The Bush Library and more!

Thursday was another action-packed day for our Chilean and Peruvian guests. First, they visited the Bush Presidential Library at SMU. It was a marvelous learning experience and it was especially fun to sit in the Oval Office at the President's desk.  Of course, the 9/11 exhibit was most impactful. After that intense experience, things lightened up with a very American lunch at Ball's Hamburgers. The girls returned to UA in time to have a chat with our Journalism class -  their interviews will soon be featured on the Bear Facts Online Newspaper at uabearfacts.com 

On Thursday evening, both groups participated in service projects. The group from Chile went to serve dinner at the Hillcrest house, a home for people living with HIV and with limited resources. They served soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and two very large and delicious cakes. The group from Peru stayed at UA where they met with representatives from The Gendercide Project. They helped by making baby booties which will be part of an art installation. Each pair of booties will represent 10,000 women who have been killed, disappeared or made to "not count" in some way. The students were very interested in this cause and were quite skilled at making the booties! In fact, they have decided to continue making the booties at home in Peru! 

Fun in Ft. Worth!

Today was a wonderful day of Texas fun for our guests! They spent the day in Ft. Worth, the North Texas capital of western tradition. They met authentic Cowboys and even saw a traditional Longhorn cattle drive at the Ft. Worth Stockyards. After a delicious BBQ lunch, all were ready for a little "dancin' " at Billy Bob's Texas! Our guests were pretty excellent dancers according to Cowboy Wendall, our dance instructor. The last stop of the day was the fantastic Ft. Worth Museum of Science and Nature where the students especially enjoyed creating a Texas tornado and feeling the enclosed Hurricane wind. It was a fantastic day in Texas!

Art Day!

Today we thought that we would invite our South American sisters to bring out their artistic side and creativity. In the morning, the Peruvians attended a glass-making class while the Chileans attended a paper-making class. Then, the whole group attended an origami lesson all together. They made some lovely origami boxes. Everyone really enjoyed these unique activities and the best part is that they will all have some beautiful hand-made souvenirs to take home.

A interesting cultural and political footnote:  Today, the Feast of St. Angela, was also the day that the World Court ruled on the territorial dispute between Chile and Peru which is a result of the famous 19th Century War of the Pacific.  In simple terms, Peru was granted fishing and ownership rights to a previously disputed area in the Pacific Ocean. We are delighted to report that, despite these political differences, our friends remain friendly thanks to the triumph of Ursuline sisterhood!

Celebrating St. Angela

On Friday we celebrated the Feast of St. Angela with a school community Mass. It was a very special occasion and we were so happy to be able to share it with our Ursuline sisters from Peru and Chile! It was a beautiful and joyful celebration!

Ursuline Sisters

A Day of Service

Yesterday was a busy but fulfilling day for our guests from South America. First, they visited the Cathedral of Guadalupe in downtown Dallas. In typical Dallas style, they had a wonderful Tex-Mex lunch at the original El Fenix restaurant downtown and then volunteered at the North Texas Food Bank. At the food bank, the group sorted potatoes and put them into bags for needy families. After their volunteer shift, they had filled 7 pallets with 13,951 pounds of potatoes! That translates into 11,625 meals to hungry north Texans in need. Well done - Bien hecho, amigas!