Well as I write this I am sitting in my Tango class and we are dancing for our midterm : ) Patrick and I were the second couple to go so I can now officially say that my midterms are done! PHEWW : ) (real tough eh?) The trip to Uruguay this past weekend with Katie was so much fun and so much greater than we could have even planned! We went to the ferry station and our big ferry left the port after midnight! It was huge and looked like an airplane on the inside! Three hours later we arrived in Uruguay : ) As we walked to our hostel Katie and I both looked at each other and said, "Do you smell that, it's fresh air!" hahah : ) We stayed at a cute little hostel in the middle of town and we had a private room so we didn't have to share with strangers, always a plus! : )

Saturday morning we explored the town walking and then we found out that our hostel had free bikes to take around so we did some more exploring on the bikes! : ) It was so great to be able to cross a street and actually have the traffic stop for you! Colonia is a very antique town that has kept many of the original buildings and streets. The old part of town reminds me of how I would imagine a European town : ) And most of the streets are cobblestone! It is surrounded by water and so we spent hours sitting on the rocks watching the hundreds of sailboats and drinking mate : ) tough life! We rented a scooter for the afternoon and it was the best choice ever! haha. We scooted all over town and explored the outskirts and went to an old bull fighting stadium! There is this beautiful road that goes right along all the beaches, it was so incredible to drive the scooter and see nothing but ocean to your left and beautiful houses to your right : ) We stayed at the beach to watch the sun set and it breathtaking and so worth the cold scooter ride back into town! : ) Enjoyed "Chivito" a traditional plate of Uruguay which is pretty much like a garbage plate and so delicious! A base of potatoe salad-ish and french fries, and on top of that is a piece of meat with a fried egg on top and on top of that is ham and melted cheese! O baby, I could feel my veins hardening! : )

Sunday we drove our little scooter out to the beach and had our own little 'church service', it was just so incredible to be able to sit on the edge of the ocean in Uruguay with a new best friend and realize how truly blessed we are, a pretty surreal experience: ) and then spent the rest of our time exploring a little further outside of town, we avoided getting lost and took the scooter back with out any new scratches! PHEWW! It was such relaxing and laid back weekend and I am so lucky that I have the chance to experience a new adventure every weekend : )

Last night we prepared our pasta for the main event! It was Grace's son's birthday last night so a bunch of family and their significant others came over to eat dinner and celebrate. Once again a team effort brought about a delicious pasta dish : ) It was so much fun to meet more of Grace's family and they are just as loving and welcoming as she is : ) 

Thanks for reading! Bailey

Grace, Emma and Meghan! Girl's night of cooking and fun! The pasta turned out great! Thanks to our wonderful chef Meghan : ) We are all learning! haha

For dessert... FRENCH TOAST BITES! Meghan's friend sent her real maple syrup in the mail! So AMERICAN and delicious!

Our Hostel!

Colonia, Uruguay : )

On our bike ride! The streets were incredible!

Part of the historic part of town : ) We climbed the lighthouse! Not quite as tall as Hatteras but beautiful view : )

This is the life

There was a parade of all the cultures of the different provinces and I had to post this picture, can you imagine marching in those heels!?!?

And to answer your question, I didn't wreck her once, we had some close calls but nothing touched : )

With the old bull ring in the back : ) WE ARE BABES!

Chillin at the beach, drinking mate, reading the Good Word : )

:)

The sunset as we drove back into town. I told you it was worth it : )

Happy Friday everyone!
It's been a full week of studying and I am happy to say that my midterms are officially done! Well, I take that back, I have my dancing midterm in Tango on Tuesday but I don't think that you can really count that one : ) Wednesday was "Dia de la Primavera" or "Dia de la Estudiante" here in Buenos Aires so we had the day off from school! Through ISA I was able to participate in a service project here in the city for a day : ) There are some provinces here in Argentina that are very very poor and literally have no medical services and so if people need assistance they have to travel all the way to Buenos Aires (hours and hours on bus) in order to get help. There is a home called, Asociacion Formosena: Hogar Dr. Esteban L. Maradona, which helps these people and there families when they arrive to the city. They help them make it to the hospital, travel around the city and offer them a place to stay during their treatments, all for free. Some people stay for days, others for years... It's a really incredible organization. On Wednesday we painted a few different murals on the side of the building to draw attention to the organization and to bring a little color to the place : ) It was a beautiful day to be outside and paint in shorts and a tee-shirt! Through out the day we were able to talk with one of the founders of the home and learn more about the people from Formosa, the doctor after which the organization was named, the history of the place and what kind of services they offer. Towards the end of the day some of the families that are currently staying at the home came outside to check out our handy work and chat with us for a little but : ) It was so incredible to see the strength and resilience of these families, some of which had been away from home for more than 2 years, they were so kind and inviting. It really put things in perspective, many times I think it's easy to get caught up in my so called "problems" and forget that there are so many people who are dealing with things that are so much harder. I am really glad that I was given the opportunity to spend the day and to learn a little more about this very diverse country, every day it seems like another layer is revealed.

On another note totally! I made it to my first Buenos Aires milonga last night! A milonga is a place where the locals go to have a drink, eat dinner and dance tango : ) The professor of my tango class, his dance partner and a bunch of us from Tango Class all met up at "The Ideal" last night. The place is very antique and has such a neat vibe, there are couples of all ages dancing tango and I could have just sat there all night watching. I love watching the old couples dance, they really know how to work it! : ) I tried my hand at a few different dances, stepped on a bunch of feet and had a grand ol' time : )

Today Megan is coming over to teach Grace how to cook pasta carbonara! She worked in a restaurant in the States and is great in the kitchen and Grace is eager to learn new recipes so it's the perfect combination! We are trying the recipe out tonight, and if it passes the test, Grace wants to cook it for her oldest son's birthday dinner on Monday! His new girlfriend is coming for dinner for the first time so we are hoping to impress : ))

At midnight tonight Katie and I take the ferry across the BIG RIVER to Uruguay! We are staying there for the weekend and looking forward  to a relaxing couple of days in the little town of Colonia! Who would have thought that traveling from country to country could be so easy : )

I hope that you all have a relaxing weekend as well! I am jealous that I am missing the big Husker-Cowboy match up! Some one be sure to fill me in with all the details! ;)

Un abrazo! Bailey

The Home

The name : Asociacion Formosena: Hogar Dr. Esteban L. Maradona

A blank slate!

Mural of the doctor

A work in progress!

This is the part that I helped with! This is the province of Formosa, and we highlighted things from each part : )

One of women had the great idea for all of us to put our hands on the wall! I think its my favorite part!

The smile says it all : )

Hey everybody! 
Hope that everyone had a really great weekend! I got to experience my very first wine tasting in the country that is world famous for it's wine, so that was really fun! Agustin, the leader of our youth group at church, is from Mendoza, Argentina (wine country) and he offered to set up a little wine tasting for us "yankees" who don't know anything about wine! We all pitched it 30 pesos (about 7 dollars) and he took care of the rest! Come to find out, Agustin is a wine vendor on the side as he studies Theology here in Buenos Aires, so he knows quite a bit! hahah. He taught us all the correct etiquette, when to swirl the glass, how to smell it, what to look for, smell for, taste for.... Too many things to remember! But it was quite hilarious when he would ask us, "Ooo, with this one, you can really get a sense of the oak.." I nodded my head and pretended like I could tell the difference ; ) hahah. There were three of us Yankees and 5 Argentines representing the provinces of Cordoba, Mendoza, Salta and Buenos Aires! Really great night, still so amazed how the youth at the church have just gone above and beyond to welcome us here : ) 

Saturday was "Dia del Campo" with my studies abroad program. We traveled about an hour outside the city to an estancia (ranch), where they greeted us dressed in traditional gaucho (Argentine cowboy) gear. We spent the day walking around the estancia which they have set up as if it was years in the past and then for lunch they cooked us a huge asado! After eating they danced all different kinds of traditional dances for us, it was really cool : ) The afternoon brought some horseback exhibitions, merienda, and some dancing with the locals : ) It was a very laid back and fun day! 

Monday I had my first parcial (midterm) in my grammar class, I thought I studied pretty well but the test was quite difficult so we shall see! I can't believe that I have already made it to midterms, the time is racing by! The weather is improving daily, and today I walked to class without a coat, the climate is pretty perfect right now! The only problem is I am going to freeze to death when I return to Wyoming in November, AWWW! Well on that note I had better go study for my art parcial which is on Thursday! I am really gonna give this one my all because I don't really have a background in art to rely on : ) Thank you all once again for sticking with me for the past 2 MONTHS, it's really been so wonderful to get your feedback and encouragement. God has blessed me with an amazing support system back home, thank you from the bottom of my heart..
UN ABRAZO FUERTE! 
Bailey

Katie came over to cook supper at my house before the wine tasting : ) We made some delicious spinach pasta and a salad, all for about 5  US dollars : ) We are both cheap college students!

Agustin said he was just gonna to put together a few simple things... Check out this spread!

Agustin, our regional wine expert. "Para mi, este es mejor en la boca..." (For me this is better in the mouth) : ) totally!

Ching Ching!

The group, minus a few!

Our hosts and entertainment for the Dia del Campo

Our lunch! Check out the sides of beef just chilling in the back : ) Here is a explanation (in Spanish, sorry) of what an Asado is

The horseback show! Hanging from that white thing was a tiny hoop and they would take turns running at it on horseback and putting something about the size of a pencil through the hoop! Like jousting more or less!

Striking a pose with Grace : ) She is so great and always makes me laugh, she always has the best poses for photos : ) The best part is that she actually was a Levi Jeans model during college! haha. We made her bust out the old ads one night at dinner : )