Last Sunday I arrived in Mendoza, Argentina, marking my transition into the Southern Hemisphere for the next four months. While it has only been one week, I feel as though I have been living here for three months already, and I absolutely love it.

When I arrived on Sunday morning, after a ten-hour flight, my host parents immediately greeted me. After hugs and kisses, they walked me outside to the car and we drove parallel to the Andes Mountains to my new home. Below is a photograph of the mountains from the plane, as we flew from Santiago, Chile to Mendoza.

In Dalvian, the gated community where my host family lives, I enter through a security gate and walk into an immense neighborhood filled with beautiful green trees lining the streets that go upward, toward the mountains. The neighborhood has five different gates and must go on for miles down the road, and I can’t even guess how many houses there are. Unlike in the US, these houses are lower to the ground, but are extremely modern.

I spent this past week orienting myself to the city, which is smaller than and a three hour plane ride away from Buenos Aires, by walking through the streets and taking the bus from my gated community, Dalvian, into the city’s parks and cafés. Although it is winter here now, by midday the temperature reaches about 80 degrees Fahrenheit, making the walk through the city stunning.

The city is easily navigable, with main streets such as the Peotonal, which has no cars and tons of outdoor sidewalk cafés and plazas, such as Plaza Independencia, which is essentially equivalent in popularity (not in size) to Central Park in New York.

The streets are bustling with people, the parks are filled with civilians sitting and enjoying the beautiful weather, and during siesta, the afternoon nap, you can find me sitting at a European-style café sipping coffee outside after class with friends. I feel as though I am on vacation here.

The other morning, I woke up early before class to go on a walk with my host-mom, who was so excited to show me the Dalvian neighborhood and the beautiful mountains that surround the houses. We walked for twenty minutes up a massive hill, and then up several stairs, until we were under a Catholic monument that looks hundreds of miles away when I am on the streets. I stood under the monument, looking out at the beautiful city of Mendoza as my host-mom explained to me the nighttime Christmas parties they have up on his mountain.

While I walk to school, I also take a bus into the city, and I already feel as though I’ve been a commuter here for years. However, there are some interesting nuances about Mendoza’s bus system that I am still only learning about.

South America is known for is slow pace, and I have certainly noticed the lack of a fast-paced, bustling environment like in New York. However, the drivers are very aggressive. Once you step foot on the bus, it pulls away from the station and the doors close as it moves. There is no guarantee that you will make it onto the bus before it pulls away and moves onto its next stop. Ironically, despite the aggressive speed of every driver, there is not actually a schedule they are attempting to follow - so there is no rush to be anywhere.

For example, today I got on my normal bus, which takes me into the heart of the city, and little did I know that I got on at the wrong stop, so the bus ride ended up being an hour-long scenic tour of the mountain range behind my neighborhood, rather than a twenty minute ride into the city. I have to admit, even these mistakes only contribute to the process of figuring out this mysterious transportation system, which never ceases to be a fun and exciting learning experience.

It is stunning here, and I’ve been enjoying delicious empanadas and wine all throughout my first week. It is glorious. I’ve had time to walk around the beautiful neighborhood and chat with my host-family for hours about my life in the United States and their lives here in Mendoza, and of course I’ve also had time to eat some amazing home-cooked meals in my homestay.

We are spending this coming weekend in the mountains to horseback ride, drink some more wine, and enjoy some more empanadas. How can I complain? My study abroad experience has thus far been truly amazing, and I am so excited to see what else Mendoza has in store for me this semester.