Bienvenidos a la Selva!

What comes to mind when you think of the Amazon?!

Being a huge nature and animal love myself, the idea of the Amazon rainforest always seemed like a fantasy land to me, something not quite real, something hard to grasp.  I was just always fascinated by the fact that the Amazon could be that vast and hold so much of the world's biodiversity within it.  But, take it from me, the Amazon really is that big and really is that wondrous. 
In today's world it is hard to imagine an area so sparsely populated, an area not hardly touched by humans (although sadly this is becoming less and less true), because so many areas of today's world are heavily populated and well developed.  The Amazon is a different story.  For my trip, we traveled from Lima by plane to the city of Iquitos, the largest city in the world accessible only by boat or by plane.  Then, by bus we traveled down the only highway in Peru's state of Loreto to the town of Nauta where we took a boat up river to finally arrive at our EcoLodge for the weekend.  Our guides shared with us that this Amazon Region of Peru, the state of Loreto, is about the size of California yet only has about 1 million habitants, almost all of which live in the city of Iquitos or the port town of Nauta.  Furthermore, because Iquitos is only accessible by boat or by plane, this area is very isolated from the rest of Peru and the rest of the world.  Due to this, for many people that live in this area, the Peruvian Amazon is all they have ever known.  Most either don't have the money to travel by plane out of the region or don't have the time it would take to travel by boat out of the region.  In Loreto, but outside of the city of Iquitos, there are many villages that line the Amazon river and its tributaries with inhabitants that still live a very antiquated lifestyle.  That is, they live in thatched roof huts and without electricity, indoor plumbing, or running water.  The village we visited had a school house but it relies entirely on volunteer teachers that must commit to a time period of volunteering and move to the village to teach because the city is to far away to commute daily.  And, although there is a school house and volunteer teachers, many of the teenagers and young adults quit going to school and become hunters or fishermen to provide food for their village.  Can you imagine living in one of these villages all of your life without any of the luxuries that we take for granted?  Electricity, indoor plumbing, running water, transportation, good education, a walmart nearby for groceries and anything else you might need?  The difference between their way of life and ours is absolutely incredible.

Here are some pictures of my weekend in the Amazon, including the villages, the wildlife, and our piranha fishing competition! :)

THE MOUTH OF THE AMAZON RIVER

Typical Amazon Tree...they are huge!

Is that the biggest snail you have ever seen?!

Amazon Sunset!

Drinking naturally filtered Amazon water from a vine cut in the forest

A local spearing sardines for us to use as bait for piranhas! 
 His canoe is a hollowed out tree.

My Prize Piranha!  We fished using a stick, line, hook, and our sardine bait!
Mine was too small to keep but the bigger ones you can eat.

One of the "houses" in the village that we visited

The classroom where the children attend school in the village

Can you spot the sloth?

The Caiman (similar to an alligator) that we caught one night!

Peru in Nebraska!

Hola Chicos!

Esta video es un documentario de la marca de Perú.  Un grupo de peruanos buen conocidos, famosos, y talentosos (cocineros, bailarinas, cantantes, surfers, etc.) viajaron al pueblo de Peru, Nebraska para compartir todo que es de Perú!  Disfruten! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?src_vid=fAqFJP4N4ME&v=qo_2vq8Gm_A&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_141552

Machu Picchu!

¡Hola Estudiantes! ¿Cómo están todos? Es probable que todos de ustedes han aprendido, por lo menos un poco, sobre los Incas, su civilización, y el sitio de Machu Picchu.

Primero, miren ustedes a estas fotos…

Y ¿Qué piensan?

View of Machu Picchu from the top of Wayna Picchu Mountain

View of Machu Picchu and Wayna Picchu Mountain

Machu Picchu, the famous ancient Incan civilization that is today one of the 7 Wonders of the World, has got to be the most amazing place I have ever been.  I can't fully express how fascinating it really is but I will try to pass along some of the interesting things I learned about it while I was there. 

*First of all, due to the very high altitude of the city of Cusco and Machu Picchu, upon arrival you are advised to drink coca tea to help with altitude sickness.  You can also buy coca leaves to chew on or coca candy (the best option in my opinion). 
*Second, how incredible is it to think that after hundreds of years Machu Picchu is still there!  And, the only reason, presumably, that it is still there is because it was never discovered by the Spanish.  The entire time that Pizarro, the Spanish explorer, and his conquistadors were invading Peru and South America, Machu Picchu remained hidden within the Andes mountains.  So while the Incas disappeared during this era, their civilization remained.  The way in which the Incas built Machu Picchu, the architecture of the city, helped to keep it hidden from anyone that could have been passing by.  From below, it is perfectly hidden, only from atop the tallest surrounding mountains was it visible.  Also evident throughout Incan ruins and architecture, are the three animals that were considered sacred for the Inca people.  They were the condor, the snake, and the puma.  What is even more incredible is that there are still other Incan cities similar to and bigger than Machu Picchu that have yet to be excavated and studied because it is so hard to travel to them (for example, it may take 2-3 days worth of hiking to arrive).  One of which was only discovered in 2004!  Speaking of discovery, 2011 marks the 100th anniversary of the rediscovery of Machu Picchu.  It was rediscovered (after being a forgotten/lost civilization) in 1911 by the American Explorer, Hiram Bingham.
*Aside from Machu Picchu, I also had the opportunity to visit Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, Cusco's Cathedral, and the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, watch Cusco's weekly parade that included a lot of native dance and music, and go to the house of native and learn how the alpaca textiles are woven and died to make clothes, blankets, and other things.  The textile industry is a very important aspect of the Peru's economy and many people in Cusco and the surrounding areas still dress in traditional clothing made from alpaca wool and dyed different colors using different plants, seeds, and food.

¿Qué piensan de las fotos y la información?  ¿Les interesa a ustedes, sobre cual temas quieren saber más?  Hay tanta información disponible para aprender sobre los Incas, Cusco, y Machu Picchu.

QUESTIONS ANSWERED!

Hola Chicos!  For some reason, it was not letting me comment back to answer your questions... but here are the answers in a post!

1)  Buenos Aires was a actually seemed clean for a large city.  I would not describe it as nasty or dirty.  There trash system was different, I noticed.  They simply put their trash bags on the sidewalk instead of in dumpsters so at times if bags broke, etc. then there was trash on the sidewalks.  The most noticeable thing was that they did not pick up after their dogs so you constantly had to watch your step.  Also, I'm sure because it was a big city that it was polluted but not terribly to where I noticed it a lot.

2)  The flight from Buenos Aires to Lima was 4 hours long.  We flew on LAN Airlines and the plane was very nice!  All of the seats, even in coach, had personal TV Screens in the headrest in front of them, a remote, and you could watch TV, Movies, create a playlist of music, or play games.

3)  The very first difference I noticed and that I still notice is how warm the people are here.  Latin Hospitality!  I don't know if it is due to Buenos Aires being a bigger city or if its because they are a more European country but I did not feel like the people were as warm and friendly there.  If you have the chance to visit Argentina and travel to other south or central American countries you will probably better understand what I mean. 
Some other random differences I have noticed are that Lima has so many more American restaurant chains than in Buenos Aires:  Burger King, McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Dominos, Papa John's, Chili's, TGI Fridays, etc. where as Buenos Aires only had BK, McDonald's, and TGI Fridays. 
Lima does not have a city wide transport system, which makes for challenging travel for foreigners...you have to be extra cautious and kind of learn your way around on your own.  The buses here range from school buses and charter buses to 12 person vans that they squeeze a lot of people into.  There is a guy that stands by the door to yell the route of that particular bus and to take change.  When in doubt (and I'm a "tourist" so I usually am) just always ask if the bus passes close to such and such location.  The taxis are also different, they don't have meters.  You have to flag down a taxi and then negotiate a price for where you need to go before you get in the car.  You also have to make sure the driver knows how to get to where you need to go!
The traffic lights here include a countdown of how many more seconds the light will be red or green, which is neat. 
Things are cheaper here! Para almuerzo (lunch) you can usually get a drink, appetizer, entree, and a small dessert for about 4USD!  In Argentina, most prices were comparable to the US.

4)  My host university in Lima is University of the Pacific or Universidad del Pacífico.  I would say that my classes here are slightly easier if only because they understand that we are international students studying a foreign language in another country.  Other than that, the difficulty level is similar to the classes in the United States.

5)  Peru so far is awesome!  I love it here!  My host family is quite large, as it is common for extended family to live together in Latin America.  There is my host mother, Ana María Fernandez Revoredo, her youngest son, her oldest son and his wife, her mother, her brother, her sister, and then my two roommates that are also from the United States.  We also have a maid that comes Monday through Saturday who cleans, does the laundry, and cooks all of our meals.  Her name is Magdalena.  I like the feel of Lima and the colors (of the buildings, the houses, everything is very colorful).  It is very much a Latin American city.  The food is great, a fusion of peruvian and latin american and asian flavors, lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, seafood, and SPICE (PICANTE) that did not exist in Argentina.  As I have said, the people are extremely friendly and welcoming.  In fact, the first day I was here, a group of friends and I went to visit another friend, Shannon, and explore the neighborhood.  We arrived at Shannon's apartment building, called up to the 10th floor, told her host mom who we were and she invited us up...then we got up there and Shannon wasn't even there, she just wanted to invite us in to talk!  The weather is nice, mid-60s during the day but it feels a lot warmer because it is about 98% humidity everyday.  In the evenings the temperature drops and it feels cooler and the wind can be pretty cold coming from the ocean.  I live about 5 minutes (driving) from the Pacific coast.  However, it's not as sunny here.  Right now is the part of the year when it is common for a light mist/fog from the ocean to cover the city so it is usually overcast or at least partly cloudy where it was sunny a lot of the time in Argentina. 

6)  I made a few Argentine friends that I will keep in touch with and I will definitely keep in touch with my host family there.

7)  My favorite color is green :)

8)  I love South America because I love experiencing the culture of Latin America, the language, the people, the food, the music, lifestyle, all of it interests me.  On that note, I have not been in Peru for very long but I would already say that I prefer it over Argentina because it feels a lot more like latin-y to me.  That is not to say that I didn't enjoy Argentina, because I am so grateful for my time there and everything that I learned while there.  I can't say that I like South America better than the U.S. because the U.S. and Oklahoma will always be home for me but I would be thrilled at the opportunity to live in South America full time at some point in my life! :)

THE BIG CITY

Hola Estudiantes!
Saturday I will be leaving Buenos Aires for the second part of my trip in Lima, Peru!  But before I go, I just want to share with you some of my favorite pictures from around the city and some of my apartment where I have lived for the past 8 weeks!  Let me know of any questions you have about any of them!  What things do you notice that are different from where you have lived/visited in the United States?



My little bedroom here in my 8th floor apartment in Buenos Aires!



The kitchen of my apartment...notice any differences? They don't keep their eggs in the fridge.

The living area of the apartment with tile floors.  Carpet is very uncommon in Latin America.

The view from our balcony!  What do you think? 

How does it compare to what you see out your window?

La Casa Rosada..or The Pink House..the equivalent to the White House in the United States.

The office of Cristina Kirchner, the current president of Argentina.

The view of the Plaza de Mayo from the balcony of la Casa Rosada.

A picture of Evita at the Evita Museum.  She is one of the most well known Argentine icons.

Several of Evita's dresses she wore throughout her lifetime. 

The black one she wore to Italy to meet the Pope.

Un Viaje a Patagonia

¡Hola Chicos!

¿Cómo están todos?

This past week I was able to leave the city to explore Patagonia.  Patagonia is the southern region of Argentina and sometimes referred to as “the end of the world.”  Patagonia is a vast area with long, cold winters.  Here is a map of South America that shows the Patagonia region of Argentina.

To the west, Patagonia shares the Andean Mountains with Chile.  I was able to visit Bariloche, a ski town that sits in the mountains in the northwest part of Patagonia.  Spring is just beginning here (the seasons are opposite of the U.S. because it is in the Southern hemisphere, when it is summer in the states, it is winter here) and so it was a cold trip!  The mountains were still covered in snow and it even snowed some while we were there zip-lining and horseback riding.  We also saw a lot of volcanic ash that was still covering the ground from the Chilean volcano that erupted earlier this year. 

Las montañas en Bariloche!

 

Una foto de la ceniza del volcán de Chile.

The southern part of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, is covered in ice during this time of the year, so while it is possible to visit, it is not recommended and although I did not get to experience the glaciers, it is on my to-do list for the future.  Here is a picture of the Perito Moreno glacier in the south of Patagonia.

The central part of Patagonia is the least known region of Patagonia and receives the fewest visitors.  It is a terrain of mostly small shrubs and bushes and no trees.

Lastly, there is the Atlantic region of Patagonia.  After leaving Bariloche, we took a bus across the region to Puerto Madryn and the Valdes Peninsula on the coast.  This area is rich in wildlife and this contributes a lot to the tourism industry in the region.  During my time there, I was able to visit Punta Loma and sea kayak with the sea lions that live there year round.  Alpacas, penguins, dolphins, orcas, southern right whales, and elephant seals are also abundant in the area at different times throughout the year.  I was able to see the southern right whales during a whale watching tour and also the elephant seals.  If you love wildlife, this area would be a perfect place to visit!

Los lobos marinos en Punta Loma, Puerto Madryn





Una ballena!

Una elefante del mar! 

It was also nice just to get outside of the city for a week!  I was able to experience more of the “small town” life of Argentina and, as can be expected, I found it much more relaxing and the people a bit more approachable than here in the big city.  However, because we were in touristy areas it was actually more difficult to practice my Spanish since so many people would recognize that our native language was English and try to speak to us in English.  If you continue to study Spanish, you too may find yourself in similar situations.  For me, it’s frustrating at times because I am here to perfect my Spanish but yet it is so easy to speak English when it is spoken to me!  Take my advice: if you are ever in a similar situation speak the language you are trying to learn in order to fully benefit from your experience!

Nos hablamos pronto! Chau!

Características Generales de BsAs y de Latinoamérica

¡Hola Chicos!

I hope that you have all enjoyed the first few days of class.  I have been here in Buenos Aires for almost three weeks now.  To begin, I am going to share with you some of the general observations I have made since I have been here in Argentina and how they relate to the United States and the rest of Latin America.

Pero, primero yo quiero preguntarles ¿Habían viajado afuera de los Estados Unidos? ¿Adónde?

Every country outside of the United States is unique in its own culture, atmosphere and environment, history, the list is endless.  If you have the opportunity to travel abroad for work, study, volunteering, vacation, etc. I encourage you to do so!

But, to discuss specifically Argentina and Buenos Aires, here are some characteristics that have stood out to me.

-La Gente-

The people here in Buenos Aires are nice, son amables.  But, the idea of “politeness” here is noticeably different from that in the United States.  The fact that this is a huge city may play some role in this.  The people, without meaning to, can seem overly direct, and at times even aggressive with their words when explaining something or giving a command.  However, as I have had it explained to me, forwardness here is a cultural concept and not meant to be impolite.

-El Concepto de Espacio-

The concept of space here in Buenos Aires, like the rest of Latin America and other places throughout the world, is extremely different from that in the United States.  Your “personal bubble” does not exist.  People in lines, for example, will stand much closer to one another than in the U.S.  It’s the same on buses, trains, or simply when talking in a group of people. 

-Saludos-

Similarly, people also greet each other in a closer and more embracing manner.  There is no such thing as shaking hands.  It does not matter if you are meeting someone for the first time or they are your best friend, you greet someone or say goodbye to someone by leaning into the left side of the other person’s face and kissing their cheek.  In some places in northern Argentina, the greeting is the same but with kissing on both cheeks.  I believe it is this way in Spain as well.

-El Concepto del Tiempo-

It can also be noted that the concept of time in Argentina and Latin America is more relaxed than in the United States.  In the U.S. many times people are constantly rushing to accomplish their next task, leisure activities are cut short, and meals are a rushed event.  However, here it is common for people to take time to enjoy their activities and their meals they share with family and friends on more of an everyday basis.  This counts for restaurants or for meals at home.  While this is probably more evident outside of large cities, it is still very evident here in Buenos Aires.  You can say the lifestyle is “más tranquila.”

Finally, here are a few random things that I, myself, have found interesting about Buenos Aires.

*The people here dress in a lot of dark colors.  I do not know the reason behind this, if there is one, but it is just something I have noticed.

*The education at the college level here is free when attending a public university.  Imagine if universities in the U.S. were “gratis.”

*Plastic surgery is covered here under regular medical plans.  That is you can easily have plastic surgery done at low cost without a need for it, such as reconstruction.

*Perros.  Porteños (the people of Buenos Aires) love their dogs.  Watch out for the dog walkers with groups of 10 to 15 dogs that take up the sidewalk or for poop that is always on the sidewalks..everywhere!

¡Nos hablamos pronto! :)