Starting tomorrow at 2 am, I will be traveling around Argentina with a group of other AFS students. The trip includes: a tour of Iguazu falls, a traditional folklore show in Salto and white water rafting. Stay tuned for more information and pictures upon my return.
So time to update everyone on my life a little bit. I recently joined an all girls football team located on the outskirts of Melo. Unfortunately, I am not authorized to play in games; however, I do enjoy practicing with the girls every Thursday night. Another recent addition to my activities list is Interact Club. It's a branch of the well-know International Rotary Club. We meet every Monday in a local school of English to discuss the week's activities. I then pick and choose which to attend as there tend to be lots of activities. As I discussed in an earlier blog, I was studying engineering in school here. The interesting thing about the education system in Uruguay is that everything you do and every class you take will have something to do with your future career. To me, it's an interesting idea; however, it eliminates the ability to seek knowledge purely for love of learning. When I began taking the necessary classes to become an engineer, I discovered that it was not for me. After 2 months of hardcore engineering, I switched to Medicine. I'll keep everyone posted but so far I love it!
To go back and correct a past question that I answered about the climate here. THE WINTER IS COLD. The winter is very cold. The only difference from Ohio is that it's a humid and wet cold. It rains just about everyday and in other news I recently bought a really cute purple umbrella.
I've had several questions about the politics here in Uruguay so I will share what I know. This year is a presidential election year so things tend to be a little crazy. There are always banners and rallies in the streets and political commercials are abundant. There are 3 political parties: the Colorado party, the National party and the Independent party. Of course there are other minor parties to but they generally don't have much success. Before anyone asks, no I do not know which one I am rooting for.
Another popular question is over my views of responsible drinking. I can't really decide whether I like the United States' view of responsible drinking or the view's of Uruguay better. In my opinion they both have their ups and downs. I don't really notice more or less problems here than in the USA, it's probably about the same. Much of the reason for the low rate of issues here is that it's common to drink with the parents at dinner and teenagers often run into their parents in the clubs. I know this doesn't give much of my opinion but my parents are going to read this so I'm going to leave it at that!
The next question on the list is, "Do you have a curfew?". No. I do not have a curfew but I do have to advise my host family when I will be home. To give you an idea, I usually leave around 2 or 3 am and return at 7 or 8 in the morning.
The next few questions I'm going to answer together as they are similar in content. The first is, "What is the best alcoholic drink in Uruguay?". I don't really know as all they seem to drink is beer. Next question, "What is the worst alcoholic drink in Uruguay?". For me, some beer is better than others but for real that's about it as far as alcoholic drinks go. And the last alcohol question is, "In your opinion, how many drinks does it take to surpass the level of responsible drinking?". I'm going to go with a serious answer and say that it's really different for everyone. Everyone here seems to have really high tolerance for alcohol as they start drinking at a young age.
As far as the Spanish language goes, I'm now decently proficient. I can understand just about everything and I can speak enough to survive. Language immersion has really changed my point of view on what it means to be fluent. For me, I will not be fluent after this trip. I will be fluent when I can speak Spanish almost equally as well as my native language. Now a few tips for anyone planning on participating in a language immersion program.
Yesterday marked my third month here in Uruguay! I'm so thankful for the opportunity I have to learn a new way of life. Thank you to all for reading these blogs and keeping up with my experiences. :)
The next question on the list is, "Do you have a curfew?". No. I do not have a curfew but I do have to advise my host family when I will be home. To give you an idea, I usually leave around 2 or 3 am and return at 7 or 8 in the morning.
The next few questions I'm going to answer together as they are similar in content. The first is, "What is the best alcoholic drink in Uruguay?". I don't really know as all they seem to drink is beer. Next question, "What is the worst alcoholic drink in Uruguay?". For me, some beer is better than others but for real that's about it as far as alcoholic drinks go. And the last alcohol question is, "In your opinion, how many drinks does it take to surpass the level of responsible drinking?". I'm going to go with a serious answer and say that it's really different for everyone. Everyone here seems to have really high tolerance for alcohol as they start drinking at a young age.
As far as the Spanish language goes, I'm now decently proficient. I can understand just about everything and I can speak enough to survive. Language immersion has really changed my point of view on what it means to be fluent. For me, I will not be fluent after this trip. I will be fluent when I can speak Spanish almost equally as well as my native language. Now a few tips for anyone planning on participating in a language immersion program.
- Learn the basic grammar rules. There are some things that cannot be understood without an explanation in your native language.
- Vocabulary. You need it. More specifically focus on adjectives and everyday nouns and verbs. Already knowing the basics will allow you to pick up the more difficult and obscure words faster.
- Have no fear. Absolutely 0. You will mess up and people will laugh but it's all okay because you speak 2 languages and they don't.
- Talk as much as you possible can. Of course taking this tip to the level of annoying everyone is something I would personally avoid.
- Listen to music in your host language. Even if you don't understand a single word, it really is helping you get a feel for the flow of your host language.
Yesterday marked my third month here in Uruguay! I'm so thankful for the opportunity I have to learn a new way of life. Thank you to all for reading these blogs and keeping up with my experiences. :)
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