Ahh craziness

So this past week and a half or so has been completely crazy. It's been really really good most of the time, but there have definitely been some rough spots. I've mostly been going to the beach like everyday because the weather has been absolutely AMAZING (with the exception of the past couple days). Last weekend was Carnaval here, which is basically huge parade. I went with my mom and sister and it was so much fun! There were all these drummers and dancers and stuff...it was great haha. Then after we had dinner at like 1:00 at McDonalds, which was ehh not so great haha.

But everything has been going pretty well, I'm really starting to feel like a part of my family and I'm getting more and more comfortable with everything everyday. Although I'm still having trouble speaking Spanish, it's getting easier for me to understand.

I just talked to my mom about school, and it looks like I'm going to be in cuarto (which is basically the equivalent of Sophomore year here) only because I think quinto would be too hard (a lot of reading and writing and such). It also looks like I'm going to have to take English classes...?? though I'm not sure why....it's weird.

I've been talking with my mom about her visit (she's coming to visit March 7th I think), and I'm really excited to see her, except I think it could be a little difficult. It's also the weekend before I start school sooo we'll see how it goes.

I'm really loving Punta del Este though, it's so beautiful here. I've taken so many pictures, it's almost ridiculous.

Anyways, I should go...more soon, hopefully!

Estoy en Uruguay!

So I'm finally here. I got here about 7pm last night, and everything is absolutely insane! It's so gorgeous here in Punta del Este! I went to the beach with Sofi and her dad and her friend today and it was so much fun! We played volleyball and then we drove all around Punta del Este. I already love it here.

Last night a bunch of Sofi's friends came over and they all talk SO FAST but they are so funny and cute. We took a bunch of pictures on my laptop via photobooth...they are all absolutely obsessed!

Anyways, orientation in Buenos Aires pretty much sucked, with the exception of Saturday when we actually went into the city and saw Recoleta, La Boca, and lots of other cool places. Buenos Aires seems like such a cool city, I wish we had had more time there. I'm not really all that homesick yet...I miss my family and everything but I'm having so much fun here! I can't wait until I can go out with my host brother Gonzalo and his friends and see what the nightlife is like.

I have to go...more later!!!

besos!

ellen

Mi primera familia

I got two emails from my first host family today! One from my host sister Sofia and one from my host mom, Magdalena. They both wrote the cutest emails, and they just sound so amazing!

I found out that Gonzalo (my host brother) is actually 16, and he and his friends like to go out dancing (fun! haha), so that's pretty good. He likes futbol (soccer) and music and normal boy things I guess haha. My sister, Sofia, is really outgoing and is best friends with my other host sister (Stephani, in my second family), meaning the two families are friends. They have four dogs (!!) and a cat, which will be interesting...but they sound so amazing! The dad, Alejandro, is supposedly an amazing cook (also very good!). Basically, they are amazing.

I still haven't talked to me second family--I have yet to finish writing them an email in Spanish. But seriously, getting those emails made me feel so much better about the experience as a whole. Because I've been kind of down this entire week and worrying a lot (resulting in nearly no sleep), but now I feel reassured. That this is not going to be terrible. That I might actually be OK.

Only three more days left until I leave for Miami! AHHH!

Worries

So it is possible that I might die of boredom. I literally sat around today and did nothing except watch the History Channel and Grey's Anatomy (season 2). And then I saw Juno for the fifth time. Which made my day slightly more interesting. At least tomorrow I'm going to the city with my dad to start getting my visa, FINALLY. It took me damn long enough. I think we're going to my favorite Cuban place for lunch, although my dad did say he found a Uruguayan place...

I need better ways to spend my last 9 days at home.

Except there's the packing, and the finding a gift for the family, and the getting a visa, and the figuring out how to get a Uruguayan visa, to be done. That's gonna fill some time, I think.

Shit. I have to get gifts for my families. Plural. Should I get each person an individual gift? Or get both families two big gifts...

And I'm broke.

Frikkin' sweet, man.

I'm gonna go not sleep. Which seems to be something I'm very good at these days.

Host family!

So it's taken me a while to get this up here (I've been away), but I finally got a host family! ...Or rather, two. They're both in Punta del Este, Uruguay, which is widely known to be a beach resort city (!!!).

My "real" host family is going to be away for about a month when I first get to Uruguay, so I'll have what they call a "welcome family" for the first month. In my welcome family, I have a mom (Magdalena), dad (Alejandro), sister (Sofia 13) and a brother (Gonzalo 15). My second family is a single mother (Monica) with two sons (Christian 10 & Matias 11) and a daughter (Stephani 13). So it'll be interesting to be the oldest for once. My first family also has a cat and a dog, and my second has cats (though they didn't say how many...). I have yet to speak to either of my families...I have both phone numbers and my mother's email address for my "real" family, but I'm a little afraid to call...I guess I'm gonna have to get on that...

Anyways, I'm insanely excited to get there and meet them and just experience everything. I have no idea if I'll be going to private or public school, but I'm hoping for a private school (it would be way cool). I get the feeling my first family doesn't have internet though because they didn't give me an email address.... :-( but I'll deal.

I'll update again once I've gotten up the nerve to actually call/email my families!