Unforgettable experience: AMO ARGENTINA!

If you are ready to make life-long friends with some of happiest people in the world, you will adore a HomeStay in Argentina? Even though I have traveled extensively, I was a little apprehensive about living in South America. But my host family integrated me into their lives very quickly. We shared meals with their friends and family most nights, drank matte (traditional herbal drink) with everyone, and traveled together to many places in Argentina. I fell in love with this country and its people very quickly.

Life is simpler and slower, so I was able to enjoy every day with my family with low stress. I enjoyed riding a bicycle to the cafe for a pastry, to the market for vegetables, or to fetch water for the household. The neighbors and school children waved at me almost immediately making me feel very welcome.

It is important to realize that you are an ambassador for the Greenheart program and your country while there. EVERYONE wants to know if an American is just like what they have seen on TV. So are being observed by many. One day, I was invited to speak to high schoolers about my background and experiences in Argentina. Besides all of us laughing about how teenagers loved their cell phones, they were sincerely excited to see that I was "normal" and "just like them" in many ways. A few said they would love to visit the US now that they know a little bit more. How wonderful, and I hope I can host them if they decide to come!

I took a month at the end of my family HomeStay to travel throughout the country. Everywhere I went, I felt safe (this was coupled with making good decisions), welcomed, and amazed at the breadth of beautiful landscapes. A couple of 'tips' to make the travel easier is to bring extra toilet paper with you, toilet paper is never flushed in the toilet, and always drink bottled water!

So, just GO! The HomeStay was a great way introduction to this fantastic country.