Mendoza, Argentina

Twenty-six years ago, I befriended two exchange students in my high school, Carolina from Venezuela and Sergio from Argentina. Little did I know that my association with them would change my life forever. It was due to them that I applied to be an exchange student, traveled to Venezuela for a year, studied Spanish, lived in Spain and became a Spanish teacher. Who knows where I would be had I not become friends with those two? Here is few pictures from a long time ago.

Hace veinticinco años me hice amiga de los dos alumnos de intercambio de mi colegio, Carolina de Venezuela y Sergio de Argentina. No tenía la menor idea de cómo cambiaría mi vida para siempre por asociarme con ellos. Fue por ellos que me apunté a ser estudiante de intercambio, viajé a Venezuela, estudié español, viví en España y soy profesora de español. ¿Quién sabe dónde estaría yo si no hubiera sido amiga de ellos? Aquí hay unas fotos de hace muuuuuuchos años.

In high school dscf8298

Carolina and I have stayed in contact over the years. Of course, I saw her a lot while I was living in Venezuela. Then, I went to Japan to visit her while she was living there. Together we went to see the Dalai Lama speak in Washington D.C. However, Sergio is not good about writing letters, and we quickly lost touch once he returned to Argentina. Thankfully, Carolina was able to find him and share his contact information with me. I sent him a message via What’s App. He invited me to visit him and his family in Mendoza where he lives. I have to admit that I was a little nervous about going. We had not seen each other in a long time, and his wife had never met me. How was she going to react? I should not have feared. The entire family welcomed me with open arms, and Sergio and I were as close as we had been all those years ago as though no time at all had passed.

Carolina y yo hemos estado en contacto a través de los años. Claro que la vi mucho cuando vivía en Venezuela. También fui a visitarla cuando ella vivía en Japón. Juntas fuimos a ver el Dalai Lama cuando visitó Washington, D.C. En cambio, Sergio y yo perdimos el contacto casi inmediatamente porque él no escribe cartas. Gracias a la investigación de Caro, nos pusimos en contacto otra vez por What’s App. Cuando supo que yo iba a estar en la Argentina, me invitó a pasar un rato con él y su familia en la ciudad de Mendoza donde viven. Tengo que admitir que estaba nerviosa antes de ir. Hacía muchisísimo tiempo que no nos habíamos visto y su esposa jamás me había conocido. ¿Cómo iba a reaccionar ella a mi presencia? No tenía por qué preocuparme. La familia entera me aceptó con los brazos abiertos y entre Sergio y mí parecía que no había pasado ni un año.

With a friendWith a friendKids on a trampoline

Sergio and Claudia live in an adorable little house with their beautiful boys.

Sergio y Claudia viven en una casa linda con sus hijos adorables.

House in Mendoza, ArgentinaWith the kids in Argentina With the kids in Argentina

I felt right at home with them drinking mate, eating authentic Argentinian asado and talking for hours.

Me sentía en casa con ellos bebiendo mate, comiendo el auténtico asado argentino y hablando por horas.

drinking mate misc-045Argentinian asadoArgentinian asado

Sergio also took me for a tour of his beloved city. Mendoza is in the foothills of the Andes Mountains. You can see the mountains from almost every point of the city. As I lived in the Andes on the other side of the continent, I was happy for the opportunity to the visit another side of them.

Sergio me dio un tour de su ciudad amada. Mendoza está al pie de los Andes. Se pueden ver las montañas de casi toda la ciudad. Yo vivía en los Andes al otro lado del continente y estaba feliz de conocer otro lado de ellos.

Mendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, Argentina

Everyone told me that Mendoza would be very cold, but climate change has had an effect here as well, and all we needed was a jacket. I was just happy that it was not raining.

Todo el mundo me había dicho que hacía mucho frío en Mendoza, pero los cambios climáticos han tenido efecto y no hacía frío. Sólo hacía falta una chaqueta ligera. Me encantaba que no llovía como en Buenos Aires.

Mendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, Argentina

Downtown Mendoza has some beautiful buildings.

El centro de Mendoza tiene unos edificios bellos.

Mendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, Argentina

Does it surprise you that I found some mosaics?

Claro que encontré unos mosaicos.

Mosaics in Mendoza, ArgentinaMosaics in Mendoza, ArgentinaMosaics in Mendoza, Argentina

There are also some nice parks.

Hay muchos parques interesantes.

Mendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, Argentinain a tree in Mendoza, Argentina

Of course, I had to climb a tree.

¿Te sorprende que subí un árbol?

in a tree in Mendoza, Argentinain a tree in Mendoza, Argentinain a tree in Mendoza, Argentina

I also was able to see the performance that Sergio’s son’s school put on the celebrate Argentina’s bicentennial.

También tuve la oportunidad de asistir el acto del bicentenario del colegio del hijo de Sergio.

Argentinian Bicentennial CelebrationArgentinian Bicentennial CelebrationArgentinian Bicentennial Celebration

It was cute to see all of the children dancing in their traditional costumes.

Mira los niños preciosos bailando en su ropa tradicional.

Argentinian Bicentennial CelebrationArgentinian Bicentennial Celebration

I also appreciated the opportunity to visit another school.

Me gustó la oportunidad de visitar otra escuela.

School in Mendoza, ArgentinaSchool in Mendoza, ArgentinaSchool in Mendoza, Argentina

However, the best part for me was the opportunity to reconnect with an old friend. I spend three full days in Mendoza, and a great part of that time was spent in different cafés around the city with Sergio. We talked for hours, catching up on all that had happened in the past 25 years since we had last seen each other.

Sin embargo, lo que más me gustó de mi visita a Mendoza fue reconectar con un amigo viejo. Pasé tres días completas en Mendoza y pasamos gran parte de ese tiempo en un café u otro por la ciudad Sergio y yo. Hablábamos por horas, contándonos todo lo que había pasado en los últimos veinticinco años desde que nos vimos por última vez.

With a friend in Mendoza, ArgentinaWith a friend in Mendoza, Argentina

Another special memory from my visit to Mendoza was our trip into the mountains. I will tell about that next week in my final post about my Argentine adventure. In the meantime, you can read my prior posts: Clase en Buenos Aires, El apartamento de Sofi, Belgrano, La RecoletaMALBAPuerto Maderoel CentroPalermo, Museo LarretaESMASan Telmola Plaza de Mayothe Museo Histórico Sarmiento, and Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes.

Otra memoria especial de mi visita fue el viaje que hicimos a la montaña. Contaré de ese viaje la semana que viene en lo que será el último artículo de mi aventura argentina. Mientras tanto puedes leer los otros artículos: Clase en Buenos Aires, El apartamento de Sofi, Belgrano, La RecoletaMALBAPuerto Madero, el CentroPalermo, Museo LarretaESMASan Telmola Plaza de MayoMuseo Histórico Sarmiento, y el Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes.

Mendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, ArgentinaMendoza, Argentina

Happy Travels!

¡Feliz viaje!

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About

I am a teacher, traveler, artist, writer, homemaker and a whole lot more. In January 2009, I bought the Cape of Dreams. It was the second house that I had ever owned, but it was the first that I bought by myself. I now live in the house with my husband Douglas, our dog Kahlua, and Crème de Menthe, the cat. Because, what life is complete without a little Kahlua and Cream? I love arts and crafts of all kinds, and I refinish furniture as well. We are slowly redoing our entire house. You can read about my projects on my blog www.CapeofDreams.com

4 Comments on “Mendoza, Argentina

  1. what a wonderful post! i loved reading about your re-connection with sergio and his family. he has a pretty epic grill!!! i also like their kitchen floor. the mosaics are amazing – did it inspire you to work more on yours when the weather warms up? i’m looking fwd to seeing more of your mosaic work. what fun to have old pics of you guys 🙂 and now lots of new ones!

    • There was a lot that inspired me in Argentina. Now I just need time to work on my creations! I am really bummed that I did not get to work on my mosaic more this summer. This spring I swear to do it! No more excuses.

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