And just like that the trip is over. I'm back at my house in DC. Classes started on Monday. This semester I have one class every day in addition to student teaching (which hasn't started yet) three times a week.
The bus ride to the airport from our hostel was emotional. Everyone cried when we left our instructors and Cristian. On the bus we all cried for a minute but then gave out superlatives to everyone. I got "most likely to smile in a picture" (lol what), "most likely to be on America's Next Top Model", "most likely to be eating at any given moment", and "most likely to join the circus" (long story).
The plane ride back went surprisingly well even though the airport lost my bag of dirty clothes.
It's weird being alone after being surrounded by 15 people 24/7. We're all starting to go back to our normal lives. Chances are only a few people will actually talk to each other after a few months and we'll just have the pictures and the memories.
I learned a lot on this trip not only about Chile and its dynamic history, but about myself. Anytime you go somewhere new you learn. I want to continue to travel and learn forever.
I don't know what else to say besides Vive Chile, a phrase we used over and over again on this trip anytime something unexpected or weird happened. It is used when you're pointing out that you can't plan out everything in life and sometimes you just have to go with it. You make mistakes and learn from them and the outcome is what you take from it.
If you're interested in reading more about the trip, check out http://emilyz-in-chile.blogspot.com/ Emily was our TA on the trip and she is in the Writer's House at the University of Maryland, meaning that her blog is more than just random sentences like mine but is well written and more of an analysis of what we learned.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Thursday and Friday
Thursday we got back to Santiago. Our day started right when we got off the bus. We took a cab back to our hostel. I rode with our professor who pointed out a lot of cool things along the way including the building where her friends used to host these big elaborate parties as well as a building that was used as a torture camp. We dropped our bags at the hostel and went to breakfast. I got toast with avocado spread. I love avocados and will miss how they put them on everything here.
We walked around a lot. We took the funicular to the top of this mountain where there is a giant Virgin Mary statue looking out over the city. You could see the entire city which is surrounded by mountains. If it wasn't so smoggy it would have been nicer but it was still nice to see everything. The city is huge. It kind of seems like an endless sprawl in between a bunch of mountains. It's not the prettiest city but it has its moments.
Thursday night we went to a play. But it wasn't really a play. It was like an interactive walk through thing where you went one at a time and the characters affected each of your senses. There was one part where you went into a pitch black tunnel and laid down and they put a sheet over you and planted seeds and poured water on you. I think it was supposed to represent death and rebirth? I don't know, I'm bad at that sort of thing. The whole thing was really cool though.
Friday we went to the Museum of Remembrance and Human Rights. It was a lot like the Holocaust Museum. Really depressing.
Afterwards we went to a boat themed restaurant. It was kind of crazy.
We walked around a lot. We took the funicular to the top of this mountain where there is a giant Virgin Mary statue looking out over the city. You could see the entire city which is surrounded by mountains. If it wasn't so smoggy it would have been nicer but it was still nice to see everything. The city is huge. It kind of seems like an endless sprawl in between a bunch of mountains. It's not the prettiest city but it has its moments.
Thursday night we went to a play. But it wasn't really a play. It was like an interactive walk through thing where you went one at a time and the characters affected each of your senses. There was one part where you went into a pitch black tunnel and laid down and they put a sheet over you and planted seeds and poured water on you. I think it was supposed to represent death and rebirth? I don't know, I'm bad at that sort of thing. The whole thing was really cool though.
Friday we went to the Museum of Remembrance and Human Rights. It was a lot like the Holocaust Museum. Really depressing.
Afterwards we went to a boat themed restaurant. It was kind of crazy.
Tuesday and Wednesday
Tuesday I did one of the coolest things I've ever done. A group of us went rappelling down waterfalls. I can't even describe it. The scenery was absolutely perfect. The guide said we went down 20, 30, and 40 meter falls. There was also a small ten meter one. The hardest part for me was convincing myself to lean back and let my weight carry me down. It was mentally hard to allow myself to just walk backwards down a cliff. We rappelled down this one waterfall into a canyon where we walked most of the time. I couldn't believe how big everything was. I'm pretty sure the canyons were created by lava flows. I don't even want to talk about it because there is no way I could do it any justice.
Tuesday night we all had a barbecue at the hostel. It was a really cool moment. Everyone was talking and laughing and just really happy in general. We were like a family.
Wednesday a girl and I went horseback riding. It was so fun. It was just the two of us plus the guide. We rode up down the street and up a mountain to this forest where we hiked down a steep path which led to a waterfall that had to be 100 feet high. It was so perfect. We splashed around in the water and walked around on the rocks for awhile. The ride back was really peaceful and we both agreed that horseback riding is really good for thinking.
Wednesday night we left Pucon and took the 10 hour bus ride back to Santiago.
Tuesday night we all had a barbecue at the hostel. It was a really cool moment. Everyone was talking and laughing and just really happy in general. We were like a family.
Wednesday a girl and I went horseback riding. It was so fun. It was just the two of us plus the guide. We rode up down the street and up a mountain to this forest where we hiked down a steep path which led to a waterfall that had to be 100 feet high. It was so perfect. We splashed around in the water and walked around on the rocks for awhile. The ride back was really peaceful and we both agreed that horseback riding is really good for thinking.
Wednesday night we left Pucon and took the 10 hour bus ride back to Santiago.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Sunday and Monday
Bienvenidos a Pucon!
We got here Sunday morning after a 13ish hour bus ride from Valpo. It's a small touristy adventure town pretty close to Argentina in the southern half of the country.
On Sunday when we got here there was an Iron Man race going on and all the roads were closed off so we had to walk from the bus station to our hostel. We got settled in and walked around a little bit and figured out what we were going to do during the week. That's pretty much all we did on Sunday.
Monday 9 of us woke up at 6:30 in order to climb the volcano.
We got here Sunday morning after a 13ish hour bus ride from Valpo. It's a small touristy adventure town pretty close to Argentina in the southern half of the country.
On Sunday when we got here there was an Iron Man race going on and all the roads were closed off so we had to walk from the bus station to our hostel. We got settled in and walked around a little bit and figured out what we were going to do during the week. That's pretty much all we did on Sunday.
Monday 9 of us woke up at 6:30 in order to climb the volcano.
(I did not take this picture)
We had a ton of gear. The back packs had to have weighed like 50 pounds. And the boots were really heavy as well. We got to the first stopping point which was about halfway up the mountain. The climb from where we started to this point was the hardest thing I've ever done. It was so steep and we were in the clouds and it was freezing raining and the ice on the ground was so slippery. All this in addition to all the stuff we had to carry. Just standing I was out of breathe so climbing something at a 60 degree angle was impossible.
3 girls stopped at the first rest stop. I ate a sandwich and some chocolate and thought I could keep going. About 1000 feet in (at this point it was complete ice and felt like it was almost straight up) I decided I couldn't go any further. I kind of psyched myself out by looking down and thinking about my lung issues and stuff like that. I sort of thought I was feeling dizzy and it was just too much. I went back down and the four of us sat together for a few hours until someone could drive us back to town. I'm happy with my decision to stop. I think if I ever come back here I will try again.. Maybe by then I'll be able to lift more and it won't be such an issue. The rest of the 5 made it to the top. Their pictures are amazing. (Oh and of course my camera died 10 minutes in to climbing)
Last night we went to some hot springs. They were so nice. It was definitely what we all needed after the volcano.
Thursday, Friday, Saturday
I haven't had much time to update so I'll combine Thursday through Saturday in to one post.
On Thursday we took the kids to the pool. The bus ride there was crazy. The road curves so fast and hard everyone on the bus was screaming. My amigo always told me when to hold on when a big turn was coming up.
The pool was really fun. The day started out pretty cold and cloudy but around noon the sun came out and it got hot. I played in the water with my two amigos for a really long time. We went from playing monkey-in-the-middle to throw-the-ball-at-each-other-to-see-who-can-make-the-biggest-splash. I also convinced a kid who was really scared of the water to finally get in. Convincing kids to do stuff is hard when you don't speak the same language.
Friday was our last day with the kids. It was such a fun day. We played a game with a volleyball net where you would stand with your amigo holding a towel and have to throw/catch a soccer ball using only the towel. It was harder than it sounds. Then there was a game where you had to dig candy out of a pie made of flower using only your face. Somewhere there is a picture of a bunch of us with our faces covered in flour that I hope no one ever sees. After a three legged race and an egg and spoon game it pretty much ended up being the kids running to a hose, filling up a bottle of water, and dumping it on our heads. This went on for a really long time. Everyone was completely soaked. I gave my two amigos their gifts and they both loved them. I gave Jesus a game where you have two velcro paddles and a ball and you throw the ball and it sticks to the paddle. We played this for forever after I gave it to him. I gave Manuel punch balloons and of course the first thing he did was hit everyone in sight on the head with them.
On Thursday we took the kids to the pool. The bus ride there was crazy. The road curves so fast and hard everyone on the bus was screaming. My amigo always told me when to hold on when a big turn was coming up.
The pool was really fun. The day started out pretty cold and cloudy but around noon the sun came out and it got hot. I played in the water with my two amigos for a really long time. We went from playing monkey-in-the-middle to throw-the-ball-at-each-other-to-see-who-can-make-the-biggest-splash. I also convinced a kid who was really scared of the water to finally get in. Convincing kids to do stuff is hard when you don't speak the same language.
Franco and Jesus
Forcing Manuel into taking a picture with me
The end of the day was really hard. We made plates with a picture of us with our amigos on them. Everyone exchanged emails and facebooks. I am going to write Manuel an email as soon as I get back to DC..I need time to figure out how to say what I want to say in Spanish. Unfortunately Jesus doesn't have a computer so I am gonna try to get his address or give a message to him through Jesus.
Saturday was a lazy day. We pretty much just hung out until we had to get ready to leave for Pucon. I finally tried a cafe con helado. Coffee with four scoops of ice cream. Ahh. I miss Valparaiso. I could definitely see myself living there.
5'9'' and blue eyes, I'd totally fit right in
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Wednesday
I really love Valparaiso! This is the view from the window of my room. You can't really see how steep the hills are but they are crazy.
Today I felt like I bonded with mi amigo a lot for the first time. He is so sweet but a little shy. Today we sat on the black top and drew with chalk. We wrote each others names a lot and he showed me how to draw animals using numbers and letters. My favorite was the pig.
In the afternoon we went around the block to see a movie. We saw Paranormal Activity. The kids were so funny during it. At the scary part my boy covered his face and hid in my arm and said "No quierio a mirar" (I don't wan't to look) It was sooo sweet.
When the kids left for the day we went back to our place for a little bit and then went back to the school to work on these mosaics we are making to put up around the school. We finished one and are about a fourth done with the other. They look really good.
Tonight a few of us walked down the hill back to the pizza place. I ate an entire bowl of pasta as well as a pizza. Lardo.
Tuesday
Tuesday was day 2 of the camp. We started out by playing some dodge ball. A drumming group came and performed for awhile and a preschool came out to watch too. They were really good. After they played the kids got a chance to play the instruments as well. Then a circus group came and performed. There were two clowns and an acrobat.
After camp Christian took us down the hill to a vegetarian buffet. It was only 2,500 pesos and the food was really good. I had this thing that kind of reminded me of falafel but it was like fried carrots or something.
Then we laid around for awhile and had to take our test. I thought I did pretty well. As usual I was the first one done. I don't know why that always happens.
Later we went down the hill because we were supposed to see a flamenco performance. When we got there they didn't know when it was starting and the place didn't have any food and we were all starving. We went to this pizza place and I don't think I've ever been happier to eat something. It was American pizza (not weird Chilean pizza) and it was exactly what I've been wanting for the last week and a half. After eating we went back to the place and they told us we missed the first performance and the second would start in 15 minutes. After 45 minutes it didn't start so most of us went back to the bed and breakfast (it was already after midnight). Chileans are not known for their sense of time.
We took the Collectivo home which is a cab service that's kind of more like a bus service. It's got a certain route that it follows and it doesn't go until it is full. The guy drove crazy. The hills are steeper than San Francisco and the guy drove sooo fast.
After camp Christian took us down the hill to a vegetarian buffet. It was only 2,500 pesos and the food was really good. I had this thing that kind of reminded me of falafel but it was like fried carrots or something.
Then we laid around for awhile and had to take our test. I thought I did pretty well. As usual I was the first one done. I don't know why that always happens.
Later we went down the hill because we were supposed to see a flamenco performance. When we got there they didn't know when it was starting and the place didn't have any food and we were all starving. We went to this pizza place and I don't think I've ever been happier to eat something. It was American pizza (not weird Chilean pizza) and it was exactly what I've been wanting for the last week and a half. After eating we went back to the place and they told us we missed the first performance and the second would start in 15 minutes. After 45 minutes it didn't start so most of us went back to the bed and breakfast (it was already after midnight). Chileans are not known for their sense of time.
We took the Collectivo home which is a cab service that's kind of more like a bus service. It's got a certain route that it follows and it doesn't go until it is full. The guy drove crazy. The hills are steeper than San Francisco and the guy drove sooo fast.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Monday
While we're in Valparaiso we are running a summer camp for a school up the street. The kids are 8-13 years old and super cute. Monday we had our first day. The school itself is really cool. You basically walk into a giant courtyard and the classrooms surround it. There are basketball hoops and soccer goals and some bleachers. Soccer is really popular here and most of the kids were playing it when we got in.
We went into the library (that University of Maryland helped build) and introduced ourselves and the kids introduced themselves. The kids basically picked us from a line-up like a kickball game. Mi amigo is a really cute little boy named Jesus. He was wearing dress pants and a dress shirt with a vest. All of the girls had on really cute outfits and were really pretty. Definitely not what I looked like at 13. We all played dodgeball outside for a long time. There is certainly a language barrier but the kids are pretty understanding and try to help us. The day went really fast and the kids left around 2.
Our professor is good friends with a man named Christian who owns a glass shop in Valparaiso. He is a really cool guy and is helping us make some mosaics for the school. Christian brought us all to this restaurant that was really good and really cheap. 3,500 pesos (about 7 dollars) for a 4 course meal.
After food Christian took a few of us all over Valparaiso. I can't say enough about how pretty this city is. The hills are basically straight up and down. We did so much walking. Our thighs are going to be ridiculous when we get back. They have little trains that go up and down some of the mountains but the one we went to was closed so we walked up. The top had a great view of the city and got to see a lot more of the cool graffiti. A man at the top of the hill played the accordion and sang we no speak americano to us.
Last night Christian and our professor got us tickets to this modern dance show. I'm not very artsy and I guess I didn't really "get" it, but the dancers were really talented and the music was cool.
More pictures!
We went into the library (that University of Maryland helped build) and introduced ourselves and the kids introduced themselves. The kids basically picked us from a line-up like a kickball game. Mi amigo is a really cute little boy named Jesus. He was wearing dress pants and a dress shirt with a vest. All of the girls had on really cute outfits and were really pretty. Definitely not what I looked like at 13. We all played dodgeball outside for a long time. There is certainly a language barrier but the kids are pretty understanding and try to help us. The day went really fast and the kids left around 2.
Our professor is good friends with a man named Christian who owns a glass shop in Valparaiso. He is a really cool guy and is helping us make some mosaics for the school. Christian brought us all to this restaurant that was really good and really cheap. 3,500 pesos (about 7 dollars) for a 4 course meal.
After food Christian took a few of us all over Valparaiso. I can't say enough about how pretty this city is. The hills are basically straight up and down. We did so much walking. Our thighs are going to be ridiculous when we get back. They have little trains that go up and down some of the mountains but the one we went to was closed so we walked up. The top had a great view of the city and got to see a lot more of the cool graffiti. A man at the top of the hill played the accordion and sang we no speak americano to us.
More pictures!
Sunday
Saturday night we went to this 80s dance party in a neighborhood that reminded me of Adams Morgan. Our professor and assistant went (they actually gave us the idea) and it was really fun. There was even a Donna Summers impersonator (we were all hoping she would be a man but she definitely wasn't).
Sunday we left Santiago. We drove about an hour and a half to Isla Negra. Driving through the countryside was really pretty.
In Isla Negra we stopped at the beach for a little bit and then went to another Pablo Neruda house. This one was really cool but I'm pretty sure there is no way he didn't have aspergers. His houses are FILLED with endless collections of random things.
After that we came to Valparaiso. It's such a cool city. It's built around a port up into some mountains. The houses are all different and really colorful. There's also a ton of graffiti everywhere but it's all really artsy and beautiful.
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Sunday we left Santiago. We drove about an hour and a half to Isla Negra. Driving through the countryside was really pretty.
In Isla Negra we stopped at the beach for a little bit and then went to another Pablo Neruda house. This one was really cool but I'm pretty sure there is no way he didn't have aspergers. His houses are FILLED with endless collections of random things.
After that we came to Valparaiso. It's such a cool city. It's built around a port up into some mountains. The houses are all different and really colorful. There's also a ton of graffiti everywhere but it's all really artsy and beautiful.
That night we got settled into our Bed and Breakfast (which we are taking up every room in) and our professor went out to get us food. She got us Chinese food and then realized we didn't have any plates to eat off us so the lady at the Chinese plates let her take some chipped ones from the back. The food was so good. Oddly Chile is really famous for it's Chinese take-out.
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Saturday, January 8, 2011
Saturday
Today was basically a free day. Our only requirement was that we had to go to two museums. I chose the Pre-Columbian Art Museum and the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (Museum of Fine Arts). The Pre-Columbian one was really cool. There were a lot of pots and statues from societies like the Mayans and Mapuche. One of my favorite classes that I ever took at Maryland was an Art History class that focused on the art of ancient Latin America so it was cool to finally see some of it in person. The Fine Arts museum was alright. Most art that makes some kind of statement is way over my head so it was more just looking at the nice pictures and photographs. I was surprised by how small it was. There was also a lot of earthquake damage to it (from the big one that happened last February-almost a year ago). It is really crazy to me that things are still being repaired from that.
After that we just came back here and laid out on the roof for awhile. I made a pizza that I got from the grocery store. Chilean pizza is weird. It doesn't have much sauce at all but even the 'plain' pizzas have corn, green beans, hearts of palm, olives, tomato things, and other stuff. The first person to bring me Pizza Boli's when I get back to DC gets brownies. Then I took a nap and did some actual work for this class.
I also got a new camera today! It was $49,000 which I think is about $100. The conversion rate confuses me a lot still. An ice cream cone cost $299 in Pesos which is about 60 cents. So hopefully I will get some pictures up soon. Last night a few of us went to a karaoke bar. I think we did America proud. Do not expect pictures from that.
Tomorrow we leave Santiago and spend a week in Valparaiso!
After that we just came back here and laid out on the roof for awhile. I made a pizza that I got from the grocery store. Chilean pizza is weird. It doesn't have much sauce at all but even the 'plain' pizzas have corn, green beans, hearts of palm, olives, tomato things, and other stuff. The first person to bring me Pizza Boli's when I get back to DC gets brownies. Then I took a nap and did some actual work for this class.
I also got a new camera today! It was $49,000 which I think is about $100. The conversion rate confuses me a lot still. An ice cream cone cost $299 in Pesos which is about 60 cents. So hopefully I will get some pictures up soon. Last night a few of us went to a karaoke bar. I think we did America proud. Do not expect pictures from that.
Tomorrow we leave Santiago and spend a week in Valparaiso!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Friday
Yes! I am finally caught up with all my days. I apologize for how brief and not detailed my posts have been. We've done so much that it's really hard to remember what we did on what days. My computer hasn't really been working so I haven't been able to do much on it. Luckily today a boy at our hostel lent me a charger that works so for the next few hours I am back in action. I also can't post any pictures because of course my camera broke on the second day here. I am hoping that since tomorrow is a free day I'll be able to buy a new one somewhere.
Today was a pretty cool day. We went to the national cemetery. It was unlike any other cemetery I've been to. It was HUGE. It was seriously like a town. The rich people had these gigantic mausoleums. The guide said one is worth 600 million dollars. I don't know if he meant US or Chilean, but either way...that's a lot of money. The poorer people were stacked in rows upon rows of squares with names and dates. The people in the middle had rectangles, usually with their name and a lot of flowers. There was a special building where all the Italians are buried. It's about 8 stories high and we got to walk on the roof of it. The view was spectacular. There was a section of the cemetery for the mass graves that were put there during the dictatorship. A lot of them didn't have names or dates on them. Another sad moment. Our professor was telling us that she went to her uncle's funeral in this cemetery during the dictatorship (his funeral wasn't related to the government) and they were not allowed to look in the direction of those graves or it would look like they were organizing or sympathizing with them.
There were two dogs that hung out with us the entire time we were at the cemetery. There are a lot of stray dogs in Chile but all of them are really friendly. A few girls went jogging this morning and a pack of dogs ran with them.
Tonight I think we are all going out to dinner. I will try to do better at being more detailed. Maybe now that I can update every day I will be able to actually put thought into them rather than a bunch of words about what I did that day..
Today was a pretty cool day. We went to the national cemetery. It was unlike any other cemetery I've been to. It was HUGE. It was seriously like a town. The rich people had these gigantic mausoleums. The guide said one is worth 600 million dollars. I don't know if he meant US or Chilean, but either way...that's a lot of money. The poorer people were stacked in rows upon rows of squares with names and dates. The people in the middle had rectangles, usually with their name and a lot of flowers. There was a special building where all the Italians are buried. It's about 8 stories high and we got to walk on the roof of it. The view was spectacular. There was a section of the cemetery for the mass graves that were put there during the dictatorship. A lot of them didn't have names or dates on them. Another sad moment. Our professor was telling us that she went to her uncle's funeral in this cemetery during the dictatorship (his funeral wasn't related to the government) and they were not allowed to look in the direction of those graves or it would look like they were organizing or sympathizing with them.
There were two dogs that hung out with us the entire time we were at the cemetery. There are a lot of stray dogs in Chile but all of them are really friendly. A few girls went jogging this morning and a pack of dogs ran with them.
Tonight I think we are all going out to dinner. I will try to do better at being more detailed. Maybe now that I can update every day I will be able to actually put thought into them rather than a bunch of words about what I did that day..
Thursday
Thursday we did a more in depth walking tour of Santiago. It started in the main square of town where we learned about the history of Santiago. Then we went inside the National Cathedral. It was really pretty, but somewhat disturbing on the inside. A lot of the statues were really graphic. After that we went through a few thrift stores. A lot of the thrift stores here are just piles of clothes on tables. I don't know how anyone would find anything. This is where you go if you want people to steal from you.
We went to the old train station and got brownie sundaes. They were awesome. Then we went through these markets that had EVERYTHING. The flower arrangements were beautiful. There was a lot of fruit and vegetables (all huge). It reminded me of a much more raw Eastern Market. A girl actually had her bag cut open. Luckily nothing was taken out of it.
Later on we went to a Pablo Neruda house. Pablo Neruda was a very famous Chilean author/poet. It reminded me a lot of some of the Frank Lloyd Wright houses I've seen. It was a very nice house with very nice things in it, but the thing that annoyed me is that clearly the house was worth a LOT of money, yet Pablo was a very well known Communist. Just a somewhat unsettling combination.
That night me and a few girls wanted the real Chilean food experience so we found this restaurant not far from the hostel. I had a really good sandwich. It was huge and full of avocados. The other girls didn't like their food as much, but the waiter was really sweet. He was probably the first Chilean guy to not be incredibly creepy and a chauvinist.
We went to the old train station and got brownie sundaes. They were awesome. Then we went through these markets that had EVERYTHING. The flower arrangements were beautiful. There was a lot of fruit and vegetables (all huge). It reminded me of a much more raw Eastern Market. A girl actually had her bag cut open. Luckily nothing was taken out of it.
Later on we went to a Pablo Neruda house. Pablo Neruda was a very famous Chilean author/poet. It reminded me a lot of some of the Frank Lloyd Wright houses I've seen. It was a very nice house with very nice things in it, but the thing that annoyed me is that clearly the house was worth a LOT of money, yet Pablo was a very well known Communist. Just a somewhat unsettling combination.
That night me and a few girls wanted the real Chilean food experience so we found this restaurant not far from the hostel. I had a really good sandwich. It was huge and full of avocados. The other girls didn't like their food as much, but the waiter was really sweet. He was probably the first Chilean guy to not be incredibly creepy and a chauvinist.
Wednesday
Wednesday was a good day. This was the first day I felt settled in and "good." We started out the morning by taking the bus to Villa Grimaldi. Villa Grimaldi was a torture camp during the 70s at the time of Augusto Pinochet. The camp was very secret and everyone who was taken to it was tortured. The space is now a peace park to honor the people who were tortured, killed, and disappeared there. It was a very heavy tour and a lot to deal with. A girl who came on the trip a few years ago who happened to be in Chile at the time of our visit came to Villa Grimaldi with her mom with us. There was a room with some artifacts recovered from a few people that had been there. Turns out a relative of the girl was one of those people. Definitely an emotional moment.
After Villa Grimaldi we went to the house of Pia Barros. Pia Barros is a very famous Chilean author. She is our trip leader's mentor and is most of the reason why our professor is so successful today. Pia made us delicious food. We had humitas which is like smooshed up corn wrapped inside a corn husk. We also had picante and strawberry juice. I think it was the first meal that a lot of us legitimately enjoyed.
After eating we got to sit with Pia and she talked a little bit about her life and writing. We also learned a lot about our professor. It was really just a cool moment. Pia was so kind for opening her house to so many people and making us food and then talking with us about everything. She even gave us all a little present. During the dictatorship Pia was famous for her "objects." Pia's books definitely would not have been published at the time (and would have sent her straight to the torture camps, in fact I don't know how she wasn't sent to one anyway) so she went around it by creating these objects that had literature on them. Things like writing stories on the inside of shopping bags or inside boxes were her way of getting around the strict laws. The one she gave us was a map of the damage of the earthquake that happened last year, with little stories attached to each city.
After all this we walked to the metro. Chile's metro is fantastic. It's clean, easy, air conditioned, there are tvs and radios, it's a single fair (so you pay the same amount no matter where you go). Socialism!
After Villa Grimaldi we went to the house of Pia Barros. Pia Barros is a very famous Chilean author. She is our trip leader's mentor and is most of the reason why our professor is so successful today. Pia made us delicious food. We had humitas which is like smooshed up corn wrapped inside a corn husk. We also had picante and strawberry juice. I think it was the first meal that a lot of us legitimately enjoyed.
After eating we got to sit with Pia and she talked a little bit about her life and writing. We also learned a lot about our professor. It was really just a cool moment. Pia was so kind for opening her house to so many people and making us food and then talking with us about everything. She even gave us all a little present. During the dictatorship Pia was famous for her "objects." Pia's books definitely would not have been published at the time (and would have sent her straight to the torture camps, in fact I don't know how she wasn't sent to one anyway) so she went around it by creating these objects that had literature on them. Things like writing stories on the inside of shopping bags or inside boxes were her way of getting around the strict laws. The one she gave us was a map of the damage of the earthquake that happened last year, with little stories attached to each city.
After all this we walked to the metro. Chile's metro is fantastic. It's clean, easy, air conditioned, there are tvs and radios, it's a single fair (so you pay the same amount no matter where you go). Socialism!
Tuesday
It is really hard to keep track of what we did what days. Everything is running together and I feel like I've been here for 4 months instead of 4 days. On Tuesday we went on a tour of the presidential palace-La Moneda. Turns out the president doesn't actually live there, it's just where all of the offices are. While we were there we saw the first lady. She only had one guard next to her and she was pretty much just walking around. I've lived around DC, and now in DC, all but 3 years of my life and I've never once seen the first lady. I'm in Santiago 24 hours and I see the Chilean first lady, crazy.
After that we walked around Santiago a little bit. I can't remember exactly what we did after that. I just know there was a lot of walking.
That night we went to another Santiago a Mil performance. Here is where my camera broke. I don't really know what happened but it just turned itself off and wouldn't go back on even with new batteries. Anyway, the performance was crazy. It was based on the artist Alexander Calder who was famous for his mobiles. The basically made a human mobile but having a crane hold up this frame that people were hanging from. While hanging they played instruments, sang, and there were to acrobat girls. At same time the same heavy metal group from the night before played, the gumdrop ladies sang, a (what looked like) high school ensemble played instruments, and a drum group drummed. At the end they all played Led Zeppelin's Kashmir, which is one my favorite songs by them. They combined so many different types of music and it sounded SO good. I really wish I had pictures.
After that we walked around Santiago a little bit. I can't remember exactly what we did after that. I just know there was a lot of walking.
That night we went to another Santiago a Mil performance. Here is where my camera broke. I don't really know what happened but it just turned itself off and wouldn't go back on even with new batteries. Anyway, the performance was crazy. It was based on the artist Alexander Calder who was famous for his mobiles. The basically made a human mobile but having a crane hold up this frame that people were hanging from. While hanging they played instruments, sang, and there were to acrobat girls. At same time the same heavy metal group from the night before played, the gumdrop ladies sang, a (what looked like) high school ensemble played instruments, and a drum group drummed. At the end they all played Led Zeppelin's Kashmir, which is one my favorite songs by them. They combined so many different types of music and it sounded SO good. I really wish I had pictures.
Monday
Sunday we flew all afternoon and night. The flights were pretty uneventful. On the trip from Dallas to Santiago the woman in front of me leaned back all the way and was basically in my lap all night so I didn´t get much sleep. From the plane windows we could see the sunrise and it was really pretty. It was pink and purple and orange and you could see the Andes in the distance. It took a really long time to get through immigration and customs but after about two hours or so we finally got to go outside and be in the 80 degree and sunny weather.
We took a bus to our hostel which is pretty nice. There is a rooftop deck where we hang out a lot. It is right downtown-only a few blocks from the main square. After we got in and settled for a few minutes we went to this restaurant called the Clinic. It had a lot of political art. It is apparently based on an underground newspaper.
After eating we went up the rooftop and sunned for a long time. I got a nice burn on my stomach that is still here 4 days later. Oops.
At night we went to the main square, and saw a performance from Santaigo a Mil. It is too extravagant to even describe, it was like nothing I'd ever seen. There were these gigantic costumes that looked like gumdrops on wheels and they turned out to be the bottoms of dresses and ladies came out and sang. Then there was this heavy metal band that played on an apparatus where two guys flipped up and down. There is really no point in trying to explain this because it clearly doesn't make any sense. But basically it paraded through the streets and everyone followed it up to the presidential palace.
Overall Monday was a good day. Very exhausting.
We took a bus to our hostel which is pretty nice. There is a rooftop deck where we hang out a lot. It is right downtown-only a few blocks from the main square. After we got in and settled for a few minutes we went to this restaurant called the Clinic. It had a lot of political art. It is apparently based on an underground newspaper.
After eating we went up the rooftop and sunned for a long time. I got a nice burn on my stomach that is still here 4 days later. Oops.
At night we went to the main square, and saw a performance from Santaigo a Mil. It is too extravagant to even describe, it was like nothing I'd ever seen. There were these gigantic costumes that looked like gumdrops on wheels and they turned out to be the bottoms of dresses and ladies came out and sang. Then there was this heavy metal band that played on an apparatus where two guys flipped up and down. There is really no point in trying to explain this because it clearly doesn't make any sense. But basically it paraded through the streets and everyone followed it up to the presidential palace.
Overall Monday was a good day. Very exhausting.
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