Supermarkets, jungles and jazz.

One month in and the update is that I love it here.  Also that sometimes I think I haven’t learned a darned thing.  I guess I thought I would magically absorb Spanish. (I didn’t.) I usually have to concentrate pretty hard to understand what's happening around me and I’m still scared of answering that formidable telephone.  I’m sure I’m learning something and I’m not super discouraged.  If nothing else, I know I’m learning how to make marshmallows.

That’s right, I looked up a marshmallow recipe and made them with my host sister Vale. We had success.  I learned a powerful lesson when buying the ingredients, though: the express lane isn’t the place to try out your debit card for the first time.  (Gosh, they looked grumpy, all those people backed up behind me.)  Also, you can take it from me, you're supposed to have your produce weighed before you go the register. 

In other news, the whole group of study abroad students went to Curiñanco (a beach town about an hour from here) for the day.  We played in the sand; hiked through an incredible rainforest jungle of super old, super tall trees; saw some rare snail... it was black; saw some sheep... they had long tails; ate some salmon.  We even had our own personal—albeit slightly informal—cueca (the national dance) performance.  

What else?  I went to bits and pieces of a jazz festival in town and one of the nights I think I almost died for lack of swing dancers; the band was super good.  There was a documentary festival, too (I’m getting very wild and crazy here in Chile) and another night there was a concert by a Mapuche woman, also really cool.  Also went to the orchestra. Oh! There was a giant birthday party at our house for my abuela this week. 81 years old!  Imagine attending a family reunion full of strangers and now imagine that they all speak Spanish. Ha.  They’re a pretty high-spirited, welcoming family and it was lots of fun.

Speaking of birthdays, mine was perfect.   I was attacked by Vale with kisses and a lovely card at midnight and when I headed to bed I found a pretty journal and chocolate from my brother.  The next morning he took me downtown so I could take pictures.  It was beautiful out and I was happier than a tick on a fat hog.  I also got a grocery store trip in, always a favorite pastime of mine.   Before lunch there were fancy appetizers and a present (a book on Chilean slang or “Chilenismos,” ¿cachai?), followed by the cake and candles bit.  The fam took me out to dinner that night, and I then I ended the day eating said chocolate cake with amigos.  ¡Qué suerte!

It hasn’t been raining as much.  I have yet to be bored here.  Classes are going just fine.  I bought the ingredients for popcorn balls (my family’s never heard of them) and so I’ll report back about that saga next time.

Over and out.
JacLyn

This is how we roll.

A Curiñanco beach.



And that's the ocean.



Jeff, in the Curiñanco jungle...

Bus window photography.

Jazz festival (they played Minor Swing and I loved them forever).



Watching Beatriz Pichi Malen (a Mapuche singer) from the balcony.

Pretty Valdivian waterfront.

Felipe took me on a picture-taking adventure on my birthday.

Perfect birthday.

That elusive black snail.

A little lunchtime cueca (the national dance).

Bésame. Bésame mucho.

So the flights were long, just like my itinerary claimed they would be.  Lacey and I made it to the bus terminal in Santiago in time to buy the last two tickets for the final morning bus.  (Departure time: 10 minutes.)  Every now and then I would remember that those mountains we were passing were the Andes.  The Andes.  Super weird.

We got into Valdivia 11 hours later—30 hours of straight travel time, yo—and found our respective strangers.   Strangers that kiss you and claim to be your new mom and sister.  (Having no alternative, you believe them and get into their car.) Turns out they really were and at my new house I met my dad and brother—more kisses—and was ushered into the dining room where they left me alone with my dinner for a few minutes.  Um, so there weren’t any chairs.  It’s cool; new country, new customs.   I’m trying not to make assumptions, but I will say I was happy when I found out that they just forget to put the chairs there and that people sit down to eat in Chile, too.

Then the first day of school.  It’s funny because you just flat out don’t know ANYthing.   I got up at 7:30 and everyone was gone.  I was thinking, “can I eat whatever, or how does this work?”  Then there's a house alarm and stuff, so I wasn't really sure what to do about that.  (I’m sure they’d told me but there is this slight language barrier.) And then I didn't really understand if I was supposed to come back at lunchtime and when lunchtime was, for that matter.   Anyway, I pulled through.  Also, classes are completely in Spanish, which is going to be quite the thing.

Two weeks in now, and I’m feeling good.  Valdivia is beautiful; all sorts of rivers and blooming trees and funny-looking birds.   It rains a lot here and I think it’s about as cozy as can be.  I wonder if the novelty might wear off, but it hasn't yet. Wikipedia claims Seattle gets 37.1 inches a year.  Valdivia?  23 inches in the month of June alone.  (I bought an umbrella.)

My host family is fantastic.  They’re super funny and really warm.  We come back to the house to eat lunch together every day, and it’s kind of an event.  It’s like the major meal of the day and we just hang out and eat wonderful things and talk.  Truthfully, I don't have a clue what's going on a lot of the time.  (I really am happy here, just way out of the loop.)  I understand Spanish about as well as I expected.  That means I generally know what topic we’re talking about and generally don’t know what we’re saying about it.  My family speaks slowly for me, though, and I’m bumbling along.

Quick summary of other cool things: There is an abundance of lobos marinos (sea “wolves”) down by the bridge. I saw a Beatles cover band comprised of Chileans, super fun[ny].  There are lots of cute cafés where I can sit and read my dictionary. There’s a giant botanical garden on campus which is mind-boggling and fantastic.  My brother Felipe took me on lovely hike, basically in our backyard, and the verdict is that Valdivia is just plain beautiful. There’s a lively fish market on the waterfront. Avocado! We eat lots and lots of avocado, called “palta” here (not “aguacuate” like I learned in Washington).

This is long and I still have tons to say but in conclusion I will say that one semi-shocking thing is the number of words you learn in class that evidently aren’t really used in real life.  The aforementioned palta/aguacate mix-up is one, another major one is “adios.”  You think you at least know that one.  Guess what?  No. Everyone says “chao.”  I literally have not heard adios. I think I’m going to get educated.

Chao y besos (always lots and lots of besos)

JacLyn

Flying into Santiago...

The eternal bus ride (at this point we're at 20+ hours of travel, 10 to go).



Fish market, rain or shine. (So, rain.)




Man in a slicker?




Blooming trees and umbrellas all over the place.



Valdivian street gossips.

Campus, plus some water.



Flowers from the [Chilean] Beatles.




There IS sunshine.



Telma, official cat of the house.