1 Week Left...

I never thought I would be writing this post...or maybe I never wanted to imagine my exchange ending.  Well here it is, 1 week left in my 10 month journey in Argentina.  I cannot describe what I am feeling right now.  Obviously it is a bittersweet experience. I feel excited and content to be leaving but also scared, sad and uncertain of the future.  Despite the complex mixture of feelings accumulating in my head, I feel ready to go. But even thinking about getting on that plane to Denver puts a lump in my throat.

I am now living with my third host family and am best friends with my host sister who also went on exchange (to the US). I was talking to my host mom about leaving and the first thing she tells me is how I will suffer when I get home, just like her daughter.  Going home can be just as hard if not harder than leaving your home country on exchange.  I have gotten used to the rhythm of life, the culture and the language here and it will be hard readjusting to everything that I left 10 months ago.

What I find interesting about exchange is the evolution of questions that you are asked throughout the year,  At the beginning the questions come in the form of, "Do you like Argentina?" or "Have you tried *insert typical Argentinian food* ?"  The questions quickly changed to "How much time do you have left?" and "In the United States is there *insert item* ?" Recently I started getting questions like "Did you like Argentina?" "What was your favorite part?" "Do you want to go or stay longer here?"All of the questions I am being asked are as if my exchange has already ended.  It is honestly a very weird feeling.  The best response I have for everyone is "No estoy listo para irme al mismo tiempo lo estoy." Which translates to I not am ready to go but at the same time I am.

One of my best friends that is doing her exchange in San Juan (Maud from Belgium), Argentina where I went to visit here and take a test in Spanish.  I remember talking to her about leaving and trying to explain to people the feelings one has about leaving a place you have loved but also going back home to all of the comforts that have been absent in your life for so long.  We decided the feeling was best described in one sentence; we are ready to return but not ready to leave our homes behind.  Here in Argentina all of the exchange students have made it their home, including myself.  When I leave, I am leaving one home to return to the other.

I am constantly being asked what I liked most about Argentina.  The answer is simple, the people.  The people of Argentina are like none I have ever met in my life.  They are unbelievably caring, social, honest and have the biggest hearts.  They are very matter of fact and do not hold back with what they have to say.  They are hilarious, always cracking jokes and laughing through their lives. Everyone and their great grandma curses and they can curse you out like no other people I know. They are the most loving people you will meet and for that reason I will never forget my experience here.

With a week left on my exchange, it does not seem like  enough time to say all of my goodbyes. It seems like now pictures and distant memories make up a year of adventure and exploration in my life.  But more so, my exchange is characterized by the relationships I have made and maintained. I could not be more grateful for everyone of my friends and family and what they have done for me.

I don't know when I will be back, but I hope soon. 

No sé cuándo volveré, pero espero que pronto

Te extrañaré

❤Gracias por todo ❤

Mejores Amigos // Best Friends

Something amazing happened this weekend.  I said goodbye to one of my best friends on exchange. Now it's not what you are thinking, saying goodbye to to a friend hurts.  The fact of them leaving and not knowing when you will ever see them again in your life is painful and unsettling. When someone important leaves from your life you feel empty, like a piece of you is missing.  But the amazing part about saying goodbye this weekend was what I learned about the invaluable friendships that I have made on exchange.

This was the first goodbye I have made in Argentina, making it one of the hardest. Saying your first goodbye makes leaving feel real.  It made me realize how little time I have in this country and how strong the friendship was between him and I.  He was like a brother to me, and even though we had our differences (like all brothers) I loved having him as a big part of my exchange.  He was one of the first friends that I made after arriving to Argentina and everything we suffered through, we went through together.  We always supported and were there for each other.

This weekend was my last rotary conference.  All of the exchange students had to introduce themselves and say a few words about their exchange.  One by one, we introduced ourselves to the audience of 200 Rotarians and other exchange students.  It came to be my friends turn and he started out by saying that he had to say goodbye to his best friend on exchange today and how great friends we had become.  It brought tears to my eyes as we embraced each other and hugged on stage. The audience let out a collective "aww" and this gave them more of an understanding of how close we have gotten over this year.

Stories like this are why I chose to do exchange.  The friendships on exchange are incomparable to any other type of relationship.  You begin the journey scared, not being able to talk and vulnerable, like a newborn. Then slowly but surely, you begin to develop and grow as a person.  We not only spent 9 months together, we have grown together. I can say without a doubt that Wim and I will stay friends for the rest of my life and I will definitely be heading to Germany soon.  Thank you for everything you have done for me this year and thank you to all of the exchange students for making this year unforgettable.

Love you man.

Ben

Bittersweet

Well I have officially failed at blogging. It has been over 3 months since I have written in my blog for a number of reasons.

1. My computer broke

2. I'm lazy

3. I don't have a third excuse

4. I'm busy?

The thing about exchange is the phrase "I'm busy" is a hard one to use, especially for an exchange student in Argentina. On exchange you're always busy but never busy at the same time. The exchange students out there understand what I mean . You may have free time to do what you want but your plans are constantly changing due to your host parents, rotary club and even friends. There is an added pressure of being an exchange student living with a host family and getting used to their own family's customs and culture.

Describing exchange in Argentina:

What my family thinks I do:

What my friends think I do:

What rotary thinks I do:

What I actually do:

The countdown of my days here looms over my head everyday. I now have less than 2 months of my exchange age left. It is a weird bittersweet feeling. Also given that I am one of the oldest exchange students in my district and most of Argentina, I feel like I am more eager and anxious to return and start studying at University. Making time for all of the people I love in this country has been difficult but I am trying my best.  

If you know me well, I can be pretty indecisive. After applying to 20 schools and waiting a whole year to decide, I have decided on Butler University! I will be studying Natural Sciences and Spanish.

Christmas and New Years were hard but I managed to cope with the homesickness by skyping my family all celebrating. I had no idea that Argentinians go out to clubs on Christmas Eve. I learned quickly that this aspect of Christmas wasn't for me.

High school in Argentina begins in March and ends at the beginning of December. Therefore I have only been in school for 3 months and have recently started again. So I guess you could say that the majority of my exchange is a vacation. After 4 years of high school, going back this year has been a struggle to get through. However, I have made a lot of friends from school and like all of the people I have encountered in Argentina, they were welcoming and always help me with the language and any problem I have. It has been an adventure adjusting back to the school schedule (to say the least) when I had been going out to plazas with my friends at night and playing Truco (Argentinian card game) and drinking mate (a custom argentine tea-like drink) until 4am.

I quickly realized that I was definitely a night person and thrive on the summer schedule of Argentina.  I fell in love with the late night culture filled with “charlas” (talks) and walking around the city at night.

My parents came and visited me in February and it was so amazing to have been able to show them my life here and what I have accomplished on my exchange thus far. Constantly having to translate for my parents was good practice but exhausting at the same time. Sometimes I would accidentally reply to my parents in Spanish instead of English which always left a puzzling look on their faces until I corrected myself.

I could have not asked for a better experience with the 2 people I love most. We drank good wine, ate good meat, laughed when they cried and cried again when the left to go back. I am so incredibly lucky to have both of them in my life and for them to support me in this opportunity. We will definitely be back to visit, with my brother and sister.

It was the best being able to see them and hard to see them leave. I am so glad to have their endless support on my exchange and they know that I can be independent and trust me with everything.  I definitely feel more independent and able to be on my own.   

I am writing this on the plane coming back from Las Cataratas Iguazú which my generous host family planned for me. I was talking to my host parents at dinner 2 weeks ago and was telling them that I was not going to be able to go on the rotary trip to the famous Waterfalls in the North of Argentina. A usual response would be something like: well that sucks. Instead, they went on to ask me what date I would want to go. That is the argentinian generosity at its finest.

The Cataratas Iguazu were breathtaking and my pictures don’t do it justice! The famous waterfalls are located in the north east of Argentina bordering Brazil, so there are two sides for the two countries. I was only able to go to the Argentinian side because I didn’t have a visa to visit Brazil. They require people from the United States and Australia to get visas even to visit the country because we make Brazilians to do the same.

I had a great time with all of my host family visiting the north of Argentina. Thank you to the Fitzsimons for always being so generous and making my time here memorable. I truly feel part of the family and will never forget what you all have done for me.

Until next time

Chau for now

Patagonia

I haven't posted in over a month. I could give you a thousand excuses, but the truth is I am lazy.  I have also been incredibly busy. Being incredibly busy and incredibly lazy is something most exchange students can relate to. The craziest thing is it has almost been 3 months in this amazing country. I have so many new experiences to talk about and so many new friends that I have shared those experiences with. But this post will center around my trip to Patagonia with around 40 other exchange students.

I live in Chivilcoy, Argentina which is more or less in the center of the country around 3 hours away from Buenos Aires. For that reason, I had to drive drive 3 hours to Buenos Aires to get on a bus for 17 hours to Mendoza (a beautiful city to the far West side of the country).  There we toured a vineyard and had a wine tasting.  We also explored the Altas Montanas.  We then went to Puerto Madryn where we got to spend the day on the beach. Calafate was the next location staying there for 3 nights.  We visited Perito Moreno while in Calafate and were able to hike on top of the glacier with a guide.  Then we visited Chalten for a few days to do some more hiking and to see a few more glaciers. We then went to Esquel to visit El Parque Nacional Los Alerces. We ended the trip in the well known tourist town, Bariloche and returned home.

I have a problem with losing things.  Anyone that knows me well enough will tell you this.  Halfway into the trip, my debit card was eaten by an ATM.  The bank was closed and we left early the next day.  I made an urgent phone call to my mom and we canceled the card on the spot. The next day we were in Esquel when I conveniently dropped my wallet in the street.  You have to realize that a wallet dropped on the street is basically impossible to get back in Argentina.  Luckily, a man from Costa Rica found it and brought it back to his hotel where he messaged me on Facebook to let me know he had my wallet.

Yes this was a quick summary of the places I went to while in Patagonia.  That is because the best things were the new friends I made and bonded with on the trip.  We are from all over the world: 

United States, Denmark, Germany. Iceland, France, Slovakia, Belgium and more.  I feel so lucky to have such an amazing new group of friends that will last a lifetime.  It is funny how relatable things can be between exchange students.  You are in the same country experiencing the same things and can truly understand the other person.  You are able to find a common language between friends and relate to the rollercoaster that exchange is.

My favorite part of the trip was being homesick.  I know that sounds a bit odd.  Around the middle of the trip, I felt homesick, but not homesick for the United States.  I was homesick for my town Chivilcoy in Argentina.  This was a bizarre realization, but a good one.  I am feeling like a real part of this community here.  It was easier to be in "the moment" in Patagonia and I will admit it has not been easy adjusting back to school and everyday life.  However, I am doing well and looking forward to new experiences in my amazing country.

Puenta del Inca

Chile/Argentina Border 

The Captiol

Hiking in Chalten

Porito Moreno with Alta

1 million years on the bus

Pride for Argentina 

Chau for now,

Ben

Patagonia

I haven't posted in over a month. I could give you a thousand excuses, but the truth is I am lazy.  I have also been incredibly busy.  The craziest thing is it has almost been 3 months in this amazing country. I have so many new experiences to talk about and so many new friends that I have shared those experiences with. But this post will center around my trip to Patagonia with around 40 other exchange students.

I live in Chivilcoy, Argentina which is more or less in the center of the country around 3 hours away from Buenos Aires. The two other exchange students and I first had to drive 3 hours to Buenos Aires to get on a bus for 17 hours to Mendoza (a beautiful city to the far West side of the country).  There we toured a vineyard and had a wine tasting.  We also explored the Altas Montanas.  We then went to Puerto Madryn where we got to spend the day on the beach. Calafate was the next location staying there for 3 nights.  We visited Porito Moreno while in Calafate and were able to hike on top of the glacier with a guide.  Then we visited Chalten for a few days to do some more hiking and to see a few more glaciers. We then went to Esquel to visit El Parque Nacional Los Alerces. We ended the trip in the well known tourist town, Bariloche and returned home.

Yes this was a quick summary of the places I went to while in Patagonia.  That is because the beet things were the new friends I made and bonded with on the trip.  We are from all over the world: 

United States, Denmark, Germany. Iceland, France, Slovakia, Belgium and more.  I feel so lucky to have such an amazing new group of friends that will last a lifetime.  It is funny how relatable things can be between exchange students.  You are in the same country experiencing the same things and truly understand the other person.  You are able to find a common language between friends and relate to the rollercoaster that exchange is.

I have a problem with losing things.  Anyone that knows me well enough will tell you this.  Halfway into the trip, my debit card was eaten by an ATM.  The bank was closed and we left early the next day.  I made an urgent phone call to my mom and we canceled the card on the spot. The next day we were in Esquel when I conveniently dropped my wallet in the street.  You have to realize that a wallet dropped on the street is basically impossible to get back in Argentina.  Luckily, a man from Costa Rica found it and brought it back to his hotel where he messaged me on Facebook to let me know he had my wallet.

My favorite part of the trip was being homesick.  I know that sounds a bit odd.  Around the middle of the trip, I felt homesick, but not homesick for the United States.  I was homesick for my town Chivilcoy in Argentina.  This was a bizarre realization, but a good one.  I am feeling like a real part of this community here.  It was easier to be in "the moment" in Patagonia and I will admit it has not been easy adjusting back to school and everyday life.  However, I am doing well and looking forward to new experiences in my amazing country.

Puenta del Inca

Chile/Argentina Border 

The Captiol

Hiking in Chalten

Porito Moreno with Alta

1 million years on the bus

Pride for Argentina 

Chau for now,

Ben