No a Piñerachet

One of the best experiences that I have had so far here in Chile happened last wednesday. A few of us went to a free concert in the park. Before going, I had no idea what to expect. It was just something to do. Once we got there, I realized that it was a rally for Frei, one of the presidential candidates, which was way better than just going to a concert!
There were so many people, the majority of whom were young people. So many people had flags of Che Guevara, Frei, and Allende. This little girl is holding a sign that says "No to the Right." (sorry, that's a really literal translation, but you get the point.)
There were people walking around selling all kinds of foods and sweets. I had a soy burger which was actually really good. The german influence is really interesting here as well...there were about 4 stands selling brats. No sauerkraut, though. Also, this is random, but one of my friends bought some cigarettes and I was shocked to see the box. If this doesn't stop you from smoking, nothing will...
(the smoke from tobacco suffocates and makes you sick) Subtle.

There were all types of music at the concert which ranged from hip hop to the national song of Chile. It was really chill with lots of people sitting in groups on the grass. I really enjoyed myself.It was exactly what I had hoped I would get to experience here! My Chilean friends, Guillermo and Sebastián, laughed at me because I was a bit worried about being an extranjera (foreigner) and participating in a political rally. I'm just used to El Salvador where I would have definitely gotten deported for participating in something of the sort!

After we had been there for a few hours and had received plenty of handouts talking about gay marriage, rights for women, and nationalization, Frei actually showed up and spoke!

It was very cool! Unfortunately, he didn't win the presidency, but I am really glad that we were able to see him speak! I'm also really glad that I was here during the election which was last Sunday. It was interesting to see the differences between the US and Chile. Almost everything in Chile closes at 12am the day of the election and doesn't open until the next day. After they had voted (in separate locations - women and men vote at different places), my family invited me to go out into a poorer part of Santiago to have onces with their family. Onces is basically a tea time in between lunch and dinner, but some people eat at onces and then don't eat dinner.

We went to the house of my chilean mom's sister and had tea and sandwiches and watched the results of the elections. They actually count all of the votes out loud in front of news cameras from each voting location, so we were able to watch as all of the votes were counted. The result was about 52% for Piñera (one of the few billionaires of Chile) to 48% for Frei, which was really disappointing for my family. My brother is really passionate about politics and began explaining the politics of Chile to me. He told me that this is the first time since 1958 that a rightist president has been elected...democratically that is. Pinochet is a whole different story. They were worried that things will change and that there will be a lot of protests, but my chilean mom's niece that is living with us, Vicki, said that she is just ready for when she can vote in four years so that she can vote against Piñera.

As you can tell, it was a very politically charged few days. I am definitely here at a historic time for Chile and I'm interested to see what will happen when Piñera actually becomes president.

It's not Spanish, it's not Castellano, it's Chilean.

Good news: I'm adjusting and have found a smaller group of friends than the huge group of 19 gringos (north americans) that walked around speaking English together at first, which was sooo not okay with me. We've also become friends with a few Chilean guys that go to our University. :) They are there every day because they are working as welcomers, i guess, for students coming to apply for classes, so we get to see them often. As well as we hang out with them outside of the university as well. I'm glad because it makes us speak Spanish a lot more!

Bad news: At first, while making my way around the city, I could not understand a WORD of what people were saying to me! Seriously. When at a restaurant or something, the waiter would talk to me and I would be left with my mouth hanging open in confusion. I am not exaggerating. I wouldn't even know how to respond because I was too surprised that I literally understood NOTHING. My family speaks a lot more clearly because they have had a lot of foreigners in their house and know that it is necessary, so I never had any problem understanding them. It was just when I would go out in public that my confidence would take some serious blows.

Chileans speak their own brand of Spanish by cutting off the ends of words completely and putting all of the words together. One really good example that is very Chilean is "sí, po." This means "yes, of course," but in normal spanish it is said "sí, pues" or "pues, sí" and it would not be said near as often. I know that I will definitely come back with that little quirk. It's already starting to seep into my speech. They also have lots of sayings and words that are different from that in the rest of Latin America.
For example:
avocado = palta
fiesta = carrete
maiz (corn) = choclo
adios = ciao (i know that's italian. it's just weird to hear it here.)

...well, i know there are more, but for some reason, that's all i can think of right now. There are entire books full of 'Chilenismos' though.

Luckily, this week I have been able to understand a lot more of what the people are saying and my ability to speak is slowly coming back to me as well. Thank goodness.

I've been taking my camera around the city a lot more so that I actually have something interesting to put on here. There is a lot of cool art on random buildings in the city. I saw this, for example, on the way to eat lunch one day.


This was at a beach that we went to called Algarrobo.


Unfortunately, we didn't exactly check the weather before we went so after riding an hour and a half on a bus, we realized that it was freezing there. Of course, it was the only cold day we've had in the two weeks that we've been here.

Saw this while out one night with some friends.


That same night we ran into a 'native' Bolivian band. So cool! We danced along with them for awhile.


But before you get too excited about the great cultural experiences i'm having, take a look at where we were.


Not really that different from the US. We didn't stay there, though. Definitely too high class for me. We went to a place that was more flaite (sketchy) which is more my style. Haha

That's about it. Keep reading and commenting so that I actually know that people care. Ciao!

i made it

Well...I'm here! My family here is wonderful. I have a mother named Enriqueta who always calls me her hijita (little daughter) and a host brother, Pablo, who is 26 and is an assistant professor and grad student at my university. Enriqueta is really into astrological signs. When she found out that I was a scorpio, like Pablo, she was convinced that I am "very organized." Haha...and that is why i don't put any stock in interpreting astrological signs.

Enriqueta and Pablo live in a house that is connected on all sides with other houses. It is one floor but we can hear the people on either side of us all of the time. The people next to us have a kid and a dog. yay... however, good news...We have a cat!!! named Perla. She is so friendly and fat. Whenever anyone is eating fruit she is right there begging for some and she has already claimed my bed as her territory so...i guess she likes me. The house is in a residential area that is right off of a busy street that leads to a business sector with lots of shops and cafes. There is also a strip of cute little pubs right by my house that we went to the first night with one of the host brothers here.



I came here expecting it to be somewhat like El Salvador and thinking that I would be right at home but it is very different. First of all: everything is waaaaay more expensive than i thought it would be. this is definitely not a third world country. There are a few people selling pirated movies and sunglasses on the streets but definitely not enough for my tastes. Secondly: the shops and restaurants are much more european and the effects of globalization are very obvious...sushi restaurants (yay!), chinese restaurants, italian pizza shops, german pubs, etc. Third: the transportation system is not just buses that pass every few minutes and that cost a quarter. Instead, there is an awesome metro system that takes you pretty much anywhere in Santiago and a really confusing bus system.

Anyways...it will definitely take me a while to adjust but I've been exploring a bit and really like the area that I live in. My university is right in the middle of the city (about 15 min away on the metro) and is very small but pretty. We start spanish classes on monday and i'm kind of glad. It will be nice to actually have a schedule. I'm currently looking for a non-profit to work with as well, but no luck so far. Well, i'm off to find something to do tonight.