Location, Location, Location

First of all, it's been really strange having too see all the election madness from abroad. We're not out of the loop, but it's been amazing to see how much other countries know about US politics. But since our free travel started, we've heard some crazy stories about the tensions back home, including Ryan Oster's run-in at school...

But since you came here to hear about what's going on here, I'll tell you.
We got to our hostel without any problems and we are now in Tierra del Fuego! The whole region is known as Patagonia. The town we're in is the southernmost city in the world: Ushuaia, Argentina, El Fin del Mundo (which means "The End of the World"). Even though it's springtime here, it's quite cold and snows almost every day!

We did have a bit of a mix up with our taxi on the way to the airport, though. We loaded our luggage in the trunk and climbed in and I said, "Aeropuerto," as "Airport," and our driver started driving. A few blocks down I started to think, man I really thought the airport was the other way, but I guess he knows what he's doing. Just to be sure I decided to bring up the airport in conversation. I asked him what the name of the airport was, and he started to answer the question then said, "Oh, aeropuerto?!" We then proceeded to turn around. Apparently, when I told him "aeropuerto," he thought I said, "Al puerto," which means "To the docks." Once we got it all figured out, he turned to Lindsey and Jessica in the back and said (in Spanish), "This guy wants to take you to the port! But don't worry, I'll get you to the airport. Haha."

The rest of the journey down to Ushuaia, flights and all, went very smoothly. We got some interesting "food" on the flight, though. It was two icy pieces of bread on either side of egg, mayonnaise, and a thin slice of something that I think once was meat in a former life. Surprisingly, no one died more than a little bit from it, and we landed here amongst the Andes just fine.
The guys that work here at the hostel are extremely friendly and speak pretty good English. Once we got here, we showed them the tours we had scheduled through the travel agent in Montevideo and they said, "No no no, I mean those tours are ok, but they're made for old people. Let us call the tour company for you and tell them that you want to cancel your tours. We'll have them apply the money you already paid for tours to ones you won't get bored with." So after getting information from the hostel guys (who know all the tours in town), a little stubbornness on our part, and 30 more dollars, we got to extend our tour of the Beagle Canal by about 2 hours (which included seeing penguins), and we got to see Lago Escondido by a 4x4 off-road vehicle instead of by an excrusiatingly slow train. Everyone we ask about the train down here has a reaction that varies anywhere from rolling their eyes to pretending to blow their brains out. Needless to say, we went with the 4x4.

The off-roading was better than I ever could have imagined. The 4x4 picked us up at our hostel and then we picked up two other tourists. Turns out, they spoke English, too! Jo was from London, and Neil was from Northern Ireland. When we first started out, we drove to a lookout where we stopped and took pictures. Then instead of staying on the road, we drove off the side and down a steep switchback. We were all really exited, but after awhile, I couldn't help but thinking, "This is cool, but it's nothing I couldn't do back home." I especially thought this when, after we had been driving for a while, we saw a big truck and a camper parked on the side of the road. If they could get down there with the camper, then this hasn't been that extreme. Eventually, we got to a little farm and our driver said, "This is where we're coming back to for lunch." Then he turned off into the trees and said "Now the off-roading begins." Come to find out, the ride so far had not been part of the off-roading at all, just getting to the trail. Heck yeah.
There was an immediate difference. Instead of a dirt road with pot holes, it was now a mud track with huge ruts and divits. I was sitting in the front seat (not sure how I scored that one) so I have lots of pictures of the hood of the 4x4 with a wall of a hill in front of it or muddy water that would've been up to my waist.
At one point, the driver was pointing out all the damage that beavers cause to the landscape. There were huge trees knocked down and moved into the middle of the stream. At that, Jo said in her London accent, "I'd hate to run into an angry beava."
Meanwhile, the off-roading just kept getting better and better. At one point, the driver took Erin's video camera and GOT OUT OF THE JEEP. He goes "Bye!" and waved and climbed out his door to leave us rolling through a mud rut pit with no one at the controls. It wasn't that fast, but it was really weird because we just kept going without a driver!
After he climbed back in and we went a little longer, I noticed that I could see the lake (Lago Escondido) through the trees ahead. Then we started going faster than we had gone before, and the hill ahead seemed to drop off pretty suddenly.
And it did. He drove us right down a hill and straight into the water! The waves in that lake were higher than I knew were possible in a lake because of the wind, and they were crashing up against the side of our 4x4. When we drove up back on the shore, most of the drive along the coast involved the left half of the jeep on the trail, and the right half in the water.
Right before it was time to get out and take pictures of the lake, our driver pulled a sharp left away from the lake and towards a huge dirt wall. It wasn't just a steep hill like before. No, there was no way we were going to make it to the top of this thing. We drove up the wall and just sat there nearly vertical. It felt just like Jurassic Park...but with more laughing and smiling. And less dinosaurs. He finally let off the brakes and we rolled back down into the water. And then we went right back up again, the waves of the lake under the back window and the sky through the front windshield.
After he let us down, we climbed up on top of the jeep for a group picture and then headed back to the farmhouse for lunch. When we signed up for this tour and they told us lunch was included, we figured they'd just give us sandwiches or something before we went back to town. But no. They sat us down in front of some amazing barbeque'd beef and sausage. It was amazing. Too bad none of us really like wine, because they had that too.

Speaking of which, we've been making some excellent food choices since we've been here in Ushuaia. We did go out for seafood one night, which was expectedly expensive, but just about every other meal has been ridiculously cheap. We cook hot dogs with fresh buns from the panadería across the street from our hostel. We go to the supermarket and buy chicken and onions to sauté and vegetables and meat for a stew. It's amazing to come in from the cold and have hot stew! We can also make some pretty mean pizza with ingredients from the panadería. And since it's a bread store, the crust is obviously amazing.

Yesterday we went to the National Park here to hike around, and I don't think I've ever done anything quite that cool in my life. We drove out there without a guide or anything which was great because we could come and go as we pleased, never being rushed and never waiting on other people. We just packed some sandwich stuff and started off on one of the shorter trails through the park called the Island Hike. After a few minutes, it started to snow on us harder than any snow we'd seen here. It was freezing but we still had a blast because it was so cool to look around and see the snow falling all around us. It was even sticking a little bit. (Remember, this is their spring.) Tanner and I climbed out onto an island across a little stream. The wind was coming from the other side of the island so we stood out there and got COVERED in snow and then went back so the girls could see us looking like snowmen.
When we drove back to the hostel, we were all bundled up and frozen and wet from tromping around in the snow, so of course, we sang Christmas songs. We couldn't help it. It's like Pavlov's dog; in our minds, snow equals Christmas.

Then TODAY...oh man, today was awesome. We drove up the mountain behind the town as far as we could and then got out and walked up toward the glacier that overlooks the whole city of Ushuaia. While we were hiking, we met a hiker on the way down that told us, in a German accent, that there was no way we would make it to the top without snowshoes because the snow was just too thick. So of course, we thought, "Awesome! Let's see how far we can go!" Sure enough, the snowfall got thicker and thicker and it made for some incredible pictures. It was at this point that we couldn't help but feel sorry for those of our study abroad group who went to the beach for free travel. I mean, its getting hot in Montevideo, so we can go to the beach there later. But when are we going to get the chance to go to the END OF THE WORLD again? And even though our snowman making didn't go too well, we did just about everything else...snowballs, snow angels, sliding on the snow like penguins...and no matter how mundane the activity might be, everything sounds amazing when you put the phrase "AT THE END OF THE WORLD" on there. I hiked through the woods AT THE END OF THE WORLD. I nuked a hot dog AT THE END OF THE WORLD. I bought tic-tacs AT THE END OF THE WORLD. See? It turns everything to sheer epic-osity. Location, location, location.

The Week in Brazil

Over a week ago we got back from our trip to Brazil. Better late than never to post, right?

After arriving at our hotel in Brazil, we spent the rest of the day exploring the grounds of the hotel (which were huge) and resting from the 22-hour bus ride. There was all sorts of stuff to see at the hotel. They had ostriches and cows and lots of peacocks running around. They had a pond with a small island in the middle with monkeys on it! Instead of being in a cage, they just lived on Monkey Island. The day we went out to explore the hotel, we were almost to Monkey Island when I tripped on the sidewalk and busted my knee open. I felt like I was 8 years old again. At first, I was afraid I had hit my camera on the ground when I fell, but it was fine. Whew!

The next day, we set out on our first adventure in Brazil, Parque do Aves. It was a bird park with tons of tropical birds like toucans and macaws. Instead of just having small cages for visitors to see the birds in, they had huge enclosed areas that we got to walk around in with the birds. That did actually end up being a bad thing though because I turned around on the pathway inside one of the bird cages one time and didn't see the little bird under my feet...yeah, I definitely kicked a toucan. He fluttered back down to the ground and looked up at me with this disgusted little bird look on his face. Sorry, little buddy.
Towards the end of the bird park, they had a parrot and a snake for people to hold, and, of course, I did both! The snake was rather large and I was NOT okay with it touching the back of my neck but whatever...And apparently I was holding my arm wrong when I held the parrot because he climbed up on my shoulder. I thought that was awesome (because I felt like a pirate) until he started pecking me on the head. Come to think of it, I bet that toucan I kicked had conspired against me with the parrot...

After the bird park, we went out to the Brazilian side of Iguazu Falls National Park. (The falls are on a river that runs between Brazil and Argentina.) Just for fun, and to give you a better idea of what we saw, I looked up Iguazu Falls on the World Waterfall Database (bet you didn't even know there was one). Iguazu, although nowhere near the tallest waterfall in the world, ranked as one of WWD's Top Ten Waterfalls. Compared to Niagra Falls (which did NOT rank in the Top Ten) Iguazu is 100 feet taller and 5000 feet wider. Niagra's Scenic Rating, according to the Database is 67 out of 100. Iguazu's rating is 87.

So obviously, the falls at Iguazu were stunning. We spent hours there walking around the catwalks over the falls and even taking pictures from a elevated platform over the falls.

The next day, we drove across the border into Argentina to see their side of the Iguazu park. They have a saying in that area that "Argentina has the falls; Brazil has the view," and I agreed with it until we got to La Garganta del Diablo. The Devil's Throat is at the head of all the falls, and I'm pretty sure that's where most of the water falls (the first time, anyway). The river above the Throat was fairly calm and then it just dropped through a huge horseshoe-shaped hole that looked like a throat. Incredible!

The rest of the week included a moonlight dinner at the falls where we all got dressed up and then SOAKED from the high water and mist at the Devil's Throat.
We also spent a few hours in Paraguay at Ciudad del Este, shopping. I got a great deal on a Paraguay fútbol jersey and the pleasure of saying that I had been in three different countries in one day. We stopped at one place where the two river borders come together so you can see all three (Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay) at the same time.

One day Joanna, Lindsey, and I went walking around trying to find an artisan market for shopping. We eventually found Joanna some cool shoes, but also found a dancing donkey. What a surprise! This little excursion also gave Lindsey the chance to show off her clever Portugese skills. She interpreted a street sign that said "Bebeu? Não Dirija" as "Bebe...Need a Drink?" Which is especially funny since I'm pretty sure it mean "Don't drink and drive." Close enough, Linz.

Oh, we also took a tour of Itaipu Dam, the leading hydroelectric dam in the world in power production. There's not much to say about it except that...it's big. Really big.

And one day, we went into an actual village of the native people of those jungles, the Guaraní. It was amazing to see what all they do by hand. Not just crafts but animal traps, too. They dress fairly modern, but it was common for the small children to run around naked. The whole experience was really eye-opening because it looked just like the scenes from those dollar-a-day world help commercials in the way that the kids were sitting on the dirt (or maybe in or among the dirt is more accurate). But being there first-hand I got to see the things they don't show in those commercials. I saw their schools where they learned their own history and language in order to preserve their way of life. They also have a school where they learn Spanish or another widely-used language so they can grow to help their village to function in the world.

Within the village, there were government-built houses. They told us that it was not uncommon for them to use the government houses as storage and live in the mud-brick houses they've used for centuries. It's not that they're not grateful, but that mud houses are cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. What I realized was that just because their kids are dirty doesn't mean they're poor or underdeveloped. They live that way because it's more practical to them and because they WANT to. That's what makes sense to them. This trip helped strengthen the idea in my mind that, although there are people in the world who need physical help, we should not be so quick to decide who needs it based on the way they live.

Ok, suffer the rant no longer. I apologize for this post being so late, but it's been a busy week. In more recent news, 6 of us are headed for the bottom of the world this weekend: Ushuaia. There'll be penguins and glaciers and incredible views and (yes, Don) Tierra del Fuego souvenirs.

Going to Brazil

Well things have really picked up down here. That's why you haven't heard from me in a while. We've started our Message of the Old Testament short course, which we're having to do online. That's been taking up a majority of my time lately, but I'm really enjoying the material.

I would take this time to update you all the more fun things we've been doing, but I have less than an hour before we head to Brazil. It's about a 24-hour bus ride up through Uruguay and into Brazil. We're spending a week at Iguazu Falls, which is right where Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay meet corners. It'll be an amazing place to take pictures! And it's pretty hot and humid there this time of year. I hope everyone is having fun waiting for winter to come. Keep it cold up there till we come home!

The Zoo and Colonia

Hey everybody!

Last week most of us got to go to the Montevideo Zoo. It was not very big compared to the size of the city but it was still really neat. They a lion that roared while we standing right in front of him and a tiger that paced in his cage and glared at everyone. There were giraffes and llamas, too. The saddest thing we saw was the pool were the penguins and seals live. It was completely drained except for one little part, which was fenced off from the animals. They still looked healthy (as far as I could tell). I never figured out if the pool had been drained for cleaning or if it had been dry for a long time. All in all, though, it was a fun trip to the zoo, and I got to practice my animal vocabulary with Ameila, our Spanish teacher.

On Saturday we had another day trip. We got on a small charter bus and rode about an hour and a half to Colonia, which is the next department (like a state or province) over from Montevideo. There's a lot of history in Colonia, so that was fun. We spent a lot of time around an old lighthouse on a hill right by the coast. I got some decent pictures; be sure to check em out.

On the way through town down to the lighthouse, I saw a Uruguay soccer jersey hanging in the window of a small store. We had to at least check them out because jerseys like that are $35 in Montevideo. But if they were cheaper here in Colonia, I would definitely have to get one. And they were! I got this jersey for $25 bucks. My favorite part is the Uruguay flag over the left shoulder.

Our next big adventure is going to be our trip to Brazil. I'm sure what all we have planned for that trip, but I know we're going to Iguazu Falls. We've also started looking at our options for our ten-day travel excursion. Although nothing is set in stone, there are several of us with our eyes set on going down to Patagonia, specifically to Ushuia, the southernmost city in the world. It's as far south as any highways go. Everything past that is either an island, a glacier, or Antarctica. If I go, Don will definitely get his "Tierra del Fuego" souvenir...

Catch-Up Post

Hey everyone,
I realize it's been a while since I last posted. Did you know they make us do homework down here? Imagine that. I've also been busy trying to organize the hundreds of pictures I've taken so far. More on that later.

Last weekend our whole group went to Buenos Aires. We've spent quite a bit of time learning about the history of Argentina and its current issues. One of the issues that has only come up in the past year directly effected us. Apparently, Buenos Aires has recently developed a shortage of coins in their currency. It was hard for us because it took 1 peso to ride the bus (about the equivalent of 33 cents) and the ticket machines only take coins. So anytime we were about to go somewhere on a public bus, we had to make sure everyone had some combination of coins that added up to a peso. Most of the time we ended up buying gum just to get change.

The coolest thing we did in BA was a tango show. We all got dressed up and went to a place where they served us an AMAZING dinner. After dinner, they served out espresso and started a tango performance that encompassed all the different styles of the Latin dance from its beginning. Here's a clip:

The next day we took a tour of BA which included somewhere that I've always wanted to go: La Boca. This neighborhood is at the mouth of the River Plata and draws tourism. Every building on Caminito street is painted all sorts of different colors, which makes for an awesome place to take pictures. There were also lots of touristy things to do there...like pay to have a tango dancer pose for pictures with me!

On Saturday night we went to the church there in BA and met some of the Porteño youth. They were absolutely hilarious and walking through the streets of Buenos Aires with them was a trip. We walked a good ways to a fútbol complex and played around for a good long while (even though it was FREEZING).

Yesterday we went out to an estancia (ranch) a went canoeing, horseback riding and swimming in an indoor pool. Well, we didn't canoe or ride horses in the indoor pool, but I'm sure you figured that out already.

Our next big trip will be to Brazil. The other day we had to start the preparations for it by getting vaccinated for yellow fever. We took taxis to a clinic, which ended up being a little sketchy. Everything was fine and safe, but the clinic was way out by the docks and shipping yards...yikes.

Ok, I know you all want to see more pictures. And I wanted to put them somewhere you could all see them. So I did. I have a Shutterfly site set up that already has hundreds of pictures on it, and there are plenty more to come from this weekend. The site houses all my pictures, and also imports feed directly from this blog at the bottom of the main page so it'll be easier to get to one site from the other. If you want to see what I mean, here's the link: http://jehovaprovee.shutterfly.com Enjoy!

Un Día de la Aventura

Well today has definitely been a day of adventure. Last night, I was extremely tire from walking all over town, so I went to bed around 9 o'clock. Well, this morning, I wake up and go downstairs for breakfast. The food was great, but I had just starting eating when I looked down and noticed hives on my arms. YIKES! So I told Rosalinda, our director and house mom, and she called the doctor.

While waiting for the doctor to come, I noticed the hives were even worse on my legs. Let me show you what I mean...(Click on it for a bigger picture.)

Not the way I wanted to start my day, as you can imagine. The doctor came and did all his doctor things, sticking the say-ah down my throat and whatnot.
Then the fun started. He tried to give me a shot in my arm, but he couldn't find a vein. (Thanks, Dad.) So we had to resort to other measures. AKA, taking the shot in the butt.

All in all, it was quick and virtually painless, but the medicine has made me sssshaky all day.

We've been here for a week now, so this is the beginning of many adventures, I'm sure. As soon as the needle went in, I was thinking, "I'm going to have to write on my blog about this."

Salúdense Unos a Otros con un Beso Santo

Already we have met a lot of people here in Uruguay. However, we have not shook near as many hands. That's because they don't really shake hands in Uruguay. No, they kiss. When I first heard this, I thought it was going to take a lot of getting used to but it really hasn't been that bad. It's real simple, just touch cheek to cheek and make a little kissing sound. We've had to do it a lot, especially yesterday at church. In fact, (probably because of the verse in I Corinthians) you're not supposed to leave church until you've kissed everyone there. Luckily, the congregation next door is not that big.
So whether you're going or coming, in church, or just meeting friends on the street, you better be ready to pucker up.

Our First Outing - Success!

Well Tanner, Erin, Lindsey, and I all just got back from our first time on the streets without a guide. ¡Que emocionado! (How exciting!) We were going to go shopping for some little things that we needed, but we needed some pesos first. We walked to Tres Cruces, the nearby shopping mall. There's a cambio (money changer) and ATM across the corner that's open on Saturdays, so we each made sure we had enough money to buy what we needed. Lindsey even used both the ATM and the cambio because the ATM gave her a large bill, so she asked for "mas pequeño dinero" from the man at the cambio. He broke it up into smaller bills and we went into a store called TaTa (like a big Dollar General) to buy snacks, soap, shampoo, etc.

The only mix up we had was that we didn't know you're not supposed to walk into TaTa with bags, so we had to figure out how to get a locker at the front of the store. Other than that, it was a smooth trip to the store. We walked all the way there and back to the Casa without getting lost, and everything. I think Lindsey even knew where we were most of the time!

Well, I gotta go take pictures of the house, Chao!

Bienvenidos a Uruguay!

We're here! Everything is kind of surreal at this point but we're getting along just fine. I took pictures on the way there so enjoy!

Goodbye ACU...

Hello DFW!

"Nine hours on a plane? Are you sure this is worth it?"

Nil Santana taught us how to take pictures of the unsuspecting...

Heaven forbid one of them ask the other what time it is.

Waiting for the plane

They weren't very informative in Miami.

The view from outside our window

At this point, we've already spent quite a while walking around the streets and getting to know the city. The food is ASOMBROSO...that means amazing. And living expenses are pretty cheap. You can take a bus to just about anywhere for 13.50 peso uruguayos (which is about 70 cents).
Tonight, we went to Montevideo Shopping, which is pretty similar to any shopping mall in the US. We ate Uruguayan pizza for dinner, which is technically "muzzarella." If you order "pizza" down here, you'll still get a pizza, but it won't have cheese on it.
Speaking of which, this town eats LATE. Last night, we had dinner at 7:30 and the restaurant was empty except for us. Apparently, it's not uncommon for Uruguayans to eat at 10 or 11.
Some of my classes will be starting on Monday. I'm taking Intermediate Spanish at the Universito Católico and sitting in on Advanced Spanish Conversation. However, my Spanish is already better from living in it.
Tonight some of us made a friend who worked in one of the clothing stores at the mall. Between our bad Spanish and his bad English, we had quite a conversation. We stayed and talked for about half an hour.
All in all, its been an amazing first few days! I love you and already miss you all!
(P.S. - In the comments let me know what you want to see pictures of or what things you wonder about.)

The Pilgrimage Has Begun

Well it's official. I have left home and will not be going back until December. Thursday Dad and I drove to Arlington to hang out one last time. (We went to see "Swing Vote" at Studio Movie Grill. (AAAAmazing.)) Then Friday morning my friend Brandon Tripp picked me up and we came out to Abilene...an exhilarating journey which involved rocking out to Patrick Park and spilling a medium Dr. Pepper down my entire right leg.
So now I am enjoying my last days with the friends I have here who are helping with Welcome Week. Already we have played Apples to Apples, screamed at the TV when Michael Phelps was swimming, and played around in a big field of mud.

Several of you have asked just what exactly I will be doing in South America so let me tell you. Mostly, we'll just be living there. Sounds simple, but there's a lot to be learned about how the rest of the word thinks and lives. I will be taking 16 hours of classes (on paper) that are designed to enhance my experience abroad, like two intermediate Spanish courses, Intro to Global Studies, and Ministry in Latin America. While this isn't a mission trip or internship, I will have the chance to work closely with the Church of Christ connected to the ACU campus. I mean, it is physically attached to Casa ACU, the building where we live, eat, and have class. So we will no doubt get to know our Family there well.

My homework for the semester is already in full swing. In fact, I have several short papers about Uruguay and intentions for taking this trip to complete before we leave. I also have some special vocabulary to learn, mostly the things that are different from what we learned in high school or picked up in Texas. For example, since Uruguay is not Mexico, they do not have Mexican food. (I know, I know, it came as a shocker to me, too.) That being said, if you were to ask for a "tortilla" you would not get a round, flat bread. Instead you would get an omelette. And whatever you do, DO NOT ask for a "taco" because then you will not even receive food...just funny looks. Because in this dialect, "taco" means heel.

Why The Name

Hey everyone! If you're reading this it probably means that you're either family or considered family. In either case, I'm glad you were able to find this site and hope you'll check back often to learn about my adventures throughout my time in South America.

I have a lot of things to explain, including what I've been doing this summer and how I've been getting ready to leave, as well as all the plans we have for the next four months.

But for my first post on this blog, I think I should explain the name I chose for the site. "Jehová Provee" is a Spanish phrase that comes from Genesis 22 when God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.

"Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and saw that behind him was a ram caught in the thicket by his horns. Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering instead of his son. Abraham called the name of that place the LORD Will Provide."
~ Genesis 22:13-14a

If you look closely in the title picture, you can see Hebrew text behind the Spanish phrase. This is the Hebrew of the name Abraham used for that place. In the KJV, it's transliterated Jehovahjireh.

God has had me endure some really confusing times but He has not failed to give me everything I need and more. Because of His rich blessings, and them alone, am I preparing to leave for Uruguay for an unforgettable semester. If it wasn't for His provision, I wouldn't even be at ACU at all. For these reasons, the words Abraham used to remember how God stepped in there on the mountain have really come to be a theme in my life. It's just so applicable. So real. So true. "Jehová Provee" means God provides. Because that's really all I need to know.

"Those who know your name trust you, O LORD, because you have never deserted those who seek your help."
~ Psalm 9:10