Coming home...

Well, it seems I am not so good at remembering to update everyone on my life. I haven't written for about 3 months! That was a real surprise!

I am finally home for the holidays! It is great to be home and relax, especially since I don't have any homework to get done. That is the best thing of all: no tests, no homework!! I have to say, though, that getting home was quite the adventure...

The last day of finals was the 16th of December, so Danielle and I planned on flying out around 9:30 pm that evening. Since we couldn't find a ride, we had to take the Olivet shuttle to the airport. The last shuttle was scheduled to leave Olivet at 3:30 pm, so we were planning on just hanging out at the airport for 4 hours. What we had not planned on was the snow. The snow began pretty heavily at 1 pm that afternoon. I was really surprised to look out of the Warming House where I was having my last final and see it snowing. It was quite beautiful, but not really a welcoming sight. I knew that if the weather got bad I would not be able to fly out of Chicago. The snow was still falling when we began our trip by shuttle very slowly. It usually takes about an hour to reach Midway from Olivet; however, that Tuesday it was a bit longer: about three hours. We over heard the girl who was sitting next to us in the back of the bus say that her plane was cancelled, so we thought it would be a good idea to look into our flight. Danielle called her dad who told us that our flight was cancelled and gave us a number to call. Danielle tried a few times, but she was finally put on hold. So, I tried the automated service. It took me a couple of times to push the correct buttons (it was hard to see in the bus), but I finally got a hold of an agent with Southwest Airlines. Although our 9:30 flight was cancelled, there was a 6:30 flight that was delayed. She told me that there was room on that flight, but she wasn't sure if it would actually leave that night. The plane was coming from Houston and had to return to Houston because the weather was so terrible in Chicago. We decided to transfer onto that flight anyways, just in case it did leave that night. This 1315 flight was delayed until 9:55 pm. After everything was settled, I hung up the phone and noticed that the battery on my phone was about to die. And, it did about 3 minutes later. I was relieved that it did not die while I was talking to the agent. Thank you, God!

When we finally made it to the airport (after being in the shuttle for 3 hours), we piled out and got in line to check in. It took a little over an hour and a half to get to the front of the line. I got checked in pretty quickly; however, the printers were not working properly, so the lady helping me only gave me a security pass and instructions to get a boarding pass at my gate. Security did not take very long to get through, which was very nice! After we got my boarding pass (Danielle had gotten hers when she checked in), we went and found something to eat...delicious sandwiches from Potbelly's. Then, we returned to the gate to wait and so I could charge my phone. Thank goodness! I was feeling like something was missing since my phone was dead. At 9:55 pm that night, there were 3 different flights flying out of gate A15. Ours was not the first flight either. Like you might have been, everyone who was flying to Denver was pretty confused as to what we were supposed to be doing. When it was close to 10:20 pm, someone announced that the flight to Denver was actually flying out of a different gate: B5. Everyone with that intended destination packed up and started walking. We did not have to wait too much longer to get on the plane after that. Danielle and I were in the first group to board the plane, so we got seats close to the front.

Well, Danielle and I settled in to wait for the rest of the passengers. During this time, I was pretty out of it, because I kept nodding off. I do remember having to also wait for some baggage to be put on the plane. Then, we backed out of the gate and waited to be de-iced. While the plane was getting de-iced, one of the flight attendants got on the intercom and asked if there was a doctor, EMT, or nurse aboard the airplane. Whenever that happens, you become suspicious that something isn't right, which naturally happened to me as well. We continued to wait until another announcement came over the intercom: "We have a medical emergency on the plane, so right now we are talking to some people in the airport for advise as to how we should proceed. We may need to return to the gate." I started speculating about what the medical emergency could be and the only thing I could really think of had to do with a pregnant woman or an elderly person. Let's just say neither one were correct.

More time passed. Then, finally we received more information. "We are going to have to return to the gate. We are sorry for the inconvenience," or something to that extent. Back at the gate, I looked out the plane window into the window of the Jetway and saw a few people standing there. They looked like policemen to me; however, I decided they might be paramedics because I did not understand why there were policemen in the Jetway for a medical emergency. I should have stayed with my first deduction: they were in fact policemen. Two of the policemen walked to the back of the airplane, while another remained near the front. A passenger asked this officer if there was in fact a medical emergency. He answered, "no, there would be an ambulance if there was a medical emergency." Minutes later, the officers escorted a man of the airplane. The man looked to be in his 30s, but there was something not right about him. I was wondering if he had a mental problem, but soon enough I discovered more of the story. A few rows ahead of me the passengers were talking to the flight attendants. The guy that was escorted off had taken drugs when he was on the plane, or right before he got on. Some passengers in the back of the craft had noticed his unusual behavior and mentioned it to the flight attendants. There was also a warrant out for his arrest.

The police searched around his seat and then we were back on our way. The plane did not need to be de-iced again, so we left Chicago a short while later. It was good to finally be in the air and on the way to Denver. When we got to the airport, I texted my mom to tell her that we had arrived. She answered by saying they were on their way.

It takes a little over an hour to get to the airport from my house. When we departed the airplane, they were at the Berthoud exit, which is about 20 minutes from my house. They had quite a bit to go. Danielle and I took our time getting our bags and then ended up waiting for our moms for a little while. When they arrived, we loaded up and headed home.

We FINALLY made it to my house at 5:30 am on Wednesday. I had spent 15 hours traveling home; it usually takes about 16 hours to drive that distance. 1:00 am was the time I had estimated on getting home...I guess I forgot to include the snow, de-icing, long lines, delays and the guy on drugs. :)

Danielle and I waiting in the check-in line.

Home at Olivet again for a new year.

Well, it has definitely been an interesting adjustment coming back to Olivet. I have been very busy these past three weeks since I returned. The fact that I have actually been back at Olivet for three weeks is pretty amazing in itself. I do have to say, though, that I am sorry I am so behind with the blog. I just didn't seem to have much time to write anything.

I am still not totally organized in my new apartment. Around my desk there is a lot of clutter. I haven't quite figured out where to put everything. When it gets bad enough, I will probably make myself organize it all. But for now, it will stay like that. My roommates have had their stuff put away since the second day after we moved in—they are a lot cleaner than I am.

I like our apartment much better than the dorms. I have not actually missed Williams too much. I seem to only miss being so close to campus and near all of my floormates. Here we have a kitchen, a living, a “bed” room, and an office. It works pretty well; when my two roomies are in bed, I can study in the office. I have already done that a couple of nights this year. There have only been two big problems with the apartment. Since we are half underground (on the first level), we have a big bug problem, especially with rollie pollies. They seem to come from everywhere. Our other problem has occurred because of the weather we have had lately. It has been raining off and on for the past week or so, and today it has not stopped. The roads are flooding along with everywhere else you go. That brings me to our other dilemma, which you probably could guess. The water has decided that it wants to live in our apartment as well. It is seeping up through the foundation. The apartment next to us was flooding in their kitchen, so I am very grateful that ours it not as bad.

The first two weekends back at Olivet, we had Ollies Follies. This is a competition between the different classes here at Olivet. Well, last weekend we had the talent show/movie competition. I decided to participate in the talent show. Every year each class has a different theme and color. This year the overall theme for Ollies Follies was “Through the decades”, so each class represented a different decade in the United States. The sophomores were the 80s and the color blue. With this in mind, we decided to learn the dance to Thriller and Footloose for the talent show. It was a lot of fun dancing, meeting other sophomores here at Olivet, and learning choreograph for the two songs. Not to mention the outcome of the whole competition. Usually the seniors win; however, this year they did not do very well at all. The actually competition was between the juniors and the sophomoresJ. I think this has only happened one other time the in history of Ollies Follies, but we WON! I was stunned when they announced it; I was positive the juniors had beaten us. I was a big surprise, but a very welcomed one!

From left to right: Emily, Abby, Rachel and me. Emily and Rachel are my two roommates, and Abby is one of my friends here. This picture was taken after we danced Thriller--which is also the reason we look like we do.

Celebrating our victory with the girls from my floor last year. It was great to see all of them together like this. It had been a long time!

This next week looks like it will be busy for me as well. I decided to play my viola for Broadway Review, which is this next weekend. I believe I have rehearsals every night this week. I am also hoping that I can go play in the rain tonight. A few of my friends are going to go mud sliding, and I want to join them. Whether I do or not depends on how long I am at Home Groups tonight. I am very excited for the home cooked meal that awaits me. =]

Well, I think that is most of the important things that have occurred lately. I love being back at Olivet again. It is almost as good as being at home for a little while. I had forgotten what it was like here, but this year is definitely much better than the last year. (I don’t have to worry about not knowing anyone and finding all new friends because I already know a lot of people. Not to mention I know my way around the campus as well.) Well, I hope you all stay dry, because it seems impossible here.

Winding Down

This past weekend I went to Tigre and Rosario. On Saturday, I went with Jim, Zeida, the girls and Elena to Tigre. I love the city. There are rivers flowing through it everywhere because it is on a delta. We took a boat ride to see some of the houses. Then, I shopped at all the shops there. The prices are pretty reasonable and there were a lot of things to look at! On Sunday, I went to Rosario with four other people. The drive is about three hours, but it took us about four. We had some car problems on the way back, which delayed our return, but everything turned out fine. Rosario is a beautiful city. There is a river that runs through it and the parks are wonderful. It was a quick trip and I was glad to get back.

Oh, I got a cell phone for this weekend. Zeida wanted me to have one while I was in Rosario, since it is pretty far away. One of the missionary families here just left, so I got to use one of theirs. It is fun having a cell phone for only a couple days...and a lot easier to contact people as well.

Now that the trip to Rosario is over, I have realized how close I am to going home. I have two more days left. The reality of that is hard to imagine. I hope I will be able to return someday, but right now I don't know if I will. Then, there is the fact that if I do indeed return one day not everyone will be here still. I have definitely enjoyed Argentina and the people, and if I get the chance to return one day, I will come willingly.

Al Capital...and a little about Argentina

I leave for the states in a week. It seems pretty imposible to believe that I have been here for 5 weeks already. I wish I could stay longer. The idea of starting up school again and having homework doesn't look very appealing to me. I will also miss Argentina and everyone here. The people have been very open to me and it has been fun getting to know them. Now, I feel more comfortable around everyone. Sure, I don't always know what they are saying and I can't always say what I want to, but I take it in stride. People have told me lately that my Spanish is improving--a statement that I was very happy to hear!

This past weekend I had the pleasure of going to the capital--Buenos Aires--with a group of girls. There were five of us and the objective of the day was to see all of the capital. This coming Saturday I am going to Tigre, so I did not have any other opportunities to see the Capital.
We started the day really early to catch the train to the city. I met Andrea and Karina (the Argentines of the group) in front of the Tiger Market, which is the gas station next to the seminary. We caught the bus to the train station and waited there for the rest of our group. While we were waiting, the train we wanted past. This was not a good thing because the trains usually are an hour apart in coming. Well, we finally found the other two girls. After they bought their tickets, we headed over to the platform to wait on the train. We were surprised to find a train arriving right before we got to the platform, so we ended up starting right away. The train ride over there was about an hour long, maybe a little longer, but it went fast.
Andrea and Karina had the entire day mapped out. We started off right away and went from one place to another. I don't even know how many places we went to but to name a few: Palermo, 9 de Julio Av., Recoleta, La Boca, Casa Rosada, Catedral Metropolitana, Plaza de Mayo, Cabildo, Puerto Madero, and el Obelisco.
The day was great. I saw so many places and had a lot of fun, but I was exhausted! We took the Pilar Express back to Pilar. This is a bus and has comfortable seats. I, of course, fell asleep. That evening there was a surprise birthday party for one of the girls here, Aline. I went for a while, but decided not to stay extremely late. It was definitely a full day.

...ARGENTINA...
What I have discovered.

• The Spanish here in Argentina is unique. There is a totally different pronunciation for some consonants and they call things by different names.
• They talk really fast, in my opinion.
• The people greet each other by touching check. Some people do this to both checks, other only the right side. I kind of like this greeting, because it makes a person feel like they belong more. Instead of a simple hello to everyone, each person is greeted individually.
• If you don't know what Mate is, you will learn in a heartbeat. Mate is everywhere and pretty much everyone drinks it from the same straw/cup. It is tradition. There are even mate stations in public places. Pretty much, if there is more than one person meeting, mate is not far behind. Mate is for sharing. Personally, I think it is too strong without sugar and not very good with too much sugar. Just like Goldie Locks, I like my mate right in between.

• Gracias does not mean thank you when you are drinking Mate. It instead signifies that you have had your share of mate and don’t want anymore. However, if you have the mate in your hand, it is yours. I learned this just this week.
• They eat four times a day: breakfast, lunch, merienda, and dinner. At the seminary, we dine at 8 PM for dinner; however, this is early for Argentines. They can dine anytime up to 11 PM.
• Here they eat a lot of pasta and beef. You will find a lot of Italians, which is where the pasta originates from. The beef is incredible. There are Carnearías everywhere and the steak is huge. It is also very delicious.
• Dulce de leche is native to Argentina as well. I heard that Argentines will take personal offense if you say you don’t like it. I don’t know if that is true or not, though. I like it more than caramel, which it is most similar to.
• Here people marry young, like 17-20 years old. If you are much older than that, they try and pair you with someone.
• Monedas, or coins, are hard to come by, but you need them to ride the buses. This creates a difficult problem when you take the bus every day, twice a day. That is when tarejas, cards, come in handy.
• Buenos Aires is actually a providence as well as a city, but they don’t call it Buenos Aires here. Instead, they call it capital. I am technically in Buenos Aires right now. So when I told some people I went to Buenos Aires, they just laughed at me and then explained why.
• Tango is big…especially in La Boca.

Conjuntivitis...

...has another name in the United States: pink eye and yes, I have it. I am 99.99% sure that I got it from Hannah. She had it this past week. I thought I had washed my hands enough but I guess that is not the case. It wouldn't be so bad except I was wearing my last pair of contacts in my left eye. I did not bring enough with me, so I am going to have to get some more while I am here. Well, I do have to agree with Jeanne, though. The hospital here is very nice.

Random bits of my life...

Lately, I feel like I have been really busy going from one thing to the next, which is partly the reason why I haven't really written anything in a while. So I am going to try and catch up on a few things that have recently happened here. This week and the following week are vacation for the students here at the seminary. For me that means it is quieter around here and I can't get any of my meals from the comedor. Don't worry though, I haven't gone hungry yet. :) I have actually had the opportunity to try different types of food and eat out more. On Monday, a friend of mine here at the semi made me soup, rice and beef. Then, on Tuesday, I got to try some Bolivian food made by someone else here at the seminary and some authentic Argentine food from someone at church. All of which were wonderful. On Thursday night, my friend Elena and I went to Jumbo to buy some ingredients for Parmesan Chicken, because I had decided that I should cook something for her as well. Well, Jumbo is a big store...and we ended up being in there for more than an hour. The problem with that was that I was starving (more or less) at the time, so we ended up buying more than we needed. By the time everything was prepared and we sat down to a feast, it was 9 pm. Just on time for dinner here in Argentina…well, maybe a little early. ;) We had rice, chicken, guacamole, papas fritas, bread, juice, ice cream and brownies. ¡Estuvo riquísimo! Translation: Excellent! Anyone who has heard stories about my cooking skills should know that I am not as bad of a cook as my sister makes me out to be. There have only been times where I had a lapse in thinking. Oh, I don’t believe I have ever picked out a box of brownies faster—there was only one type.


I ate lunch with Zeida and Jimmy on Thursday where the food is always delicious and another day with another volunteer at the Regional Offices. Angie just graduated from Olivet this past year and is going to be volunteering here in Argentina for about 10 months. It is nice to have her here, especially since we have some things in common. For the rest of the meals (not counting breakfast), I had empanadas. Yummy, yummy, yummy.


Along with the seminary being on vacation, most of the schools in the area were on break this past week. To celebrate this and have some fun, there have been something every night for the youth and young adults. I like going even though I don't really know what is going on the whole entire time. Some of the guys in the group have started to call me Hannah. I wasn't really sure why in the beginning, but I think it has to do with a combination of the fact that someone else named Hannah came from the United States before and Hannah Montana. It is pretty funny, though. I wish I had time to write more right now, but I don't. I am going to the zoo tomorrow and I need to go to bed right now. I will try and write more soon.

Goodbye Daniel Max Walker...

Today, there was a funeral for one of my friends. It is hard to believe that he is gone...that he could actually be gone. Dan Walker was a wonderful guy and lived life to the fullest. His death came as a shock for everyone, except God, of course. And at 22 years, he wasn't supposed to die. His death, however, has brought change in my life. I have started to realize how wonderful heaven is. Dan is with Jesus. He may be dead in our worldly sense, but he has never been more alive than he is right now. It is also hard for me to imagine God's reasoning behind taking Dan. He had so much going on right now, so many plans, but they weren't meant to be. On Wednesday, when I found out he had passed away, I kept asking myself "why? I don't understand". I know I will never fully understand why God decided to take him when he did, but I know that I don't have to either. God is awesome, and he is looking out for us. There was a reason why Dan died that night, just like there is a reason why I am in Argentina right now. However, shock still resides within me. I can't believe that he is gone, but I know he is.

It will be a very hard couple of years for everyone who was close to Dan. I wish that today I could have shared in the celebration of his life and said goodbye. In times like these, community is needed and appreciated. It saddens me that I wasn't able to attend the funeral, and share the pain of losing Dan with all the other people that loved and cared for him. I wish I could have gone.

With that said, however, I do have to say that everything here in Argentina is good. The people here are wonderful and they have listened openly and shared my pain. One girl, Maely, told me that even though I could not be home with my family, I was with my family here at the seminary. That was very comforting.

I really have nothing more to say at the moment. It is late and I need to sleep. I have to leave the rest for another day and another time. I just want to leave with this: Goodbye, Dan. I hope you are having a great time in the streets of gold. You are definitely missed.