weeks twenty two and twenty three

We left for the bus terminal at 11 am on the 23rd. The bus ride ahead of us was to be more than 24 hours, so I prepared as best I could by charging my iPod the night before. The bus was a double-decker and we were on the top level, in the front. I was happy to be so fortunate to have a windshield to look out of and expected that in 24 hours on the road, I would be sure to see some nice scenery. I was wrong. All there was to see out the windshield was flat, boring farmland. I woke up the next morning, still on the bus, to the province of Misiones, Argentina. Misiones is beautiful with rolling jungly hills and red earth.

We stopped at a rock quarry in Misiones and learned about the semi-precious stones of Argentina. After a long time at the border due to the German couples' barely readable documents, we were at last in Brazil. By 4 pm we were in the hotel.

The next morning we set off to see the exotic bird park. I had never seen a Toucan before except on my cereal box so that was a cool experience. After that, we went to see the Brazil side of the world famous Iguazu Falls.

We entered the national park and took a jeep through the jungle. I saw monkeys swinging from tree to tree in the distance. Then the jeep stopped at the top of a hill and we waited in line for a motor raft ride up river. After a few km on the raft, we turned a corner and there they were. The Falls. The boat driver took us right next to a couple falls and we were soaked. Then he played around in the huge waves, doing donuts and getting air, making sure to splash us even more. I had a smile on my face the whole time.

After we got back from the raft ride, we took another jeep up a huge hill to get to the observation platforms and walkways around the falls. I took some good pictures and enjoyed the atmosphere. The falls and the land is incredible. Huge rock cliffs covered in jungle greenery with the contrast of bright white water reflecting in the sun. The way it sounded, the way it felt. The wind was whipping, the splash from the various waterfalls was reaching us from what seemed like every waterfall. It was an experience I will never forget.

The next morning we saw the falls from the Argentina side. The Brazil side offers a great panoramic view, but the Argentina side offers a closeness that the Brazil side can't. I stood above the famed Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat) which just looked like a giant area of spray from the Brazil side. I didn't want to leave. After a while around the Garganta, we took a group photo and went to see some other views of the falls. They are beautiful close up, they are beautiful far away. A highlight of the Argentina side was standing on a platform that was pretty much at the bottom of a very powerful waterfall.

After we were done with the Argentina side, we went to eat and there was a native playing the harp. The next day there was an excursion to Paraguay for those who wanted to purchase electronics at a much cheaper price, but we didn't go. We left for home after our last well appreciated all you can eat breakfast in the hotel complete with all the fruit I could have asked for at 7 am. I reflected on the trip while looking through the windshield onto Misiones. I saw wild monkeys, I saw blue and silver Iguanas, I saw spiders the size of my palm, I saw one inch black ants, I saw an alligator, I saw the jungle, I saw Iguazu Falls. The trip was also great bonding time with my host family. Playing cards, cracking jokes, and talking Argentine league soccer were among the things we did in our downtime in the evenings. One week from the halfway mark of my exchange, I feel very much a part of my host family and very comfortable here.

At a stop on the way back home I purchased a hand painted t-shirt to help me remember the experience, or rather I bought it because it looked cool. The truth is I don't need a t-shirt to remember the trip... I'll never forget it.

Here are some photos from the trip. The rest are on Facebook.

weeks twenty and twenty one

On Monday of week twenty my host mom told me that we would be going to Brazil to see the famous Iguazu Falls from the 23rd to the 29th. I've seen pictures and heard all about the Falls from people who have been lucky enough to see them, but now I would have my chance to see them for myself. I talked to my Danish friend from the orientation camp about it that night and he said "Don't get too excited cause Americans aren't allowed to enter Brazil." What? He said that on the AFS trip, when the kids passed to the Brazilian side of the falls, the Americans weren't allowed to because they needed visas. I was going to tell my host mom about this the next morning but she told me. The travel agency called our house before I woke up and told her the situation.

Brazil requires Americans to have visas as part of a payback for how incredibly difficult our government makes it for Brazilians to enter the States. So the next morning, we went to the Brazilian consulate in Buenos Aires. It was about an hour and a half travel by train and from the train station we took a bus and got off a few blocks away from the consulate. Once inside, they told us that we needed an appointment to apply for a visa so we took the first available one which was for the following Monday.

The next Monday we took a bus to Buenos Aires which was twice as fast as the train. We arrived early and stood in line but the lady took us early. We were done before our appointment was supposed to begin. I was surprised and happy by how easy it all was. On the website, there was a big list of documents needed in order to apply, but the woman only took my passport and the form I filled out on their website. She told us to come back the next day to pick up my visa. On the way out the security guard was arguing with a group of friends who were trying to apply for a visa without an appointment. He said "You guys want to come to Brazil, Brazil doesn't want you guys to come." I laughed about this with my host parents on the way to the bank to pay the special USA payback fee of $150, twice as much as any other country's Brazil visa fee.

When we got back home, I went online and wished my brother Eric a happy 15th birthday. That evening I Skyped with my family and helped them sing happy birthday to Eric. It was nice seeing everyone, but it also bummed me out.

The next day I went to BA with my host mom to pick up my visa. In the office were some Americans who didn't have the proper paperwork for the visa and they said as they were leaving "Whatever, let's just go to Uruguay!" My host mom asked me why I didn't talk to them and I said "I no speaky english." After I got my passport back with the visa stamped inside it, we went down the street to get something to eat. We observed all the tourists walking by through the window of the cafe where I had my first omelette in 21 weeks.

On the bus ride back I felt very relieved and excited to be legal for the Brazil trip. I can't wait to see the Falls in person. Here's a photo of them: http://www.propertyworld.com/assets/brazil.jpg

weeks sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, and nineteen

Summer feels weird. I was just starting to get used to the school swing and then we broke for vacation. One of the weirdest things is how hot it is. I'm used to snow and heavy coats in December, not 90+ degrees. I've also got too much down time. By week seventeen, I was in need of something to do.

Lucas came by on tuesday to invite me to play Futbol Cinco at the newly finished field two blocks away. He also told me that his team, Cambaceres, was holding tryouts from wednesday to friday. Cambaceres is a professional club located in Ensenada, about a half hour away from my house. In every pro club there are youth divisions, and the tryout was for the '91 age group, Lucas' team. The '91 age group is the oldest group in the youth program, so some of the players in it are soon to be professionals. Needless to say, I was excited.

After Futbol Cinco, he told me he would come by the next morning at 7:30 so we could catch the 7:45 bus into the center of La Plata. From there we would wait for a bus to take us the 20 some minutes to Ensenada. I was too excited to sleep that night, which wasn't ideal for a tryout. We got to the stadium early and I talked to the coach. He is a fan of Independiente, bitter rival of Racing, so he joked with me that I couldn't tryout because I liked Racing. He asked me my full name and what position I play. Other kids started arriving and there was an air of excitement and anticipation. The tryout was to be an 11 v. 11 game. The tryout wasn't only for new kids, but was for the Cambaceres players as well. The coach split us all into two groups. I looked around and I was the only kid in my group who wasn't on the team.

The coach blew his whistle and we started the game. I was playing with 10 Camba players against 11 other Camba players. I was very satisfied with how I played. The coach invited me to the 2nd day of tryouts. Afterwards, all of the kids were talking to me and I took that as a good sign. They weren't talking to any of the other kids who were trying out. I came back the next day, but the coach had to leave after only 10 minutes. The assistant coach told me to come back the next day. So this was it, I would find out if I made the team or not on friday. I didn't sleep at all. I was half dead on the bus ride to the stadium on friday morning. I had slept less than 6 hours in total throughout the 3 days. We got there early again and the coach started walking up to me... He told me I made the team.

I was so satisfied and proud of myself. It's always been a dream of mine to play in a pro club's youth system, and to do so in Argentina of all places is just amazing. We will have practice monday to friday, 9 am to 11:30. That means I need to change to an afternoon school. I'm not sure what I'll do from here with Club For-Ever, because Cambaceres is a much higher level of soccer. We're still waiting to hear whether or not I'll be able to play in games with For-Ever, but now that I'm in Cambaceres, the verdict is much less important to me than it was before.....

Christmas was interesting. Apparently in all parts of the world besides the US, people celebrate on Christmas Eve and exchange gifts at midnight. So on Christmas Eve we went to my host grandma's house about 20 minutes away in City Bell. At midnight we opened our presents and I was pleasantly surprised to open a Racing jersey. At 1:30, the taxi driver who took us there was supposed to come take us home, but he didn't show up. We waited until 2:30, calling every taxi service we could, but nobody was around. We set off on foot to try to find a taxi or a bus that we could hail. We waited until about 3:30 when finally a taxi came by. He said he didn't have enough room for all 5 of us, so my parents stayed back and Marco, Ana, and I got in. We set off for the house and I realized we didn't have the keys. I told Marco and he said that there was probably a key in the mailbox. We arrived, and there was no key in the mailbox. Marco climbed over the gate and entered a side window of the house and let Ana and I in. We waited for our parents to arrive and they did, at about 4:30.

Christmas day was tough for me. We don't do anything in Argentina on the 25th, and I'm used to it being special. I talked to my family back home and we compared our respective Christmas experiences. It is very common for exchange students to feel down on Christmas. I found it helpful to talk to other exchange kids.

The day after Christmas, Lucas and Dante came by to see if I wanted to go watch the annual game between Gimnasia fans in the area vs. the Estudiantes fans in the area. I said sure and we set off. We got there early and one of the Estudiantes players told Lucas and I to get our stuff because they needed a couple more players. So we did. Many fans of both teams came to the field to watch and cheer on their fellow "hinchas". The first half ended 0-0. The atmosphere was tense. Gimnasia and Estudiantes hate eachother, and even though these people have this game every year without problems, there was a definite tension in the air. About 5 minutes into the second half, an Estudiantes player was fouled about 30 yards from the goal and he set the ball down and quickly played it to me. I took a touch and looked up and ripped one near post to mark the first goal of the game. All of the players ran over to kiss me. All of the fans went nuts, screaming and shooting off fireworks. Shortly after this, Gimnasia scored 3 straight goals. We got one back later on but lost the game 3-2. After the game, fans from both teams shot off fireworks and everyone gathered together for a party.....

New Year's Eve was very memorable. My host mom's family came over for dinner and when the clock struck 12, it sounded as though every single household in La Plata was shooting off fireworks. In La Plata, it is a New Year's Eve tradition to build giant sculptures out of wood and paper mache, called "Muñecos" (moo-nyay-koes) and to burn them to bring in the new year. The closest muñeco to us was one of Taz from Looney Tunes. It was at least 20 feet tall and was very well done, with a mini tornado surrounding it. I rode my bike over there earlier in the day to ask what time they would burn it. They told me 2:30. So at 2:15 we set off to see the burning of the Taz muñeco. There were easily 1000 people there when we arrived. The group who made it set it on fire with a big torch and the entire thing was ablaze pretty quickly. It was filled with explosives and it was SO LOUD. When it was blazing full, the group who made it shot off a ton of really nice fireworks. It was about 10 minutes in total, but it was an exceptional presentation. Everyone watching gave the group a round of applause.

The local newspapers give out awards for the best muñecos. Some of them are so well constructed that it's a shame they have to burn them. Here is a link where you can see the first place winners of years past: http://www.muniecoslaplata.com.ar/quienesSomos.htm

Feliz Año Nuevo from Argentina