And When It Rains It Floods

        The past two days have been my worst two days in Argentina. I am so glad that today is finally coming to an end. Yesterday I was able to sleep in because I did not have class. I had to meet with the group at 12 to have lunch so I was going to head out around 11:45. Unfortunately it was forecasted to rain & I didn't have room in my bags to pack rain boots. Before I left for Argentina I was debating over whether or not I should bring my rainboots. One article said that it doesn't rain often, but when it rains it floods. After asking another student who went on this trip last year, I decided against bringing my rain boots...bad idea.When I left the apartment it started monsooning. I'm talking pouring down rain, hail and really hard winds. Even though I had my umbrella I was completely soaked and when I tried to cross the street the water filled my boots. I called Luciano, but he said that we were required to come so I went back home and put a change of clothes into my backpack and headed back to UP.  Of course when I came back outside it had stopped raining.When I finally got there everyone was soaked from head to toe, so I didn't feel so bad. One of the houses that another student lives in was flooded. Marcela warned us that in the future if it rains we should just stay inside and wait until it stops. Like the article, Marcela said that it doesn't rain here often but when it does it floods and they can often be dangerous floods. About a month ago it flooded really bad and a large portion of people that live in the villa miserias were killed (it was similar to Hurricane Katrina). 
          I finally made it to lunch. Before we ate lunch I started feeling lightheaded but I figured that it was just from not eating a lot this morning. We ate tartas and watched videos about the activities that we will be doing next week. Then it was time for my class. All of a sudden my stomach was aching very badly and I was having a hard time concentrating in class. To make a long story short...remember that restaurant that I ate in yesterday? Well I ended up getting food poisoning. Marcela brought me and another student who ate at the same restaurant to the hospital to get some medicine. The doctor was really nice and it was very easy to understand her Spanish. It was really frustrating though because it is so hard to formulate sentences in another language when you are sick and delirious. Afterward we went to the pharmacy to get some medicine and unfortunately I became the sickest that I had been all day. If you've ever seen the movie Bridesmaids I was living out the scene where they were trying on dresses after they had ate at the Brasilian restaurant. :( When I came home Claudia made me some tea and gave me some napkins "in case I needed to cry." She was so motherly. She even tucked me in to bed. 
        I spent my day indoors for the majority of the day, recuperating from yesterday. The medicine made me feel so much better and the rest was just what I needed. I'm so thankful for Marcela, Claudia and the other students in the program. Everyone was really helpful in making sure that I was okay. It turns out that 3 out of the 4 students that went to the restaurant ended up with food poisoning. I will NEVER eat there again. I was so bored all day, just laying in my bed so Kassidy and I walked around a little bit when she came home. Tomorrow should be a much better day as I head to Garrahan for my second day at my internship. For now, I'm off to bed.

Besos y Abrazos,

Jackie