Santiago, Chile

Santiago, Chile

Sunday, June 27, 2010

A Day in the Life

It's been a bit since I've written because I feel like I should have something interesting to write about rather than mulling over the day-to-day routine. But after some reflection I realize that perhaps that daily grind in Santiago might be of interest to the folks at home who are blasting the air conditioning and dreaming of snow-capped mountains. So, I apologize if this blog is a bit dull, but let me attempt to give you a little taste of my life.

Mondays through Fridays I teach classes during the day. Right now I only have three classes: a private lesson with a 35 year-old marketing manager who works for Bell Microproducts, a group class with 6 students from Movistar, and another private lesson with a finance manager at Cardif insurance. The first two are level one, so beginner/intermediate. We do a lot of grammar and basic conversation practice. The finance manager is level 4, so he is pretty advanced. I try to find authentic texts (podcasts, articles, or other things that are made for real people rather than the classroom) on subjects that will interest him to make the hour and a half class go by quickly. When I'm not teaching I have to check in at the Comunicorp office every day. I use the time there to plan my lessons and familiarize myself with their resources.

My boss is a nice woman, but she can be pretty intense. She is always willing to help me out, and she seems to have a great mind for business. Everything she does is to improve the Comunicorp image and sell more classes, so it's important for her to make sure that we know what we're doing and get all the help we need. Recently there has been a lot of turnover in the teaching staff, so my roommate and her veteran friends and just getting to know me and the other knew recruits. Maybe it's just me, but there seems to be a little tension in the air. I hope that after the next staff meeting we will get a chance to know each other better and hopefully make friends.

Outside work, I go to yoga Mondays and Wednesdays with my roommate and a couple other teachers, and I go to capoeira Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. I used to practice capoeira in the US with a Chilean teacher, and he recommended this school to me. I was a little nervous about showing up by myself, hoping I would be able to understand all the instructions and that the other students wouldn't look at me like a crazy gringa (always a risk...), but when I showed up I was greeted with hugs and kisses, and the group was really happy to have one of Bucho's students join them all the way from America. I confess to enjoying not just a little the room full of young Chilean men in perfect physical form, many of whom seem to find my blue eyes and light hair exotic. I don't necessarily mind the attention. Although there aren't many other girls in the class, they are also really nice and welcoming, which I haven't experienced very often among Chilean girls. There is definitely a sense of community there, and I am glad I found the group so quickly.

Unfortunately, my social life so far has been a bit lacking. I have my roommates, and a few random contacts to hang out with, but somehow on weekends I spend a lot of time waiting to go out and do something, often to be let down at the end when the rest of the crew decides they don't feel like doing anything. I enjoy hanging out around the house with them, but either I need to bring the party and animate them to go out more, or I need to find a group of friends who is always up for an adventure. I am thrilled to be in Chile, but these are the moments when I miss the awesome group of friends I had in Baltimore, where there was never a boring weekend!

Until I find a crew like that down here, I am trying to make the best of time spent relaxing at home, which I never did enough of in Baltimore. I've only been here for three weeks and I'm sure that in time as I get to know my fellow capoeiristas better and make more contacts, I will probably be just as busy as I was back home.

What else can I tell you about daily life? Feel free to send me some questions and give me an inspiration of what else to write about...

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

The Chaos

South Americans have a knack for chaos, regardless of whether they are expressing triumph or dissent. In 2007 when I was in Chile, the universities were closed regularly for strikes, and the newspapers featured pictures of encapuchados, kids with those famous Palestinian bandannas over their faces throwing molotov cocktails at the attacking guanacos, police tanks that sprayed tear gas. At the time, I witnessed the riots from the safety of my apartment in an upper middle-class neighborhood.

Little did I suspect that, much like my beloved Terps, Chileans riot out of celebration, too. Today Chile won their first World Cup game since the 1962 match against Yugoslavia in Chile. Today's win was their first ever World Cup victory abroad.

Although most male-dominated offices in machista Chile were closed for the morning due to the post-game celebration, I had one female student to teach across town who didn't feel the need to cancel our lesson due to soccer. On my way home most buses, already loaded down with flag-waving fans, passed me by. When I finally caught one it was filled with teenagers dressed in Chilean flags, singing and chanting endlessly and jumping so hard the bus literally bounced down the street.

A few blocks south of the stop where I was to get off the bus made an impromptu turn because police had blocked the road. I got off there and headed towards my next bus stop, veering around the cheering, drunken, brawling masses until my eyes and nose started to sting a little. As I walked, the street got emptier, and my face started stinging more and more. A few remanining encapuchados were throwing rocks and vodka bottles at the police tanks, and I saw a white cloud burst out of the guanaco half a block away from me.




Plaza Italia, scene of the party and rioting







Police breaking up the crowds







I tried to avoid the chaos by taking the metro, but they had it barricaded shut. The intersection where I was headed was blocked off too, so it would be impossible to catch a bus. Covering my nose and mouth with the corner of my coat to avoid inhaling the tear gas, I jogged to the nearest avenue to catch any bus headed away from the scene. None were stopping. Finally I was able to flag down a cab, but once I was inside my eyes started watering, and the more I cried the more it burned. Three blocks down I was sobbing into my coat, sputtering in the only Spanish I could remember asking the cab driver how to make it stop. He wasn't able to offer me any useful advice.

After I got home I took a shower and rinsed my eyes for a few minutes, and the burning sensation started to lessen. Unfortunately, so did my excitement at being in Chile for such an important victory. I have had great experiences watching games abroad in Mexico, Chile, and Spain. I have hugged strangers after a game-winning goal and relished stories about soccer's ability to stop wars and bring together different cultures and ethnicities. Although I had heard horror stories about riots and hooligans, I never experienced first-hand the violent side of "the most beautiful game". My attitude changed from cheering the Chileans this morning to cursing them this afternoon. I think for the next match, I won't be leaving my house.

Spanish speakers, read the El Mercurio article

Thursday, June 10, 2010

The Aftershock

I am sitting here typing away at my blog when I feel my desk and chair start to shake back and forth. "Terremoto?" my roommate asks. "No, aftershock" replies her boyfriend. A few minutes later, after he looks on IRIS, he says "Terremoto de cuatro puntos". Apparently we just felt the effects of a 4 point earthquake in San Juan province, Argentina. After looking at the website, he explains to me that when there's an earthquake in Chile, the Japanese pay attention in case it causes a tsunami on the other side. Nothing like natural disasters to make you feel close to people, eh?

***

Yesterday I moved in to my new apartment a few blocks away from work. It's right in the center of everything but in a safe neighborhood. I share the place with another English teacher at my company, her Chilean boyfriend, and his Chilean friend. I have a big window that overlooks the main avenue, and in the distance you can see Cerro San Cristobal, the big hill in the middle of the city (it's prettier than it sounds, when you can see it). Since the earthquake everyone seems eager to point out how secure their buildings are. Apparently Pinochet's mother used to live here, and that alone is evidence of how sturdy the construction must be.

The highlight of my day was visiting my old host family. I was a little nervous because I didn't think I'd left on very good terms with my host mom. I hadn't written her the best evaluation because our relationship had been a bit rocky. But when I saw her and my host sister again it was like reuniting with old family members. They invited me over for once, which is like afternoon tea. Bread and avocado (they mash it and add oil and salt- delish!), apple cake, coffee, and cookies are once staples. As we eat my "sister" shows me the wallpaper ripped by the earthquake and tells me about her experience volunteering in the south where the worst damage occurred.

Seeing them again made me feel like I had finally come to terms with the person I was the last time I was in Chile. I have felt guilty about being so self-absorbed back then, and now that I've had the chance to show them the "new me", I feel vindicated (is this the right word?). I met their current host student, and it was funny to look at her and remember what it was like to be in her position.

It's fitting that I should feel the earth move under me at this time of upheaval in my life. Picking up again, moving to a new country again, the earth is always moving under me. Things that you take for granted- your foundation, your friends, your life- are never really stable. I like being in a place where no one forgets that.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

La Llegada

I'm back on a plane headed to South America. It hasn't even been 365 days since I came home from Spain. A friend, convinced he had me figured out, told me that I seek diversity, that I grow bored when things stay the same for too long. This is probably true to an extent, but just to clear things up, I'm not setting out on this latest adventure because I'm bored.

I love Baltimore, I love my family, my friends, my job, my life. But since my contract at work was going to run out, I sent out 40+ applications, and this is the job I got: teaching English for a language firm in Santiago. It seems that fate has tossed me a second chance to fall in love with Chile, and this time I plan to take full advantage of it.

My history with Chile is a mixed one; I studied abroad here in 2007, at the time madly in love with a boy who stayed in the US. Although I traveled a good bit and saw some of the most spectacular places in the world, my heart was at home with him. Now that I am unattached I plan to make the most of the trip and live in the present time and space as much as possible.

So here I am, on the road again, nervous but ultimately faithful that things will work out in my favor.

***

The last time I went to Chile, there was a blizzard that shut down 2 of the 3 major airports in the region. Tears streaming down my face at the thought of leaving my boyfriend, I was driven to the only open airport, and it turned out to be the wrong one. (Un)fortunately, they were able to get me on a plane to Santiago, but I would have to buy a round trip ticket because I was going on a tourist visa. It ended up costing $1800.

This time, I was scared I would run in to the same problem since I don't have my work visa yet. Nonetheless I was able to check in, breeze through security, have an enjoyable sit in the Bogota International Airport, and waltz through customs and immigration in Santiago with no problems. (I highly recommend Avianca airlines for all your South American travel needs.)

Another concern I had was the temporary housing situation. Not only was my flight set to arrive at 4:45 am, but I had never actually spoken or written to the woman I was supposed to stay with. However, when I did show up at her doorstep at 6 am I received a warm, friendly greeting. She has given me tons of food, unlike the stingy host I was expecting (partly based on past experiences). She even brought me warm milk before I headed to bed! Clearly the woman has grandchildren.

I was also worried about my job. What was I getting myself into? I don't know anything about the world of business, and I had only spoken to my boss over skype. I decided to stop by the office today to scope things out. I didn't do much but the place was nice and I even spied a sign left by another teacher seeking a roommate. I wrote down her phone number, went to the store to buy a prepaid cell phone, and texted her at lunch. Tonight I stopped by her apartment to visit, and it was exactly what I had in mind. She lives with two Chileans and another American teacher a couple blocks from our work, all of them are friendly, the place is nice, clean, and safe, and the rent is affordable. They gave me the keys and I move in tomorrow!

I can't believe how smoothly things have gone today. It has been a whirlwind 24 hours, but I am starting to feel like this is the trip to Chile I was always meant to have. I like to say I am lucky, but another old friend told me it isn't luck, I just know what I'm doing. I think in a situation like this, though, a little luck is a very nice compliment to hard work and experience.