"¿La hermana de Alemania?"

The term "struggle bus" has acquired a new meaning, which is much too literal. Last week closely resembled what finals week would look like; however, with dinner at 10p.m. and teachers that don't hold office hours. Additionally, we had two planned group excursions to the La Boca soccer stadium ("La Bombonera") and a tango class. Unfortunately I had to miss the tango class because I had two exams the next day, but visiting the stadium was an awesome experience. The Buenos Aires rivalry is between La Boca juniors and River Plate. The stadium radiates passion and tradition, and I'm really hoping I can make it to a fútbol game soon. Furthermore, María and I got invited to have dinner with her friend that lives on the 7th floor of our building, who is also hosting a US exchange student. When I heard word of the invitation I was overwhelmed at how I could possibly fit that into my schedule. The girl on the 7th floor is a vegetarian, studying spanish, and a Chi Omega from Duke. Explaining the concept of a "sorority" to our host moms was one of the harder things I've done here, but getting to know her and relating to her provided so much relief to my week. I'm looking forward to spending more time with her.

After this crazy week, I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to Mendoza, Argentina with my friend Lauren for a weekend of wine-tasting in the Andes. I had not realized how amazing it would feel to escape the city and all of it's commotion. The town was quiet, the greenery was beautiful, and the wine was plentiful. When we got off the plane our private driver was waiting for us with a sign in hand reading my last name…. the rest of the weekend followed in similar fashion. We were so spoiled this weekend as we visited 5 different wineries and stayed in the cutest hotel. But I think the best part was that we could take long hot showers as long as we wanted, we didn't have to make our beds, and cars yielded us as we crossed the street.

I could write a novel about all of the information I learned this weekend. I learned about the history and culture of Mendoza, the differences between wine and the wine making process. I learned that if the droplets in your wine glass are close together the wine contains more alcohol and if the droplets fall more slowly then the wine contains more sugar. Mendoza is a town in the middle of the dessert, but they manage a system of canals in order to have grass and trees. I also learned that you don't have to show your ID even once before you get on the plane and you can carry-on as many liquids as you please when flying within Argentina because "we're too far south for any terrorists."

Counting down the days until the homies arrive!!
Ciao!