Hello again from a beautiful and narrow land. I have finally arrived at my host family’s house, I have unpacked and am ready to begin the new academic year; more or less. The last two weeks have been so filled with activity, I hardly know where to begin. Our hectic schedules continued throughout orientation, leaving only enough time to walk home in the afternoon in order to enjoy the last of the daylight. The Santiago summer heat is slowly beginning to fade and the cool nights are becoming more frequent. Still, the last month has felt distinctly like a vacation. Living in a hostel for a month and hearing the tales of everyone’s travels within Chile is a real challenge because it desperately makes me want to go on vacation to see all of the supposedly breathtaking sites I have heard about. From what everyone says, I may never want to leave Chile.
This orientation could not have been more unlike last year’s. I had daily internet usage, I was constantly surrounded by Gringo’s and I only had to use Spanish when ordering food in restaurants. Not to mention that I have yet to shed a single tear this time around.
Last year, I constantly felt as though I was on the brink of tears. As if the whole experience was too much and that I needed to turn around and go home, where I would find something less frightening to do with my life. In contrast, this year, I have almost constantly felt as if the coming year won’t even be a battle. I have my own bedroom and bathroom with hot water. I have a cell phone and a TV. What else could I possibly ask for?
It’s funny to think that I am doing WT again. They are entirely different programs with the same mission. I am here to provide excellent English instruction so that my students, who have been disadvantaged until now, might be better able to improve their well being as well as that of their families. You can’t change the world all at once. You can only help one person at a time, but that’s the only way to do it.
During the last week of Orientaion, we met the rest of the English Teachers from different programs. I considered a couple of the other programs but I am really glad that I chose World Teach again because the compensation from the other programs is still pretty minimal and they have to find their own housing. Not to mention that they receive about 4 days of in country training. I’m sure that they are perfectly capable, I’m just glad that I chose the path that I did.
In other news, we also learned how to dance the Cueca, which is the typical Chilean dance. It’s not nearly as fun as Salsa, but at least I have another Latin American Dance under my belt. I need a little more practice with the Cumbia and I need to learn the Tango, but then I am good to go.
I also took my first Capoiera class, which is a form of Brazilian Martial arts that reminded me a lot of dance classes. It’s a strange combination of gymnastics, Martial Arts and Dance, but it was a complete blast. I am definitely going to try to take more classes over the course of the year. I can’t remember the last time I had such a great work out. Bottom line: I want to keep that going if I can.
So now: a word or two on my new digs. I must say, my situation has vastly improved since last year. My house is 3 stories. I live on the second floor. There is also a little office and a second bathroom on my floor which my host siblings use. My host siblings Aranza (10) and Joaquin (7) live on the third floor in a kind of attic/open space. My parents live on the ground floor. The living room, kitchen and laundry room are all on the ground floor. The house is really quite cozy and the family is terrific.
Brendon lives a few blocks away, so I anticipate seeing him, just about every day. Our school meetings got cancelled today so he and I are going to go on an adventure in Santiago. I feel so lucky that he is my neighbor here. I really couldn’t ask for someone nicer or more outgoing. He’s just a sweetheart. The rest of the volunteers laugh because we constantly refer to one another as “Hermano” and “Hermana” but that’s what it feels like. He is my long lost little brother from Michigan.
Also, I found out that our host families are staunch Pinochet supporters. Or they were, so, that will be interesting. I shouldn't say it as if it's a bad thing, I was just surprised. I have to remember to tread softly on that note. I have to keep the socialist in me under wraps.
I finally got my official Chilean Identification card by the way. It's pretty exciting, It's like a belong here now. More or less. Brendon's wasn't ready because he somehow messed up his fingerprinting the day that we initially went through the extremely tedious process of getting ID's. So now, he has to go back some time next week to pick his ID up.
Alright, that’s enough ramblings for one day. Stay tuned for more notes from the Other Hemisphere.
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