Alex Leal
Alex Leal Joined: July 22nd 2010
Logged in: April 23rd 2011
Logged in: April 23rd 2011
I think I'm going to start trying to publish blog's more often--they don't HAVE to be huge manuscripts, just a paragraph or two! Alllllways the perfectionist, that's my problem. Ah well. Keep checking back! Thanks! ^)^
Travel Blog Posts
Those Rotary Kids
Hey everyone! So, the topic of this blog is the Rotary Youth Exchange South Trip! During this trip, nearly every exchange student in our Rotary district took a trip south to Chilean Patagonia. I know it’s really really late, since this trip took place in the end of November. Anyhoo, the trip was supposed to be six days long, from Sunday November 21st to Friday, November 26th, with a full-district orientation the Saturday beforehand. However, things didn’t QUITE go as planned. But I guess you’ll get that in the full narrative. Which starts… 2010 Rotary Youth Exchange Program District 4320 South Trip Now. There was an orientation planned for 10:00 in the morning on Saturday, November 20th. I was really excited, because this was the first time that I would meet the other exchange students in ... read more
Make Room For...
Well helloooooooooooooooooo everybody! :D So here's the next big blog. I'm guessing that not everyone knows this, so I'll give you a quick heads-up: a while ago an opportunity came up to go to Peru with my host family on vacation! Not only that, but I eventually got them to make Machu Picchu a part of the itinerary--Whoo!!! :D I was writing a detailed account of the trip to my uncle, and then partway through decided it would make a very good blog SO, here's the letter! (sorry I didn't actually send the thing via e-mail, but I'm sure you'll get it anyway!) PERU TRIP, JANUARY 2011 Hey Uncle Jaime! How are you? :) Hope all is well! You wanted to know about my trip to Peru and Machu Picchu, so here ya go! :D I ... read more
Architecture
Hello everybody! First of all I would like to appologize about the lack of blogs. Really sorry about that. However, there are currently TWO blogs in progress about two major trips I have had: the South Trip and a trip I recently had to Peru (including the spectacular Machu Picchu)! The rest of this blog is just going to be a collage of random pictures! Yay! SO, until the next blogs come out (should be within the week), take care everyone! -Alex... read more
Chinamen
Well THIS is a fail! No WONDER everyone thought I haven't blogged for so long! I just was looking through my entries and I realized that this blog was marked as "Saved" instead of "Published" so you guys never got to see it, even though I finished it way back in the beginning of January! I have no idea how that happened, but sorry! A Few Minor Events (months late (oops (sorry))) Well hello everybody! Soo….it’s kind of been absolute AGES since my last blog. Sorry about that… :S Honestly, I've either been way too busy or too lazy to write blogs :S Due to my writing style (extremely detailed and overworded, though accurate) it usually takes me a good 5 or 6 hours to write a full, proper blog. So aaaaaanyway….let’s get on with this ... read more
Guasos In The Plaza
“Well helloooooo everybody! It’s time for another “Alex Leal’s Shenanigans Update”— Also known as my travel blog. Since I just posted my last blog on what, Wednesday of last week, there’s not a huge amount of things to fill you all in on. But there are some, so here we go! ^_^ Thursday and Friday nights were the Jazz Festival that my class put on. It was actually a pretty big deal, and there were five jazz groups invited from around the region to come play. Only four showed up, though, because one of them got in a car accident on the way to the festival—no worries though, everyone was okay. Thursday during the day I got out of class early to help set up for Jazz Fest after second hour. A group of about seven ... read more
Rotary Welcomes You
*Note:Hahaha I apologize to all those “Anti Myley Cirus” people out there for the title of this blog. Hey everybody! Soooo I think I’m going to abandon formality for this blog and write as I think (so I apologize for the vast numbers of parenthesis (and resulting chaos)) Also, this blog is going to be a two-day process, so I’ll be writing it as though it were Sunday the entire time (therefore if I say “yesterday” it means, Saturday, etc.) This week has been very (wow THAT’s a boring adjective. How about “incredibly?”) interesting! Honestly, I thought that life would have started slowing down by now, but…not even close. Okay here’s a quick overview for my own personal use so I don’t forget anything: -Pulmahue -Coro -Jazz Fest -Cueca -Acompañero -Copiapo -El Rio -Fútbol -Fiestas Patrias/Nationalism ... read more
Exchange Buddies
Hey everybody! So I’ve reached the end of my first week here. Did I dip my toes into the water of Chilean life? Not a chance! I cannonballed straight into the deep end and am loving it! So let’s see if I can remember everything that’s happened this week because wow has it been busy! (And a forewarning: this entry’s a big’un*) *Note: I’m going to start taking short, 360-degree videos of some of the places I visit, so that you can all see what I see at some of the places I visit. Let me know how it works, though—I don’t want your computers to freak out when you’re trying to read! Thanks! Last Sunday I went to church, and it was really cool for me to see the similarities between the Catholic church services ... read more
AirAndes
WOW. I’m here! Holy cow, I still can’t quite believe it….I’m in CHILE! Something like six thousand miles away from good ol’ Rice Lake. Hmm…I suppose I oughta update you on what’s happened since my last blog, huh?* *Note: Just a warning that I am an extremely long-winded person when it comes to writing. So now you’ve been warned for this and subsequent blogs :P SO, I last I got a call last week saying that my visa was finally ready, and I had to pick it up from the Chilean Consulate in Chicago at 9:30 Friday morning. My parents and I drove down to Chicago Thursday night and picked the visa up the next morning. I found out shortly thereafter that I would be leaving at 4:00 PM on Thursday, August 19th. I spent the ... read more
Well isn't that just how it goes? I finished that last post and went to get the two papers from the clinic and when I got back--tadaa! My FBI background check came in! That was what has been holding up the whole process, because they "typically take abut 13 weeks to process." And it's three weeks early! (It came back clean, in case you were wondering :P) SO now I get to send it in along with everything else and wait for the Chilean Embassy in Chicago to process the visa and contact me to tell me when to pick it up! Then I'll be on my way. Finally. -Alex... read more
Well... here I am. I'm still waiting for the info from the FBI to get back so I can apply for the student visa so I can actually get a move on and go to Chile. Sooooo I'm just wrapping up some of the preparations before going--doctor appointments, making a packing list, setting up this blog, etc. I'm getting nervous/excited/a bunch of other emotions for this trip, finally. It's going to be AMAZING. I know I'll come back a very different person, but it'll be for the better. I've just got to keep telling myself that, haha :P Aaanyway, I'm going to click "publish" now to make sure this actually works. I've got to leave now to go pick up some medical papers from the clinic that I need for the visa so I'll catch ya ... read more
