Final Days in Bariloche

One of the things I dislike the most in life are endings, whether it be an ending to a movie or a good book.  I get so caught up in the journey that I never want it to finish; however, all good stories must come to an end and so does our immersion trip in Argentina...

Dani Ashman at Pub Blest

On Thursday, our group headed just outside the city of Bariloche to eat lunch at a pub called, "Pub Blest."  We were served various meats with bread, followed by ice cream.  We also tried different types of beer, such as raspberry, bock, and scotch ale.  The rest of the day was free to us, so my group decided to go shopping while others hiked a mountain or visited the beach area.

No more school!

Friday was our last day of classes!  Each student received a letter with feedback from their professor about their strong points with Spanish along with areas to improve.  We then said our good-byes and took our last pictures with the school and the professors.  After classes, we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than by going out to eat!  Caleb seemed to really enjoy his burger!

Today we head back to Buenos Aires.  The majority of the group leaves on Monday while a small group decided to stay an extra week and head to Iguazu Falls, one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

I see a repeating theme here
with Caleb and food...

However, despite that this is the last day in Argentina, this is not the ending to our trip, but rather just the beginning.  The purpose of the immersion trip is to improve our Spanish while being immersed within a different culture, giving us an endless amount of opportunities to use what we have learned in the public ministry.  As much as I may think this is an ending to our trip, God reminds us to look at the bigger picture and how we can use what we have learned to spread the gospel.  Matthew 28:19 says, "Therefore go and make disciples of ALL NATIONS, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

Thanks for reading everyone!

-Nate Solofra

A lot happening in a short amount of time!

Sorry for the delay, everyone!  We have had a pretty hectic weekend and finally are settled in here in Bariloche!

Tigre 

Views from the bus ride!

Where to begin??  I'm pretty sure the pictures will be worth far more than anything I can write, but I'll give a recap of the past few days.  On Saturday, we had the morning and afternoon free, so some of us went to Tigre, a small city north of Buenos Aires (several groups went prior to Saturday so I'll try to speak on their behalf as well).  Tigre is located at the delta of two major rivers, so its major attractions are related to the water!  Some groups went on boat tours; others just walked along the river and enjoyed some much-needed sun and fresh air!  There also is a fairly large artisan market along the river that has a little of everything: jewelry, leather, all types of clothing, every type of food possible (strawberry popcorn?), and more.  We loved getting a chance to step outside the city and spend some time outside.

Click me!

On Saturday evening we said goodbye to our host families, packed up all of our stuff, and travelled to the bus station (turned out to be quite a challenge for Dani and I, but everyone made it safely!) to go to Bariloche.  We left Buenos Aires in a double-decker bus that featured full meal service, comfy seats that reclined, movies, AND a bathroom!  But before you get too jealous, allow me to say that this trip lasted a full 22 hours!!  However, the views we had Sunday afternoon totally made up for it, as hopefully you can get a taste of from the pictures.  The mountains are absolutely beautiful and just seeing them was a breathtaking experience.

It's SUPER windy here!!

The beautiful Bariloche

We were successfully delivered to our host families' houses in Bariloche last night and ventured to classes this morning in total darkness--since we travelled 22 hours but didn't change time zones, the sun rises very late here.  We took a brief test and got to know our new teachers for the week, then had a few hours of studying various literature and cultural themes in our classes.  Following classes, we divided into two large groups for a walking tour of the city.  Since Bariloche is pretty small, we were able to get a gist of the important places of the city in a short amount of time:  we saw the cathedral, the central plaza, and several chocolate factories!  A lot of the city's architecture has a Swiss style, which gives it the feel of an Alpine ski town.  Also, we can't stop taking pictures... the city is next to a lake and surrounded by mountains, and although it's a little cold (in the 40's today) we are completely caught up in how beautiful everything is.

Hasta pronto!  Chao!

-Erin

Bariloche's cathedral