A Fulbright grant in review from the perspective of me

I've been procrastinating. I have about three posts that I want to write, but each and every one of them has to do with the fact that my Fulbright grant is ending, and I just can't seem to bring myself to accept that. To distract myself from the fact that things are coming to a close, I'm going to start with a fun post. I'm currently in no way, shape, or form mentally capable of expressing my feelings and thoughts about this experience, so....

In honor of my grant ending, I thought it would be appropriate to do a little "Remember when?" activity to reflect on all the cool things I've done since being here and to make sure those who joined us in reading along the way are all caught up.

I'm going to go month by month and highlight some memorable things I've done. Although every single one of my pictures makes me happy, I'm going to try and sort through and include only ones that make me really really happy. Otherwise, if I included every single picture, we'd be here another 8 months.

March

3/16: This is the first piece of Argentina I ever saw. This moment was such a cool moment. It was the very beginning of this new adventure. Airplane landings are so special and exciting because, for me, they are when I start thinking about what is going to happen. It was exhilarating watching the scenery flash by while imagining how my life was going to change in the coming months. I had literally no idea what to expect, so it was just so exciting sitting there with so many unknowns.

3/16: Remember we went out to an Indian restaurant for dinner our first night. It was so exciting to eat (lol) but also to relax around everyone. This first day was full of so many nerves, lots of exhaustion, a ton of imposter syndrome and the need to prove yourself, and a bunch of excitement.

3/17: This picture brings me a lot of joy because, here, in the embassy, slightly tipsy off of free wine, I had no idea that these beautiful humans (left to right: Evie, Leia, and Aly) would play such wonderful roles in my time here.

3/18: We saw Miley. I don't think I have to expand further. Miley.

3/19: These people make me happy. Was it kind of absolutely wild to go to a music festival with people I had just barely met just a few days after arriving in a new country? Okay yeah maybe, but every single second made it worth it. It was worth it when I was freezing at 3 am waiting for our bus. It was worth it when we found poor Amanda after losing her. It was worth it when we were waiting in between sets and took the time to get to know each other.

3/20: I made it to Puerto Madryn! This picture makes me smile. I was so scared and excited to meet Sol and explore Madryn. I remember walking out into the airport and seeing who I thought must've been Sol but was way way way too scared to just approach her and the people she was with. I was so tired and hungry this day and was barely able to contribute anything to the conversation in English let alone in Spanish, but, even so, I had a feeling that I had just met some great people.

Omg I can't get over how nervous and scared and excited I was in the backseat of Sol's car about to see Puerto Madryn in the rain (although it's supposedly a place in which it never rains) for the first time.

3/21: This was the first day I went to the institute! I didn't help with any classes but was just shown around by Sol. After she showed my around, we sat in a classroom to chat about my schedule, which somehow led us to discussing politics before I got to meet Sonia for the first time. I was a bit nervous to meet Sonia based on what Sol had told me about her. Sonia strutting in the way she does with her heels and blazer didn't help that. I remained scared of Sonia for quite some time.

3/27: Penguins on my birthday?!?!?!?!

3/28: This was a very special day. Not only was this my first mate, but it was when I asked Yani a question that we still joke about quite frequently to this day. She picked me up in her car and drove us to a place on the beach for some mates. This beach was a little out of the way, and it happened to be nighttime. Inevitably, the drive there was rather dark (even more so because it was cloudy), and she continued to drive us further and further down back roads I'd never seen before. While, of course I trust Yani, this was only the second time we hung out, so I couldn't help myself and asked, "Me vas a matar?" which is, "Are you going to kill me?". She responded that it wasn't very convenient to do so then but maybe later.

Fun fact: The previous Fulbrighter gave me Yani's number. When I first got it, I reached out to say, "Hi," to which she responded and told me to let her know when I got to Madryn. I almost didn't. I was super nervous when I first got here and almost just pretended I didn't know that Yani existed. Thank god I did respond.

April

4/2: Amanda was my first visitor here in Madryn! While she visited me at a sort of chaotic time of moving, it ended up being a major relief to have someone to be there with me through the chaos of it all. That weekend, Ceci invited us out with her and her friend. The show she took us to was fantastic. At this point, I started to realize how lucky I was to be placed where I am. While the views are great, and it's super cool to be able to walk on the beach everyday, teachers like Ceci have made my time here so much more incredible.

4/5: The fact that I windsurfed here feels like a fever dream at this point, but I did it! I really need to get back on it now that I'm not as self-conscious about my Spanish. I don't think my Spanish so much as my concern about my Spanish was the limiting reagent when it came to my enjoyment with windsurfing. Even with that concern, though, I really loved trying out something so new! It was the first thing that I did here that made me feel like I was part of the community.

4/16: Do you all remember that absolutely chaotic trip I made to Camarones to visit Meg where I didn't have service or a guaranteed ride home? Meg is one of my favorite people I've met here. She also writes blogs (linked if interested), and it's been really fun to keep in touch with each other through our blogs. I feel super grateful that I was able to spend time with her in the beginning of my grant time because I've been able to watch her grow and change through her blog posts. And although incredibly wild, I loved this quick trip to this beautiful little pueblito. It really forced me to get out of my comfort zone like 10 bajillion times. I can imagine any of you who love their trips planned down to the second were stressed out of your minds reading my post about it. While I was a bit stressed at the time, in retrospect, I think this trip helped me to get out of my head a little and helped me to acknowledge that sometimes going with the flow really is okay.

4/24: Yani brought me to my first ever Argentine soccer game! I could not tell you a thing that happened during the game. I'm pretty sure we "gossiped" about silly things the entire time, but it's the fact that we were there that counts.

4/30: A week later, we made our way to yet another soccer game. This was, as the two of us declared, a very good day. If I remember correctly, which I know I do, it was the perfect fall day (super wild for me because it was April). It was a little warm when the sun was out, but as soon as it went behind the cloud, it was the perfect temperature. After the game, we bought some churros and went to watch the sunset. At the place we bought churros, the woman working was super talkative...like super duper duper talkative...and Yani was so over it that after several minutes of this woman listing every possible place in Puerto Madryn to get vegan food she interrupted and said, "Te pago," while aggressivly handing over her card. This sentence frequents our conversations as much as "me vas a matar." I imagine overhearing our conversations is insufferable for any outsider.

May

5/1: At this point, I was still slightly scared of Sonia, but I couldn't help but be really really grateful for her. Most of our car rides from the school to my apartment still consisted of her talking and me struggling to keep up and struggling to mimic her intensity. However, let me tell you that this lady has worked her freaking hardest to make sure I have felt okay here and to make sure I have always had someone to lean on when I need to. Here, she invited me on a walk and then invited me to her house for a little snackie of vegan muffins she made me. I'm pretty sure it was the first time she made anything purposefully vegan. :)

5/7: This day is special to me. Not only is this when Sol taught me what a tomato is, but it's when I had an opportunity to witness my Spanish language improvement in real life. It can be really difficult to feel like you are improving in a language when you still stumble over words and constantly ask people to repeat themselves. I was so excited when I got together with Sol and her family and realized that I could understand everything that they were saying. It was so cool to feel and notice my improvement. At some point during the day, Sol also went into major mom mode when I told about this annoying guy at the gym. She got very serious and said that if there were any problems, she would be go "talk" to the people at the gym to sort things out and make sure I was taken care of. I declined the offer because I wasn't quite ready for her to rip everyone at the gym a new one even though I would've loved to watch that.

5/13: I don't have any specific memories from this day, but it reminds me of the time when Sonia gave me cash to pay for our weekly coffee/tea. When I returned with the drinks, I handed back her money and tried to convince her that I was given them for free, so I could treat for once. She, however, didn't buy that and grabbed my jacket off the table and aggressively stuffed the cash into the pocket.

5/14 - 5/18: Bariloche - Not to be dramatic or anything but I think about my time here and even more dramatically my life as pre- and post-Bariloche like BC and AD. There had to have been something in the water or air or food or something because I literally left a changed person.

5/15: Cerro Campanario was one of the first adventures Amanda and I went on while in Bariloche. We sat on this hill for over an hour and I still, to this day, can't get over this view. How on earth do we as humans deserve this view? Everyone had said that Bariloche was incredible, but I really didn't believe them until this unreal moment.

5/16: It's hard to pinpoint where exactly I had my revelation or experienced a turning point on this trip. Also, please don't ask what this revelation was or to where exactly I turned because I have absolutely no clue whatsoever. However, I can tell you that at the end of this boat trip, while we were on our way back to shore, something changed. It was so wild for me to wrap my head around the fact that I was there on a Monday, exploring this part of the world while everyone else was just going about their daily lives like nothing was happening. I think it was here that it hit me that during my time here, I was really going to change and grow as a human.

5/17: Amanda appreciation because her "How would you describe your feelings about today in three words" challenge pushed me to more deeply reflect on my experiences on this trip, which I believe is likely why I'm so dramatic about how I feel like Bariloche impacted me.

(same day) This picture has me absolutely screaming because we were freaking out about how long one should wait for a server to bring back change in Argentina, so I texted just about everyone I knew at the time to ask for their help. After waiting about 20 minutes and scaring the people I texted (I pretty sure all of them thought I was dead or actively dying, Sol especially), we left the restaurant as inconspicuously as possible. I asked Amanda how much money we had left/lost, and she said something like $200 pesos, and I lost my s*** because we had stressed so much and waited so long for what was less than what we would've left for a tip in the first place.

5/18: This is a beautiful picture of the most miserable bus ride I've ever experienced in my entire life (and that includes the time the girl sitting next to me got barfed on in 3rd grade). If your bus ride is longer than 8 hours, bring snacks, water, warm clothes (because the air in the buses in Argentina is from the Arctic), and face wipes folx. Don't be silly and get to the bus station 5 minutes before your bus is supposed to arrive ill-prepared for the 15 hour long journey.

5/20: I really don't have too many fond memories of the two weeks of COVID. It was miserable. I was miserable and hated life to the nth degree. While it could be really easy to block out this entire time block, I really would hate to do that because that would mean forgetting about all the people who reached out and took care of me while I was sick. I can't forget about the people who went out of their way to make sure I had everything I needed.

June

6/1: This was the first day of my meditation classes! I was super nervous but also curious about what a meditation class even was. I'm so glad I made the decision to try something different and give it a go. I can't believe I've already been going for four months (not including July because of all the wild travel I did)!

(same day) On this day, we had a really fun conversation club (RIP to that lol). I remember feeling really happy on this day. We described how we felt based on colors during the conversation club, and, although I don't particularly like yellow, I felt it described how happy and bright I felt that day. Afterwards, Sol, Sonia, and I had to wait around for our next classes. I have no recollection as to how this conversation topic came about, but we started talking about types of traditional music throughout Argentina. At one point, Sonia started serenading Sol and I. I felt like needed to contribute something to this cultural discussion, so I shared a song or two by Dolly Parton. While I'm not a huge country music fan, I will admit that "9 to 5" is a bop.

6/4: Sol and her husband Claudio gifted me some olive oil from their farm. I was so excited about this because I had been planning to help them harvest the olives, but COVID got to me first. :( It was so nice for them to gift this to me. It made me feel included even though I had had major FOMO when I missed out.

6/5: Sol and Claudio took me to El Doradillo! I'm pretty positive this was the first time I went to El Doradillo, and it was so perfect. It's so so so so stinking cool that there are just whales hanging out here in Madryn. Sometimes I see them just standing on the beach. El Doradillo is a super cool place because the whales are so close to the shore. Seeing whales so close is so surreal. It doesn't seem possible that animals that big can exist so casually.

6/12: Yani was sick on this day and had to stay in bed, so to entertain ourselves, we played TuttiFrutti (it's a game that's like Scattergories) over the phone. We alternated between English and Spanish rounds. I, surprisingly, didn't do too too too terribly!

6/16: During the winter here, the sun rises really late (like almost 9am late), so I decided that it would be silly not to go watch the sun rise over the ocean. Getting up "early" like this is always so hard for me because there is no real reason to be up. Since I am personally making the decision to wake up earlier than usual, there's no accountability, so, no matter how motivated I am while setting my alarm at night, it's really easy to just keep hitting snooze. However, after this first time I got up, it became so much easier. How could I have been missing this view everyday? Getting up to watch the sunrise became a pseudo-obsession of mine because IT IS JUST SO PRETTY, AND THIS HAPPENS EVERYDAY. It literally seems fake it's so pretty.

6/17: One of my favorite parts of my time here has been getting to know the different Fulbrighters. Coincidentally, my time in Buenos Aires coincided with that of Jorge, so we were able to dinner and hangout and gossip and talk about life and get to know each other. Since then, we've stayed in touch, and I've really valued his support and his friendship as we've started to wrap up our time here in Argentina. In some ways, our experiences here have been really similar, so it's been really nice to be able to share, commiserate, and celebrate.

6/30: So squinty heehee. I tasted my first pastafrola! Juana taught quite a few of the Lengua 1 classes as part of her student teaching. I loved being able to watch her teach and being able to watch the students interact with her and her teaching. She absolutely killed it in the classroom. During her last class with us, we had a fun class activity and brought some snackies and coffee to share. Juana brought me a vegan pastafrola, so that I would have something to eat. Everyone got a kick out of it because it was the first time I had tried it before. It was also just like the sweetest thing ever for her to bring something/make sure I had a treat like everyone else.

July

7/1 - 7/3: Corrientes - My trip to Corrientes has a super special place in my heart. It was the only trip I took to visit someone rather than visit something/someplace.

7/1: Okay, no this day was so much fun. Not only did I get to hang with my pal Leia, but I also had the privilege of joining them on one of their school visits. Because of my placement and how things work here, I don't have school visits like some of the other ETAs, so going along with Leia was so exciting and new. Although it thought I was just tagging along as an afterthought (which I was totally okay with), I ended up being included in all of the excitement of the visit, including the sign they made! My face hurt from smiling so much during this adventure. I felt so so so very grateful to have been able to be included and be welcomed so warmly and kindly. The mini-trip to Paso de la Patria was incredible from the tour of the town to the "how to make chipá" presentation to the drive there and back with the sweetest teacher.

7/2: OMG I've had so many happy days. I couldn't skip this day, though, because we went to a ceramics class, ate vegan chipá, and had a "karaoke" night at Leia's place. I also "met" Annabelle officially (aka outside of our first few chaotic days in Argentina). I kind of hope they just trashed that mug I made because it was really really really rough looking. Also, I totally understand the chipá hype. It's incredible with vegan cheese, so I can only imagine how amazing it is with cow boob cheese.

7/3: Now I couldn't leave out cuddle puddle day either. Leia, it's settled, I'm going back to visit you. I clearly had way to much fun to not go back. It makes me so sad that that night and this trip had to come to an end. I really was in Corrientes doing the math to see how practical it was to come back to be the neighbor of my wonderful friends.

I'm honestly upset that this TikTok never went viral. It had the potential.

7/4 - 7/5: Iguazú - I really did love my trip to Iguazú (shocking, right?). It was so fun to explore a new place by myself. While that may sound lonely or silly, it's actually rather empowering and exciting to go on an adventure on your own. Not only do you realize that doing things on your own isn't all that bad, but you also get to do whatever you want whenever you want.

7/4: This part of the Argentina side was by far my favorite part of the falls that first day. The water was just so powerful! Pro of adventuring alone - I could stand and watch the water as long as I wanted to!

(same day) Remember when I met those U.S. kids in my hostel, and we went to the Ice Bar where they majorly overcharged us for at most 2 shots of alcohol? That was so hokey but so worth it. It's definitely one of my favorite travel stories to share because I can joke about how I had to call the taxi driver's son who was at home with his kids screaming in the background to ask the taxi driver to send us two cars. I'm pretty sure that actually was a fever dream.

7/5: And the Brazil side? Geez I can't believe I was actually there. This day was so warm and cozy and happy because of my new travel pals. It was so cool to share these moments with other travelers. While I love being alone, being able to bask in the beauty of the moment, even with complete strangers, is incredibly grounding. Otherwise, it all can feel so unbelievably unreal that you convince yourself you're not actually there at all but existing in an in-between world as some sort of ghost.

This was also the day I stepped in dog poop and effectively ruined my vans. They still smell.

7/9: I was convinced this picture didn't actually exist, but here we are! This was a silly little day when Yani and I went to El Doradillo to see some whales, and we learned that I can do a spot-on impression of a whale jumping out of the water.

7/10 - 7/18: Buenos Aires - This little blip in Buenos Aires was incredibly chaotic from a little adventure spurt with Leia to the mid-year thing with Fulbright to the arrival of Gil! So much happened in the span of a few days!

7/11: Not only do I think about my life as pre- and post-Bariloche but also pre- and post-this incredible sushi that was most definitely spiked with something that made us wildly silly and loopy. Maybe we were just high off of the yumminess of the sushi.

7/15: Honestly, I just find the fact that the commission screwed up our dates in the hotel and was then convinced to get a very large bus to help transport us and our things very humorous.

7/16: I loved being able to spend time with Annabelle in Buenos Aires. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to get to know her when I visited Leia because she has become one of my favorite people here. I'm so grateful for our friendship and her willingness to listen to my very long audio messages. We've had similar experiences in some regards, and it's been really nice to be able to lean on each other. On this day, we were both wondering what it would be like once our significant others arrived.

7/17: My visitor arrived! This felt like a super long, chaotic day for me, so I cant even imagine what it felt like for Gil! I was so excited to be able to show someone around my favorite places!

7/20: The Friends Day that no one really told me about! I can't believe no one told me that Friends Day is a day that is actually celebrated here with cute audio messages and texts and get togethers. "But you're a foreigner, so it's okay," is what everyone said. Okay, but then I just looked like a rude foreigner!!

7/22: Overlapping worlds is so weird and so fun at the same time! I love being able to introduce people to each other and being like, "This is the person I've been talking about!" I've been so lucky that I got plopped here with Sol who has taken an interest in my life and who made sure we got together so that she could meet Gil and so that she could help me make sure Gil had a good time here. I can't lie, though, watching Sol and Claudio shake Gil's hand made me giggle.

7/26 - 7/29: Mendoza - The first stop on Gil and I's journey through Argentina! Mendoza was a beautiful city, and I can imagine even more so in the fall. I loved all of the trees lining the roads. It was so picturesque! I also can't believe that you can just casually see the Andes from the city. How lucky one is to have that view everyday!

7/28: Dear lord I got so tipsy on our winery day. It was so darn fun but so so so much wine. I really needed a beer break or something in there. I would 100% do this again but would probably take things a little slower. I don't know if it's actually necessary to drink all of the wine given to you. I can see most of you rolling your eyes like, "Well, duh, Leslie. Didn't think we had to tell you that," but hush. I'm a slow learner.

7/29: If you think about it, it really is so cool that as Fulbrighters, we've had this network of people throughout the entire country. Almost anywhere you go, it's practically guaranteed that you know someone there. Also, isn't it wild that we all happened to randomly get these Fulbright grants? Honestly, I, frequently, forget and end up thinking that we all somehow just got shipped here by coincidence. Anyhoo, this night brought me so much happiness not only because I got to eat some Indian food but also because even though we were all kind of strangers and the menu was incredibly convoluted, we connected as humans.

7/30 - 7/: Salta - A continuation of our adventure! I'm so glad I chose to go to Salta as part of our little trip north. I'm so lucky to have been able to explore so many different parts of Argentina because each region is so so so very different!

7/30: The cable cars! I'm really surprised I was able to convince Gil to go on these, but it was sooo worth it in my opinion. The view of Salta with the sun setting behind the mountains was amazing. I'm giggling a little, though, because I remember we kind of got stuck in a rather long conversation with the family behind us when we were in line to go back down, and I, being nice and awkward, had no idea how to cut it off. Also, I hope the server who helped us at that vegan restaurant is doing well. She was so sweet.

7/31: My favorite part of the tour to El Cafayate is, honestly, tied between these incredible views and the tour guide who asked us to sit in the front because he thought we knew not even a word of Spanish. In retrospect, it's really a good thing I know Spanish because I'm not sure how well he could really manejarse in English. I'm not quite sure how we would've managed to communicate times and meeting spots...Surely he spoke more than he let on...

August

8/1: The harrowing journey to the salt flats...I really enjoyed the salt flats. They were super impressive, but they definitely weren't my favorite thing we saw during our little journey through parts of Argentina. More than anything it felt touristy and cheesy, but what can you do? That and the horrible drive there are just things you have to get over if you want to see the salinas. A little overhyped? Yes. Worth it? Still yes.

(same day) This dinner Gil and I had with Sabrina and Helen was so chaotic (as shown by the non-itemized "bill" written on a torn piece of paper). However, I think it's another great example of how random and cool the Fulbright experience is. How random that we were all staying in the same hostel at the same time? But how cool is it that running into a fellow Fulbrighter is essentially like running into a long lost friend you need to catch up with. This year, we are all lucky in that the cohort is twice as big as normal, so we have twice as many built in friends. I think as a cohort, we happen to be pretty friendly with each other, so it became an almost unspoken rule that if you were visiting a city someone was placed in, you at least had to try and see/hang out with that Fulbrighter.

8/2 - 8/4: Tilcara, Jujuy - Of the three places Gil and I went, this was my favorite by far. In retrospect, I think we should've gone here first because it was the most exhausting and the hardest on our bodies considering Tilcara isn't exactly at sea level. Oh well. It is what it is.

8/2: I remember feeling so at peace watching this sunset. It was the perfect temperature out, there was a slight breeze, and there was no one really around. It was one of those moments where I was able to acknowledge that where I was was where I needed to be and that I didn't need to do anything but exist and relish in that moment.

8/4: This hike made me happy! While the terrain and the actual "trail," let's say, wasn't hard, the altitude made things a bit tricky. At a "normal" altitude, whatever that might be, this would've been super easy, but those few thousand feet really snuck up on ya. It felt so rewarding to be able to say "I did that." I also really just enjoyed being able to spend some time in nature on foot rather than in a van or on a big bus lugging 30+ tourists around. It was so much easier to appreciate our surroundings and views.

8/7: This was Gil's last day in Argentina! It was so cool being able to show off my little home here. It can be tough always talking about places and people when the other person doesn't know them, so it was really exciting to show off and share. It can be awkward sometimes mixing and combining different worlds, but at the same time, it's super fun to introduce people you care about to each other and have the moment of, "Wow - all these people are here because of me."

8/8: This is Euni and I (clearly not pictured) in my first ceramics class! The two of us fought so that we would be able to go together at the same time, and I'm so glad we did! Another thing I'm proud of in retrospect: I reached out to the ceramics instructor once Euni passed me the info. I actually followed through! Not to be dramatic (but I'm going to be anyone), it's one of the best decisions I've made while here. I love my Mondays!

8/10: I've mentioned it before, but there really is something about people going out of their way to make and eat vegan food with me that makes me so happy. I love that is normal here to go to a friends house and make and eat dinner together. It's so casual but feels so much more personal than going out to eat. This night, Yani did what she does best and faked confidence because she truly had no idea what she was doing when she was making the pizza. It surprised both of us when it came out edible.

8/15: Something I'm so darn happy I started doing in August is getting together with the students on the weekends or when we didn't have classes during the week. This was our first little juntada that only Aylen, Jeremias, and Ramiro came to. Ramiro (pictured) arrived late because he was finishing making vegan chocolate cookies for us. He had never made anything purposefully vegan before and when he told me that my heart BURST omg.

8/21: I mean just looking at my face in this picture you can tell I was having a grand old time. I tattooed myself! Isn't that the wildest but coolest thing ever? It was such an exciting workshop and experience. I'm really proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone and actually going to/doing things like this. Old Leslie would have never done something like this by herself.

8/26: My first get together with the folks that go to the same meditation place as I do! Again, another thing I never would have done before - go hangout with people I don't know on my own. I only knew the lady who goes to the same class that I do, so it was a bit nerve-wracking going to hangout and meet all these new people, but it was so fun! I was a little too nervous to contribute a lot to the conversation, but being around all of these nice people was, in fact, nice. It's kind of cool to watch your circle of people grow in real time.

8/27: This night has so many memories and random events jampacked into just a few hours. We started the night on the way to a birthday party but then decided to go to this brewery instead because a guy Yani was crushing on was playing some music with a couple of other musicians. Upon arrival, Yani and I sat down at a table with two other girls and began to speak in English so that her crush wouldn't understand us (a magical superpower we have). Apparently, one of the girls at the table worked in tourism and was shook when we started speaking in English and, naturally, asked me where I'm from. I told here the U.S. and then specified that I was from the state of Virginia. This answer was not sufficient. She continued to ask me in English, "But, no. Where are you from?" Rather confused since she asked me that same question about 4 times, I repeated "Virginia" until Yani awkwardly interrupted with all of my information including why I am here, I long I'll be here, and what I am doing here.

Throughout the night, Yani and I somehow managed to talk to all three musicians two of which bought us beers. Eventually, we started making our way to the original birthday party, which happened to be just around the corner from the brewery. As we walk through the door into the house this party is in, people start shushing us (yes, shushing us) as we were greeting people. Why were they shushing us one might ask...well, some of the folks at the party were about to put on a little show. Like act. They were acting out a scene of a "play." Yani and I made eye contact from across the room with the same look of horror and confusion and shock. To each their own right? Like if you want to act your party, be my guest, but this simply was not at all what we had anticipated walking into. Shortly after arriving, I got a taxi home. While Yani's night hilariously continued, that is not my story to tell.

We should not be allowed to interact with the "normal" public.

8/28: A Sonia and Leslie walk day! The day before, I had randomly asked Sonia if she'd like to walk with me since I knew she usually walks at some point on the weekend, and she said yes, so here we are. Walk pals! This walk was also cool because unlike our first walk together, I was able to contribute much much more to the conversation! For those wondering, at this point Sonia no longer scared me. We now laugh about the fact that I found her scary.

(same day) I wish I could tell you why, specifically, Yani was walking around with a blanket, but, unfortunately, I cannot. Nevertheless, I will share this video because it's silly and makes me giggle. I think we were maybe talking about how sometimes men don't clean so their blankets get so dirty they can't stand on their own?

September

9/2: This was a very interesting, unique day in that we didn't have classes because of a major political thing, so Yani and I took to the beach to discuss politics and get practically ran over by women walking with their walking sticks.

(same day) This is our napkin version of Argentina. We were very proud of it. Though this seems super silly, yes, it makes me giggle because one of the very very first times we got together, we also made a napkin map. We take our napkin map art very seriously.

8/3: This was our first Lengua 1 get together on the beach! I still have a tan line from this outing, but it was worth it. I've had such a fun time getting to know this group these last few months.

9/7: Yani proofread the post I wrote in Spanish because she is a great friend. For me, writing the post in Spanish was a big challenge. It's not that I don't have the knowledge to do so. It's just that writing about your thoughts and feelings and experiences in a different language is a lot different than answering a prompt on a school test. I really enjoyed this challenge for me, personally, and for the opportunity to share the blog experience with a few more of my people here.

9/8: Ceramics friend date! Yet another thing I'm proud of and thankful for. I, honestly, almost ditched the "date" because, again, it's nerve-wracking spending time with new people. It's even doubly nerve-wracking when you're not quite sure how patient they'll be with you and your Spanish level. I can't wait for more meriendas and some picnics with them.

9/9: Yani and I at our table. That table knows quite a lot about our lives.

9/10: Here are two of the three girls in Language 2! Just like with those of Language 1, I got together several times with these girls. During this hangout, I taught them how to play Yahtzee, and, then, we took like three or four different personality quizzes. These two have also been incredibly fun to get to know. I'm super grateful they are willing to hangout with me even on the weekend.

9/13: There is nothing really particularly special about this day. This is just an appreciation picture of my British therapist, Kathy, that I got to work with through Fulbright. Please no one tell her I took this picture haha. She is a queen, though. She should've been the Queen's replacement.

9/14: Okay. I realize this is feeling pretty excessive because I'm talking about pictures from literally every single day at this point. Deal with it. This Wednesday, the student Sonia and I work with brought me vegan rosquitas just out of the blue. She makes and sells snackies like these but like "normal." To make these for me she had to do everything special. I felt very special because this was so so so nice of her. I felt for her sometimes because it was just her, Sonia, and I in class, which had to have been painful and exhausting. However, I was able to get to know her better than I might have otherwise!

9/15: This is Sol rolling her eyes at me. Again, nothing too spectacular happened on this day, but I do miss our Friday night coffees/teas. This must've been one of the last classes we had together in person. Don't mind me trying to time travel back to this night just to experience the act of drinking our coffees/teas, eating candy, and chitchatting during didactica again.

9/17: Clearly, I had a solid September haha. September also happened to be the month of visitors. Here are some of them with my amiguita Juana. I invited Juana to hangout with Megan, her friend, and I and then again when we went out for drinks. I super enjoyed myself, and I remember Juana super enjoying herself, too. I was really glad she was able to come and hangout with us just so she'd have the chance to hangout with some new people. Not only did she kill it generally while speaking in English, but she was also able to keep up with all of us estadounidenses, which was the real test. I'd say this marks the day that Juana and I started to get closer as friends, as well, so overall a solid day, really.

9/18: This video makes me giggle. We had another small little Language 1 gathering, and Ramiro took us on a little drive before we moved on with our days. This drive included All Too Well 10 minute version Taylor's version. It was such a sweet, warm moment sing-screaming all 10 minutes of All Too Well with the others. It's so cool how music brings us all together.

9/23: I remember this being a bit of a weird day, but I got to spend some time with my Argentina moms which soothed my soul a little bit.

9/24: Juana made me pizza :). She insisted on doing it all herself, too. I was not able to help at all haha. Prior to this, we accidentally outed one of my Fulbrighter friends and, coincidentally, somehow, was dating one of Juana's cousins. We were sooooo shook, both us and her family! Like what are the odds?!?!

9/25: Rowan was such an amazing human to get to know. At the last minute she asked if she could stay with me while she visited, and, since she texted me on a day that I was feeling myself, I said, "Sure! Why not?" As a grad student herself (well, law student but same difference), it was very cathartic to talk to her about what it's been like to be here in this alternate reality and "miss out" on parts of grad school without cohorts. This Fulbright experience can be super impactful, so I've been really grateful that I've met Fulbrighters who have been willing to openly share how they've grown and changed as a result of there time here.

9/28: So much of Yani and I's relationship is apparently based on our artistic abilities. Here, Yani drew me a diagram to show me the mess of a house she had visited that day.

October

10/1: I may be imagining things, but I swear on my life Sonia took a picture of us when we were here. I should ask. This is at the movie theater. Sonia let me go with her, her mom, and her sister to see a movie called Argentina, 1985 about the prosecutors who took on the heads of Argentina's military dictatorship. Although I didn't quite catch every single line in the movie since it was in Spanish with no subtitles, I still thought it was an incredibly powerful (and good and informative) movie. I'm grateful that Sonia let me tag along (even though I technically invited myself and she said sure).

10/7: This is from a juntada, a get together, with some of the folx from Language 1. We decided it would be fun to get together at a time that wasn't 10am on a Sunday but at night to drink some drinks and do more than just chat in English. We played Uno, ate some veggies, ate some Oreos as the conversation made a little shift from English to Spanish. I, personally, find it a bit easier to chat in Spanish with people who have experienced/are experiencing the process of learning a new language because we all have this understanding that mistakes are part of the process. So, I've loved being able to speak with and get to know my Language 1 pals in both English and Spanish. After lots of snacks, we sat near the beach for a little before it started to rain, which completely soaked us. We took that as a cue to head out, so we stopped to get some coffee from the gas station, drank that in the parking lot, and our designated driver drove us each home.

10/9: This isn't anything super major or fun like the above. I'm just adding this picture to acknowledge my evening walks next to the beach. In late Septemberish, I started walking towards the north rather than the south because there are significantly less people with an equally nice view. My Sunday evening walks have been my favorite recently because I get to walk and reflect and enjoy the sunset and enjoy the sound of the waves. This walk has seen me do quite a lot of reflecting.

10/10: This is just a shout out to my ceramics friends, Angi and Luz. Before getting to know them, I enjoyed going to ceramics, and, now, I love it! I even started a Pinterest board recently to save some ideas for things I can make. It's so cool to find a space in which you feel like you belong.

10/12: Well she's not in Argentina! I know. I know. Renée isn't in Argentina. She's my PhD advisor for all those curious. Since I've been here, we've been meeting on Zoom occasionally to catch up, that is, for me to tell her all about my adventures even though she reads my blogs and probably already knows. I'm grateful that I have an advisor who has taken an interest in both my professional and my personal growth. After joining her group, I believe I've caused more trouble than anything else, so I'm beyond grateful for her support in my endeavors. You don't often find a boss who tells you to go explore the world because grad school isn't going anywhere. You also don't often find a boss who reads your blogs even though she probably has a pile of reviews and drafts waiting for her to read.

10/16: I'm so glad I decided to go on this retreat! It was a cool way to meet people, and I think it provided a great opportunity to reflect. It came at just the right time - a month before the end of my grant. That way, I was able to think about and reflect on all of my time here and all that I've accomplished. It was super nice to essentially be forced to do so, since it can be so easy to not carve out time in the day to do it on your own.

(same day) I have no pictures of this, unfortunately, but this Sunday also happened to be Mother's Day here, and Sonia let me crash her Mother's Day dinner. It was super embarrassing, and I felt super bad, but I got my first asado out of it, so there's that. That's also Sonia for ya. It you ask for something or need help, she's going to help you and then invite to to dinner.

10/21: The pro about living in a walkable neighborhood is that you happen to be neighbors with Angi who will bring you a part of the vegan budin she just made.

10/25: This is Sol giving me an annoyed face because I insisted on taking a picture during our Tuesday am coffee. The occasional Tuesday am coffee dates with Sol are my favorite. On this Tuesday, she wanted to know how something of mine went so I screwed with her and talked in circles forever before finally getting to the conclusion heehee.

10/27: I don't remember why, but we didn't have classes this Thursday, so Aylen and Ramiro (two of the Lang 1 peeps) came over and we talked about Taylor Swift and ate the vegan budin that Ramiro made us. He was nervous it would taste horrible, but I was very impressed with his work.

10/29: Here, I visited my friend Euni at work (she is an incredible manicurist), and I got to hangout with this sweetheart. After she got off of work, we went back to her place and chatted about/caught up on life. Euni is an absolute homie, so this was a lot of fun! She's a lot of fun to just chat with. I also love that it's totally normal to just hangout and chat with people at their places. It's super chill and so much more personal.

10/31: Halloween makes me smile! Some of us dressed up for ceramics and brought snackies to munch on while there, which was cute. I love the sharing vibes here in Argentina, particularly the sharing of food. No matter the occasion, there is always food to share.

(same day) I convinced Sonia to dress up for Halloween for the first time ever. Apparently, it was the first time she ever really celebrated Halloween. It was an honor to be the first one to "force" her to do so heehee. We had phonetics that day, so we got there a little early so I could draw on her face. During class, we read some Halloween rhymes, ate some treats (again, always sharing food), and had some tea/coffee. When we left class, Sonia said she was very happy with everything, so I would call this day a major success because everything went well and because I think we all had a really good time. I'm grateful that these students are my students and that Sonia is no longer as scary, so that I can ask for/prepare things for fun classes like these.

The students also dressed up!

11/3: It was hot as god knows what in this restaurant Angi, Luz, and I went to, but that's okay because we got some vegan pizza! I've truly been so grateful for every one of my friends who has made being vegan here so stinking easy. Everyone I interact with frequently has been so willing to make vegan food for the first time or try something vegan (like vegan cheese) for the first time, just so that I am be included. And of all that without complaining. Here Angi, Luz, and I all shared a pizza with vegan cheese. They didn't do so begrudgingly but went with the expectation that we'd be sharing. My friends are just too nice. After pizza we treated ourselves to some ice cream and sat next to the beach and ate it. I'm almost so used to living next to the beach that I forget how much of a privilege it is to see it everyday...almost.

11/4: So Yani and I went out for our usual beer and bitch/gossip session at the bar around the corner from my apartment. Little did we know that they were having some late Halloween party thing with actors dressed up and that whole shebang. If you know me, you know that I HATE those types of things with a passion, and apparently Yani does, too, because I don't think either of us has ever drunken a beer that quickly. We practically threw the money at our server, so that we could leave as quickly as possible. Afterwards, we walked a bit to this other bar that may be our new place. We sat outside, and it was quiet and we didn't have to scream over the music and it didn't take 10 years for the server to serve us.

11/6: This day gets several pictures. The Lang 1 students and I got together for a little despedida (goodbye) and just because. While initially super hot, the day turned a little crappy, and it rained quite a bit. However, we still managed to have a beautiful day. We had a little asado, dessert (they made me vegan brownies with vegan dulce de leche), and merienda. They also espuma-d me, which people often spray on someone who is recently graduated. Overall, I think we all had a really good time. I know I've said it a bajillion times at this point, but it's so cool being here and having people welcome me into their lives. I came here knowing no one, and now I have friends who make me brownies and throw me parties to celebrate the time we've spent together.

11/9: Luz and I went to Angi's for merienda, and I can now, without hesitation, declare that merienda is the best meal of the day (especially when Angi makes her incredible vegan budin). Merienda is, of course, about snacking, but it also has this little subculture of snacking with people. Naturally if you're working or something, that's not possible, but I love that merienda can be a time you get together with friends and drink coffee or tea or mate and snack and chat and vibe.

Angi welcomed us to her place. She wrote "LIE" in red because she's started calling me Les, since that's how I sign a lot of my ceramics stuff (because it's easier), but she didn't want me to be mad so she added the "LIE" just in case heehee.

(same day) Yani and I went to go see some people play some music at a brewery. Neither of us actually enjoyed the music, but we did enjoy talking about each other's plans for next year while we sipped our beers and tried not to cringe when a particularly rough patch of notes was played. We both have a lot of handles (excitement) for next year.

We look like this because I didn't realize the flash was on.

11/9: There have been quite a bit of strikes recently, so a lot of classes have been online. This Friday, we decided to meet at someone's house for Lang 3, so that we could be in person and see each other's faces. This is my sweet Lang 3 class. Every single one of these students (and Ceci) has made Friday my favorite day of the week. It was so hard for me to leave this class this day because it was my last with them. I so so so very much appreciated their interest in me and what I had to say, but I also appreciated their willingness to share themselves. They are such a wonderful group of humans!

(same day) This was our meditation get together that functioned as a little despedida for me. They're so cute and sweet.

11/12: What looks different about us?!?!? We had been talking about getting these since September, and we finally did it! The funny thing is that a lot of people haven't even noticed on either of us until we pointed it out ourselves.

11/15: This is proof that Sonia drives me home every day from work. In these 5 minute car rides, we've learned so much about each other. It's silly how something so small can hold so much meaning.

I feel like this post has gotten pretty long, so thank you if you've stayed with me. As my time here as a Fulbrighter is coming to a close, it's impossible not to reflect on this experience. At the same time, it feels impossible to reflect on, no matter how cliché it sounds, such a life-changing experience. This post and these pictures barely even begin to touch the surface of how much my time here has impacted me. Eight months ago to this day actually (11/16), I landed here in Argentina and had to put my trust in absolute strangers. Now, I can't imagine my life without all of these beautiful humans who have touched my life in such unique ways. Like I quite literally do not remember what it was like to not know them.

I found out that I was placed in Puerto Madryn in December of 2021 when I was driving back to Virginia from Iowa. I knew the email was coming that day, so I was impatiently refreshing my inbox every 5 minutes until it finally arrived. I pulled over at the first gas station I passed to read all of the details. Naturally, I had never heard of it before, but I was convinced I had hit the jackpot when I saw I was placed in a town on the beach with whales, penguins, sea lions, dolphins, etc. I was so excited to explore the natural beauty and the wildlife here in Madryn. I felt like I had won the lottery but literally. How cool! How lucky!

I have loved every single second of being next to the ocean. I love it to death. I cannot get enough of it. Now, please excuse how cringy and cliché this is going to sound, but, realistically, I won the jackpot in regards to the people I've met. I think that's pretty clear when you look at all of these pictures I just talked about because almost every single one of them is me with someone, but I felt like I needed to say it. That's what makes traveling so cool, though, isn't it? Discovering new places and connecting with new people with different and similar experiences to your own.

I am eternally grateful for my new friends and the new connections I've made here.