Author: kara_caccuitto

Before going to bed Sunday night, I decided to set my alarm for 6:45am to make sure I had everything packed up. However when 6:45 occurred, with the painful noise from my alarm clock, I decided to tap snooze and hope my remaining stuff would magically pack itself. As potentially possible as my thought was, it did not happen. Consequently, I woke up at about 7:07 in a panic to get myself and stuff together. I neatly shoved my sweaters and shoes into any remaining space I could find. By now, many of us are sick, so I woke up with a nice congested nose and sore throat: a lovely present for my future day of travel.

However, I did not let this bring me down. Instead, I decided this would be the day I would try mate, a traditional hot tea. Luckily, I was given sweet mate, and it was a lot better than I thought it would be. After our quick breakfast, I went back upstairs to gather my belongings and encounter yet another obstacle. I had to figure out how I was to bring my giant red suitcase down the stairs. I managed to shimmy the 49.8 pound bag that was nearly my height, giving me the confidence I needed to take on the day. Once the car was all packed up, we were off to my final day at North Hills. I dramatically glanced out of the window to fully soak in my surroundings one last time. We rolled in slightly late, but that is nothing I am not used to. As I reached to grab my suitcase out of the trunk, the car started rolling forward. I was confused whether I was hallucinating from my lack of sleep or if the car was actually moving. Luckily, we realized the car was actually moving just in time for the car to only, slightly, nudge the car in front.

Once I walked into our meeting room, I was applauded by my fellow classmates for showing up late. We started our last day of school with traditional and common card games in Argentina. The first game I played was called Truco. Truco is played with a deck of cards that have set values depending on the number and drawing. Each player is handed 3 cards. Then, you go around the circle and place down your best card. The person with the highest value card wins the point. The game can get more complicated; however, we decided to keep it simple. Also, I happened to win all the rounds. Though they say it is a game of luck, I believe it is a game of pure strategy. The next game we played was called Tutti Fruity. This a pretty simple game. One person decides on a letter, and we all had to write a Name, Place, Animal, Food, and Famous Person.If you write a word that has been used by others, you get 5 points. If you write a word that others did not write, you get 10 points. Then, we played Janga. Following Janga, we had a snack break at 9:44. Next, we went to the cafeteria to make empanadas.

We finished around 11:30 and had another break, during which I tried my first Oreo alfajor. This was a thrilling experience. Imagine this: 2 Oreos beautifully paired together with creamy milk chocolate. It was wonderful. However, my happiness would come to an end. I had to face my final task of the day: our goodbyes. It was very hard for me say bye to everyone, and I will cherish these past weeks forever. I made such good friendships, and I hope to keep in touch with everyone.

We had a very sad bus ride from around 2 to 3:20ish, and then we were off to Atlanta and Raleigh. I would like to conclude with a huge thank you to Señor Quesada and Ms. Caccuitto, along with all the North Hills faculty and families. I learned a lot about Argentinian culture and family life.

–Maddie

Today I woke up to a beautiful breakfast prepared by my new family. As I approached the table, my eyes scanned the many delicious treats laid on the table. There was alfajores, a dulce de leche and chocolate sandwich, toast and a warm cup of coffee. I showed my exchange family pictures of Cary Academy this morning and they were amazed by the beauty of our campus. This morning I also got taught the word quita meaning money. My new family tries to teach me a new word every day during breakfast. After this, we got in the car and headed to school.

Once we got to school, we started off in the classroom as usual. We hung out for 50 minutes talking about weekend plans and our individual adventures. Then we took a 45 minute trip to the zoo. When we got there, we were all amazed by the beauty of the zoo. We saw monkeys, flamingos and birds from different parts of the world. There was a beautiful waterfall and trees that set the scenery. Also, we watched an educational movie about nature and wildlife. Seeing the animals was a great experience because I had not been to the zoo in a very long time. Even though it was very cold, I am glad that I went.

After lunch, we participated in sports.Most of the boys played basketball and most of the girls played field hockey. Even though I am not good, it was fun to try.

Once home from school, it is tea time. The family gathers around the table and enjoys more toast and tea. This eases us into the start of a few hours of relaxation before dinner. Tonight we have a light dinner because we have a goodbye party with our students. As I rest in bed, I think about the day and how I will miss all of my new friends. Good night Argentina, see you for a new adventure tomorrow.

–Ziyana

Today we started off in the Town Hall of Pilar for a student proposal by North Hills. What happens here is the student come up with an idea for improvement in the community and pitch it to the local government in hopes of it being applied. The students must provide in depth examples of what they want to do and how to will go about doing and funding the project. It is then up to the government to decide whether or not it is a feasible project to undertake.

After some time we moved on to a tour of downtown Pilar. First we visited a beautiful church with a recently renovated interior composed of many handmade wooden figures. Next we walked a few blocks away from the center of town towards the Museo Acalde where we learned about the city’s past and looked at some antique electronics. Following the museum we made our way towards human rights center where a man named Santiago talked to us about the domestic abuse problem in Argentina. We then visited the Honerable Concejo Deliberante where we met multiple government members. Over empanadas we discussed the differences between American and Argentinian life and politics. After struggling through thick language barriers we were able to learn about Argentinian politics.

We returned to the town hall to meet up with our students and embark on the journey back to the school by bus. After lunch we started an art project with the 3rd years. It was fun to talk with them because they will be hosting next year and traveling the year after. We got to know the people who would be hosting the freshman. When we finished our masterpieces we made our way to another room to watch the video that we made the day before. After school we went to people’s houses and hung out a little while before eating and going to bed.

–Chapman

Hola, me llamo Will and you’re about to see the world today through my eyes. I doubt I can “trump” Coles day, but I’ll try my best. Today started off like every day so far, with platters of medialunas (Argentinian croissants) and other tasty pastries waiting for me as my alarm went off at 6:50. Gorging myself, I tried to pick out any words I could in the family’s conversation, but any attempts were futile due to several reasons; 1. My level of understanding of their language 2. They speak Portuguese.

We left the house full and ready for sports day at school. One thing that fascinates me about Argentina is the fact that I have been in the car a grand total of 0 times and had Argentinian music playing. It’s all American music. When we got to school, we sat in the classroom where we sit every day for a few minutes, and soon went out to play soccer. We were divided into teams, and the games ensued. I tried to flashback to my Salvation Army bench warming days, and the skills came back to haunt me. I shanked 100% of the shots I took. Wayne Gretzy would be proud. We stopped the games for a quick juice and food break, and the students went back out to play basketball. I decided it would be best to let them play alone , so I resorted to keeping my pride intact sitting on the side of the court.

While I sat, I admired the wonderful weather they were having; slightly overcast skies, a light breeze that was too cold for comfort, and an air temp of 50*. The weather is perfect for sweatpants and a light hoodie, every teen’s favorite outfit to flex. It’s like Raleigh is in the Fall, but with bright yellow and green parakeets and Kiskadees flying overhead instead of cardinals and robins(If interested read paragraph below). when the basketball was over, we all went to lunch, and indulged in some type of cooked chicken and rice. At the end of an uneventful lunch, it was back to the classroom from the morning. The senior class came and had us answer several questions about our experience here, such as our favorite part of Buenos Aires, favorite Argentinian food, and whether we like Argentinian girls/boys or American boys/girls better. They filmed our answers and are going to make a video for us to take home with us. We had the option to talk in Spanish, so most people tried their best and responded in broken Spanglish.

After this endeavor, we headed to the 6th grader’s classroom to talk with them. We had met most of them already, for the always come up to us at lunch or break and give us high fives or to “dab” on us. Even so, we got to know them and their friends better, and then ate at the assortment of various cakes and cookies they had prepared for us. I spent the next hour playing soccer with the boys from the class. It is amazing to play with them, not only because it makes it easier, but to see how much of a celebrity you are to them. They would always have me try to hit headers into the goal, but it gave me a harder time than it should’ve. My amazing talent at soccer still did not manifest during the game with the little ones. Even though no kick went where it was aimed, every time I kicked the ball it was met with “wow” and “jeez”. I’ve seen in movies how playing with kids from foreign places looks life changing, but to go on the record: few things I have ever done has matched the amount of bliss and nostalgia I felt while playing with them.

The sun was slowly setting, blue skies above, and warm light shined down softly; making this whole experience something out of a movie but at the same time much more fantastical. I might have been getting beat down, juked, and slide-tackled by 70lb kids, but the experience was truly incredible. The school day ended and Vini and I went home. I ate a quick snack and then walked to the gym in Vini’s neighborhood. After a quick workout we headed home, ate dinner, and got ready for bed.

*see bottom for info on Argentinian wildlife

I’m probably going to be the only student talking about the animal life here, so I might as well tell as much as I can. To my shock I found out squirrels do not exist here, but instead they have stray dogs and cats wandering the neighborhood. The equivalent of seagulls are called Southern Lapwings, and they stay out in fields calling all day and all night. They’re everywhere. For those of you who do not know why I’m rambling about birds, Ask your kids why and you will understand. Instead of Hawks and vultures, they have a  type of falcon called a southern caracara that is very common. There are also Harris’s Hawks, a type of raptor that can be found in the southwestern United States. The other animals here very closely resemble those of the USA, and do not seem very different.

–Will