Sowing Pearls ofWisdom Sowing Pearls ofWisdom - Literacy Suffolk

Argentina, My Country
By Fabiana D’Ascanio and empanadas are cooked with meat, onions,
olives, eggs—everything goes inside the
Geography
Argentina is located on the south of South
America and has all varieties of climates and
landscapes. Argentina can be separated into
different regions which are marked by different
types of land and climates. The regions are
Platenese Plain, divided into five regions
called: Chaqueña Plain, Pampeana Plain,
Entrerrianas Hills and Deltaica Plain and
Subtropical Plateau. The northeast is divided
into three regions: Puna, Oriental Mountain
Range, and Seirras Subandinas. Cuyo,
Patagonia, is divided by Patagonia Andina and
Patagonia Extraandina, Argentina Sea, and
Antarctic Argentina and Patagónico system.
Music
The tango plays an important role in
Argentina’s customs and in some other countries
as well. The tango is the dance of two
persons representing Argentina in the world.
The tango has a particular language, “the lunfardo,”
and a philosophy that identifies the
tango’s people.
Sports
Soccer was the first
popular game and the
Argentinean players got
very good scores in the
Olympic competition,
and also in the soccer World Cup. The best
soccer player in Argentina is Diego Armando
Maradona. Guillermo Villas is the one who
changed the history of tennis in Argentina.
Manuel Fangio and Carlos Reutemann are the
most famous people in race cars in Argentina.
Italy, Spain, France, and other countries,
especially from Europe, received and keep
receiving players and coaches from Argentina
to play or teach soccer, volleyball, football,
hockey, and tennis.
Customs
The mate is an infusion that was used originally
by the Guaranies Indians who used the
herbal mate. The bowl where you put the
herbal is called mate. That’s the reason the
infusion is called mate too. It is like a small
pumpkin or a small cup made from wood.
The infusion is drunk with a straw and it can
be sweet or not. The water has to be hot but
less than the point of boiling. These customs
are very usual in homes in Argentina.
Tourism
San Carlos de Bariloche is a nice place to visit.
It is located in the province of Río Negro, or
“black river.” The people prefer to go in the
winter to practice skiing. Bariloche has beautiful
landscapes. It has mountains, forests, and
people can do rafting on the Manso River.
Mar del Plata is a city located on the
Argentine Sea. Mar del Plata is the most
important tourist city. It is also the city that
has the most hotels.
Foods
The typical food is meat cooked with coal like
a BBQ. The choripán is like Italian sausage,
54 READING FOR LIFE 2OO8 • Student Writing
dough. The pastas, pizza, and stew are typical
foods in Argentina. The people adopted the
Italian tradition of eating gnocchi the 29th of
each month. There is a large consumption of
milk and its byproducts, like cheese, heavy
cream, and yogurt. There are a good variety of
cookies and delicious ice creams.
Wines
Argentina is located among the first wine
growers on a worldwide basis.
A Positive Change
By William Manuel Torres
T
he most important decision in
my life was in the year 2002. I
came to the United States from
Bogotá, Colombia with my wife, Sandra
Juanita, and my three children. The difficult
situation in my country and the lack of work
were the reasons for me to make a radical
change in my family’s life. I worked in
Colombia in different companies. I was a
business administrator and my wife worked
as a salesperson in a big company.
Our first two years in the United States were
very difficult because we didn’t know how to
speak English, we found a different culture,
and I worked on jobs that I never did in my
country. I worked from 2:00am to 4:00pm
dishwashing in a restaurant and baking bread
in a deli. I had difficulty on this job because I
had to work with big and dangerous ovens.
My wife could not work because our son was
one and a half years old and we did not want
Arts
The most famous pianists are Martha Argerich
and Daniel Barenboim. The most famous
dancer is Julio Bocca. The most famous saxophone
player is Juan Barbieri.
Bibliography
www.barilochepatagonia.info/info_general/
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentina#Gastrono
m.C3.ADa
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentina#Cultura
any other person taking care of our little son.
My other two children quickly adapted to the
new school and their new friends.
Then I worked with a painting company.
My work schedule was much better and also
I had better pay. In a short time I learned the
skill of house painting. Each time I painted
I liked it more and more. I worked one year
in this company getting experience until I
made the decision to work independently.
Right now I am happy because I have my
own painting company.
“My wife is studying English in Southold
Library and I am studying English in Greenport
(Floyd Memorial) Library. Thanks to this
Literacy Suffolk program and the job of our
tutors, Christine in Southold and Adrianne in
Greenport, our English is better. God has taken
care of us and he has opened many doors for us.”
LITERACY SUFFOLK, INC. • Sowing Pearls of Wisdom 55