La Jac Goes to South America.: June 2011

I guess everyone warned me about these last couple of months. They did say they´d be ugly. They said they´d be cold and gray and I think the word they used was "miserable." They said it wouldn't be worth leaving the house. Well, turns out everyone was wrong. I´m not sure if it's my Pollyanna acting up or what, but I think it´s beautiful. There are ferns and moss and raindrops hanging from bare branches. Lots of drizzly walks home past puffing chimneys, with my trail of favorite stray dogs behind me. Every day I still pass a few rhododendrons and the occasional hydrangea in full bloom, despite the fact that today is the equivalent of Yakima´s December 21th. Not too shabby. And today was actually super sunny for awhile. (Sometimes you don´t realize you miss being blinded by sunlight bouncing off car windshields until it happens.)

I imagine some of you have heard talk of that one volcano, Volcán Puyehue. It's actually pretty close, but so far has just been a cloud in the distance. Rumor has it the ash may reach us soon, but not before it travels the globe. This is pretty funny to me since it's only a few hours away, and it´s reached Australia before us, but I guess it must be "downwind" or something. In other news, there are still lots of strikes and protests. For all sorts of things. I don´t really know what is gained by this, but it does mean that classes get cancelled at the last minute a lot. Also, bomb threats are all the rage this semester. Seriously, guys? I've got a French class I want to go to.

So, I have this one class where everything goes wrong. Just everything. I really like it--it has to do with linguistics and language in general--but for some reason everything just goes wrong. That was the class where I had the misunderstanding about the presentation date, etc. The whole semester it has just been thing after thing. When the professor sees me she literally and audibly sighs. From the way she explains things to me I am 100% certain that she thinks I'm pretty dimwitted. No matter how much effort I put into it, things just don´t work out. This is frustrating to me and a little funny. Then, this morning I went to take a test and turns out it wasn't today. When she saw me she just shook her head in amazement and told me in very carefully articulated Spanish that there was no class. I nodded silently and left. "Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name" ...and that you´re not really dumb.

Speaking of this, I have less than a month left. Which is mind-blowing. And maybe it´s because I´m tired and a little on the grumpy side today, but I think maybe I am actually getting a little bit ready to go back home. I just saw some pictures I´d taken driving through the Ellensburg canyon last year and was surprised to notice that it did a funny thing to my stomach. And I am ready to see my family. Ready to go camping with old friends. So excited to dance, eat Reese´s peanut butter cups, play music, make real cookies all day long... and then try to convert Yakima into Chile.

Because I still hate the idea of leaving this place. And I know I´m going to have fight hard to not be that girl. We all know what girl I'm talking about. The one that won´t shut up about "that one time" when she was in Chile. The girl who casually slips Spanish words into conversations with her English-speaking friends and makes a point to find every Spanish speaker within a 20 mile radius.

And yet, my Spanish. Yikes. I´m so far from where I want it to be. I really have learned a lot. And lots of times I forget I´m listening to another language... when just I´m listening. But then I try to create my own sentences and I remember in a hurry that I can't say quite what I want to. Everyone talks about how "after living there for a month or two, you´ll be fluent"--well, either I have a very different concept of fluency or they are very fast learners. But it took more than an hour to win Zamora, so I'll just keep trucking.

And then there´s the elementary school English class I help with. Still as chaotic as ever. This week at one point I had a broom fight going on, a casual soccer game, a group of kids pelting each other with beads from a necklace that had exploded (I think that's why the brooms came out initially) and two kids dutifully trying to learn the English ABCs. We eventually got all these situations under control and joined the two studious ones. The lesson plan said we were supposed to study "hobbies." The examples in the book were a little outlandish. Really, how many 10 year-olds do you know that have picked up rhythmic gymnastics as a "hobby"? Anyway, hobby discussion and a few rounds of Hangman later and we had made it through the whole hour and a half with no casualties. I tell you what, you've got to think on your feet in there or those cute little lions will getcha.

I still just tag along with my family everywhere they go. Yesterday was Father's Day, which meant family events with both sides. This whole family is just so FUNNY and incredibly warm. Still laughing it up with Vale most nights here on the couch. I also hang out at Luz´s house a lot doing homework and just talking. Which is always good for a laugh because she lives with a mismatched group of 9 Chilean girls all studying at the university, who are all very different but very hilarious. I'm also starting to realize I´m really going to miss not living in the same town as some of my gringo friends, too. Erin and Jahni, in particular. What a strange year this is... I love it.

Well, like always I could keep writing for hours, but I will spare you.

Luz's birthday (also featuring Claudia and Jahni)

Ash dusting from the eruption...

In English club Desmond and I are transformed into trees. (This still makes me laugh out loud.)

Luz's scarf collection against her bedroom wall. :-)

Luz's birthday with her housemates!

Kids in my Inglés Abre Puertas class.

Aw! The ladies of the family.

History class field trip to a Valdivian museum.

A drizzly day spent walking.

La tía y la abuela.

And we´re at less than two months! I cannot think of anything to say about this that is not cliché.

The lastest from Valdivia: I survived the great quake of 2011 yesterday. Luckily it was actually just a city-wide drill, because our class didn´t hear the siren and carried on as usual for about 10 minutes before joining our classmates in the rainy "safe place". And the rain finally seems to have started up. It´s beautiful and my umbrella and boots are getting some good use. This is fortunately still novel to me. Also, there has also been a lot of protesting here lately. Mostly it´s been Patagonia Sin Represas (Patagonia Without Dams) stuff. The general debate: do we flood lots of land in the south to create a hydroelectric energy source for the country (/to sell to other countries)? The frustrated response to this has included lots of marches, burning tires (which, ironically, does not seem all that environmentally friendly), breaking out windows and throwing rocks. This has in turn resulted in that big truck thing with the giant water hose and sometimes tear gas. The last couple of days I haven´t heard or seen anything new.

Still just waking up happy every day here. Valentina (the youngest host sister) has been getting more and more hilarious with each passing day. I think that the reality is just that I can communicate with her better now. Whatever the reason, I really like her. We have our own jokes and have spent many a rainy night studying together on the couch, next to the fire. (she gets a little high-strung about homework, too). Telma the Grouch sits in between us, but always closer to Vale. My host parents are just as excited (that would be Rodolfo) and grounded (Marisol) as ever, and celebrated their 36th anniversary this week. Pao´s coming down from Santiago to visit this weekend, which I´m sure will be hilarious, as always.

But enough about them, let´s talk about me [again].

I registed for my classes for fall quarter back in Washington! Spanish Phonetics,ˈhɪr ˈaɪ ˈkəm. Classes are moving right along here. And English Club is really fun this semester. The little girls in particular have befriended me, and love to tell me stories about their grade school drama/ask me ridiculous questions, usually about Justin Bieber. I got to play a friend´s (familiarly out of tune) piano yesterday... and then they fed me sopaipillas. So nice to just sit in their kitchen watching Chilean gameshows and talking about things. This semester is busy. I´ve been making friends with the librarians and also the waiters in my preferred studying cafes. My free time is usually spent eating lúcuma ice cream (lúcuma = a fruit that tastes like CARAMEL) and watching Casablanca with amigos. Sometimes we go to cafes to play cards or to someone´s kitchen for culinary experiments. I´m still a bit of a novelty in my Chilean classes here, and never pass up an opportunity to embarrass myself.

Today I decided that think I have changed a little. Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, I had to do a group project in one my my classes. Last week in class I understood the teacher to say that my group would be presenting today, Thursday. But I talked to two other girls in the group (separately), and realized I had misunderstood (nothing new), and that we were going to present next week. Today when I came to class, the professor was waiting for us to present. She. Was. Mad. I sighed. I SIGHED. I was frustrated, but not stressed. She said we´ll present next week, and that we´ll "get a bad grade." I was bummed, but not stressed. This did not ruin my morning. I spent that unexpected half hour of non-class time taking pictures. I don´t know if you´re understanding the significance of this. Anyone who has been around me previously when deadlines or grades are on the line knows that this is not characteristic of me. I still study too much but perhaps I´m slowly starting to get over my "freak-out-about-grades-and-also-about-things-out-of-my-control" illness, if you will.

However, on that note, I´m still going to go consider doing some homework.