Orientación…

My first meal in Chile: a sandwich called the Barros Luco.
It's named after a former president who just
loved his meat and cheese sandwiches. He and I have
that in common.

Well, 2 days of Orientation have passed without a hitch. The official name of this program that I’m doing is English Opens Doors (which will henceforth be referred to as EOD) and is put on by the Government of Chile, who is partnered with Cultural Embrace in Austin. The people running EOD are a fun group of Chileans, American ex-pats, and a delightfully random Kiwi from New Zealand. So far Orientation has consisted of several workshops on classroom management and lesson planning (which for a novice like myself will prove to be invaluable).

What wasn’t so fun was today’s presentation on health safety; although super informative, it had to address the nasty little subjects of earthquakes and tsunamis. For those of you who know me well, you know that I have a teensy bit of anxiety when it comes to storms/natural disasters… and when I say teensy, I mean a lot. As a kid, I was the paranoid freak wearing a football helmet while hiding in the hall closet with a handheld radio and a flashlight whenever there was a tornado watch. Turns out I never really got over it (I blame my mother for forcing me to go with her when she was trying her hand as an amateur storm-chaser). Anyways, needless to say that during today’s presentation I was a bit on edge. We were told that there are often earthquake tremors in the north, especially in Iquique – in fact, they had one 2 weeks ago (I think it was a 5.6). They tried to tell us that this was a good thing because it means that the earth is releasing its built up stress regularly instead of being quiet for years and going absolutely nuts like it did in southern Chile in February. Stay tuned for the blog that comes after I experience my first tremor: I have a feeling that I will have a hard time seeing it as a good thing then. They also said that there are several tsunami drills in Iquique over the course of the year without warning so that people will always be on their toes. The blog that I write the day after I’m woken up at 3 a.m. and told to run for the hills should be a delightful read as well.

The view from Melissa's window of her new apartment.
Yeah, those are the Andes.

After Orientation I’ve been able to hang out with the girls that I’m rooming with as well as Melissa, my new friend from Mexico. Luckily, she was able to find an apartment that has an AMAZING view of Santiago (I’m talking postcard worthy). In our free time we’ve mostly been walking around the city while trying new places for meals and sightseeing – I feel like the blisters I’ve gotten from the countless miles that I’ve walked in my new shoes are necessary evils because I’ve seen a lot of Santiago and have eaten really amazing food so far. These Chileans love their meat; Texans can rest assured that they will feel right at home here (not to mention that their national flag is pretty darn close to the Texan flag).

Some of my new friends: Melissa (left) from Mexico and
Amanda (right) from Houston

Since I got here about 2 days before everyone else and have had some time to learn the streets of Santiago, I’ve been elected the unofficial city navigator among my little group of friends. I find this hilarious because I’m never the person who volunteers to carry the map and find out where to go; I’m a very content follower and leave the ‘taking charge’ role to my friends like Emily Quant :-). Even so, I’ve not gotten too terribly lost yet and I’m pretty darn proud of myself. I just can’t get over the fact that people keep asking me how to get places and I actually know… it’s the darndest thing. Also, while going through the streets of Santiago, one can’t help but notice the huge number of stray dogs wandering all over the place. Although this fact makes me pretty sad since it forces me to imagine my Buddy as a jaded little street-wiener, I am comforted by the fact that some dog-loving Chileans have taken it upon themselves to equip about 90% of the street dogs with their own little doggie sweaters so that they can stay warm – these are probably some of the most chic homeless pooches in the world.

Hostel living hasn’t been too bad so far; it’s no Holiday Inn, but it has free internet and hot water so I’m moderately comfortable. There are only 3 girls living with me in this little room and they are all super nice. Even so, living in such close quarters has some drawbacks. Since I know that I’m not someone who can sleep through loud snoring, I came prepared with earplugs. However, there is some snoring so thunderous that even earplugs can’t block it out, and because of this I’m about to take a much-needed siesta. Until next time, here’s your philosophical question of the day:

If God sneezed, what would you say to him?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

¡Estoy aquí!

After a 3 hour flight from Dallas to Atlanta, a 3 hour layover, and a 10 hour flight to Santiago, I finally got here yesterday! And it’s cold. Really cold. Right now it’s about 46˚ and tonight it’s supposed to get down to 28˚. And it’s raining. I have about 4 blankets on my bed right now because the hostel doesn’t have central heating and my bed is right by the window. Considering all the complaining I did about the Texas heat, you would think I would be happy. Turns out that being super cold isn’t all rainbows and hugs either.

I had a really interesting cab ride from the airport. The cab driver picked up on my gringa-tastic Spanish and the fact that it was my first time in Santiago and decided that he could make some money off of me. $80,000 Chilean Pesos seemed a little high to me anyways, but thanks to the tiny calculator in my wallet, I found out that it was about $160 USD for a 20 minute cab ride. That guy really thought that I was an idiot. He even called his boss/fellow con-artist while he was driving so that I would really see that $80,000 was a good rate. I told him I wasn’t paying him any more than $20,000 and that even that was too generous. He told me that he would at least need $30,000 so he wouldn’t get in trouble with his office. Since I just wanted to get the heck out of that cab, I gave it to him. Caroline’s first lesson in Chile: don’t trust the taxi drivers.

After I got here yesterday, I was lucky enough to get a temporary roommate who turned out to be awesome: Melissa from Mexico. She’s in Santiago as part of a study abroad program with her university in Mexico. She and I did some exploring of Santiago yesterday while looking for an apartment for her to rent. It makes me feel so much better that Melissa, a native Spanish speaker, is having a super hard time understanding what these crazy Chileans are saying. Having her around is like having Spanish training wheels; it’s been great exploring Santiago with her. We even tested out the metro, which turned out to be one of the cleanest that I’ve ever been on (it puts Chicago’s to shame). Unfortunately the hostel is full for tonight so she just had to move to another one across town.

Ok, well I’m about to hop in my 2 ft x 2 ft shower before I go explore the city for some lunch. I’m excited about orientation starting soon! But more than anything, I can’t wait to get up north to my new home in (hopefully) Iquique. I’m sure I’ll post another update before the week is over! Here’s the philosophical question of the day:

Before they invented drawing boards, what did they go back to?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

Tarapacá...

Today marks the 2 week countdown until I leave for Chile. Good grief. Every time I start to think about what I should pack, a storm cloud of information overload threatens and my brain goes into self-preservation mode (which typically results in a nap). Rather than focusing on silly things like packing, I’ve chosen to be productive in ways that don’t require me to think too much. For example, I will inevitably need several new playlists on my iPod, and choosing new music is not a task that should be taken lightly. Also, I decided to get my International Driver’s Permit just in case I need to rent a car. After my Russia fiasco, I’ve decided that it’s best to have as many transportation options as possible while traveling.

A View of Iquique... I really want to be placed there!!!

I just got an email from the Chilean Ministry of Education saying that my regional placement in Chile is in the Tarapacá Region. Since I was thinking that it was going to be in the Atacama region, I’ve not bothered to learn about any of the other regions. I just did some frantic Googling and learned a little bit about the region thanks to the always useful Wikipedia. It’s located in the “Big North” of Chile and is divided into 2 provinces. Since I don’t know exactly which town I’ll be in until I go to orientation in Santiago, I can only guess where I’ll end up. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I end up in the town of Iquique. It’s the capital of the region and seems to be pretty awesome. It’s located right on the water and seems to be metropolitan and very well developed. I don’t mind small cities, but I’d much prefer to be in a bigger one; mostly because it would be more likely to have a movie theatre, which is always nice if I’m feeling homesick.

My book on Chilean Spanish... really entertaining

I’ve gotten very lazy with my Spanish practice and I just know that I will regret it once I get off the plane in Santiago. I bought a book of Chilean Spanish called “Chilenismos”. As far as I can tell, Chilean Spanish is going to eat me alive. Although the book is full of super entertaining Chilean slang (especially the section labeled “The Profane and Sexual”… I’m not proud of the amount of giggling I did), the introduction of the book didn’t serve to boost my Spanish confidence. It says that Chilean Spanish is so difficult to understand that most native speakers have trouble understanding it. It even says that oftentimes Chilean movies have standard Spanish subtitles when they are released into other Spanish-speaking countries. Although the Spanish Department at Baylor was more than wonderful, I don’t think it has prepared me for what I’m about to encounter…

So, the next time you will get an update from me will probably be when I get to Santiago since I'm about to go into a panicked preperation mode for Chile while attempting to re-learn high school math for the GRE. Rest assured that these entries will be much more frequent and entertaining once I have interesting things to talk about during my adventures in South America. So, until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

Las cosas importantes...

So, in about a month and a week I’ll be on my way to Santiago. Am I jazzed beyond belief? Yes. Am I in any way prepared? Not hardly. I tend to be one of those wait-til-the-last-minute kind of gals, so it’s not surprising that I haven’t done too much. Starting this week, I’m going to try to pick up the pace a little bit though. That "Culture Kit" that Cultural Embrace sent me contained a fairly detailed packing list, gracias a Dios. I’m sure this will be invaluable for someone as disorganized as myself.

I remember that when I was in Spain for 5 months last year, there were some very specific things that I missed terribly from the US (not including my friends and family… that’s a given). Since I only have about a month before I pack up and head off to Chile, I feel the need to make a list of those things so that I can make a point to enjoy them to the fullest before I fly out.

1) Carpet – My Señora in Spain only had tiled floor… and so help me if my feet weren’t cold most of the time. You don’t realize how precious warm feet are until they are taken from you. My sock monkey house slippers just couldn’t compare to some nice warm carpet. I’m not sure what the Chilean policy is on carpet, but I am definitely hoping that they are pro-carpet.

2) Tex-Mex Food – Anyone who has ever had a truly amazing Tex-Mex meal knows what I’m talking about. Sure, Madrid had a few “Tex-Mex” restaurants, but when you’re that far away from the real thing, the authenticity suffers. Now, I’ve not been to Asia (yet), but I’m sure my Tex-Mex problem can be compared to living in China your whole life and then coming to the middle of Texas and having a meal at a “Chinese” restaurant and being served Sweet and Sour Chicken swimming in unnaturally red translucent sauce. Delicious? Yes. Authentic? Probably not… that color of red doesn’t exist in nature. Anyways, Tex-Mex food is something that is near and dear to my heart. I thought about it weekly while in Spain and demanded that my family immediately take me to the closest Tex-Mex restaurant possible once they picked me up from the airport. They did and it was amazing. I’m hoping that since we’re on the same hemisphere, Chile will know a thing or two about some decent Tex-Mex… but if not, está bien… distance only makes the heart grow fonder.

My first Tex-Mex meal back in the States after I left the airport. Sublime.

3) My Weenie Dog – His name is Buddy and he’s the best dog in the world. I know you probably think your dog is pretty awesome, and maybe even the best in the world. However, since you’ve never met Buddy, your ignorance is understandable. His cuteness is only rivaled by his ability to love unconditionally. He’s melted the hearts of many a grown man, and I’m quite confident that no one is immune to his charms. My Señora in Spain didn’t have any pets, but she did have a stuffed turtle named Juanita. Unfortunately, Juanita was not familiar with the art of loving unconditionally. If I’m lucky, my Chilean family will have some sort of pet (hopefully not a bird... I can't handle the squawking). Anything will do really, just something that is lovable enough to lessen the pain of my Buddy withdrawal. At least Buddy has already agreed to Skype with me often…

Two great things in one picture: The Magnificent Buddy and the fantastic carpet from my Grandparent's house.

4) My Car – Don’t get me wrong; I love to walk and, provided that it’s reasonably clean and safe, I’m a big fan of public transportation (global warming and all that…) I didn’t really miss driving during the first few months of being abroad, but I came to find out that there was really no private place for me to belt out singing without there being people nearby to annoy. Bad singing is one of the perks of driving around, although most people don’t consciously recognize its significance. The desire to belt-out only became more painfully strong when I was walking the streets of Madrid while listening to my iPod. Without a car to encapsulate the rocking-out, one runs the risk of blowing the minds of others with sheer talent. Being a visitor to a foreign country, I wasn’t sure of the consequences of mind-blowing, so I refrained from public singing. You can bet that when I got back home to my car (it’s name is Corollatron: by day it’s a mild-mannered Toyota Corolla, by night it’s a Transformer), I used the majority of a tank of gas to perform the highlights from Les Miserables. I’m sure that Chile will pose a similar problem, but I’m not opposed to shower singing if my host family can handle it.

A typical Rock-Out session in the car. Don't worry, I wasn't driving.

Although there were many more things that I found myself missing terribly, these were the most obvious. I’m sure that while I’m down there I’ll start reminiscing over other things that are just as random and I will inevitably talk about them in this blog, so get excited. So, until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

Whose cruel idea was it for the word lisp to have an "s" in it?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

No más tarea!

I'm done!!!!

Well, now that graduation is over (sans tripping on stage!), I have left the thriving metropolis that is Waco for the browner pastures of West Texas. Whereas most of my friends are currently soaking in some summer sun, I am buried in a mountain of LSAT books. In my life that is currently being darkened by Logic Games, my July trip to Chile seems to be the only bright spot. Buying my plane ticket last week only served to make me even more excited… especially since I got such a sweet deal from FlyForGood.com!

Now that I’m not in a Spanish class everyday like I was at good ole’ Baylor, I’m forcing myself to watch Telemundo/Galavisión etc. every night to keep my ear trained to Spanish (so that I don’t sound like an idiot once I get to Chile.) So far the commercials have been the best part of this exercise; I highly recommend that everyone take at least 15 minutes to watch a Spanish-speaking TV station just to see how entertaining the commercials are. For example, what I thought was just an innocent advertisement for pots and pans turned out to be the story of a lackluster marriage that could only be saved by a scandalous makeover of the wife and a new desire to cook seductive food… using her new pots and pans. Better than a telenovela. Oh, how I love Latin culture :-)

Since I’ve been so inundated with LSAT madness I haven’t taken too many steps to prepare for Chile except a few things here and there. For graduation I was lovingly gifted with a new computer (thanks family!!) and am soooo excited to take it to Chile with me. My last computer was a 4-year old dinosaur that weighed about 10 lbs… not the easiest to travel with. This one is a sassy little black thing that only takes up minimal room – all the better to go through airport security with! Also, I’m planning to allot some graduation gift money towards a new digital camera so that I can post some excellent pictures for you guys to enjoy.

I just received my “Culture Kit” in the mail from Cultural Embrace. It’s filled with really great information about living in another culture; it even includes how to deal with the inevitable effects of culture shock. When I was living in Spain I remember having a few very intense moments of culture shock. A few times I would venture down to the movie theatre that showed American movies with subtitles. Another time, I had a very low moment and ended up sitting by myself in the corner of a Burger King savoring the beauty of an order of fries and chicken strips while getting some funny looks from the locals. As depressing as that sounds, it helped immensely.

Well, unfortunately I have to get back to my LSAT for Dummies book since I only have about one more week to improve my score by an unrealistic amount. I’m convinced that there is a special place in infierno for standardized tests. Until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

When you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

¡Graduación y Empanadas!

Yes, it’s true: I’m finished with finals! Glory hallelujah! I even managed to make all A’s, with the exception of a B in that pesky Spanish Grammar class that I was complaining about in my previous post (I will forever despise the subjunctive tense.) All that’s left is to walk across the stage this Saturday without tripping. Considering the heels that I’m planning to wear, this will indeed prove to be tricky…

Aside from packing up my little apartment, I have an ample amount of free time… and to be honest, it’s freaking me out. Therefore, I am going to take this opportunity to kill about an hour talking about what I’ve found out about Chilean etiquette and food culture thus far…

Chilean Etiquette!

After some very productive Googling, I discovered a website with some very interesting information on Chilean etiquette, and here are the highlights:

*Men will usually shake hands and women generally pat each other on the right forearm or shoulder.
*If invited to a Chilean's home, take sweets/chocolates or wine for the hostess. Send flowers in advance. Do not give yellow roses as they indicate contempt, or purple/black flowers as they symbolize death. Also, do not give scissors or knives as they indicate you want to sever the relationship.
*Dining etiquette can be quite formal in Chile. The hostess invites people to eat. Keep your hands visible when eating with your wrists resting on the edge of the table. Avoid speaking with eating utensils in your hands. It is considered polite to finish everything on your plate. Finally, pour wine with the right hand only.

Comida Chilena!

Chile has a very diverse food culture. As I have previously mentioned, I’m especially excited about the seafood, but I have discovered that there are other local dishes that sound equally as exciting. Here’s a little look into what I’ve found out about the Chilean food culture:

*Chileans normally eat 4 times a day. The first meal of the day is breakfast, which mostly consists of rather light fare including toasted bread with butter and instant coffee with milk. Lunch (served between 1:00 and 2:00 P.M. ) is the big meal of the day. Traditionally two main dishes are served. The first course may be a salad of some kind. The second dish generally includes beef or chicken, accompanied by vegetables. Around 5:00 P.M. Chileans take once, an afternoon tea with bread and jam, that often also includes cheeses and palta (avocados). Once, which means "eleven," is evidently named after the British tea time—11:00 A.M. Around 9:00 P.M. most families serve dinner, which is usually a single but substantial dish, most often accompanied with wine grown in the many Central Valley vineyards.
*Some popular dishes in Chile are empanadas (pastries stuffed with meat, cheese, or seafood, as well as onion, raisins, and olives), humitas (a paste of white corn, fried onions, and basil, wrapped in corn husks and cooked in boiling water), and pastel de choclo (white corn and beef casserole topped with sugar and mostly cooked in traditional black ceramic dishes).

I’m pretty much obsessed with Anthony Bourdain’s show No Reservations on the Travel Channel. Despite his snarky attitude about most things, his look into the food culture of the countries he visits is super entertaining. Here’s a link to a video of his visit to Chile and the empanadas he encountered.

http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Anthony_Bourdain/Video/Tony_Visits_The_Legendary_Las_Deliciosas
Well, unfortunately I need to start the long and arduous process of packing up my apartment. So, until next time, here’s the philosophical question of the day:

When cheese gets its picture taken, what does it say?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile

Sobre mi vida...

¡Hola!

Well, as promised, the level of procrastination in my studies has significantly increased as the number of days before graduation has decreased. Since I am currently putting off studying the subjunctive verb tense in Spanish (a topic which I repeatedly have nightmares about), I’ll take this opportunity to tell you more about myself.

I was born and raised in Abilene, Texas and graduated from Abilene High in 2006. After my graduation, my senior trip was a 2 week tour of Europe with a group from my high school history classes. We started off in Italy and visited Rome, Florence, and Assisi and then made our way to Lucerne, Switzerland. From there we took a bus to Paris, where I officially ran out of money, and then took the Chunnel to London, where I begged my parents for more money via a 4 minute phone call from a hotel room that would turn out to cost about $40. This was a particularly momentous occasion in my life because it not only showed me how much I love to travel, but also created a deep-rooted fear of using hotel phones in Europe.

Me in Paris. I was smiling because I had not yet realized that I was out of money...

I entered Baylor University in the fall of 2006 and have been here ever since. I’m an International Studies major and have a minor in Spanish (which would turn out to be a masochistic decision… who knew that learning another language would be difficult?) As much fun as Waco is, my first 2 ½ years here only increased my desire to get the heck out of Texas. Finally, my opportunity to escape came last spring during my junior year when I decided to study abroad in Madrid, Spain at Saint Louis University’s Madrid campus. During my time in Spain, I lived with an awesome Señora named Carmen, I learned how to thoroughly embarrass myself with my botched Spanish, and I had the opportunity to travel all throughout Spain and to parts of Europe. I visited Amsterdam, Athens, Munich, Prague, Vienna, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Moscow (where I lost my passport and barely escaped… it’s a really entertaining story that would probably make a decent Lifetime Movie).

Me in front of Lenin's Mausoleum in Moscow... something I will never fully understand.

Last fall, as I was trying to figure out what to do with my life after graduation, I received an email saying that a Cultural Embrace representative would be at Baylor to talk about opportunities abroad. Since I knew that I’d already missed the deadline to take the LSAT and apply for law schools for the fall of 2010, I figured that going back abroad would be the thing to do during the year before entering law school in 2011. After the presentation, I was fairly positive that this was the company that I wanted to work with in deciding what to do and where to go abroad.

Over the past few months, I have made the decision to teach English in Chile through Cultural Embrace so that I can work on my Spanish while imparting wisdom upon the niños there. Although I was a little nervous about the prospect of teaching English since I’ve never done it before, I was comforted by the fact that I will be working alongside a Chilean teacher in the classroom; basically it’s like having teaching training wheels. I can’t tell you how excited I am to get down to South America and throw myself into the Chilean culture. My dealings with Cultural Embrace so far have been great. Even when the earthquake hit a few months ago, they were in constant communication with me to help me figure out what would happen next. Their mission statement of “discover the differences, share the possibilities” is something that I have found to be true in all of my travels abroad and is something that I can’t wait to apply to my time in Chile!

So, next time you hear from me I will (hopefully) be a graduate of Baylor University and will be prepping to take the LSAT in June (ugh.) and for my trip to Chile in July (yay!!). So, until then, I will leave you with the philosophical question of the day:

Why are there interstate highways in Hawaii?

-Caroline
Advisor Abroad in Chile