2013-01-05

【Aiden in English】

        The wheels on the bus went round and round as the air filled with the sound of the sunny morning chirps of the birds. Buenos Aires blew out "Good Airs" or "Fair Winds". They eclectically blended its contemporary vitality and old-world languor on the western bank of the Rio de la Plata estuary. It was already blisteringly hot when the bus stopped at the political and cultural heart- Plaza de Mayo (Ma

2013-01-05

【To A Cat】

Jorge Luis Borges (1899—1986)

         Mirrors are not more silent

         nor the creeping dawn more secretive;

         in the moonlight, you are that panther

         we catch sight of from afar.

         By the inexplicable workings of divine law,

         we look for you in vain;

         More remote, e

2013-01-04

【Aiden in English】

        Two weeks flew by on the cruise, and before I noticed, Mom and I were leaving the ship in the "Paris of the South"—Buenos Aires for good. We booked a day tour to La Recoleta Cemetery in the metropolitan center and the Argentine Estancia in the countryside.

        We drove through Palermo, the largest neighborhood with a lovely district of parks, gardens, mansions, and e

2013-01-03

【Aiden in English】

        As I came to my senses from waking out of deep sleep, the smell of muffins wafted toward me. With an unappetizing breakfast, I hurried down to meet our group. I headed for Uruguay- the second smallest country in South America and its oldest town- the Historic Quarter of Colonia del Sacramento, declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1995.

       We left the harbor, an oil refinery,

2013-01-02

【Aiden in English】

        Hooray! I was cruising at sea today.

        My whole morning was spent in tangles of dreams, wrapped in a small, cozy bed with a new punching bag and a teddy bear. I put the bear to sub-mission before falling into a deep sleep, and I'm pretty sure the bear was having nightmares about me.  

        After lunch, I hurried to the Youth Center. Over h

New Year's Day，2013-01-01

【Aiden in English】

        Puerto Madryn, a Welsh town in the Atlantic Ocean, was dominated by a vast smelter that produced aluminum from bauxite ore shipped from Australia, Suriname, and other countries. The production of ceramic tiles made itself the biggest supplier in the nation. The fishing fleet moored in the harbor. Ironically, beef was Argentina's national dish, and Argentines preferred beef to fish. Most fish wer

2012-12-31 New Year's Eve

【Aiden in English】

        It's New Year's Eve today, and we were cruising at sea again.

        I yawned widely as I got up in the morning. As I checked the clock, I toppled out of bed. It was 10:30 am. I still was in pajamas and cuddling a teddy bear. For some reason, I grew fond of the bear because he was a nice replacement for my old punching bag. I thought of having brun

2012-12-30

【Aiden in English】

        The islands we bound for had two different names in the Atlantic Ocean. It depended upon whom we spoke with and what we talked about. Concerning the Argentine, Islas Malvinas became national sovereignty. To the English, the Falkland Islands are a British Overseas Territory. Historically, there were French, British, Spanish, and Argentine settlements. Although the Falkland Islands were under British control, Argentina d

2012-12-29

【Aiden in English】

        Cape Horn in Chile is located at the latitude 55 degrees 58 minutes 47 seconds south and the longitude 67 degrees 16 minutes 18 seconds west. It is the southernmost point on Earth, other than Antarctica. It covers the two most significant bodies of water, the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans, and is known as a notorious graveyard for sailors.

        This morning, I awoke to three

2012-12-28

【Aiden in English】

        By December, a hot summer came to the south atmosphere. However, the cold still numbed my teeth as we waited on the sun deck for the glaciers and sheer mountains to appear over the horizon in the Strait of Magellan between the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean. 

        Due to tidal constraints, we had to delay our arrival time by two hours in Ushuaia, Argentina, this afternoon. Unexpectedly,

2012-12-27

【Aiden in English】

        Antarctica is the Earth's southernmost continent, encapsulating the South Pole as described in the geographic textbook. It's the fifth-largest continent after Asia, Africa, North America, and South America. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages at least 1 mile/1,600 meters in thickness. Its mountains cover such a significant area that it makes Antarctica the highest of the seven continents on

2012-12-26

【Aiden in English】

        So, there I was with my mom, standing on the balcony of Star Princess at the crack of dawn to see the Amalia Glacier in the central part of Chilean Southern Patagonian Ice Fields. The glacier descended from the Andes Mountains and sat like a frozen river above the sea. It had immense weight, and the oxygen had been pressed out of the ice, presenting it with a stunning crystalline appearance and a strange blue glow that

2012-12-25 Christmas Day

【Aiden in English】

        "Merry Christmas!" shouted the Princess Captain loud enough to be heard miles away in the morning. "Merry Christmas to All" I didn't think my mom set a wake-up call, but our captain did set the mood for the day. As I got dressed, he kept us in touch with the weather and talked for hours. The basic point was that there would be a chilly, breezy day ahead.  

2012-12-24

【Aiden in English】

        As I learned along the way, Chile is nicknamed "the Shoestring Country" for good reason; 24 times longer than its average width and in no place wider than 150 miles/241 kilometers, it stretches nearly 2,700 miles/4,345 kilometers, a span of latitude that encompasses parched deserts, fertile coastal plains, dense rainforests, and, finally, continental ice caps, fiords, and glaciers.

    &nbs

2012-12-23

【Aiden in English】

        Today, our ship was cruising at sea, and it was my first day in the Youth Center for ages 8-12 on board.

        This morning at breakfast, I could barely sit still and wait till 9 O'clock because I was going to take the Youth Program. The omelet I ordered wasn't too good, but even that couldn't hold down my excitement! As we entered a room marked SHOCKWAVE, I noticed other children insid

2012-12-22

【Aiden in English】

        I woke up this morning to the sound of people coming from the streets. I stepped onto our private balcony outside the hotel room in Valparaiso, the largest port city in Chile. At sight, the spectacular hillsides were dotted with various colorful houses. A series of peculiar boats sparked the beautiful bay in the distance. I checked the date and cheered myself up immediately. Yay! It's Saturday. I looked forward to