Forgive me. I am embarrassed that five months have passed without a blog update. Since my last post I have really settled into life here in La Plata. I really enjoy many things about what I do here, from our English classes to hanging out at the orphanage; my days are as varied as they are interesting. Thanks so much for your continued support and prayers.

A quick story about New Year’s Eve in La Plata:

Since it is summer here, New Year’s Eve takes place mostly outside. I met up with some friends, we had an ‘asado’ (cookout) and then we set off fireworks, some of which might be illegal in the US. Luckily all of my fingers are still attached to my hands. At about 2 AM we went downtown to watch the burning of the ‘muñecos’. Muñecos are giant characters, for lack of a better word, made from plaster and filled with explosives. Think of a parade float that blows up. There were 140 at various locations in the city ranging in size from 6 feet to around 30 feet. There was snoopy, spongebob, and hundreds of other characters. We only watched 2 of them burn, but that was plenty. The individuals who built the muñeco are responsible for the burning. They start by setting off fireworks around the muñeco so the people know that it is about to begin. Then they try forcing people to move back in order to create a safe perimeter around the muñeco before lighting it on fire. The flames reach up to 50 feet high and each of the hundreds of explosives inside sounds like a car bomb accompanied by a blast that you feel in your chest. People go nuts. With hands over their ears they run away from the fire, distancing themselves and their poor ears from the blasts. It is the closest thing I have seen to a war zone. If I were to make a list of the top 10 places in the world to be on New Year’s Eve, La Plata would have to be on it. Schedule your 2012 vacation time accordingly.