The Days Fly By

Wow, the past two days have gone by very fast. I don't know if I like it either. I think this is the true definition of feeling bittersweet about something. It's bitter because I'm leaving all of the great people I've become friends with over the past six weeks, the majority of whom I'll probably never see again since only four of us live west of Wyoming (three of us all coming from Whitworth). It's bitter because I'm leaving Chile and all of the wonderful and unique opportunities that have been available for me. And it's bitter because I have to leave my kind and loving family who have done so much to make me feel welcome. But at the same time, I don't think I have ever been so excited to see someone in my life. I'm heading to the LA area to stay with Alyssa until Thursday, and it definitely is sweet that I'll get to see her for the first time in over two months. It also is sweet that I'll get to eat something other than pan (bread) and that asking for water at a meal will be completely normal. Finally, it's sweet that I get to spend a month with my family, friends from work, and a week at camp before I head back to school for the fall. Ay caramba, the emotional roller coaster is definitely going to be an intense ride till next weekend. I'm having a great time my last week, then I have to leave everyone, but only to be with the most amazing girl in the world, who I have to leave after a few days, to arrive home to my family and friends, until I start working for hours everyday. Bah, I don't like goodbyes, I'm either not nearly as emotional as the other person or way too emotional which always makes for wonderfully awkward times. Perfect.

I'm up very late right now so I'm going to explain the past two days fairly quickly if possible.

Yesterday, made it to class on time. Watched some presentations and then a few friends asked if I wanted to go get Churillanos afterwards (french fries covered in cooked eggs, onions, and meat). I figured I might as well live a little, and so I tagged along as we walked to the place. They were amazing once again, and after I hopped on a micro and came home. I didn't do much other than relax and watch a movie. It was nice. I ended up staying up later than I should've, but whatevs I only have one more day.

Today, I woke up and Carolina the housekeeper told me to wait for her as she went out to do an errand. She came back and then came into my room and just stood there for a while attempting to make small talk. I think she was a little sad and asked if I knew when I was going to come back because she's going to miss me. I'll definitely miss having someone make my bed for me every day as well, ha. But honestly, she's super sweet and I was sad to leave for class in the morning.

In Claudio's class, all we did was go over how we felt about the trip and then he gave us our grades. He told us all our participation grades and then gave us our final grades. I ended up pulling a 5.7 or about a B+ in the class, which isn't horrible, except for the fact that everyone else in the class got above a 6. Even one of the girls who wasn't quite the greatest student got a 6, which actually really bothered me. I don't know what he had against me but whatevs, I'm done with his class for good.

After, we had a going away party with all of the staff and students from the program. I ate some good empanadas and my class also gathered the courage to ask Claudio if he'd take a picture with us. I'm definitely going to have to steal my friend David's photo to post on facebook, it's a keeper.

For Carlos' class, we walked to a local cafe to sit and talk about the end of our time. I had some great mango juice, and we just spent a good time conversing with each other. After, I hopped on a micro and went home.

I relaxed for a bit, then my mom's two brothers showed up so I went and talked with them for a while. They are fairly young, around the age of my brothers, and I really like them. I wish I could spend more time with them, they were really nice and welcoming to me both here and in Papudo.

At 8:30, a group of us were meeting at a cafe so we could all take a micro to a Blockbuster in Valparaíso. Carlos set up a final meeting time for both of his classes and any other gringos that wanted to come, and we headed to a vegitarian restaurant called EPIF. I got a BBQ tofu burrito that was actually surpringly good. I also treated myself to an eskimono, or fried bananas with ice cream. I figured it was my last night out and that I deserved it. We spent around 2 1/2 hours in this small restaurant and just enjoyed the company of each other. It was a wonderful last night and I'm really glad I went. Afterwards, we walked through the streets a little to a bar, but it was completely full of people. After awkwardly standing in the entrance for a few minutes, a group of us decided we'd rather not go to a bar and just go home instead. Unfortunately, I had to say some of my first goodbyes at this time. Since not everyone is flying out at the same time as me tomorrow, I said goodbye to a few of my greatest friends here as well as Carlos. He told me I was a great guy and that he was happy to have me in class. I definitely wont forget him, and if I'm ever on the east coast, I think I have enough contacts to find somewhere to stay, ha.

I hopped in a collectivo with two other friends, and then I walked the quiet walk to my house for the last time from the bus stop. It was sad and strange thinking that this was the last time. It really isn't going to hit me until I'm actually home in my parent's house that this chapter of my life is over. Sure I'm leaving tomorrow night, but my first week back is going to be so great since I'll be in one of my favorite places I've ever been, Southern California with my lovely Alyssa.

Luckily, my parents were still awake when I got home so I decided I'd give them my gifts now before the new exchange student comes tomorrow. I figured it'd be a little awkward for me having to say my goodbyes in front of her so I was glad I had the chance. I gave them some smoked Alaskan salmon, a deck of cards with a picture of the Columbia River on it, and then a book full of pictures from Spokane. They loved looking through the book and then told me how thankful they were that they had me and how much they hope I can come back and visit, especially with Alyssa. They said that as soon as I save up money, I need to make a trip to come back. Oh if only they knew how much I want to, yet how difficult that will be...oh well. One day I will return, no doubt in my mind.

Tomorrow is going to be sad/happy. Sad to leave, happy to arrive. It's late now though so I really should go. This is probably my last entry from Chile. I hope you all have enjoyed reading and I'll keep you updated until I'm home home. Chao chao mis amigos.

My Lungs Hate Me Right Now

Chile smokes, a lot. You really don't realize the effect of a "No smoking within 25 feet of any public building entrance (which includes windows and doors" law until you've been to another state or country where this doesn't apply. Last night, I went to a small underground dance club/bar to celebrate, and boy am I not used to that much smoke (not all of it was cigarette smoke either). But first I feel I should explain why I was celebrating.

Yesterday morning, I got up and went to school early to finish up my powerpoint with my partner Grant. I had to leave early to go take my quiz for Claudio's class which had half of my grade riding on it. Luckily, I saw one of my classmates beforehand and she stopped me to tell me a little about it. She then asked if I was nervous and I said of course. So then she told me a little secret that Claudio had told her. Apparently her and one other person had done really well on their essays, and that other person was me! It helped remove some of the pressure since I was afraid the start of my time with him would just consist of him ripping me apart.

Feeling a little better, I went to his class and sat down with him. He told me that my paper was short, but that it was very concise. He then proceeded to read my thesis and my conclusion, and then commented how he really liked that I had both of those. Even though it wasn't very long, I answered everything that needed to be answered and it was very well formated, so he gave me a 6.3 out of 7 on it. 6.3 out of 7! That's about a B+ in our grading system, I was so happy! He also commented that it was very well written, and I just thought to myself, well no duh man, just because I can't speak very well doesn't mean I'm an idiot. Oh well, I don't think I could ever be happy with him.

As far as the quiz went, I chose a random number and of course he begins with "Ok, now this is probably the hardest question, but lets just see how you can do." Great. The question was, "Describe the importance of Alessandri to the people of Chile". We did not cover him nearly enough in class, so all I could remember was a short reading we had from him and how we talked about him writing a new Constitution in 1925 that prohibitted re-election for Presidents, it ended the union of church and state, and it also restarted Chile as a Presidential system instead of Parliamentary. He asked me a few other questions and I was able to answer parts of them, but overall I didn't do too well, well at least according to him. At this point, I didn't even care though. I feel it's so ridiculous to base half my grade off of this one question. So hearing him tell me I did bad and that part of my problem was the language made me want to jump up, ring a bell and yell "We have a winner!!!!" Maybe if he would've realized that I'm not a fluent native speaker at the start of class, he wouldn't seem so surprised that I'm such an idiot when it comes time to the oral quiz. Thankfully, he gave me a 5.1 since I did answer the main points which means that I officially passed the class!! All I need to pass is a 4, and if you take the essay which is worth 30% and the quiz which is worth 50%, I currently have a 4.5 if I were to get a 1 on my participation grade (yay math major). I got out of that class as soon as possible and went to tell Grant about how things went.

For the presentation in Carlos' class, Grant and I decided to just go first and get it over with. We were supposed to take up about 30 minutes, but Carlos always likes to butt in and talk so ours ended up going for just about an hour. We definitely have nothing to worry about in that class gradewise. After listening to another speech, we were free to go and I was officially free with my work in Chile!!! I was so excited and went home to just relax and enjoy myself. I heard that a group of my friends were going to go out at night to La Sala because Charquipunk DJ's on Wednesdays. I figured I haven't really gone out yet and that it'd be a great way to celebrate being done with classes, plus I don't have class today until 2. So I talked to my parents and reassured them I'd be safe (they worry when I show up past 7...) and my dad drove me to the cafe where all of us were meeting up at.

The club was literally underground, and the set up was really cool. The club was split into two sides, each with their own DJ. Charquipunk played a lot of Chilean raggaeton/funk and salsa music, while the other DJ played more techno/dance music. We all hung out with Charquipunk for most of the night, but after a while the smoke got to be too much for me so I decided to check out the other side with a couple friends. Luckily, it was more ventilated and not quite as warm, so we spent the rest of the night on this side. Plus, I definitely am a fan of the techno/dance music, and I literally danced the stress and frustration of Claudio's class away all night. I went crazy and danced however I pleased (getting a few funny looks from the locals a lot of the time), but I didn't care. I was free, and I was going to dance how I pleased. I really had a great time and I'm glad I decided to go. We left the place at 2:30, but unfortunately our micro driver wouldn't go until he had a full bus load, so I didn't actually get home until around 3:30. It was so erie walking through my neighborhood once I got off the micro, it was quiet. I never realized how constant noise is during the day until this moment. There was not a sound to be heard anywhere. I almost just sat along the curb for a bit to take in the moment while watching the lights of Viña and Valparaíso, but then I realized it probably wouldn't be to safe. I made it to bed by 4 and was able to sleep until 12.

Now, I'm off to eat and then to class. Only two more nights here, crazy. Chao amigos.

My Essay

Las Haciendas del Siglo XIX y XX

Desde la guerra de 1879 hasta la crisis mundial de 1929, Chile era un país “hacendal republicana”, o un país cuya economía y relaciones sociales dependieron de haciendas. Aunque había haciendas en todas las regiones del país, cada región era diferente de cada otra. Era posible que hubiera una hacienda muy exitosa al lado de una hacienda muy pobre y mala, solo dependía de los dueños y los productos. También, las condiciones para los inquilinos eran muy diferentes en regiones diferentes. En mi opinión, pienso que las haciendas en la zona central de las tierras de Colchagua tenían condiciones mejores para los inquilinos de las haciendas en la zona del sur del país.

En la zona central, los inquilinos tenían vidas muchos mejores que los en la zona del sur porque ganaban salarios más altos, tenían casas más grandes y acomodas, y las relaciones entre ellos y los peones eran más mejor. Por ejemplo, había una hacienda en Colchagua se llamada Calleuque donde habían muchos edificios y tiendas, casas elegantes, parques bonitas, y casas grandes para los inquilinos. El propietario también fomentó un conjunto de organizaciones para los inquilinos porque “sin duda expresaba un legítimo interés…por dar al inquilinaje mejores condiciones de vida…y así mantener las relaciones tradicionales de lealtad entre [ambos]” (Bengoa 91). Otra hacienda donde los inquilinos no ganaban tanto dinero pero todavía tenían condiciones mejores era San Vicente. Acá, los inquilinos ganaban salarios diarios muy bajo del salario mínimo rural y urbano, pero recibieron muchas regalías que eran la parte más importante del ingreso. Un estudio descubrió que el salario “correspondía solamente a un 13,2 % del total sus ingresos”, con “la venta de sus productos cultivados en las tierras [correspondía] a 20 %...y las regalías, raciones, etc. equivalentes al 50% de sus ingresos” (99). Aunque ellos ganaban salarios muy pequeños, recibieron muchas otras cosas para mantener una vida más mejor. En el sur, no había una “ración de tierra en el potrero como se acostumbre en Chile central” (197). También, no existía una relación paternalista entre los inquilinos y los peones como en la zona central. Porque de eso, no tenían condiciones buenas porque los peones solo quisieron más dinero para sus mismos en vez de relaciones con sus trabajadores.

Las condiciones eran mejor en la zona central porque las haciendas en esta región eran las más prosperas del país y por lo tanto, tenían más dinero para dar a los inquilinos. Había haciendas muy grandes que exportaron sus productos a todo Latinoamérica y a Europa. Pero en Valdivia, una hacienda en el sur, había una falta de mercados directos y locales que “llevó a los colonos a instalar un complejo agroindustrial en la región” (189). Había un sistema exitoso, pero solo en la misma región. Porque de eso, los propietarios no tenían tantas oportunidades para exportar productos a otros lugares y no eran tan exitoso como las en la zona central. En la zona central, las haciendas tenían maquinas muy modernas que ayudaban muchos a los trabajadores. Por ejemplo, había una turbina eléctrica, una maquina como una luja, en Calleuque. Pero en el sur, todo había dependido en obra de mano de los inquilinos. Las lecherías de Santiago fueron muy exitosas, y los inquilinos ganaban salarios de 1,3 hasta 2 pesos diarios (3,5 en la hacienda de La Granja) mientras trabajando por once horas. En el sur, ganaban 0,6 hasta 1,2 pesos diarios mientras trabajando por trece o catorce horas cada día. Las haciendas también eran “más modernas de la agricultura Chilena…en los sectores de Cousiño-Macul” (53).

Eran condiciones mejores para los inquilinos en la zona central porque existía un tipo de difundido se llamada “alta estabilidad”, o con una estabilidad mejor que otros lugares (en esta zona, había una estabilidad de los inquilinos por más de cincuenta años). Por ejemplo, las haciendas viñateras en esta región eran “las más desarrolladas de época y ejemplo del ‘capitalismo’ en la agricultura” (24) para el resto del país. Estaba la región más relacionado con todo el país porque obviamente, era en la central del país, pero también había un ferrocarril a través de la ciudad por muchos años. En el sur, era más difícil para enviar y recibir productos a las regiones en el norte porque hasta diciembre del 1985, no existía un ferrocarril. El sur tenía tanto contacto con el resto del Chile como con Europa por más de cuarenta años. También, después de la llegara del tren, todavía no era tan fácil para tener contacto con las regiones más del norte como en la zona central. Otro problema era que en el sur, vivían muchas indígenas. En la hacienda de Osorno, había muchos conflictos entre los colonos y las indígenas. Al primer, no había mucho conflicto y ambos grupos estaban viviendo en sus propias tierras. Pero después de una generación de los propietarios (ambos extranjeros y Chilenos), ellos quisieron más tierra, y comenzaron a agarrar la tierra de las indígenas. En la zona central, no necesitaban preocuparse sobre relaciones con indígenas porque no había nadie. Esto causó haciendas más estables de las en el sur, y eran “modelos del mundo por una hacienda” (30).

Desde el siglo XIX hasta la primera mitad del siglo XX, la agricultura y economía del Chile dependió en las haciendas. Cada región era diferente de cada otra, con muchos diferentes entre haciendas en cada región también. La zona central tenía condiciones mejores para los inquilinos que en el sur por varias razones. Las haciendas en la zona central tenían productos más exitosos de los en el sur, y eran más conectado al resto del país y mundo. También, las en la zona central eran las más estables de esta época y no habían problemas con las indígenas como en el sur. Porque de eso, los inquilinos ganaban salarios y regalías más altos, y existía relaciones mejores entre ellos y los peones. Si necesitara trabajar como un inquilino durante esta época y tuviera una opción entre las dos regiones, querría vivir en la zona central.

Bengoa, José. Haciendas y campesinos: Historia Social de la Agricultura Chilena Tomo II. Santiago: Ediciones SUR, 1990.

One More Day

Well I found out some great news today. Claudio asked about who was going to take the quiz tomorrow and luckily he remembered me saying I wanted to, so we discussed it in class real quickly and David gave up his spot for me so now I get to take the quiz tomorrow to get it over with. Also, Grant and I volunteered to present tomorrow in Carlos' class as well. So what's so good about that? Well, as of 3:30 tomorrow afternoon (possibly sooner if we present first), I will officially be done with all of my work here in Chile, and my summer will finally begin. It'll be so nice to have Thursday and Friday to just relax and hang out. I'm definitely going to go out now Wednesday night, I'm gonna go crazy dancing and I dont even care what anyone else thinks cause I'll be done with Claudio's class forever! Oh man I'm excited!

Today I got up and headed to class early so I could print out my semi-decent essay. I re-read it and it's really not that bad. I'll probably post it on here later for all you Spanish speaking friends (or anyone who knows how to use a translating site). Right as Claudio was about to begin class, one of the coordinators came in with some form for us to fill out. Immediately, my face lit up and I could see my day getting better already. Could it be? Is that really what I think it is?
"Please fill out this evaluation for both classes, and then hand it in when you're done."
Boy, I thought the day would never come. It really was like Christmas in July for me. I made sure to voice my opinions about Claudio in a very professional manner (basically, I refrained from calling him a *&#$^%#$^% who needs to shove his head up his @$$ and cut the $*#&#$*%). In all honesty though, I just let them know how intimidating he has been for us, and how I feel he is not the right fit for study abroad students since he never realized that we weren't here solely to learn but rather improve our Spanish and experience a different culture. I just hope other students don't end up with him for an entire semester, (God bless those poor souls who do...).

Carlos' class was once again a little slow. I think my body has a five week learning span that once I hit week five and a half or so, it just shut down. I'm ready for a break from learning. My mind needs time to regather itself (though keeping up with my Spanish during the summer has been so awesome and definitely will make things way easy once I get back to school in the fall).

After class, I met with Grant to work on our presentation. Luckily, I knocked off almost all of my work last night so all I had to do was format my slides a bit and come up with some questions to ask the class about the story. We worked for an a hour or half or so, and all I had to do once I got back to my house was spruce it up, add some pictures, and then make sure the grammar was all correct. Grant asked Carlos about how much it's worth and he said it'll be worth just as much as everything else has been. Wow, now that's what a professor should be like for this type of program. He realizes that we really don't want 50% of our grade to be based off of one oral quiz question, so he just makes everything worth the same and grades based off of our participation. I'll miss Carlos.

Once it was time to leave, the rain really had started to come down, and by the time I hopped on a micro I was already fairly soaked (since it was a beautiful day when I left in the morning, it didn't even cross my mind to bring an umbrella with me). Oh Chile, how I hate tacos (traffic jams). I left the university at around 6 and didnt get home until 7...it didnt help that as soon as I hopped off the micro, the rain suddenly started coming down about twice as hard. The streets were full of mini rivers rushing towards my vulnerable Converse shoes and unfortunately, I was unsuccessful in wading through them all without getting my socks wet. In fact, I somehow managed to get my jeans wet up until about my mid-calf. After walking for about three blocks, I noticed my shoulders starting to get cold. By the time I got home and took off my jacket, both my shirt and undershirt were thouroughly soaked. I quickly learned that my black jacket is not water proof nor should it ever be worn in wet conditions again, unless I want to wear a sponge. Luckily, I think the rest of the week should be dry.

After eating my once, I sat with my parents and just talked about random stuff for the next hour or so. It was really nice and relaxing, and a lot more entertaining than just watching TV. I guess there's another foreign exchange student coming on Saturday morning before I leave, so they talked with me about what I think they should do or shouldn't do with her. She's staying for the entire semester, crazy. They also talked to me about their New Year's celebration and how it's essentially like our 4th of July, complete with barbecues, fireworks, and parties until way late in the night. They told me I need to experience a Chilean New Year sometime so I can ring in the new year during the summer rather than our uneventful winter celebrations in the U.S. My mom then said she'd like to celebrate the 4th in the U.S. because it looks like fun.

I've learned so many interesting things about the Chilean culture (the majority of it from my family), and I'll make sure to write about it all once I get home such as how they are an extremely conservative country (abortion is illegal, divorce was illegal up until 2004, the government used to be connected with the Catholic church), but at the same time there are some extreme opposites (PDA is completely acceptable [and disgusting], scantly clad/mostly naked ads are everywhere, the past four presidents have all been from the left). I also know a whole lot of other random info and facts that I'll share so be stoked, because I know I am.

I just finished making my powerpoint pretty, and I've gone over my notes for Claudio's class once already. I really need to look over those another time before going to bed, so I should get going now. I hope you all have a lovely day and prays would be great for my quiz and presentation tomorrow. I can see the finish line!!! Much love, chao.

The End Is Near

I finally have some free time to update. Since about the time I woke up on Saturday morning until the time when I went to bed last night, I had been working on homework for both of my classes. I'm so close to being done with all of my work, it's pretty exciting.

Saturday, I literally did not leave my room for longer than it took me to eat my meals and talk with my family for a bit. I worked on my essay and ended up writing the introduction, the first paragraph describing the living conditions for hacienda workers in the central region and southern region of Chile in the late 1800's and early 1900's, and then one of the paragraphs describing how the south wasn't as stable as the central region and that is why the workers had worse conditions. I was really hoping to get the essay completed, but I turned on a live Daft Punk recording and decided that once the concert was over, I would be done for the night.

Sunday, I woke up and immediately picked up where I left off. I finished writing another paragraph describing how the central region's products were more successful than the south, and how this also affected workers conditions. Finally, I finished off with a very rushed and crappy conclusion to finish the paper. I really should go back and make some corrections to it, but at this point all I care about is that I got my 3-4 pages done (about three sentences onto the 4th page), and that it's done. I realized the book I had to read had too much specific information about the sizes of various haciendas and how many cows or people they had, rather than useful information such as the harsh conditions the inquilinos were forced to work under or how the females were basically at the hands of the land owner whenever he pleased, which in turn created numerous "fatherless" children. But seriously, Claudio actually giving me something that wasn't a waste of my time? I crack myself up...

I also had to answer some questions for Carlos' class about the movie we watched two weeks ago, Machuca. I really do recommend it for anyone who would like to learn more about the social issues in the early 1970's in Chile, I think it's a fairly accurate story (with dramatized actors of course).

Other than working on homework, I found time to upload pictures from Cajón del Maipo and got to chat with my pelola for a bit. I'm super stoked to see her, less than a week!!!

Today, I got up early so I could meet up with mis amigos in Claudio's class to study for the oral quiz I'll be having. It didnt really help much since the stuff we went over I already felt I knew well enough (reason number 1 why I don't like studying in groups) or I got completely confused with because I had completely contrasting notes on some topics (reason number 2 why I don't like studying in groups). I initially signed up to have my quiz on Wednesday rather than Thursday so I could get it over with, but unfortunately the girl writing down the names got confused and put me down for the next day so now I have to wait until Thursday. I know I should be happy since I get more time to study, but I was wanting to go to a club that our graffiti friend Charquipunk DJ's at on Wednesday, and it would've been really nice to be able to sleep in on Thursday. Oh well, maybe I'll still go anyways and just be tired. I think it'd be sweet to hear him drop them beats. Another bummer, I was under the impression that the quiz would consist of us answering five or six different questions about any topic we've covered in the course. But instead, 50% of our grade is now riding on one question that will be asked to us. I like 5-6 way more since if I don't know one, I am not totally screwed. But 50% of our grade on one question? ¡Dios mio, qué ridículo!

On a happier note, today's class was actually a lot of fun. We met up with another group of gringos (they were not nearly as cool as our group, sadly), and then we all headed to the national Congress building of Chile which is located literally three blocks from the University. We got a tour of the main rooms in the building, and learned about how some of the various things work. It's really interesting because their Congress building holds the meeting room for the 38 senators, the meeting room for the 140 representatives, and the room where everyone comes together for what would be like our State of the Union address, all in one huge building (well more like one main building with two buildings attached to it on either side).

After class, I ate my crappy lunch consisting of sandwiches and juice. I don't even attempt to eat the bread anymore, it's too hard to. It's basically like eating an entire loaf of french bread with a slab of meat and butter inside, nothing more. Sometimes I have cheese instead of meat, those days are my favorite...not. I keep telling myself I've only got four more days of these lunches though until I can have real food. I would speak up and ask for something different but I feel I've made it long enough that it would just be embarrassing for them to find out I've only been eating it not to be rude. Plus, I don't think I'd be able to understand my housekeeper if I tried telling her, ha.

Carlos' class was a little boring, and I didn't get much from it. After, we had to go watch a documentary with him because we didn't have class a while back one day when he was sick. It actually ended up being a pretty intense video about photographers during Pinochet's dictatorship and how they got away with photographing the images of the times. It was very interesting and I really wish I could learn more about these times. It's crazy how Americans just go on with their lives completely oblivious to the horrors that were occuring as recent as the 1980's all thanks to the help of a U.S. backed coup to overthrow a socialist president in 1973. It's just interesting, that's all I'll say about that.

After class, I met with Grant to discuss our powerpoint presentation we have for Carlos' class. I'm doing the biography and summary of El Chiflón del Diablo, and I should probably get started on that real soon. I think we may be presenting on Wednesday, which gives us tomorrow to finish it up, bah! The end of homework is near though, I'm ready for summer finally. Ha, a month after I get back though I'll just be starting up fall semester again. Boy, I realllllllly can't wait until next summer, ha.

I'll let you know how things go the next couple of days. Keep me in your prayers regarding the test, presentation, and the dreaded essay I have to turn in tomorrow. I miss you all and I shall be home shortly!

Con mucho amor, chao.

The Ensayo From Hell

I had an awesome last excursion to Cajón del Maipo the past two days. A lot of stuff happened and I really need to start working on my essay soon, so I'll try to update you all on everything that happened fairly quickly.

Thursday morning, got up and went to the Teatro to find our amazingly huge and comfortable bus waiting for us. It was big enough that all 22 of us or so got our own row, so no scrunching was necessary (thankfully). We drove to Santiago and stopped at this market called Los Dominicos which was essentially hundreds of small shops and stores of handicrafts all enclosed within this really big area that resembled a jungle. There was even a few small streams that ran all the way through it. Unfortunately, we only had an hour to shop in an area that we could have spent a day in. I was happy to board the bus again though because I was growing very hungry and couldn't wait to arrive at Cajón del Maipo to eat lunch.

Once arriving, we immediately headed to the fairly nice restaurant to eat our lunch which consisted of platters of food being brought to us gringos to pass around the table, and then the waitresses bringing large dishes of chicken and meat for us to grab out of. Shows what they think of Americans...bucket-o-meat for us pigs to eat out of like a trough. Though the meals were very good, I wasn't too fond of them because we never ordered anything, they just brought it out and we never knew how much to eat or how much more was coming out. (The only time I actually got full was lunch our second day...)

After lunch, we took our bags to the super sweet cabins. My cabin had a loft above one of the bedrooms that had another two beds hidden in it. I luckily got a really sweet group of people and we enjoyed our time together during the trip.

Next on our agenda was one of the greatest parts, zip-lining across the river that ran through the valley some 70 feet or so above it. It was so amazing and I had a blast, though I wish we could have done it more than once across and once back. I took video on the shorter run back and I'll upload it on facebook later along with all of my photos from the trip.

Free time consisting of exploring around the camp area and the river, followed by a slightly more classy dinner came next (we all got individual plates with meat and rice on it). After dinner, we hung around and talked until a few of us decided to go and sit along the river to star gaze. Since we were pretty far from any real civilization, we had an absolutely amazing view of the stars and the milky way galaxy. One of my friends mentioned how cool it is that we've never seen these stars in our lives before since we're in the Southern Hemisphere, it was a crazy thought. Later, we headed back to the restaurant for a dance party that they had. It was fun to be able to just dance by myself without caring what anyone else thought, though they did play a lot of salsa music which I'm not too fond of since I'm not good at pretending to salsa (I'm taking lessons with Alyssa next semester though, I'm super stoked).

They closed the restaurant at midnight, so I headed back to my cabin and we talked for a bit then decided to get some sleep so we wouldnt be too tired the next day. David and I were awoken by our friend jumping on our bed and yelling, so I got up and showered and read part of my novel for my Social and Political Themes class. Breakfast was a let down since it only consisted of more bread. It really threw us off when they offered special fruit bowls to the vegitarians, which caused us to think we'd be having some nice meaty meal coming (we didn't, by the way).

Next, we all signed our lives away for the third time (first was on the bus on Thursday, second was before zip-lining) before we headed out on our hike to two different waterfalls. We got to cross three different bridges, the first being a really big suspension bridge over the main river, and the second being a small and rickety suspension bridge that only five people could be on at a time. The third was the smallest and consisted of a few logs hooked together with railings along it. The hike itself was fairly easy, though our guide booked it so the few of us who managed to stay with him got pretty tired out. One of the coolest parts of the day, there is a natural spring that runs through the area that they have made pipes for and such, so we were able to all stop at one point and drink water directly from the spring. The waterfalls were pretty cool, though the bigger of the two was still less than half the size of Multnomah Falls. It did feel really good though to hike and just sweat (as weird as that sounds), since I haven't had time to actually work out here. A lot of us agreed though that the opening of our pours just felt cleansing somehow and very relaxing.

After getting back, we ate our lunch which was chicken pasta, so amazingly good. I've been wanting pasta for so long, and it actually filled me up. We still had a while before we were to live so some of us headed down to explore along the river again and I found a very comfortable rock that I just rested on for a bit.

Next, we hopped on the bus and headed back to Santiago to go to a winery. Literally every single person on the bus fell asleep and slept for the duration of the trip.

Fun fact: the bus had TV screens and they played these random hour long music video mixes with 30 seconds or so of tons of different songs, and after our trip to Cajón, we all realized why Chileans think Americans are all sluts. I cannot believe how dirty and scandilous some of the videos are. But anyways, as we were riding I woke up for a bit and opened my eyes and looked and thought to myself, "It looks like that girl doesn't have a shirt on, weird. Must just be a very scandilous bikini because I just woke up and can't see it very well...whoa, she's bending over now, and she just pulled down her bottoms?!?! OH MY GOSH, SHE REALLY IS NAKED!!!" Yeah, I picked the wrong fifteen seconds to look at the screen, and by the time I realized what was happening, it was too late for me to close my eyes again because the video changed. I definitely was shocked, to say the least.

The winery we went to was called Concha y Toro, and it's one of the ten biggest or most important in the world. It was so big, I couldn't believe the size of it. It definitely was much more touristy then the last winery we went to though, which I wasn't too fond of. We watched a video, walked around a bit, and then got to go to the rooms where they keep the thousands of wooden barrels of wine as they ferment. They also took us down some stairs into a really old cellar where they make a special kind of wine called Casillero del Diablo "Cellar of the Devil", which is based off of some old 19th century myth that the devil actually lived there himself. It was weird, and then they shut the doors and turned off all the lights as they told us the story. They even had a little room where you could "see" the devil (a light down the end of a hall with something in front of it making it look like its his silhouette). It was an interesting place, and I now have two different wine glasses from two different wineries that I have to try to take on the plane without them breaking, what fun that will be.

Afterwards, we all hopped on the bus for the last leg of the trip. I ended up reading 20 or so more pages of my book, and was so ready to go to bed as soon as I got home. Today, I woke up and sent some emails and such to get ready for the camp I'll be working at later in August. I was supposed to go to Santiago with my family but they never said anything about it so I guess that idea got shelved for now.

I only have like four more pages left in my book, then I have to start writing the actual essay. I was a little worried about it because I haven't been able to understand all of the book and a lot of it seems irrelevant to my topic, but I decided I'm just going to write the essay with whatever I think the book is saying and not waste hours looking up word after word in a dictionary, only to discover it really is saying what I thought it was saying. If he doesn't like the quality of my essay, I don't really care at this point. As long as he doesn't fail me I'll be happy with the class.

Rodrigo is using some electrical saw right now to cut stuff, it's going to be hard to want to read and write right now...poo. I better go though, I really want to get it done by tonight if possible. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Chao amigos.

I Should Be Reading

I was told yesterday by Alyssa that even she doesn't read my blog. It makes it difficult for me to want to write when my own girlfriend wont even read it. I guess I'm just that boring.

So, my boring news for yesterday:
-Claudio finally gave me my book, which was supposed to be given on Monday
-I am sick of sandwiches for lunch
-Actually, I'm sick of bread in general. It's all we ever have for dinner, bread. Breadbreadbreadbreadbread. I want dinner
-Carlos talked about the coup that took down Allende and then showed some clips from a documentary of the dictatorship of Pinochet. It was some really crazy stuff, I'd share the youtube link with you but it's a little intense so if you're interested I'll let you search on your own
-I came home and had some soup for lunch, which I think later gave me a really upset stomach that didn't go away until I woke up this morning
-I got to Skype with Alyssa for a while, very nice
-I also got to watch one of my favorite movies in Spanish, Matchstick Men (best Nicholas Cage movie ever, or maybe only good Nicholas Cage movie?)
-I had to read about 50 pages of a Spanish novel, not fun
-I went to sleep

Today, I had another day full of boring news, even less productive then yesterday though.
I'm lettering these ones:
A. Woke up
B. Showered
C. Had to go to the University early to meet with Claudio
D. Had an awkward meeting that I didnt really know what I was supposed to do, but I now know what my topic will be for my essay
E. Only one more real class day for his class, I'm stoked
F. Had a meeting about our excursion tomorrow and Friday
G. We're headed to the mountains, it's going to be snowy and cold, we'll eat, go ziplining I think?, go to another winery (I'm not looking forward to hearing about wines again, definitely not my thing), hike a couple hours to a waterfall, come home
H. Carlos had us talk about Machuca, you should watch it if you like funny/serious movies about Chile during the early 1970's
I. Came home on the micro, it was probably one of the best rides yet. The bus even had arm rests, and we only made a few stops the entire time. Made it home within twenty minutes or so, definitely a new record
J. My record for most number of cats before ever seeing a dog is 5, this happened a few weeks ago
K. Dogs may rule the streets by day, but cats reign supreme at night and early morning, I found this out last Saturday
L. I thought I would get home in time to Skype with Alyssa, but she didnt have time to
M. I then wasted the next 6 hours watching movies and resting in my room
N. Rodrigo bought him and I empanadas (Gabriela is in Papudo for a while, and the other two were at some meditation class or something)
O. I wont forget to take a picture of them mom, it's just awkward to say at dinner, "Hey, all of you stand up right now and get really close together so I can take a picture"
P. After eating, I went back to my room and wasted more time
Q. I should've been reading the past couple hours
R. I should read now
S. I should actually sleep now since I need to leave here at 8:30 tomorrow morning
T. Another foreign exchange student is going to be staying here for the next semester and she's arriving the morning I leave here
U. I don't know what she's going to do when my family takes me to the airport though since their car only has five seats and she wont want to go back to the airport after just getting here
V. I probably wont update this again until Saturday or Sunday
W. I dont want to write my essay this weekend
X. I dont want to do any more work, I'm too lazy
Y. I'm not going to do z, so chao

Graffiti

We made some progress yesterday with Claudio's class, though he still had to have the upperhand and successfully pissed me off yet again. When we walked into his classroom, Ashley walked up and handed him our letter and asked if he could read it. The next five minutes or so seemed to drag on forever as he read it a few times, obviously deciding what he should do. Although he continuously told us he's not upset with us but rather the office that has caused lots of problems in trying to get ahold of the resources, I could tell he was extremely upset that a bunch of gringos would try going against his almighty self. He eventually gave in and said that instead of the 6 page, 3 sources research paper, we only have to read two chapters out of a book of our choosing, then write a 3-4 page summary/response about it. This is extremely great news, though he made a big deal about pointing out all of our points that weren't valid.

First off, concerning us not having resources, he blamed it on us for not sending him an email over the weekend so he could bring us a book, which I did on Sunday evening. I kindly told him this, and he asked me when, and I said around 8 PM, and he responded, "Oh well yeah I'm not up then". How am I supposed to know you wont get it at that time? You told me to email you over the weekend, I did. Don't put the blame on us for not having resources if we're doing exactly what you told us to do.

Second, we have an excursion on Thursday and Friday, our final one for the program. These excursions have been built into the program since day one, and part of the tuition went towards paying for bus and van rentals, the programs themselves, etc. Now after reading that we have this coming up and it will make things difficult for us to get work done, he simply replied "It's your choice to go on the trip, that's not my problem". Um, maybe if you were to check the information the University gave you before teaching the class, you would see that this has been scheduled since day one and that we actually don't have a choice, unless we want to waste a couple hundred bucks by not going. Don't try to make us feel like it's our fault for going on a trip that is included in the trip. If it was our decision, we would still have class on those days. But since we don't, obviously the coordinators feel it's more important than your stupid class.

Finally, just to have the upperhand, he decided to make it due Monday instead of Tuesday. So now instead of being able to relax and enjoy my last Sunday in Chile, I'll be slaving over an essay for his class. Thanks chief, I appreciate it.

No respect. I have absolutely no respect for this man. I cannot stand people who try to place blame on other people for something they can't control. I have managed to stay calm in his class though and haven't actually said anything bad to him, so no worries. I'm not like that, I'll just be sure to leave him a friendly little evaluation before I head off. Man am I stoked for that...

On a happier note, Carlos was finally back! I love his class so much, I literally go from the worst example of a foreign exchange student professor to the best example. He knows how to incorporate hands-on experiences with classroom material, and never makes it overly difficult. It challenges us, but it's not difficult; that's the big difference between his and Claudio's class.

After class, Carlos took all of us on a micro up to the old prison for our final graffiti workshop. It was a really cool place, and we walked through numerous old buildings and passageways before we finally arrived to a back corner of the jail. Graffiti is literally everywhere in the jail, on every wall, bulding, and anything else with a nice surface to paint. Graffiti artists in Valparaíso started out painting the jail, and then from there it spread through the whole city. Charquipunk told us that his plan for us was to have a man holding a camera (drawn by him) and then a long filmstrip would be painted running along the wall and around two different corners. Then, each of us would get to paint whatever we wanted in each of the filmstrip boxes. It was a really cool idea and I stepped right up to paint my background yellow. I initially wanted to paint a monkey, but then I realized the only colors we were using were yellow, blue, green, and white. So instead, I just grabbed a few different shades of blue and green and started painting. I ended up painting something that looks like the sketches I make in my spirals while taking notes. Some people tried reading into it and finding deeper meanings, but I just laughed. I like to keep that stuff to myself =)

After everyone was finished, Charquipunk and Carlos drew the black filmstrip border around all of the boxes and Charquipunk added a few extra touches. The finished product actually looks really sweet, and it was such a cool way to end the workshop. I uploaded photos on my facebook if you want to check them out.

We then headed back down the hill from the prison, and I hopped on a micro and headed home. After eating my once with the family, we watched part of The Simpson's Movie on TV. It's just not the same when it's in Spanish because the voices aren't right...oh well. Afterwards, I went to my room and eventually went to bed.

Today, it's a fairly nice day out and hopefully I'll get my book from Claudio so I can start reading. My goal is to have it read before leaving Thursday so then I can get to work writing it Saturday and Sunday. It's really starting to hit me that I'm leaving soon. I have less than two weeks. It's bittersweet because I of course don't want to leave my family and all of the great friends I've met here. But I'm so ready to get out of Claudio's class and I definitely am so super excited to head to California to be with my Alyssa for a few days. It shall be perfect.

I should get ready to go soon, hope you enjoy your day.

Chao.

Sand In My Socks

Yesterday was a lazy day, I enjoyed it. I woke up and found out there was no gas so that meant no shower. Great. I knew I should´ve showered when I got back Saturday night.

After getting ready and being served breakfast in bed, we all hopped in the car and headed to Con Con, a city north a couple miles. It was a little ghetto compared to all of the other beautiful cities I´ve been to, but we enjoyed some delicious empanadas at a local shop (empanadas are Chile´s version of calzones).

Next, we walked through a local market and then headed to the beach. Rodrigo Jr. had brought a small soccer ball, and so we started kicking it around. It eventually led to Rodrigo and I on a team versus Rodrigo Jr. and Gabriela in a game of keep-a-way. Gisela eventually joined up with my two siblings because of how good Rodrigo was playing. Rodrigo told me a while back that when he was in high school, he was a really good soccer player and played with some fairly good players. He also told me that many of his friends are now professional players in Europe and he just as easily could´ve gone pro, but he chose to start a family and live a normal life instead. He said he never regrets it, but that it´s interesting for him to think about where he´d be, and that I wouldn´t be here in his house if he had. He wasn´t lying either. Sure he was only playing against kids who haven´t been playing as long as he has, but he definitely has some insane skills. I was amazed watching him play, and could only imagine what he must have been like in his prime years.

After playing for a bit, we headed home and I watched part of a movie as our once was prepared. We all ate, then I had to get to some homework for Claudio´s class. He assigned us 15 pages of fairly difficult reading to do. I can not stand this man. Luckily, I was able to find the same speech online in English so I could actually comprehend what I was reading. Later, I had some time to talk with Alyssa for a while before heading to bed.

Today, I woke up early so I could come to the University early to meet up with some other students. We´re all very worried about Claudio´s 6 page research paper essay he wants us to write using three different Spanish sources. It´s due next Tuesday, and we don´t even have any of the sources yet. I´m supposed to get one today, though who knows if I´ll actually get it. The worst thing is that this Thursday and Friday we dont have class because we have an excursion. Then on Saturday, I´m heading to Santiago with my family. So basically, I have the next few days after class, then Sunday and after class Monday to write the paper. Oh yeah, we also have an oral quiz about anything we´ve covered in that class on Wednesday. Don´t forget the 15 minute powerpoint presentation I have about a short story in Carlos´ class on either Wednesday or Thursday of next week. Basically, Claudio is trying to cram in a super hard amount of work during our last weekend in Chile, without providing sources for us to use. I don´t want to be sitting in my room reading for hours rather than enjoying my last weekend.

So because of this, our class got together today and discussed what we could do about it. We decided on writing a professional letter to him describing our problem with not having enough time or sources, and then offering some suggestions such as lowering the pages and sources, changing the essay to something easier and more managable, or something like that. We´re going to give it to him today and see what he says, and then if he does nothing about it, we´ll take our case to the coordinators and see if they can help us out. We all admit it´s not the work we´re trying to get out of, it´s the fact that he wants us to write a 6 page research paper without providing us sources until Monday or Wednesday of this week, and then expects us to read through three of them while we have other excursions and work to worry about. I´m so sick of his class, I just hope things work out.

I got to go now, I´ll let you know how things turn out. Chao.

Portillo

Yesterday was absolutely amazing. Some things you can't just express in words. Check out my photos on facebook to see what I'm talking about.

I woke up dark and early at 4:10, and was ready to go by 4:35. Rodrigo told me he would drive me, and boy is Chile a different world when everyone is still asleep. We were able to take the main road and hit only greens (and also drive as fast as he wanted). We met up at the Teatro Municipal where our van driver picked us up. He was super nice, and even brought juice, coffee, and muffins for us to eat. The drive was about three and a half hours or so, and we were all super tired. To get to the actual mountain, you have to drive around switchback after switchback. When we got close to the main lodge, we went through two different tunnels that acutally go under the longest trail on the mountain.

We kept driving for a while and I looked behind me and realized we had passed the main entrance. The driver then stopped and started to turn around as my friend Grant hopped out and went pee. I then looked up at the sign above the road in front of us and realized it said "Welcome to Chile". We were in Argentina! I knew the border was super close, but I didn't think we'd actual get to cross it. Grant can now say he's peed on Argentina. Although we didn't actually cross through all of the security that was probably just around the corner, we did cross the official border of Chile and Argentina. Neat.

The actual lodge is situated right next to a lake, with the two main mountains on either side of the lake. Completely surrounding the ski area is just mountain after mountain, each one just as huge and amazing as the next. I think the view itself was worth the price of getting here. The lodge also has an outdoor heated pool and hut tub right next to the lake for guests staying at the resort to use (though two of my friends did bring swimming suits and hopped in before the end of the day). Every lift I went up, I was absolutely in awe of the huge mountains surrounding me. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience that unfortunately not many people get to experience.

Once we got to the lodge, we rented our equipment, got our tickets, and all headed for the super long trail. Unfortunately, things didn't start out too well for us. It was way warmer than we were expecting (around 50 degrees), and the air was thin and made breathing difficult since we were at around 10,000 feet. The start of the first trail was also very flat, so it made things difficult for the four snowboarders. There was also a girl skiing for the first time, and all of the other skiiers ended up leaving her behind, which ended up causing a miserable time with her. (She couldn't go anywhere and after waiting around for about an hour, ski patrol finally came and put her on a stretcher to help her get down) It was even worse since we had told the workers that she needed help after waiting for twenty minutes or so with her, and yet it took them forever to finally come help. I personally had a difficult time just standing up since I had my backpack on and I was super tired out after finally getting to the main hill. Once I got down, I found my friend David who was suffering from altitude sickness and just rested with him for about forty-five minutes until the others came down the hill.

After eating my lunch, shedding some layers, and getting rid of my backpack, I was ready to try again on the other hill. This is when my day really started to get good. I went up with another friend, but she wanted to take a different trail so we parted ways. I then proceeded to hit the slopes by myself for the next two and a half hours, continuously getting more and more comfortable with my skills. I never have been able to carve very well, but there was one hill where I just went for it and found myself doing extremely well. I probably went down that hill about 10 times throughout the day, each time with a huge grin on my face as I carved back and forth through the snow. I think it made things a lot easier since the snow was powdery rather than the icey snow I'm used to at Mt. Spokane. I only fell a few times during the day, and had an absolutely awesome time checking out the amazing views, listening to my music, and just enjoying being by myself.

At around 4, we all started to check our equipment back in so we could be ready to go by 4:30. The van ride back seemed to take a lot longer, and almost everyone slept for most of the trip. When we finally did arrive back to Viña, the driver was super nice and asked if we wanted him to take us to our houses. I live further away than anyone else so I knew I'd be last, but luckily it was right near his house so I didn't feel bad about making him drive so far.

Once I walked in the door, the first thing my family did was point out my sunburnt face (I did use sunscreen, but unfortunately it wasn't strong enough) and laugh about it. The UV rays are a lot stronger at 10,000 feet, especially when the snow is there to reflect it. When my sister Gabriela walked in, "Hey look at Matthew's burnt face" was the first thing they said. It was funny that they thought it was so funny. I then went to my room and changed out of my wet clothes so I could go eat. I ended up just wearing two pairs of jeans (thank goodness for skinny jeans), and I was fine the entire day. My butt got wet, but I never was cold and the snow was very dry so if I did fall or anything, I could brush it off and it'd be dry within minutes. The gloves weren't waterproof though, so that was a little uncomfortable by the end of the end. Overall, given the fact that I personally had no equipment at all, I was able to stay extremely dry and warm; it was great.

After eating and talking with my family for a bit, I headed to my room and went to sleep. It was an absolutely awesome day, and although the mountain itself wasn't all that great for the number of trails and such, it was definitely worth it to be able to say I've skiied in the Andes Mountains in my lifetime (plus the view was absolutely spectacular).

I've got less than two weeks here, it's weird to think about. My dad just brought me breakfast to my room, I guess they do this every Sunday so I should go now so I can eat. Chao mis amigos. Hope you're enjoying getting burned from the sun as much as I am from the snow.

TGIF?

This week was a difficult one classwise. Yesterday, Claudio showed up on time for the first time all week; fifteen minutes early actually. I was shocked. Unfortunately, him showing up extra early can't make up for the minutes he showed up late. But this does mean I'll be showing up next week.

Carlos didn't return yesterday either, and we found out he wont be back till Monday. Sad day. We watched the rest of Machuca. It's a wonderful, hilarious movie with an extremely sad ending. It's supposed to take place in Chile right before the military coup that overtook Allende in 1973. I really enjoyed it, and it was based on a true story.

After class, I had to go explore Avenida San Martín with my partner Erin. When we got there, we just walked along taking photos and observing the impact of globalization on the avenue. There were lots of foreign restaurants including the ever so popular McDonald's. I guess the put avocado on the burgers instead of ketchup and mustard, weird. There's also a huge casino and five-star hotel along the avenue right along the beach. I'll upload my photos when I feel like it.

We then headed to some vendors along the beach so we could be tourists and buy souvenirs. I bought my pelola something that hopefully she'll enjoy. It was really warm at this point, and the sun was beating directly on us as it was setting. I love the ocean. I def want to live near the ocean when I'm older. Zapallar anyone? Ha, I wish...

Next, we headed to her house so we could put the powerpoint together. It was assigned Wednesday and we had to present Friday, not cool. Carlos would've given us the weekend for sure. Her house sits on top of a hill on the opposite side of Viña as my house does, and she had a view of the entire city. I definitely got a case of the jealousy bug. They had a deck that I just stood in awe on. I took pictures of the marvelous city I'm living in so you can see what it's really like in a different perspective.

We finished the project within a couple hours, and after enjoying an once with her incredibly sweet mom, I headed home on the micro.

Today, I woke up and showered, ate, and got ready to leave. As I was leaving, my housekeeper Carolina stopped me much to my surprise, and then proceeded to adjust the collar on my polo for me and then said "Ok, now it's good". Ha, although she speaks way too fast and I rarely understand her, I love how sweet she is.

Class wasn't quite as difficult today, though I did have to listen to him brag about how Chile is one of the most stable countries in the world. It really is a great country, and it's def in my top 3 after studying here of course, but hearing Claudio present the facts in the way that he does just has a bit of arrogance behind it, so I just get sick of hearing about how Chile is the real Holy Land (that's all me, he never would actually say that).

Presentations went smoothly in Carlos' class. After, we discussed the movie from yesterday a bit, and then we were let out early since it's Friday. Nice.

I'm going snowboarding tomorrow morning, and as of 3:30 this afternoon, I had no clothing whatsoever that would be good for the snow. I decided I'd go wander the streets for a bit in search of a thrift store. My main goal, pants. I did find thrift stores, two or three actually. Unfortunately, I need to learn to check out the store before entering. Turns out two of them were just for women. Nice one Matthew. The third one was the jackpot. It had sky (Spanish for ski I guess?) in the window so I knew it would have what I need. Unfortunately, it was way more than I wanted to spend (about $15 for a pair of snow pants I'm only going to wear once is not worth it). I eventually gave up and headed home empty handed, and set out a desperation email to the rest of my gringo friends here.

Later, Rodrigo arrived home and asked me about my luck in finding clothes. He told me to wait a second, and returned with a perfectly sized jacket. He also had a fleece sweater for me to wear that's specifically designed for skiing (it even says ski team on it). Awesome. Then he came back with what I think he said is a neck warmer, and some gloves. Amazing. He also mentioned something about a hat, but I haven't seen it yet. Regardless, I'm super stoked since I went from nothing to everything but pants. As of now, I still dont have any, and I dont know how likely it is that I'll get any before tomorrow. My plan is to either just wear two pairs of jeans, or just deal with being wet all day. Regardless, I'm looking forward to it more now since I have everything else I need. I'm meeting the group at 4:45 tomorrow morning, then we're taking a van to Portillo (google it) about three and a half hours away.

My parents are making me a nice snack lunch to take, and I went out with Rodrigo Jr. tonight to get a big bottle of water. The mountain is around 10,000 feet so we'll get winded very easily and I was told to bring lots of water. I'm really excited, and I should probably sleep now. I'll make sure to take pictures of the beautiful lake that is right at the base of the lifts with the huge mountain peak in the background. =)

Buenas noches amigos. Chao.

Leather

Today was another warm day. I'm really digging Chile's winters. I'm not digging Claudio Rivero's Social and Political Themes of Chile class though.

Third day in a row of showing up late. If he shows up late the next two days as well, I'm not going to class anymore. I've lost all respect for him. What kind of professor tells his foreign exchange students that they shouldn't say "ok" anymore when it's a bad habit? What kind of professor tells his students not to move their hands anymore when talking? What kind of professor says "You mess up masculine and feminine words all the time"? No crap, we're here to learn and improve our Spanish, not for you to change how we communicate. Very frustrating, but que puedes hacer?

Carlos was out again, but we were told he does not have Swine Flu, just a bad cold. We read some of the confusing story, then we got to watch a very entertaining movie. I'm really excited to finish it tomorrow. Unfortunately, we were given an assignment to go observe a street in either downtown Viña or Valparaíso to see how it's been affected by American culture. Not too hard except that we have a powerpoint presentation to give on it on Friday. Since we had a workshop after class today, it meant that we really only have tomorrow after class to do it. Perfect. My partner Erin and I are heading to San Martin Avenue tomorrow after class, then I'll probably head to her house so we can put the powerpoint together. I like one day presentations. Not.

The leather workshop was really neat. When we arrived, we first practiced pounding the designs we wanted to make onto scrap pieces of leather. In order to do this, we took a hammer and hit metal nails or railroad spikes with the designs on the other end of them. Then we were handed a round piece of leather to make a keychain and a long piece of leather to make a bracelet. I didn't really know what I was going to do, but I just went for it and ended up really liking my designs. Next step was to pick out a kind of stain we wanted to use and then stain it ourselves. I went for a lighter brown color and after getting a button-snap added and the keychain hooked on, I was good to go. (I uploaded photos on facebook from the day)

In the back of the shop was the family's home. It was really cool and chill, and a nice lady with a crazy mohawk and a little two year-old son prepared us an once. I had some really good cookies, complete with honey and two types of jams, and some green tea. I love onces (though I am growing tired of my own familiy's onces since they always only consist of bread).

After everyone finished up, we hopped in the van and went back to the campus. I then headed home on a micro and had another once with my family. After eating, I went to my room to hang relax for a bit. Right now, I'm enjoying watching a stand-up comedian named John Pinette courtesy of my friend David. If you enjoy stand-up comedy, I recommend him. He's pretty great.

Fun fact: My cell phone finally died last night after three and a half weeks of use. I put my cell phone on airplane mode the first day I got here, and only turned it on at nights to use it as an alarm clock, then turned it off the next morning. At this rate, the one charge I did yesterday will be more than enough to get me home. Awesome.

That's about it from me for today. I need sleep. Enjoy summer mis amigos, chao.

Sunshine Day

Today was extremely warm (for it being the middle of winter down here). It was about 60 degrees and sunny all day. It was like that yesterday and should be for a couple more days as well. I'm loving it, although it is a little depressing knowing that the highest it gets here is still colder than the low back home. Stupid 95 degree weather....

Yesterday was a pretty good day. First class was still bad, we spent about an hour trying to review stuff we didn't understand yet. I've found that he really is horrible at explaining stuff until he's absolutely exhausted a subject until I don't even care anymore. Then, he'll suddenly explain it in a very simple way and all of us are like "Ohhhhhh!!!" Why doesn't he just start out with simple and then go from there? Goodness...

Second class, Carlos didn't show up and we realized half the class was missing so we called one of the other students and she said he was sick but we'd still have our graffiti workshop later. Neat. Since we had about an hour and a half before then, David and I decided to hit up Jumbo (Wal-Mart of Chile) so he could buy some toothpaste and deodorant. I finally splurged and got myself some snacks. For two chocolate bars, a pack of coconut cookies, vanilla flavored wafer cookies (not to be confused with vanilla wafers), and a liter of Watt's peach juice, it cost all of about 2.200 pesos (that's $4). I love the value of the dollar here.

We headed to the computer lab for exchange students and entertained ourselves by checking out some awkward family photos. You should do the same if you'd like to laugh. Just make sure you click "older posts" at the bottom of each page to continue enjoying more photos. http://www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com Sadly, I think my family has more than a few that could qualify for this site.

At 3:40, we met up with the rest of the students for the graffiti workshop. This week, we got to watch Charquipunk and a friend of his actually paint in front of us. We hopped on the trolleybus for a few blocks, then met up with him and his friend and headed to a back side street with a nice wall along it. Right away, they got to work painting. I took lots of photos throughout the time and I'll upload them later tonight on facebook if you care to check them out. I purposefully tried taking photos from the same angle every so often so you can see how it unfolds step by step. The finished work was absolutely amazing, I have doubts on our abilities as a group of being able to create something as good next week when we're allowed to give it a shot. These artists are incredible, I was so impressed and in awe just watching them go at it. Within two hours or so, they had turned this blank dirty wall into a beautiful colorful picture. I think graffiti is one of the best things that has happened to Valparaíso.

Quick story: As soon as we arrived, there was a family at the end of the street who noticed us and turned on some music as the kids came to watch up closer. The same song ended up being played about five times, and it became kind of a joke for us to hear it come on randomly after being quiet for fifteen minutes. The kids seemed really cute and nice at first, but boy were we in for a surprise. There was what looked to be like a rarely driven pickup sitting along the street, and the oldest of the kids (about 12) proceeded to use a coat hanger to break into it. They played around in it for a while, until they pulled out a super ball and started bouncing it around. It eventually came our way and seeing as how we were twice their size, some of my classmates started to play keep-a-way with them. It never was mean or too hard for the kids to get it, and they always got it after two or three passes and then they'd run and go get it laughing the entire time. Well, the kids progressively got more aggressive until the younger of the two boys (no older than 7) punched my friend Andrew in the face. I was shocked. So the next time the ball came his way, he threw it down the street rather than tossing it to someone else. Bad news. The older boy then got this really freaky look on his face and just stared at him, pacing back and forth around him. It kind of creeped us all out. They eventually lost interest in us, and then noticed all of the paint cans on the ground and started touching them all. Charquipunk told them to leave them alone, so then they got rocks and started throwing them at the cans trying to knock them over. Again, he told them to knock it off and put them all in his bag. They then grabbed a paint brush and started painting a lightpost and other parts of the wall where he wasn't painting, and once again he had to tell them to knock it off. Luckily, he was just finishing up the last of his painting. I thought the fun was finally over, but as we were walking down a staircase to get to a lower street, I noticed sticks landing around us. I looked up, and sure enough the same little punks were up there throwing sticks and rocks at us. I am usually very patient with children, even when they misbehave and get more than a little annoying. But there's a point where bad parenting (in this case, lack of parenting entirely) is so unacceptable that even I lose my patience and respect for the kids. Luckily I didn't have to deal with them at all.

After heading home, I had my once and went to my room to work on some homework (second assignment I've had the entire time). I finished it, and then was able to talk with Alyssa for a long time. It was really nice, though I did end up staying awake way longer than I should have. Oh well, it was worth it. =)

Today, I woke up and was about ready to hop in the shower until I realized there wasn't any warm water. They have to ignite a pilot light anytime they want hot water, and I guess whoever had showered before me decided to shut it off rather than leave it on for me. Darn.

First class was bad again today. We asked him about our six page paper due the last week of class, and he initially said "Don't you remember what I said the first day of class? I told you all about it then." No, of course we don't remember every single little detail from the first day of class. If we knew, we wouldn't be asking you. We also asked about our oral quiz we'll be having, and if we could know what it will be like since the majority of us have never had an oral quiz before. He just told us that we have to come and take it, and it will be a surprise. Wow. I've lost all respect for this professor. He really doesn't help his case any when he comes in late every day, even though he holds kids after class to ask them why they showed up late just one day. Hypocrisy at it's finest. After wasting another hour talking about this (which once again could have been solved in ten minutes had he explained it in simple terms from the beginning), we finally started covering other material. I'm so stoked to be done with this class. I'm even more stoked to fill out an evaluation.

Carlos was out again today, so we had the head of the foreign exchange programs teaching instead. He said that two of the professors have the swine flu, and three more have the symptoms (Carlos being one of them), so he has to be out for seven days. Darn. Too bad my other professor doesn't hang out with Carlos more, otherwise he could be gone for a week as well. We attempted watching a movie, but the sound didn't work. Instead, we read through a story that not many of us understood. I can already tell this week is going to be a long one.

I came straight home afterwards with plans of taking a nap since I didn't get enough sleep last night, but I got distracted and am now growing very tired very quickly.

Oh, great news. Some friends here are putting together a skiing/snowboarding trip to one of the local mountains. It'll be about $125-140 depending on number of people going, and so I talked to my parents and they told me I should go ahead and do it since I probably will never again have the chance to snowboard in the Andes Mountains. I'm so stoked. I just hope I can find some suitable clothes before I go... The mountain we're going to has a beautiful lake right next to the lodge so wherever you are, you can see it. It's absolutely beautiful and I'm really excited for it.

I'm done writing today. I write too much I feel. Oh well, I don't care. Have a great night everyone, chao amigos.

Waves Crashing

Slept in fairly late today, it was nice. When I woke up, I turned on my computer and saw that the Wimbledon tennis final was happening live, so I decided to see if it was on TV since it was a pretty close game so far. Boy was I in for a surprise. I turned it on when Roger Federer had just gone up 2 sets to 1. Andy Roddick won the next set, and things were all tied up going into the final set (guys play best-of-5 sets). Well, normally they play the first to win six games in a set, and you have to win by two games. But since this was the 5th set, instead of a quick tie breaker, they continued playing game after game after game until someone finally won by two games. Well, they literally went back and forth winning games when it was their turn to serve. I thought I'd see Federer win his 15th Grand Slam title within a few minutes, but two hours later they were still playing. He eventually went up 15-14, and Roddick finally fell apart. They played an amazing game, but Federer ended up winning the 5th set 16-14. He now has more Grand Slam Titles than anyone, and I think he's by far the greatest tennis player of all time. I'm not even a big tennis fan, but have become a big Federer fan over the past few years.

When I finally went downstairs, my mom was happy to see I was alive. After watching the end of Home Alone 2 with Rodrigo Jr, we sat down to eat lunch. We had some beef and rice, and it was pretty tasty. They told me that later we'd be going to Reñeca, a town a few minutes north, so I could get to know it a little better.

After lunch, I had a nice Skype session with Alyssa. It was really nice to actually get to talk with her for longer than ten minutes. I'm really looking forward to seeing her. It's been almost two months now, that's two months too long if you ask me...

Later, we hopped in a car and drove along the coast through Reñeca for a bit. The waves were absolutely huge today. At one point, the waves crashed into the rocks and splashed water some thirty five feet or so up into the air and onto the road. I'm not even exaggerating, the road is up above the water about twenty five feet, and there's this one spot where the water would splash ten feet up above the road. We stopped the car at the base of a heavily populated mountain overlooking the water, which had a whole bunch of giant boulders and rocks attached to it. We were able to climb right out on these giant rocks which were essentially cliffs due to the steep edges all around. I took a bunch of pictures and captured some video and we just sat and watched giant waves crashing into even bigger rocks. It was absolutely gorgeous and I'm so glad my family brought me. I'll upload photos later so you can see what I'm talking about.

Later, we drove back through the main part of Reñeca and stopped along the main walkway above the beach. We got out and walked along the path, and I was just fascinated at the size of the waves. Some of the swells must have been 10 or more feet tall. It was really cool when one swell would overtake another swell just as the one in front was breaking, resulting in a huge crash of water splashing way up into the air. I took more pictures and then we got in the car and drove back.

Once home, I watched part of Speed Racer with Rodrigo. After, we had our once (burgers with cheese and tomato, definitely the most legit "burger" I've had so far). Now, I'm considering shaving since I haven't done so in over a week and it's starting to really bother me. I'm not looking forward to my first class tomorrow, it's going to be killer.

Oh yeah, my parents were talking about going to Santiago either next weekend or the weekend after so I can actually get to know the country's capital a bit before I leave. They also asked how I was getting to the airport when I leave and I said I have to find my own ride. They then got really excited because that meant they could take me =) Rodrigo also asked why I'm leaving rather than just staying with them. Ha, they're awesome. Gisela also told me that next time they're inviting me to come, all I have to do is give them a call or shoot them an email before. But she made sure to say that whether I come alone or with Alyssa, that they are inviting me and I am welcome whenever. I love my host family, they're great. If I ever have the money, I definitely will come back in the future.

On a final note, yesterday was my grandpa's birthday (I'm not sure quite how old he is, but I think he's about 87). I mentioned it in my previous entry, but that didn't do him justice. I think it's very fitting that he was born on Independence Day, he is a true American if I've ever seen one. He fought in World War II and got a purple heart after getting hit with shrapnel. He was a farmer for much of his life, until he eventually settled down in Pullman. He was very involved with politics up until a few years ago, always supporting the Grand Ole Party wholeheartedly. He loved his wife with all of his heart and was married for almost 60 years. He suffered a stroke in January of 2008 and unfortunately, he never has recovered enough to remember who I am, but he still never did forget his wife. I was at the nursing home with her one day visiting him, and he just kept staring at her rather than eating. She finally asked, "Why aren't you eating?" He replied "You're pretty." She asked, "What?" and he replied, "You're pretty, I love you." Although my grandma just ignored it and kept helping him eat, I will never forget that moment. Love, still strong and evident some 60 years later. Despite forgetting about most of his kids and grandchildren, he still knew who his wife was and that he was in love with her. I'm still not sure if he was able to comprehend my grandmother passing away last Fall, but I know that deep down he knows something's missing, and he can't wait to be with her again in heaven.

I miss you grandma. I love you and thanks for looking out for me.

That's all I can handle to write anymore.

Happy Birthday America

Today I had an absolutely awesome time on our second weekend excursion. After waking up and getting ready to leave, I hopped in a collectivo and rode to the Plaza Central to meet up with the group at the Teatro Municipal. There were a few vans waiting for us and another group of unfamiliar gringos standing around nearby. We were told previously that there was going to be another study abroad group of kids who all go to a university in North Carolina there as well, and since we're all exchange students at the University, they figured why not just combine them. They ended up being really cool people, and it we all bonded fairly well during the ride.

Once we arrived at the place, we had a quick meeting around a fire where they explained some things to us about where we were going, what to be careful about, and then had us sign forms saying they aren't responsible for our deaths. I didn't even bother reading it since they all say the same thing anyways.

Next, we headed out to the corral and met up with our horses. One by one, all 40 of us or so got on a horse and the majority of us just sat there wondering how the heck to get our horses to move. Luckily, I was a fast learner and got mine moving right away.

The next three hours or so were absolutely amazing. We started off by crossing through a river to get to the main sand dunes. Then we rode through some easy trails until reaching the base of the actual dunes. We rode up a huge dune and then proceeded to ride up and down dune after dune, crossing the river every so often (it reminded me of playing Oregon Trail. We obviously said screw taking a boat, we'll just ford this river!). Some dunes were crazy steep, so much so that at one point a girl's horse sat down because it didn't feel like going down anymore. She quickly hopped off and waited for a guide to come help her out. I had already made it down the dune earlier following a young boy who was one of our guides when the few of us who made it down were told that some of the others were too scared to go down, so we had to go back up another way to rejoin the group. Well, the way we decided to take was even steeper than the way we came down, and my horse bailed on it part way up, heading down a super steep bank. I managed to stop it and turn it around, and luckily got it up the hill on the second try.

I've been on sand dunes many times before, but I have never been able to ride a horse through them and it was such an awesome experience. We had great views at the top of the city and the Andes Mountains in the distance. After riding for a couple hours, we eventually crossed a railroad track and rode over the top of a small hill to see the beautiful ocean. The next part of the ride was definitely one of my favorites. Up until this point, we were only able to trot a bit on the dunes every so often. But on the beach, we were allowed to have our horses full out gallop along the ocean. I've ridden horses before like many people I'm sure have (though never through terrain like I did today), but I never have actually ridden a galloping horse before. I don't think quite as many people can say they've done that, especially along the beach. I was having such a great time that I couldn't stop laughing and smiling. I probably looked really funny with this big goofy grin while my horse was sprinting alongside some of the other horses, but I didn't care. I was having a blast.

At one point, we came across a sea lion on the beach. It was extremely weird since it was all alone and about forty feet from the water. It looked so funny, and it didn't even do anything when it was surrounded by a bunch of horses.

After riding for a while, we reached the end of our time on the beach and headed back home across a railroad bridge. After crossing another few rivers, we could finally see the end and the wonderful barbecue that was ready for us. It was a spectacular ride, but after three or so hours of being on a horse (especially while it's trotting), the pain really starts to get to you. My back, inner things, and knees are going to be super sore tomorrow...boo.

The fun didn't stop there though. Next up, the amazing barbecue complete with all sorts of salads and lots of different types of barbecued meat. I had potato salad, a traditional onion and tomato salad, corn salad, carrot salad, rice, beef, pork, and amazing cooked onions and potatoes. I also had super satisfying water (they had some wines available, but I'd choose water over wine any day since they never seem to drink it here). After, I had some good tea to help wash it all down. They had another fire going right near the tables, so we all just hung around talking by the fire for the next hour or so. It was a wonderful day, and a great way to spend the 4th of July while not actually being home.

On the way back, I was able to get dropped off right near my normal stop rather than head all the way into town just to spend money to get on a micro and head back. I had my once a little later with my mom and my two siblings, then I headed to my room to rest after the long day. I got invited to go to a discoteque (a dance club) and another group of people were going to the 'Merica party at the bar, but I passed on both since I'd much rather prefer just resting tonight than going out till super late. Plus, bars aren't my thing and I'm only a fan of dancing if I know I can just dance like a crazy fool by myself without having to worry about people getting all up in my grill.

I posted photos of the day on my facebook, and I also got the ones uploaded from the graffiti tour. But for now, I'm extremely tired and I need to get some sleep soon. Happy birthday Grandpa, hope you enjoyed it! And happy birthday to you too America, I miss you and all of the crazy things that make you what you are. Ok there's a lot of things I dont miss as well, but I figured I should sound a little patriotic since I really am proud to be American. I did wear my red, white and blue today though, so there. Speaking of being patriotic, check out one of the cheesiest videos I've ever seen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8GaO6L9WpA&feature=related

Amazing. Have a great night America, and be safe. Chao mis amigos.

A Wonderful Day

Today was a wonderful day. I was a little worried when I woke up since I had a lot of things on my mind, but everything managed to work itself out.

When I was about to leave, I told Carolina the house keeper that I only had a 5.000 peso bill and so she took off and returned shortly with two 1.000 bills and five 500 coins (I dont know where the other 500 went but I was in too much of a hurry to worry).

First class was not very fun, again. Our professor is so professional that he apologized for wearing jeans. He then proceeded to tell a girl to not say "Ok" anymore because she unknowingly says it most times when she begins speaking (sort of like how some people say like or um all the time). I was literally shocked. Who does this man think he is? My friend David and I were talking and he said he'd love to ask him to use equations to prove the effects of magnetism, or something like that (he's an engineer major). It was funny, but I totally understood his point. History is not our subject, and he shouldn't expect us to be masters at it. It took him an hour today to explain one concept that I'm still not quite positive about.

After class, things started to improve greatly. I had two sweet hamburgers for lunch, or at least the Chilean version of a hamburger (bread, burger, cheese). Then I headed to Carlos' class to give my presentation on the band Los Prisioneros. I was a little nervous since I didn't feel too prepared, but it went fairly smoothly and it was really relaxed.

Some of the other students were talking about going to a restaurant Carlos had suggested to get some really good food. Later, the University was putting on a free movie night and Gran Torino was playing. We decided to meet up later and head to the restaurant. I had enough time beforehand to get online and chat with Alyssa for a bit. It was nice to communicate with her for only like the 4th time. Man am I excited to see her when I leave...

At 4:30, we met up and decided to walk the 8 blocks or so to get to the restaurant. It was at the end of a dark alley and had we not known about where to go, we never would've thought to go down it. Inside, the entire place was covered with artifacts and pictures and notes. I guess people can write or put whatever they want up, it was cool. My compañeros all ordered beers that were supposedly some of the best they've had since arriving, and I also had one of the best drinks since I've arrived, water. They just never drink water here, it's so weird. It's either juice, tea, or alcohol. Coffee does exist, but generally only instant coffee. The juice is amazing, especially the peach. I'm definitely bringing back a liter or two of the Watt's peach juice. The tea is great, the British brought it over long ago when they were living here. And the alcohol, I couldn't tell you. My water came in a glass bottle though, and I had to specify that I wanted it without gas (a.k.a. I didn't want sparkling water, just regular). For our main meal, three of us shared (I can't remember the name), but it consisted of a large platter of french fries, covered with eggs, onions, and pieces of steak. It sounds weird, but it was delicious. Even more so since I haven't had papas fritas (french fries) since arriving. An added bonus of the meal was that I was finally able to get rid of my 20.000 peso bill. It's about $36, but they just don't have change here to give to people. Altogether, for five people to eat, get drinks, and give a 10% tip, it was about $40. Definitely cheaper than in the US.

One our way back to the school, I got myself some ice cream. Two scoops of pineapple and something cream for only 850 pesos (~$1.50). I can't believe ice cream costs so much back home, it's ridiculous.

We arrived back at the University and found the theater fairly easily. The theater is actually really nice, and even has a balcony with more seats (the seats were very comfortable). I wish I had my camera to show what it looked like, it was really cool. The man running the film welcomed us when we came in and gave us a pack of some postcards with various films on them that have been played over the years at the theater. Although I had already seen Gran Torino in the past, I knew it was good and was definitely up for seeing it again. Clint Eastwood is just awesome in the movie, his growling just adds so much more to it. Definitely one of my favorite movies. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it (be warned, he is supposed to be a retired war vet who is fairly racist so if you aren't down with that, then I'd pass on the movie). The greatest part of the night was that we got to see it for free. Every Friday night they show a movie, then on Saturday they have two showings of family movies. It's really cool, and as long as you're enrolled at the University it's free.

After the movie, I hopped on a micro and headed home. After talking with my family for a bit, Spanglish started on TV (the movie starring Adam Sandler from a few years ago). I had never seen it before but seeing as how I'm in Chile right now, I enjoyed it a lot more than I probably would have otherwise. It was a little confusing at times though since it was in English and had Spanish subtitles, except at times they would speak in Spanish in the movie and so they wouldn't put the subtitles up, and then sometimes I couldn't quite hear what they were saying so I was trying to read the subtitles. It was a mess, but I really enjoyed the movie.

It was a very nice day and I'm glad I finally was able to do something other than just sit at my house after class. Tomorrow I'm going horse back riding for three hours and then we're having a big barbecue. I'm a little worried since it's supposed to rain, but who cares, it'll be a good way to spend the 4th. I also got an email advertising a 'Merica celebration on the rooftop of some bar tomorrow night with all English music. Speaking of 'Merica, today in my culture class my professor was asking the one girl from Canada about her Independence Day (it was the 1st), and I blurted out "Mañana 'Merica!" I think all of us gringos are going to try and do something to celebrate being 'Merican tomorrow after the excursion. I'm down for anything as long as it doesn't just involve going to a bar or something like that, that just aint my thing.

Well I have to get up early tomorrow. Today was great, in case you couldn't tell. Hope tomorrow goes just as well. It shall we swell. Alright that's enough, chao amigos.

Hi Mom

My mom told me she reads my blog. I thought I'd say hi since she may be the only one who does.

Yesterday was a bad-good day. It was bad because I can't stand my first professor. It was good because I love my second professor.

My first professor is a history professor at the University I believe, and let me just say that I know nothing compared to the history professors at Whitworth. So when my professor here is standing in the classroom asking us why we don't know who Touqeville, Max Weber, and about 30 other people are, he should realize that I certainly would not know as much as a history professor from Chile does. And I don't care if he got up and went to school at 4 AM every morning to read for hours before classes started. I didn't. He shouldn't be so surprised that hey, American school systems aren't quite as difficult as most. He just bothers me. I'm counting down the days till the end of that class, no doubt.

My other professor is wonderful though. Class was alright, but afterwards we had our second week of the graffiti workshop, and we were to walk through the city checking out various works. His friend Charquipunk led us up many hills, through small passageways, up and down staircases, and finally concluded with probably the biggest and greatest work he and his friends have done so far. It is absolutely amazing what they were able to do. I'll upload the photos from the day later onto my facebook. It was a tiring day, but I'm really excited to see him work next week.

After, I hopped onto a micro and headed home to eat. My nights are getting less and less exciting these days. My family likes watching TV while eating dinner, and then they usually sit at the table and just keep watching as I awkwardly sit there wondering if I can excuse myself or not. Once they do get up, they either just sit down on the couch and continue watching, or everyone goes to their rooms to watch TV. It makes it difficult to not sit on the computer browsing the internet since I'm not much of a TV watcher...but what can you do right? Unfortunately it gets dark so early here (thanks winter), so I never really feel like going out and wandering around since I may get mugged. Luckily my afternoons are usually pretty busy though so by the time I get back and eat, I only have a couple hours before bed time.

Fun fact: Swine Flu is alive and well here. So much so that one of the other students from ISEP has a certificate to prove it. I guess she was taken in to see a doctor and if you have it, they give you a certificate. Now that'd be something to show your grandchildren! I'm alive and well though, and I never see her so I'm not worried. It's not killing anyone here, just giving them the flu with a cool name. I always find it a little unnecessary though when people hop onto a micro wearing those surgeon masks. If we were in America I'd say "Hey, which of us are you gonna operate on?" then I'd run off the bus jumping and laughing....muahahaha.

Yeah I'm bored. I need to find a way to exchange my 5.000 peso bill for something smaller before I try riding the micro. I'm afraid they wont accept it. Chao amigos y madre.