Friday, July 31, 2009

Here in Paraguay.

At about 5:30 we landed in Asuncion, Paraguay.
I´m writing this from a computer in the AFS retreat center.
I would upload a few pictures but this computer will not allow me to get pictures from my camera because I´m not an administrator. Between the USB incompatibilites, the difficulty understanding a computer in Spanish, and trying to figure out a Spanish keyboard I´m having one of the hardest times ever using a computer. Just wanted to let everyone know I´m safe and sound and things here are good. Some pictures to come when I get to a computer that doesn´t hate my camera (I got some great pictures of Chile from the airplane). Thats about it for now.

Layover in Chile

Hey everyone! I got access to a computer from one of the other students (Vivian) who had her laptop. We are currently sitting around here at the Santiago Airport in Chile. We've been a bit confused on the details of our next flight but we think we've got it figured out now. We've got a few hours here to chill and quite a few people are taking the opportunity to crash on the chairs. At 2:30 we get on a plane bound for Asuncion. It's hard to believe this is really happening.
Got to go now before Vivian's laptop dies.
Next post from Paraguay!

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Chilling at the embassy

Embassy Suites hotel that is. Yesterday we were given name tags and had a bit of free time to meet everyone. In total between Paraguay, Brazil, and Chile we have 37 students who are scheduled to leave today. It's amazing how much diversity there is in the people here. There are people from all over the US. This hotel is overnight the second best hotel I've ever been to (second only to The Royal Highland Hotel in Inverness, Scotland). Breakfast this morning was AMAZING! They have a line where you pick your ingredients for omlettes and then hand your choices to the chef. A few minutes later she has your omlette ready to eat along with hot pancakes, sausage, and bacon. They also have a nice little room that is sectioned off as the business center but also comes in handy for things like writing blogs. Unfortunately their work station setup makes it impossible for me to run skype off of my thumb drive.
Right now we have a lot of free time until we leave at 6:30 this evening. Our actual flight is much later but I'm assuming they're giving us extra time to clear security. While the AFS volunteer here (who we call bel) is worrying about getting us out the door and on our 3 respective flights she will also be dealing with the next group of kids coming in who are headed to Panama.
When we get to Santiago, Chile tomorrow morning we will have an 8 hour layover during which we are absolutely forbidden to leave the airport terminal. When we asked what we were supposed to do for 8 hours Bel shruged and said that we would have to entertain ourselves and that AFS does provide us money for lunch.
When we get to Paraguay we'll be staying at the AFS retreat 2 miles outside the captital city AsunciĆ³n. After our 2 days of orientation we will either be picked up by our host families or be sent on a bus (their equivalent to greyhound) to our respective host cities.
That's about all for now. Post when I can. Next post from either Chile or Paraguay.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

The finishing touches.

Tomorrow I get on a plane at 7AM destined for Miami, Florida!
When I get there I will meet up with a representative from AFS at the Embassy Suites as well as with all the other USA to Paraguay exchange students. My biggest concern at the moment is the layover in Atlanta, Georgia which gives me 41 minutes to find my way to the next gate. Hopefully everything will run smoothly. Going to get some sleep now as I need to wake up at 4 tomorrow to finish getting everything ready.
Next post will be either from Miami or from Paraguay.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Host Family and Location!

So yesterday Dad checked the AFS page (because I was tired of checking and being disappointed every single day) and the information on my host family and location was posted. I will be staying in Hernandarias with my host family. I will have a host father, a host mother, and host brother named Oscar who is one year younger than I am. I will be attending school at the Colegio Anglo Americano. 27 days to go.