Beginning of Week 2

By: Laurie Holland

Wow, our days are so full that I can hardly keep up with my blog. Let's see...where did I leave off? On Thursday we were supposed to visit a Botanical Garden, but it was pouring rain all day long! We ended up getting lunch and spending some time at a small mall before getting ready for our meeting. Zakiya got a great shot of an elderly couple fast asleep at the food court - faces smack down on the table. They were out! It was hilarious!

Well, we had another meeting on Thursdsay evening in the area known as Belgrano. It was very nice. It was the first meeting that our team had a projector for, so that we could present using our Power Point presentations. It didn't work at first, though, but with the help of a few others, we were able to get it up and running. I was finally able to share a bit of my Africa video, although it had no sound. I'm hoping we can get sound for the next meeting. Anyway, my presentation went very well. I'm learning much more of the language. The first day I arrived I was given a ride by a member of the Rotary Club and could hardly understand a thing he was saying. Thursday night that man gave me a ride home and I understood nearly everything. Only 4 days later! I think a Spanish-speaking country is calling my name....to study somewhere and learn the language. We'll see.

On Friday, we visited the Japanese garden, which is really quite beautiful. I think many Argentines go there during the day just to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It's a large city and quite busy. AND WOW, the driving here is SO CRAZY! I thought I was an agressive driver. They have lanes here, but they don't really use them. They drive side to side, lots of horns honking, extreme tale-gating. In fact, on Thursday a guy rear-ended the car I was in (not extreme, just a lil tap-a-roo) and it seemed it's a fairly common occurrence. Nobody pulled over to the side to exchange insurance info, etc., although had it damaged anything, they would have. Just interesting observations. I'll have to get some of the traffic on video; it reminds me of a herd of cows just going wherever they can fit in. Oh, and people cut each other off like it's nothing. Additionally, if an intersection does not have a stop light, it's a free-for-all. Whoever gets to the intersection first has the right of way. Imagine driving through a 4-way stop, but with no stop signs. People nearly hitting each other often. That's everywhere here. Takes a little getting used to.

Friday evening we were invited to go out with members of Rotaract, which is just like the Rotary Club but for young professionals under 30 years old. The young woman, Belen, from my host family accompanied me to meet everyone there. We had a great time. There was about 10 others there, and after ordering food we listened to the band that played. I forgot what they call them here...it's very traditional music with guitars, a large drum, and singing - very popular. Towards the end, they had a drawing for a music CD. Guess who the singer chose from the audience to draw the number? Yep. So I went on stage in front of everyone and called out the number. The lucky number was cincuenta y uno. I didn't understand all that he was saying, except that he asked me my name and said I was beautiful. After the music ended around 2am, we decided to check out the nightlife at a dance club just down the street. The music is a bit different than what I am used to, but I had a great time! One of the guys from Rotaract was a riot! He had all of us laughing with his great moves....I think he was trying to "bring sexy back". We didn't leave until after 4am.

My group is so awesome! I realized the other day that Kenny reminds me of my brother - they have the same sense of humor - hilarious! And Zakiya, Denise, and I have had plenty of laughing episodes that have left us in tears. Even our group leader is hysterical. I don't think he realizes he is funny, but that's what makes it more funny. I laugh just thinking about some of the things he says. Anyway, I'm very happy with my group. We're all having a wonderful time.

Speaking of wonderful....I am now with my new host family for this week. Miriam & Hugo are more than wonderful. They are so very warm and welcoming. I feel very comfortable here, just as I felt very comfortable at my previous stay. My new hosts invited about 10 others over for dinner this evening (Sunday), and we had a marvelous meal! We started with tea & cookies, then a few snacks like salami & peanuts, then many different types of salads, then came the carne asada (and man, the US has got nothin' on BBQ like Argentines do...they can seriously BBQ....they've got huge BBQ pits, and it's the norm), then came more types of beef. Hey dad, you'd love the chorizo! I couldn't even eat all of the various servings of meat - it was so plentiful. Then came brownies and ice cream, and we ended with champagne with a toast to my arrival and stay in Buenos Aires. And, of course, there was also plenty of red and white wine. I know I keep saying that the people are wonderful, but let me say it again....the people are really wonderful! I've met a handful of people so far that would like me to visit their job at a school and speak to the kids about the US, as well as what I do in Africa. I'm looking forward to doing that! It seems every day we've got so much going on in our schedule and this weekend is "La Penta", the huge 3-day Rotary Club meeting, so I'm hoping to squeeze in some of those visits next week. I may also be able to visit an orphanage, and I'd like to assess how the needs of poor children are addressed here in this city. My host family knows of some programs here that help to feed hungry children, so that definitely interests me as well.

Well, it's after 2am and I have to be up at 8am. It's another full day tomorrow, so I hope to write more during the middle of the week. Have a wonderful week!