Well, the program here is winding down, and my time with my friends is running short. We have already started saying goodbyes. Thursday the 13th, we had our first Goodbye Party. The CRI or Central Relaciones Internacionales Office put together a going away party for all of the exchange students. This included my program and the other exchange students.
We had a private party with lots and lots of sandwiches and empanadas. There was also plenty of pop, juice, and water to drink. We watched a slide show, which included some of our tango show, pictures and interviews with some students. Afterwords, we each got a copy of the show. They played the national anthem of each of the countries represented. This included Brasil, Canada, Argentina etc.
After the food, we began Karaoke. People were a little nervous at first, so I got the party started with a terrible display of the Backstreet Boys. They picked a song for me that I really did not know. It was almost as bad as being in my Brothers Basement on the XBox or whatever system it is. I managed to break the ice and get the party going. We mixed songs from different languages. Espanol, English, and Portuguese. It got pretty ugly when I tried to sing the Lion King in Spanish. I redeemed myself in English though.
This past Monday my neighbor Amber went back to the States. I woke up and thought I would go say goodbye to her. I walked down the street and "rang her bell" (haha) only to find out she was preparing a going away lunch. I had been invited but forgot, imagine that. I stayed for the small gathering of girls, and said my goodbyes to the girl next door in Argentina but from New York.
AND Yesterday my program had a going away dinner. Alfredo, the director of my program arranged a dinner in the center of the city for all of us. We met at a restaurant called Revolucion. Everything was already paid for (From our 15000 dollars it costs to do this program). It was all you could drink wine, pop and water. We had an appetizer of some really rich cheese with bread. Then we had some really tasty meat, followed by a dessert. Our group presented Alfredo with a small gift. We all chipped in and baught him a really expensive bottle of wine. He also had a gift for each one of us. It was a small argentinian candy. We said our goodbyes (even though there is a week left of the program). For a few people, it was the last time I would see them during this experience. For others, I will continue to see all week.
It is weird how the time has gone by so fast. I feel like I have known these friends my whole life and now I have to say goodbye. It also feels like I just arrived here yesterday. Its almost been 5 months. NO WAY!!
No comments:
Post a Comment