Today we did not hike mountains or get a surf lesson, we stayed at school. It sounds boring but today was one of my favorite days. Oh Tuesday we had prepared PowerPoint presentations to show to some 4th graders. We presented them today and it was a lot of fun. The topic my group spoke about was American holidays and traditions. Although it was a boring PowerPoint, all the kids were attentive and asked questions which made it fun. After we presented our presentations, we went outside for recess with the kids. We played soccer with this small, old, foam soccer ball that could barely even be called a ball. Nonetheless, the kids had a ball (pun intended) playing soccer with us and I had great time too. Toward the end of recess I accidentally kicked their ball on the roof of the school and we all laughed about it but we ultimately could not play soccer anymore. At some point after that I casually took out my iPhone to see if I had any notifications and all the little kids suddenly crowded around me in awe at my phone. Apparently iPhones are extremely expensive in Argentina compared to the US, especially a new iPhone 6, and very few people have them. I felt bad for kicking their ball on the roof so I let them play with my phone and they seemed to enjoy that even more. Eventually recess came to an end and it was time to say goodbye. We took a few pictures and I gave all of the kids a hug goodbye.
After that fun morning, we went to a classroom to write a short essay about our time in Mar del Plata and thank you notes to our families because today is our last day in Mar del Plata. That led to lunch, which was some sort of potato pie that actually tasted pretty good. With it we had salad and their classic alfajores dessert. After lunch we headed up to the senior library in the attic for a culture presentation. There was no air conditioning so the room was quite hot, but we survived. It was getting close to dismissal but before we left we were graced by a beautiful ceremony to say goodbye to us Americans. It was extremely sad to formally say goodbye to all the friends we had made during our week and a half in Mar del Plata. I know I will miss them a lot.
– Jack Wakeham
After school on the final day in Mar del Plata, Hannah, Vicky and I went to Guemes to go shopping! The shopping trip consisted of eating ice cream, buying gifts for friends, family, and ourselves, and strolling the streets. We headed home to get ready for our final meal with our host family at Antares, a local restaurant known for its awesome French fries! We met up with a lot of other hosts and friends there, laughed, and made the most of our last night together. We headed to Buenos Aires tomorrow and as sad I am to leave my host family and Mar del Plata, I’m so excited to see Buenos Aires and enjoy the remainder of the trip!
– Megan Monroe
