"Por favor, Bob necesita su ayuda."

Guaco (my host mom) is holding the cake,
 and Danny (host sister) snuck into the background.

So the birthday party that my host family threw me was fantastic. Not only were they able to find decorations that actually said “Happy Birthday” (not “Feliz Cumpleaños”) but they made me tacos and got me a huge birthday cake (filled with my new favorite food called manjar – a dulce de leche that will knock your socks off). When it came time to sing Happy Birthday, my host-sister’s boyfriend pulled a guitar out of nowhere and I was serenaded. I fully expect my friends to learn how to play guitar so that next year I can be serenaded for my birthday yet again… I’m talkin’ to you Petross and Utley.

I felt like a little Gringa princess on my birthday...
they really went all out.

Nothing too notable happened last week at school. I taught the different names of animals and had the students play Animal Pictionary. Probably the most entertaining part of this game was being asked by the kids how to say “chupacabra” in English. This week’s lesson isn’t so easy: I’m teaching how to give and take directions so that they would be able to find their way around an English-speaking city. I drew a map of a little city that I shamelessly named “Carolineville” so that they can give directions to my friend Bob (a poorly drawn little man driving a blue sports car that is also poorly drawn). Occasionally Bob makes it to his destination with the student’s help, but mostly he spends the class getting directions shouted at him in Spanish since the students have a hard time understanding Bob isn’t bilingual. We’re still working on the whole English part of learning English…

Carolineville and the forever-lost Bob...

So, I came to Chile with the idea that after the program ends on November 24 I would spend the month of December travelling through other parts of South America. Forever the optimist, I was just sure that I would be able to hit up Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina, Ecuador, and even Uruguay if I was feeling sassy. When I was in Europe I was able to go all over the place because airfare there was so darn cheap, so I just assumed that it would be the same in South America. Turns out South America is a little bit bigger than Europe; a plane ticket from Buenos Aires to Lima costs about $400 on a good day. So needless to say, I’m in the process of revising my plans. Once I have some set in stone, I’m sure I’ll update the ole’ blog to complain about how expensive everything is, so get excited!

Gracias a Dios, now I have a candle!

Yesterday I got my first care package from home. Nothing can make a crummy day turn right around like a care package. My wonderful stepmother and father sent me an enormous box full of things to make my room cozier; now my walls are rocking some excellent artwork. Plus they sent me candles, which are the best gifts I could ever ask for right now – as much as I adore the ball of fluff that is Mateo, he tends to leave a puppy stench behind that room spray struggles to mask.

Overall I’m starting to get comfortable in my new home here. I no longer have a panic attack when a curious taxi driver strikes up a conversation with me – my Spanish has gone into survival mode and I don’t have nearly as hard of a time understanding everyone now (even though it’s still no walk in the park). My day-to-day has settled into a comfortable pattern that allows time for my favorite part of Latin culture: siestas. I also have started going to a little gym that is a hilarious hodge-podge of equipment from the past 30 years (including some really excellent posters of Arnold Schwarzenegger in his glory days which threaten to “Pump You Up”). I don’t really go for the equipment though; there is an aerobics class called “Fight-Do” which is a scary mix of boxing and karate that made me hurt for a solid 3 days after I took it, which I think means that it was good. The only drawback is that the music in the class is played at concert-level decibels and could very possibly damage my hearing… but no pain no gain, right?

Ok well it’s getting late, and since I’m waking up every morning at 6:30 am (which I know is hard for my family to believe) I better tuck in. So, until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

If a mute swears, does his mother wash his hands with soap?

-Caroline

Advisor Abroad in Chile

**Update: I just went to the gym to what I thought was another Fight-Do class. About 30 minutes into it, I was utterly confused by the abundance of hip-shaking and the sheer lack of air-punching. Turns out I unknowingly showed up to a “RitMix” dance class which showcased all the best steps from Samba, Tango, and Salsa. Yes, that’s right: I was forced to dance in front of a room full of wonderful Latin dancers. I’m probably the most rhythmless person I have ever met. The teacher (a sassy little man in neon spandex) kept pointing me out to the rest of the class to demonstrate how not to do things… it was lovely. However, the absolute highlight of my week came at the end of our class during our cool-down: our teacher instructed us in a “sexy dance” to a Shania Twain song that involved us slinging our jackets over our shoulders. Best cool-down ever. Needless to say, I definitely double checked that tomorrow’s 4 pm class would actually be Fight-Do…

"Simon dice toca tu nariz... otra vez"

Today is my 23rd birthday. Yes, it’s my first birthday away from the States, but I have a feeling that I won’t be feeling any homesickness because of it. My host family has decided to throw me a party tomorrow with tacos because they know how much I love Mexican food. On top of that, I might be making a little trip to the Casino tonight; it’s a proven fact that people are 47% more lucky on their birthdays :-) . Plus the Casino here is super inexpensive by US standards; last time I went, I only took out about $10 in coins and only lost about $2 after 3 hours of gambling… and that’s with a significant amount of losing.
This past weekend I went to a town about 2 hours away from Iquique called Pica. Overall it was a very relaxing weekend, save the presence of an inquisitive 8 year old (the granddaughter of my co-teacher) who didn’t understand the concept of “speak slowly for the Gringa because her Spanish isn’t the best”. It was interesting to go on a road trip in the desert; sure, I know that deserts are supposed to be dry, but good grief – there was nothing but sand, hills, and more sand. Also, this desert (the Atacama Desert to be precise) is the driest in the world – there are some places that have no recorded rainfall in history. Seriously.

So far school has been going well. Last week we worked on learning parts of the body. Of course, no Parts of the Body lesson would be complete without singing “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes” and a game of “Simon Says”. Over the course of the week, I probably sang that song over 100 times; it will be years before I can bring myself to sing it again. Also, Simon is permanently retired; he gave out more orders last week than an army drill sergeant and has nothing more to say. Every week I am teaching the kids a new slang word so that they can keep up with the American vernacular like pros. Last week our word was “Sweet!” and this week it was “Dude!” I definitely made sure that they understood the diversity of the word “dude”, as it can be used in anger, confusion, excitement, and utter sorrow. They also enjoyed my impression of Keanu Reeves from “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” as I demonstrated the theatrical application of the word “dude”. I’m still debating over what the slang word next week should be; if any of you have suggestions, let me know.

Ok, well I’m off to go do some shopping and other frivolous activities because it’s my birthday and I’m allowed. So, until next time, here’s my philosophical question of the day:

Is there another word for synonym?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

P.S. – My host family changed Mateo’s sweater this week. As shocked as I was and as much as I miss the plaid, he’s looking quite dapper in his new tan sweater, especially because it is accented with doggie footprints and stripes.

**Update** Last night my family and I went to an aunt's house because one of the cousins was having her birthday too. There was a huge (delicious) strawberry cake that they had made for her, and my family made sure that everyone knew it was my birthday too. After she blew out her candles, they added 1 more candle (because she turned 22) and lit them again. Amazingly, a room of about 20 Chileans started singing "Happy Birthday" to me in English. Absolutely delightful.

Also, I won $10 at the Casino... then I lost it all and had the best time doing it :-)

“Conoces a Miley Cyrus?”

Well, since my last update a lot has happened. Firstly (and most importantly) I found out my placement. I’m in Iquique (woot!) and really like it so far. I’ve been here a week and am definitely relieved to be out of the hostel. When I got here my host family still had another volunteer living with them, so I lived in a hotel for the first 3 days. After a week of sharing space with so many people, it was nice to have a little respite in the hotel. Plus there was a television with cable in my room, which is always a plus.

Mateo and his plaid sweater.

I moved in with my host family last Thursday and couldn’t be happier. I literally struck the host family jackpot: these people are so sweet and are well trained in the art of housing volunteers. I’m their fourth volunteer; they love having volunteers and even have an altar-like corner of their kitchen covered with photos of the past volunteers. I’ve already been informed that I will soon be a part of the volunteer altar as well. The members of my new family are the following: Guacolda (Guaco for short) is the mother. She is a teacher who works at two different schools and, because of this, is super busy during the week. She told me to call her “Mamá” so I definitely feel right at home. Miguel is the father – he works with a concrete company and is also super busy during the day. I have a host sister named Daniela (Danny for short) and she’s 25. She works at Brinks Security and attends a university at night. And, as an added bonus she speaks some English! I also have a host brother named Cristobal who is 23 and is studying mining at the university. Also, we have an abuelita (little grandmother) who lives in a room by the kitchen. I really haven’t seen much of her; she stays in her room all day and watches old movies. Finally, we have Mateo the dog. He’s more of a Dennis the Menace character than anything else: he’s a master thief of socks, shoes, and jewelry. Apparently he’s never been naked a day in his life; he’s been wearing the same plaid sweater ever since he was a puppy. During the daytime there is a maid named Sandra who comes to cook lunch, do laundry, and clean. She’s super nice and was delighted to find out that I’d rather have soup than eat meat everyday.

Where my captive audience sits...

School has been great so far. For the first 4 days I was just observing the classes to see what they were like. Needless to say, classroom dynamics here are a tad different than in the United States; the concept of “sit down and listen” doesn’t really apply. My first day I was a little taken aback because the students were literally walking all over the classroom during the majority of the class; they were talking to their friends and listening to their iPods while Isabel (my co-teacher) was busy yelling at them to shut up and listen. I actually started teaching classes yesterday; I have my own classroom (which is pretty sweet by the way) and only get the 10 best students from every class. So far this system is working out pretty well. So far I’ve surprised myself with how teachery I can be. I’ve even been wearing cardigans that could possibly be described as teacher sweaters (gasp!). Also, all my students think that I have met famous people. I’ve been asked if I know Miley Cyrus, Justin Beiber, Michael Jackson, and the Jonas Brothers at least 40 times.

My desk and white board.

Today at school we had a tsunami drill. At first I didn’t understand that it was a drill and almost had a panic attack; my school is right by the beach and apparently we will only have about 10 minutes after a tsunami advisory to get to higher ground before the tsunami hits. Once the bell sounded, the students knew exactly what to do and took me to the middle of the school where everyone is supposed to meet. It’s comforting to know that the entire school can be ready to get to higher ground in about 2 minutes.

A view of my classroom.

Chile culture is pretty entertaining. Probably my favorite part about their version of Spanish is the fact that they make everything small: bread is not just bread, it’s tiny bread (pancito). They do the same thing to cheese (quesito), tea (tecito), and pretty much everything else (I have been called Carolinita on more than one occasion). Also, they use the word “po” in almost every sentence. What does it mean? Well, nothing really; it kind of gives emphasis to other words though. For example, they like to say “Sí, po”, which I’m pretty sure means “heck yeah”. It’s definitely entertaining to listen to.

My list of rules. Yes, that's right: I am now an authority figure.

This weekend I’m going to a small town by Iquique called Pica with my co-teacher Isabel and her family. They have a house there and I think the plan is just to relax. Apparently it’s a really pretty little town, so I’m sure I’ll have a good time.

I’ve added some pictures from Santiago to my online photo album. You can look at them at http://carolineenlaciudad.photoshop.com/. Once you’re at the website, select the Santiago album and then you can view it in a slide show via the buttons that have little blue squares on them in the lower right side. I haven’t taken too many photos in Iquique yet, but rest assured that some will be posted soon. So, until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice?"

-Caroline

Advisor Abroad in Chile