First adventures of my Argentine life

in the past week I have...

• sanded, painted, and assembled wooden signs for a wedding

• danced with an indigenous Guaraní woman in an airport terminal

• made super fresh orange, papaya, mango, peach and banana juice

• learned that there is actually such a thing as banana juice

• paid my respects to the heros of Paraguay

• participated in a Catholic parade celebrating the virgin Maria

• watched little kids play in-house soccer at the stadium nearby

• ..where I saw a 5 yr old do a bicycle kick.

• picked the first fresh papaya of the season from the tree in our backyard

• got my butt kicked in air hockey by my 10 yr old brother (twice)

• learned to dance like a Gringa-Latina

• crossed the Argentina-Paraguay boarder without getting deported!!!

• ate fresh river fish caught by my host dad

• watched FRIENDS in Spanish! (the voice that dubbed for Pheobe was surprisingly low.. and the voice that dubbed for Ross surprisingly high. it made it that much better:))

• learned I most likely won't be going to high school this year, but rather a school similar to a University in Formosa

• improved my Spanish a little more each day

• made empanadas, gnocchi, chipa and bread from scratch

• befriended a group of elderly birdwatchers from Iowa and two competitive figure skaters from San Francisco

• visited an elementary school in Formosa

• worn shorts everyday. tomorrow the weather is supposed to be 33 degrees Celsius (which is 90 degrees Fahrenheit). I still don't believe them when they say this is "winter".

• while on a run, met aerial trapeze artists who then put on a private performance for me

..and that's just been since I wrote last! I cannot thank my family back home, here in Formosa, and Rotary enough for the opportunities they have already given me. This year is going to be a blast :)

So, they keep things interesting in Paraguay too?

For all you Rotary students out there- I challenge you to break this record: From the time I left my house to the time I arrived at my new one, I had traveled on 3 planes, 2 busses, a tram, and 2 cars, had over 5 flight delays, almost got deported from a country, spent the night in an empty airport terminal, and had a total travel time of 43.5 hrs. Haha, just writing that I can't help but laugh- now that I'm here I know these past two days will make a good story some day.

Like I had said last, Celia, one of the very nice Rotarians that took me in, had gotten us tickets to Asuncion and we had planned on getting to Formosa by car from there. Turns out luck was on our side a little last night- our flight was almost the only one that was only delayed, not canceled. Everything went smoothly, we filled out our forms for immigration and made it though the line perfectly.... But I didn't get to go any further than that. When preparing to come down to Argentina, I was told that I would have a Tourist Visa- and that every 90 days I would go to another country to renew my visa in Argentina. Back home, we had discussed how part of my Rotary club here is in Paraguay, how my host parents own a home across the boarder and how in just over a week my host sister is going to Germany via the Asuncion airport- so I knew I would be traveling back and forth over the boarder. But I guess that isn't exactly how it works. So, instead I found myself being led upstairs to an abandoned terminal where I was to stay the night until the first flight back to Buenos Aires in the morning.

Here is where my gratitude to Rotary International cannot be expressed enough. When I became stuck, the 3 Rotarians I had just met 6 hours before fought for me like

I was their daughter. In the hour or two that I was sitting upstairs, that group of 3

Rotarians quickly grew to a group of 8 or more from the area who also worked every string they could to get me out. I explained myself and my situation to the immigration worker, his superiors, and even a few men who worked the night shift in the airport but without the work of the group of Rotarians I have NO doubt in my mind I would be sitting in the Buenos Aires airport right now. But, at 3:30 in the morning, the kind lady that had stayed with me throughout the night told me that it was time to go. Thinking she meant to my plane, I packed up my backpack and went back through the immigration desk to the same man that had stopped me before. This time, however, he stamped my passport and told me that I had a one-time-5-hr transit visa and that I would be able to leave with this couple to get to Formosa. I'm very fuzzy on the details- but I guess they know someone who is connected through Rotary and who knows someone who is the head-visa-person in Paraguay, who then called the airport and told them to let me go. In a wave of shock and relief unlike any other I've ever experienced-

I found myself staring up at the beautiful stars glowing in the jet-black sky of the southern-hemisphere as we drove through open country roads on my way to Formosa.

I woke up this morning to a huge bucket of meat in the kitchen, spanish music blasting through the walls, and a giant smile on my face. And now here I am, in my room in my new casa with a family that has been so welcoming and nice to me. I just had lunch with my first and second host families, and love them both :)

Without further ado- I am going to go enjoy Argentina, if you don't mind. I am going to get used to this new life for a while and write in a week or so. To everyone headed off to college- have an AMAZING time this year! To all those exchange students leaving in the next week or so- SUERTE y AMOR a Uds.!