(Mis)Adventures in Pucón

Life's more interesting when it doesn't go as planned...

This weekend I went to Pucón, a small town in southern Chile about 10 hrs from Santiago. I left with Amanda and her friends from school, Maria and Chris, although there was a group going from AU too. I didn't sleep as much on the bus ride as I hoped, in part because they showed Raiders, in part because someone had a cat, and in part because buses just suck. We had to switch buses in Temuco, which is where the trouble started. Someone stole Chris' backpack (containing his passport) out of the overhead compartment and he had to stay and talk to the police. They told me to go ahead to Pucón since there wasn't much I could do. I felt bad, but went anyway.

I met up with the AU crew (Lauren, Shaye, Sara and Kristen) at their hostel, where they fortunately had an extra bed for me. It was a really nice hostel, eco-friendly and with a delish vegetarian restaurant. We went for a horseback ride in the mountains.

Shaye and I were the only ones who had ridden before, and neither of us for years, but that's no problem, let's go trotting and galloping around anyway. Poor Lauren was terrified but one of the guides jumped on her horse and took her all over the place. When we got to the top of the hill we left the horses and climbed down a really steep slope to get to a secret waterfall.

Kristen, Me, Sara, Lauren, Shaye

It was exhausting but well worth the effort. Our guide did it in spurs and he didn't even break a sweat. We were all panting. After a short break by the pool we climbed back up even higher to a terrifying overlook that was literally right at the cliff's edge. It was cool though.

The trail to the waterfall overlook: "Danger at 10 meters."

Upon our return to Pucón we booked a trip up the volcano (the main attraction) for the next day. The weather was a little sketchy but there was still a good chance it'd be ok, so they told us to come back the next day at 7am if it wasn't raining. Well, when we woke up at 6 (blech), it wasn't raining, but it was super cloudy and windy. We thought we'd give it a try anyway, as did the other people on our tour. At the tour office an irate Frenchman came out and told us no. Someone commented that is wasn't raining. He turned and pointed at the cloudy spot where we had seen the volcano the day before and said (you have to imagine this in a really strong French accent), "Did you see the volcano yesterday? Do you see the volcano today?" He then went inside. We went back to bed.

The volcano on Friday, when it was nice. Just taunting us.

When we woke up (again) it was cold, windy, and very close to raining. We went back to the office to figure out what we could do when we ran into Amanda&co. The police in Temuco found Chris' passport so they could come ahead to Pucón. I felt worse for leaving, but they said it was ok, no one knew. The AU girls wanted to go to the natural hot springs but Amanda was going white water rafting so I went with them.

It started raining on the way to the river but we were going to get wet anyway. Fortunately they gave us wetsuits, shoes, and jackets to wear or we would have frozen to death. Our guide was insane. He took us down rapids backwards, he purposely ran us into rocks, and whenever we hit a calm section he would start whistling this eerie song. On one little rapid he told us to stand up on the sides of the raft. Amanda and I didn't cause we were scared. When we got through it he suddenly jumped back into the boat trying to make people fall.

We did some class IV rapids, which was intense but a lot of fun. Then we pulled over to the side of the river and the guide told us to get out. The next rapid was a class VI (aka way too hard for tourists) so we had to walk around it. We had to climb a slippery hill in all our gear (and let me tell you, water shoes have zero traction). The path ended on a rocky outcrop over the river. The guides were below us in the boats saying, "Jump down! Jump down!" We had to jump off a rock at least 10 feet high into the class IV rapids river, then swim over to the rafts. I was nervous enough about this, and I know how to swim. Amanda does not. There was no other way down though, so she faced her fears and did it. Go Amanda!

I went back to their hostel to dry off, eat and nap. We made spaghetti and garlic bread and ate it by candlelight for earth hour. Once I was nice and toasty I had to go back out into the rain to get to my hostel. Apparently Pucón has a very poor drainage system and I had to do a lot of puddle jumping. Until I got to the main street, however, and saw that it had turned into a river. There was no way for me to cross without getting soaked halfway up my shins. I ended up getting a taxi driver to drive me across the street (kindly enough for free).

The next morning it was STILL RAINING so we bid Pucón ciao. Let me tell you, 10 hours on a bus goes by a whole lot faster when you are asleep. I probably slept for at least a third of this ride and it still seemed like forever. They showed House and The Dark Knight, which helped, but I was going stir crazy by the end. It was such a relief to stand up in the hot Santiago metro.

Now I am back to school. I have gotten into the habit of taking a half hour power nap every afternoon. This unfortunately tends to happen during my class on globalization. I try so hard to stay awake, but I can't do it. I always fall asleep at 3:30 and wake up at 4. The class is 90 minutes though so i don't miss that much. We've just been talking about freaking MERCOSUR for the past two weeks anyway, so whatever.

One final thought and I will end this novel of a post (it's a good one though, right? lots of adventure). On the hike we got to see the national flower of Chile, the copihue (co-pee-way). It only grows in certain climates in southern Chile and only blooms a couple months a year, so I'm glad I got to see it. It was kind of far from the path, so Sara's picture isn't that great, but you can look it up yourself if you are actually interested (I know Jenelle is!).

Disclaimer: Due to a combination of weather conditions and battery death I only managed to take one picture the entire weekend. The credit for these goes to Sara, Shaye and Lauren. Thanks guys!

Jobs and such

I have really good news! Two items, actually, although one was expected. First, I finally got an internship (for credit) here in Santiago. I'm working with Julie Munro and Mary Hansen for a professor at our university. We'll be researching ways to green UDP and the potential for alternative energies in Chile. I'm excited about it, it sounds really interesting. I will probably be starting it next Tuesday, although Edmundo's real laid back so who knows.

The other item is that I got the job I applied to for the next school year!!! I'm going to be the Program Associate for the University College class The Sustainable Earth. Now, you may be asking yourself, "what do all those big vague words mean?" because I was. The UC is a program at AU for incoming freshmen. They all take one class together, live on the same floor, and do activities related to the class. It's supposed to inspire community. I will be the experienced student assisting with the class, living on the floor with them, and planning said activities. I get free housing and a $1,000 stipend each semester. I'm super excited! As much as I want to move off campus, this sounds like a job I will love. Plus, I get to work closely with my favorite person Kiho Kim. Let me give a shout-out to everyone who helped with my application/gave me moral support when my interviewer was out of the office for my interview (i actually never even interviewed--either i was the only one who applied or they take Dr. B's nomination very seriously). So I basically have jobs lined up from now until next May. Go me! : D

Other than that, things have been pretty calm around here. I haven't done much besides go to classes and do homework, but that's college life. My family had an asado on Saturday. It's basically a cookout (Katherine) with an overwhelming amount of food. They literally had a pile of raw meat. A bunch of family I hadn't met came over, so that was fun. After dinner they had a giant poker game, but since I don't know how to play and didn't want to lose my money I sat out.

On Sunday I walked over to Pueblo de los Dominicos, a large artisan craft market a convenient half hour's walk from my house. It had a bunch of shop with cool but expensive items, but a few of you may be getting souvenirs from there. There were also dancers from Isla de Pascua doing some traditional something or other, I couldn't really understand them. To be honest, I spent most of the time trying to figure out whether or not the guy had anything on under his grass skirt. Conclusion: I imagine he would have something on, but I'm pretty sure I caught a glimpse of cheek, so maybe not.

That's it for this week. Not very interesting, I know, but next post will be great. I'm going to Pucón this weekend with Amanda and some of her friends from Viña. It's a small town in southern Chile with a lot of outdoorsy-type things to do, such as white water rafting, horseback riding, and climbing the nearby volcano. If I don't make it back, I love all of you, except for the one. You know who you are.

Transantiago

Well, as you probably heard/saw, AU lost a great game against Villanova. Hopefully we'll get another shot (ba dum PSH!) next year, but as most of our good players are seniors we'll have to see. But this means I can throw the full weight of my support behind the Memphis Tigers without guilt. Go Big Blue!

Back to Chile.... this post is about Transantiago, the public transportation system here in Santiago. It's overall a really clean and efficient system, which is good because I have a long commute to get to school. Every morning I walk 4 blocks to the bus stop, take a 10-20 minute bus ride (depending on traffic) to the metro, go 13 stops, then walk another 3 blocks to the university. All in all it takes about 45 minutes.

The metro here is really nice. There are 5 lines that are given both a number and a color for some reason. Ironically, my university is on the red line, just like AU. Unlike DC, however, the trains are always running. I don't think I've ever waited longer than 2 minutes for a train (which means you can do better Bethesda). Each metro station has a different design, usually with tiles but sometimes with big paintings. It's really beautiful. The stations have fun names like Tobalaba, Baquedano, and Irarrázaval. They play music videos on the platforms and in some of the newer trains (usually Leona Lewis for some reason). The trains are very clean overall, although you do get the occasional tumbleweed of hair, it's just really, really hot. There's no air conditioning except for the wind from the train's motion. Also, the trains stop running at 10:30, even on the weekend, which is extremely inconvenient.

The La Moneda metro stop (I did not take this picture)

The buses, or micros, are very nice as well. The ride can get a little crazy with quick acceleration and stops, but that just makes it fun! Those "bus only moves when doors are closed" signs are just for show though. The most interesting part of riding the bus is that there's a thriving informal market of people trying to sell you stuff. It's usually drinks or snacks but there's been some weird stuff. I've seen Chinese band-aids, school supply kits, and nail scissors. People jump on the micros to perform, too. Sometimes they're rapping, sometimes they're playing the drum, but there have been some classy ones too. One time we got a string trio (i don't know how the guy carried the cello around all day), and yesterday I was on a bus with a full panflute band. It always makes for an interesting ride.

Los Andes Maravillosos

Hello faithful readers! I hope you all have your brackets set for a 14-3 upset on Thursday!

Things are still chugging along here in Santiago. I don't have much to report from classes, but this weekend was pretty fun. On saturday my wonderful host sister Coté drove me, Kristen and Kaia to el Cajón del Maipo, a beautiful river valley about an hour outside of Santiago (pictured above). We weren't able to go to the place Coté wanted to show us because there was a police checkpoint and she forgot her driver's license, but it was fun nonetheless. We went hiking in a park and saw two beautiful, if small, waterfalls (pictured below). The guide was pretty chill so we were able to climb right up next to it. Coté is so funny. Every time we passed cyclists in the car she would pretend to smack with her hand and say "cinco puntos." She also made a bracelet while we were waiting (she didn't go on the hike). She makes woven bracelets that make those friendships bracelets we made in middle school look like the work of toddlers. I want to take her home with me.

Later that night there was a huge party for Sarah Flak's 21st. We rented out an entire, albeit small, bar, and invited all the Chileans we knew. They are limited to our host siblings and flaite guys people have met in bars (Coté didn't want to come :(. It was fun overall, though. I am getting sick of reggaeton but when we tried to put on some beyoncé the bar management changed it back. Bummer.

On Sunday Sara Santner's brother took me, Sara and Kristen to a futbol game. I'm certain we were the only white people there. It was insane! I mean, the game wasn't all that interesting (it was soccer, after all), but the fans were really entertaining. They have flat out songs, not cheers, and sang THE ENTIRE GAME. I don't know how any of them have vocal chords left. It was Colo-Colo vs. Universidad Catolica. Sara's brother was for Colo-Colo but they lost 0-1. At one point during the game they pulled this giant Colo-Colo flag up over the section we were sitting in. it was like in elementary school when we played the parachute game. I don't have any pictures because they took my batteries so I wouldn't throw them at the players.

I'm going to wrap this up with a couple stories about odd Chileans:
-A taxi driver asked me to name all the English cuss words I know.
-We had to register our visas with the police department. The officer that handled mine asked me what kind of romantic music he should play to impress an American woman. I told him Marvin Gaye. He then told me to watch out for catcalls and proceeded to name off 4 or 5 I might get..... thanks?

EPIC WIN

AU beat Holy Cross today 73-57 to win the Patriot League Championship!!!!! We are going to the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row! I am extremely sick with envy that I won't get to go this year (damn I picked the wrong semester!) but I am super excited for the team regardless.

I got to watch the game online thanks to espn360.com (although the picture quality left much to be desired). It was epic, AU dominated from tipoff. HC was never ahead, in the first half they only shot 18% from the court (they improved to 30% in the second). Garrison Carr was sinking 3's right and left, freshman Nick Hendra had some sweet plays, and Brian Gilmore (aka "Jesus" due to his tattoo) once more proved that he deserves to be the love of my life. I even saw my band homies on my computer!

Fun facts:
-AU defense is ranked 9th in the nation
-They have the second longest active winning streak (behind, of course, Memphis)
-I was late to our group dinner tonight because I watched the whole game, but who cares? All I missed was the salad and I got the satisfaction of breaking the news to everyone
-I freaking love American University

SOOOOOO selection Sunday is in two days and you can rest assured that I will keep you all updated whether you like it or not.

Brain Teaser

I have decided that I will alternate posts between my various, extremely interesting activities and my impressions of Chile. As I am supremely tired at the moment this one will be short.

The Chilean flag and the Texas flag look extremely similar. Sometimes when I see the flag out of the corner of my eye I get confused. See if you can guess which is which.



(i'm going to have to look up the answer)

Touring the V Region

This post is going to be a bit long, a lot has happened since I last wrote.

On our last day of class our teacher told us she had a surprise for us. The surprise was a Chilean rapper who was talking about the work his group Legua York does in the community as well as freestyling for us a bit (I thought of Adam). I also went shopping with Dania in an inexpensive part of town, we enjoyed that a lot.

The AU group left Thursday morning to tour the V Region. Chile's states don't have names, just numbers. We went to Isla Negra, one of three houses Pablo Neruda lived in. It was full of really cool stuff he'd collected over the years: bowhead figurines, liquor bottles (empty), ships in bottles, butterflies and beetles, maps, indigenouse masks and figurines, shells, and my favorite, a narwhal horn. He also had a beautiful view of the Pacific coast.

We then left for Viña del Mar, a city on the coast of Chile about an hour and a half from Santiago. We spent the night in a hotel there and I got to see Amanda, who is living in Viña this semester, for a little while. One of my AU friends got her purse stolen on the beach, but she miraculously got it back with nothing stolen except her camera. What luck.

The next day we took a walking tour of Valparaíso, or Valpo for short, a shipping center a few miles south of Viña. Our guide was super guapo, I took this sneaky picture of him during the tour.

The tour was nice, we went in a bunch of side streets and alleys that had really cool murals and graffiti. There is a lot of graffiti in Chile but it's not gang stuff, it's a form of art that deals with social and political themes. We also had a couple stray dogs follow us for most of the tour.

After that we were done with the group part of the trip, so I went back to Viña to hang out with Amanda. She has a really nice apartment right on the beach. We were bad exchange students and ate Pizza Hut and McDonald's (it was so good though!). She had some friends she met at her orientation over. They are all exchange students so we had a mix of Germans, French, Swedes, Australians, etc. The Australians lived up to every stereotype, it was great. At one point they grabbed me and Amanda and yelled, "Bastard children of the British Empire, unite!" It was pretty funny.

Dania and her friend Majo from her housing visited us on Saturday, it was a nice reunion of the gang. That night Amanda and i went with the int'l people to a Chilean discoteque. It was a lot of fun, they played 70s and 80s music like KC and Earth Wind and Fire. We were out really late, though. We didn't get back to her apartment until 6, which was a bit much for me. But overall it was really nice to spend some time at the beach with my boo. Facebook pictures here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2141467&id=7411879&l=2f1a5.

I came home on Sunday to finally talk to my host sister María José, or Coté for short (don't ask me, i didn't understand the explanation) (but then I failed miserably trying to explain how "shotgun" works). I like her a lot. I only just met her because she spent her summer vacation backpacking through the southern cone of Chile and Argentina. She's into environmental issues and wants to increase ecotourism in Chile. She has also offered to take me hiking and skiing. I think we are going to get along very well.

Today I fell asleep in class for the first time this semester. Coincidentally, it was also the first day of classes for the semester. In my defense, though, the first day of class is always boring and we were reviewing IR theories such as realism, which I have done in EVERY SINGLE SIS CLASS I HAVE EVER TAKEN. So I'm allowed to doze off. Also, it's really hard to pay attention to a lecture in another language. Coté is having the same problem in her English classes. I offered to switch with her.

On a final, very exciting note, if AU wins against Holy Cross on Friday we will be going to the Big Dance for two years in a row! I'm really excited, even if I don't get to go. Actually, I'm going to be sick with envy when I don't get to go, but it's still great for the school. All my AU friends need to be not lame for once and go to the game! LET'S GO EAGLES!

Pittures

We took a tour of the city today by bus. It was muy aburrido, I fell asleep. But I did eat a cadbury chocolate McFlurry and it was super rico!

If you want to look at some pictures here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=34634322&l=4a344&id=7411879.

Cachai?

Hello all. My first week in Chile has been interesting and pretty good overall. Orientation started on Monday and goes through this week too. It's been useful but the days are super long. We have Spanish class from 9:30-1:30, then "culture" class from 3-5. During the break we've been walking around the streets by the school, but there's not a whole lot around. The best find has definitely been the supermarket with a food court, Dunkin Donuts, and bowling alley on the second floor. I can't help but think how much better my Kroger experience would have been.

Part of the Spanish class has been "chilenismos," slang and phrases that only Chileans use. One of them, "cachai," is derived from the English word "catch" and it means "understand?" Also, "novio" means fiance while "pololo" means boyfriend. This made for some confusion on day one. Chileans use "super" a lot too, much to the amusement of this AU group.

The class has also taken field trips to a few places in the city center. We went one day to La Moneda, the seat of government. It's the Chilean equivalent to the White House, only with much less security. Anyone can go inside during certain parts of the day, and as one girl pointed out there aren't any snipers on the roof. Of course, President Bachelet doesn't actually live there. She commutes. Underneath La Moneda is a museum showing (for now) an exhibit about Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. It was pretty cool, although Frida's paintings can be pretty disturbing.

I have also been to the Museum of Precolumbian Art, featuring pieces from Mayans, Incas, Aztecs, etc. It was a very nice museum (a bit pricey though). The temporary exhibit there is about these super old (super-viejo!) fishermen that were the first civilization to perform mummification. They had several mummies on display, it was macabre but awesome.

We have a new guest at the house. Fransisco is a friend of the family from northern Chile and is starting university this year, so he's staying with us for a while. He's pretty nice, but he's out all the time, so I haven't talked to him very much. The other kids are coming back later this week.

I had dinner with Dania last night. It was really nice because A) we had the best pizza ever and B) the AU group is still in what I call the "freshman phase," where we don't really know each other and can only have really light conversations. So it was refreshing to chat with someone who I already know things about. Not that I'm not making friends. I went out with some girls to Bellavista, one of the better places for el carrete (another chilenismo for nightlife). I tried pisco, the favorite drink here, for the first time. It was good but kind of strong. We ended up leaving fairly early by Chilean standards, though, since we were so tired from the long week. My host mom asked why I came home so early. At 2am.

I'd like to share more about issues and cultural differences here in Chile but I haven't had time to really observe a lot yet. So more on that later. Ciao bellos!