La Serena & Valle de Elqui

Hola Todos!!

Our trip to La Serena was awesome. La Serena is about 6 hours north of Valparaíso, situated right on the coast. We left last Wednesday night and arrived in La Serena at 4:15 a.m. Luckily we arrived as scheduled because we almost missed our bus. We were waiting at the wrong terminal in Santiago until about 15 minutes before we were supposed to leave, I looked at our tickets. The main bus station in Santiago is actually split up into three different terminals. San Borja, the one our tickets were for was about 4 blocks away at the end of a shopping mall. I sprinted down the main street and through the mall with all my bags. My sweatpants kept falling down and my shoelaces came untied…I was definitely an entertaining sight for all the mall shoppers.

After we arrived we took a nap at our hostel then rented bikes. We rode all the way to Coquimbo, a small town about 4 miles outside of La Serena. Even though it was foggy (they call the thick fog “camanchaca” and cold (as you can see from the pics), we put on our gloves and scarves and peddled away. On day two we went on a group tour to Isla Damas to see penguins. Only about 12 penguins decided to show up for us, but luckily it was sea lion and dolphin play day and we saw tons of bottle nose dolphins. Olive oil is the main product in the area and Jess and I bought a bottle from the cutest Chilean woman. We wanted to take a picture with her (see below). She was so excited that she took of her hat and fixed her hair. We also saw a few lamas grazing on our drive back.

The next day we went on a tour through Valle de Elqui. Valle de Elqui is prime pisco property. There are several pisco factories throughout the area. On the tour we visited one of the oldest pisco factories in the region. I’m a fan of pisco, but my favorite part was eating the grapes from the field. The pisco was too strong for me. We stopped at a few small pueblos along the way to walk through the plazas and churches. At one of the churches, a wedding was taking place. It was really cool, especially because the bride was pregnant. One of my favorite stops was at the dam. We walked the whole length of it and saw beautiful views of the entire valley. For lunch we ate at a solar restaurant. They cook all the dishes in small solar ovens outside the front of the restaurant. I ate a goat dish. It was delicious.

That night we stayed in Valle de Elqui in a small town called, Vicuña. Vicuña is home to several of the world’s best star observatories. We did a late night tour of the Mamalluca Observatory. It was incredible. They let us look through a huge telescope at all the different stars. My favorite constellation was the Southern Cross which you can see perfectly.

On our last day, we explored on our own. We went to a spot where two rivers meet. One is a greenish grey color and the other a dark blue. Then we had lunch at an outdoor pizza café. It was a great last day to a very fun trip.

Tomorrow is a big day for our Tías and Tíos event. We are playing soccer and then taking the kids to a soccer game in Valpo. I will be sure to post again soon!

Chao!

Las primeras semanas de Mayo

Hi Everyone! I am in La Serena right now but I need to blog about the last few weeks, so you’ll get the La Serena scoop in a couple days.

School has been going great. Over the past few weeks I gave three big presentations and turned in a few papers. In my expression class I had to memorize, recite and analyze a Pablo Neruda poem. In my culture class I presented on short story by having the class play jeopardy. Also, Jessica and I did a group presentation on Sola Sierra (founder of the AFDD) and the Rettig Report (a comprehensive report commissioned by the government regarding the events that took place between 1973 and 1990).

All and all, the unit on Pinochet was extremely interesting and at the same time sad. Following the golpe de estado on Sept. 11, 1973, Pinochet and his followers tortured, murdered and abused human rights of innocent citizens for years and years. For example, the carabineros (police) would raid homes and neighborhoods looking for leftist activists (many times that included anyone and everyone that was in the area or interfered). They would take them to various locations such as stadiums, schools, private homes, mines, boats, etc. to be tortured, raped and/or murdered. The Pinochet regime used any method deemed necessary to keep communism out of Chile. The population was drastically polarized during this time and still is to a certain extent. Many Chileans did not know what happened or if they did, turned a blind eye. It is obvious to me that Chile is doing a great job of trying step into the future without giving proper acknowledgment to the true version of their collective past. They do not teach the subject in public schools and aside from a couple monuments and memorials here and there, one could visit Chile without ever knowing something horrible happened here.

In addition to lots of school projects, two weekends ago, Jessica and I visited our Chilean family in Santiago. As always, it was very refreshing to see our nieces and nephews and spend time talking with Tita and Tata. We went shopping in La Patronata with Mari, our Chilean sister, and visited Tita at work. Jess and I also went to the big cemetery to see the monument dedicated to the desaparecidos. You can see from the pictures that the wall has thousands of names listed. These are the names of people who went “missing” during the Pinochet era. Many of their bodies were never found, hence why they are called the “desaparecidos.” On Saturday we went to our Chilean niece’s food festival at her elementary school. I had a plate from every stand. That’s probably not surprising to anyone.

Last weekend was another big Tías y Tíos event. We took the kids to the Botanical Gardens. Not only were the botanical gardens beautiful because all the leaves were falling, but the kids had an amazing time. We played soccer, volleyball and walked around the small lake. They were stuffed full of food and exhausted by the time we took them home. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!

On the home front, my sister, Katie, graduated from high school this past week. CONGRATS KATIE BO BATIE!!! Kevin drove out to AZ for a few days to see the ceremony and hang out with my family. My Nana, the best Nana in the world hands down, was also in AZ, so she was able to meet him for the first time. I wish I could’ve been there but Kevin gave me the scoop on everything.

Jess and I are going to head out of La Serena soon…I’ll be posting in a couple days about our trip! Chao!

Tias y Tios, Bikram and Estudios

Hi everyone, I have many updates!

First and foremost, our service project Tías y Tíos is officially up and running. You may be wondering why it’s called Tías y Tíos…the kids call us Tía y Tío, so it just fits.

We had our first big event this Sunday. I went to pick up the kids from the house and we met up with all the Tías y Tíos at Telepizza. First we played a get to know you game with M & M’s and ate pizza. Then we broke up into teams for the scavenger hunt. Each team had 2-3 kids and 3-4 Tías y Tíos. I was on the Los Tigres team with Diego and María Jose and Tía Angela from Columbia and Tía Julie from Indiana. We walked all through the hills of Valpo. Luckily, it was a beautiful day. I was apprehensive as to whether or not the kids would enjoy it, but not only did they have a blast, they were super intense. We jogged for an hour and 15 minutes straight so that we could check everything off the list and get back to Telepizza on time. After the scavenger hunt we did a journal activity. They had to write down a reflection about the activity along with a personal goal and academic goal they hope to accomplish before the next activity. The Scavenger Hunt surpassed my expectations, and I know the kids enjoyed every second of it. Our next activity is going to be on May 17, 2009. We will be doing a pot luck spaghetti dinner then going to a museum and doing an art project.

School is going ok. I am really enjoying my Culture class. We are learning about the Pinochet era. Pinochet is a very controversial figure in Chile. Some Chileans consider him to be the Chile’s most violent dictator in history and very similar to Hitler, while others consider him to be Chile’s saving grace. Let’s just say Pinochet is not something I’ll bring up during a dinner table chat. We haven’t finished this unit yet, but when we do I will give you a summary of who he was and what it was like in Chile during that era. Stay tuned for that!!!

My other classes are so/so. It has been a roller coaster the past few weeks on the Spanish front. One day I’ll feel really confident, and I have no problem blabbing away. Other days, I want to crawl under a rock. Also, I am not required in any of my classes to apply what I’ve learned. For example, I am used to doing worksheets or exercises in which I put into practice concepts learned during lectures. It is an extremely rare occasion that I do worksheet or exercise in class or for homework. I am learning the subjunctive, que v. cual, ser v. estar, accentuation, etc. but am not asked to put them to use. I have lectures everyday and then poof, there is a quiz or test. This is on top of the fact that there are no textbooks. I am trying to use on-line resources to do exercises, but if I have a question I don’t have a professor in front of me that I can ask. (Dr. Factor…maybe you have some suggestions???)

Our new Chilean roommate Helen is also trying to help me with my Spanish. I am very thankful that she wants to correct me, but after a long day at school it is sometimes frustrating to be corrected. It is a work in progress.

Last weekend, Jessica and I went to Santiago for our Chilean sobrino, Diego’s, baptism. It was a huge deal for the Munoz family and I was so happy that we were invited to attend such an important family event. Even though the service was an hour and a half, it was well worth the wait to eat Carla’s homemade alfajors. (Carla is our Chilean sister)

It is starting to get cold and foggy here. The season changed really fast. Jessica and I are whipping out the ear warmers and warm socks. I get so jealous when I talk to Kevin or my family because summer is well on its way in sunny LA and AZ. I felt bad that this Saturday the weather wasn't ideal because our friend Keong Te from language school came to visit us and we treked through Valpo in our winter coats and scarves.

I've started doing Bikram Yoga here. I am amazed that they have a studio!! For those of you who don't know what Bikram is, it is hot yoga and the poses are the same every class. You do each pose twice. It is hard core yoga...none of that kum-bi-ya stuff. I bought a month pass. I also am joining the PUCV's basketball team. Our first game is tomorrow and I just hope I get to play for a few minutes. There are a lot of girls on the team but I'm the only gringa :)

I also got my first piece of mail!! My sister, Katie, sent me her graduation invitation. She will be graduating from high school on May 22, 2008. Samie, my other sister, was inducted to National Honor Society last week too. GOOO PEORIA PANTHERS. I am so proud! What can I say...they learn from the best.

Well, I need to get to bed. Bikram Yoga is at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow.

La Semana Pascua etc.

I know that I have been lagging in the blog arena but, this post should make up for me being a blog slacker.

SCHOOL:

I am taking 5 classes for a total of 18 credits (see below). I like all my classes, especially my professors. In the last two weeks, I had a pop quiz in Expresión, an essay and presentation due in Cultura, two heavy reading assignments in Violencia Social, an essay due in writing and next week I have an exam in Gramática. Fortunately, I am enjoying doing all my assignments, etc. and am noticing a drastic improvement in my Spanish over the past few weeks. I also enrolled in a language exchange program. I am in a group with 3 Chileans. We are going meet once a week to talk in English and Spanish and discuss Culture. Kinda corny, but hey the more Spanish the better!

Classes:

Expresión Oral y Escrita
Violencia Social
Gramática Intermedio
Español Escrito Advanzado
Communicación y Cultura Chilena

ACTIVITIES:

Aside from school work, I have been trying out the various exercise classes and sports offered at my university. I tried aerobox and danza arabe (belly dancing). Aerobox was great, but the belly dancing class confirmed my belief that latin women are definitely sexier than las gringas. Most of the girls wore jingly wraps with jewelry, etc. I was in work out pants, tennis shoes, and an old t-shirt (my everyday outfit). I stuck out like a sore thumb but, I had a blast and plan to go again to keep working on my sexiness! (Get ready Kevin!!!) I also recently joined the extranjera (foreigners) soccer team. We play teams from other departments on campus. From what I’ve heard, the extranjera team wins every game except when they play the Physical Education Department. I am confident that our team will kick butt and change History! I’ll keep you updated on that.

For the past two weekends, Jessica and I traveled to Santiago to visit our familia Chilena. Two weekends ago was our sobrina, Carolina’s, birthday party. Her dad dressed up as Rupertina (see pics) and did activities like musical chairs, bingo and a dance competition.

The next weekend was Semana Santa (Easter Weekend). On Good Friday the whole family took us to a vía de las cruces (a procession of Jesus’ walk to Calvary). To be honest, it was a bit intense and our 2 year old sobrina was crying throughout the whole thing. On Sunday morning, Jessica and I cooked a huge United States style breakfast. We made pancakes, french toast, eggs and bacon. It was so cute because our sobrinas (Catalina and Carolina) were scared to try the food but after coaxing them to try a few bites, it was a huge hit! I am so lucky to have them. Missing my family, friends and Kevin is always worse on holidays so, it was perfect timing.

Also, on Sunday night, we went with the family to a La U fútbol game. La U is our Chilean dad’s favorite team. We decked out in blue, and even though La U lost, we cheered the whole time. In the stadium there is a huge section of fans that stand and sing cheers the whole entire game. It doesn’t matter what the score is, they cheer and cheer and cheer. I love it!

ROTARY:

Rotary has been keeping me busy as well. Last week Jessica and I went to the Rotary Club of Viña del Mar. Yesterday, we went to the Rotary Club of Quilpué Oriente and today to the Rotary Club of Quilpué. And, tomorrow we are giving a presentation about Rotary to our Cultura class as well. We are meeting tons of great Rotarians and are planning activities to do with them. A majority of the clubs here have only male members, and it is interesting to see how much each club varies from the next. However, all the clubs meet very late and last about 3 hours. For example, tonight the meeting started at 9:30 p.m. and we were home at 12:30 a.m. They ask many of the same questions at each meeting like what our future goals are and what we want to do and see in Chile. Usually they ask us about Obama, and I feel a bit of dejavu. When I was in Australia spring semester of 2003, everywhere I went people asked me questions about Bush. Oh, how times have changed!!

Be sure to click play on the video so you can hear a Rotary song in Spanish!

SERVICE PROJECT:
Jessica and I are going to organize a mentorship program with 7 + kids who have been abused (sexually/physically, etc.) and were removed by the state from their homes and put into "foster care." The 7 or so children we are going to work with live with a woman named Gina in the hills of Valparaíso. Gina is trying to turn her house into an official Hogar (which is like a combo of an orphanage and foster house). We are in the initial steps of starting the program and are having our first meeting next week with Gina, ourselves and volunteers. Our plan is to set it up as a big brother/big sister type program where we have events scheduled each month. We will be matching up 2 international students to each kid. We plan to make our events both educational and interactive. I will give you more details about that after our meeting. This Sunday we are going to the house to cook a big lunch and have the kids give us a gran tur (tour) of their neighborhood.

The second aspect of our program is going to be a supply drive and a few small construction projects. The kids are in desperate need of blankets, hygiene products, school supplies, etc. We also plan to do food shopping for them once or twice a month just to make it a bit easier for Gina to make ends meet. Two of the rooms in her house are missing doors, one of the walls in her house needs to be completely re-done, and she needs some steps built outside her front door (right now you basically have to climb on all fours to get down or up from her front door.)

I am so excited about this! I know we can do A LOT with very little and it will make a HUGE impact! Below is picture of us having lunch today with three of the kids!

I almost forgot...Jessica and I have new roommate!!! Her name is Helen and she is CHILENA!!! She moves in Friday. We are so excited to have a native Spanish speaker in the apt. and to not have to pay as much rent! I will tell you guys more about her in my next post!

That is all for now. I hope everyone had a fantastic Easter and ate tons of Reese’s candies for me!

South of Chile!!!

Our trip to the south was fantastic. We saw a whole different side of Chile. We flew to Puerto Montt but stayed in the nearby town of Puerto Varas. The town sits on Lake Llanquihue, which is at the base of Volcan Osorno. While in Puerto Varas, we hiked to waterfalls, took a boat tour of Lago Todos Los Santos and spent a day in the nearby town of Frutillar (which means to strawberry). The whole area has a ton of German influence. It was very interesting to see the mix of Chilean and German culture and architecture. As you can see from the pictures, the houses and churches all look very German. (All my pictures are to the right of this page in slideshow format. You can click on it to make the images larger.)

After Puerto Varas, we bused over to the Island of Chiloé. We stayed two nights in Castro. We spent a full day hiking through the national park. The trails winded through thick forest and then down to a huge strip of empty beach. There were cows and horses grazing everywhere, and we also saw a fluffy mouse. At the end of the last trail that led to the beach, we made lunch (turkey, cheese, peanut butter, crackers and apple) on a log while we watched the waves.

I have a funny story about our hike that I have to tell everyone. I apologize if you don’t find it funny, but we thought it was hilarious. Along the first trail we hiked, there were several large signs indicating an Artenesia (arts, jewelry, etc.). Girls being girls, of course we wanted to check it out. We trekked a good 20 minutes out of the way to the so called “Artenesia” and at the end of the path found a small house with a wood shed in the front yard. We assumed we were lost or that it had closed for the rainy season. But no, an adorable one toothed elderly woman came outside to greet us. Grinning from ear to ear, she led us to the “Artenesia” (aka the shed). Jessica could barely fit inside; she is 5’7. Aside from the tools, buckets, firewood, and animal food the woman had approximately 6 items on display. A few wood carved utensils, a beanie, and two ear warmers. We couldn’t leave without buying something. So, we bought a wooden spoon and an ear warmer. To top it off, after we paid, she invited us to come inside for bread!!! Ahh…I love the south of Chile!!!

The weather was amazing the entire week up until Friday when we had planned to take a trip out to see the penguins. The penguin tours take off out of Ancud, but because of rain and wind, the port was closed. Although we didn’t get to see penguins, we did see seals and sea lions from the ferry.

The whole week was a big breath of fresh air. The landscape was beautiful as were the people. We spoke a lot of Spanish and spent most of our time outside. Two very important things to do while in Chile…right!

Also, before our trip, Jessica and I went to an activity hosted by the President of my host Rotary Club of Playa Ancha. We had an “once” (snacks before dinner usually around 6). We ate sandwiches, drank tea, talked about Chilean and U.S. culture and service opportunities. We will be working with one of my club’s members to set up volunteer positions at a public school in Playa Ancha. Unfortunately, I called him today to set up a meeting and it turns out he was in a car accident while we were away, so it might be a week or two before we can visit the school.

This week classes are supposed to start picking up in work load. The weight room and excise classes are open to students starting Monday. I need to work off some of the pan blanco I stuffed myself with while traveling J I will be sure to blog in a few weeks…I have some grammar homework to get to…I miss you all, and please write me!!!

Clases, Rotaria, Cerros y Ascensors,

Happy St. Patrick’s Day Everyone!!! All is well in Chile. I just came back from a bout of food poisoning this weekend and am ready for a busy week. I’m in my second week of school now and have officially decided what classes I am going to take: español escrito, gramática, español comunicación y cultura chilena, historia urbana de valparaíso, y violencia social. My favorite class thus far is violencia social.

Last week was also a very busy week with Rotary. I went to two meetings in one day and also spent some time with my host sponsor, Marguerite. My club has about 20 people with an equal amount of men and women members, which is not common here. The president is also a woman. I will be talking with her over the next few weeks about my role in a project with them. I also went to the Rotary Club of Reñaca’s meeting. That is Jessica’s host club, so we were both able to spend time talking with them about their club activities and projects.

On Sunday, Jessica and I went on an adventure through Valpo. The city is basically a port surrounded by hills or “cerros.” Each cerro is a different neighborhood and most have and outdoor elevators or “ascensors” that you can pay about 300 pesos to take to the top. Some of the hills can take about an hour to walk up. When we visited Pablo Neruda’s house, La Sebastiana, we cheated and took a cab. There was no way we were walking up that hill. We also took a boat tour through the port and saw two huge cruise ships. I wanted to sneak on one of them and see if they sold JIF peanut butter.

My Spanish is creeping along. I have moments of extreme frustration with it, but I guess that means I’m learning. Pablo Neruda, a famous Chilean poet and writer (he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971) once wrote, “Chile es una Isla”/ “Chile is an Island.” In my Chilean Culture and Communication class, we discussed the reasons why he said this. In the North is the Atacama Desert which spans 600 miles along the Pacific Coast and separates Chile from its neighbors Peru and Bolivia. According to NASA it is the driest desert in the world. To the south are freezing temperatures, glaciers, iceberg, etc…check out a map it almost hits Antarctica. To the east of course are the Andes, and to the west the Pacific Ocean. Once I really started thinking about this, the things that had puzzled me so much when I first arrived, started to make sense. For example, Chileans speak their own version of Spanish, hence my frustration. I’m not just talking about a different dialect. They have hundreds of words for things that already have words in Spanish and they also speak in “Modismos/Chilenismos,”(slang). Here are my top 5 so far: 1) Al tiro – immediately, now 2) Bacán – awesome, cool 3) ¿cachaí? – Do you understand? 4) Pololo/Polola (Polear) – Boyfriend/Girlfriend (to date). Novio/a is used when you are referring to your fiancé. 5) Buena Onda – “Good vibe”

Next week is “semana mechona/novata.” It is the initiation week for the freshman at my university, and classes are canceled. Jessica and I will be taking trip to the south of Chile to explore a few national parks, volcanoes, and the island of Chiloé. I will post when we get back. I miss everyone and please send me e-mails or posts, I love hearing from family and friends.

Goodbye Santiago, Here I Come Valparaiso and Vina del Mar

Aside from hanging out a lot with my Chilean family the past couple weeks, I’ve been studying and trying to be as active as possible. Every year Vina del Mar puts on a week long music festival called Festival de Vina. Last Tuesday, myself and 5 other girls went to the festival and saw JUANES perform. It was a blast. We danced and sang (as best we could) and then took the bus home to Santiago. I also went to a winery called Causino Macul. We had 3 tastings and learned how the wine was made and bottled. Jessica and I also hiked Cerro San Cristobal last weekend. At the top of the hill is a huge pool that overlooks the whole city. You can see the view from the top in some of my pics. Language school at ECLA wasn’t what I had hoped it would be, especially for the price. However, we did get placed with a great family. I felt like my Spanish was improving more at home than in school. It might be one of those things that make an impact a few weeks or so after you’ve learned it…vamos a ver (we’ll see). I also spent a lot of time in the parks throughout Santiago. Many of which have study cafes and running paths. The park is where many young Chilean couples go to make out and lay on the grass. Most Chileans live at home until marriage, so they have to find somewhere to “suck face.” It’s actually really funny to see so much PDA going on in one place at one time. After awhile you get used to it. Between the PDA and the stray dogs walking around, my 30 minute jogs have been quite interesting.

The past few days have been bitter sweet. Yesterday, my Chilean Family loaded Jessica and I up in their car and moved us to Vina Del Mar. We spent the day driving from apartment to apartment in search of a place that was safe, clean, and reasonably priced. Once we found an apartment, they helped us read through the contract and sign all the paperwork. We were incredibly lucky to have been placed with such an amazing family. I don’t know how I would’ve gotten through this last month and found an apartment without them. They really did treat me like part of the family. As you will see from my pics, I became very close with my Chilean nieces and nephew; Catalina (6 yrs.), Carolina (7 yrs.), Martina (2 yrs.) and Diego (7 months). Catalina came to Vina with us and when we had to finally say goodbye, both of us were in tears. I wish I could’ve moved their whole family to Vina to live with us. I plan to try to go see them about once a week. The hour or so drive is well worth a home cooked Chilean meal and time with the kids. (You’re probably wondering what my apartment looks like, but for now I’m just going to say it is AMAZING!! My next post will be all about my new home…so you have to stay tuned.

Tomorrow, I start orientation at PUCV. I am really looking forward to getting started with school and all my Rotary stuff. I will be sure to keep the posts coming!

P.S. Congrats to Samie Tiller for making National Honor Society and to my boyfriend, Kevin, for kicking butt at the fire academy!!! I’M SO PROUD!!!