Why are we doing this?

(Steve at the keyboard)

The idea of spending a (somewhat) extended period in a foreign country really began in April of 2005. Silvia and I (Steve) spent a week in Madrid, Spain, and enjoyed the atmosphere in a large Latin city. We stayed near the city center of Madrid, and we were able to see many of the sights, and even visit other surrounding attractions, without having a car. We were within walking distance of about everything we needed. Other places were easily accessible by taxi, metro, or motorcoach. While sitting at cafes eating tapas and drinking Spanish wines, we mused on the idea of living in a Spanish-speaking country with the kids. They would have the opportunity to improve their spoken Spanish, as well as to experience a culture different than their own.

Obviously, my responsibilities as an airline pilot based near the west coast would make it very a difficult commute from Europe. Ironically, it was an airline vaction bidding system that would resurrect the idea of spending an extended peiod overseas. Due to other commitments and procrastination, I missed the 2006 Vacation bid deadline. The result: all three weeks of my vacation in Late January / early February. Basically, what was left after every single pilot in my airplane and seat had selected their choices.

I had visited Buenos Aires, Argentina briefly in early 1998. My father, in international business at the time, had almost a week of business meetings there, and I was able to use my airline benefits to join him there. The big plus was the company-paid hotel room, not to mention the company-paid steakhouse dinners and tango shows in the evening. Years later, I remembered the pleasant weather, the interesting architecture, and friendly people.

Through my monthly bid selection, I would most likely be able to stretch my 3 weeks of vacation into 5 or 5 1/2. After doing quite a bit of internet research and reading, the plan was in place, with grudging approval from Silvia (aka wife). We would spend a little over a month in Argentina, primarily in Buenos Aires, but with a side trip or two. Bianca would miss a few weeks of Kindergarten, and Diego could skip preschool - no big deal.

In my ignorance, we planned to use non-revenue (standby) tickets on American from Dallas/Fort Worth to Buenos Aires. I had been checking seat maps for weeks up to our scheduled departure date. On our departure day, and the next, and the next, I realized that February was summer in South America. Not only were Americans heading down to Argentina en masse, but so were Argentines return from their summer vacations in the U.S. After two days in Dallas, we realized that we weren't going to get on any flight anytime soon. We cut our losses and headed home, GAME OVER.

Maybe it is a pilot personality trait that demands a mission be accomplished eventually. In October 2005, we managed to travel (standby, no less) to Buenos Aires. The trip was basically a condensed version of what we wanted to do earlier in the year. Over 9 days, we spent 7 full days in an apartment in Buenos Aires, and had a wonderful time. The spring weather was sunny and warm, the food tasty and inexpensive, and the people very friendly and fun to talk to. Diego and Bianca enjoyed playing at the local parks with the Argentine kids their age. It took them a few days to realize that they didn't understand English!

Silvia and I talked about how nice it would be to spend some time in Buenos Aires, and how much the kids' Spanish would improve if they were immersed in it. In conversations with other parents, we learned that their school year started in their fall, beginning of March, specifically. If we were to return and enroll Diego and Bianca, they would only miss 2 1/2 months of school in Phoenix.

I made a solo fact-finding trip to Buenos Aires in December to check out a few bilingual schools. Another reason was to go back to Argentina and confirm the idea that we really wanted to spend some more time there. I was hoping Silvia could come along, but it wasn't possible due to babysitting dilemmas at home.

Over four days, I met administrators and teachers at several different schools, and spent hours each day checking out neighborhoods and apartment buildings. I finally narrowed it down to a couple of schools. In the end, we chose Children's School Boston (www.childrens-boston.com.ar) Really nice people and a very professionally run school. Diego would enroll in Jardin (Kindergarten) for 4 year olds, and Bianca for First Grade. An added plus was the location, literally 3 1/2 blocks from our apartment. We would do a short-term rental from ByT Argentina (www.bytargentina.com), the same company we rented from in October. Our two-bedroom apartment would literally be across the street from where we stayed last fall.

So to answer the subject question of this post - Why Buenos Aires? We think it is an exciting city - it is affordable, there is a lot to see and do, the people are generally outgoing and welcoming, and are justifiably proud of the fine city and country. Argentina has experienced more than its share of economic problems and poverty, but has never lost its national pride, its Argentinidad. We think of this visit as an opportunity to contribute to their economy, enjoy an interesting place to live, and hopefully act as positive ambassadors for our country. A country that as of late has been seen as increasingly arrogant and self-absorbed.

Apologies for this excessively long first post. We hope you will continue to check in on this blog over the coming weeks as our adventure continues. We will have a lot more pictures and more once I figure out how this blog website works.