This weekend, Vida Estudiantil Buenos Aires hosted the annual CCVN retreat. CCVN is a leadership retreat for students and professional who are involved in the movement here in Argentina. The Gringos were warned that this was going to be an exhausting weekend as there would be many students and various classes and activities; all of which would be in Spanish. Although the first night was a little frustrating because of the language barrier, I had an amazing time this weekend! I absolutely loved getting to know the students more and meeting the other students and staff members from La Plata!

We started the retreat Friday night and by the end of the night I was frustrated. I wanted to befriend everyone the way I knew how in the states. I kept thinking I didn't know what to say or how to say what I wanted to say. This all lead to a frustrated me who ended up not talking much. When I got home Friday night, I recognized that my exhaustion from Spanish overload was a huge contributor to my irritation. I also recognized that I could not befriend anyone with a bummer attitude and it is going to take more than my own efforts to learn this language. However, the truth is no matter what the language, people are people. It is not a science. Love em. Again, I surrendered over my attitude and expectations to the Lord, asking him to fill me with his Spirit, let me relax, and wake up with a new attitude. Saturday was wonderful! Even with a full day of evangelism training, talking with friends, and going out to the park to share the Gospel, all in Spanish, it was wonderful! I wasn't tired and was truly just enjoying it. Praise the Lord.

One thing I still can't get over is when we had worship. In Spanish. It was beautiful. I had never worshiped in another language. It was amazing to think of all the other countries worshiping in their native language. It really put into perspective God's presence in the world. There truly are people all over the world who have experienced the abundant love of God and can not help but worship him. It was a small room but our voices were loud.

The Lord is at work here in Argentina. My team and I can not wait to see the Lord continue to work through out this next year! Last week we were assigned the campus we would be working on all year. It is only fitting that I can happily report I am on the ag campus. :) I am pumped! The men's movement is really flourishing here but the women's side of things is in need of leaders. This year we are asking God to raise up 7 women who are on fire for Christ and have a desire to lead on the campus. We are also praying that someone on one of the political Groups, Nuevo Espacio, would accept Christ. The political groups have a lot of power on campus so think of the effect it could have if such a strong natural leader were to begin following Christ. If you all would please join us in praying for the Ag campus's women's movement and salvation of students, especially from Nuevo Espacio, that would be wonderful! God is big my friends and his work goes beyond where our daily lives lead us. Join me in praying for those around the globe and here in Argentina.

Today I literally found myself laughing out loud (in a good way). Today was my first day on campus doing ministry. The school system is different here than most universities in the states. Here public universities are free. You might think that the education would be bad right? Well it is actually better than private schools (college at least). Furthermore, there is no such thing as dorms here. You only go to campus for classes. The University of Buenos Aires, where we are doing ministry, has several different campuses all through out the city. The campuses are specific for each major - law, medicine, agriculture, philosophy, etc. Most campuses have around 30,000 students.

Ok so knowing this, guess what campus I go to today.

Agronomia. Aka - agriculture. I am stoked. The campus is about 30 minutes from where I am in the city. When I stepped off the bus, I saw pasture. This is not your typical campus. I literally walked for ten minutes next to fences of horse, llamas, goats, and ducks. One horse had a buzz cut! No mane. There were maybe 3 buildings that semi looked like classes could be help there. As I was walking around I literally said "I can not wait to take pictures of this". I loved it. It just made me laugh. It was not at all what I was expecting.

As for actual ministry, Morgan and I were able to do solarium with one girl. There is a lot of spiritual activity on this campus which is really neat to see. Most all of the "gen-ed" classes have to be taken on this campus so we get to interact with students that will eventually go to the medicine, law, etc campuses. That is really neat because then the other stinters working on the other campuses meet students who have already had seeds planted. I was told several great stories of how Cru was granted favor on other campuses because of the work on the ag campus.

Hopefully some of this makes since. I just thought me on the ag campus was worth sharing but I really need pictures to accompany this so you can somewhat picture this. I will work on getting pictures up soon!

HOLA!

Tomorrow marks the one week mark in BA (Buenos Aires)! Que lindo! (How great) My mind is constantly in Spanish mode even after such a short period of time. Before I got here, I was told that a lot of sleep was going to be necessary because it is exhausting translating from spanish to english back into spanish. I will attest to this statement - it is truth my friends. Exhausted would be correct. However, I love it! I love the fact that I am actually getting to use Spanish on a daily basis and will one day be good at this language! This might be a good time to mention that my host mom, Inez, does not speak a lick of English. We communicate though and it is great! She tells me all the time to relax and it is not important if I don't understand.

Inez is precious! She is the cutest little thing. She is 72 so she is kind of like my argentine grandma. We live on a really busy street - 6 lanes or 8 if you count the area where cars park/ the crazy drivers here drive in anyway. Seriously, I was warned by Mrs. Uhlig that when you are riding in a car here you would cross your fingers and say ," Lord if this is my time.." and it is true. It is as if the big white lines in the street do not even exist. It cracks me up. I was in a taxi the other night and could not help but laugh and think of Mrs Uhlig. And I am not sure if this is true but so far I have not seen a speed limit sign...

Continuing on the subject of cultural differences, here is a list of the things I have noticed so far:

• They love bread. Bread is a staple at every meal. I swear I do not understand how they are all so small because they eat bread like it was going out of style. Although I would not be able to pass up the bread either when you pass by a bakery in the morning. Smells wonderful. One look in the window of the bakery and you want in.
• Currently it is spring which means shorts in America. Not here. They are still rocking the boots and coats thinking it is cold.
• O I like this one - Bidets. I had never seen one before so when I had my first tour of the house I asked Inez what it was. Our apartment is pretty small mind you - think New York - so why you would waste space with such an object I do not know. I probably don't want to know.
• Turkey is an unknown meat here. There is no such thing. Ham, ham, ham, steak, salami.
• Dog poop=EVERYWHERE. If you dream of being a professional dog walker, this is the place for you! Seriously I have seen so many! As many as 10 dogs at once. I saw a man this morning with a belt on for dog leashes. Priceless. I thought that only existed in the movies.
• On the outsides of the windows there are these cool dark wooden blinds. From the street it gives a really neat look.
• Garages are super neat! Most everyone lives in a apartment here. There is one garage door and a pole with a green and red light on it. When the light turns red, a loud beeping sound warns pedestrians to stop on the sidewalk because a car is about to come out. All the cars for that apartment are kept underground. They just go right over the sidewalk and onto the street.
• It is very italian based. Pizza, ravioli, lasagna, gnocchi, etc. Also, green olives seem to be big. Every slice of pizza has a giant green olive in the middle of it... The spanish they use here, Castillano, has a lot of Italian influences. Chau, buenisimo, etc.
• Everything takes a lot longer here. Lines exist but not everywhere. And where there is a line, it usually moves really slow. Earlier this week when we were trying to set up our phone plans, we went into the same store three days in a row, twice a day for at least an hour and half each time.
• Do not, I repeat, DO NOT cross the street when the pedestrian sign says stop! Buses and cars will literally run you down. There is no concept here of pedestrians having the right of way. They do not stop.
• When I went into the supermercado (super market) I had to get my backpack zip tied while I was shopping. I might add I forgot to take out my wallet before hand... dummy.

Ahh there is so much I don't even know what else. Plus this post has already become pretty long. We have all year though right? haha. right.

This week has really just been a week of me settling in. I started classes on Tuesday and it is going well. (Did you know public universities are free here?! But hard to get into.) My stint team came on Wednesday. They are wonderful! Looking forward to spending the year with them. There are so many things I could go into but I will spare you from reading a novel. I had been trying to blog all week but was having issues logging on. Now that it finally worked I am unleashing the thoughts I had been storing up.

Tune in next week! This could get interesting my friends! As they say here - Chau! (Cha-ow)

Fish and Fry. Done.

Last few days on project. It has flown by so quickly. I feel so normal being here. Although I have gotten to know these people really well in these 10 weeks, I also feel like I am starting to get to know more about the little details of their personalities. Santa Cruz has been wonderful. I have absolutely loved being here, but it isn't home. I am sad to leave but not so much the city as the people. The 58 students God has brought together for this summer have been more than I could have dreamed of. Through out the summer each of us has had to give our testimony at one of our meals, which is not just us crusaders but any friends, co workers, or whoever, that we have invited. All though each of our stories are different, each one ends the same way and points to the same thing: it is a relationship. God does all the work. God provides whatever strength or power and He gets all the glory. When you hear 58 students who all have completely different backgrounds all say that in the end it comes down to God being the only true satisfaction and that it is not about rules and traditions but an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, how could any one not believe in the salvation that comes from Christ?! It is absolutely beautiful!

Our stories are intricately woven and beautifully crafted! Through them God is able to point a light towards Himself and say "come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28) We all are on in the process of learning that we all feel a deep longing within us and each one of us tries to fill that longing with something, whether it be relationships, sports, food, control, beauty, perfection, success, whatever it may be, each person in this world was made with a deep sincere longing for the Lord. But instead of acknowledging that the Lord is the only one who can fill that longing, we try to fill it with things of this world. I had a conversation with one of my coworkers the other day about this exact topic. She has been trying to fill this void with boys and relationships but still feels so alone and empty. I was reminded the other day that God's Holy Spirit is living inside each one us whether we chose to accept it or not, He is there. It is up to us whether or not we are going to call upon the Lord and allow that Spirit to work inside of us.

I know I have not shared on all of the spiritual conversations the Lord has placed me in throughout the summer or the ones my friends have gotten to be a part of. There are soo so many. I wouldn't even know where to begin or how to word them so they would not be to lengthy. I already make each of my posts rather lengthy for you followers. But I am always up for sharing so got questions or want to know more call or email me :))

I am flying back to school next Wednesday and I am a little nervous to leave the community I have had here at the Pan. God is good. He has my back for next year. Who knows what he has planned for me next

I know it has been awhile so there is a lot to catch up on. A couple funny stories to start us off.

1) There was an explosion. An ice cream explosion. Here was just another normal day at work making a chocolate dipped ice cream cone for a lovely gentleman when I go to use the ice cream machine, pull the lever, and BOOM! Ice cream is everywhere! All over my face, all in my hair, up and down my legs and arms, covering my shirt and shorts. It had to be the funniest thing! Priceless. Not to mention there is a line outside forming to get ice cream and I am now covered in it. Hahahahaha It was great. Please just picture vanilla ice cream all over me and tell me you are not laughing.

2) I also had an encounter with money. So this particular day I am working with someone. (I know, with people! Not just me, it is a miracle haha just kidding) So I am working with this girl for the first time and we had just had a conversation on counterfeit money and what you do if you get one, and what her experience was when she thought she got one once. Small talk you know. Anywho, then she proceeds to take her 30 minute break. Literally within 5 minutes of her being gone two ladies order and hand me a 20. This 20 was definitely not looking legit. I held it up to the light to see the president's face and there wasn't one. Ok first red flag. But it had the censor strip sooo what am I to do? I couldn't decide if it was fake or not so I was kinda slow to ring them up and what not as I contemplated. The girl I was working with had told me to call the supervisor and make up some excuse that my register wasn't working while the super heads over to check it out. Well since I wasn't really sure if it was fake or not I decided instead that I would just make a good mental note about what these two ladies looked like. Again, right after they leave, the girl I was working shows up for something she forgot and I tell her about the possible counterfeit. Here is where it starts getting epic. She looks at the bill and says" This is totally fake. I am calling Louise. (the super)" I am starting to laugh and get excited because there is ACTION going down! Louise comes and says it is real. It was just an old 20 so it isn't made like the new ones. But wait, then runs in 4 security officers. O great. My head shoots down and I am just chuckling (I mean you have to laugh) at the fact that I just said I had a counterfeit and 4 security guards just came. You may be thinking this shouldn't be a funny matter but you would have to understand the atmosphere in which all of this took place. It is not like I was the only one laughing. We all were. I was just the fool and the one being laughed at. Good times.

So now moving on to just some fun stories.

1) Surfing. Yep I can say that I have surfed in the great state of California and in one of the most famous surfing cities in the world. Santa Cruz. Last Friday me, Lauren (my roommate who happens to be fabulous and such a God sent), and Charlie go out at 7:30 to surf. So stinking fun! I had surfed once before in Costa Rica and was able to get up. However this was with my dad pushing me into the waves. This time I was without dad. Now I had to paddle fast enough to get myself into the wave. At first this was presenting some challenges. I was so close every time but I was barely missing them. Then I got the hang of it. Surfs up. I was doing it. The place we were surfing however is like bumper surfing. People everywhere! The last couple of waves I tried to catch I was knocked off by some little kids. Literally insane the masses that crowd the waters pretty much daily. But totally worth it. O and did I mention I was in a wet suit! 50 degree water! Lets just say after about 2 hours the wet suit, although fabulous and miraculous, still leaves you saying "I am a bit nippy".

2) My final story to tell is one that involves you golf lovers and Clint Eastwood fans. My friend Stu's birthday was last Monday and he is a huge Clint Eastwood fan. For his special day he wanted to go down to Carmel to eat at Clint's restaurant. Let me tell you I fell in love with Carmel. It is so sticking cute! Clint's restaurant, Hog's Breath, was really really good. It had a great atmosphere. If my camera was not a piece I would post pictures on here to show you. Soon enough you will see them though. After lunch we drove down the 17 mile drive which starts right next to Carmel in, you guessed it, Pebble Beach! Now I am no serious golf fan but for some reason I was just super pumped to see this! AWESOME! Tiger you need to get your act together brother because you are one lucky man to be able to play there. It was absolutely beautiful! ahhh just wait till you see the pics although they don't even do it justice. So naturally while doing all of this I had to call my dad and brag. haha love ya dad :)

There you have it. A small glimpse of a few of the things that have been going down. But those are only the minor ones. SO SO MUCH is happening and God has His hand in everything! I could never write about what all He is doing. And my blog would never do it justice. Heck I barely can do these little stories justice.

Boys listen up!

One of the things Campus Crusade (aka CRU) is big on doing is creative dates. Last year at school we had one, other students on project had them at their school, etc...Well here on project is no different. Each room is called an action group and those are the people you have Bible study with each week and honestly the people that become your best friends. So each guy action group was instructed to ask a girl action group out on a creative date. So fun right?

Last Friday at lunch the boys who had our room came out and sang us a song, that they wrote themselves, to ask us out! And this was no hoky song either. They sang really well together and everyone knew the words and it was great! I have a video of them singing it again that I will try to post. Ok, so they asked us last Friday and we were so excited! They were so excited to have our group of girls which made us even more excited. Now, while they had mentioned some of the things we would be doing in the song they sang us, they were still be secretive.

Last night was the big night.

AWESOMEEEE!

We started at 4 in the afternoon. First thing on the agenda was lazer tag. Then a few arcade games to buy some time, which we didn't know why at first, so with the arcade tickets we won we got spongebob tattoos, stick on earrings, and chinese handcuffs for the entire group. Yes, the boys were sporting stick on earrings. Then we proceeded back to the Pan (aka the peter pan motel which we are staying at) to get the cars. As we walked to the Pan we had paired off and had put our fingers in the chinese handcuffs with one of the guys. We deemed this the new trend in Christian dating. Chinese handcuffs eliminate the awkward hand holding hahaha (not that we would actually be holding hands, it was just a joke)

Now we are back at the Pan. Time to head off to the unknown destination. First stop TOGO's for dinner. We order our sandwiches to go as instructed and pile back into the car. We drive for about 15 minutes, exit the freeway and drive through a pretty neighborhood. The road then T's off and straight in front of us is a gorgeous beach shining through some huge and beautiful trees. We make our way from the cliff down a path to the actual beach and it is picture perfect. Not many people, pretty sand and if you look to your left you see Monterey, to the right Santa Cruz. Pretty Sweet.

The rest of the night proceeds with dinner, flying kites, exploring, making a fire with smores and banana boats, the boys playing guitar and singing songs, telling stories, star tipping, and taking glow sticks, breaking them open and splatter painting the sand! The sand looked sooo awesome!! The guys continued the surprises by bringing us all our favorite candies and then even after we pull back up to the Pan at midnight they tell us they will be right back, they have one more surprise. They come knock on our door about 20 minutes later and have a picture frame for each of us with the group picture we took that day on the beach! These boys made us feel so special and it was probably one of the best nights on project. O and to top it off before we left the beach to come back one of them prayed us out. How awesome is that?! Needless to say we love the boys of room 60. They put so much thought and planning into our date and nailed creative right on the nail.