Friday, March 12, 2004

So Much To Do, So Little Time...or the Chilean Philosophy- So Little Done in So Much Time

People here work from early in the mornming until late at night. And is is really interesting that no one really seems like they are getting anything done. I swear that people must take like an hour coffee break in the morning along with their two hour lunch, and that is the reason why so little gets done during the day.

Today, I went to an office on one of the campus´ at la Catolica (there are four campus´in the city) in order to get approved to take the course that I wanted to take on Chile and America in the 20th century. I arrived at about 2:00 but the lady told me that they were on their lunch break. I had to wait outside until 2:30 when they would finish. So I waited. And I waited. And I waited.

At about 3:00 they finally opened back up. And then I got to wait some more in orer to talk to the Director of the bachillerato program (here it is a little different- the students that aren´t sure what they want to study begin in the bachillerato program where they earn a two year degree in general studies. After that, they begin their licenciatura, or specific degree). After about ten minutes of waiting, the attendant went in the back and talked to the director. When he came back, he told me that I couldn´t take the course because it was full. So I had to change my schedule- again.

I finally decided on the intercultural health class, the literature class, the human rights and development class, and a class on the formation of the family (or something to that nature- I don´t really know because I haven´t been- it was the only class available in the time slot of the history class that I couldn´t take).

But that is how things go around here- you wait to wait to wait to get things done. And when they are done, they aren´t really done, because something will need to be changed. I kind of don´t mind, because I am already used to it and I know I should never be in a hurry to get things done. Everything seems to fall into place eventually anyways, so why stress myself out?

posted by Rebecca @ 3/12/2004 04:32:00 PM