District Rotary Conference
I have put a link here to a few pictures from last weekend´s Rotary Conference. I hope it works. I am trying to figure out how to share more pictures that I have in my Shutterfly account, but I don´t know yet. That may take a while.
The District Conference wasn´t very big- about two hundred people were there. There were high school exchange student that introduced themselves as well as some professionals who have been in Chile through the Rotary cultural exchange program for the past month. There were a few presentations on Peace, Friendship, and Service (three of Rotary´s main principles) and a lot of breaks.
I found the presentation on Peace a little ambiguous and very conservative- the presenter (an ex-Ambassador) spoke mostly on globalization and very little about peace, except that it should me an aspect in our daily lives. He made a big deal about population and market growth, as well as over-production of goods, which indeed all are realities that we are being confronted with in the global community. However, he really made no suggestions concerning what it is that can be done in order to support peaceful efforts.
The presentation on Service was much more productive- the presenter was a representative from Hogar de Cristo, a large foundation in Chile which caters to several different types- under-privileged children, battered women and children, homeless men, etc. Within the next few weeks, all of of Scholars will probably visit one of the facilities and get more information on volunteering.
The upcoming Rotary District governor spoke to us as well- he shared his ideas to all present, the most interesting being his idea that women should have equal opportunities in Rotary- quite profound considering that Rotary only suggests (but does not have it written in the constitution) the membership of women. Even in Santiago, there are several clubs that do not allow women members.
All in all, it was a good experience. Although my host counselor wasn´t there, so I didn´t get to meet him. But hopefully some time soon...
Santiago After Rain
Santiago is a beautiful city after it rains. There is no smog for about a day and you can actually see the snow-capped Andes Mountains. Usually, I forget that they are even there because they are never in view. I will have to remember to bring my camara to school one day after the next rainy period because there is a great view of the mountains from the entrance of my school.
Volunteer Project
I have a meeting today with this guy who goes to school with my friend Adrien about a volunteer project teaching computer skills to adults in the poorer neighborhoods of Santiago. I will probably start next week, and I think it will require about four or five hours every week.
Rotary
There is a district conference this weekend and hopefully I will actually get to meet my host counselor.
Piercing
I got my nose pierced...again. (That makes three piercings in one nostril.) But I don´t know if I am going to keep it for very long. It is not in the exact position that I want it- it is off by about half a milimeter. Call me picky, but it is my nose and I think I have the right to be. My friends said it looks good, but when I look at it in the mirror, I want to be able to move it. But we`ll see- I think I will let it heal (that takes about two months) and then change the jewelry to see if I like it any better. If not, I will take it out.
The Castillo Family
I met a family here- the are Amercan Chileans (Chilean blood, American raised) and they have been a second family for all of us. After living in Florida for about twelve years, they had to come back to Chile because they were unable to secure citizenship.
I was at their house this past Saturday night until about three a.m. just talking with Natalia (daughter, 19) and two other Rotary Scholars (Meaghan and Leah). It is so easy to forget that I am in Chile when I am able to spend such quality time with Americans.
Lack of Friends
Yeah, so I still don´t have many Chilean friends. I think that the large city really isn´t conducive to making good friends. Groups of friends aren´t very apt to invite to to join their group. You aren´t anyone that special if you are international, because there are a bazillion gringos here. What I have found (and many other international students as well) is that international students end up being friends with each other, although I think that it might be a different case, depending on the living situation. I think that if someone lives with a Chilean their age, they might be more apt to have more friends. Since I am living with someone the age of my grandmother, I haven´t really made many friends through her. :-)
But I really am not bitter or anything. I really like the friends that I do have. But I could be getting this amount of Spanish in Florida (or so I have been told....maybe I will move there when I graduate from college. I think Miami would be a good place for a person with an international business and finance degree, who also speaks Spanish...)
Due to Popular Demand........
I have been questioned about the "good" Chilean wines... well, they are all pretty decent (although I did have one the other day that wasn´t too great- I think it was Emiliana or something like that) but the longest established and most known wines of Chile would be those of Concho y Toro and Cousiño Mackul. So if you are in Trader Joes or Cost Plus World Market, and your interest peakes- grab a bottle. Just know that I am paying less... ;-)
Paraguas (Umbrella)
So I got to break out the umbrella during the last few days because it has been raining down here (yes, it is fall in the southern hemisphere). We´ve had a bit of thunder and lightening and quite a bit more rain. The only thing that I don´t like about it is that the clouds trap in the smog and it is a lot harder to breath. But, my asthma is doing alright. I haven´t gotten sick (knock on wood!) so that is good. A little congested, yes, but nothing more.
Una Despedida (Goodbye)
One of my fellow Rotary Scholars (Aimee) will be leaving us in Santiago and returning home to California. She got a nasty bacterial infection and with her weak immune system, she was unable to fight it off. After a bout in the hospital and her mom flying down here, it was decided that it would be best for her to return. Definitely sad to see her go, but I think it will be best for her. I don´t think she was having a good experience here anyways.
The Bus System
Let me tell you about the bus system here- it is great. There are options for economy class, half bed, and full bed, with attendants and everything. It is like an airplane. With full bed, you get breakfast, with a half bed you get tea and a small something to munch on, and in economy you just get a great price. It is the best way to travel. I love it.
My Long Weekend in Norte Chico (Small North)- you can read some more info about where I went if you click on the link to the right and scroll down until you find my destination
Valparaiso
So I left Santiago on Wednesday evening by bus and arrived in Valparaiso, a small city on the coast where my friend Christine is living. I stayed at the YMCA (for free, which is always cool) and got to know the city a little bit. It has a distinct ambiance that reminds me a lot of Austin, TX and Capitol Hill in Seattle. I dig it. We went up a hill called Cerro Alegre (Happy Hill) with an awesome view of the city and beach at night. It was beautiful. But I left that night around midnight in order to continue my trip up the coast to La Serena.
La Serena
So I went up to La Serena, a small town of about 170,000 and known for having the best quality of life in Chile. It also has the most churches for the population- over thirty, of various denominations, that were built in the past for settling congregations and as a communication point in betweent the northern border and Santiago.
I waited for about an hour in the bus station for my friend Perrine to arrive (we met in Santiago, she is French and working for a French company in Santiago) and we went straight out to the Valle del Elqui where Pisco, the national liquor if Chile, is produced. Pisco Elqui was the farthest town (about two hours busride inland from La Serena) and we started there.
Pisco Elqui
Pisco Elqui is a very small town with a nice, small river and pleasant weather when we went. During the summer I would imagine it is a lot hotter. But there is a pretty church and a pisco producing plant that we got a tour of. I learned that pisco is made from grapes- silly me, had had previously thought that it was made from a pisco plant, which doesn´t exist.)
After, we took the bus to Monte Grande where the tomb of the Chilan Pulitzer Prize Winner Gabriela Mistral is buried. It is the town where she lived until she was 9. We went to the school house, which is now a musuem. I ran into some people that I had met in Santiago about two weeks ago, too. (Chile is a small country- I am always running into people.) And Perrine tried mote con huesillos, a very good, sweet peach nectar drink with a wheat-like grain in it and dried peaches (I am pretty sure it is native Chilean). It is one of my favorite drinks here. I ate the best raisins- they were dried on the roof of one of the houses. Practical, huh?
Vicuña
On to Vicuña- very distinct for it´s arquitecure of houses with interior courtyards. From the outside, the blocks seem very inclosed and uninviting becuase you can only see walls and doors or windows. But once you get a peek inside a house or business, it is like a different world inside. By doing this, Perrine and I met some artists who create wooden portraits of the religious Gods from the indigenous Danguito beliefs. They will be displaying their works in Santiago at the end of the month, and I will be sure to go.
Vicuña is known for the most beautiful skies, as the inhabitants are required to use yellow lights so as not to disturb the scientist that work in the near-by observatory, studying the constellations. We went to an observatory that is open to the public at night time and I was floored. We learned how stars are created and about solar systems and then were able to look at different formations, stars, the moon and planets with the telescope. I reall wish that I would have brought my digital camara, because I could´ve gotten some great images through the telescope. But we can´t dwell on the past now, can we? So after staying listening to some good music with various indigenous Latin American instruments, we went back to town and stayed in a hostel. The next morning, we got up early to the traditional Chilean breakfast of toast and coffee and then walked the Cerro de la Virgen (The Virgen´s Hill) for a great panoramic view of the area.
After lunch, we took a bus back to La Serena and were able to walk around about. We stayed in a hostal (it defintely wasn´t the cleanest, but I am just learning on how to hostal-it...from here on out, I will definitely ask to see the bedroom and bathroon before making a decision....no wonder it was so cheap- 3000 pesos- I definitely woke up with about twenty bug bites.)
National Parks
The next day, we went to two national parks with a tour company. It was a little pricy, but definitely worth it (I payed a discounted price of 15.000 pesos because the guy was nice and I told him I was a student and couldn´t afford the normal price of 20.000) because it included transportation which is not available by bus and lunch.
The first park was Parque National Fray Jorge, a forest like those found in the south of Chile, but in the north and in the middle of a desert arid region right next to the coast. This phenomenon is able to exist because of the cloud aggregation formed by the high hill on which the forest exists. It was like walking in between two worlds- it was so neat. The forest has distinct plants that only flower in the winter as well as the sacred tree of the Mapuche tribe of Chile, as well as the endangered puma and chincilla. And outside of the clouds, there is a desert with cactus, foxes, and dry brush. It is a strange, but very interesting phenomenon.
The second park was Valle del Encanto where there is rock art dating back about four thousand years from the Danguito tribe. In one spot, there are human figures and masks in the rock (speculated to be formed by etching, but no tools have been found, or else with the combination of various plant chemicals that could have had an effect like acid, which "ate" the rock) but can only be seen in certain positions of the sun. There are also holes in the rocks, in various sizes and shapes, some of which mirror constellations in the sky.
All in all, it was interesting to be in parks like that, close to nature and speculating about what a tribe of hunter and gatherers speculated about God, on a day of all days- Easter Sunday. Very different than what my family was doing- they called me, I am sure after going to church, from a get-together at my sister´s house in Southern California with the whole family and some friends, no doubt watching some sort of sports game and eating Easter candy along with some really good Mexican and Spanish food (man, I would kill for some flavor down here- unless the food is really fatty, it is super bland and it is a must to load on the salt) with margaritas and sangria.
I definitely live a different estilo de vida down here....
How Could I Forget?
The wines in Chile rock- in every variety. And they are really cheap, which is the best part. Spending three or four dollars on a bottle and really enjoying it is not unusual. I have been to two vineyards here (have I forgotten to write about them?) and each experience has been great.
This Weekend
For the Semana Santa (Easter Weekend) I am going north to La Serena and Pisco Elqui, where the pisco plant grows. I will be accompanied by a French girl named Perrine that I met last weekend. I heard and have read that the area is beautiful so I will give you the scoop when I get back.
I hope that everyone has a pleasant weekend with their families and such. Think of me and send me a hug with your thoughts!! .....No, I really mean it. Think of me. Right now. And send me a hug.........................
Thanks. ;-) I´ll sleep better tonight.
Things I Love
So I have written about the things that I miss from the States (I forgot to include string cheese), but I have neglected to write about some of the things that I really like about Chile.
FOOD
1. Mustard. Their mustard is very distinct. It is a little sweeter than our mustard back home, and as I have been told, it is actually the best mustard in all of Latin America.
2. Manjar. This is comparable to caramel but it isn´t quite as sweet. It is kind of in between chocolate and caramel. It is heavenly.
3. Milk. Even though it is low fat, it doesn´t taste like it- it tastes really rich. Plus, there are many different kinds of milk- banana milk, chocolate milk, manjar milk, frutilla milk (frutilla is a mix of different fruits). I love the variety.
4. Sweets. There is this awesome chocolate covered coconut cookie here that rivals the Girl Scout Caramel Delight. Plus, it is like twenty times less expensive. And this little store right by my apartment sells some good chocolate (other than that, the store bought, wrapped chocolate bars kind of suck).
5. Gelato. The Italian gelato sold here is the Baskin Robbins of the States. The Selva Negra (Black Sin) is a vice.
6. Fruits and Vegetables. They are the best in the world. Everything comes directly from the campos and it is very easy to find organic products without pesticides and crap like that. And everything has such a good, ripeness to it. I just ate the best grapefruit that I have ever had.
7. Variety of Cheese (except for cottage and string). Man, the queso fresco compliments everything. And the fresh goat cheese, too.
8. Freshness of Bread Products. There is a chain here called Castaño that is practically on every darn block and they turn out fresh bread and pastries hourly. You know you are close because you can smell it before even seeing the sign.
9. The Providencia Market. Providencia is the neighborhood where I live and I live about two blocks from "the market" where all food products are sold (it is not a grocery store). There is a small stand that sells the best empanadas in Santiago (the shrimp and cheese one is the best). Plus, I swear there is a competition between all of the booth owners on who can sell the most pre-packaged salads. Because of this, the prices are super cheap (500 pesos- less than a dollar) for a good salad with a mixture of corn, lettuce, chicken or tuna, cheese, beets, peas, potatoes, or whatever else they happen to have on any given day.
Are you hungy yet? I am and I just ate.
Free Internet
Yeah! I just discovered that the public library that is two blocks from my apartment has free Internet. Am I stoked or what?
El Monte
So I was initially waiting to write about my house building experience in order to be sure of what my opinion was about the whole deal, but then I got caught up in other things and never had the chance to share with you my experience. And now I have decided that instead of opinionating (gosh, is that even a word? I know that my English must be deteriorating as my Spanish improves) on the experience, I am just going to relay the facts and let you opinionate.
So El Monte is a community about an fifty minutes outside of Santiago. The popluation is probably about 6 thousand, all in poverty. The few buses run on dirt roads. Life is pretty tranquil because there isn´t much "modernity".
The busload of students that I was with (about fifty from the group of 400 that was split into different communities) went directly to a small elementary school- the place where we would sleep for the next two nights. One of the things that stick out in my mind from the school was the bathroom that was attached to the classroom- it had about 20 toothbrushes inside a large cup; the students are taught hygeine in school because it is basically impossible to practice those habits in the family home environment.
Anyways, the forty of us were split into smaller groups to build a "media agua" (well, it might be a "medida agua" but it is hard to tell from the Chilean accent)- a "house" that measures 3 x 6 meters and rests on 17 posts that raise it about 15 inches from the ground (the name of this type of building is a derivative from the method in which these posts are leveled- with a hose and water).
The six of us in the group spent all Saturday digging holes (a little more than three feet deep) and leveling the 17 posts that we put in these holes. Late that evening, the pre-built floor and walls arrived, but there wasn´t enough light to continue. So Sunday, we basically put the formation all together, which is much easier said than done. We had to wait for several hours for the roof materials to arrive (sheets of tar and zinc) but we were finally able to do that after lunch (around 4 pm). Unfortunately, the insulation materials never arrived, so we were unable to do that for the family.
Speaking of the family- Miguel Sr. was the father, with his girlfriend and their two sons, Manuel (5 yrs old) and Miguel Jr. (2 yrs). Before we built this place for them, they were living with Miguel´s father in his house- a building of wood, no insulation, the only running water provided by a hose in the front "yard" (1.5 x 2 meters of weeds, trash, and junk).
Conditions of the house: The bathroom was the only part of the house with a concrete-like finish to the floor and walls. The toilet was "flushed" by running the hose into the house and rinsing it; the shower was right next to the toilet- a moldy area with a window through which the hose could be ran in order to take a shower. The two "bedrooms" were partitioned with sheets, the furniture consisted of an old couch, a picnic-like table from unfinished wood, and a whole lot of empty bottles (that comes from the house-owner). No stove, of course no refridgerator, but they did have electricity, provided by two cables (no outlets) that were split, with open wires, in order to use various appliances.
Miguel (same name as my father) is a fruit-packer (my father is an engineer). He works seven days a week. His girlfriend works during the nighttime. It was never specified to me what she does. Their son, Miguel Jr. (same as my brother) doesn´t really talk, although he is two years old (I heard him say gracias once), and the older boy gets into absolutely everything and does everything that he is asked not to do.
Miguel´s father (the house-owner), is a complete drunk from morning until night, and his friends were present, off and on, while we built this house for his son (who, by the way, worked side by side with the rest of us to construct this building). Apparently, what he and his friends do is work two days of the month (fishing) until they reach the cap on how much they can take. The other 28 days they spend getting wasted with the money that they made. Hence the neccesity for a space of their own (Miguel and his own famiy), although it is built directly behind is father´s house (about 2 meters behind) on the same piece of land.
So now this family has their own living area. I don´t know what they will do about electricity or running water. I don´t know what will happen with the insulation of the house, nor with the situation in general with the family.
It is said that every person is a product of their culture. It is also said that people make their own lives. Please opinionate for yourselves.
Since I am not aware of what news is being broadcasted in the US regarding the war efforts (there is practically no news here in Chile), I decided to share the following excerpt from an article that I encountered online.
An Iraqi Mob Kills 4 US Contractors (International Herald Tribune)
FALLUJA, Iraq An enraged mob attacked four American contractors here Wednesday, shooting them to death, burning their vehicles, dragging their bodies through the streets and then hanging the charred corpses from a bridge over the Euphrates River.
.
Meanwhile, less than 24 kilometers, or 15 miles, away, in the same area of the increasingly violent Sunni Triangle, five marines were killed in one of the deadliest roadside bomb incidents for coalition troops in weeks.
.
The steadily deteriorating security situation in the Falluja area, west of Baghdad, has become so dangerous that no American soldiers or Iraqi security staff responded to the attack against the contractors. There are a number of police stations in Falluja and a base of more than 4,000 marines nearby.
.
But even while the two vehicles burned, sending plumes of inky smoke over the closed shops of the city, there were no ambulances, no fire engines and there was no security.
.
Instead, Falluja’s streets were thick with men and boys and chaos. Boys with scarves over their faces hurled bricks into the burning vehicles. A group of men dragged one of the smoldering corpses into the street and ripped it apart. Someone then tied a chunk of flesh to a rock and tossed it over a telephone wire.
.
‘‘Viva mujahadeen!’’ shouted Said Khalaf, a taxi driver. ‘‘Long live the resistance!’’
.
Nearby, a boy no older than 10 put his foot on the head of a body and said: ‘‘Where is Bush? Let him come here and see this!’’ Many people in the crowd said they felt as if they had won an important battle. Others said they thought that the contractors, who were driving in four-wheel-drive trucks, were working for the Central Intelligence Agency.
.
‘‘This is what these spies deserve,’’ said Salam Aldulayme, a 28-year-old Falluja resident.
.
The series of deadly attacks on U.S. troops and foreign civilians in the Sunni Triangle area of central Iraq, particularly around Falluja, and a similar spate of attacks in the northern oil city of Mosul, have raised doubts about the cautiously optimistic appraisal of American progress in the war that has been common among U.S. generals since the beginning of the year.
.
But Wednesday’s events at Falluja indicate that the war may not have changed as much as the generals have suggested. The fact that the attack on the civilian vehicles occurred in Falluja, an overwhelming Sunni city that is the most volatile stronghold of support for Saddam, and that it followed a 10-day offensive by U.S. marines aimed at gaining effective control of the city, suggested that the current war may, in practice, be an extension of the conflict that began last year.
.
Captain Chris Logan of the Marine Corps said Wednesday that the city was becoming ‘‘an area of greater concern.’’ He added: ‘‘This is one of those areas in Iraq that is definitely squirrelly. The guerrillas in Falluja are testing us. They’re testing our resolve.’’
.
TESTING OUR RESOLVE? I think that we are testing theirs.
