Civilización y Barbarie or Sarmiento in San Juan

Friday the director of Intercultural took me with her on a trip north to San Juan. It's about 2 hours away by car through the desert.

It was really my first day of sight-seeing in Argentina because here in Mendoza I'm mostly doing every day sorts of activities in and around the city. In San Juan, within a matter of two hours after arriving I had visited the birthplace of one of Argentina's early presidents---Domingo Faustino Sarmiento; tried unsuccessfully to enter the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales (closed for renovations); bought some ice cream and discovered their word for cone---cucurucho; and enjoyed panoramic views of the city from the top of the cathedral's bell tower. This kind of tourism is not my favorite, I prefer a more tranquil day, but we arrived in the afternoon and I only had a few hours before we would be leaving again.

From what I know, Sarmiento was something of a Thomas Jefferson-like figure in Argentina (anyone who knows more on the subject, feel free to correct me). He was a politician, writer, military man, and was particularly concerned with education.

In literature programs like mine, he is most well-known for having written Facundo o Civilización y Barbarie. Plus, this year is the bicentenary of his birth.

The Cathedral in San Juan is interesting because it is the most modern cathedral I have ever seen in a Latin American country. In 1944 San Juan suffered a tremendous earthquake that devastated the city and left almost everything in ruins, including the old cathedral. The new cathedral adopted a more modern style and someone told me that it has been something of a debate among the citizens of San Juan----not everyone likes the modern look.

The church invites tourists to ride the elevator to the top of the bell tower for panoramic views of the city. From the top, you can see the Andes...