One adventure, two adventure, three adventure, four...

Holy cow, so I got on the plane in Atl., keep in mind it is full of practically only spanish speaking people, and I find myself sitting next to a boy who looks to be around my age! (score!) I asked him what his name was, in spanish, and he said his name was Noe. Then he asked me what my name was, and asked my age. He was very surprised to hear that I was only 17; he had guessed that I was 12. (keep reading, you will understand ;) ) I then asked him his age and if he spoke english, he said he was 12, and he spoke a little english. 12? Seriously? This boy did NOT look twelve. I looked confused, so he started to question his answer. He said to me, "Nineteen, twelve...", with a questioning look on his face. "Ohhhhhh, you mean 20?", I said. Yes, he was twenty...

Out of all that you should be thinking, " Good, im glad he spoke english."

After everyone on the plane was settled in, the pilot comes on the intercom and says that one of the motors is broken and will take 2 hours to fix. Great, just great...We all get off the plane, and I join my new friend Noe with his family to go sit down and eat; his family was so wonderful, understanding, and helpful. Eventually we got back on the plane and I prepared myself mentally for the 12 hour flight....No, you did not read incorrect. A 12 HOUR PLANE RIDE. -.-

Finally after my 12 HOUR PLANE RIDE I had arrived in Buenos Aires, Argentina!

Now the adventure really started. Guess whos plane was 2 hours late, now only had 2 hours to travel to another airport 50 minutes away, go through customs, pick up his baggage, AND board the plane.....
THIS GUY.

Needless to say I missed my connecting flight. This made me just a little nervous, so I decided to do the only thing I could think of, cry. Ha NOT. I did not cry I just calmly approached the airline's desk and asked when the next flight was. The woman at the desk told me that I was in luck because the next flight was sunday! Maybe those werent her exact words, but I feel that the sarcasm there helps the situation seem a little more lax. Right?
Of course I did not feel like spending two nights in an airport where a total of about 2 people spoke english, so I went to make a phone call at the "Telecentro". My first call to the Rotary Chairman went to voicemail, and the next phone call to the Rotary Counselor also went to voicemail. Naturally I was starting to feel as though I just might be stranded in Buenos Aires for the next year of my life. Finally I got a hold of my host family, and my savior Clara (my sister) told me to call her back in 10 minutes with someone who spoke spanish and english. When I talked to her next I was told a taxi would come pick me up and take me to the bus station where I would take a bus from Buenos Aires to Catamarca. No big deal right? I was on my way home!

I got home and everything was amazing. Everything went extremely smooth with nothing going wro...BAHAHAHAHA! Sorry, I couldnt get through that with out laughing! Everything did NOT go smoothly, and I did NOT just "arrive" at my new home.
I waited for my bus for 2 1/2 hours...Then I sat on that bus for 14 hours...Once again, no you did not read incorrectly. 14 HOURS ON A BUS WITH NO ONE TO TALK IN ENGLISH WITH. I couldnt even sleep well, because every hour or so the bus woulod stop and pick up more people.

The jist of the situation is that nothing went in accordance with the original plan, but I got to my new home and I love it here!

Y Finalmente: I love my family here so much!They are so wonderful! Mysiblings are much older than me, but still are my friends and are very helpful. My parents truly care about me and only want the best for me. I love them all!!!:)

P.S I feel like I have been here for months even though it hasnt even been two days, and my spanish is already getting a lot better! My family keep telling mer how fast I am picking it up. how exciting right?!? :)

Love,

Benja