On Dreams and Change

I want to share some of my thoughts with you on some popular themes at this time of year...Dreams and Hope and Change...I have been very impacted and inspired by the words of Senator Barack Obama during his 2007-2008 campaign for president of the United States America, and so I have penned some of my own words in a sort of political pseudo-speech...I apologize for the length...I got kinda fired up!

(The Most Impassioned Speech ever Written on a Plane (From Quito to Lima on January 9th, 2008))

We are to embark upon a new age. The new generation, the children of the baby boomers and the hippies have reached maturity as the future of our global community. We are now fortunate to have the opportunity to ask not what our country can do for us, but rather what we may do for our country and the world. I am learning from a distance below the tropical equator, in the occasionally coined Global South, what it means to be in a position of privilege. With that role comes the adjoining responsibility to understand and protect others who perhaps have not had the chance to embrace globalization and/or wish to maintain their cultural, economic and/or political sovereignty. Regardless of whether some communities desire to participate wholeheartedly in the worldwide spread of technology, communication, language, economic markets, and political ideals, that should not deter the respect and sensitivity due to all members of society.

This new generation of business men and women, political leaders and activists, spiritual guides, environmental advocates, students and educators, agriculturalists, engineers, food servers and bartenders, military personnel and civilians all have the potential and means to unite and bring forth improvements and change the world left to us by our predecessors. When our parents fought for civil rights and equality, marching and demonstrating for peace in the 1960's and 1970's, that was not just an isolated event, nor when their parents, our grandparents, fought for the rights of women and endured two World Wars, that was not because they were stronger, braver, tougher, smarter, or more enterprising. No... WE... You and I, Our generation, has got what it takes! We are comprised by the same blood cells and genetic material as our parents and grandparents who fought to bring about great things. Thus, like them, we shall and we must take up the reigns of this vehicle for progress and continue riding for that land of promise.

Now is not the time to sink behind our computer screens and update our facebook and MySpace profiles, or let our eyes glaze over after 2 hours of watching music videos and comedy show on YouTube. And my friends, it is not hour to slump into our overstuffed chairs with the iPod and a magazine or a comic book. No, Thank You! I have been entertained into submission and idleness for quite some time now, and I must ask myself, WHAT AM I DOING to make my future one to walk towards? How have I impacted my world to the extent where I can be proud to say that I am ALIVE today and this is my country and my sphere of water, minerals, living organisms, and an abundance of gases...AND I DID THIS! And you know what? It does not look good out there sometimes. We have been born into a planet ripped apart by wars, starvation, disease, genocide, environmental degradation, lack of resources, a mounting population, and plagued by fear. Many people live in a state of trepidation and agony on a daily basis, whereas others enjoy the comforts of free education, air- conditioning and an overabundance of entertainment. With such stark difference within not just different corners of the world, but commonly existing withing national borders. We must pose to ourselves and implore one another to answer the questions of our time... What have we done to earn our place in the world and how are we not only just co-habitating this planet from birth, but actually participating actively to make our lives worthy of our birthright as citizens of this world.

I cannot tell you how many of my family and friends have said to me, "What is the point of caucusing, voting, paying taxes, respecting our leaders, etc.? The System is flawed. The presidency is a joke. The world hates the United States. One person cannot change a thing! I do not have time for futile attempts to change people's minds. No one can think for themselves. It is just too much to take on!" Those are some of our excuses, right? I mean it would just be too hard...That is probably what grandma and grandpa thought during the depression, when food was scarce and winters were harsh, but they still managed to build our country back up. I bet our parents looked in the face of the war machine aimed at Vietnam and thought, "Wow, what difference can I possibly make?" But they did! And their friends must have seen the the injustices faced by our compatriots in the racially troubled South where they were deprived of basic human rights, and wondered to themselves if it was worth fighting against the big shots in Washington and other people in power, but they kept pressing on! I say all that to say this... The fight IS NOT OVER!!! We still have a lot to do, but no more than has been accomplished before. We cannot expect mommy and daddy to solve our problems, because now it is our turn to make them proud, if not in our beliefs (because we may not always agree), but then in our conviction and determination to rise above our media saturated, grey-fogged and jaded views of the world and MAKE A CHANGE!!

Look around you, we are facing a war today, and what are we doing to bring about peace? Not Enough! We are living in a country riddled with poverty and inequality among races, religions, genders, and romantic lifestyles AND what have we done to make that less pronounced? NOT ENOUGH! This is not the first time we have seen scapegoats used to churn and channel fear to control our opinions, so why do we still fall for the same tricks today? I believe we need to reach out of our paradigms and get a reality check! Racial problems are not going to solve themselves if we continue to surround ourselves with people of the same skin tone day after day. We will never understand what all the fighting is for if we still cannot grasp the fundamentals of other religions and belief structures. And, how will we be able to fix our economy if the extent of our understanding fails to go beyond our own spending habits and consumer profile.

We do not have the right to complain about the state of our affairs if we are first unwilling to figure out why and how we are here in this position, and second we cannot expect improvement if we do not do it ourselves! As the sayings go, "If you want something done right, DO IT YOURSELF!" "Change does not happen overnight," and, "Nothing in life is free." We must earn our place in our future and make it a time worth being in. If not than we better sit back and watch our contrived Hollywood version of reality and continue wondering what happened to the world and how did it get this way...But we better not say that out loud because we had a hand in making it that way, and it is best we do not forget it! With silence comes compliance, thus implies alliance and an unavoidable reliance on the decisions made by those who chose not to maintain their silence. I for one do not wish to be silent any longer; silent in compliance, alliance, nor in reliance. I want to earn a place in my future, AND I EMBRACE that responsibility with all the enthusiasm I once reserved for embittered, jaded complaints against a system and a world that I did not dare to change. Why? Because they told me that I couldn't. That it was bigger than me and I wouldn't make a difference.

Well, I certainly will not make a difference if I sit in silence, in compliance, alliance and reliance. I would rather occupy myself with peaceful, well-informed, and eloquent defiance! We cannot loose anything, for we have barely started our ascent, the only direction is forward and we are fooling ourselves by standing still! Others will move us forward, but perhaps in a direction that we will not want to go. Let us now pave forward in our chosen direction, with eyes, ears, and minds open! Breathing in fresh ideas and constructing and maintaining our own system of our own making, proudly being a generation to be championed and praised for genuine merit, flexibility, intelligence, and integrity. This is our charge, this is our responsibility, this is our RIGHT... AND this is our MOMENT!!!!!!!

Thank you for reading...

Peruvian livin'

Hello all,



I am currently in Cusco, Peru...tomorrow morning we are setting off for a 3 day excursion to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of the Incas. it is probably the most touristy part of the trip so far...I have seen so many gringos here in Cusco...And people are usually impressed/surprised to hear that I can actually speak Spanish. This trips has brought me through the South of Argentina, Central Chile, Northern Argentina, Bolivia, and now Southern Peru...all in one month! We are having an amazing time, and so far (knock on wood) no problems or lame places.



Right now we are planning our Christmas and New Year's Eve activites...although it is hard to get into the spirit of the holidays without the usual commercialism and cold weather. I am a bit sad to not spend the holidays with my family, but I guess ther will be times that we cannot be together, but next year will be wonderful and I will appreciate more than ever!



So, I have had some observations/realizations on this trip...I will share some...



-There are a lot of people travleing from the England, Ireland, and Australia. It seems that Americans do not travel as much as I thought (At least to South America)...but the Americans that I do meet tend to be pretty cool.

-Not all foreigners say they dislike the United States, but tend to have a few negative generalizations (Americans are not that friendly, tend to stick to their group, don't want to make new friends, act like things should be easy for them, hold the same expectaions for things as in the United States, etc.)

-I have realized that, I am not just an American...I am an amazing human being, and I happen to be a United States citizen, and that is a wonderful thing...In other words, I have nothing to be ashamed of...people may not like my country, my culture, my president...but that doesn't mean that they don't like me...I am an individual (obviously), although I am a product of my environment (US culture), I am not a stereotype, nor am I to be blamed for things out of my control, and if people cannot understand that, then perhaps they should examine themselves as well...

-I have realized that I love my country more than I thought...we have beautiful things to see, friendly people and a great philosophy for living. Given, we have made mistakes (knowingly and unknowingly) and done terrible things, but you would be hard pressed to find a country without skeletons in their closet...Wow, I really sound very Pro-America...Oh well, It is about time that I start standing up for my country instead of hiding behind all of my opportunites and taking my life for granted!! I am Proud to be American in more ways than not and that feels astonishingly liberating!

I am thankful for this opportunity to be away from home to see how much I truely do value it!

Future plans...

So I shall impart my precious plans for the next few years...This is obvously not definitive...as I have not applied to the positions nor bought plane tickets, but this is my plan as of now,a nd I can see no reason why it wont come to fruition...
Okay, so I am currently traveling in South America for 4 months...Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, and Uruguay....then back to Buenos Aires for 4 months to take more classes...Im thinking French, Portuguese, International Business, International Relations, and possibly an art class.
Post South America...
I will return to the United States of America in July 2008 and spend approximately 4 months in Iowa City, with the exception of a few trips to visit friends and/or family in Chicago, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Boston, and Southern California (This is the only way I can stomach an entire 4 months in Iowa)...So I plan to work at the Office for Study Abroad and some other currently unknown place until late December 2008 in order to pay off this trip and save for the trip to come...Okay so after Christmas 2008, I plan to fly to London and work there for 6 months...I want to work in an international business firm or an embassy to get a feel for things before choosing an emphasis for grad school...I also want to take little trips to Northern Europe (Scandanavia, Germany, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, etc.)
Post London...
InJuly 2009, I will come back to Iowa City to see my family and friends and work for 2 months before my next trip back to Europe...I want to teach Englsh in Spain for an academic year (9 months)...So from September 2009 to June 2010 I will be in Spain...After that, I dont know yet...Perhaps I wil go live in Central America or go to grad school and/or law school...So apparantly I have only planned 2.5 years in advance...lol!

Brilliant Plans...

I have 4 months to travel between my two semesters here in Argentina...so I have begun planning the next phase...I plan to travel from November 6th to March 10th (approximate dates). I want to go to go south from BA to see the whales and penguins in Puerto Madryn (Peninsula Valdez) and then across to the West of Argentina to San Carlos de Bariloche, where they have the Andes Mountains and skiing and national parks. Then I'll go across the border to the Lake District of Chile, then I will go up through Chile to the capital Santiago de Chile and take day trips to the beaches of Valpariso and Vina del Mar. Next we will go back into Argentina to the Northern cities of Salta and Jujuy where they have lots of indigenous people. Then I will go up North into Bolivia and explore the salt flats in the South and up North to La Paz and Cochabamba then we will go to Lake Titicaca and cross into Peru and go to the ruins of Machu Pichu and the Inca Trail then my two roommates will leave from the airport in Lima on Dec 21, so after they leave, my fiend Eva and I will go North to Trujillo, Peru to spend Christmas on the beach. Next I plan to be in Guayaquil, Ecuador for New Years Eve. So from this point I think we will go to Quito, Ecuador and make our way over to the Northern beaches of Brazil. I'm not sure right now how we will get to that point...I want to spend time on the beaches of Brazil, then later go to Salvador de Bahia and end up in Rio de Janeiro for Carnival February 2nd. After that we will go to Porto Seguro, Floranapolis and Sao Paulo...and eventually end up in Uruguay at Punta Del Este. From Colonia we can take a ferry back into Buenos Aires... if we have enough time and money I want to go to the South of Argentina to Patagonia and see the glaciers and the southern most city in the world, Ushuaia. Then we'll go back to BA for school to start in mid March
that is four full months of traveling....

So...I will start saving money now! (Any Christmas presents may be deposited directly into my bank account!)

Argentina...hmmm...

So...I have waited a long time to open a blog account...I was planning to copy and paste messages from when I first arrived here to give the perspective of time unfolding and or developing, but my Gmail account is acting crazy, so I will wait to do that for a while...

I have done a lot of interesting things here in Buenos Aires since I arrived June 22, 2007.

I was in an Intensive Spanish Program for a month, where I lived in Recoleta with the Brages family...It was lovely...But I was anxious to start my life here...It felt like a vacation...

After the Intensive Spanish month, I went to Mendoza, Argentina in the West, a region known for its wine and the Andes Mountains...I loved it!

Here is a link of my photo album from my first month in Argentina...

http://iowa.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2177492&l=2ba0f&id=14812408

School started 1st of August at the Universidad del Salvador (USAL)...I spent 3 weeks trying to decide what classes I wanted to take...very lengthy and confusing process...Just like everything involving the USAL...I finally chose to take International Negotiation, Argentine Folklore, Theory of International Relations, High Intermediate Spanish for foreigners, and A Seminar on the History of Argentina's Ideas and Political Processes...Yeah...Im not a big fan of school at the moment...I really love the Spanish for foreigners class, but the other ones are generally boring...It is disappointing because normally I love going to class and listening to the professors talk about what they are interested in, but in Spanish, it is so hard to get every bit of information...So I tend to start zoning out...It isn't interesting to me if I don't understand the point of what they are talking about...

I went to visit Mar Del Plata...it was fun, but cold...The ocean was lovely! It was a funny vacation because we didn't do a whole lot...it was cold...I got sick...but, it was still fun!

I celebrated my 22nd birthday in Buenos Aires. It was a lot of fun! I planned two birthday parties...My plan was to have a relaxed, classy night on Friday...so we had dinner at a nice restaurant (The food was amazing) and later had cocktails at a luxury lounge bar... The next night we went to a dance club to celebrate my actual birthday. Coincidentally, it was another guys birthday as well, so he reserved a table in the VIP section and we celebrated until the wee hours of the morning with 20 of our closest friends. I was worried about spending my birthday so far from my friends, but I had sooo much fun! My roommate, Gisselle, brought a chocolate cake to the restaurant. I received chocolate, wine, and a necklace from my friends.

Here is a link from an online album of pictures from my two birthday parties...

http://iowa.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2188681&l=0baf8&id=14812408

I went to visit the Waterfalls of Iguazu at the borders of Argentina and Brazil (Paraguay is very close as well) It was an amazing experience and helped me put things into perspective...I have been a bit homesick in the last month...the the point where I was trying to figure out how I could come home...I was sick of trying so hard to do even the simplest thing and didn't want to feel so out of place...Time away was the best thing for me...now I feel less melodramatic and I'm excited to go travelling during my vacation (Nov-Feb)...What I realized was that I need to figure out how to be happy right now, not change locations to distract myself from what is really going on...I have been having some really eye-opening experiences and conversations with ppl and it is helping to shed light on my purpose here in Argentina...I am always trying to find my purpose...So, now I am seeing things in a more positive light...not focusing on small setbacks and I have many things to look forward to!

Here is an excerpt from an email to share how I felt upon returning from Iguazu...

I have noticed...the older I have gotten my goals have become more grandiose and I have made great strides...but that is not who I really am...I am defined by my spirit for adventure, my smile, my laugh, my hugs...my moments of kindness and also my bitchy moments...my pushiness, my control-needs, my need to feel special...all of those things are me...among other things...BUT the point is...I am not what I study at the university, or the languages I speak, or who my friends are, or how well I can put together an outfit...I am finally discovering and accepting who I am at the most simple level! I am who I was in High School or part of my childhood when my personality was more clear and I was more carefree...but the only thing missing then was my confidence to actually be who I am! I was myself...but insecure to be myself at the same time! Now I am less afraid and I don't try as much to impress people, and I am trying to remember who I am at my simplest form....

Yeah it would be cool to be a travel journalist...there are jobs like that...the ppl at the study abroad office are always talking about them...they sound really cool, and it is always a possibility!


So here are my ideas on travelling...I REALLY loved my time in Iguazu and when I went to Mendoza...they were so amazing, and reminded why I am here! I am here to explore new places! Not, suffer in class or watch TV or get drunk at a bar! So...I really want to travel the whole vacation...I have 4 travel companions for the first month and a half and other ppl we can meet up with...so I will be safe...I am really excited and I think it would be the most memorable thing to do...That is something I definitely wont regret! Right now, I feel like the travelling is the once in a lifetime experience! I have so many places that I wan to go to in the world, and I gotta take advantage of where I am now so that I can go explore Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, etc...

I feel really positive and rejuvenated after my trip to the waterfalls!!! It was amazing!!!

That is how I am still feeling...I'm still riding the wave...Okay...so thanks for listening/reading...Have a great day and stay tuned!