I love Sundays!

Today has been wonderfully relaxing - & much needed after a busy week. Teaching & Spanish classes are going well, but I had the misfortune of coming down with a virus earlier in the week, so I spent a couple of days feeling very under the weather. I am so fortunate to have a wonderful family group here, as they have taken care of me & a trip to the hospital without a translator would have been a complete disaster.

Feeling much better now & looking forward to a big week of travel. I leave Buenos Aires Thursday evening to travel back to the U.S. for a week-long holiday.

I have included some pictures below from recent travel with friends & other Argentine adventures. Cheers & much love to you all!

St. Patrick's Day Love

Somehow the time has completely slipped away from me, as it has been almost 2 weeks since my last post. There seems to be a bit of a time warp here, as the days seem long, but time passes quickly.

I have successfully survived my first 2 weeks of teaching and things are going really well! I enjoy my classes, and the transition has been interesting/exciting. The most unique dynamic thus far has been adjusting to the wide range of language comprehension levels, as I am teaching 24 different classes, from beginner-level preschool students all the way up to adult-level classes. WOW is definitely an understatement, but planning for and adapting to such a broad scope of knowledge is keeping me on my toes! Of course there are days that are easier/more fun than others, but I am very happy and enjoying the experience. God bless teachers in America who claim this profession and dedicate their lives to educating the youth of our nation for virtually no money and very little recognition!

I am so thankful to have a wonderful host family, as well as a great group of teachers who have also become my friends. My Spanish is progressing, very slowly, but surely, and I have been exceptionally fortunate thus far, as I have not encountered any illness or travel-related travesty (knock on wood!!!). I have come to love and very much look forward to Skype time with family/boyfriend/friends, but am also happy that things in my life here are beginning to feel a bit more settled.

Today I introduced St. Patrick's Day celebrations to my group and hosted a small gathering this evening, complete with snacks, very American desserts, and of course plenty of cerveza! While we did not have corned beef, cabbage, or Irish car bombs, it was a nice night with friends.

Tomorrow morning we are heading just south of Buenos Aires to San Pedro for some quality Sunday Funday rest and relaxation. Of course I have been avidly following NCAA basketball, as well as teaching students about this exciting sports showcase in some of my higher-level classes. I am hopeful that tomorrow while sitting by the river enjoying mimosas we will be able to celebrate and 'Cheers' to another Wolfpack victory!

Much love from Argentina!

Life in Argentina thus far...

Argentina has been an interesting adventure thus far. The experience has been full sensory overload on many occasions, but I am slowly beginning to adjust and develop a routine. I was able to join the gym in my town on Saturday, and I feel this will be great for me physically and emotionally.

RANDOM SEQUE -
Cars and traffic patterns in Argentina are borderline terrifying, as there are no stop/yield/right-of-way signs at 95% of the intersections. While on a walk yesterday, I passed a 5-way intersection with NO SIGNAGE. Miraculously there do not seem to a tremendous number of traffic accidents (that I have seen), despite the fact that most people drive as if they were being pursued in a high speed chase. It is also common to see 3+ people on a motorcycle/moped (usually without helmets). Personally, I will not be operating anything more substantial than a bicycle, and even that seems like a questionable decision.

The town where I am living (Moreno) is technically considered a suburb of Buenos Aires, but this is fairly synonymous with saying West End is a suburb of Greensboro, as the timing/distance is about the same.

The Spanish language has been difficult for me thus far, as I am nowhere near fluent, and what I do comprehend is minimal, as people speak so quickly. I have Spanish lessons for 4 hours each week in addition to my teaching schedule, which has been helpful, but brutal at times. The teachers at my school are nice, but because of the language barrier, communication is often difficult. My host mother Stella is very kind and I am so fortunate that my school placement worked out the way that it did. I begin teaching English this afternoon and have not had a 'first day of school' in a long time -exciting!

Hopefully this week will prove to be a positive experience! Please continue to keep me in your prayers. Lots of love to you all!

Today is the Day!

Leaving Buenos Aires for Moreno today and I am so excited! I have enjoyed my time in BA, but look forward to getting settled and meeting my host family. I begin teaching on Monday and hope to have a little bit of down time this weekend.

I have included a link to Aubrey's blog because I think she does a great job of summing up some of our program transitions thus far. The experience has definitely been an adventure...
http://aubreychasesit.tumblr.com

Pictures from recent adventures:

Much love to you all!