissing thing. So in Argentina instead of shaking hands, high-fiving, hugging, or whatever else weird American things we do for greetings/goodbyes, Argentinians kiss on cheek. But half the time its not even your cheek they just put their cheek against yours and kiss into thin air...or that's my interpretation. But the problem is they were told Americans have their space bubbles so don't do that...so i never know when someone is going to or isn't and it can be super awkward or very shocking. Guy, girls it doesn't matter they will randomly kiss your cheek and maybe you are ready and maybe not. Mostly its a problem if you don't know which cheek they are going for and you turn your head and meet in the middle...so far i haven't had that misfortune but i'm very wary of that.

Lastly....yesterday a big group of us ACA students went off campus to get an impromptu dance lesson from of the girl's roommates. I would just like to point out why this is funny. apparently we ACA kids signed a paper saying we will not do this this and this...on that list included dancing. I find this hilarious...We all went anyways. I would just like to admit that i am not a good dancer...but i will be when i get back!

So far i have broken about 5 rules so far? I went dancing, i went to El Puente negro, i walked down an alley, i have an earring which i am hiding, and my jeans have a giant hole in the knee, which i had forgotten was there when i was packing...Oops. But as i am told, break as many rules as i want...just so long as i never get caught. My family should be so proud :) haha.

Also not sure why this is centered...can't figure this Blog thing out...

 

First Week Overview

 

This is the Portico to the University. So this is what we go through every time we enter or leave the University. Oh yeah we have a curfew at night but since the university is gated we only have to make it back inside the gates by 11pm sometimes it changes i think...

        This first week has just blown by. Its gone by so fast that i can't actually keep up with what day it is. But lets see...i made friends with all of the other students from Walla Walla, but in my defense i didn't know they were from WWU until after we met so i'm not flocking on purpose! Also made friends with Elena, of course, my I-missed-my-flight-also buddy, and the kids from Southern. The Andrews people and La Sierra seem to have made a clique so i don't hang out with them as much. But the most important part are my new Argentinian friends...but sadly i keep accidentally making friends with other students who go here but who are not Argentinian and they miraculously speak english. Like...they let me greet them in Spanish and stuff then start speaking english haha. But My roommate Vanessa is from Argentinian and her english is more limited than my spanish, thank god! I will actually have a native to learn from. She is really funny, she starts talking and gets really animated and starts speaking super fast and i just kinda nod along and say Mmmm....Ahhh...siiii. :)

I do understand her, just some of the fine details i don't catch. Oh but what i forgot to explain is that Argentinians pronounce things really different than other Spanish speakers so its really hard to figure out what they are actually saying since the sounds don't match the spelling at all. But i'm learning!! 

      So far i have seen weather of 80 degrees and down to 40 degrees, rain, sun, and wind gusts. Weather here seems to change at the rate of a teenage girl's mood swings. I have seen pink flamingos in the swampy  land outside of Libertador San Martin (i have figured out how to use the accents yet), all kinds of stray dogs and a billion pigeons...i had the great and terrible misfortune of being present for a dog getting run over on the run :'( and i went running on their version of a track (a straight dirt road going alongside the road) and ran past a dead dalmatian in a ditch. So sad, this was all the same day with the dead dogs. I haven't seen an penguins sadly, because they are apparently really far to the south of me...also haven't seen any capybaras. :(

      Yesterday a bunch of us ACA kids and UAP (the University) kids went out to El Puente Negro (black bridge) which is basically a large, old, falling apart bridge for trains. Apparently thats where a lot of the UAP kids go there on the weekends and hang out, drink Mate and Terere (not sure on the spelling) its cold mate basically.

Yup i walked that. 

This is the railroad bridge that were walked across 

This is my friend Herb, who is also from WWU. We braved the freaky bridge together.

View from the middle of the bridge

Thought this would give good perspective of how high up it was 

 

This is a few of us, Herb, Sapphira (from Southern) and Karla who we met here. We are eating these weird Adventist cookie things that taste like semi sweet nut crackers. Middle of the bridge! We made it. In case you are wondering yes the bridge is freaky and dangerous, little to our previous knowledge ACA students aren't supposed to go here. Oops hahah. Karla is awesome, just so you all know. :)

   

Travel and Arrival Rehash

     So i've never had a Blog before, in fact i'm still not really sure what a blog exactly is...but Hey! Here i am...blogging.
    I'm not really sure who will read this so i'm going to pretend everyone is going to read it! :)
So this is day is day 4 in Argentina. So far this week i have missed a plane, spent a day in Texas by myself, decided i liked Texas because everyone was so nice, got on a plane to Buenos Aires and met a nice America who gave me some pointers about exchanging money, thought the plane was going to crash several times, got a nasty cold, my asthma kicked in because of my cold, found the one other ACA (the program I'm going through to be here) girl who missed her flight too and found our bus, Got on that bus and drove for 5 hours until we met the ACA director here in Argentina, Heraldo in Rosario (the 3rd largest city in Argentina), Arrived at the school, Met my roommate Vanessa, and then you know blah blah blah now its Friday. Wow what a long list. I should be embarrassed I'm an English grader. But since I'm in Argentina i have committed myself to misspelling English words and using bad grammar.
     But let me back up. On the Bus ride from Buenos Aires to Rosario i saw some of the most hilarious things. So we are driving along and i'm sitting with Elena (the other girl who missed her flight from Houston Tx) and we are looking out the window and we see the freeway and houses and things like this. Then we pass a line of cars parked on the grass in the median between the two lanes. Not only are they parked there some are completely abandoned and smooshed. In the grass...like where people aren't supposed to park.  I think this is kinda funny. Then we got out of the city and we are passing farm land...well actually its more like flat land covered in trash, i am assuming it was originally farmland.  I don't think i have ever seen that much trash in one place that wasn't a dump. But one of the funniest things i saw was a road that went up into an over pass that just stopped midway in the air. Like a bridge that was unfinished so it just ended. Its not as funny when i say it but it looked hilarious, especially since we were out in the middle of trash land.





       So made it through the first few couple days, took the placement exam and was placed into advanced 1 so i'm happy. Now i just have to make myself go find more Argentinian friends.