Texan at last

Well, I did it. I rode a horse as you can see. Now, I need to explain a bit about the picture. It seems that I am smiling, but I am actually speaking sarcastically to the idiot. I dubbed my horse Wow-I'm-Stupid. He liked to stop walking every once in a while at which point he would get whipped by our guide, yet he continued to stop. Then he would decide that he could fit in a two inch gap between other horses. Needless to say he was not the brightest creature. I am glad to be able to say that I have taken part in this famous Texan stereotype (even if it took leaving the country to get me to do so), but I don't think it's an activity that I will be taking part in again anytime soon. Not that I don't wish cars could be bumpier and smellier, but they are just so much faster.

The estancia was a lot of fun. Aside from the horse ride we got to simply enjoy the scenery and relax for most of the day. We chased some geese like 3-year-olds (don't worry, I led the chase) and fed bread to various types of birds. We were also fed lunch there. Let me tell you about this lunch. There was bread to start with, always a good sign. Then they brought out sausage (an appetizer). Then they brought out piles of beef and chicken. . . mounds of it. And there were some baked potatoes in there. There were too many different kinds of food. If you know me, then you know that I like to get a bit of everything. Well, that made this meal the biggest meal I think I've ever had aside from Thanksgiving. By the end of the meal we were all ridiculously full. That's when they brought out dessert. Crepes rolled up around dulce de leche. Take a moment and let that idea sink into your brain. It was awesome. Then we all threw up. . . not really but close.

The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful. I went to the market down the street on Sunday to check out the book vendors. I thought I might be safe from my addiction to buying books when I came down here, but apparently I love really old books at cheap market prices. I've only bought one so far, but the temptation is growing.

Speaking of addictions, the coffee here is not good. I know what you're thinking: "Wait, I thought you were in South America. Isn't the coffee supposed to be great?" We have been mislead my friends. There is good coffee in some countries, but here it's nasty. The cooks here try to brew it "American style" but it doesn't quite make it (although it is really strong so that part is good). This is one of the factors that has lead to my new addiction to mate. It's not as good as the coffee I'm used to but it is more fun to drink. I found out that there is a website that you can order it from in the States so I'm pretty pumped about bringing this crazy beverage to ACU.

Well, that's about all for now. May you continue to seek the Lord and have the courage to wrestle with your Father. May you be lost in His love, found in His salvation, dead to your sins, and alive in His mercy.

Blessings,
Matt

Soy celeste, celeste soy yo

The title of this entry is part of a song sung by the Uruguayan fans at the soccer (futbol) game that we went to Wednesday night. It was the most fun I have ever had at a sporting event (it even topped crowd-surfing out mascot from the top of the stands to the bottom at the volleyball state championship my senior year). Imagine an Aggie football game. Now throw in jumping up and down in unison and screaming things at the top of your lungs in another language (sprinkle in foreign expletives as needed). Even though it is a very low scoring game, soccer is one of the most exciting sports to watch. It's amazing the things the players can do with their feet and heads and everything else (but hands of course). Sometimes things would happen that would make Isaac Newton go, "Say what?" Uruguay won the game 3-1 so it was awesome. This week has been pretty hectic as far as school is concerned because I had a pretty hefty work load and we had a lot of planned extracurriculars (soccer, a tour of the legislative palace, and a tango lesson). Yeah, I forgot to mention the tango lesson. . .

If you know me then you know that dancing and I are not on good terms with each other. It said some things that it can never take back and the relationship simply spiraled downward from there. The tango is no different. I am glad to have experienced this piece of culture, but I simply don't enjoy dancing. Part of it has to do with the fact that I am, in fact, terrible at dancing. This boy just wasn't made for that sort of thing. The 7th grade sway-back-and-forth dance is about as far as I make it with dancing (I must admit I have a mean sway). There are quite a few pictures on facebook of me in all my awkward glory (just click on the Pictures of Matt link below my profile picture and click through until you see them). Enjoy.

The legislative palace (yes, it's a palace made of 70+ types of marble and 50+ types of granite) was sort of interesting. I think I listened and took pictures more for my dad's sake than my own. I figure he'd enjoy a little about it when I get back. So there's your souvenir, Pappy (just kidding).

Last night we had our second English Conversation "class" with the church. People who want to practice English come and talk to us. I met a guy there last week named Nicolas who was there again this week. He is an interesting character. Here is a typical conversation with Nicolas:
Me: How are you, Nicolas?
Nic: I am very well. (Explanation of day in Spanglish). How are you?
Me: I'm good. I'm kind of tired, but good.
Nic: Wow! That is interesting.

Nicolas and I have different definitions of interesting. I find people's opinions on religion or other topics interesting. He finds it interesting that I think it's cold outside. He wins some points for trying so hard. Only some.

Well, this weekend we're going to an estancia (ranch) and I think we're going to ride horses which I have never done. It's one of the top stereotypes of Texas and the first time I'll do it is not even in the United States.

Until next time, may our God and Father open your eyes more to His glory and power that you may bless those around you. Have peace, exude joy, be love.

Blessings,
Matt

Mate and more

The first word in the title of this blog is pronounced mah-tay. It is a type of tea like drink that they drink a lot of in Uruguay (and Argentina) and it's great. The first awesome thing about it is that you drink it out of a gourd with a metal straw thing with a strainer on the end. The really cool thing about it is you drink it in groups a lot. We made friends with the youth from the church connected to CasaACU and we drink mate with them whenever we hang out. It has about as much caffeine in it as coffee but you end up drinking a lot more because you just keep adding hot water to the gourd and keep drinking without noticing how much you've had. It's been a very long time since I've actually truly felt the effects of caffeine because I have a severe addiction to it (see facebook note "Addiction") but mate keeps me up. It's awesome. Enough about my new addiction and on to what you're here for: adventures.

We went to church last Sunday which turned out to be more frustrating than anything else. Autumn (on of the professors) told me that the guy who was preaching that morning was the hardest man to understand. She wasn't lying. Considering the church used to be a coffee factory and the microphone was a bit scratchy, the sound quality was already not the best. I caught a few sentences but the majority of the time my brain got too tired and checked out. Hopefully the next preacher will be a little clearer.

Classes started this week...I had forgotten I was here for school. My classes aren't bad except for one. I'm taking Latin American thought through the Catholic University here in Montevideo and it is going to be the hardest class I have ever taken (and possibly ever will take). Our professor is German but he lives in Montevideo and speaks Spanish without any noticeable accent, except when he says some phrases in English then he sounds German. It's a very strange combination of languages and ethnicity that comes together in that room. The worst part about the class is that it's two hours every Tuesday and Thursday when it only counts as a 3-hour course. Basically I am in class an extra hour per week. My brain keeps trying to check out after an hour and a half so it's a constant struggle for that last 30 minutes to pay attention.

We haven't been out much this week because it's been raining like crazy. We did go down to the beach and played some friendly futbol with our church friends and drank mate (of course). On that trip I made a deal with Martin that I would only speak spanish to him and he would only speak english with me. That has been really great practice for me and for him. Spanish Conversation is a lot of fun too. My teacher, Amelia, reminds me of Senora Croft in some ways and she looks like Edna Mode from The Incredibles.

Well, I'll post more when I've had some adventures. Until next time, may God continue to bless you in ever changing ways that you may spread His love and glory.

Bienvenidos: The Longest Blog I Have Ever Written

Well, it's been a crazy week but I finally have some time to get down to typing this thing out. Welcome one and all to the longest blog I ever hope to write.

The days before I left the country were awesome. I have the greatest friends that anyone could ask for and hanging out with them before I left was wonderful and sad and great and everything. The notes provided quite a bit of entertainment for the trip as well. Even though it was a hectic few days with meetings and trying to see everyone, it was a good time.

The trip got off to a slightly rocky start. We weren't able to check in for our flight because we couldn't prove that we weren't planning on staying for less than 90 days at a time in Uruguay. Which some of you may think, "Yes, you are silly boy," to which I say, "Nay." We are in fact traveling to Buenos Aires and Brazil at opportune times throughout the semester so that we are never in the country for more than 90 days at a time. ACU is sneaky like that. Eventually, through lots of calls and a fax or two we got through with the help of our sweater-vest sporting "Buddy" Nasir. Then, we were off to Miami (yes, Hannah, we sang the Will Smith song a lot). The Miami airport is the worst. Nothing was open except two or three places which were overpriced (though delicious) and the Starbucks was closed. The place we ended up going had coffee...but wait, it was ALL decaf. Needless to say, Miami (and the state of Florida for that matter) has been docked several hundred life points.

We got on the plane to Buenos Aires and settled in for a nice long flight. Now, we had learned that the flight would not be 12 hours as we were led to believe. It would be 8 1/2 hours with a three hour layover in BA followed by a two second (not much exaggeration) flight to Montevideo. The Lord was with us, however, and the captain told us shortly before we took off that the plane had been rerouted through Montevideo. Considering the majority of the people on the flight were headed to BA we kept our celebratory dancing to a minimum.

After we arrived in Montevideo we took a bus to CasaACU. We had lunch (four varieties of empanada followed by dulce de leche empanadas for dessert) and immediately fell in love with our new home. Then, we were given a scavenger hunt to get acquainted with the neighborhood around Casa. Given that we had not had much real sleep in the past 2 days it was an interesting adventure. A girl tried to sell me perfume, but that was about all that happened that was worth comment. That night we went to a restaurant by taxi. I don't remember the name of the restaurant, but I will forever remember the rides there and back. Taxi drivers have no fear whatsoever. Pedestrians here do not have the right-of-way, so you look both ways or die...immediately. Sitting in the passenger seat having a casual (if broken and awkward) conversation with a man who is almost killing innocent bystanders and switching lanes like a middle school girl changes boyfriends is the craziest experience I've had in a while. Now, to talk about my favorite part of the trip so far: the FOOD!

At the restaurant I ordered chivito al plato. This is an Uruguayan dish that consists of a heart attack. First, a bed of french fries is laid down. This is topped with a very thin steak. The steak is then covered with cheese and a slice of ham. Picture this in your mind. It should resemble a mountain. Now, hold that picture and add a fried egg. Who knew eggs were such a useful condiment? This meal was the most delicious thing I have eaten in a while. I really need to find a local gym...

Today we went down to La Ciudad Vieja (the Old City). We visited a few museums and a cathedral along with looking at quite a few plazas and street vendors. After we finished with the scheduled activities we were set loose to return at our leisure (well, before curfew anyhow). We had been exploring in groups of 3 or 4, but we met up with a few of the other groups and decided to walk down to the Rio de la Plata (it is the biggest body of water that is not an ocean that I have ever seen). There we walked and talked and generally looked like tourists. A few of us met four Uruguayans who were sitting on the wall by the edge of the water. They were really nice and spoke English very well. Luckily, the guy with them did not speak English as well so I talked with him in Spanish a bit. The first thing we learned from them that surprised us is that we don't have Texan accents which made us happy. Then they said something that I don't know if I will ever hear again and never expected to hear ever. After we spoke in Spanish a few times with them one of the girls said, "You are so Mexican." She was referring to the way we speak Spanish, but it was still hilarious. After we explored a little bit more we walked back to Casa.

Some of us went to the store after we got back to buy stuff for dinner. We decided on pasta with spinach sauce and leftover empanadas. We fed a group of nine for around 5 bucks. Take that Oxford! Plus, we had enough pasta leftover for some (if not all) of us to eat it again another night. We had a blast cooking together and generally being weird. After dinner we decided to try out La Cigale, an ice cream shop just a few blocks from Casa. It was amazing. They had a bunch of flavors including raspberry, tiramisu, strawberries and cream, and so many others that I'll probably try before I leave. After our ice cream adventure we came back to Casa and watched the Goofy movie. Now I need to get some sleep on a mattress I'm convinced is made of phone books stuffed in cloth. When I sit on it I don't sink...at all.

Well, that's all for now. I'll try to post more before I have so much that it gets to be this wordy, but, let's face it, that probably won't happen. If you made it all the way through then congratulations.

If you had not plowed with my heifer...

I have always loved the story of Samson. When I was little I loved it because he was like a superhero. I love it now because of the message I see in it. Samson was a Nazirite and so had many restrictions placed upon the way he lived his life. He eventually broke all of them. He was arrogant, rebellious, and vengeful. Everything you look for in a good family film as well as a children's bible story, right? He was married, but his wife was soon given to another man. He stayed with a prostitute and then he lived with another woman, the famous Delilah. Samson is most well known for his incredible feats of strength when the Spirit of God would come upon him. My favorite, of course, slaying 1,000 men with the jawbone of a donkey. He also brought down an entire temple as his last act. This man was, as the kids say these days, ballin'. All of these things are no longer my favorite pieces of this story. The greatest thing that I see in this story is that God was willing to work through this disobedient, unruly man. Samson did just about everything wrong that he could, but God did not look at him and say, "Well, this is a lost cause. I might as well move on." God had a plan to fight the Philistines and human stubbornness and stupidity couldn't even come close to stopping it. That's a very comforting thing to remember when I look around me today at all the craziness and malice in the world. Samson was a failure most of his life, but when he earnestly cried out to his God, God answered.

Joshua stopped the sun, why can't I?

Well, as some of you may have predicted, I have fallen severely behind schedule. Life is just plain busy. That does not absolve me from being behind schedule but it is one of the main factors leading to my slacking. I did finish Numbers today. I've been imagining what it would have been like to listen to Moses give speeches about the Law. I don't know if I could have done it. I find it hard enough to read, but imagining listening to this man who many believe had a stutter ramble on...it boggles my mind. This may be slightly sacrilegious, but it's how I feel. Deuteronomy is going to be a little more exciting, but what I am really looking forward to is Judges. I know I have a ways to go to get there, but there are some pretty great stories there. I'm especially looking forward to rereading the story of Samson (my second favorite figure from the Old Testament). You can expect a post devoted to his story (I know you're just brimming with excitement at that thought). He might be one of the few men in history who compared his wife to livestock and survived. Well, I realize this post hasn't been very interesting, but I promised updates so there ya go.

5th day update (on the 7th day)

It has been a while since I read through Genesis all the way. It was in Bible Bowl, so it was more of a superficial read the first time. There is one theme that has jumped out at me throughout the book of Genesis: deception. Husbands pretend to be brothers of their wives. Brothers deceive their siblings (sometimes for revenge, sometimes for blessing). At first I was a little frustrated at all of the lying and trickery, but I've realized something that makes me appreciate this first book of our religious tradition. Christ's message is all about grace which we as Christians tend to focus on. We forget that the grace came from God in the first place and that it has always been around. I think it's beautiful that the patriarchs of the great nation of Israel, the very people of God, were cheats and liars. Their flaws are representative of the flaws of all humans. God chose to establish His people through humans. If these men were flawless and perfect, they would not be human. These men were considered righteous and they were as screwed up as you and I. The Bible is characterized by an over-arching message of grace and hope through God and it only makes sense that these would be presented in the first book.

I've been keeping up with my reading well, but then again I haven't reached Leviticus. I am excited about getting to the stories of my third favorite man from the Old Testament:Moses. Well, that's all for now.