Semester in Chile

Broadening Horizons

2006-11-20T15:14:00.000-05:00

Those of you who know me well know I am an extremely picky eater! You would be surprised to see just how much things have changed since I've been in Chile! In a new country and culture, with a family cooking for you a majority of the time, there are very few choices! When I arrived here, I knew the food would be something to get used to and I told myself I would try everything once, not promising that I would like it! Between the house I live in and my travel, below are a list of foods that I have tried while abroad...hope you have the stomach to read it! There is always the mystery meat...but these are things I was sure about!

Goat
Rabbit
Cow Tongue
Guinea Pig (in Peru it is a delicacy)
Seaweed Salad
Almost raw egg (mixed with rice it's actually really good!)
Raw pumpkin

I definitely came in with an open mind, and although I will probably not attempt to eat any of the above again, at least I can say I tried them!

Food here is not all bad or scary. Fruits and vegetables are so fresh here and extremely cheap! They have several fruits that I had never heard of before coming to Chile, and will definitely miss when I return to the states! They also have some special dishes that are typical to the region. One of those is Chorillana, which can only be eaten sparingly...and especially good shared with friends after a late night out! It is french fries topped with fried egg, grilled onions, sausage and cheese. Probably the best thing I had here!

I don't have very much time left in Chile, am I definitely want to make the most of it! I started physical therapy for my ankle today and it is actually doing a lot better. Although I will miss the friends and experiences I have made here, I can't wait to see everyone back home! Love and miss you all!

Chilean Culture...wow!

2006-11-16T02:03:00.000-05:00

These are some fun and interesting things I have learned/observed while in Chile. I stole some of them from Devon...hope you don't mind!

1) Dr. Atkins would not have done well here. Fresh bread is a staple at every meal. Condiments range from fresh avacado to butter, cheese or pate (a ground meat paste).

2) The 70´s and 80´s are alive and well in Chile. On the radio, on the television and in dance clubs one can find Abba, classic Madonna hits, Duran Duran and the likes playing loud and proud. While this era of music may be considered quite out of date in the U.S., its what´s hot and happenin´ in Chile. Its Hammer time!

3) Along with the music, mullets are the hairstyle of choice for most Chilean guys (and some girls as well).

4) Fanny packs are carried (with pride) by just about everyone...guys and girls!

5) Innocent downtown plazas and parks where children laugh and play are filled with young couples and their public displays of affection. It is not abnormal to hug, kiss or makeout ANYWHERE in the city. I guess that's what happens when you live at home until you marry! While I thought I would have to guard myself at night against robbers and pickpockets, I now realize I must guard myself against the sight of many a young person freely enjoying the company of pololo or polola (Chilean term for boyfriend or girlfriend).

6) Eggs are sold on a shelf, and eaten at dinner (or with tea)--not at breakfast. And while we´re on the subject of food that comes from animals, let me add that milk is generally sold in powdered form. If not powdered, it comes unpasteurized and thus also on a shelf. Yummy, no?

7) Hardly anyone owns a dryer here, and there are some people who don´t own washers either and have to hand wash their clothes. But most people do have washers, then hang clothes to dry outside or in a special room in the back of the house. This means that if you want to wear your favorite shirt out on Friday (probably to the discotec), you better wash it on Wednesday and give it all of Thursday and Friday to dry.

8) Chileans are on a completely different time schedule. When a time to meet is set (even class time etc.), you should not expect a Chilean to show up less than 15 minutes late! It's just a way of life here...no hurry!

9) The general perception of Americans is that we are cold towards others, like to stand far away from each other when having conversations, and generally avoid physical contact with people as much as possible. In Chile, you greet people by embracing them and kissing them on the cheeks. During conversations, the space between people is a lot closer than we are used to.

10) When sick, Chileans do not turn to Dayquil or Theraflu. Instead, they have their mother or other loved one make them some weird hot tea concoction that takes away congestion and helps one sleep at night. Don´t ask what´s in it, they say...just drink it. There is a natural remedy for anything. When I fractured my ankle, my host brother rubbed lemmon on it and said it would help with the swelling...it's times like these you just smile and nod!

11) When lost, you can ask pretty much anyone on the street for help and they will not only tell you how to get where you are going, but they will offer to show you. Kindness towards strangers seems unlimited here.

Just a few funny, interesting things about Chile!

Halloween boo-boo

2006-11-02T23:19:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone in the states had a fun and safe halloween! Wish I could have been there to celebrate with you all, your stories were all so much fun to hear! In Chile, Halloween only began to be celebrated about 2 years ago...it caught on from movies and tv shows from the United States. It is so interesting to see another culture´s take on a holiday initially only celebrated by Americans. Children dress up and go around to both houses and stores for candy, but a lot less people participate so it`s kind of hit or miss. People my age also go out to the bars and clubs, most of which have a halloween theme, and some people dress up.

Unfortunately, my halloween wasn´t much fun! I was on my way out to meet friends, walking down my street and tripped and fell (i mean really fell!) All of the streets and sidewalks here are in pretty bad condition with holes and cracks that have been filled with random materials, and others that haven´t. It was dark out, and I guess I should have been paying a little more attention to where I was walking! I knew I had hurt my ankle as soon as I fell, and couldn´t manage to get up due to the pain. Luckily some people that live on my street were outside and saw me fall. They had to go to my house and get my family to help me home. I sat down for awhile and my host brother got me an ankle wrap. He also said in Chile, rubbing lemon on the ankle is supposed to help the swelling. I was willing to try anything! My ankle hurt pretty bad but I still decided to go out for awhile with my friends. My host brother and his wife were nice enough to drive me to the bar to meet my friends. I tried to sit as much as I could while I was out, but walking is inevitable in this town. When I finally made it home, my ankle hurt so much and was so swollen I had to wake my family up to see what they thought I should do. It´s nice to have a psuedo-family you can depend on for things like that!

Despite how bad my ankle looked, we decided to wait until morning to see how it was. After trying to sleep through the pain for a few hours, it was obvious I needed to go to the hospital. I had x rays and found out my ankle was fractured. It was a small fracture, and the muscles were cause of more worry that the bone. I could either get a cast or a medical boot that is removalbe. I definitely wanted the boot, which you can walk on and doesn´t require crutches, but lucky for me they were out of my size! I had to get a cast and crutches. It makes for a pretty difficult time in a city where you have to walk several miles a day, up and down huge hills to get anywhere!

After a day and a half with the cast I decided I couldn´t take it. I went to another medical center and they had my size boot! They cut off my cast which was a huge relief, but my ankle looked pretty scary! Now I have the boot and can walk/hobble and shower with ease! I might be wearing it the rest of my time here in Chile, but I guess it could have been a lot worse! I got to experience hospitals here and became closer to my family, having to depend on them for support. Thanks to everyone back home who has called and emailed! Miss you all and it won`t be long until I will be able to see you in person!

Sad times

2006-10-30T01:08:00.000-05:00

My group of American friends here, who I travel with and talk to often includes 4 girls and 2 guys. It´s kind of a support group since all of us are away from home and going through similar situations. Last week one of my friends got a call from home that a member of her family was killed in a car accident. It was devistating for her, and she rushed home to be with her family. Unfortunately her trip was cut short, but it has really made all of us think about how lucky we are, and also how you never know what could happen. While we are enjoying ourselves so much in Chile, we are away from our families. It can be easy to take for granted, but seeing her go through this tragedy has made me more appreciative of my family and I talk to them as often as possible. As we are here in Chie, send your prayers to her and her family and hopefully everthing will turn out ok!

Intercambio

2006-10-30T01:01:00.000-05:00

For the first few months in Chile, I hung out with alot of other Americans. We did have a group of Chilean friends that we did things with occasionally, but it is harder than we expected to make close friends at the University. I signed up to be paired up with a Chilean student that wants to practice English, and that can help me with my Spanish. It is called an intercambio program that is mutually beneficial to both people involved. My partner´s name is Byron and he is studying English at the University. It has been so much fun meeting with him on a regular basis. We split the time conversing half in Spanish, and half in English. We are also there to offer homework help or anything else that we may need. Having someone from Chile that you really get to know and talk to often allows you to learn the language in a different way. They speak with a regional dialect and I have learned so much from this intercambio! (definitely things that aren´t taught in classes, like slang words and such).

I have also introduced my American friends to Byron´s Chilean friends and we have all been going out a lot lately. It has made my time here so much more enjoyable and I am learning so much more than I did at the beginning of my trip! We are all actually planning to take a trip one weekend to a town in Chile so we can all practice our language skills. I am really looking forward to the trip and am so glad I took the time to engage in this intercambio!

The University

2006-10-30T00:53:00.000-05:00

With all of the travelling and fun stuff i´ve been writing about, i´m sure it´s hard to believe i´m taking classes...but I certainly am! I am taking an advanced spanish grammar course, and two MBA courses (masters level courses in Business). These MBA classes will help finish my degree in International Studies. The MBA program here is definitely different than the one at ECU. The program is small, with only about 20 students, who are given supreme treatment! The classes are four hours long so it´s a little hard to sit through, but I am learning a lot so it´s worth it! The classroom is different than any other at the university. It takes up the top floor of one of the buildings and is filled with big desks and leather chairs. When you arrive to class there is a waiter type man who offers you sparkling water or fresh fruit juice. There is also a break half way through the class where they serve sandwiches, tea and other things. If only all classes could be given such treatment!

Despite these luxuries, the classes are very difficult. I am only the second non-native to take an MBA class here so the professors aren´t used to it. The talk super fast, in business terms for 4 hours. It is alot for me to take in and I have to concentrate every second in order to not miss anything. I am also by far the youngest student, with most of them being in their mid 30´s. Also, istead of semester long classes, these classes are a month long, held 3 nights a week for 4 hours. Since most people are older and already have a career, the schedule is one that suits them. I just finished my first course and have my exam on Tuesday so i´ll need all the luck I can get! I´ll keep you posted on my classes and how things turn out!

Mendoza, Argentina

2006-10-30T00:38:00.000-05:00

I haven´t been doing a very good job of keeping up with the blog, everything has been so hectic. I thought it was about time to catch everyone up on what i´ve been doing in Chile! A few weeks ago I went with a friend, Devon, to Mendoza, Argentina. It was supposed to be an 8 hour bus ride that took us through the Andes Mountains and across the border into Argentina. However, the border crossing was extremely busy the day we decided to travel and we were stuck there for almost 4 hours waiting. It turned an 8 hour trip into a 12 hour one, but turned out to be well worth it! When we finall got to Mendoza, we checked into our hostel and had dinner with some friends we met there. The economy in Argentina recenly crashed so everything is super cheap there, which we were excited about. Since the country is going through such hard times, I expected it to be another adventure, like we experienced in Peru. However, the city was beautiful, and the people there as well! It reminded me of a European city, with cafè lined streets and shops. Meat is one thing that Argentina is known for, so everyone we went to dinner with ordered a huge steak, probably the biggest i´ve ever seen, for about $6. Wine is also well known, and also inexpensive. Actually, our hostel served free wine every night. The hostel was one of the best, and cheapest I have ever stayed in. It is only about 2 years old and was started, and still run by a couple not much older than me. The guy is from England and he was travelling in South America, where he met his girlfriend in Mendoza. They were so funny and kind, and helped us out so much by reserving our day trips and giving us suggestions for restaurants etc.

Our first day in Mendoza we spent wandering around town, shopping and checking out the sites. There were so many things we wanted to do, but had to choose between them. I decided to go paragliding, but Devon is afraid of hights and decided to go rafting. So, the next day we split up and did our own activity. I never thought I would have the courage or opportunity to go paragliding, and was so excited! For those that don´t know, paragliding is where you are attached to a parachute (and in my case a trained professional). You run and jump of a huge cliff and glide through the air, slowly descending. The view was amazing! You could see the entire city of Mendoza, as well as the Andes. I took plenty of pictures from the air that are posted on my picture website. The rest of the trip was pretty relaxing, spent shopping and enjoying the city. One of the big plaza´s in the city was filled booths of people selling things. One of the booths was a man drawing characatures and he was so good, we decided we had to have one done! I told him about my paragliding experience and he drew me doing just that. It´s something to keep that will alway remind me of my experience! Mendoza was wonderful and it is definitely a place I would love to visit again!

Feliz Cumpleaños

2006-10-04T00:19:00.000-04:00

I just celebrated my 25th birthday in Chile and had so much fun! Thanks to everyone who called, sent cards and packages...everything was wonderful! I had about 15 friends come to my house in Valparaìso, and everyone brought a dish to share for dinner. We ate and talked for awhile, then took the festivities to my room. There were several people from Chile and Nicaragua, as well as the United States, so we taught everyone how to play some of the party games we like to play in the states. We played beer pong and flip cup which everyone had so much fun doing! Then we went out to a club nearby and danced until the early hours. It was a birthday I will never forget...wish some of you could have been here to celebrate!

Peru - Cuzco and Machu Pichu

2006-10-03T23:58:00.000-04:00

We were all very tired after San Pedro, but had a long bus ride into Peru to rest (or so we thought)! We spent a short time at the beach in Arica, the northern most town in Chile, from where we had to take a bus into Peru. Two girls from our group took a Taxi into Tanca, which is a town just over the border into Peru, to go to the bus station and find us bus tickets. Peru uses different bus companies so we had no idea which ones were reliable etc. They ended up getting us all tickets, and we took a taxi later that day into Peru in order to catch our bus. The bus station was our first glimpse of Peru, and it was kinda scary! It was full of indiginous people dressed in traditional Peruvian clothes, waiting on busses and selling things. When we got on the bus, we were the only people who looked even remotely like tourists. It was a double decker bus, where the people sat on top, but the driver was underneath in a separate area. We were told there was a button to push if we needed him for any reason. A little while into the overnight trip, which was supposed to be about 14 hours, several of us had to use the bathroom, but it was locked. We pushed the button for the driver over and over but he kept telling us to wait. It got pretty close to an emergency situation for a couple of us when we finally stopped 4 hours later! It was the middle of the night but we ran down the street to find a bathroom. In South America they charge to use public bathrooms, and when we finally got there we realized we didn`t have any peruvian money...ahhhh! Luckily a nice couple from the bus paid our way in. We were in a hurry, only to find that the bathroom was nothing more than a hold in the ground to neal over and aim! It smelled awful but we had no choice! Finally back on the bus and a little more comfortable, we went through several police check points. One lady sitting near us kept trying to give me her bag to hold and claim as mine when we were being checked...pretty scary! Of course I refused. The police came on the bus and several people were taken off for having too much money of a different currency, or illegal posessions. Our first glimpses of Peru were not very good!

After almost 23 hours on the bus, we finally arrived in Cuzco. We were all glad to get off the bus and get to our hostel to clean up and relax. The hostel was nice and full of young travellers. They provided a laundry service which we were really excited about because we all packed lightly and had worn just about everything. Our first day in Cuzco, we explored the town and went to some indiginous markets where you barter to buy really cool hand made things. We also planned our trip to Machu Pichu becuase we heard the trains there filled up fast.

The next day we left our laundry at the front desk. A lady comes daily to pick it up, wash it, and bring it back that night. When we came back in that night, we were told that the laundry lady put all of the clothes into the taxi to take home and the taxi driver drove off with everything! We had lost what little clothes we had with us! Things just didn`t seem to be going our way! Of course I had more clothes stolen than anyone, but there was nothing the laundry lady, who was poor, or the hostel could do about our missing clothes! Also, Cuzco is at a very high altitude, close to 12,000 feet, so once again I was affected by this. I woke up in the night and each morning with horrible headaches. Luckily I brought migraine medicine along and was able to enjoy our time there!

The next day we woke up before the sun came up and took a train to Machu Pichu, the Incan Ruins. It was about a 3 hour bus ride to a town called Agua Calientes, where we took a bus up the mountain to the ruins. It was absolutely amazing, and unlike anything you`ve ever seen! We had a short hike further up the mountain, then were able to walk all throughout the ruins. It blows my mind to imagine how the Incans managed to build these structures by hand up on the mountain. They had to build stone by stone and i`m sure it took forever! To see it is absolutely worth everything we went through to get there! While we were wandering throughout the ruins...quick to get out of breath again because of the altitude, I saw two people from MTV`s the real world and got my picture with them. It made the amazing day even better! We left the ruins and took a bus back down the mountain with enough time to shop in the market and buy some more cool Peruvian items.

After a long and wonderful trip, we woke up the next morning to get on a plane and fly home. We saw some amazing things and made so many memories! Despite everything that happened on our trip, it was a once in a lifetime experience and I wouldn`t trade it for the world! Now it`s back to the real world, with school and studying!

More on San Pedro

2006-10-02T03:05:00.000-04:00

The rest of our time in San Pedro was amazing! As I said, we went on another tour that began at 4:00 AM, and we went to see the Tatio Geysers. Luckily we had a three hour van ride to get to our destination so we had some time to catch up on sleep! We were told to bundle up because it would be pretty cold at the geysers, but I don`t think anyone expected the weather when we got there, it was only 11 degrees! Luckily our tour guides provided blankets for all of us so it helped with the cold a little! We were at a very high altitude, of almost 15,000 feet, and I was definitely affected by it! Several of us felt dizzy, our hearts were racing, and we lost our breath so easily! It was the first time i`d ever been affected by altitude sickness, but it is definitely a different feeling! There were almost 100 active geyesers in the area we visited, which were beautiful, but did come with the smell of rotten eggs! They varried in size, but most were pretty small. It was amazing to look out across the land and see so many active geysers, with the sun rising over the mountains in the background!

After spending some time enjoying the view of the geysers, we sat in the heated van where they served us breakfast of hot tea and cheese sandwiches. After we warmed up a little, we continued our tour of the area and headed to the hot springs for a thermal bath! The tour was definitely worth the early morning and we got to see some of nature`s amazing beauty!

While we were in San Pedro, we made friends with a group of people from Nicaragua that are actually studying in Santiago. They all spoke perfect english so we alternated between the two languages. It was so much fun to spend time with them, and hear about their experiences both in Nicaragua and so far in Chile. Since they live so close, we will definitely stay in touch!

San Pedro was beautiful, but there were definitely some things we had to adjust to! Since it is in the middle of the desert, water supply is low. Because of this, water in the entire town shuts off at 7:00 PM and doesn`t come back on until 6:00 AM the next morning. There were buckets of water by the toilets to help flush them between these hours, and unfortunately showers were not very easy to come by at any time! Even in the hours with water, showers were barely a drip of freezing cold water. It was either be dusty in the desert or take a tourturing shower! Also, since we had a limited amount of clothing with us on our trip, a lot of people in our group decided to wash clothes out by hand and hang them on trees around our hostel to dry...I think it made us fit in with the locals!

One thing that was really cool about San Pedro were the buildings. Since it is one of the dryest deserts in the world and they never get rain, all of the hostels and restaurants/bars are set up with a huge open courtyard type opening in the middle. Many of them have bon fires that people talk and dance around, and hammocks etc. Also, a lot of the roofs were open in areas where you could look up and see the stars in the sky! It is definitely a place I will never forget. The next stop on our trip is Cuzco, Peru!

San Pedro de Atacama

2006-09-16T22:23:00.000-04:00

We left on Thursday night to go to San Pedro, the first stop on our 10 day trip. Mike and Patrick, the two boys flew, and the 5 girls decided to go by bus. It took 24 hours to finally make it to San Pedro, definitely longer than I ever want to spend on a bus again! We`ve been here for one day now, and the drive was worth every minute. It is town that`s in the middle of the desert, and also surrounded by the Andes. It is too beautiful to describe in words or even pictures! We went on a tour today or some of the big sights here. Tours are usually by van, and there is a tour guide that gives you the history behind the places you visit. We first went to the Valle de la Muerte (valley of the dead). It has this name because there is absolutely no lifeform. It is completely dry, but gorgeous just the same! Next we went to salt mines, where rain and the environment create natural salt crystals. We went through caves to get a better view of how everything forms. Unlike anything i`ve ever seen! We walked by huge sand dunes, like mountains made out of sand, where there were people sand boarding. It`s just like snowboarding on sand and looked so much fun but I don`t think i`m brave enough to try! Finally on our tour we hiked up one of the sand dunes where we could see the Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley), and the amazing sunset. This valley is named becuase it is said to look like the surface of the moon. I`m working on getting my pictures up from this tour but it takes a long time, especially since we`re in the middle of the desert and internet is very fast. One interesting, and kinda scary thing we learned on our tour today is that to this day, San Pedro still performs human sacrifices in the Valle de la Muerte. It is a religious ritual, and the person sacrificed is usually someone elderly who chooses this as their way to go.

We are going on another tour that starts at 4 am, where we get to see the sun rise, then go to a natural spring bath and geysers so i`m so excited and will write more as soon as I can!

Difficult Week!

2006-09-16T22:02:00.000-04:00

It`s been awhile since I`ve had a chance to write, but it`s been a pretty hard couple of weeks. I haven`t travelled lately, but there`s been enough excitement, both good and bad, to last me awhile! Last weekend I went out to a club called Huevo with some friends. Bars here close a lot later than those in the states, so when we left at 4 AM, we sat down outside to talk and have a completo (chilean hotdog). There were about 100 people hanging out in the plaza we were in, and a man came up behind me and grabbed my purse. I held onto it tight, so he took out a knife and cut it away. Muggings like that are very common in Valparaìso, but it`s usually the most dangerous crime that happens, so not too bad. I was so mad becuase I usually never carry a purse but for some reason had one with me that night. Also, there were so many people around, but everyone is scared to get involved. It seems like if people teamed up, they could catch people who do things like that! Needless to say, I lost my camera, both id`s, my keys and some money. Wasn`t too fun, but it could have been worse and at least no one was hurt!

As if the week wasn`t stressful enough, two days later, my madre was on a micro (the crazy driving buses here), and it was in a pretty bad accident. Three marines were killed, and my madre had to get stiches in her lip, and a brace on her neck. So much to happen! It makes me a little more nervous to ride the buses, but it`s kinda unavoidable in Valparaìso. I am leaving soon with 7 friends to go on a 10 day trip to northern Chile and Peru so there will be tons of pictures and tons to write!

Completada and some interesting differences!

2006-08-28T20:36:00.000-04:00

I wrote before that hot dogs are very popular in Valparaìso, but they are different than in the United States. Here, they put tomatos, avacado and mayonaise on their hotdogs and they are called "completos." This weekend I went with a friend to a party at a girl`s apartment that is from Chile. The party was called a "completada," because they made and served these hotdogs to everyone. The chilean girl is going to a conference with her church and needs to raise money to go, which she did by charging for the completos. It was my first chilean party and was so much fun! I got to talk to a lot of Chileans my age, and we listened to music...kinda like parties in the US!

I am getting more accustomed to the language here, it is so different than any Spanish i`ve heard before! They have a different accent, and also a slightly different vocabulary. In Chile, they don`t pronounce their s`s, and a lot of words are chopped off at the end. They also add "po" to the end of most words or sentences when they are talking to other people. It`s almost like saying "yeah man" in the US. I also learned that instead of the tooth fairy here, they have a rat that brings them money for losing teeth. Simple words that I learned in my first few years of Spanish classes are completely different here! Here are few examples: Instead of saying estómago for stomach, they say "guata," and isntead of bebé for baby, they say "gua gua," and instead of adios for goodbye they say "ciao." I am learning quickly and starting to make more chilean friends. My friends and I have several trips planned so I will definitely write more about my experiences!

Address

2006-08-28T20:32:00.000-04:00

Several people have asked for my address here in Chile so I thought it would be easiest to put it here! Thanks for the cards and packages...I love receiving things from home!

Christi Russell
449 Lautaro Rosas
Cerro Alegre
Valparaìso, Chile

There`s no zip code which is different! Things take about a week and a half to two weeks to get here. They say it gets to Chile fast but mail in this city is very slow!

Pictures

2006-08-15T12:03:00.000-04:00

Here`s the link to my pictures if you missed it!

http://photos.yahoo.com/cracker14c

La Serena

2006-08-14T20:49:00.000-04:00

We had a long weekend becuase there is a holiday on Tuesday, so some friends and I decided to take a trip. Meg, Patrick and I took an overnight bus, that left at 10:30 PM to La Serena, which is about 6 hours north of Valpo, but a 7 hour bus ride. I wasn't able to sleep much on the bus, but when we arrived in La Serena, we checked into our hostal and got a few hours of rest before we began touring the town. For those that don't know, hostals are like budget hotels that a lot of young travellers stay in. They are all over Europe and South America, and i'm sure other places too, and a wonderful way to meet people while travelling on a budget! Our first day in La Serena, we decided to walk around the town to see all of the sights. La Serena is the second oldest town in Chile, so there is a lot of history there. The town is full of cathedrals, and some of them were gorgeous! We walked from our hostal down to the beach, and stopped to take pictures along the way. It was a very long walk, but the sights were well worth it! We spent some time on the shore and at the lighthouse, which was so different than any lighthouse i've ever seen! The coast was beautiful, and you could see mountains in the background. The water was freezing becuase it is part of the Pacific ocean, so we had to settle for dipping our feet in! After the lighthouse we continued walking and went to the famous Japanese Gardens in La Serena. Since it is winter here, there were no flowers, but it was still beautiful! There were tons of plants, waterfalls, fountains and swans. It was very peaceful, and there was even a group of people doing yoga in the gardens! I saw black swans for the first time, i`d never even heard of them before! We walked around the gardens for awhile, and then went to the huge market where local people set up booths with all kinds of handmade, authentic chilean products. It was huge and there was so much to take in! I bought a few small souveneirs, and we decided to have lunch at a restaurant up above the market. There were several restaurants above the market, and we were told that they had the best sea food in town. When we walked up the stairs, we were bombarded by people who worked at the restaurants, all trying to convince us to eat at theirs! After ten minutes of trying to walk around and make a decision, all the while being grabbed in every direction by the workers, we finally decided on one and had a wonderful lunch. All of the restaurants have a house special, that includes bread, soup, either salad or rice, and either fish or beef. It was very good but we were exhausted and after lunch decided to go back to the hostal to rest for a while. We had dinner later that night, then went out to a pub that had a live band. It was a lot of fun but we knew we had to wake up early and had a long day so we headed back to sleep. The second day we signed up for a 9 hour tour of the Elqui Valley. A van picked us up at our hostal at 9 AM to start the tour. There were 9 people on our tour, and the guide talked during the entire trip, telling us the history of the things we were seeing. We made several stops that day, to see amazing views of the Elqui Valley. It looked like something from a postcard! The scenery the whole day was beautiful and made driving in the van enjoyable. The roads were lined with mountains, vinyards and fruit trees. We made our way through the mountains and the valley, to a town called Vicuña. Here, we had a traditional Chilean lunch, then took a tour of a Pisco Factory. Pisco is a liquor that is only made in Chile. It is made out of grapes, similar to how wine is made, but there are several more steps to the process. The town had vinyards everywhere, but it isn`t quite the season for grapes to grow so we saw the foundations for which the grapes grow. Vicuña is also the hometown of poet Gabriela Mistral, who in was awarded the Nobel prize of Literature in 1945. She was the first woman ever to win this award. We got to tour her old schoolhouse and dormitory, then got back on the vans to head back to La Serena. After about an hour and a half van ride, we were back at our hostal. We rested for awhile after another long day then went out for Chinese food! It was definitely an experience trying to understand what was on the menu. We decided on dishes, still not quite sure what we were getting, but it ended up being great. The chinese food here is similar to that in the states, but not as much fried foods and sauces. That night we went out to another pub that was doing Karaoke. We were the only Americans in the bar, and were convinced to do Karaoke like the Chileans! Luckily they had a list of songs in English as well, so we sang to Like a Virgin by Madonna. It was so fun and everyone cheered for us and sang along. Definitely a trip to remember! I've already posted all of the pictures from our trip!

Comments

2006-08-14T20:39:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone for leaving wonderful comments! Make sure you leave your name when you make a comment so I will know who it is from, otherwise it just says annonymous!

Strange stuff and things I miss from home!

2006-08-09T22:33:00.000-04:00

I`ve been in Chile for almost three weeks now, and it is definitely a completely different world! I am still having a great time and love my family. I`ve been sick for the past few days, which came at a bad time, trying to get started with my classes and still getting used to new surroundings. I think everyone gets sick one way or another from the extreme change in temperature or the different food and water. Luckily I just had a cold, but with a couple of days of rest and some medicine i'm feeling much better!

There have been a few things i`ve come across in Chile that have been very different, unique to say the least! Most of the food my family serves are things i`m familiar with. We have a lot of fruits, veggies, cheese, bread and rice. I live with a wealthy family, so they also have meat pretty often. My family has friends over all the time for meals and wine, and on Sunday they prepared a huge lunch for everyone. There was a big platter of meat that looked like bbq chicken. My madre offered me some with a grin, so I asked what it was. It turned out to be rabbit cooked in a chocolate sauce. I`ve never had rabbit and told myself I would try anything once, so I did. Sure enough, it was`t for me, but at least now I can say i`ve tasted it! On a different night, during a birthday party for my madre, they had different cheeses and finger foods out on the table. I don`t care for strong cheeses, which are the most expensive and favorite here, so I stick to the mild, fresh cheeses. I found one on the table I really liked and was eating some. Out of curiousity I asked someone at the table what type of cheese it was and found out it was goat cheese! I`ve never had it before, so it was strange to me, but was actually really good!

The college is also a lot different here. First of all, there are several buildings, but no campus. The buildings are spread out between two cities, and your classes could really be anywhere. Also, there seems to be a lot less structure with schedules. Classes are in one room, at one time one day a week, then in another room at another time another day a week. I still don`t understand how the credits are given for classes. Classes have anywhere from 2 credits to 6 credits, that i`ve seen so far, but this doesn`t seem to depend on how long the class meets each week or the subject itself. Also, I don`t think any of the classes require you to buy textbooks. You either make copies, get handouts, or get info on the internet. Definitely saves money! All of these differences are going to take some time to adjust to!

I`ve also had problems dealing with all of the stray animals on the streets that dig through garbage and beg for food. No one seems to give them a second glance. As an animal lover it`s hard to accept, but it is common, and a way of life here. There is a cat close to our house that was hit by a car, and laying dead on the side of the road. I asked if there were people who came and took care of things like that, but they told me it happened all the time and someone would eventually put it in a trash can. They also told me that all of the stray animals are normal, but makes the city look dirty, so when anyone of political importance is supposed to visit the city, they collect all of the strays and "put them down." Kinda hard to deal with but I guess that`s life!

There are obviously different things in Chile, and some things from home I miss that can`t be found here. Of course most of all I miss all of you...family and friends! As far as edible things go, I definitely miss Diet Mountain Dew and pizza. You get the strangest cravings for things when they aren`t available! I also miss my dog...seeing the horrible conditions here makes it that much worse. I also miss having the internet around whenever I want to use it, and driving my car. Most people have a washing machine, then hang their close to dry. I definitely miss clean, hot laundry straight from the dryer! I also miss having central heat, and not having to bundle up inside during the winter months (as it is winter here now becuase we are in the southern hemisphere). These seem like such small things compared to what most people here have.

The other day I got in a taxi, and the driver misunderstood my street name. Valparaìso is up on huge hills, and my neighborhood is one of the richest ones, near the middle as far as altitude goes. The taxi driver kept driving further up, into the poorest parts of the city. It was so sad to see the conditions so many people live in here. There houses, or shacks, look like they are made out of anything they could get their hands on, piled on top of each other, and could collapse at any minute. It`s hard to describe in words, but was like nothing i`ve seen before. I realized we weren`t going in the right direction and finally got to where I needed to be, but those images will be stuck in my head for a long time!

Hope everyone is doing well, and keep sending comments and emails!

Exploring!

2006-08-05T21:04:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile since I posted a blog, but things have been busy and also the internet at my house hasn't been working. Classes started on Wednesday, but becuase of my schedule I`ve only been to two so far. I think the semester will be hard but I will really enjoy the classes! I have finally decided on the exact classes I'm going to take so that's a little less stress! I'm taking human anatomy with a lab, to hopfully learn all of the body parts in case I decide I want to translate in a hospital one day, also a beginner German class, a class in English/Spanish translation, a class in advanced Spanish grammer, and my MBA class (which is only the month of October). Today I met up with a friend and her host brother and we went to Viña del Mar (the neighboring town). It really helped to have her "brother" there so he could show us all of the sites! We walked around the coast a lot and saw a lot of the city. It is so pretty but very different than Valparaìso, much more updated and city-like. We had lunch at a Mexican restaurant that had food a lot like Mexican restaurants in the States. It was funny though becuase they played American music...kinda of ironic! I got to go back to my friend's host family's house after touring the city. She lives in a different neighborhood in Valpo, and it is like a completely different world! It is so iteresting how different parts of the city are. I just found out I live in the most historic, richest part of the city which explains the huge house and family. Everyone has such a different experience and it's fun to see where other people are. I still love my house and my family, wich so much going on all the time. The french student that is staying at our house has done a lot of research on the city and took me on a tour today of places near our neighborhood. We rode on an acensor, visited the port and several historic buildings. I took tons of pictures and added them online so make sure you look for them!

Food, Transportation and other stuff

2006-07-31T13:45:00.000-04:00

My first weekend went really well. Yesterday I decided to venture out and go to the mall in Viña del Mar (the neighboring town) by myself. It was quite an experience! It took about 15 minutes by bus, and the mall was like nothing i've ever seen before! It was two buildings, across the street from each other, and both buildings are 4 stories high! The mall was so jam packed with people, it was hard to get around. Complete chaos! It was fun though and I found some neat stuff. There are big department stores like in the US, of course with different names, and small stores as well. Alsmost anything you can think of. There are also two movie theatres in the mall that show both American films, in Spanish, and Chilean films as well. I was able to find my way there and back so it was a successful day!

The buses really are something you have to experience! There are tons all over town with the numbers and destinations written with soap or paint on the windows, so you have to pay attention and try hard not to miss the bus you need! It costs $250 pesos, which is about $0.50 in American dollars for each ride on the bus, but once we are given our university ID card it will be a lot cheaper. The buses are pretty old but it´s funny because almost all of them are Mercedes...riding in style! Sometimes there is room for everyone to have a seat, but other times there are people standing and no room to move. The town is up on huge hills with winding roads, and the buses don´t drive with any precautions (like all vehicles in Valparaíso). Needless to say, bus rides are pretty scary and you have to hold on tight in order to not go flying across the isle!

Taxis are another form of transportation in the city. There are normal taxis that take you where you need to go for different prices, and there are also community taxis that have signs on top with specific areas or neighborhoods. These taxis you share with other people going to a place near where you are going and they are a lot cheaper than normal taxis. You get in the community taxis with up to three other random people, but I prefer the buses. However, late at night, taxis are sometimes the only option.

There are tons of small cafes and restaurants around. It seems like the most popular foods to serve at restaurants are hot dogs! They are the same as American hotdogs but with a Chilean twist. They top their hot dogs with things like avacado, tomato, and a white cream/cheese sauce. I have only eaten out one time, where me and a friend tried a Chilean hot dog, but I don't know much else about what restaurants serve...i´ll have to add more on that later!

Food in the house has been pretty good. They eat a lot of bread and drink a lot of tea and wine (which is a specialty of chile). They also eat a lot of fruit, salads, cheese and avacado. One thing that I have enjoyed are what they call tortillas, but they aren´t what you think they would be! Their tortillas are made in a frying pan with chopped up veggis (one kind per tortilla), and egg to make a flat, almost like pancake type dish. We have had celery tortillas and carrot tortillas. Lunch is the big meal, and breakfast and dinner are smaller.

I miss everyone and I love getting your emails and comments!

Pictures!

2006-07-30T01:18:00.000-04:00

You can go to this website to see all of my pictures from Chile!

http://photos.yahoo.com/cracker14c

My first weekend!

2006-07-30T00:52:00.000-04:00

I´ve been in Valparaíso, Chile for a week now and i´m having such a good time and learning a lot! I finished orientation this week where we met all of the other exchange students, learned about the university, toured the city and registered for classes. The exchange students are from all different countries, including Germany, Sweden, Mexico, Brazil, Frace and the United States. Everyone speaks different languages and it´s so cool that Spanish is now our common language! Two of my best friends i´ve made here so far are from Germany. Last night (Friday), the mentors from orientation, who are also students at the university, took all of us out to a pub in Viña del Mar, the neigboring town where a majority of the exchange students live. It was pretty different from clubs and bars in the Unites States. It was two floors, where the first floor had a bar and a dance floor, and the second floor was like a big lounge with couches and tables. They served pnuts and chips, and candles were lit on all of the tables. There were huge screens both upstairs and down, where music videos played. The night started out with everyone sitting upstairs talking and getting to know one another, then led to dancing. I met so many people and got to speak a lot of Spanish! Since we went out in Viña del Mar, I was nervous about getting back to Valparaíso, but luckily three of the mentors also live in Valpo (for short), and we took a bus back together, and then a taxi to our houses. Overall it was a fun night! There are a lot of mixed opinions as to whether people prefer Viña or Valpo. Valpo is more historic with old houses and stone streets. Viña is more up to date and has highrise buildings and McDonalds restaurants. I guess with my stay here I will have a chance to learn each city a little better.

Today I spent the day helping my family set up for a surprise birthday party for my madre here. I learned from some of the mentors last night that the family I live with actually comes from an Italian background which explains alot about how much they talk and spend time with family and friends! About twenty people came to the house for the party and it turned out really well! People began talking and catching up, then everyone sat down for tea and apetizer type foods. María (my madre) opened all of her gifts and everyone continued to talk. I was so excited that people couldn´t believe i´d only been here for a week, and told me I understood and spoke so well. That definitely helped my confidence! After some time talking at the table, they brought out a huge cake, which people ate and had more coffee or tea. Still sitting at the table, they brought out different types of finger foods and the night went on talking and having fun. The family is absolutely wonderful and so friendly. I couldn´t imagine being in any other house!

School and other things

2006-07-27T23:13:00.000-04:00

This week we have been having orientation at the University. The first couple days we just learned about the school, and met some of the staff. Yesterday we took a tour of the campuses. There are about 10 different buildings that belong to the university, and each one has classes of different areas (art, history, sciences etc). The buildings are so spread out between Valparaiso and the neighboring town, Viña del Mar. I don´t see how students make it from place to place in time for their classes! I registered for my classes and luckily they are all in two buildings that happen to be side by side. I registered for quite a few classes and will go to all of them the first few days, then choose which ones I like the best. I signed up for Human Anatomy (to learn all the body parts to possibly translate in a hospital one day), a class that teaches both French and Portuguese, a class in Chilean Dialect, a class in Translation, and a few more. I´ll let you know how it all turns out! After I registered for classes I also signed up for an Intercambio, where they pair you up with a Chilean student. You meet as often as you can for an hour, and spend half of the time speaking in Spanish and half of the time in English. It improves both of your language skills. I am excited to see who I will be paired with!

I have met a few people during orientation and hopefully will be able to travel with them and do thins on the weekends. My family is wonderful though so I want to spend as much time here as I can. Dinner is always the highlight of my day. The family sits down to eat and it always turns into game time, initiated by the seven year old, Ángel. We have played I spy and telephone which is so much fun in Spanish! I was surprised how quickly the language came back to me once I got here. Chileans definitely talk different than any spanish i´ve heard and I am still getting used to it but I think I will learn so much while I´m here!

A little about the town

2006-07-27T22:59:00.000-04:00

I´m getting more and more settled in Valparaiso each day. The city is right on the water and you can see the Andes Mountains from certain points as well. There are so many amazing views. A lot of the residential part of the city is up on huge hills which makes walking a lot more difficult! There are hundreds of streets that wind through the town and it is impossible, even for locals, to completely know their way around. I now know how to get to school and back by bus so I think I´m doing pretty good! Drivers here are absolutely crazy, and every time you have to cross the street it´s a sprint for your life! They drive so fast through the city and don´t pay attention to people or other cars or anything else for that matter. Horns honk every second but it´s just part of their way of life. One thing that gets to me is there are stray dogs all over the streets and no one pays them any attention. I am such an Animal lover and it is hard to deal with, but my family informed me that it´s normal and people just don´t care as much for animals as we do in the states. My house sister that is studying to be a vet tries to adopt the stray dogs out, which is wonderful! I´m going to try to go with her one of these days when she posts signs and talks to people.

Although the bus stop is pretty far from my house, the school is too far to walk to so I take the bus to and from school. It costs the equivalent of about $0.50 each way, but when school starts we will get a student discount. Right now it is their cold and rainy season and I didn´t come prepared as far as shoes go. I have been wearing tennis shoes and my feet are soaked and freezing by the time I get home! It has been my mission the past two days to find a pair of boots, which hasn´t been easy because typically the biggest size they make in women´s shoes is equivalent to a 9 in the US and I wear a 10. After looking and looking I finally found a pair of not so attractive rain boots that fit, but they will get the job done!

I am also getting accustomed to tea. Chileans drink hot tea with every meal, and while I´ve never been one to drink tea, I must say i´m enjoying it! The food has been really good so far. I told myself I would try everything once, and there have been a few things I didn´t like, but not many. They serve bread and salad with every meal. Lunch is the big meal of the day and we have had pasta, rice, pancakes covered in spinach and a white cream sauce and other things. Dinner is usually just bread with leftovers from lunch (and tea of course!). I am finally getting used to the money here and can estimate pesos versus dollars.

My family and my house

2006-07-26T12:33:00.000-04:00

There are about 130 foreign students going through the orientation program with me, and everyone either lives in Valparaiso or Viña del Mar (the next town over). I live in Valparaiso and am pretty close to the University so that´s a plus. My house and my family are wonderful. When I arrived at my house they were very welcoming and showed me to my room right away. The house is two stories, but most of the houses here are connected so it´s more like a town house. My room is downstairs and is huge! It´s such a different experience then Spain where two of us were crammed in a tiny room. My room here has a queen size bed, a huge closet and drawers for my clothes. There are big bay windows that have an amazing view, and too much space to know what to do with! My room is right by a varanda in the back (like a big porch), and it leads down into their backyard that is a huge garden, filled with flowers and fruit trees. They also have three dogs and a cat that are mostly outside, but come in occasionally during bad weather. It´s winter here now, their cold and rainy season so that was a lot to get used to! When I got on the plane it was about 90 degrees and when I got off it was about 40 degrees!

My house is definitely a full one! My madre has three daughters and a son. Her son is married and lives in a house near by. The oldest daughter is also married, but lives in our house with her husband and their seven year old daughter. The middle daughter is my age and studies music, and the yougest daughter is 19 and is studying to be a vet. The nephew, also my age, lives there as well, and speaks English so he helps if I ever need anything. A friend of the family from France is arriving today and will also be staying in our house. A lot of people but it makes things so much more fun and interesting! They all joke so much and I haven´t stopped laughing since I got here! It´s pretty cold at night because there is no heat, but they put an individual heater in my room so that helps a little.

It would be great to hear from all of you! Here is my address if you have the time to send a letter:

Lautaro Rosas
449
Cerro Alegre
Valparaiso, Chile

Arrived in Chile!

2006-07-25T11:00:00.000-04:00

I´m finally getting settled in with my family, but the trip here definitely had some rough spots! I had a pretty long layover in Atlanta so I decided to exchange my money for Chilean pesos, then while I waited to board the flight I actually met a girl who is in my program here. We had a chance to talk and she was as nervous as I was. It was good to know I wasn´t the only one! The flight was about 10 hours and when we landed in Valparaiso we had to pay a $100 fee to enter the country. However, you have to pay in American dollars and I had already exchanged all of my money in Atlanta! So I had to exchange it back for American dollars, only to be told that I was given Columbian pesos which are worth next to nothing and they could offer me only $19 in American money! I was so frustrated and had no idea what to do. Luckily the friend I met on the flight paid my fee for me and everything turned out ok. After we went through customs and got our luggage, there was a taxi driver sent by the university waiting with a sign with our name on it. It made things a lot easier to get from Santiago to Valparaiso! The trip by taxi was about an hour and a half and the views were amazing. There were mountains, vinyards and waterways. I was in my taxi with two girls from Germany who are also studying here, and was the last to be dropped off at my new family´s house.

Preparations

2006-07-09T21:42:00.000-04:00

I'm leaving for Chile in less than two weeks. I figured a blog would be the easiest way to keep everyone updated on my trip. There are so many things that need to be done before I leave, it doesn't seem like there's enough time! I'm going to miss everyone so much. Make sure you keep in touch and let me know what's going on in the states! I will be living in Valparaiso, Chile, which is right on the coast, not far from Santiago. I've seen pictures and it looks beautiful! I'm excited but pretty nervous about not knowing anyone there, and adjusting to a completely different dialect of Spanish. I hope my skills are all still there! Love you all and we'll be in touch!