año de dos inviernos (Chile 2010)

What started off as a lofty, long-term, "someday I would love to visit this country and that country" and "someday I'll live somewhere I can speak Spanish" thoughts have turned into reality. Ever since I left the US for the first time about three and a half years ago (a 2 week long band tour), I have been longing to visit other countries, meet other people, and learn about what life is like somewhere else.

A year ago I spent 3 months studying at Oxford in the UK, and I loved it. I had some wonderful and life-changing chances to visit Venice, Paris, and Prague. I learned a ton about what life is like in England, and I didn't want to go home to the US because Oxford actually started to feel like home. I got used to my life there, but I had to return to the US to finish college.

Life in the States has been okay, but I've always longed for something more exciting, different, challenging, and enlightening. I like the jobs I've had here working with kids, so I'm thrilled that I will be teaching kids in Chile (and WELL-BEHAVED, normal ones who won't throw chairs or shampoo bottles at you, have hissy fits, or get restrained...).

For a while, I'd seriously considered applying to the Peace Corps or other long-term programs, but those were a huge commitment, and I wasn't ready to just leave my boyfriend for two and a half years because things probably wouldn't work out. I don't like the idea of long-distance relationships, but travelling / living abroad has always been important to me.

In my mind, tossed around the ideas of doing the Peace Corps or similar year-long programs in Guatemala or Mexico, and started researching different organizations or programs abroad. One of them, called Cultural Embrace, offered lots of affordable and shorter-term ideas. I requested more information and thought of it as a "maybe I would like to do this later, but now I have a full-time job" sort of idea.

Then one day out of the blue, I got an email from CE saying that they still had positions open for a 4-month program in Chile, and that this was the last call for interested applicants. I admit, it was a really impulsive decision to make, but something about it felt completely right. Within the next 2 days I gathered up my letters of recommendation, wrote a personal statement, and worked on a letter completely in Spanish, and I mailed it in. I didn't think about it a lot or debate whether I should do this or not. For some reason, Chile had always appealed to me, and 4 months was a long enough time to learn about Chile, visit lots of places, and immerse myself in the culture. However, it was also a short enough period of time that I wasn't worried about my relationship falling apart.

...So back to the present. My flight out of O'Hare leaves in 19 days. I've been doing LOTS of reading, studying, and information-seeking. I am part of the way through "Crónica de una muerte anunciada" by Gabriel García Márquez, in attempt to improve my Spanish, which is a tad bit rusty after 7 years of classes, 3 years of waitressing in a Mexican restaurant where I was the only gringa, and 2 1/2 years since I last took a Spanish class or waitressed. Most of it seems like it's coming back (or that I still remembered), and I am picking up all sorts of wonderful, quirky Chilean phrases. I got this book called "Chilenismos" which explains tons of words and phrases I'll probably hear while there.

Overall, I am confident that my Spanish is good enough for me to be decently comfortable while there, but part of me is kicking myself for stopping taking Spanish classes 2 1/2 years ago. I loved it when I was learning it, and it felt like I was good at it and a quick learner. I had one really annoying Spanish teacher in college, and after that I decided not to take more classes. I really wish I would have though. I cringe to think how fluent I COULD be now if I hadn't quit because of one lousy teacher. Then again, I'm still young and have lots of time to pick it back up.

Anyway, everything is in order for me to leave. I just need to figure out the whole cell phone situation because I don't want to pay the expensive rates per minute AT&T will make me pay. I think I'll just communicate via email. I also need to narrow down my list of things to bring with. I usually pack pretty light, but I want to make sure to leave room in my suitcase for anything I might buy in South America.

I have this thing where every city I visit, I buy a painting. It's much more awesome than tacky, touristy souvenirs. If possible, I like to meet and talk to the painter who made it. Then our apartment is filled with beautiful and one-of-a-kind artwork. I am looking forward to selecting paintings that capture some of my experiences in Chile (and probably Peru and Bolivia).

I wonder what my host family will be like. I wonder if they'll have kids, if they'll be accepting of me being a vegetarian, if they'll have a dog or cat, if they'll live in the city or the country, what their house will look like, whether their home will have air conditioning, computers, or TV's. Honestly, I am completely fine with it if they have none of those things. I am thrilled I will not have to deal with all the problems of having a car, driving, traffic, etc. I hope my host family will be nice, and that they'll be understanding of my broken Spanish.

I am looking forward to a more simple lifestyle, not like in the US where people live outside of their means and rely too much on material things for their conceived sense of happiness. I cannot wait to see the Andes, the Pacific, going on long, exhilirating runs in the Atacama, and just soak in the solitude of the desert. Hot springs, geysers, swimming, horseback riding, stargazing, cacti, and the idea of heat and no rain sound amazing. If I go to Bolivia, I am itching to try high-altitude running to see what that's like. Maybe I'll be coordinated enough to try sandboarding, but I think I'll stick with running.

As of now, I'm working my way through taking a course to get certified in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). So far it's not too hard but very time consuming. I really like it though, and it is helping out with all sorts of neat ideas to use with my future class. I really feel like this could be a career thing for me, not just a 4-month teaching job in Chile. Maybe this is part of the answer I've been looking for, and it will open many more doors for me.

At any rate, I need to get back to creating lesson plans for my TEFL homework. I'll be sure to keep writing.

Sarita Esperanza:)

written by

Sara Florecita on July 3, 2010 from Rock Island, United States

from the travel blog: año de dos inviernos (Chile 2010)

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There is so much going through my mind right now. I absolutely love this city. Its horizons of mountains with their snow covered peaks, the sandy cordilleras afar, and the lingering fog have taken me in, captivated me in a place that feels more like a suspension in time and space. It´s like being here but not really here, more connected to the earth and its beauty, but with my feet touching the frozen, dry ground. At the same time my head is lost somewhere and everywhere in the clouds. This is what I´d imagined it would feel like to be free, in many ways. Free from cell phones, computers, TVs, and having to drive. You can slow down and enjoy the flavors of passing moments while also being caught up in the bustle of pedestrians and busy streets. Free to enjoy the more beautiful, more often missed-out-on aspects of life. I´ve never felt this passionately about a place, but intuitively it feels completely right. A strong part of me considering not going back to Rock Island or the US at all. I am thirsty to keep traveling and continue loving the world. To me, travel represents freedom, which I´ve always valued, but it wasn´t until now that I have realized just how much it means to me. I don´t want to go back and miss out on what else I could be seeing. The past few days have been so happy and worthwhile. Although it´s a city and also full of people who smoke, pollution, and graffiti, I feel this is a more spiritual experience, and extremely spiritually and mentally liberating.

I love it here in Santiago and am having an amazing time. I feel like I've been here longer than just 4 days. I like to do a lot of walking, and it's a great city to walk around. Although it's winter here and the coldest one in 37 years, I like the crisp, fresh mountain air. It downpoured the first night I was here but I met up with some people from the hostel and wandered around in the rain to find a good place to try pisco sours.

The first day was frustrating because I was tired (I arrived at 7:50 and hadn't been able to get much sleep on the plane due to lots of turbulence). I also got held up at the airport. The carabineros were confused about the airport letter because it was in English, which they didn't understand. When I arrived I was dead tired from the flight but I stayed up and wandered around the city after checking into Hostelling Internacional on Cienfuegos, Barrio Brasil. It was a lot colder than I´d expected, but by my midwest standards, it was still pretty mild. I put on two of my zip-up sweatshirts and headed out. I listened to a military band concert across the avenue from the Moneda. Then I went to the Iglesia de San Francisco and el Museo de Arte Colonial de San Francisco. It was freezing there and I would´ve enjoyed it more if I´d had an actual winter coat. The tour guide there was friendly but talked a LOT! After going there, I found a store and bought a winter coat, which was on sale for the equivalent of 12 US dollars! I found some artesanías (art and craft shops) and bought a hat.

Then I walked to the Plaza de Armas and visited El Catedral Metropolitana, and El Mercado Central, which freaked me out because I saw this giant dead fish that had blood oozing out of it. It was lightly raining and a little chilly, and I was tired. I met a few other volunteers from the program, mostly Americans, but I felt awkward and out of place. Some of them seemed exactly like the type of people I was trying to ´leave behind`in the States by coming to Chile, but I figured I was just tired and jet lagged. It was slightly depressing and I felt like I´d left Kyle and my job behind for a gray, cold, smoggy city. I took a hot, steamy shower, took out my contacts, and went back to my room, which smelled sort of weird. I had to use a bedsheet to dry myself off with because the hostel had run out of towels, but it wasn´t a big deal and it worked. I changed into pajamas and decided to go to bed. I was dead tired and not in the greatest of moods.

Then one of my hostelmates came into the room and we started talking. Les, who is Canadian /Irish, and I got along really well and started having some awesome conversations. Eventually he invited me out for a few drinks. It was raining a lot and cold, but I decided some company could be a good thing, especially since we were getting along so well and I had yet to try pisco, the national drink of Chile. We walked to Forestal, which later I would fall in love with, and talked nonstop, not really minding the rain. We ended up crossing the Rio Mapocho and walking to Barrio Bellavista where we ordered pisco sours. I enjoyed it alot. After that we walked back to the hostel, tired after a long day.

The following morning I slept in until 10am, took a hot shower, and got dressed. We went to Cerro San Cristobal after a vegan lunch in a hole in the wall but nice cafe, and visited La Iglesia Merced. Then we walked to Cerro San Cristobal and went hiking up to the summit. On the way there were these really neat aloe vera-like succulent plants that were huge. It was a little bit muddy on the trails but extremely breathtaking. At the summit of Cerro San Cristobal, I drank in the view of city, mountains, and cordillera poking through wispy patches of fog. It was incredible.

There are many things in life you cannot pinpoint the exact moment you begin to love something because the process occurs gradually, but this was different. At the top of Cerro San Cristobal I was taken in by Santiago and realized I wanted to spend way longer than only 5 months in Chile. It was such a powerful experience, falling in love with life at the top of this cerro, so much life below me and nothing but open, foggy sky above me. I felt completely free, happy and energized. This feeling has intensified with each moment of my time in Santiago.

On the way down, we found some more artesanías and wandered through Bellavista with its rainbow colored houses. It began to lightly rain but the sun was poking through the pale clouds and a rainbow reached across the sky, which was great because we were in a neighborhood of colorful houses and murals everywhere when the rainbow appeared.

We crossed back over the Mapocho and walked along the river before going to El Parque de las Esculturas, where I got to contemplate the meaning of art, philosophy, and motives. It isn´t often I find someone who enjoys art and thinks about it the way I do, but I guess when you travel, you find other people like you whose view of the world is more open-minded and interesting.

For dinner I ate a liviana, which is a sandwich, and jugo de chirrimoya. On the way back to the hostel I passed this rectangular fountain of psychedelic water and enjoyed the stars. In Santiago at this time of the year it starts getting dark around 6-6:30pm. We found a bar with this Michael Jackson impersonator who was interesting to watch. I tried Escudo, a type of Chilean beer, but it had a funky kind of aftertaste.

On Sunday I got to sleep in. I went to el Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombiano, where I enjoyed looking at artwork and artifacts from the Incans, Aymara, Mapuche, Mayans, Aztec, and other indigenous peoples. I was able to use Spanish more comfortably today. I went back to the plaza de Armas and listened to a military band concert. Then I visited el Museo Histórico Nacional, which had rooms explaining what life was like for the early settlers of Chile and the different social classes there. I found a park where a Chilean college student was passing out poetry and trying to raise money for the earthquake victims in Concepción. We talked for a little bit and he asked what part of Chile I was from. I guess my Spanish must be improving...at least I hope so. I walked to Cerro Santa Lucía and hiked to the top of it. It was beautiful, and I felt so inspired and in love with this city. I ended up finding a bench in the sunlight and writing poetry in Spanish because it felt more creative than using English, which seemed too `normal´ to capture what I wanted to say. After that I wandered down to Huérfanos where I heard a protest concert of Chileans protesting the immigration policy of Peruvian refugees. I walked down Paseo Ahumeda and decided randomly to get another piercing in my right ear...the place was there and I liked the spontaneous idea of getting something done. I talked to the guy in Spanish and then continued on my way.

Back at the hostel I met up with Les, and his roommates, Sebastián, Dave, and a guy from Spain. We went to a bar in Barrio Brasil and had some wine and a great conversation almost all in Spanish! For a few minutes Sebastián (from Argentina) was going on about how `mystical`my eyes were. I suppose people here are not used to seeing people with blue eyes.

Today I dragged myself out of bed at the ungodly hour of 7:30am, took a scalding shower in an otherwise arctic-like hostel. Everyone was dressed up a lot more than I was, but I´m not really that kind of person. A few others wore jeans, but it didn´t really matter since we were just sitting at tables most of the day. For lunch I went with Lisa and Katelyn to a restaurant called Comida Chilena, which we thought was kind of funny.

The program seems really great so far. Today's orientation was sort of repetitive since I took the TEFL course, but then again, it won't hurt hearing things again. The people doing the presentations today were great--super friendly and helpful, and it wasn't boring at all! I am having a wonderful time and although it's only been 4 days, I am falling in love with this city and the people here. There are a lot of artesanias which are interesting to look around and many fresh fruit/veg markets, which makes me happy (I decided to go vegan upon my arrival here). This weekend I have Sat and Sun free before my flight up north on Monday, so on Sat I'm going to take the metro to take a tour of one of the wineries.

After orientation I decided to go running. There aren´t many runners here because of the busy streets and smog. But then again, I´m the kind of person who if I love doing something, am not going to be deterred by a little bit of smog, which I really don´t think is that bad. The parks here are beautiful and completely outweigh the busy streets and smog. Running here is like freedom.There is nothing holding me back from anything. The Santiaguine night air is crisp and refreshing, and I love having endless darkness stretch in front of me, like I have the world in my hands and all of it is mine to explore and do whatever I want with. While running, my mind lapsed into this state where I think of everything and nothing at the same time. It´s meditative, calming, yet energizing. I love the feeling that I can completely rely on myself and my own two legs to carry me along wherever I want to go. I did get a few weird looks from people. An old man told me, `ten cuidad,`and a Chilean college-age student in the Plaza de Armas stood up, started clapping, and yelled, `quieres ser mi amiga?` I kept running but yelled back, `solo si corres conmigo`and laughed to myself.

Anyway, I am heading out to meet up with some people from the hostel for dinner. I'll post some writing on my blog later, but honestly am REALLY enjoying not having to worry about having a car, cell phone, computer, etc. I like living on not a whole lot because I can enjoy the smaller, more often missed-out-on things here. Being here is definitely changing my perspectives on things in a good kind of way.

Nos cachamos!

written by

Sara Florecita on July 26, 2010 from Santiago, Chile

from the travel blog: año de dos inviernos (Chile 2010)

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año de dos inviernos (Chile 2010)

a travel blog by Sara Florecita

19 Days Left

Rock Island, United States

En exactamente dos semanas de hoy estaré en Santiago

Rock Island, United States

cuando pienso que no deba estar tan calientito, me digo que en una semana estaré en el desierto.

Rock Island, United States

almost done packing

Rock Island, United States

on my way to the airport (jueves, 22 julio)

Peru, United States

the beauty of some things cannot be put into words, but nonetheless I will try to do so anyway (lunes 26 julio).

Santiago, Chile

permanent markers and white boards don´t end well (martes, 27 junio)

Santiago, Chile

miercoles, 28 julio

Santiago, Chile

there is so much in this world to love and to write about (jueves, 29 julio)

Santiago, Chile

hoy es hoy / y ayer se fue / no hay dudas (viernes, 30 julio)

Santiago, Chile