A Co-Chaperone's Final Reflection on the Matter

Our "Atlas," holding up the sky for everyone!

You know the exhaustion that can be accompanied by a sense of joy, well-being, and gratitude? That's how I felt every day of the Argentina trip. From the moment we arrived at LAX on June 9th after graduation to the moment we hugged and shared goodbye smiles this past Wednesday afternoon, I felt part of a very special experience. Were there challenging moments along the way? Absolutely! I am grateful for the physical and emotional experiences we navigated, absorbed, and let flow through us. We grew as individuals and as a group, bouncing along and back from moments that demanded our intense presence and best selves to emerge. I write this post with profound appreciation and respect for Patricia Levin, our brilliant leader, and want to dedicate my words to her. Her elegant, humorous, decisive, and competent leadership made every student and chaperon feel safe, cared for, seen and heard, and aware that we were on a well-planned, intentional, emotional, hands-on journey. We came away with more than we could have imagined: a love for new friends and the culture, an in-your-face recognition of the fragility of democracy and how we must stand strong against fascism, and how quickly we can recover from bumpy moments when we truly care for each other and have the greater good of the team in mind. I return to Los Angeles with much respect and gratitude for our students and community. Thank you Poly, Rick, Ann, John, José, Edgar, parents, and every single one of our "chiques"!

-Renée Larios

Comments

Profe Levin said…

¡Gracias, Renée!
I’m honored and humbled by your words.
During this trip I came to really appreciate the saying: “There’s no I in team”… Nothing would have been possible without yours and Profe Arceo’s extremely professional and loving participation.
¡Hasta la próxima aventura!

June 23, 2023 at 6:15 PM

day 2: finally in Argentina!

Finally arriving at the Buenos Aires airport at 3:00 am, our hotel at 4:30 am, and waking up at 9:45 am (some of us), our long awaited trip finally begun. We walked to the pizza place, Las Cuartetas, had some trouble first ordering in Spanish, and tried to down five whole deep dish pizzas. pizzas galore! four hours of sleep, no problem. Very cheesy, very dense, and very hard to keep eating. After leaving two whole pizzas left and feeling extremely bad about it, we walked down to the metro for our first Argentinian subway ride. We spotted a girl with her notes looking quite fretful and Profe. Levin wished her good luck, teaching us a valuable lesson about being nosy in a good way. We met Mariana, the director of the travel agency Lunfarda, who took us around the city and spoke to us about the history. First we went to a church, Basilica Nuestra Señora del Pilar, where Mariana talked about the European immigration and influence in Buenos Aires, including aspects like architect...

Day 5: Los Porteños!

On Thursday, we started our day with a swift breakfast in the hotel and a short walk to the Casa Rosada--workplace of the Argentinian president--where we began a scavenger hunt that was organized by an Argentinian travel company that we have been working with so far on this trip. As we split into groups (los carpinchos, los chocotortas, y los empanadas), we began to walk around the city and complete tasks along the way. These challenges often included talking to friendly strangers or organized actors and asking many questions regarding the daily lives of Argentinians. For example, we asked an actor (our previous tour guide Fernando) and other locals (pedestrians, workers, police officers, etc.) questions about Argentinian football. In turn they taught us facts like how fans of the team River Plate are called “Los millionarios” (the millionaires) because their home stadium, which is el estadio mas monumental of South America, is located in a wealthy neighborhood. In addition, we we...

Day 1:the good, the bad, and the "Is this really our gate?"

Through red eyes and heavy eyelids, our Poly Panthers have kept their good spirits. We have seen five different sets of passengers come and go, flying off to Madrid, Cusco, Paris, and other beloved cities, while we patiently wait for our final destination. We're set to leave for Buenos Aires by 8:25pm. Of course, we can ignore the ill-fortune I welcomed yesterday. As Profe likes to say, "we'll turn these lemons into lemonade." Naps, snacks, a soccer match, and sharing facts kept us busy during our fifteen-hour layover. Jaunts up and down Lake Avenue surely prepared our Panthers for languid walks around Lima's International terminal, where they even had the chance to catch the Portugal-Spain soccer game--Nico commented, "40 years old, and Ronaldo is still winning championships." Of course, occasionally, the boredom prompted some silly requests: "Is it okay if we play Hide-and-Seek around the terminal?" Parents, not to worry, students have been ...

Poly GIP Argentina 2023-25

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