I’ve just arrived back in Mendoza (home sweet home away from home) from some amazing spring break travels with some amazing people. Caitlin, Garrett, and I left Mendoza on the 17th of September. The Chilean “Independence” Day is the 18th of September. It was thus a whole weekend of party, party, and more party in Valparaíso, Chile where we stayed with Garrett’s extremely accommodating and all around epic friend, Justin Kunimoto. Although the only thing separating Chile and Argentina is the Andes mountain range, the two countries are very distinct. I found Valparais [View Full Entry]

---

---

The initial “Ohmigod, I’m in Argentina” feeling has left me long ago. Some days are excellent and some just plain stressful. Here’s one that had the best (and worst) of both worlds: I was invited to go ski at Penitentes, a ski station right near the Chilean border and the highest mountain in all of the Americas: Aconcagua. I hadn’t planned to ride anymore due to a little thing called money; however I was invited by some locals here, and couldn’t pass up my first invitation to spend the day with only Argentines. After renting some excellent skis and bo [View Full Entry]

---

---

So apparently, one must be a member of Facebook to read the speech that I linked in the previous entry. For those interested in reading, here it is: Commencement Speech given by Paul Hawken to the University of Portland When I was invited to give this speech, I was asked if I could give a simple short talk that was “direct, naked, taut, honest, passionate, lean, shivering, startling, and graceful.” No pressure there. Let’s begin with the startling part. Class of 2009: you are going to have to figure out what it means to be a human being on earth at [View Full Entry]

---

---

I sit here writing this after shooting jets of spicy hot gastronomical liquid out of my fanny (gross…? Whatever, just deal with it; it’s the natural way of things). Two Sunday’s ago, I made a trip to “shopping,” which is basically the mall here in Argentina. I ate in a mall’s food court for the first time in countless years. I got lasagna. Lasagna with meat sauce. Hives broke out. Fecal matter became less solid. Doctors came and put a needle in my butt. This last week I have spent recovering from this allergic reaction (the first I’ve e [View Full Entry]

---

---

It was last Friday evening that I arrived in Mendoza, and how time can fly! The last week has been filled with orientations, safety presentations, and (gasp) the start of classes; however I only have class once a day for two hours and the professor is engaging, hilarious, and knows how to navigate through touchy topics (abortion, woman’s rights, etcetera). Angel (prof.) only supports my hypothesis that Spanish teachers are the best out there (Hola to profes. Walker, Kreutzer, Talaya, y Tala-Ruiz!) Outside of class I have been trying to take in the nightlife here, which is slightly t [View Full Entry]

---

---

The last few days have been a whirlwind of activity, traveling, adjustment, and epic failures when it comes to speaking Spanish. Let’s start from the (pseudo) beginning: somehow, I was convinced to partake in a “Bar Crawl” in Buenos Aires on my last night (Thursday). This involved meeting up with a bunch of other foreign exchange students (All Americans if you can imagine that) in a plaza very, very far from my hotel with all-one-can-eat pizza and all-one-can-handle beer. Following dinner, we were escorted by some Argentine-Americans (such entrepreneurs) to three different [View Full Entry]

---

---

BUENOS AIRES! After a rocky start to the trip (my TV didn’t work on the 9 hr. flight), I arrived in BA yesterday morning. Unseasonably cold weather greeted me, with news of snow in Cordoba and Mendoza. My first taste of Argentina came with the boarding of AA flight 943. No other people in the world would make such a dramatic scene about boarding a plane. The people here are amazing! Always talking, with elaborate hand gestures to support the most simple phrases and declarations. Soon I will be wringing my hands as if the apocalypse was tomorrow when I discuss [View Full Entry]

---

---

Hola a todos You have found my blog! And its first entry, which (to the disappointment of all I'm sure) is merely a test. So please, don't expect any exquisitely-structured descriptions of fine Argentine beef and whatever else might be considered FINE down there (not down under). So, if you hate to read a lot of parenthetical side thoughts, then my blog probably isn't for you (ha sucker). At this point, the only things I want to know are: is this a reputable blog site? And can my writing be selected for a Pulitzer? Stay tuned for a possible late night [View Full Entry]

---

---