Che...veni a Argentina Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

If you want to learn, you can. You can do all the reading for the courses (and there will probably be a lot). But, in my case, it wasn't really necessary to read too much in order to pass. Courses were easy to pass, but if you want to be challenged and learn, that's totally possible too. It's really what you make of it. One thing I will say about my experience at Belgrano is that there were a lot of people from the U.S. I didn't expect that. It would have been nice to be around more Spanish speakers or just people from other countries (there were a lot of Europeans too and a few people from South or Central American and Australia) but the majority North Americans.

On-site administration of your program

The program was very well organized and events were coordinated well.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

It was a really good experience to be able to eat with a local person every night, and especially if you miss home, having someone who you get to sit down with everyday is comforting. My host mom, Lili, was always very supportive of my studies, she would help me with Spanish and genuinely wanted us to succeed with the language. It was awesome to have that encouragement. Lili was an excellent host mom, she's very relaxed and easy going. The housing is really nice, from what I saw. Where I stayed was very very nice, especially compared to some other apartments I have seen in Buenos Aires. If you choose this program, you will have a lot of benefits like staying in a nice home, getting a good meal everyday, probably having AC in the house, and just generally living comfortly! (My point is not everyone in BA lives with such luck, so it's important to remember that when you come to Argentina!)

Of course, as I said, there are a lot of great privileges that come with this program. The matter of food is not so much a question of the quality of the food you'll receive but rather, do you like Argentinian food? That's important to consider before you choose Argentina! You'll probably eat a lot of milanesa (chicken or stead that is fried) empanadas, fries, bread, and pasta (and there was usually salad too). If you have a problem with that type of food, and are a picky person, maybe don't go to Argentina haha. Dinner was my favorite part of the day because it was always really good (because I like Argentinian food)! There was dessert literally every night as well.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

This is difficult because you can be very familiar with the local culture but not feel integrated. For a while I felt like I understood Argentinian culture very well (how the people interact, the language, phrases, traditions, etc) but I didn't feel connected to it. It's inevitable, you will get a really good understanding for how Argentinian culture is. But, if you want to connect to it, you have to hang out with locals! That's up to you! If you want to make Argentinian friends you have to step out of the comfort of being surrounded by North Americans. It's up to the individual to connect themselves with the culture. The other thing is, there are so many other cultures in this city!! You can make friends from many other countries other than just Argentina. That's a good thing to consider...if you are not sure of what city to study abroad in, it's good to know that Buenos Aires has immigrants from many other countries (I met a lot of Colombians, Uruguayans, Venezuelans, some Chileans, Israelis, and various people from Mexico, El Salvador, Spain, Bolivia, Peru, Brasil, China, etc). So if you're interested in exploring cultures, Buenos Aires could be a really good option!

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I give 4 stars because I didn't have any health issues so I can't really judge this. I was sick with a cold a few times and Raul, the program director, was always willing to take me to the doctor even though it was never necessary.

You will have to be careful, obviously, it's a big city! Before I arrived, I had heard from so many people that you can't walk alone at night if you're a girl, never take out your phone, even don't make eye contact with men. There is truth to some of that (your phone can easily be stolen if you're not careful). But, I have been here for almost 6 months and honestly have taken out my phone way too many times on the street when I shouldn't have, have walked alone at 3, 4, 5 am endless times, and never felt threatened (maybe once). However, there are definitely threats and danger in this city! If you study here, I do not recommend you ever take out your phone on the street and you SHOULD try to avoid walking alone at 3 am if you can, just because it's better safe than sorry. But, with that said, don't worry! Don't arrive worrying about that. It's like any other big city :)

In retrospect, I would have considered studying in a country with less European influence, but the experiences I have had here are too awesome to regret the choice to come to Argentina. With that said, I have no doubt that Sol is the best program you could choose, and I'm not just saying that! Other people I met either paid more for their program or didn't have the types of excursions Sol offers or their directors weren't as cool as Raul (because let's be real no one is). Sol is a great program.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

Raul absolutes encourages students to practice Spanish. With that said, it's up to you to speak it. Raul can have an entire conversation with you in Spanish and you can respond in English the whole time. So it's up to the individual to take advantage of someone who is there to help them improve.

Select all that apply

• Host Family
• Apartment

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students
• Host Family
• Other

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students

• Excursions
• The friends i made
• Raul

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The Nearly Native or Trail Blazer