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).