Students from Inmaculada Concepción give insights on different hobbies in Argentina

By Jonathan M. Gornet ’14
THE ROUNDUP

Several students strolled through campus in February as it they were on a different planet.

The students weren’t freshmen or transfer students, but were actually foreign exchange students from Argentina that attend a school called Inmaculada Concepción. The group made Brophy their home away from home from Jan. 26 to Feb. 17.

Brophy “is really different” compared to our school, said Nicolás Berón ’12.

“First, we can’t choose classes,” Berón said.  “We chose one of four specialties: Humanities, Natural sciences, Communication, Art and Design, and Economy, each one with different classes. Each specialty has the same schedule so we are always the same people in the different classrooms. Also we don’t use computers. We use paper and pen.”

Berón added that their weekends involved hanging out with friends doing different activities.

“In weekends I usually hang out with my friends,” Berón said. “We go to parties in different houses or we go to night club. I also go to see some rugby games.”

Compared to Berón, some other students’ weekends involved less social activities and more athletics, said Ryan Fisher ’15 and Reed Loustalot ’12.

“On the weekend I usually will go to the gym a couple of times, The Village in Scottsdale, and I will work out there,” Fisher said.

Loustalot also said the gym is a regular hang out spot.

“Well I like to go to the gym, that’s my main activity, I like to go shoot some hoops, just kinda hang out,” Loustalot said.

Phillip Mourikes ’14 said organized sports and video games are a regular weekend pastime.

“Well I play soccer, football, I am also in National Honors Society, I study, and those are the main activities including video games,” Mourikes said.

Considering athletics, there is a wide variety of sports that Matias Barragan ’12 and Berón play that are not options at Brophy.

“I used to play rugby,” Berón said.  “I really love this sport because it is a perfect team sport. I always watch rugby games.”

Besides rugby, Barragan expanded his horizon to other sports as well.

“I play water polo as sport and play soccer and basketball just for fun,” Barragan said.  “I love swimming too.”

There are some things that the Argentinians said they wished they had from America. For example, the Arizona driving age, Berón said.

“I think I would like to have different school sports teams like here and of course to drive at 16,” Berón said.

In the end the United States was great, but not a place Fransico Kovacevich ’12 said he would want to live.

“I like the U.S. a lot but I think I wouldn’t like living here as much as I like living in Argentina,” Kovacevich said.