For Laith Alsous, Olivia Briganti, Jack Carminati, Olivia Duke, Annie Fleck, Mackenzie Hoplight, Lexi Lindamer, Nick Ortiz and Madison Reynolds it was a trip of a lifetime. The Lewiston-Porter High School students, along with International Programs Director Amy Townsend and chaperone Dick Lindamer, traveled to Mendoza, Argentina to immerse themselves in the culture and traditions for two weeks. “We did so many cool things,” says Madison. “I stayed with two host families and they were both so nice and welcoming. I loved it.” Nick said it took some getting used to being in a foreign country. “It is totally different than everyday life in America. We take things for granted like fresh water and certain foods.”
Beef was a mainstay for most of the dinners and the students said their favorite food were empanadas. “I had empanadas every day,” says Annie. “They are like chips here. When you order pizza there you can get them as a side.” “The food was great,” says Jack. The beef was so good and we ordered Asado in some restaurants, which is just a huge plate of all these different types of meat. The portions were huge. It was good except for the blood sausage.” They admitted that the eating schedule took some getting used to as well. “We would eat a small breakfast; have toast, lunch, tea and cookies at around 5:00pm and then dinner at 10:00 to 11:00 at night. They stay up very late,” says Olivia Duke.
School was run very different than what they are used to at Lew-Port. “It is not the same at all,” said Madison. “The students stay in the same class and the teachers rotate through for the different classes. They are very long too; about 90 minutes, which seemed longer when you couldn’t really understand a lot of what they were saying.” Since there is no cafeteria at the school, school ends by 1:30 pm, and everyone leaves to eat lunch at home and then takes a nap or siesta. “I loved siestas,” added Madison. Mendoza is the only province in Argentina that still incorporates the siesta into their daily schedule.
The students were fascinated with their American classmates. “As much as we were trying to learn Spanish, they were trying to improve their English,” says Nick. “We thought they spoke rapid fire and they thought we did too. We all had a lot of laughs of how we were pronouncing certain words in each other’s language. We were still able to make ourselves understood though and we had a great time.”
The students also got to partake in their classmates’ graduation ceremony. “They combine graduation and prom together and it is crazy,” says Jack. “It is the end of their school year now because it is summer there. The graduation is at 9:00 at night and the prom starts at 1:00 in the morning. Anyone can attend after 2:00am as long as they buy a ticket. The couples walk down a catwalk and guys twirl their dates. There must have been 2,000 people there.”
The students also had time for some excursions to see the beautiful country. In Mendoza, they went on a city tour, to local wineries, which are the driving force of the economy, and also drove about two hours away into the Andes Mountains. “I thought the Andes Mountains were really cool,” says Nick. “They have second largest peak in the western hemisphere. At the ground level it was 40 degrees warmer than in the mountains. It was actually snowing. Some of us were not prepared for that. Luckily there were a lot of shops that had llama hair blankets and sweaters. I thought their handmade crafts were amazing. I brought back a lot of souvenirs.” After 10 days in Mendoza, the group traveled by plane to the capital, Buenos Aires, exploring the city and even took in a Tango performance.
Even though the students joked that they also brought home their erratic sleeping and eating schedules, their most cherished possession was the bonds they made with their host families and classmates. “My hosts and I became very, very close,” says Olivia. “We talk to each other every single day. It is cool to say I have best friends who live on the other side of the world.” “My favorite part of the trip was the connections,” says Nick. “I really want to go back in July. I Facetime the people I met there all the time.” They also say they have all bonded over the experience and have become very close as well. “We are all best friends now and talk together and see each other all the time,” says Annie. “It’s was an amazing experience.”
Front Row: Nick Ortiz, Jack Carminati, Amy Townsend and Dick Lindamer. Back Row: Mendoza students Luciana Rubio and Gonzalo Rodriguez, Olivia Briganti, Annie Fleck, Madison Reynolds, Laith Alsous, Aidin DeCastro, Lexi Lindamer, Mendoza students: Julian Sanchez, Agustina Rubio and Ezequiel Zapata.
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