First off, I hope everyone is doing well! I know that there are things to be worrying about in the United States such as hurricanes and random earthquakes…you are all in my prayers and I am hoping for health & safety for all. Last weekend was fantastic here in Iquique. Like I promised myself, I went every night during the weekend, and met a TON of new friends. My Spanish is improving and so are my social relationships. Finally, I can count my friends on three hands, not just one woooooooooo!
This past week has been very interesting here in Chile. Monday, I had off from school…so that just meant Sunday night turned into another weekend night spent with friends at our favorite pub called “Papa Gallos.” Monday was a very relaxing day, I took off to the beach with my friends Cat, Felipe, and Cristian and listened to Cat and Cristian play the guitar all afternoon. It was a great cultural exchange of language and music and it passed with “buena onda” and was an overall a positive experience. Tuesday was just a normal day at school; however, there was lots of tension due to the fact that Wednesday and Thursday were going to be days of national “paro” or strike. The school that I am teaching at, Colegio Ingles, is owned by the Methodist Church and therefore does not participate in these types of protests. However, the problem lies in the fact that half of the teachers at this school belong to the work union and feel as if they should have the opportunity to protest, and in the end of the day our director told us that we would NOT be participating in the “paro” on Wednesday and Thursday. Deep down, I was slightly bummed because I would have liked to have two more days of fun. However, due to the fact that I am working for the government, I knew that it would be in my best interest to attend classes as if it were another normal day, so that is what I did…
However, I was not surprised when I got to school and I only had about five students in each of my classes. Talk about frustrating. Not to mention the fact that the teachers that are part of the work union were protesting by sitting in the teachers lounge and refusing to teach classes. They were told that if they did not teach their classes that they would not be paid for the two days of paro. So that is what they did, they left the school and joined the rest of the protesters outside in the plaza. I thought this was an extremely bold move by these professors, HOWEVER, I feel that everyone has the right to protest and I am proud that they are working towards what they believe in. I finished out the day and showed up at the protest later where I met up with friends to show them my support as a friend. (I still have not developed my own critical perspective on what I think about the protests here in Chile so I will state that I was there to support my friends and not as much the cause). At the end of this I will post two different links that describe the protests here in Chile. Why they are happening? Who is participating? Etc.
Unfortunately, after this I became very ill. I knew that this had been coming for weeks, as I kept feeling a little bit sick but it had never fully developed into a full blown cold. I was up all of Wednesday night with a 103 fever and having troubles breathing (yes, this sickness literally slapped me across the face). When Thursday morning rolled around, even though we had classes, I decided that it would be in my best interest as well as the students that I did not go to work. I spent all of Thursday and Friday in my bed. I slept approximately 20 hrs within two days. It helped a lot but it still didn’t do the trick. It’s Sunday and I am still feeling lots of pressure built up in my lungs. I am thinking if it doesn’t go away by Tuesday or Wednesday that I will head to the doctor just to make sure that everything is okay. It is no fun being this ill when you are in another country, yet alone living in someone else’s house. But, I must say, that I have been taken care of very well here. Artemio and Sonia, my host parents, have both been very helpful with my needs and actually told me that I was not allowed to go out last night! It’s nice to know that I have people who are looking out for me here. Because I know myself, I do not like to miss things…and I would have definitely not taken care of myself if they hadn’t been here.
Just recently I bought my tickets to go to Santiago and to Valparaiso for my birthday weekend. It will be fun to reunite with friends and family during that long weekend. Incase some of you didn’t know I studied abroad in Valparaiso two years ago. Besides this trip, I am planning another trip to Bolivia at the end of October. I will have to go to the clinic here to get a yellow fever vaccination; hopefully it will not be too expensive. My “Chilean Aunt” works in the hospital as a nurse so I will ask here where it will be best to receive one of these injections. The reason that I have chosen to travel to Bolivia is because, why not!? Although it may be a little dangerous, I have met many people now that have traveled throughout Bolivia and they have told me that it is definitely worth the trip. By this time I will also have my Chilean resident card (carnet), so I will not have to pay the hefty fee that it costs for the Visa if you are an American Passport holder. Lucky me!
Here is a great link that will help you further understand the protests about education here in Chile: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14487555
This next link is a video about a protest that happened in Santiago, the capital. I love the idea so I thought that I would share it! Enjoy: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14066467
I have been thinking about you all often. I really would love an update from you. My email is sschn23@gmail.com I would love to hear from you even if you only have time to write a quick line. It would mean a lot! Miss you all and love you tons!
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