Day 3 of the pre-conference was a really exciting and busy one. We woke up early and left our hotel in Argentina to catch a ferry to Uruguay.
After an hour and a half, we arrived in Colonia del Sacramento, a city in the province of Colonia on the same river as Buenos Aires, Río de la Plata. We walked around on the boardwalk along this river and reflected on our journey so far.
Following this, we made our way to a restaurant for lunch and ate Chivito, a delicious Uruguayan dish made of meat, eggs, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and fries. After lunch, we met our tour guide for a walk around Colonia. She took us to the old city and told us some of Uruguay’s history before and after its independence. We also learned that there are only two traffic lights in all of Colonia! We even saw a UNESCO sight, which was part of a wall that bordered the city many years ago. In addition, we climbed up to the top of a lighthouse with 118 stairs that gave us a beautiful view of the city. Finally, we went to one of Colonia’s ports.
Afterward, we went for ice cream and into some of the stores on one of the main streets, Flores. We then went for dinner at a really cozy and authentic restaurant.
All in all, traveling to Uruguay was a great experience and it was so interesting to learn about their culture. The conference starts tomorrow and we can’t wait! – Meghan Fersten ’18
On April 16, we landed on Argentinian soil. Ms. Shadley, Maria, Savina, Danielle, Meghan, MariaLuisa, Carson and I were exhausted from our 13-hour flight. However, thanks to our positive vibes and food that we purchased from McDonald’s, we gained a bit more energy. As soon as we walked out of the airport the heat rushed onto our faces. We then met a woman called Mariana, our very own tour guide. Mariana took us to a bus where we ate delicious cheese empanadas while driving to El Tigre, a small township of Buenos Aires. In El Tigre we took a traditional South American boat where we travelled down a canal and saw many country houses and elegant fishing boats. On the boat, we socialized (in Spanish) and made many new friends with the inhabitants. 
Today in Argentina we spent the day at a farm called Don Silvano. At the farm we had many exciting things to do! First, we got to ride horses! We rode them on a track around the farm and had beautiful views of the surrounding green fields. Then we went to go see all the other animals. We saw pigs, chickens, bunnies, flamingos, peacocks and many more. Next, we tried a local drink called mate. It tastes like bitter tea and is a very prominent part of the culture here in Argentina. It’s a social drink and it is customary for people to share it with the same straw. If you add a lot of sugar, it’s actually really good!
Coming into my last week, I feel a bunch of different emotions. I’m excited to get home, see my friends and family, and sleep in my own bed; but I am also sad to leave the place I’ve been fortunate enough to call home for the past five weeks.