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Not everything about living in a different country is easy. Sure, I’m learning new things every day, making friends, and developing a new view of the world, but it’s just so aggravating to do all this so far away from the life I’ve known for so long.

I’ve lived on Whidbey Island for 11 years. During that time, I learned most of what I now know about life, and developed my ideas for the future. I really enjoy living there; the calm lifestyle, small community atmosphere, and the beautiful setting. Just writing that sentence makes me miss it more.

At this time, I’m roughly 8,000 miles away from Whidbey, and let me tell you, that is a really long way! A third of the way around the world. The same distance to central Russia, or to Northern Africa, or to the South Pacific Islands. It seems even longer, sometimes.

Now that 125 days have passed since I left my home, I really start to feel that distance. The hardest part is not being able to do so many of the activities that I’ve done all of my life, from weekly chores to reading English books to mountain climbing. Yes, I actually do miss some housework! Here, I’m forced to look for new things to do, and it’s really up to me to find them.

I’ve discovered that when I don’t have any regular things to do, like a sport, that is when I miss home the most. I believe it’s because I have this fixed mentality that if I was at home, everything would be perfect and that I wouldn’t be bored. I think this is the "easy solution," that automatically jumps into place, unless I realize it’s happening.

It forced me to recognize this. I had to overcome this stage of homesickness by realizing that it was my own fault that I missed home. I’d created an illusion that I was sticking to, not wanting a different explanation. I wasn’t searching for any other reason, I’d been so locked on this idea.

When summer vacation started, the boredom really began. I’d tried to get some fun activities set up, but not hard enough. I ended up spending lots of time doing nothing other than hanging out with friends and going out on the weekends. I kept thinking, "if I was at home, I’d be doing such-and-such," or, "I can’t wait until I’m back so I can do that!" I was really a mess. Fortunately, I did bypass my own misconception, and am now moving on.

School’s out now, so I hope do lots of traveling this summer. Córdoba is my next destination. After Christmas, I’ll go to Camboriú, Brazil for new years and 2 weeks in the sun. In January and Febuary I don’t have any set plans, but kayaking in the Río Negro here in Viedma, and more traveling are my preferences.

Another thing I was thinking of taking up is photography. I never had a real teacher, but I read a few books and found some interesting web sites. It’s enough to get me started. Maybe I’ll join the local photo club. This would be something really interesting for me, because I’d be able to do some creative expression, and maybe get my mind off home.

My host brother is soon leaving to start college in Córdoba, so I’ll have to find even more things to do on my own. It shouldn’t be too hard, now that I’ve gotten passed the "boredom" stage. It’s also possible that Victoria, my host sister, will be leaving on an exchange student program in Febuary. If she does, I’ll be living all alone with just 6-year-old Rebeca and my host mother! I hope she waits until July of next year to go. Even if she does leave, it will just make me become more independant and find more ways to use my time.

I started out my cultural exchange feeling great. It was an awesome experience, coming here, with everything different and new and exciting. Then I started my roller coaster ride. Things started to be not so fun anymore; I missed home, and struggled with the language. After a while, it got better again, as I learned the customs and figured out how to change my lifestyle to suit them. This stage lasted around three months. Then the boredom really started, and I started blaming Argentina for all my problems, until I finally realized that they weren’t really problems at all, just a lack of motivation.

That was the lowest point I’ve had so far. Now that I’ve started to do things again, and realized why I was so homesick, I’ve entered a fifth, and hopefully final, stage of prosperity and fun. A week ago I was yearning to be home, hating everything and everyone here, and being a general party pooper. Now I feel great, and am looking forward to 7 ½ months of unforgettable memories.

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