Jonathan Siktberg: Argentina

I had an amazing time during my five weeks in Argentina. It was a true privilege to have the opportunity to have so many adventures all while vastly improving my Spanish. I will begin with a quick summary. We started in Buenos Aires for three days and then flew to Salta for a two week homestay. We then went to the small town of Chicoana for five days where we painted a local library. We then set off for a four day horseback trek across the Andes Mountains, staying at tiny gaucho farms each night. Finally, we returned to Buenos Aires for a couple days to conclude. 

The highlight of my trip had to be my homestay. My family was amazing. The parents are lawyers, and they have three kids: Victoria (19), Ulises (15), and Bautista (12). We hit it off right from the start, and suddenly I was having fun and making jokes all in Spanish without even realizing it. I went on runs with my host dad, climbed mountains and went to rugby practice with Ulises, had rap battles with Bautista (much easier to rhyme in Spanish!), and taught Victoria how to make my personal favorite chocolate-chip pancakes. Almost every night before we went to sleep, we played a very intense game of UNO. I fell in love with my family, and I sincerely hope I will be able to see them again.

Here we have a picture of me participating in an empanada eating contest against Carlos, the professional painter who helped us with our community service in Salta and Chicoana. I have no idea why we don’t have empanadas in the States because they are delicious. I took home the victory for the USA in this battle, eating 28 beef empanadas to Carlito’s 27.

These pictures chronicle our experiences in the Andes Mountains. Before horseback, we had a full day of white water rafting in a river of freezing cold water. We then set off on our four day adventure. The mountains were absolutely breathtaking. You can see the entire group together at the top of one mountain, most of us proudly sporting our alpaca sweaters. I had a lot of fun on my horse Giraffa. He was by far the biggest, fastest, and rowdiest horse of the bunch. Our gaucho guide was great, and he taught me how to lasso. Here is a picture of me and my group leader on horseback, both of us proudly sporting our traditional Argentine ponchos.

One morning Kepler and I decided to get up early and climb a mountain near the gaucho farm where we were staying. It actually turned out to be a much more difficult climb than we initially anticipated, but we made it to the top in time to catch the beautiful view.

I had the time of my life during my five weeks in Argentina. To Sr. Kamm, thank you so much for thoroughly preparing me to communicate effectively during my time in Argentina. I will be forever grateful to the Wilson family for making this experience possible for me. I am dying to go back!