(I totally just copied the title of the other entry that talks about my Polish host family hahaha.)
Much like my having a family in Poland, my having a family in Bolivia goes back to my exchange in France.
In December 2012, my Rotary exchange district had a weekend with its sister district. Our Rotary weekends were usually just with our own districts, but this one was a tradition that happened every year. My year, it was in a city called Rennes. I actually wrote all about it here. I became acquainted with a lot of new people that weekend, one of whom was a boy from Bolivia named Ignacio.
He officially became the first Bolivian I ever met. Judging by the caption I put for that photo on Facebook, I think I tended to call him by the name of his country, since it was really far-off and somewhat obscure, and I didn't think I'd meet anyone else from Bolivia. I have a vague memory of this picture being taken; I think I was sitting down with my friends and saw him walking over, so I said something along the lines of, "Bolivia, let's take a picture!" I also remember ice skating with him when all the exchange students were at the rink, and both of us being really terrible at it.
Anyway, I only met him that weekend. We kept in touch though, and we spoke of meeting up again, but he lived rather far from me in France so it couldn't happen.
Well, until this summer.
After I got accepted into Refresh Bolivia at the end of 2014 as a board member intending to go on the trip, and finding out that the group would go to Cochabamba (which I somehow remembered was where Ignacio lived), I messaged him right away asking if he'd still be there in August 2015. He said yes, and we both got really excited to see each other again.
During my two-week stay in Cochabamba, I got to spend a lot of time with Ignacio. He was really proud to show me around his city, and it was an enormous pleasure getting to know it better and getting a glimpse of his life. Of course, I got to know his family as well, and they've practically adopted me as one of their own. I'm amazed at how much they cared for me in such a small amount of time, and I'm never going to forget how wonderfully they treated me.
By some stroke of luck, my first full day in Cochabamba was also Ignacio's 20th birthday. We celebrated with delicious pique macho and cake, and later in the evening had a jam session.
The family showed me around the city, so seeing it from locals' perspective made me feel completely at home.
I really adored Cochabamba. First of all, its weather was pleasant; not too hot and not too cold. I found its geography to be quite magnificent, too, considering the mountains you can see surrounding the city from all sides, unlike any city I had seen before. I know, however, that without Ignacio and his family, I wouldn't have enjoyed it nearly as much. I think part of the reason that I was so keen on being there was because it was a city I had heard of long ago, but never expected to actually visit. During my stay, I got to experience Cochabamba as the locals do, going out to parties with lots of Bolivians my age and running errands with Pati (mom) and Rafa (sister), which made the experience so meaningful.
It blows my mind that somebody I met on the other side of the world so long ago would be so welcoming and happy to be with me, as though the one weekend we had together were just yesterday. Exchange really does stay with you for life, and no matter the distance or time between conversations that separate you and your friends, they're guaranteed to always be there for you, too. It's a really beautiful thing. Seeing Ignacio again proved to me that any of my friends around the world would welcome me with open arms into their own cities, just like I would do for them.
In Rennes, I never could have fathomed that Bolivia (a country that, like I said, I considered far-off and obscure) would mean as much to me as it does now. Life is funny.
Ignacio and I visited a Rotary meeting and met the four Rotary exchange students who would be doing their year in Cochabamba. We felt SO OLD. It was so nostalgic for us to see them and be reminded of how we were three years ago when we were just starting our year in France. At the same time, we were super excited to tell them the story of how we met and were able to meet again, just as proof of what an exchange can do even long after it's over. It's quite unbelievable, and I'm glad we were both together to show that to the newbies. Speaking of three years ago, since all Rotary exchange students in France are supposed to arrive on the same day, Ignacio and I got to celebrate the 3-year anniversary of our arrival in France together! August 28, 2012, a day that'll stay in our hearts forever.
Not only was it so nice to be with a fellow former exchange student I met in France, one who understands what I lived during my exchange year, it was even better to be able to celebrate two important events with him in his hometown. The trip was perfect, and so was the setting of Cochabamba. Thanks to their hospitality and willingness to host me, I consider Ignacio's family to be my family too, and I can't wait to see them again. (I figure at some point my biological family ought to meet these families that I have in other parts of the world. That'd be nice, right mom?)
Much like my having a family in Poland, my having a family in Bolivia goes back to my exchange in France.
In December 2012, my Rotary exchange district had a weekend with its sister district. Our Rotary weekends were usually just with our own districts, but this one was a tradition that happened every year. My year, it was in a city called Rennes. I actually wrote all about it here. I became acquainted with a lot of new people that weekend, one of whom was a boy from Bolivia named Ignacio.
He officially became the first Bolivian I ever met. Judging by the caption I put for that photo on Facebook, I think I tended to call him by the name of his country, since it was really far-off and somewhat obscure, and I didn't think I'd meet anyone else from Bolivia. I have a vague memory of this picture being taken; I think I was sitting down with my friends and saw him walking over, so I said something along the lines of, "Bolivia, let's take a picture!" I also remember ice skating with him when all the exchange students were at the rink, and both of us being really terrible at it.
Anyway, I only met him that weekend. We kept in touch though, and we spoke of meeting up again, but he lived rather far from me in France so it couldn't happen.
Well, until this summer.
After I got accepted into Refresh Bolivia at the end of 2014 as a board member intending to go on the trip, and finding out that the group would go to Cochabamba (which I somehow remembered was where Ignacio lived), I messaged him right away asking if he'd still be there in August 2015. He said yes, and we both got really excited to see each other again.
During my two-week stay in Cochabamba, I got to spend a lot of time with Ignacio. He was really proud to show me around his city, and it was an enormous pleasure getting to know it better and getting a glimpse of his life. Of course, I got to know his family as well, and they've practically adopted me as one of their own. I'm amazed at how much they cared for me in such a small amount of time, and I'm never going to forget how wonderfully they treated me.
The family showed me around the city, so seeing it from locals' perspective made me feel completely at home.
I really adored Cochabamba. First of all, its weather was pleasant; not too hot and not too cold. I found its geography to be quite magnificent, too, considering the mountains you can see surrounding the city from all sides, unlike any city I had seen before. I know, however, that without Ignacio and his family, I wouldn't have enjoyed it nearly as much. I think part of the reason that I was so keen on being there was because it was a city I had heard of long ago, but never expected to actually visit. During my stay, I got to experience Cochabamba as the locals do, going out to parties with lots of Bolivians my age and running errands with Pati (mom) and Rafa (sister), which made the experience so meaningful.
It blows my mind that somebody I met on the other side of the world so long ago would be so welcoming and happy to be with me, as though the one weekend we had together were just yesterday. Exchange really does stay with you for life, and no matter the distance or time between conversations that separate you and your friends, they're guaranteed to always be there for you, too. It's a really beautiful thing. Seeing Ignacio again proved to me that any of my friends around the world would welcome me with open arms into their own cities, just like I would do for them.
In Rennes, I never could have fathomed that Bolivia (a country that, like I said, I considered far-off and obscure) would mean as much to me as it does now. Life is funny.
Ignacio and I visited a Rotary meeting and met the four Rotary exchange students who would be doing their year in Cochabamba. We felt SO OLD. It was so nostalgic for us to see them and be reminded of how we were three years ago when we were just starting our year in France. At the same time, we were super excited to tell them the story of how we met and were able to meet again, just as proof of what an exchange can do even long after it's over. It's quite unbelievable, and I'm glad we were both together to show that to the newbies. Speaking of three years ago, since all Rotary exchange students in France are supposed to arrive on the same day, Ignacio and I got to celebrate the 3-year anniversary of our arrival in France together! August 28, 2012, a day that'll stay in our hearts forever.
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| With the familiar Rotary wheel |
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| Cheesy picture with a globe on August 28, 2015 |
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