Memories Have Been Made :)

I can't believe I'm sitting here typing this and it's the last day of my trip.  It has been so, so amazing!  So far today we've gone to Valparaiso for Mama to get some papers for her new job then to the artisan fair where I bought two last gifts.  Mama surprised me by getting me a little pendenant made of lapislazuli as well as gifts for my family.  She is too sweet!  We'll be eating lunch soon then I'm taking them to get helado.  Soon after that I'll make my way to UVM with my 51 pound suitcase and a lot of memories.  Below are a few Chileanisms for yall....just some random things that always go on here:


I love that car alarms sound like a guy whistling at a girl
And that people walk down the street and mind their own business
And that every pregnant woman feels the need to wear a midriff shirt.

I love that I’ve written every date in Spanish for the month of January
And that I have a tan
And that I go to the beach all the time.

I love that body image doesn’t matter here

And that people only eat good food because they like food that tastes good
And that they say they’re on a diet as they shove a cookie in their mouth.

I love that people don’t wear watches because they don’t let their lives be ruled by time

And that the days start later
And that it’s okay if you’re running late.

I love it that people love,
And that they’re in love,
And that they’re passionate.

I love it that we speak in Spanish,

And that strangers speak about me in Spanish thinking I don’t know what they’re saying
And that I can understand them.

I love that we climbed a volcano,

And stood barefoot on a black sand beach,
And navigated our way around a capital city in a foreign country.

I love that we volunteered at Hogar Niño Amor

Because those kids impacted our lives more than we impacted theirs
And they will always have a place in my heart.

I love that people wear shirts with the saying “This City Never Sleeps”

Because it’s true and people go out at night and they have fun and they don’t worry about rest
Because who needs rest when you can have fun.

I love it that I’ve gotten to stay with a host family

And meet all their friends
And go to church with my host mom.

I love it that people walk everywhere

And if they need to go further they take a bus
And it they need to go even further they take a collectivo.

I love it that we get helado all the time

And that we know the workers at Mo’s
And that they know us.

I love it that we go to Bravissimo,

And Morena’s
And Café Journal.
 
I love it that we have tons of inside jokes
“Let’s Ruca this Mapuche” “Is that a shipwreck!?” “Are we gonna ride the Ferris Wheel?”
“Look I made up a new dance move…it’s called the airplane” “Do the Miley!” and so much more…

I love it that we’ve made memories that will last a lifetime

And that our friendships have grown stronger
And that we will always be the Chile 2012 Interim group.

Basically I love Chile

Especially Viña del Mar
And I’m really going to miss it here J

Beach Bums :)

This morning I got up late and we had breakfast at about 11.  Then everyone put bathing suits on and we packed our lunches.  Mama's sister & niece came over & we all piled into the car to head to a beach about an hour away near ConCon.  It was so nice there!  There were barely any people and the sand was really soft and flat.  We set up our umbrellas, had lunch, and just relaxed.  After a little while Catalina & I went in the ocean which was beyond freezing but we eventually kind of adjusted to the water.  We stayed there until 7 then drove home.  About halfway through the car ride home I realized how exremely sunburned the entire back of my body is....awesome.  I'm really looking forward to sitting on that place for  6+ hours tomorrow now.  Back at home I had some soup for dinner.  The whole gringo crew is meeting soon at Cafe Journal to reminesce on the month.  I cannot believe I'm leaving this amazing country tomorrow!  I've had great experiences here that I will never forget!  I've heard the phrase "Que te vaya bien" so many times this month and I have definitely had a good journey :)

Tuesday!

Today was a great accomplishment because we completely finished our classes! This morning we had final exams--a written one in Veronica's class and an oral exam in Marisol's class. After our exams SG, AG, Elizabeth, Gardner, and I went to the artisan fair and then to Lider to buy some necessities aka Manjar and Chilean candy. After that I went home for lunch and slept some.  Then the five freshman girls went out for ice cream together at Bravissimo's so that was fun.  I can't believe we only have 2 days left!

Studying & Kite Pics

Today was the last day of classes before final exams!!  We had an exam in Marisol's class then finished watching "Volver" (wierdest movie ever) in Veronica's class.  After classes we went to the artisan fair then I went home for lunch.  I studied for a while then SG, Elizabeth, and I went to the beach to take kite pictures at sunset.  After that we edited the pictures and studied at SG's house then I went home and studied more.  It was definitely and simple but fun day :)

DoMiNgO

This morning the whole family woke up and had a quick breakfast at about 11...ham, cheese, toast, and tea.  Then everyone got dressed and around 1 we drove to Valparaiso for lunch at a really good seafood restaurant by the ocean.  We ate there and they ordered salmon for me because I had such a confused look on my face while reading names of seafood in Spanish.  It was really good!  After that we took some pictures by the ocean and then drove back to Bravissimo in Vina to get helado.  We hurried to the bus station after that because my host dad had to leave to make it to his flight on time because he works in the north during the week.  Once we told him bye, we went back home and got ready to go to Renaca to Mama's friend, Carmen Gloria's, house.  Her house is gorgeous and it overlooks the entire city.  She lived in the US for 11 years and her husband works there now and comes home to Chile as often as possible.  It was neat to see all American stuff in her house because they had everything shipped here when they moved back to Chile.  We swam in her pool then had once together.  Mama's sister, brother-in-law, and niece were there too and Carmen Gloria's brother, sister, and 2 nieces so it was fun to have lots of people there.  After that we took Mama's sister, brother-in-law, and niece home then went to the grocery store before going home.

Sabado!!

This morning I got to sleep in then I woke up and had breakfast.  I got dressed and did some photo editing then we had lunch at about 3 with the whole fam + Angelica.  It was fun & the food was amazing!  We had baked pumpkin, colliflower, rice, onion salsa, melon, and tomatoes!  After lunch I headed to Valpo with Anna Grace, Gardner, Elizabeth, Sarah Grace, Laura Kate, Chris, Brody, and Brooks. Everyone else had lunch at a little cafe then SG, LK, Elizabeth, and I used the asinado (sky lift up the mountain) to go to a little flea market.  We got some ice cream, went down the mountain, and took a bus home.  Elizabeth came home with me and hung out for a little while.  When she left I cleaned my room and then had dinner with Mama.  Then I got ready for Fran's party and I'm about to leave to meet everyone at Cafe Journal so we can head to the party together!

Viernes

This morning I got to take a test in Veronica's class...not too fun.  After that we watched part of some weird movie with Penelope Cruz.  In Marisol's class we did our presentations/had our dabate.  After class we went to a casa de cambio so some people could change money.  Then all the freshman girls walked to 5 Norte to check our a sushi place and see if we wanted to eat there later.  SG, Elizabeth, and I went to the beach for a little while then I went home and did some work before getting ready for dinner.  Anna Grace, Gardner, Elizabeth, Sarah Grace, and I ended up going to the sushi place and it was really fun....minus the fact that I'm not a big sushi fan though haha We all enjoyed being able to dress up and just hang out together :)

Jueves

Today was a little different.  I had classes then I came home for lunch and Pastor Henry was here.  We had lunch with him and one of Mama's friends.  They asked about my travels and were very interested in my mission trip to Ecuador so it was a blessing to tell them about how God worked in and through us on that trip.  At 4 I went to Nino de Amor to volunteer.  It was our last day so we stayed there until 530.  U hurried home and put on a dress for my skype interview.  I did a little work before but I couldn't focus so I skyped Dad for a while.  After my interview I did homework then ate dinner.  Then I did more homework and Mama spell checked my presentation.  Then I did more homework and went to bed....obviously we had a lot of work today!

Miercoles

Okay so obv I've been slack with the blog but I've been updating my journal so I'm just going to copy from it....

Today we had classes for FOREVER because Veronica decided that we love grammar and like to have it 24/7.  After class everyone went to the artisan fair and walked around.  We found this cute booth with all new stuff so that was cool.  Then all the freshman girls went to a Mediterranean restaurant on the way home.  We had these little wraps and it was really good, especially with hummus and salsa.  After that I went home and did work until 630 when I went to church with Mama and LK.  It lasted for 3 hours and it was really fun.  There was a meditation thing first and it was interseting--people talked about places where they feel close to God so it was neat to hear that.  During the sermon Pastor Henry asked me to read a verse so that was cool...it was actually one of my favs Phil. 4:8.  Back at home I did work after I had tea with Mama.  Then I sat on the porch with Rodrigo & his friends for a little while.  At this point it was 1 am so I went to sleep soon after.

Typical Tuesday

Today was a typical day...long, simple, & fun!  I had class this morning and it was sooo long...Veronica keeps adding extra classes because she was sick/we had to miss a day for a required field trip...annoying.  Anyway we had that then I went home and did my homework because I had a ton.  Then Gardner called to say that we didn't have to volunteer at the orphanage today because they weren't going to be back until later tonight because they had all gone somewhere.  Rodrigo proofread my paper so that was really helpful then I went to the artisan fair for a little while with Laura Kate.  Then, tonight I went to a restaurant called Morena's with Anna Grace, Sarah Grace, and Elizabeth.  Elizabeth's host brother works there so he was our waiter and he kept getting in trouble for talking to us too much haha  It was so much fun & we enjoyed just sitting there talking for a few hours!  Next we went to Mo's (aka the best helado in all of Chile) and got some ice cream then went home.  Everyone else was at some event down by the ocean but we were too tired to go/Anna Grace had to get back home to her sister's birthday party.  When I got home Mama started showing me something on tv and before I knew it it's 1 am and we're looking at family pictures.  It was neat to see their family though and to show her mine.  I'm so tired though so I definitely need to sleep now.

Volcano Villarrica!!

This past weekend was so much fun!  On Friday night, at 7:00, I met Sarah Grace, Elizabeth, and Laura Kate to walk to the bus station together.  I was loaded down with my bookbag full of clothes & some books.  We met everyone else at Lider (Chilean Wal-Mart) to get a few snacks for the bus ride.  Then we went to the bus station to wait for our 8:30 bus.  We were extremely early because we did not want a repeat of our Santiago experience, especially since this ticket was much more expensive and since the next bus left in another 24 hours.  Our bus left late so we made the bus on time...obviously.  The bus ride was pretty interesting...one time I woke up to the attendant putting a blanket on me so that was a little creepy but overall it was okay because I got some sleep.  We arrived in Pucon 12 hours later at 9:20 am.  We literally walked a few steps to the building beside the bus station which just so happened to be our hostil.  It was actually nice compared to other ones I've heard about.  Our rooms weren't ready yet so we went a few blocks into town and ate breakfast at a cafe.  Then I met Elizabeth's family friends that live an hour away in Tumocu...they haven't seen her since she was a baby so they came to visit.  We went back to the hostil and changed into bathing suits to go on our tour of the city/visit to the hot springs.  Our tour left at 2:30 and we went to a Mapuchi reservation first.  To get there we had to get out of the van and walk across a not-so-sturdy bridge...once we were walking and a car drove across it and we had to squeeze up against the sides so it didn't hit us...not so fun but it all worked out.  This Ruca Mapuchi was much more interesting than the other one we went to.  There were little shops and lots to do but we were there for just a little while.  We left there and went to a waterfall, then a lake, then two more waterfalls.  To get to the last one, we climbed this hill through the forest and were able to stand at the top of one waterfall & look at another one behind it.  It was really cool!  After the waterfalls we went to the hot springs!  It was extremely hot but we found one pool that wasn't too hot & nobody was in there because it was kind of shallow so it became the "gringo pool."  We were there for 2 hours then we left and went back to the hostil.

Back at the hostil a barbecue was going on.  Tara, Elizabeth, LK, SG, & I went to the grocery store to get lunch for the next day then joined everyone out back for the festivities.  We now have some good British friends...they were also staying at the hostil, they're probs in their 30s & they're hilarious.  We left at 11 or so to go to bed because we had to be up at 4 the next morning.

On Sunday we woke up at 4 because we had to be ready by 4:30.  It was a little bit of a disaster for a little while during the getting ready time because everyone was running around in a hurry but we all made it on the bus and drove for a while to the base of the mountain in full gear.  Once we got there, the guides attached picks & sleds to our special backpacks and with only an introduction of names, we began our hike.  No safety briefing.  No signing of release forms. Welome to a country other than America.  The first hill was so steep and after a while I was breathing heavily trying to catch my breath thinking...oh great, I forgot my inhaler back in Vina...awesome.  Needless to say, I quickly fell to the back of the group.  All was well though because one of the very kind guide assistants, Nicolas, walked a little slower with me.  After the second stop Anna Grace & Gardner joined us at our slower pace.  Nicolas got mad at us sometimes for being slow and yelled at us to hurry up so we could catch up to everyone else but that never really happened.  The main guide was literally running up thr mountain and we just wanted to enjoy the scenery at a calmer pace.  Once we hiked up this giant mountain of snow it was time for another break & Nicolas said we were only half way.  It had been hours and we hadn't just hiked up a little hill.  We had hiked up a mountain and we were about to have to hike up basically another mountain on top of this one to get to the mouth of the volcano.  We started to go for it but decided to turn around when the British people came back down.  They said it wasn't very safe because of the wind and ice as well as on-coming storm so we started making the treck back down the mountain with Nicolas while all the brave people went up.  I was a little disappointed in myself but we made it very far so I didn't feel too bad.  We actually had a good time going down the mountain.  No pressure to hurry...we just relaxed and joked the whole time.  Nicolas was constantly laughing at us and he only got mad when we "accidently" slid down the snow when we weren't supposed to.  We made it down to some rocks and we stayed there for over an hour waiting for everyone else then we started walking again.  Finally they all caught up because they got to slide down the snow on their boards since the ice had melted my the time they came down.  We kept going while they took a break and everyone met up at the bottom.  It was so much fun & challenging! I'm glad we did it!

After that we went back to the hostil, showered, and went to dinner.  Then at 8:30 we boarded our bus and drove through the night back to Vina.  This morning, we got here and I rested for a while then had lunch with the fam.  Next Elixabeth, SG, LK, & I went to the beach.  Overall it was a great weekend!! Such a neat experience :)

This Weekend~Hiking a Volcano!!

Today was pretty simple..I woke up early to study some, went to class, had a test, then got out 3 hours early because our 2nd teacher was sick.  I went to the mall with Gardner, Anna Grace, Sarah Grace, and Elizabeth and we just walked around for a little while, took Elizabeth's camera to a Nikon store to charge, and ate lunch at Bravissimo.  We went to the counter to pay and I handed the lady a $1000 peso for my meal that was like $4000 pesos.  She just started laughing at me and it was so awkward/funny then I had to step out of line and find pesos and then when I was paying she was making fun of me and telling this other lady haha..so awkward.  After the mall we rode back to Calle Arlegui and SG and I got her money out and waited for Laura Kate to get money out too.  Then I came home and ate lunch and skyped with Mom, Nana, and Papa.  Right now I'm skyping with Dad.  In a little while I'm going to meet all my friends at the bus stop and we're going to leave for our 10 hour bus ride to Pucon!! We'll arrive there in the morning and tomorrow we're going to the hot springs nearby.  Then on Sunday, at 4:30 am our tour to hike the volcano will leave. The entire hike should take 9 hours then when we return we'll get on our bus to come home and get here in Vina in the morning.  Everyone is so excited!!  The next time I talk to everyone I will have hiked a volano :)

Jorge el Curioso

This is going to be quick because I'm exhausted/we have a test tomorrow and I'm studying.  This morning we had class...it was pretty boring because we were doing all this grammar stuff.  But the other class was interesting when Chris & Anna Grace gave their presentations on Sebastian Pinera and the girl who is the number one most influential person on Forbes list this year...she was in charge of the protesting about education...I can't remember her name.  After class I went home for lunch.  We had pasta with tuna, peppers, and salad.  It was good!  After lunch I met LK and we walked to Nino de Amor together.  Today I mostly read Jorge el Curioso a bunch of times to some kids then I played with the baby a little before we left because he had just woken up from his nap.  The orphanage was so fun today because there were other volunteers there so all the kids were getting tons of attention so everyone was really happy :)  After volunteering Tara, SG, Gardner, and I walked toward this secluded beach and met Elizabeth for helado.  Then Tara, LK, Elizabeth and I went to the little beach to do homework for a little while.  After that I went home and packed for Pucon tomorrow!! Then I had dinner and since then I've skyped home and talked to Mom, Payton, Drew & Logan.  Then I skyped Jordan for a few minutes and we connected Savannah and Elizabeth.  It wasn't great connection so Jordan went to Savy's room and we all had a little roomie chat so that was fun.  Then Elizabeth and I skyped and studied for our test and now I'm about to review a little more and go to sleep!

Moody's Aren't Mapuche

Before I get going with today, let me tell about my embarrassing moment last night.  First I need to set up the scene: our apartment building is right beside another one and we're on the second to highest floor so we can see lots of people below us in the next building over.  So, here I am just working on my computer and I hear this really loud music coming from outside.  We are really close to the beach and there have been several concerts there so I figured it was a concert. Wrong. Anyway, I was like oh cool!  This will be something good to get on video.  So I grab my camera and crack my window some, barely pulling back my curtains because I don't want any neighbors to think I'm crazy.  A guy is out on his balcony so I wait for him to go inside then I start videoing in the general direction of the beach.  As I standing there, I see the guy looking at me from inside the window and I'm like um okay great what's going on...he comes outside and starts laughing at me and turns his stereo up.  yep that's right...definitely not a concert.  Needless to say I was laughing so so hard and I ran back inside.  I looked out again and noticed some homemake wii dance going on.  In the same apartment people had a large screen tv up on youtube and they were dancing in front of it.  It was really funny so I videoed that for a sec because my friends across the way had already made fun of me so I had nothing to be ashamed of.  It was def the highlight of my day yesterday :)

Today, we had class for 3 hours then we ate lunch at UVM.  I had a pretty good turkey sandwhich and pear today.  After lunch Chris, Laura Kate, and I went to the artisan fair so Chris could get some shoes and everyone else went to the park.  We left there and met everyone else at the park after Chris got his $8 toms knockoffs.  At the park I found a four leaf clover so that was cool.  Then we walked back to UVM to meet Marisol for our field trip.  A little after 3 pm we went to the metro and rode for about 30 minutes.  We got off in a tiny ghost town and walked for about 15 minutes.  Hidden behind some trees was our destination...one Mapuchi hut.  We were like um...okay then.  We were under the impression that we were going to a large Mapuchi village complete with several totem poles, huts, and well...Mapuches walking around living their lives.  Instead we walked into the hut and one very kind lady who was half Mapuchi taught about Mapuchi culture for an extremely long time from a powerpoint.  While I have a great respect for these indigenous people of Chile, I was very glad that the Moody's aren't Mapuche.  After the presentation we ate some Mapuche food.  I liked two things--one was the type of bread that I put honey on and the other was this chocolate manjar ball wrapped in oats.  The other food was just a little too spicy and oaty for me.  After a longgg time we left the hut and rode the metro back to Vina.  When we got back everyone just went home and since I've gotten back I've just done my homework, eaten dinner, and skyped with the fam + Mimi.  I was disappointed that I couldn't go to church with Mama tonight...I just had so much homework and we have a test Friday so I'm studying for that too.  Hope everything's going well in America & with the SC primary tomorrow, I hope everyone's making wise decisions about who to vote for!!!

Cheaper by the Baker's Dozen :) Oh and temblor numero 5!!

This morning I did not want to get up.  Relaxing in Chile is just so tiring J  I put on athletic shorts, a t-shirt, and tennis shoes because we’re volunteering at the orphanage later today.  Also, I just wanted my outfit to scream “I am an American” just in case locals couldn’t already tell.  We had class this morning and it was pretty boring.  We talked about the Mapuches and while I respect their culture, I really am not a fan of literally going over our homework word for word in class….seriously; we’re not in middle school anymore.  After that class we had grammar.  Everyone figured we’d just finish the movie today but Veronica started going over our homework, made us do more activities, and handed out another worksheet.  She asked Chris to read something and he was reading so fast we couldn’t even understand him because he thought if we finished that we’d get to watch the movie.  Ten minutes before class is over she announces that we’re finishing it tomorrow.  We all had our hopes up the whole day for that movie haha oh well.  After class I walked home and had lunch with Mama, her aunt, her cousin, and her niece.  Since lunch I’ve just been doing homework and in 30 minutes I’m meeting Laura Kate to walk to Niño de Amor together.  After that most of us are going to the beach to finish homework.

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Alright so I wrote the above earlier...now it's later and such random things have happened.  We had a great time at the orphanage! Laura Kate and I walked there together and it definitely took a good 30 minutes because we got lost going on our shortcut and couldn't find it so we def walked all the way back down the mountain and went the long way.  When we finally got there LK pulled out her crayons and coloring books and I pulled out the 2 books I bought at PotteryBarn..."Jorge el Curioso" & a kids book with colors/numbers/etc in spanish & english.  The coloring was a big hit and the kids tried to color my books so we had to put the books away for a little while.  Later LK got out Curious George and read to about 6 little boys.  It was so cute!  I mostly played with the baby again.  He loves being out of his seat and it was so sad when we had to leave because he screamed in protest when I was putting him back in it.  Everyone else left as LK and I were getting Curious George from a little boy who was ripping the cover.  I'm going to leave the book with them but on a day when I can give it to a tia without it being destroyed by a 6 year old.  After we left we got waters from a nearby store and walked to the beach to find Chris.  There were a ton of people on the beach with no room to sit and there was some kind of rescue mission going on in the water with like 10 people so we left with Chris.  Elizabeth called as we were walking and she was creepily behind us so we waited for her to catch up.  As we were walking LK and I were talking about how we want to adopt all 13 of those sweet kids.  Lk said that it would be like cheaper by the dozen, but with one more.  Then Chris was like...oh wait, it'd be cheaper by the baker's dozen. So clever.  Thus, it's the title of this blog entry.  Elizabeth and I went to my house to get a band aid (because I have a gash in my foot from my new shoes from walking all over the mountain) before we went to the beach.

We walked to a little beach close to my house to do homework and we had been there for a little more than an hour when the earth shook...yes that's correct.  There was another temblor.  Elizabeth said the windows on a nearby restaurant were shaking badly and it lasted for a good 5 or more seconds.  Then a few minutes later there was another earthquake.  We decided it was probably time to leave only after we took a hundred pictures down by the water.  We walked back home and when I got here Fernanda said that the earthquake was a 6.1 on the scale!  So crazy...

Hopefully there won't be any more earthquakes while we're here.  Tonight I'm going to eat dinner, study for my test Friday, and go to bed early. :)  Hope everyone's doing well.  I can't wait to see yall soon but I am not ready to leave Chile!!

Just a day in the life.....

Yesterday I got up a little earlier than usual to look over my presentation on Victor Jara.  He was a unique guy…a poor boy who grew up to become a famous singer, supporter of Salvador Allende, and husband to a ballerina.  The presentation yesterday went well and everyone else’s was really interesting.  Classes lasted for 5 hours yesterday.  In the first class we just did the presentations then talked about the Mapuches.  In the second class we did some grammar work then starting watching “Maria full of grace.”  It’s a really good movie…I saw it last year in Miss A’s AP class.  I’m the only one that’s seen it so it’s kind of funny watching everyone’s reactions and them trying to guess what’s going to happen because the ending is not typical so they’ll be surprised.  After that class we had another team building class with Lister and Rayén.  It lasted for about 20 minutes and we got to leave early.

Elizabeth, Laura Kate, Sarah Grace, Gardner, and I went to the Tur Bus office to get their tickets for Pucon.  While LK, SG, and Gardner got the tickets, Elizabeth and I went into Lider, basically a Chilean Wal-Mart.  Elizabeth got a new phone and pens and I was going to get a folder for class but they literally do not sell those anywhere in Chile.  The other 3 met us in there and after checking out we literally walked all the way across the city to get the best helado in town at Bravissimo….definitely the place where Elizabeth’s purse was stolen.  I had manjar with chocolate chunks. J  We left there and just went home.  When I got back I did my homework and we had dinner.  Then I went with Mama to the supermarket and on the way we stopped at literally 6 different pharmacies looking for one thing.  Pharmacies are on every corner here…especially Cruz Verde.  We never even found what she was looking for so we just went to the grocery store and she got milk and candy.  I also got some candy called Frugele that is soo good.  So yesterday night I def had cake at dinner, some chocolate, some caramel candy, and a frugele.  Wonder why Mama still asks me if I have a sweet tooth after that??

#IsThisRealLife

Today was very calm compared to the previous days!  I got up late and had breakfast.  Then I finished my powerpoint and worked on updating my travel journal.  The whole family had lunch together before Papa had to go back to work (fish, rice, potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, and boiled eggs).  It was good...expecially the fish!  After lunch all the kids walked Papa to the bus stop.  We didn't really have to walk too far and I liked seeing new parts of the city.  When we got there we went to the ticket desk because he didn't have a ticket yet.  He had to be on a bus at that moment because his plane was leaving at a certain time in Santiago.  The ticket office said there were no more tickets so he went outside and waited in line for one of the buses.  Since people weren't showing up on time they just let him on the bus...only a well-traveled person would know to do that here.  We walked back home and then I left to meet most of the group at Cruz Verde.  Once everyone was there, we walked together to buy our bus tickets to Pucon for this weekend.  It wasn't really a hassle and there were tons of tickets left so everything worked out with that.  After buying tickets, we walked all the way across town to get helado from a specific ice cream store.  It was so goof and definitely worth the walk.  Once we ate helado everyone split up into different groups.  Elizabeth and I went to the artisan fair and walked around there for about 2 hours looking at everything.  We got a few things but mainly looked.  After the fair we walked home and when I got here I made pound cake for everyone.  It wasn't a big ordeal...I only cracked an egg onto the counter, almost dropped the mixing bowl on the ground, and struggled mixing some things but it turned out well and everyone loved it :)  We ate dinner (amazing leftovers from lunch + cantelope) then I edited my project more.  While I was doing that Elizabeth messaged me and said that the thief had tweeted on her account from her iPhone.  We freaked out about that for a while and we were both like...seriously is this real like or is this a game show or something?  Then, I practiced presenting my project to Rodrigo while he corrected my grammar in my powerpoint/politely tried to mask his laughing at my presentation skills in spanish.  It really wasn't bad though!  We're supposed to talk for 10 minutes and I rambled on for 20 so I think I'm set on the time limit.  After that we actually ate the cake then I skyped Mom & Dad then Savannah!!  I talked to Savannah for an hour and at the end MC, Elizabeth Rhee, Meredith, and Courtney came in so it was fun to talk to them for a little while!  Sounds like everyone's having tons of fun at good ole Wofford :)  Love & miss everyone!  I'm having a great trip but I can't wait to see yall soon!

SaTuRdAy

Today was pretty relaxing.  I slept until noon then worked on my homework and ate breakfast.  Then I went to the artisan fair with Anna Grace, Sarah Grace, and Elizabeth where I got some neat gifts for people.  We were there for about an hour and I went home for lunch while AG, SG, and Elizabeth went to a restaurant by the ocean.  Lunch was still being cooked when I got here so I just worked on a project and started filling out a scholarship application.  My phone rang and then started the madness...It was Sarag Grace telling me that Elizabeth's purse had been stolen.  I immediately emailed her mom to tell her so she could cut her card off.  I also emailed my parents & messaged them on skype in a panic telling them to call Elizabeth's mom to tell her.  Finally I thought about facebook and since none of my family was on, I message sweet Megan Jones who called my mom to tell her the situacion.  Mom called Eliz's mom then called me on skype and I called Sarah Grace's phone to talk to Elizabeth so we had this great 4 person, 3 way thing going on.  Needless to say, Elizabeth got the card shut off.  They were in constant communication with the police as well as the restaurant who was being helpful.  At this point I had to eat lunch with the fam (it was literally the best meal yet...potatoes, salad, and this indigenous food).  After lunch I skyped Mom for a few minutes then worked more on the application and homework.   I then got dressed to go to Papa's brother-in-law's birthday party.  Since I was ready and everyone but Mama was at the mall she fixed me once.  They got home and we watched the news while waiting to leave.  The tradegy of the cruise ship crash is so sad and I can't believe it happened.  After a while we left for the party.  I enjoyed meeting more people in their family...they were all really nice.  At midnight, the birthday boy blew out his candle, we ate cake, then we left.  It was a good day besides the Elizabeth's-purse-got-stolen part but through that situacion God was of course present by putting Megan in the position to help out! :)  I really appreciate my Theta sisters...they're always there to help!

Santiago Stories

Yesterday we went to Santiago for a field trip at 8 am.  When we got there we went to Villa Grimaldi which was a center for mental torture during Pinochet's reign over Chile from 1973 to 1990.  There weren't many original building because when Pinochet learned that he was about to be revealed, he destroyed the area.  There was one replica of a building where they housed people and it was 1 meter by 1 meter.  These tiny buildings were originally lined up in rows and several people were crammed into each one.  Children played in a pool with military officers while their parents were tortured in a center.  There was one building there that was a memorial to some of those people and it had shadow boxes of their things with information about them.  There was also an original tower still there where people were harrassed.  In addition, there were two large stone walls with the names of those lost as well as a flower garden with plaques of names.  It was really sad but since it's a memorial garden now, there were tons of trees and flowers native to Chile throughout the area.  After leaving there we ate lunch then went to Pablo Neruda's house in Santiago.  This house was similar to his house in Isla Negra in that it had tons of stuff in the house but the design was really different.  This house was broken up into three different buildings.  One part was a guest house, one part was Neruda's house where he slept, and one part was a bar and sitting area.  It was really neat and enclosed in trees but I like the Isla Negra house better because it's on the beach.

Once we finished our tours at Neruda's house, some people left with Professora Marisol but some of us stayed in Santiago for a few more hours to explore the city and eat dinner.  First, we went to Bella Vista, a really nice area to look in shops.  I just bought some vintage coasters and other people bought jewelry and paintings.  We met some nursing students from the US that were studying in Santiago and I think they were happier than us to hear english.  We talked to them for a little while and they told us that in order to get to our bus on time, we needed an house to ride the metro.  We ate dinner and left there at 7:00 for our 8:00 bus.  Tara and Chris stayed at Bella Vista to see Tara's friend from Texas who worked in the area because their bus was at 9:00.  We walked wuickly to the metro and finally found it.  We realized that we may not make it in time so we started running through the metro station paniked.  First we went to the Tur Bus office to make sure we were going to the right place to get on our bus.  Then we had to buy a metro card to ride the metro.  We just bought one and put enough money on it for all of us to ride.  On the other side of check in we ran to the metro and this lady, who was trying to be really helpful and not sketchy, told us which metro to take.  We got on and had to ride for a while....we were supposed to get off at one stop but we decided we could go up one more to save time. Terrible idea! We got off and realized that there was no way to get to our bus from there so we ran around to the other side and got on a metro to take us back to where we were supposed to be.  By then we had missed the bus but we weren't worried about switching tickets to a later time.  At this point, we were freaking out about Tara and Chris because they needed to leave already to get there.  Elizabeth called Chris and the first thing she screamed was "Leave now!" haha it was funny later hearing about how scared they were.  Sarah Grace and Laura Kate went ahead to see if it was possible to switch our tickets and Gardner, Elizabeth, Rakiya, and I waited behind just in case we had to get back on the metro because we didn;'t want to have to pay a ton to check back through the metro line.  Throughout all of this we're on and off the phone with Chris and Tara giving them instructions on how to get to the bus.  LK and SG come back and say that there are no more tickets back to Vina tonight so we freak out and all go to the desk.  There really aren't any more so we get into another company's line and get the last 6 tickets back to Vina at 10:45.  At this point Chris and Tara are about to miss their bus and we're on the phone with them telling them to hurry but they missed their bus too.  The only tickets they could get were for 8:45 this morning.  They called Wofford students in Santiago who tried to get them a place to stay but finally Tara's friend got them somewhere to stay.  They left and the rest of us waited in front of the bussed for about 45 mins because we did not want to miss our bus.  We asked this one man who worked there about our bus because it wasn't showing up on the screen and he told us not to worry, he'd get us on our bus and everything would be fine.  He checked on us a few times, probably because my face was a mixture of anger/horror/worry.  When our bus came, he called us over to the front of the line and put us on first.  We were so relieved and thankful!

As a side note, there were these two nuns at the bus station when we arrived.  We kept joking the who time saying okay no worries the nuns are still here.  It was really funny because the nuns were on our bus....the whole time they waited they did not really talk.  They were very quiet and patiently waited.  For some reason I felt such a sense of peace knowing they were there.  The image of them was a reminder that God was present and I really think they were angels :)

While our day in Santiago was really hectic, it was still fun...once we were on the bus home!  It's a funny story though and we made it back okay.  Needless to say, we all decided that we like Vina better than Santiago.

Classes, Volunteering, Once

I just realized that I never talk about my breakfast...I absolutely love what I have daily.  Usually I eat a piece of bread with either manjar (aka nutella), peach jam, or cream cheese and ham.  It is sooo good...especially the jam.  I have either milk or juice to drink but today I had chocolate milk which is my fav so I was excited about that.  Today we had classes as usual.  In the first class we discussed the hisorical events that took place in the movie.  In the second class we discussed the use of "se."  After classes I went home for lunch.  We had empenadas (which are so good), salad, corn on the cob, celery, tomatoes, and cherries.  After lunch, I met my volunteer group at Cafe Journal and we walked to Nino de Amor together.  When we arrived, the kids were outside eating their snacks because the snack room is currently being repainted.  We played with the kids for an hour and today LK got the baby out of his seat so we enjoyed playing with him and helping him walk.  After volunteering I went home and got ready to go to Mama's friend's house.  When Mama got back from picking the car up, we went to her friend's house for "once."  Her friend, Annamaria, is really nice and she's such a good cook too.  We stayed there for a while then we went to Mama's sister's house on the way home.  I met her sister and niece the other day so it was fun to get to see them.  We didn't stay there long.  Next, we quickly went to the supermarket before it closed to get a few random groceries.  It was a pretty typical but fun day.  Tomorrow we have a field trip to Santiago and we're leaving UVM at 8 am so it's going to be so fun getting up extra early.  It'll be worth it though because our tours in Santiago will be great. :)  Chao!