Fuego!

The past 24 hours have been a whirlwind. Last night, all 63 students, plus some faculty, went to an American restaurant called "Kansas". It was the first time in a week that I had had salad (or any vegetables for that matter) and it was kind of a disappointment because the salad was drenched in dressing and we could barely taste the lettuce. Luckily, the steak and AMAZING dessert made up for it, and we all left the restaurant full, happy Americans.

Today, we had our typical Thursday Asado (barbeque), which was delicious as always. At around 8pm, a group of 25 went to El Hospital de los Niños (a Children's Hospital that we go to once a week) to give out sandwiches to the families whose children were sick. I didn't really know what to expect the hospital to be like, but it definitely came at a bigger surprise when we pulled up to this run-down looking building and realized it was the hospital. I don't really know how to describe how it looked, but imagine a dirty looking building with old murals painted around the walls. All around the hospital, there were stray cats lurking about and when my group went to the 2nd floor to pass out the food, the rooms looked cramped and unkempt. I think we only saw one nurse on the whole floor. It was a very surreal and humbling experience for all of us to see what people in other countries have for their healthcare. I realized how blessed we are to be from a country that has incredibly well-known hospitals, that are kept in great condition. We all felt so sympathetic towards the sick children and their families, because we know that the majority of Americans don't have to be taken care of in conditions like that.

After the hospital, I was on my way home and was on the corner where my apartment building is, when I saw a huge group of people gathered around and fire trucks and ambulances everywhere. When I tried to get a better look at what was happening, I saw police tape and panicked. I froze, then turned right back around, called my friend Alexx in hysterics, and practically ran back to the Casa which is about a 10 minute walk away. All that was going through my head was, "Is my family okay? Was there a fire? A murder? I DON'T KNOW!" Alexx and two other guys from Pepperdine met me at the Casa and I broke down. By then, I had finally gotten ahold of my sister, Jesi, and all she had told me (or all that I understood) was "Fuego!", which means fire. She then said that I should stay at the Casa until she could call me back and it was alright for us all to go home. Thankfully, a few of my friends stayed with me until my madre called and said it was okay to come back, that everything was fine. My friend Taylor walked me home and when I got back, the firefighters and police were still there, but it was clear for us to go back into the building. My family probably thinks I'm some crazy American because I walked into the apartment, almost in tears, hugging them and trying to tell them (in spanish) how scared I was and that I'm glad they're okay. I still don't know exactly how the fire started or where it was, but I am so thankful that everything and everyone was okay!

There you have it! A crazy day in BA and I'm still loving it!



Besos y abrazos para todos! xoxo