Only 3 months left!

So during this entire exchange it's been exciting to count the time I've been here.. one week turned to two, which turned to a month and then three and then seven. It's crazy to think that I've been here for more time than I have left; I only have a little more than 3 months left.

I've gotten back into school-mode. As much as I love my classmates, I miss not having a schedule, and waking up at 6 is not fun. I've gotten used to it, but keep in mind that we don't eat dinner until 9 or 10, and then it's a few hours after that when we go to bed, so mornings are difficult and siesta-ing is kind of a necessity. I'm in what is equivalent to my senior year here, so my classmates are currently preparing for their parties and senior trip. One thing I love about Argentina is how widespread partying is... most egresados here throw parties to raise money for partying. At the end of the year, each schools' seniors throw a party at a club. They rent the club for the night and invite everyone and anyone. The seniors then wear costumes and they play a slide show. It's basically a celebration of the last 13 years they've had together. However to rent the club it costs a lot of money, so they throw parties with entrance fees and then use this money to help them pay for THE party.

With my class, aside from 'classwork', we've been working on decorating the classroom, planning fundraisers, and other fun egresado things.

My classmates!

Working on the decorations!

Last weekend I went to Carlos Keen, a town en el campo, with my host family and another exchange student. We walked around town, took pictures, ate a ton at 'Lo de Tito' and slacklined. It was a great weekend!

The old train station

"Tito's"

Food for 5... 

Slacklining!

This picture makes it appear as if I'm actually good at this.. 

There was even a rainbow on the way home!

A few days later I skipped school (oops) to go to the zoo with some friends. It is by far the coolest zoo I've been to and you can tell that they're putting in a lot of effort into wildlife conservation and (though I know nothing about animals) it appeared as if the animals were happier and had a lot more space than other zoos I've been to. We spent around 8 hours here and still didn't get to see everything, but were our normal silly selves and took tons of pictures. There were quite a few animals I've never seen, and the zoo was super interactive. We got to feed the rays in the aquarium, there was a hippo show (hippos are super interesting... watch this), there was also a very large exhibit with parrots and bats that was cool, and a 360 degree theater, which I had never even heard of. Temaiken had started out as an ice cream parlor with some outdoor bird cages owned by one of Argentina's wealthiest, and has since grown into a large organization 'that works to protect nature, educating, researching and preserving species and ecosystems', but you can still buy the ice cream (which is really good!). If you ever find yourself in Argentina (ahem, current outbounds to Argentina) I would definitely plan a day to visit! (Click here for the website) 

We're so cool. 

I wanted to get a better picture of the albino peacock but she was too fast!

They had underground tunnels that led to where the prairie dogs were! 

Probably one of the prettiest animals that exists!

But toucans are really pretty too!

So a Belgian and an American were riding a lion... 

Tortugas!

King of the meerkats!

Secretarybird

The sign was probably more exciting than the actual wallabies. 

The parrots had so much attitude. 

It was a great week! On Friday one of my friends and I went to Pia's house for her birthday! Pia's host sister lived in Wisconsin, so it was really interesting to hear her point of view on everything. Her mom went to visit her while she was on exchange and they both just kept telling me how much they absolutely love Wisconsin and how much they miss it (probably more than me.. ). We went clubbing in Buenos Aires. It was great, but I've been fighting a cold so I was a little miserable during some parts of the night. In the afternoon the next day we went out for frozen yogurt in Ciudad Jardin (it was on our exchange bucket list!) which is definitely worth the hype.

It's been cold here lately! Right now it's 56 degrees and I'm bundled up. With the cold weather and being back in school a lot of people have been getting sick. My host family has been a lot sicker than I have... send prayers or good thoughts to my host family and hope that everyone gets healthy soon!

I hope that everyone in the US is also staying healthy! Besos a todos!

Oh, and I took this quiz:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mackenziekruvant/where-should-you-have-actually-studied-abroad

I got Buenos Aires, so I guess I'm exactly where I belong. Although I recently took an online quiz called 'What country do you actually belong in?' and got Switzerland, so I think I'll have to plan a trip to visit Leonie when I get back. ;) 

200 días!

Today is my 200th day in Argentina! It was also my first day of school. On Mondays I have two hours of English and math, and we leave at 11:40. It's the first time I've seen the majority of my classmates since school got out, so it was nice to see everyone together. We spent most of class discussing what we want on our buso de egresados, and fundraisers for their class trip to Bariloche and grad. party, which, unfortunately, I won't be here for.

Since I last wrote, I went to a birthday party for another American exchange student, Kevin. It was tons of fun and it was nice to hang out with the exchange students and Kevin's classmates. During the day Kevin gave us a walking tour of Chivilcoy where we bought ingredients to make tacos and stopped for some icecream. For dinner we enjoyed our tacos and after one of the best cakes I've ever eaten and versions of the happy birthday song in 6 languages, we went clubbing.

Plaza de España en Chivilcoy

The whole group!

Apparently it's a tradition for boys in Chivilcoy to shave their heads on their 18th birthdays, so we all had some fun and cut/shaved Kevin's hair into a mohawk/mullet with weird side details. He ended up getting some weird looks in the club, as his classmates wouldn't let him completely shave it off.

Belgian, American, Swiss, Austrian, Argentine and German girls clubbing!

Right before I hopped on the bus back to Ituzaingo, I got to see the lovely Paz! She was an exchange student in Waupaca last year, and she can brighten anyone's day! It was nice to see her, and hopefully soon we'll be able to do something together!

I also went to 'El Caminito' with my host parents, and La Plata with my host parents and brother.

La Boca is a very colorful neighborhood in Buenos Aires, and 'el Caminito', literally meaning little path, is a street with touristy shops, tango dancers and restaurants. 

El Caminito

Even the trees are participating in the fun!

La Plata is the capital of the province of Buenos Aires. This is slightly confusing given the capital of Argentina is the city of Buenos Aires, which is, physically speaking, within the province of Buenos Aires. However, the city of Buenos Aires has it's own government, thus it is not actually a part of the province of Buenos Aires, but surrounded by it. In La Plata we went to a gorgeous cathedral and un museo de ciencias naturales. I apologize for the random order of the pictures. When I click 'add caption' it always moves that picture to the top.

Thiago and me

Gorgeous stained glass!

The entrance to the cathedral

In the plaza

My host mom and host brother

Afterwards we went to a gorgeous park to drink mate! I'm definitely going to miss seeing palm trees.

Cute lake with boat rentals!

So now that school has started, I'll hopefully get back into a routine. I have some fun things planned for the near future, so stay tuned! 

Un beso,
Micah

Vacation's all I've ever wanted

... and I sure have been getting plenty of it! This is also the reason for my lack of writing.

In December I had the wonderful opportunity to spend a week on the coast with my host family. It was such a relaxing week and incredible given I've never seen the ocean, let alone set foot in it. We stayed in a cabaña next to that of a family friend, so there was always someone to talk to, and I enjoyed playing with the little kids.

Four wheeling in the dunes with my host sister!

Playing with my host brother!

Sunrise!

Watching the sunrise!

The holidays came and went, and while Christmas was really laid back, our New Year's celebration was one I'll never forget. At midnight, the sky burst into colors as fireworks were set off and lanterns were let go. We toasted with ananá fizz and spun in circles as fireworks were being set off in every direction. Around 12:45 the fireworks died down and we continued eating the array of desserts that were set out. Afterwards I went to a party with my friend Leonie from Switzerland, my host sister, and my host sister's friends.

In January my host sister left to start her exchange in Switzerland. Based on her pictures, she's having a blast! I haven't gotten the chance to talk with her much, but I miss her a ton.

Last 'family' photo for a long time!

The other inbounds and I had to leave the country to get our visas renewed, so we hopped on a ferry and had a day trip to Uruguay. It honestly is one of the most beautiful towns I've ever visited. We toured the city taking pictures, and were our normal, silly exchange student selves. This day also happened to be the day my exchange was half over; my return date is set for July 2nd.

In front of the fort/light house

I love this girl!

Nine- elevenths of the exchange students in our district

The entire town was full of old cars!

I'm probably the luckiest and most blessed girl in the world, because I also had the opportunity to go to Patagonia on a road/camping trip for 15 days with an exchange student from California and his host family. This was by far the most incredible trip I've ever been on, and it made me fall in love with Argentina even more. It really is incredible the diversity of Argentina. On this trip I saw lakes, rivers, deserts, mountains, volcanoes, the ocean, canyons, waterfalls, salt flats, big cities and parts of a dirt road where you wouldn't see another car or building for miles. The majority of the trip was spent in the car, while taking breaks to visit gorgeous things and sleep in tents and hotels. We met up with a friend from Belgium in Bariloche, and even crazier, we stumbled upon another exchange student friend of ours from Germany in a market in Mar del Plata. It was definitely a trip of a lifetime, and I can't believe that everything worked out so perfectly. Thanks a million to Tilen and his host parents for allowing me to come with them!

Cañon Atuel en Mendoza

My 'host parents' for 15 days and me- gracias Elena y Horacio!

Underground cave that collapsed

'Castillitos'- caves that the indigenous people used to live in, all one rock structure

Rio Grande

Gorgeous vistas everywhere you look!

The four of us in front of Volcán Lanin 

Perfect place for a picnic!

Lanin Volcano- first time seeing snow in a long time!

Coolest trees ever!

Mountains everywhere!

These trees were everywhere!

Waterfalls!

Took a ski lift up to get this amazing view!

In almost every city here there's something similar to this!
I love Rotary!

So with only two weeks left until I start school, I'm going to continue to enjoy relaxing days and this perfect summer weather. I hope all is well in the US, and that the snow and cold aren't being too harsh!

Besos, 

Micah