The Shout of all Shout Outs

As I sit here in my empty room, my bags packed and ready to go home, all of the things that I LOVE and am going to miss about this place are running through my mind. I have been extremely blessed during my time in Buenos Aires to have made some REALLY solid friendships. Friendships that I pray will be continued when we return to the states. I’ve alluded to the fact that Buenos Aires has been hard on me at times over the past six weeks in other blog posts and these people had a huge part in lifting my spirits and encouraging me each step of the way.

SO, this blog post is the Shout Out of All Shout Outs to my new friends who made Buenos Aires feel like home.

Most Outstanding Study Buddy: Delaney Geraghty

Delaney and I met day one after arriving in Buenos Aires and it just so happened that we were in the same Literature class. This only happened because Delaney asked her interviewer during our placement interviews not to place her in the most advanced level (which she WOULD have been in, without a doubt…) but hey, I lucked out because of it. Delaney is incredibly intelligent and is studying bilingual education in Chicago. She is a fiery red head and though I’m sure she’d prefer I not toot her horn for her, I just have to. I don’t know what I would have done without her in Latin American literature. I would read a story, look up EVERY word I didn’t know and think that I understood the concepts and then she would clear everything up and explain all the metaphors and deep meanings the next morning on the bus ride to school. She is QUICKLY approaching fluency and an extremely talented Spanish speaker who is going to take bilingual education by storm!    

Most likely to LIVE life to the fullest: Gordie “Goooordon” Watt

Gordie Watt goes hard. I don’t just mean that in terms of partying…although that too. But really, Gordie LOVES living and I could tell it from the moment I met him and I think that’s why I was drawn to him. He doesn’t like to sit around and do nothing; this entire experience abroad in Buenos Aires was a true adventure for him. He learned the city well in our mere 6 weeks here and feeds off of the energy of the BIG city. His energy is contagious; I loved spending time with him because his happy go lucky and ready for a good time attitude always rubbed off on me. I think that Bibi would say that Gordie “vibra” for life, meaning he has a deep passion for living and it was so evident and encouraging to me.  

The one who IS ready for the real world: Janet Mohoney

The most mature of our group was definitely Janet. It could be because she just graduated from Madison University in Wisconsin or because she is just one of those people who really have it all together, all the time! She always carried around her guide book and knew exactly where the best places to go were and how to get us there. It also reeeally helped that she is FLUENT in Spanish already and had no problem sorting out any misunderstanding with her perfect Spanish speaking skills. She helped me buy a phone, knitted me a hat, and carried around her sophisticated professional camera, all very grown up things to do. But seriously, Janet and I enjoyed a few deep talks and MANY little adventures and I am really grateful for having met her. I’m not sure where her life path will lead her but with a determination and maturity like hers she IS ready to take on the WORLD.

Most likely to give you the shirt off his back: Mark Montez Flenoury begin_of_the_skype_highlighting     end_of_the_skype_highlighting

I could say SO many good things about this guy. Aside from him being one of the funniest people I have ever met he is also one of the most genuine. I cannot count the number of times that he offered on of us his coat, went out of his way to be helpful, or cheered us up with his infectious sense of humor.  In moments he would provide comic relief during tense times and comic relief during not so tense times. Our group has SO many inside jokes generated by the ongoing hilarious scenarios that he and Kenny acted out for us on a daily basis. Montez has a heart for people and he really does want to see change in this world. He loves to work with kids and his heart breaks from the homeless. No matter what he chooses to do with his last two years at UGA, he IS going to make a difference. With a heart as big as his and a willingness to give, Mark Montez Flenoury is the type of person that we need more of in our world.

The Gentleman: Kenny “KLew” Lewis

Kenny was ALWAYS looking out for the crew. His number one priority was keeping us safe…and having a gooood time. He documented ALL of our adventures with his flipcam (“What up world, this is KLew…”) and I’m sure that MTV is going to be dying for that documentary someday. But really, when we needed him to, his Jefe instincts kicked into gear and he got us to where we needed to be. He always made sure that we got home after one of those long Argentinian nights, opened doors for the ladies, and never relented in dishing out encouraging compliments. He was ready to take on any guy who tried to take it past the cat calls with us girls and I am incredibly grateful for that. I can tell that he has been brought up so well and that he really respects all people. He loves family and is a genuine and true friend. He was definitely a huge part of the glue that held our Buenos Aires family together.

Kenny and Montez are the dynamic duo in my mind. They are both students at the University of Georgia and are best friends and roommates. They play off of each other jokes, keep spirits up, and are really two of the most genuine young men I have ever met. I am really blessed to have met them.

Most likely to be your friend: Erika Jefferson

Erika “EhhReeKah” Jefferson is a great friend. I am really fortunate to have spent a lot of my time here in Buenos Aires exploring ferias, snacking on Coca Light and Choco Churros, and getting a piercing with a friend like Erika. She is a friend to all and was always making new friends within our big IFSA group! She LOVES to laugh; her runner up superlative would DEFINITELY be Best laugh. She throws her head back and bursts with laugher that explodes from every parts of her body. It is one of those really contagious and affirming laughs. Erika always had a big part in getting the group together and working out times and places to meet up so that we could all spend time together. Her friend at Purdue are super blessed to have her, as I am sure they know and I really hope that our friendship will continue beyond our Argentine Adventure.

The True Blue Tough One: Sefe “la jefe” Emokpae

Sefe is a tough girl. Here in Buenos Aires she got her wisdom teeth pulled (eeeek) AND she almost got robbed face to face on the subte. She demanded her wallet back and the guy dropped it…I’m telling you,she does NOT play. Despite those incidences she is STILL in love with the big city. Underneath her tough outer shell though, is one of the softest hearts and truest friends I have ever met. In Mendoza this past week, my wallet and passport was stolen (blog about that coming soon…) but after that happened, Sefe spent hours with me at the Mendoza police department making a statement and went straight to the US Embassy with me when we got back to BA and spent hours with me there too, being my support as a got a new passport. The whole time she encouraged me that I would get home on time and I kept thinking “wowww I am SO blessed to have met this girl.” She is fun, loves to laugh…at everything, she doesn’t let the little things get to her, and she honestly is a true friend. Lucky for me, we both go to UNC, so I KNOW that I will be spending lots of time with her this upcoming year and I cannot wait!

Whew! I definitely shed a couple tears writing this post. Shout out to the fact that I am the MOST long winded person on the earth. But seriously...Friends, THANK YOU for adding an infinite amount of fun to this adventure…I am confident that the adventure does not end here.

Peace and BLESSings,

Katy

Nifty things with Newspaper!

This is just a quick little crafty post because I was inspired by some other artsy blogs that I follow this afternoon!

This past Friday I went to buy a little gift for one of the boys that I worked with at the Hogar de los niños because he, Nahuel turned 14 on Saturday! I got some artist sketch paper, colored pencils, and markers that have a different color on both ends! I got a little over excited and bought some things for a project that I will finish before I leave B.A....which I will share more about later.

ANYWAY, as I walked home I realized I didn't have wrapping paper and reluctant to spend money on a whole roll and too scared to ask Bibi for some, I decided to buy the newspaper and use the sports section to wrap Nahuel's birthday presents! I had seen a gift that a good friend of mine Anna Chambless wrapped at Christmas with newspaper and LOVED it...so I just decided to use her idea and use the Diario.

I got home and when Bibi saw what I was doing she kept saying how strange I am...as usual. But this time, I told her to wait and see and that I bet she'd love the final product...

And HERE IT IS!!

Bibi did love it and I was SO pumped, and it is SUPER easy to do! 

Anyway, just thought I'd share...I'm really off to Mendoza now! :)

Happy 4th,

Katy

This is the day... Psalm 118:24

Today has been a GREAT day.

Do you ever have those days when you just feel like everything is better and everything is right? Today has been that day for me and it is only 4:00 right now! I have struggled this past week or so…really struggled with being content here. I keep thinking about the warm weather, sandy beaches, and southern hospitality that I am missing back home as the days get colder and darker here in Buenos Aires.  But today was different! It was as if I had put on rose colored glasses and the world around me had become a little bit lovelier. When I stepped outside of my apartment, it felt like an October day in chapel hill and the sky was bluer than I have seen it my whole time here. I rode the subte from near Junín, where I live over to the IFSA office to turn in my final literature paper…getting that six page load of analysis in Spanish off my hands could have made my day in and of itself. Afterward, I decided to walk the 20 blocks home and this is the first song that came on my ipod.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0irdrHUx3Sw

Perfect, huh?

A Beautiful World- Tim Myers

“It’s a beautiful world I see, everything looks differently…these moments are changing me.”

 Today, the cat calls from creepy young and old men alike did not faze me…I actually laughed and said “¡Gracias!” to one of the men who stood staring and saying “que Hermosa esa…” while we waited for the light to turn green.  The taxi that nearly knocked me over while I crossed the street as he turned right on red couldn’t bring me down either. 

I was beaming. I seriously couldn’t help it. I walked and gazed at the fantastic old arquitecture that lines the big city streets.

I felt so proud as I walked around, that I could get home without fumbling over my words to ask for directions. I stopped in at the kioskos and chatted with the street vendors with whom I have become a regular over the past five weeks. I ran errands for Bibi and bought myself some celebratory Argentinian helado (ice cream). Perhaps I have finally fallen in love with the city…ehh, maybe not fully in love…but still today was a day that I needed. If anything can change my heart for this city it is God, reminding me once again that this city is HIS and that today just like every day is a day made by Him and for worshipping Him for His creation! AND as if today could get any better, I am leaving for MENDOZA tonight on a bus—the land of mountainous landscapes and wineries! WAHOO! I hope to blog about our adventures there ASAP!

I hope your 4^th of July is SUPER blessed, may we never forget that our God made today, and every day!

Praying that today is YOUR day too,

Katy

P.S. I am obsessed with this picture that I snapped secretly the other afternoon from the front of the subte…shout out to the sweeeet camera that my man Mark Ham gave me! :)

 

The Little Things

This will be a short one as I am in the midst of finals week right now, but I do have to update on three funny things that happened today!

1.       I was having lunch with some friends at a restaurant that we call “the red place”. I’m not exactly sure what it is actually called but they have some killer empanadas. Anyway after lunch we walked by the pet store next door and my friend Elizabeth (Beeza) suggested we check for puppies in the window. My friend Erika pointed out the only pet in the window and said, “All they have is a guinea pig in there…” I looked down at the ball of fur and immediately knew that it was NO guinea pig! I rushed inside and look who I found…

I started to tear up, missing Hootie and Margeaux!

ahhhh, I want to take you home!!

Is that not the cutest Shih Tzu puppy you have EVER seen? The Links are suckers for Shih Tzu’s and I think Mom and Dad are maybe actually thinking about letting me bring him/her home. They could’ve been joking but they asked me to find our gender and price tomorrow! DEFINITELY paying that puppy another visit!

2.       At the Hogar de Los Niños today the boys were begging Brian, another American volunteer from my program to teach them curse words. He kept saying “no, no, nooo” and finally agreed to give them the dirt and teach them a few palabras malas. They asked how to say “puta” (the b word) in English and without hesitation Brian responded “nice lady”. Then they asked him how to say “I want to have sex with you” (but in more vulgar terms that need not be repeated). Brian responded again without even the slightest smirk, “bake cookies”.  Now I would like for you to imagine the teenage boys that I work with asking me to drop the beat with my limited beat boxing skills and proceeding to rap “Nice woman, bake cookies. NICE WOMAN, BAKE COOKIES!” over and over again thinking they were dropping some intense cuss words. I could not contain myself. It was one of the high lights of my trip so far without a doubt. 

Photo cred: Pedro, photographer extraordinaire, age 11. We're working on how to use the zoom!

3. I found the extreme couponers of Buenos Aires in Burger King today! Check out that stash of coupons! Thought Mom, Mary Grey, and Ms. Linda would appreciate this!

Ok, back to other forms of procrastination,

Love, love, loveee,

Katy   

Más del Hogar de Los Niños

Last week at the Hogar de los Niños it was confirmed for me that the majority of the boys who live there are not exactly orphans. They have parents who either cannot take care of them or decided to put them in this home for boys for some reason or another. I discovered this last Tuesday afternoon when one of the boys I tutor had a visit from his mother. Last Monday was a national holiday in Argentina, Dia de la bandera (Day of the flag) and they were having a celebration at the Hogar on Tuesday. Pedro, pictured below, was so excited because his mom surprised him with a visit for the celebration. After about 45 minutes she had to leave and Pedro just couldn’t handle it. He kept hugging her and pulling on her, pleading her to stay. When she left, he stood at the front door bawling for about 15 minutes. I was working with Nahuel at the time and it was all I could do not to burst into tears as I listened to Pedro wail. I gave him a big hug and told him that I was sure he’d see her again soon. Nahuel told me that his mom comes to visit sometimes too but that it doesn’t matter to him anymore whether or not she comes and that he has grown out of crying when she leaves. He said that all of the young ones cry when their parents come and go and that some of the boys actually get to leave the home sometimes and spend the weekend with a family member.

Pedro, 11 years old

I cannot and do not pass judgment on the families that send their sons to this home but I cannot help that it breaks my heart. I don’t know their current situations or whether or not the home is a better option for their children but nonetheless I hate it for the sweet boys that I have met. It kills me that at age 13, boys like Nahuel have grown hard and numb to the harsh reality that their parents cannot take care of them for whatever reason.

That evening, I rode the subte home, holding back tears the whole way. I got home and Bibi, like usual could read all over my face that something was wrong. Standing in the doorway to my bedroom I tried to fight back the tears as I explained what had happened that day. We sat down in the living room and I told her about Pedro and Nahuel and what I had seen as I choked back sobs.

Later Bibi brought me some plastic cups, galletitas (crackers), and a couple of monedas (coins). She explained that she wanted me to take the boys some milk and crackers for an afternoon snack the next day and that her heart goes out them. I took her advice but knowing the boys, I decided that a big Coca Cola and bag of assorted cookies would be a more popular choice! They LOVED it. I did use the meriendas (snacks) as kind of a bribe to focus on learning English for an hour…but still, they loved it.

Man, I feel really blessed to get to spend a little bit of time with these guys. I pray and would be humbled that if they feel unloved at all, the Lord would use my little bit of time with them as encouragement and that they would feel showered with God’s love. I hope that they do not grow so numb to love or lack thereof that they lose all hope for this world that they live in.

Nahuel, who is REALLY good at drawing made this for me!

Con todo mi amor,

Katy         

True Life: Living with Bibi

"This is the true story of [two] strangers, picked to live in a house, [converse] together and have their lives [changed], to find out what happens when people [really try to be] polite... and start getting real."

So when I started this blog, I talked about Bibi and how welcoming she was and how blessed I felt to have her here. That hasn’t changed exactly, I’m still SUPER grateful for her…but I also haven’t been completely honest about our relationship, so I’m gonna get real.

Bibi is 80 years old. She is from Buenos Aires, Argentina and does not speak a word of English.

I, Katy Link am 21 years old, from the United States, and am fluent in English…and struggling to be fluent in español.

You can see why it would be hard for us to fully understand each other sometimes, not only linguistically but also culturally. She has helped me SO much to understand more and appreciate more about Argentine culture and that is an invaluable gift because I struggled a little bit with that at first. BUT we have had a few run ins. Here’s what went down:

Run in # 1:

I had just returned from Uruguay and Bibi had prepared a bowl of soup and small salad for dinner. I devoured the soup and then approached my salad. I found that it was composed mostly of large chunks of tomato with a few pieces of lettuce. Now, I like tomato, but normally on a sandwich or a few on a salad to give it a little umph and I just wasn’t feeling those big raw tomatoes this particular evening so I picked around them.  When Bibi noticed this, she said “¿no te gusta tomates? Te gustó tomates ayer.”  (You don’t like tomatoes? You liked tomatoes yesterday.) I tried to explain that I DO like tomatoes but that I just wasn’t in the mood tonight but that I would put them on my salad tomorrow. She BLEW up. She bustled about the kitchen rambling about how strange I am and how she had never heard of such a thing and how tomatoes are expensive and how she couldn’t believe I wouldn’t eat them. Maybe she thought I was being ungrateful or telling her I didn’t like her food, and I meant neither of those things. Needless to say, I was scared. You better believe I ate those tomatoes.

Run in # 2:

Bibi offered me an apple after dinner. I said I would LOVE one later but that I was full because her food was so delicious. (I am never turning my nose up to any food that she provides EVER again). I was doing my homework when I decided I would like to eat that apple. I peeked into her room and told her I was going to go grab that apple if that would be ok. I went to the kitchen and realized I still had my apples from el supermercado in the fridge so I grabbed one of those, trying to be considerate. When I told Bibi that, she sat straight up in bed and said “¿Hay un problema con mis manzanas?” (Is there a problem with my apples?). I told her no, of course not…that I was just trying to save her apples since I had my own. She got out of bed and stormed straight to the kitchen. I waited nervously in my room. She then brought the apple to my room and insisted that I eat hers and told me to eat mine at school tomorrow. No questions asked, I did just that…but I never meant to make her mad.  Eeek.

Run in # 3:

Every Saturday morning the cleaning lady, Claudia (who is SO sweet and fun to talk to) comes early in the morning to deep clean the apartment. Bibi tells me every Friday night that I have to be up and out of my room by 11 am. That’s a tiny bit hard considering the night life here in B.A. lasts ALL night but I do as Bibi says (that goes without being said I guess…).  I was up this past Saturday morning and helping clean up a little bit around the house. I left to take my laundry to the Lavadero down the street and when I came back Claudia was cleaning my room. She had taken EVERYTHING out my drawers, off of my desk, and moved all of my things from their normal place to clean. Ok, it makes sense to do that in order to really clean the room but when I returned I was really overwhelmed after seeing it. Bibi saw the stress all over my face and asked why I was stressed out. I told her that it just surprised me to see my room like that but that everything was fine. She then said over and over “Bien. Bien.  No necesitamos limpiar tu cuarto si tienes un problema”  (Fine. Fine. We do not need to clean your room if you have a problem with it.) Because of my language barrier, I couldn’t make it clear that it merely surprised me to see my things all over the place and that I trust Claudia and that I was not upset but Bibi kept pushing it and she seemed offended. Then I started to cry which didn’t help my chances of explaining that I wasn’t upset. At that point I was just so frustrated with my inability to clear the silly conflict up with a few words, like I could have done in English. Anyway, we talked about it later that night and cleared everything up.

 Ok so all of that being said…don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Bibi. I really do. I just went and sat in her room and watched an episode of Glee with her a few minutes ago. (I heard Lea Michele’s voice and bolted in there.) The concept of Glee is sort of hard to explain in Spanish, I discovered. Anyway, I am learning a lot about patience and being culturally aware. And Bibi’s sometimes obvious frustration with my inability to communicate fluently only heightens my desire to continue to pursue fluency in Español. Although our relationship has not been as lovey as I initially thought it would be, I praise God for her every day. It is apparent that the Lord´s plans for how I would grow through my relationship with Bibi, were different that I expected and I love her nonetheless.

Ok friends, thanks for reading! Coming up soon: Comida de Buenos Aires (FOOD, can’t believe I haven’t blogged about that yet), more from the Hogar de Los Niños, and hopefully a picture of Bibi (she always seems to be in her nightgown and won't let me snap a photo of her)!

Spending warm hugs and kisses from Buenos Aires where WINTER has set in,

Katy   

Feliz Día de Los Padres

Today is Father’s Day in Argentina too. As I walked around Barrio Norte and Recoleta today instead of the overly touchy feely couples sticking out like sore thumbs, ALL I could focus on were the sweet fathers with their sons and daughters spending time together to celebrate El Día de Papá. I decided to conduct a little secret photo shoot as I waited at the “shopping” (that’s what the Argentinians call the mall) for my friends. All of a sudden a security guard came up to me and asked me what I was doing and why I was taking pictures. I tried to explain that I am from the states and that I have a blog and that I wanted to compare Father’s Day in Buenos Aires to Father’s Day in los Estados Unidos…but he wasn’t having it. He asked me to stop taking pictures because I might be bothering other customers…OOPS! These are the sweet moments that I captured before I got caught…

This guy looks kind of mad...maybe he's the one who told on me! But his son is really cute and happy to be chillin with his dad!!

This dad is rolling deep! He's got FOUR kids with him!

AH! The CUTEST! I debated asking them if I could take a picture from the front.

This cute little one was playing the swingggg game with dad!

I really enjoyed creeping on families today and the outward expression of love that I observed from all of the fathers and their children was really a beautiful thing. I’ve blogged previously about the LOVE that everyone expresses here and that outward expression of love certainly includes families. Bibi told me last week that her nieces, nephews, and grandchildren in the states would never kiss their parents goodbye at school or in front of anyone and how much it hurt her to see that. I don’t remember if I was ever acted that way, but if I did...eeek, sorry Mom and Dad!. She also told me that sons and daughters here in Argentina do not normally leave their homes until they are married and that she liked it that way. That's a little bit different than how we roll in the United States. She always wanted to be an integral part of her son’s lives. I met Bibi’s son and his three sons Tomás, Guido, and Gastón this weekend. I could tell he cherished his sons as much as Bibi cherishes him and loves watching them grow up as much as she enjoyed watching him become a man. It was really nice to see their family dynamic. SO, all of that being said let’s do as the Argentinians do and love our moms and dads…and each other…and not be afraid to show it.  

Anyway, shout out to the one and only EDWIN LINK! Thinking of you today Dad, and missing you more than you know!

Happy Father’s Day to all and to all a goodnight!

Katy