So it has been way too long since I have given any
updates! I can’t blame it completely on
being busy but maybe that I have been exploring and finding out what I want to
keep me busy. Over the past month and a
half I have been through so many ups and, well, naturally, downs. But I am still doing well, taking each day as
it comes…getting through each challenge and enjoying living by moment.
If I recall correctly I mentioned a few posts ago that I was
enjoying the fact that I “finally had a routine!” well, shoot me in the foot. I
actually hate it. Of course, it’s great
to have a stable income, but the everyday formalities, the same people, and the same negative attitudes … it’s
tiresome. I have been stuck in a routine
for only three months and I am already craving adventure and change. Brazil 2013?
We’ll see.
Looking back, the last thing that I mentioned was that my
friend Carlie was coming to visit from Buenos Aires. God, that feels like centuries ago. Anyway, it ended up being a beautiful weekend
and it was great to see a familiar face.
It was exciting to have the opportunity to show her around Santiago and
have her experience my so-called “life” here in Chile. Although sometimes I feel like everything
here is fake…like it is all something to keep me from taking part in “real
life.” But then again…what’s real life?
A night out with friends!
The weekend after Carlie left was Easter. We had a three-day
weekend and there was nothing stopping me from leaving the city for a few days
of fresh-air in a smog-free sky.
Fortunately, I was invited by my friend Seba to go to the “campo” to
stay at his family’s house. After
having an extremely lazy day on Friday, we headed about 45 minutes outside of
Santiago to a small town called “Aguila Sur,” only to be welcomed by Seba’s
family and a bunch of our friends who had just finished a game of soccer. We spent all Friday night eating and
drinking, eventually falling asleep with full-bellies… in a state of complete
relaxation. Saturday was spent, once
again, eating, and laying out in the sun.
In the late afternoon, our friends headed back to Santiago while Seba
and I stayed…spending the rest of the weekend, eating and sleeping some more!!!
Tough life, I know! But I returned to
work on Monday a new person… completely mellowed out with a positive attitude.
*This is what we ate
on Friday night. It is called a “disco”
and it was filled with different types of seafood, chicken, and chorizo…all
mixed into a brothy goodness that we drank out of small teacups. We also ate homemade empanadas made with
cheese and jaiva (type of shell fish), dipping each bite into the spiciest aji
that I have tasted.
After returning from a weekend away, the next two weeks were
fairly boring, just doing the whole teaching thing and getting together with friends. It was also during these two weeks that I
experienced my first ping of homesickness.
I think after spending a weekend away with such a welcoming family it
made me miss my own. Also, I think it is
normal that after 10 months of living in another country you start to miss the
people and experiences that make you who you are.
As difficult as those two weeks were (thank you, parents,
for talking me through it) I am back on track again and I am happy as can be.
But after dealing with the emotional roller coaster, I, obviously, was feeling
antsy and needed to change it up again.
So I decided to head north to La Serena.
I have two gringa
friends, Katie and Abbey, who I met while working for the Chilean government, and
who both stayed in Chile for a few extra months to work and spend time with
their “pololo’s, “ boyfriends. It was their last weekend before their return to
the states so I thought it would be fun to visit them to celebrate. Luckily, my friend Seba, also, was going to
La Serena to visit family so it made the 7-hour bus ride a little less
unbearable.
Well. The weekend was
interesting. After arriving and having
the opportunity to check out the beach and meet some of Seba’s family…I was off
to meet up with my friends for a crazy night out! I was dropped off at their awesome cabaña and
we had a blast talking and drinking piscolas.
We later went out to celebrate the birthday of one of their friends at a
local club. The night started out a
blast, dancing and meeting a bunch of new people…but, as it got later, …my
verrrry good gringa friends…disappeared, leaving me wandering the streets of La
Serena, alone. Thank God for Seba and
his family…who came to find me at 4:30 in the morning. Not embarrassing at all… these things happen
all the time….( or so I keep telling myself).
Anyway, the rest of the weekend was great. I went to Coquimbo, a neighboring city to La
Serena, to experience the fish market and eat raw seafood! It was delicious! I also met up with the girls for dinner to
receive my never-ending apologies and to catch up a little more (I still love
you two, haha!) That night Seba and I
walked through the city center and drank wine with fresh fruit. And although
the weekend was not as planned, putting all things aside…it was really, really
fun and I am happy that I was able to see my friends!
And then there was two weekends ago. Which was a 4-day
weekend. It was spent relaxing and
meeting up with friends that I had been neglecting during the weekends while I
was away. I went out a lot and slept a
lot. It was nice to stay in the city
without set plans. I experienced a new
place called “El Galpon” which is a local venue for concerts. A group of us sat in Plaza Brasil drinking
beers before the show started. I saw
cover bands of Manu Chau and Los Fabulosos Cadillacs. Here is are some links to some of their
music:
Overall things are going well. Work has been extremely busy preparing for
the “World Book Day,” but it has finally died down a bit this week. Just
recently the hours changed here in Chile.
Now it gets dark around 5:30 PM and in the mornings it’s light around
8AM. It’s quite depressing and without
heat in the house…I’m going to die! (I’m
exaggerating, kind of).
This past week, I did something that I will most likely regret
and karma will definitely come back to bite me in the ass. But at the time, I felt that it was
completely necessary, and yeah, I’m still not sure if I reallllllllly regret
it. But anyway, riding home on my bike
from work, I had the worst luck ever!
Hitting every single light, I kept stopping next to the same car that
was occupied by two Chilean guys. After
the second light I noticed that they were secretly “snapping” photos of me with
their camera.
I really do not mind the attention that I get for having
blonde hair here in Chile. I always have
my headphones on so I tend to ignore any crude gestures or catcalls. However, photographs, come onnn..have you
really never seen a blonde girl ride a bicycle before? I was feeling saucy.
At the third light we stopped at, I was starting to get
annoyed. The two guys whistled and when I looked at the car, they took a
picture. The nerve! I got off my bike…took one step, snatched the camera from
the guy’s hand (with no intentions to return it) and said:
“Ahora, quiero uno de ustedes” (Now I want one of the two of
you)
I turned to my right and saw that there was a man passing by
on the sidewalk. And while getting back
on my bike I grabbed the man’s arm and asked:
“Quieres una camera?” (Do you want a camera?)
and handed it to him….all while speeding away.
I didn’t hear a peep from the two slugs in the car…I am
assuming that they were in shock. And, ok, I know it may seem dramatic and I
may have handled the situation the wrong way.
But…I still think it was deserved. Ugh, whatever.
I have been spending a lot of time with a group of
professors from work. We are all
“newbies” and like to keep away from the endless drama that our departments
bring us. We are always planning happy
hours and dinner dates, just last Friday
we met up in Bellavista for a drink before we all headed our own directions for
the night. It’s such a diverse group of
people. A 40 year old lesbian, 26 year
old soccer fanatic, 24 year old
intellectual and well…me, the foreigner.
There are always a few extras floating around …but I’d say we’re the
“core group.”
This past weekend was spent here in Santiago and again a
night in the Campo. This upcoming
weekend I will be hosting a party for two close friends that will be traveling
for extended periods of time. Daniela,
who works for Doctors Without Boarders and will be headed to Africa to finish
her term and Seba who is taking a 3.5 -month vacation to Europe. It should be fun!
One rant….Something that irritates me about Chileans: when
they clear off the table to take everything into the kitchen to be washed…they
stack EVERYTHING. Stacking makes it so
much more difficult to clean…you have two...extremely messy sides of the dish,
and for some reason I always find myself in the dishwasher role. The small things…I know.
I have written a book here so I am going to leave everyone with
this:
I am coming (for the first time in one year) to the United
States July 7-20. I will be staying at
my family’s house in Florida. All are
welcomed to come visit!
Also, I would love to get some updates from everyone! Shoot me an email!
Sending all the cariño in the world.
