Un Año en Mendoza: Re Quemada

I have been a bad blogger... In my defense, I am doing homework instead of writing blogs. The last post that had content about my life was almost a month ago, oops. Anyways, here is an update about my Argentinean September.

I finally have a schedule and have decided on classes! It is great to finally have this figured out. What isn't great is that I wasn't connected to the online modules for my classes for a while and I missed over three hundred pages of reading. Lets just say when I talked to my professors, I may or may not have over used the classic "soy una estudiante de intercambio. No lo entendi." Have I done it all? Nope. Am I going to? Nope.

Other than that enormous blunder, my classes are going really well. I am taking a class about the Social History of Argentina, which is just about what it sounds, not too interesting but not entirely boring. I am also taking Drawing I! It is fun but my professor doesn't like me (I deserve it - I don't listen to any of her instructions). In spite, I call her evil-witch-lady. My favorite but hardest class is The Problems with Social Control and Violence. The class revolves for the most part about Social Work but we talk about things that I am incredibly interested in. Our current unit is talking about the Mendocino Prison System and the human rights violations that happen mere kilometers from where I am living.

While that class has only confirmed that I want to study Human Rights, my life in Mendoza has flipped my world upside down and I am changing my major! I realized that I have absolutely no desire to ever study Spanish Literature or even learn Portuguese. What a revelation, right? After a few serious chats, a couple of emails, and many night staring at my ceiling, I haven't decided what I am changing my major too. I have a feeling that I am going to end up in an environmental field but nothing is set in stone yet!

My life in Mendoza has become incredibly normal and I have settled. I know which buses to take, where to get cheap coffee, the best place to buy trail mix, even how to look less like a gringo, which is really hard when you have white-blonde hair and blue eyes. I am happy here. I am home.

Merely hours ago I got off the bus from one of the coolest weekends I have had here! Madison, Forest and I rented a tent and some sleeping bags and took off early Saturday morning with no plan and heavy packs. Our first night was spent in Potrerillos, a town in the mountains an hour and a half from Mendoza. We popped our tent next to the vibrant turquoise lake and made ourselves at home. We cooked pasta over a fire and let it burn down to coals as the sun disappeared behind the mountains and stars filled the sky.

Sunday morning, we packed up and decided to head to Las Vegas, an even smaller town twelve kilometers away. We started walking with our thumbs out and soon enough we were picked up by a lovely woman. Once in town, we scarfed down some empanadas and drank some local beer before wandering to the top of a desolate cerro where we set up camp. Forest tried, and failed, to make rice and beans but no one was upset because soon enough we were sipping whisky under the most beautiful stars I have ever seen in my life. Imagine this: a cloudless, moonless night in the mountains, free from the light pollution of the city and absolutely silent. We fell asleep drunk on the stars (and the whisky). Around 4:30 in the morning, all of us woke up because we were now sober and rocks were jamming into our backs. Unable to fall back asleep, the three of us sang the Beatles and went back out to look at the stars. This is a moment I will never forget.

After getting a few more hours of sleep, we packed up camp once again and started our journey to Vallecitos. Instead of walking along the road to get there, we decided to just cut across a few cerros and free trail everything. It worked perfectly. Travel time was cut in half and soon enough we found ourselves at the road to take us all the way there however we never made it to the actually town/mountain. We stopped at an arroyo (a river that only runs during certain months of the year) and got distracted. We swam, skinny dipped, took way too many pictures, then napped in the shade. There was a thin strip of land on the other side of the river and without hesitation, we crossed and set up camp. This was by far the prettiest campsite but least convenient. We had to throw wood across the river to start a fire and it was a little damp but all of us were happy. Repeat making dinner, having a bonfire, and watching the stars and you have an accurate synopsis of our last night.

We woke up and hung out around camp for a few hours before making the trek back to Mendoza. Besides forgetting sunscreen and taking a couple of tumbles, this trip was next to perfect. While I am happy to sleep in a bed and not smell like I haven't showered in a few days, I would much rather be teasing each other inside the tent or roasting in the sun. I keep playing all of the little moments from this weekend in my mind and I am still in awe of how amazing this trip was.

I know I skipped a bunch of stuff but ya esta sufficiente.
Besitos.