Cascadas y Playas, a great end to a wonderful weekend

Well, hiking the active volcano didn't work out...but hey, I guess I can settle for an extinct one on Easter Island next weekend!

On Sunday we finished up the weekend with a tour of the region and relaxation in some hot springs. Here are a few pictures as promised. Overall the weekend was amazing. It was a great group of friends and a beautiful place.

Ojos de Caburga

La Playa Blanca

Las Termas (Hot Springs)

Volcan Villarica!!

Pucón Part One

Dearest friends,

My hostal has internet and since there is so much to talk about I figure I´d make a quick update. Forgive any typos, I´m not used to the Spanish keyboard!

Wednesday night we took a 10 hour bus ride south to pucón, located in the lake district of Chile. The bus was actually quite comfy and I got decent sleep. Our hostal here is cheap and cozy. The owner, Claudio, is a pleasant older man who is also arranging for us to climb a volcano this weekend. It´s weather dependent so there are no guarantees but I hope it works out. There is also Juan Pedro, who lives and works here. He keeps the fires in the living room going and is just generally awesome and helpful, as well as good entertainment.

Which we definitely appreciated last night, when Pucón experienced a HUGE thunderstorm complete with the entire city losing power for the whole night! We were in a restaurant eating Mexican food in the dark when something happened and water started gushing through the wall. We quickly paid the bill and stepped through a large puddle to leave. We then basically swam back to the hostal as all the streets were flooded. We hung up our drenched clothes by the fire and spent the night cozying up with some pisco and good conversation.

Today was rainy but less so with some sunny spots in between. We walked around, went shopping, and Allison and I went to a cute cafe where we had amazing coffee, muffins, and medias lunas (little croissants).Tonight Allison is going to lead the charge in cooking an amazing spaghetti dinner. This is turning out to be a cute and relaxing weekend, though I might feel differently after hiking an active volcano.

Another update to come with pictures! Happy Easter weekend!

Carrete en el campo!

This weekend I was invited by Natalia (who was invited by her Chilean pololo, Francisco) to go to a party in "el campo." El campo means the country, and santiaguinos use it to refer to any place that is not in the city. Going to el campo is extremely popular for the weekends since most love breaks from the crowded metro and smog.

This place wasn't too far by car and we got there early so Francisco could help set up. It was perfect to be outside in the woods with a system of speakers blasting music. As soon as the party got going I was having the time of my life. Even before the party picked up I was having fun with the wonderful group of gringos. I talked with a lot of Chileans throughout the night and between the pisco and the Spanish I was constantly reminded that I am in an amazing country =)

We crashed in a tent, made for four but let's just say Natalia is small and we like to cuddle. Though I might have drooled on Cody's back and Natalia's arm during the night, I got a good sleep after dancing myself to absolute exhaustion. I woke up in the early morning in that awkward light right before the sun comes out, and it was a perfect moment where I was warm from all the spooning and cold from the morning air and just so content to be exactly where I was. I was feeling appreciative the whole night.

I can't say I'm equally as appreciative and happy about the tests I have coming up this week, but I'm cutting the week short and heading to Pucon in just 3 days! My life is marvelous.

We're outdoorsy for sure. And should also be models.

The creators of our humble abode proud of their accomplishment

I CAN ALWAYS SEE THE MOUNTAINS AND IT IS AWESOMEEEE

Inglés Abre Puertas

Anyone who used to read this blog has probably given up on me. You may be thinking that life is boring here and I have nothing to write about, but on the contrary I am having the time of my life and that’s what makes it so hard to keep up!

For now, I’ll write about my new internship! Inglés Abre Puertas (English Opens Doors) is a program run by the Ministry of Education in the Chilean government that puts native English-speaking volunteers in to public schools to help teachers and students in English classes.

I work at an all-girls colegio in Providencia (conveniently right between home and school!). It’s like a high school, but it starts with 7^th grade—so the girls I work with range from 12 to 18 years old.

I’ve only had one day, but the new job is already fantastic! The teachers and students are so happy to have me and are very welcoming. Arriving at noon, I first spent some time with the 7^th graders helping them learn new words and bonding over our mutual love for Justin Bieber (don’t judge me). Then I had lunch with the teachers—a great opportunity to practice my Spanish. There are also two student teachers that studied last year in North Carolina at UNC-Greensboro, so we talked about Cookout and Southern hospitality. After lunch, I got some time with the 9^th graders (here it is called Primero Medio). They laughed at my Spanish but ultimately complimented me and said I was doing a good job. I also told them that in the US most public high school students are not required to wear uniforms (here all of the students wear uniforms). I was impressed by their maturity and strong opinions (they like uniforms because it makes them feel equal to one another). Finally, I introduced myself to the 12^th grade (Cuarto Medio) IB English class. They were excited to talk to me but also a little stressed because they have a big grammar test coming up next week!

I can’t believe I only have 3 months at this school! Time here goes by so quickly.

More adventures soon: Carrete en el campo este fin de semana, Pucón for Semana Santa, and 2 weeks from today ISLA DE PASCUA (Easter Island)!!!

8 Comments on Chile

Well, I keep getting pressured to post more frequently coughEmilyandDadcough. I’ve been waiting to write about all of the amazing food I have had here, because I want some pictures to go with that. So, for now, my random thoughts (in no particular order) as a way to procrastinate from reading 80 pages on the economy of Latin America from 1950-1990 (in Spanish).

1. Gringa status comes in handy sometimes. Last night I did not have enough money on my tarjeta BIP to take the bus home. For the first time, I was called out on it. But instead of getting off of the bus, I said, “Disculpe, no entiendo. Más lento, por favor?” (sorry, I don’t understand. Slower please?). The driver laughed at me and waved me on. He even told me to have a goodnight when got off the bus at my stop.

2. My host mom is a saint. She does my laundry, cleans my bathroom, cooks for me at least once a day, and is the sweetest, most patient woman. She ironed my jeans (so unnecessary) and made me plum kuchen (pie) yesterday. She also makes the most wonderful jam I use on my peanut butter sandwiches every day. Yes, she bought me the peanut butter.

3. Naps are acceptable on any day of the week, for whatever reason. I take full advantage of this.

4. There are some wonderful Happy Hour deals in bars across Santiago.

5. They should fix the street dogs. They won’t because of the culture of Catholicism. It’s hard for me to understand.

6. Don’t be surprised if you’re waiting at a stop light and someone puts on a performance for you—gymnastics, juggling, and dancing are common.

7. My first week of classes is done and I was pleasantly surprised by my ability to understand the professors.

8. Life continues. I live in Chile. It’s amazing.

¡Viva La Mujer!

Yesterday I went to a march! And no, I’m not suddenly back in DC. In honor of El Día Internacional de las Mujeres, santiaguinos (and quite a few gringos) went out on the streets and marched for women’s rights.

It was a great experience to see the way another country expresses their voices. What I enjoyed the most about this march was how many MEN were out in the streets! When I’m out supporting women’s rights in the United States I tend to feel like I’m in a pool of lesbians—not the case in Chile (though there were plenty of gay women fighting for their rights too!)! Allison has a theory that it’s because Chilean men love their mothers—and I think her point is valid. While there is still “machismo,” and Catholicism isn’t exactly female friendly, mothers are glorified, and young adults tend to live with their mothers all the way up to 30! While Chile obviously has a long way to go as far as women’s rights, my very limited knowledge leads me to think that when the women fight, their sons will stand with them.

Women’s rights in Chile are such an enigma to me, and it was awesome to get a taste of how some Chileans feel. Abortion is completely illegal here—even in cases of incest, rape, and the mother’s health. As with any country, if you have the money you will find a way around the laws, and the injustice of it disgusts me. While this infuriates me, remembering that Chile was the first Latin American country to elect a woman president is exciting and makes me wonder why the USA is so far behind! I guess just like any country, there is the good and the bad, and we can only strive for the good.

Overall though, I must say that Chile’s level of respect for women has impressed me, and is much better than I expected. I still don’t like being hollered at by every man on the streets here, but I’m happy it’s okay to be an independent and strong woman in Chile!

Contraception to avoid abortion. Legal abortion to avoid death.

No more violence against women

Women let's organize! For all of our rights, for all of our rights now

Abortion is what I want

Bureaucracy: It's Everywhere

This morning Chile proved to me that it has mastered the art of making people take the longest route possible and wait in lines for hours. Worst bureaucratic experience of my life. 

It all began at the Santiago Airport, February 5^th. I thought I had taken care of everything (visa wise), and was annoyed to discover that I still needed to “register my visa” at the address of Morandé 672. Skip a few to Day 1 of orientation. I had already been in Santiago for 16 days and the clock was ticking as far as my visa was concerned. Paola (program director) said we would go as a group within the following two weeks. I was nervous because she didn’t give us an actual date, but she reassured me personally that we would go before March 7, my deadline.

Naturally, it was announced yesterday that we would be going March 8. Oh, the communication skills of those in charge of this program. So although I had an abundance of time last week and I could have gone then, I was forced to skip a guided tour of the city today to get this visa nonsense taken care of. Let me take you through the three government offices I went to, and the eight lines I waited in.

Fila 1 (Line 1): San Antonio 580, Jefatura de Extranjería y Policia Internacional

            This is the address Paola gave me. After 15 minutes in line here I was informed I was in the wrong place.

Fila 2: Morandé 672, the real Jefatura de Extranjería y Policia Internacional

            I waited in line to pay 800 pesos. I still don’t know why.

Fila 3: The same

            I waited in a much longer line to receive a piece of paper with a crappy picture of myself.

Fila 4: A place to make photocopies

            Made a copy of my new official document. 100 pesos. Jumbo charges 40. Rip off.

Fila 5: Huérfanos 1570, Servicio Registro Civil y Identificación

            Waited 10 minutes to find out I needed another photocopy.

Fila 6: Same photocopy store

            Got laughed at while I got ripped off again for another piece of paper.

Fila 7: Huérfanos 1570

            By far the worst line. Waited an hour. Got to pay more money.

Fila 8: The same

            The last and the most infuriating. It should have never been a line; I was first! The woman working stared me down while she made a 20 minute personal phone call. If she knew how much Spanish I actually understand, she’d be embarrassed.

El fin—almost.

Tired and defeated, I sought out something familiar. Dunkin Donuts on Paseo Huérfanos had no line, and the cajero offered me 2 donuts for the price of 1. He didn’t have to ask twice.

Life in Chile is good once again.

Oh, but did I mention I have to return in two weeks to wait in another line to receive my ID card?

 Disclaimer: I don’t think today has shown me that Chile’s government offices are any worse than the United States. In fact, I fully believe most of today’s frustrations stemmed from the fact that I am foreign. Ah, us gringas, we have it so hard.