Spanish trip to Argentina November 16 – 24, 2012 Faculty Sponsors:
Chris Fazenbaker & Aitor Rey
Dear Parents, As the Spanish trip to Argentina is quickly approaching this letter has been designed to provide you with additional information regarding the trip as well as costs and flight times. Students going to Argentina will participate in an unforgettable experience in which they will have the opportunity to live out the experiences discussed in class. By being immersed in the local culture and history while simultaneously being surrounded by the language on a daily basis, students will discover their strengths in Spanish and develop their communication skills. They will participate in engaging, interactive activities that will allow them to gain fluency and confidence when speaking Spanish. The cost for the Argentina adventure includes all of the following: airfare, transport while on tour, hotel accommodation and homestays, well-trained guides on the sightseeing tours to cultural attractions, and most meals. We look forward to a safe, fun, and educational experience in Argentina with your child.
Flight Information: Johannesburg to • • • •
Buenos Aires, November 16 (Friday)
Departure: Friday, November 16th, 09:30 Johannesburg, South Africa - O.R. Tambo Airport Arrival: 15:30 Buenos Aires, Argentina Flight: South African Airways – SA226
Buenos Aires to Johannesburg, November 23 (Friday – arriving on Saturday, November 24) • •
Departure: Friday, November 23rd, 17:55 Buenos Aires, Argentina
•
•
Arrival: November 24th, 8:10 Johannesburg, South Africa O.R. Tambo Airport Flight: South African Airways – SA227
Note: On Friday November 16th, all students need to be transported by their parents to AISJ’s campus by 06:00. AISJ Transport will then take all students and chaperones to the airport for their flight to Argentina. Upon return, all students will be transported to the door of their respective homes. If any parent/s want to pick it up their child from the airport on November 24th it is fine but please let Mr.Rey and Ms.Fazenbaker know in advance.
Additional Information Hotel:
Apartur Buenos Aires Pte. Perón 940 (C1038AAR) Capital Federal Pcia. de Buenos Aires Argentina
http://www.aparturbuenosaires.com.ar/buenosaires/index.php In Córdoba the students will be hosted by families.
PackingList: • • • • • • •
Passport, ticket and US$ cash Personal copy of passport – and copy to Spanish Trip chaperones Casual clothes for touring and traveling Swimsuit Cameras, batteries, charger, and memory cards A gift from South Africa for your host family Electrical Appliances Electrical current in Argentina is 220 V and plugs may have two cylindrical prongs (old style) or two flat prongs plus a third
grounding one. Don’t forget to bring the necessary adaptors and/or transformers for your electrical appliances. Plugs & Outlets:
• • •
Sunglasses and an umbrella (optional) Personal audio entertainment devices Taking a laptop computer is optional. You will have free internet in the school where we will meet every morning in Córdoba. The families might have internet connection too.
***It is very crucial that students adhere to the baggage limitation – one checked suitcase no heavier than 20 kg. One carry-on, no heavier than 10 kg.
Climate: The climate in Córdoba is mild. Annual average temperatures range from 18 °C to 21 °C, with a temperature range of around 15 °C, depending on the season. Summer (December through March): This is the wet season and maximum daily temperatures range from 25 °C to 35 °C. Winter (June through September): It is usually dry and sunny, with maximum temperatures ranging from 10 °C to 20 °C. Spring & Fall: The average temperature is 25 °C.
Meetings and Curfew: A nightly curfew of 11:00 pm will be observed for every night of the trip. Students must be quiet in their hotel rooms after 11:00 pm in Buenos Aires. Please be considerate and polite to other hotel guests. Then in Córdoba there will also be curfew calls to the families at 10:00 pm. If the host family is taking the students out for dinner and will be out after 10pm, the families must inform Ms. Fazenbaker and/or Mr. Rey.
Health:
Students includes balanced clothes, times.
must monitor their basic health requirements. This getting proper amounts of sleep each night, eating meals, drinking water daily, wearing appropriate and paying attention to their environment at all
Academics: Students will be away from classes for four days. Therefore, it is imperative that students be prepared to keep up with all their academic assignments. It is recommended that when students need to take academic work with them to only bring photocopies of portions of their texts, as these books can add considerable weight to their luggage.
The cost of this trip includes the following: Detail of prices – Cultural Immersion Program in Buenos Aires & Córdoba (Argentina) November 16 to November 24, 2012
Price per person (SA Rand)
Price per person (US Dollars, all taxes included)
9,400
1175
• Transfer service from Ezeiza International Airport to hotel/from hotel to Retiro Bus Station • Hotel stay (2 nights) with breakfast • Recreational activities (3 in total) • Permanent coordinator during the group’s stay in Buenos Aires • Personal accident insurance for the students valid throughout their stay in Buenos Aires • Daily minibus shuttle for all programmed activities
1,440
180
Additional service: transfer from Retiro Bus Station to Ezeiza International Airport (after visiting
160
20
Services
Return airfare Cultural Immersion Program (Argentina) Buenos Aires
Córdoba) Cultural Immersion Program (Argentina) Córdoba
• Transfer service from Córdoba Bus Station to assigned lodgings/from assigned lodgings to Córdoba Bus Station • Homestay (3 nights) with half-board (breakfast and dinner) • Recreational activities (8 in total) • Permanent coordinator during the group’s stay in Córdoba • Personal accident insurance for the students valid throughout their stay in Córdoba • Daily minibus shuttle for all programmed activities • Souvenir
4,000
500
Round Bus Trip Córdoba-Buenos Aires (sleeper coach)
800
100
Sponsor contribution
400
50
16,200
2025
Total cost
Money & Banks: In addition to the costs above, students should minimally bring between US $400.00 – $500.00 in cash to cover personal expenses for meals not provided by families, beverages, and miscellaneous items. To give you an idea an average meal can cost between 15 and 20 USD. You can bring traveller’s checks with you or use your debit/credit card. In the case of debit cards, remember you may take out Argentine pesos from your foreign account via ATM upon your arrival.
Payment Methods: The preferred method of payments is a local Rand wire transfer to AISJ, or a Rand check made to AISJ. A US dollar check or wire transfer is possible (for payment in US dollars, $25 dollars must be added to cover bank fees). It is imperative that all students make a full payment by October 5th 2012.
Please reference your payment: ie., Spanish Trip- (surname of student) Rand Payments:
US Dollar Payments:
Bank: FIRST NATIONAL BANK Branch: FOURWAYS MALL Branch Code: 251655 Account No: 50460096628
Beneficiary Bank Swift Code: FIRNZAJJ Beneficiary Bank: FIRST RAND BANK LIMITED In Favour Of: THE AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL Account No: 0235423
Again, thank you for your assistance and support of the Spanish program. Feel free to contact us at any time if you need further clarification. Sincerely,
Aitor Rey arey@aisj-jhb.com
Chris Fazenbaker cfazenbaker@aisj-jhb.com
DETAILED ITINERARY OF THE TRIP BUENOS AIRES (ARGENTINA)
Overview The 3-day/2-night program includes: - TRANSFER FROM EZEIZA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO HOTEL, AND FROM HOTEL TO RETIRO BUS STATION
- LODGING: Three days and two nights in apart hotel (shared apartments) with breakfast. Lunch and dinner are not included. - RECREATIONAL AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES (3 in total: city tour with guide, tango lesson & milonga, excursion to Tigre & boat tour through the river delta) - PERSONAL ACCIDENT INSURANCE FOR THE STUDENTS VALID THROUGHOUT THEIR STAY IN BUENOS AIRES - PERMANENT COORDINATOR DURING THE GROUP’S STAY IN BUENOS AIRES - DAILY MINIBUS SHUTTLE FOR ALL PROGRAMMED ACTIVITIES Daily Schedule of activities November 16 Arrival at
Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires at 15:30.
The guide from Academia Buenos Aires, Alexia Zamparo, will receive you in the arrival hall of the airport at the corresponding terminal at 16:30. There will be 2 minivans waiting for you to bring you to the hotel in downtown Buenos Aires. You will arrive there together with Alexia at approximately 18:00. The same guide will pick you up for dinner at the hotel at 20:00. You will walk together to the restaurant “La Morada”, which is located just a few blocks from the hotel. There you can taste regional food like empanadas, humita, locro, etc. and after the dinner the guide will bring you back to the hotel.
November 17 Alexia will pick you up with a minivan and the city tour starts. On your way you will visit different neighborhoods of the city. The first stop is Plaza de Mayo, where you will see the Cabildo building (colonial town hall), the government building and the Metropolitan Cathedral. Next stopover on our way to La Boca is the new Puerto Madero neighborhood. Once we arrive in La Boca, you´ll walk along the famous street “Caminito”, see the Quinquela Martín museum (named after a local renowned artist), the conventillos (old inmigrants´ houses) and the Boca Juniors football club. You will have lunch in a typical restaurant of the neighborhood that was originally a conventillo.
After lunch the tour continues and you will see the northern area of the city driving through Palermo neighborhood. The third stop is Recoleta neighborhood, where you´ll visit the Fine Arts National Museum, the church of Pilar and the famous cemetery with the grave of Eva Perón, among other attractions. At approximately 18:00 you´ll be back in the hotel. Alexia will pick you up with the minivan at 21:00. You will go to a Milonga (local saloon of tango) where you will take a tango lesson and may practice afterwards what you have learned. You can have dinner here, as well. You will be back at the hotel at approximately 01:00. November 18 The guide will pick you up with the minivan at 10:30. You will go to the locality of Tigre (1 hour from Buenos Aires). There you will take a boat tour through the river delta and know the lifestyle of the people living on the islands. After the tour (1 hour approx.) you can have lunch in a restaurant by the river. In the afternoon you will walk through the Puerto de Frutos, where you can buy artisanry/handcrafts and typical products from this area. You will be back in the hotel at approximately 17:00. Later on, Alexia will pick you up with the minivan and accompany you to Retiro bus station to start your trip to Córdoba city (departure time will be confirmed opportunely).
CÓRDOBA (ARGENTINA) Overview The 4-day/3-night program includes: - TRANSFER FROM/TO THE CORDOBA BUS STATION - INDIVIDUAL INFOPACKS - LODGING: Four days and three nights in family homes (shared bedrooms) with half-board (breakfast and dinner) - REFRESHMENTS (coffee, tea, water) AND FREE INTERNET ACCESS IN THE SCHOOL (student PCs and WI-FI connection) - RECREATIONAL AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES (8 in total: welcome/farewell meetings, welcome lunch, familiarization walking tour, city bus tour, tour of the Jesuit City Block and the Historic Center, mixed gender soccer championship, full-day excursion to the Córdoba “sierras”, and excursion to the Jesuit estancia of Alta Gracia + picnic by the Anisacate river) - SOUVENIR
- PERSONAL ACCIDENT INSURANCE FOR THE STUDENTS VALID THROUGHOUT THEIR STAY IN CORDOBA - MEDICAL EMERGENCY SERVICE ON SCHOOL PREMISES - PERMANENT COORDINATOR DURING THE GROUP’S STAY IN CORDOBA - DAILY MINIBUS SHUTTLE FOR ALL PROGRAMMED ACTIVITIES
November 19 Time
Description of Activity
Early morning
Transfer from Córdoba Bus Station to the assigned family homes. Rest of the morning free.
12:00 13:00
Welcome and briefing meeting at SET IDIOMAS: We receive the whole group at SET IDIOMAS. We introduce the Program and our staff and describe the recreational activities. Individual info-packs (city map, activity schedule) are handed out. Useful information is provided on city life (use of phone cards, ATMs, business operating hours, etc.).
13:00 15:00
Welcome lunch: The group meets at our school to share delicious choripanes (a local typical and mouth-watering sandwich-type delicacy), refreshing drinks and ice cream. A good excuse to make contact with local culture and have fun on the first day of the program!
15:00 16:00
A familiarization walking tour: Our recreational activities coordinator takes us to the historical hub of the city. Our tour will include the main tourist services and attractions in this historical section of Córdoba´s downtown area.
16:30 -
City bus tour: A topless London double-decker will take us through the city to show us its main tourist spots, such as the Cathedral, San Martin Square, the Cabildo (the colonial town hall), Sarmiento Park, the Cañada, the Capuchin Friars´ Church, etc. Stops will be made at key points to walk around and take photos.
onward
19:00
Students will be taken back to their lodgings.
November 20 Time 10:00 12:30
Description of Activity Tours of the Jesuit City Block (which is on the UNESCO World´s Heritage list) and the Historic Center: This will be a visit to
one of the most significant and ancient architectural complexes in the city, including the Domestic Chapel of the Order, the Colegio de Monserrat, the Company of Jesus Church and the building formerly housing the Córdoba National University. A walk through these buildings located at the very center of the downtown area will teach us much about the history of Latin America in Spanish Colonial times as well as about the special circumstances which triggered the creation of the first school and university in the land which would become today’s Argentina. We will then visit the historic Cabildo and the beautiful Cathedral of Córdoba. The tour will end with a sampling of typical local sweetmeats. 13:00 -
Free time for lunch (not included in price)
14:00 15:00 17:30
19:00
Mixed gender soccer championship: We will enjoy an afternoon of outdoor sports on soccer pitches that have been reserved for group use at a well-known soccer complex in our city. A minichampionship will be our excuse to have fun, regardless of the players’ experience or skill levels. At the end of the championship we will share soft drinks and panchos (hot-dogs). Students will be taken back to their lodgings.
November 21 Time 08:30 18:00
Description of Activities A day in the Córdoba “sierras”: The group will be taken to an “estancia” (traditional agricultural production establishment) located 87 km from Córdoba city. On the way, students we will be able to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Calamuchita Valley. The excursion includes: •
Breakfast and lunch (barbecue, salad, bread, soft drinks, dessert)
•
Watching of cattle herding into a corral, lassoing and horseback races
•
Folk music session (guitar) after lunch
•
Individual horseback treks
•
Briefing lifestyle
“pirca”
(drystone)
on Argentine countryside traditions and (the difference between adobe oven/barbecue
disk/grill, the different coats and hair colors of horses and their names, the management of farms as production units, etc.). •
Travel assistance coverage during the excursion
November 22 Time 10:00 16:30
18:00 19:30 00.30
Description of Activities An Excursion to the Jesuit Estancia (farming establishment) of Alta Gracia including the local shopping area and picnic beside the Anisacate river: Located 40 km to the south of Córdoba, the town of Alta Gracia is home to a Jesuit farming establishment dating from colonial times, which is on UNESCO World´s Heritage list. We will leave Córdoba at 10 am to go on a guided tour of the Jesuit estancia. At midday we will have some free time to walk through the shopping area of Alta Gracia city. Afterwards, we will go to the Anisacate river to have a picnic and enjoy nature. At 4.30 pm we will start the return trip to Córdoba, arriving at 5.30 pm. Farewell meeting at SET IDIOMAS: Students will share a typical local snack and will receive their souvenirs. Later, they will be taken back to their lodgings. Transfer to Córdoba Bus Station: The group will be taken to the Bus Station to start their trip to Buenos Aires.