I started the day off with some eggs on toast and mate cocido for breakfast, and watched some TV with Delfi. While eating breakfast, I thought about how we were coming to the end of this amazing experience and how in only a few days, I would be on a plane back to North Carolina. I was overwhelmed with emotions and knew that I wanted to make my last few days with Delfi the best. Our morning started off a little slow because we were both still pretty tired from our long week and the party we went to yesterday.
Around 1 pm, Delfi, her mom, and I left to go to a burger place called Burger 54 in the city San Isidro, and I had a bacon burger and fries for lunch. I learned about Dardo Rocha Avenue, an important avenue in San Isidro. On one side of the street there is an area for horse back riding competitions which is very important in Argentina. The space is also used for a famous festival called Lollapalooza. And on the other side of the street were many stores, apartments, and other buildings. I also learned about Rio de la Plata where people go to do aquatic sports. San Isidro was beautiful, there were many colorful buildings, vibrant plants and palm trees, and cars lining the streets. I saw places that I know like PF Changs and Havana, and places I haven’t heard of like Bacana Burgers. After eating at Burger 54, we went to an ice cream shop called Flaminia and we got a really really tall ice cream cone. Then we went over to Havana where Delfi’s mom bought a coffee and I bought some alfajores to take back to NC. We also went to downtown San Isidro and explored quite a bit there. We walked down the streets and went inside a couple stores like Isadora and Paque & Coco, we went to the cathedral, and then we went to the Barrancas station of San Isidro where there were little tents with people selling handmade items like ceramics and jewelry. While driving back home, we saw a place full of cars that I later learned was the San Isidro Club, where they were hosting a rugby tournament.
Once we got back to the house, I drank some more mate cocido and tried a cone filled with dulce de leche from Havana, which was delicious. Delfi, her mom, and I played Generala and listened to the Jonas Brothers. After that, I took a shower and freshened up before our last party of this trip. Delfi and I got to the party around 9:15, but not everyone was there until around 10:00. For dinner at the party we had bondiolla and choripan sandwiches, chips, and many different drinks like Coca Cola, 7up, and more. Throughout the party I danced a lot and took photos with my friends, both with my phone and in the photo booth they had at the party. Around 12:50ish, we had some chocotorta to celebrate Valen and Juani’s birthdays, and the end of our trip. Overall, I had an amazing time today and throughout this whole trip and I am so grateful that I got to have this experience. —Jordyn
Today me and Callie were allowed to sleep in till 10:30am before we had to drag ourselves out of the bed to head downstairs for breakfast which was some delicious French toast made by Reni.
After breakfast, we finished getting ready and then headed over to the mall to complete gift shopping for family and friends. We stopped by the jewelry, candy, clothing, and bookstore to wander around while seeing if anything interested us. We proceeded to eat lunch there while meeting up with all of the other girls who also planned to show up at the mall. After lunch, me and a few other girls headed over to the ice cream shop to try some rolled ice cream. Though we could probably get the same exact thing at home, something about doing anything in a different country seems to make it 10x cooler.
After we finished at the mall, we headed back to a series of shops near the school to watch our buddies to get a variety of new piercings which included a belly button, third, second, and cartilage piercing. It seemed really scary and painful but Reni said her belly piercing actually wasn’t that painful. Next was Cata, who got her third in one ear and second in another. Lastly, Paula and Juli got a cartilage piercing (Paula got 2 at once), which they said hurt a LOT. Overall, everyone seemed very happy with their results and it also all looked so amazing!!
After they got their piercings, we headed home and by then it was 6pm, so me and Callie took a quick nap till 7. After we woke up, we started getting ready for the going away party being thrown for us since we’ll be gone in a few days. At the party, we had an asado for dinner in which we ate “sandwichitos de bondiolas”, which are basically mini beef and choripán burgers and they were so delicious and flavorful. After dinner, we went over to the main part of the club house where we danced, sang, and fought over whether we should be playing American or Argentinian music. All was well until suddenly everyone started getting brutally attacked with silly string coming from all directions. And even when you thought it was over, another spray would come from another direction. I sold my can of silly string to Grant for $5, but turns out that as soon as he used it, it ran out, and I’m still getting my money. To end it all off, 2 choco tortas decorated with all our names and the American and Argentinian flags were brought out and we took a group picture in front of them before eating it.
After the party, we headed home, washed any excess silly string that for some reason was still in our hair, and headed straight to bed. –Sarah
The last Saturday in Argentina started off like pretty much every other day, out early at night which turned into early in the morning. Luckily for me when the clock struck twelve we were getting ready to head home to get some
Rest. After I arrived home I got ready for bed a went to sleep for a solid 10 hours. When I woke up I had about an hour to get ready (or play brawl stars) before I went to someone else’s house for lunch while my buddy was at his soccer game (which I was told not to go too because it was really far away). Lunch was amazing. It consisted of empanadas, grilled chicken and a Spanish tortilla. After lunch I had a very fun talk about multiple different topics with the dad who made all the food. After everyone was ready we headed to the friends soccer game, this was only a 3-4 minute walk and honestly was quite refreshing. Once we got to the soccer game there were some new people that I met which is always fun. The soccer game was close but the team that everyone was cheering for ended up losing and it was very somber. However there were some very fun conversations spilling the “chisme” in the middle of the game. After the game I headed home to get some rest before the “going away party” where we would have our final party together. This started with a asado type of meal. The sandwich’s were amazing and everyone was talking and having a great time. After everyone finished eating we quickly got pushed out of the tabled area into the space where the music was. It started off boring until they brought in the silly string. I was handed two cans and then I realized how much power I had. After all of the cans were empty the room was an absolute mess and the floor was slippery. Sweatshirts were ruined and stained and there was silly string stuck in everyone’s hair; it was chaos. After the silly string was over everyone danced together for a solid 30 minutes and it was a truly amazing time. Bonding with new people or old friends is always a fun thing but it’s even more fun when it’s in Argentina. –Grant