i should have done this earlier but i didnt really think about it. heres some pics from the end of the semester for your viewing pleasure. enjoy! :)
So throughout my semester I decided to get a picture of me jumping in every city and or place I visited. Here are the finished results:
http://butler.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2040540&l=a37bd&id=21103632
Parque Nacional Laguna Laja with Leslie Caroline and Cordelia
http://butler.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2046429&l=42a74&id=21103632
Torres del Paine, Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, etc with Dad
http://butler.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2046486&l=c3ae3&id=21103632
Friday, December 28, 2007
Saying Goodbye, for real
The following is, at times, a bit melodramatic and I considered editing but decided keeping my true thoughts is fine. Feel free to laugh a bit if you want, I have after re-reading some of this. Saludos!:
Theres a song by Ben Harper that i cant stop listening to. The lyrics of said song echo in my soul.
"But its time that has taken my tomorrows and turned them into yesterdays"
"But you put the happy in my ness
You put the good times into my fun"
Josh rouse also eloquently says "life is good, sometimes its bad, it has its ups it has its down just say it all cause that’s just life" so this is just life. Saying goodbye to the most amazing experience of my life thus far, and saying hello to a new chapter of life.
Matchbox Twenty:
"Well I, believe, it all, is coming to an endoh well, I guess, we're gonna pretend, let's see how far we've come"
To think back at all I have done, seen, experienced, its been amazing. So now, its come to an end and I’ve come so far, and still have so much farther to go, so much more to see. So many more adventures. And that is what makes life exciting.
So here we are. 5 months later. And it is over. Chile is really over. These past few weeks, days, and hours have been a blur. And yet memorable, as I walked my last steps down my street, felt the waves of the Pacific Ocean lap over my feet and then the sensation of the warm sand and perfect breeze along the beach as the summer sun warmed and toasted my skin. As I said goodbye to everyone that I had met and spent time with over the past 5 months. 5 months. It sounds so long and yet so short and at times felt like a little of both. This last blog is going to be less coherent than normal, which isn’t saying a whole lot. I figured if you are reading this, you are interested in what I have to say and can stop reading whenever. So here goes everything, something, and nothing, all at once.
Im returning to Indiana. To snow, to cold weather, winter time and little sunlight. To English almost all the time. To actually studying, working, and the business environment. To my loving family and home-cooked meals. To Christmas time. To excited friends that have been counting the days til I return. To all the comforts of the U.S. like water pressure and the foods I have missed. To missing Chile, missing parts of Chile I never thought I would. To change, a new chapter of life. And as with any new chapter, I am scared. Scared of what is to come, how I will react, what it will be like. To reverse culture shock. Coming home to what was once familiar and missing what became familiar. Its going to be weird for a while and for those of you that are about to see me again, after so many months (WHEE), I beg of you understanding, lots of love, and patience. Hang with me, I will adjust eventually. I might be stubborn (I wore my flip flops home on the plane) but i´ve missed you and cant wait for all the fun to begin, though it is going to be a lot different than all the adventures and traveling and culture experiencing of Chile.
Its been an incredible semester and if you have read many of my previous blogs, you already know this. You know all the places I saw, all the things I did, all the friends I made and how I was able to completely love and enjoy life, relax and soak up everything I could for 5 full months. To learn the essence of life.
Heres a few more thoughts:
-I am independent. I learned to manage the bus system, both between Viña-Valpo and also longer distances. The Chilean system of living and surviving, all of which was in a language that was not my native one.
-I am dependent. Dependent on people, on communicating, living life, sharing anything and everything, on humankind. I love people, being social and flying from one activity to another (my host family´s nickname for me was "pajarito" which means little bird b-c I was always off to some such place or another, always ready for another flight down the street or to the next town, meeting up with someone or going somewhere.
-I am an addict. Addicted to Spanish. To Chile. To traveling. To good friends. To sunshine and summer and mountains. I know that as soon as I Graduate from Butler I will be in search of a new home with mountains nearby. Preferably a few cold rivers and lakes too. I´ve become addicted to the life I lived these past 5 months and now I am on my way to rehab(aka reality check), about to begin to deal with the effects of withdrawal. However, I would not call it success to completely rid myself of this drug I have found. This drug has become part of who I am, ingrained into the very essence of my being. To attempt to completely rid myself of all the memories, all the life I lived in chile would be foolish and the wrong approach. Instead, while I have been removed from Chile and all that it had to offer, I will live on, finding new adventures, new travels, ways to practice my Spanish so I don’t forget it, money to travel to all parts of the U.S. where I have many new friends.
-Traveling is in my bloodstream. As is adventure. Between being a risk-taker, obsessed with exploring new places, speaking another language and really learning a new culture, I doubt I will be too hard-pressed for a new travel or adventure coming soon on my horizon, whatever form the next adventure takes.
-as much as I enjoy flying from place to place, I definitiely don’t mind a chill night, talking life with close friends. These sorts of nights are where in some ways, life is really learned. The sharing of experiences, the laughter between friends over a shared memory, a secret smile or an impulsive hug. The state of just being. To just simply be I believe is a very difficult thing to achieve in the States, when you finally get a rest you almost feel guilty just laying there. There were a good number of days during the Chilean winter where I laid in bed all day long, spending hours just being, thinking things over, just soaking everything in. and it was okay. In fact, it was great. Not something i´d want to do always, but good every once in a while. That feeling of complete contentment too, when you realize that there is no other place in the world you would rather be than wherever you are just at that moment.
It´s been a wild ride and im so glad to be blessed with so many amazing family members and friends, you guys are what keep me going. What will keep me going. I wish you all the most merry of Christmases, a wonderful New Year, and that we will all be in touch. I´ve been contemplating keeping this blog and just writing random life stories in it when I get the urge but we will see. For now, thanks for being along for the ride, I cant wait to see all of you again because after many many hard goodbyes I am very ready for some happy hellos.
Hello Chapter 20.5, I cant wait to see how the events of Chapter 20.0-20.49 will affect what is to come. Saludos! Goodbye Chile, I will never forget you. And hopefully I will return and though I know if I do, it wont be the same but my memories will stay sweet and my heart light when I think of you. :)
Theres a song by Ben Harper that i cant stop listening to. The lyrics of said song echo in my soul.
"But its time that has taken my tomorrows and turned them into yesterdays"
"But you put the happy in my ness
You put the good times into my fun"
Josh rouse also eloquently says "life is good, sometimes its bad, it has its ups it has its down just say it all cause that’s just life" so this is just life. Saying goodbye to the most amazing experience of my life thus far, and saying hello to a new chapter of life.
Matchbox Twenty:
"Well I, believe, it all, is coming to an endoh well, I guess, we're gonna pretend, let's see how far we've come"
To think back at all I have done, seen, experienced, its been amazing. So now, its come to an end and I’ve come so far, and still have so much farther to go, so much more to see. So many more adventures. And that is what makes life exciting.
So here we are. 5 months later. And it is over. Chile is really over. These past few weeks, days, and hours have been a blur. And yet memorable, as I walked my last steps down my street, felt the waves of the Pacific Ocean lap over my feet and then the sensation of the warm sand and perfect breeze along the beach as the summer sun warmed and toasted my skin. As I said goodbye to everyone that I had met and spent time with over the past 5 months. 5 months. It sounds so long and yet so short and at times felt like a little of both. This last blog is going to be less coherent than normal, which isn’t saying a whole lot. I figured if you are reading this, you are interested in what I have to say and can stop reading whenever. So here goes everything, something, and nothing, all at once.
Im returning to Indiana. To snow, to cold weather, winter time and little sunlight. To English almost all the time. To actually studying, working, and the business environment. To my loving family and home-cooked meals. To Christmas time. To excited friends that have been counting the days til I return. To all the comforts of the U.S. like water pressure and the foods I have missed. To missing Chile, missing parts of Chile I never thought I would. To change, a new chapter of life. And as with any new chapter, I am scared. Scared of what is to come, how I will react, what it will be like. To reverse culture shock. Coming home to what was once familiar and missing what became familiar. Its going to be weird for a while and for those of you that are about to see me again, after so many months (WHEE), I beg of you understanding, lots of love, and patience. Hang with me, I will adjust eventually. I might be stubborn (I wore my flip flops home on the plane) but i´ve missed you and cant wait for all the fun to begin, though it is going to be a lot different than all the adventures and traveling and culture experiencing of Chile.
Its been an incredible semester and if you have read many of my previous blogs, you already know this. You know all the places I saw, all the things I did, all the friends I made and how I was able to completely love and enjoy life, relax and soak up everything I could for 5 full months. To learn the essence of life.
Heres a few more thoughts:
-I am independent. I learned to manage the bus system, both between Viña-Valpo and also longer distances. The Chilean system of living and surviving, all of which was in a language that was not my native one.
-I am dependent. Dependent on people, on communicating, living life, sharing anything and everything, on humankind. I love people, being social and flying from one activity to another (my host family´s nickname for me was "pajarito" which means little bird b-c I was always off to some such place or another, always ready for another flight down the street or to the next town, meeting up with someone or going somewhere.
-I am an addict. Addicted to Spanish. To Chile. To traveling. To good friends. To sunshine and summer and mountains. I know that as soon as I Graduate from Butler I will be in search of a new home with mountains nearby. Preferably a few cold rivers and lakes too. I´ve become addicted to the life I lived these past 5 months and now I am on my way to rehab(aka reality check), about to begin to deal with the effects of withdrawal. However, I would not call it success to completely rid myself of this drug I have found. This drug has become part of who I am, ingrained into the very essence of my being. To attempt to completely rid myself of all the memories, all the life I lived in chile would be foolish and the wrong approach. Instead, while I have been removed from Chile and all that it had to offer, I will live on, finding new adventures, new travels, ways to practice my Spanish so I don’t forget it, money to travel to all parts of the U.S. where I have many new friends.
-Traveling is in my bloodstream. As is adventure. Between being a risk-taker, obsessed with exploring new places, speaking another language and really learning a new culture, I doubt I will be too hard-pressed for a new travel or adventure coming soon on my horizon, whatever form the next adventure takes.
-as much as I enjoy flying from place to place, I definitiely don’t mind a chill night, talking life with close friends. These sorts of nights are where in some ways, life is really learned. The sharing of experiences, the laughter between friends over a shared memory, a secret smile or an impulsive hug. The state of just being. To just simply be I believe is a very difficult thing to achieve in the States, when you finally get a rest you almost feel guilty just laying there. There were a good number of days during the Chilean winter where I laid in bed all day long, spending hours just being, thinking things over, just soaking everything in. and it was okay. In fact, it was great. Not something i´d want to do always, but good every once in a while. That feeling of complete contentment too, when you realize that there is no other place in the world you would rather be than wherever you are just at that moment.
It´s been a wild ride and im so glad to be blessed with so many amazing family members and friends, you guys are what keep me going. What will keep me going. I wish you all the most merry of Christmases, a wonderful New Year, and that we will all be in touch. I´ve been contemplating keeping this blog and just writing random life stories in it when I get the urge but we will see. For now, thanks for being along for the ride, I cant wait to see all of you again because after many many hard goodbyes I am very ready for some happy hellos.
Hello Chapter 20.5, I cant wait to see how the events of Chapter 20.0-20.49 will affect what is to come. Saludos! Goodbye Chile, I will never forget you. And hopefully I will return and though I know if I do, it wont be the same but my memories will stay sweet and my heart light when I think of you. :)
Ultimate Adventures, Utter Contentment
So while i am now back in the states i figured i have some time to update you on what went down the last few weeks in chile. It was AMAZING. I still cant believe its over but lets not focus on that right now.
So as I told you, I finished school November 30thand commenced a whirlwind of amazing travels. The first stop was a 5 day adventure to Parque Nacional Laguna Laja. It was an absolutely incredible trip. I left with Leslie, Caroline, and Cordelia on a trek down south. We took a train (!) to Chillán and then from there a variety of buses. The first night we stayed in Salto Laja, near a HUGE Niagara Falls-esque waterfall. Caroline and Cordelia decided to buy food in one town for the trip (we camped) but leslie and I were going to wait til the next town so we wouldn’t have to deal with it. However, we all fell asleep and missed the town center. So leslie and I lived off of the handouts from Caroline and Cordelia, some energy bars and a bit of pasta we had brought along. We survived, though we were usually hungry, we dealt with it. Considering how much I usually eat, it was probably a good thing we didn’t eat a whole lot for a long time. The next day our task was to get to Parque Nacional Laguna Laja. With a car, im sure it wouldnt have been difficult. however, we were reliant on public transportation and well, sometimes it gets a little rough. We took a bus from Salto Laja to Los Angeles where C and C bought food but Leslie and i didnt. We fell asleep on the way to Antuco which is where as i already said, we were going to buy our food. we awoke and the bus driver asked where we were going. our options, as we had passed our stop, were to get off immediately and walk back, or continue on with the bus and try to find a way to get to the park from the end of the line. a friendly policeman took us under his wing and we all got out at the beginning of a dirt road to the park. he told he could take us to the center of the park, about 8 miles away, for 20 dollars. we didnt feel like paying and it was a beautiful day so we started to walk, with our big backpacks and the sun. we only walked maybe a half hour before a truck passed us and we decided to flag it down. the friendly couple allowed us to sit in the truck bed and drove us to the famous Laguna Laja and then back down into more of the park to find a place where we could camp.
We found a secluded area to set up camp under some pines with some fantastic views of the Volcano Antuco and other parts of the mountain range. We washed our faces in the river, filtered the water with a filter leslie brought along and cooked on a little gas stove we brought too. The next 5 days were spent hiking around, finding hidden waterfalls, walking along el Río Laja, watching the volcano, seeing a glacier, and completely enjoying nature and each other. We ate lunch in some really gorgeous areas. Caroline and Cordelia left leslie and I part way through to head back and spend more time in Valpo-Viña. So leslie and I went on a really sweet hike where we climbed up to a plateau area over the valley, I felt like we were in a desert except that there were 5 huge waterfalls along the hill in front of us, a river, and patches of snow. This park was GORGEOUS. While on this hike I felt a feeling that I hope to find again. The feeling that everything was completely right in my world, the feeling of complete and utter contentment, that there was nowhere else in the entire world that I wanted to be, except right there, hiking with a volcano and glacier covered mountain in front of me, speaking in Spanish with one of my best friends. We spoke in Spanish the entire time and just really had a good time, laughing and exploring and just simply being. The trip was so adventurous and relaxing, we saw a lot and though we had to get up really early the last day in order to walk the 7 or 8 or so miles to where the bus would stop, it was worth it. Public transportation was not really a high point in getting to the park or leaving but this added to the adventure of it all. I arrived home around 11pm, after nearly going crazy on a 6 hour bus ride alone (leslie continued south while I headed back north to viña), not showering for 5 straight days (it was pretty warm and dusty there), as well as camping for all 4 of those nights, I was a beautiful dirty mess. And it was amazing. We had been planning this trip to this park since just about one of the first weeks we had met each other so to finally make it all the way there and have a fantastic time was rewarding and awesome.
The next day, my dad arrived! (yes, these last few weeks in chile were pretty incredible) we spent a little over a day exploring Viña and Valpo, showing him my favorite places, meeting up with some of my Chilean friends for a Chilean style once (the evening meal) of tea, pie, and some little sandwich appetizers. He got a lot of practice with his Spanish and it was a really fun time to hang out with all of them. We also went out to dinner with some other Chilean friends and got the treat of eating the rare "loco", a creature that is similar to the abalone and lives in a huge shell. The Japanese steal many of the loco that live along the shores of Chile and for that reason it is hard to find. However, we found it and ate it with some leaves of lettuce…very delicious. We also ate more congor eel…yum.
After enjoying the warm summer sun and summertime in Viña and Valpo, we hopped on a plane to the end of the earth to Punta Arenas. A cold, cloudy, windy city, we explored and took a ferry 2 hours across the Magellan Strait, saw the shores of Tierra del Fuego and finally arrived to La Isla de Magdalena, the home of literally thousands of Magellanic penguins. Awesome! They were all over the island, waddling, burrowing, squawking, and we were able to disembark and walk right along the birds, so neat! For dinner we feasted on King Crab…oh how I love the pacific ocean and its delicious seafood! After Punta Arenas we took a bus 3 hours north-ish to Puerto Natales, another interesting city with a beautiful lake, more wind, and some mountain views. Then another mini-bus about an hour and a half to the impressive Torres del Paine National Park where we spent the next 5 days and 4 nights hiking and exploring this beautiful natural wonder. This time we didn’t rough it as much as I just recently had, we stayed in refugios with hot showers and bunk bed rooms with 4 or so other people. Though extremely windy as well (I guess the end of the earth is just windy) we had a good number of days with sun where I was able to hike comfortably in just a t-shirt and jeans. One day was rainy the entire day and pretty gross but we managed. We hiked along some beautiful colorful turquoise lakes to Los Cuernos (the Horns) and in between days hiked in between refugios around the park. The hikes were at times quite difficult, especially with our backpacks and the wind factor. But we made it. I also went on a solo hike where I climbed straight up and over large boulders to the base of Las Torres (the Towers), sheer straight mountains. This hike was really hard and I had been planning on it all semester, practicing difficult hikes and getting into shape. It felt amazing to finally reach the top and conquer the climb. At one refugio we met a really interesting and friendly Spanish couple with whom I enjoyed speaking. Different accent as well as different words to say things which made me realize that while I have learned a lot of Spanish here and can manage the language fluently, I have a Chilean accent and know lots of Chilean words that wont work in a lot of situations. Looks like I will have some more learning to do upon returning home! We took buses around the rest of the park and saw lots of neat lakes, some really cool birds including the majestic Andean Condor which soared on the thermal winds and was awesomely calm about life. Good views of the entire mountain range, some white glaciers, and lots of German tourists. The park was so unique with such huge, sharp mountains. It was really fun and special to explore it with my dad along my side, hiking along and discovering stuff together. We met a lot of interesting travelers, mostly from Europe and enjoyed the fact that we were so far south, so far removed from the world to the north.
After trekking back to the Santiago airport, I said goodbye to my dad for 3 days and headed back to Viña. Lots of goodbyes and "lasts". The last time to touch the pacific from the Chilean shores, the last time to walk down my street, to eat a cone of delicious ice cream, etc. It was a very full, very fun 3 days in which I slept very little but it was so worth it. Leslie cooked for her Chilean family and I got to eat with them as well, enjoying a relaxing evening of good conversation about our experiences, cultural stereotypes, challenging my Spanish and enjoying good friends. Leslie and I even survived our strongest earthquake yet! It was a level 5 in viña and occurred while we were in the supermarket. All the stuff started falling off the shelves, some woman started running around and screaming and everything was shaking and falling everywhere. It was intense but awesome because now I can say I have survived a real earthquake that was more than just a tiny tremor in viña. Sweeeeet deal. We decided the earthquake and subsequent 24 hours following were the Earth’s way of expressing its sadness over our leaving the country. I would have done the same thing, if I were the Earth. I enjoyed my last days of summer sun, skirts, and temperatures hovering around 75, 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Marc Leslie and I all had flights the same evening back to the States so we caught a bus together and all hung out in the airport until my flight started calling last boarding call and I had to leave. The following blog details a few of my thoughts while on the plane flying home.
Love,
Katie :)
So as I told you, I finished school November 30thand commenced a whirlwind of amazing travels. The first stop was a 5 day adventure to Parque Nacional Laguna Laja. It was an absolutely incredible trip. I left with Leslie, Caroline, and Cordelia on a trek down south. We took a train (!) to Chillán and then from there a variety of buses. The first night we stayed in Salto Laja, near a HUGE Niagara Falls-esque waterfall. Caroline and Cordelia decided to buy food in one town for the trip (we camped) but leslie and I were going to wait til the next town so we wouldn’t have to deal with it. However, we all fell asleep and missed the town center. So leslie and I lived off of the handouts from Caroline and Cordelia, some energy bars and a bit of pasta we had brought along. We survived, though we were usually hungry, we dealt with it. Considering how much I usually eat, it was probably a good thing we didn’t eat a whole lot for a long time. The next day our task was to get to Parque Nacional Laguna Laja. With a car, im sure it wouldnt have been difficult. however, we were reliant on public transportation and well, sometimes it gets a little rough. We took a bus from Salto Laja to Los Angeles where C and C bought food but Leslie and i didnt. We fell asleep on the way to Antuco which is where as i already said, we were going to buy our food. we awoke and the bus driver asked where we were going. our options, as we had passed our stop, were to get off immediately and walk back, or continue on with the bus and try to find a way to get to the park from the end of the line. a friendly policeman took us under his wing and we all got out at the beginning of a dirt road to the park. he told he could take us to the center of the park, about 8 miles away, for 20 dollars. we didnt feel like paying and it was a beautiful day so we started to walk, with our big backpacks and the sun. we only walked maybe a half hour before a truck passed us and we decided to flag it down. the friendly couple allowed us to sit in the truck bed and drove us to the famous Laguna Laja and then back down into more of the park to find a place where we could camp.
We found a secluded area to set up camp under some pines with some fantastic views of the Volcano Antuco and other parts of the mountain range. We washed our faces in the river, filtered the water with a filter leslie brought along and cooked on a little gas stove we brought too. The next 5 days were spent hiking around, finding hidden waterfalls, walking along el Río Laja, watching the volcano, seeing a glacier, and completely enjoying nature and each other. We ate lunch in some really gorgeous areas. Caroline and Cordelia left leslie and I part way through to head back and spend more time in Valpo-Viña. So leslie and I went on a really sweet hike where we climbed up to a plateau area over the valley, I felt like we were in a desert except that there were 5 huge waterfalls along the hill in front of us, a river, and patches of snow. This park was GORGEOUS. While on this hike I felt a feeling that I hope to find again. The feeling that everything was completely right in my world, the feeling of complete and utter contentment, that there was nowhere else in the entire world that I wanted to be, except right there, hiking with a volcano and glacier covered mountain in front of me, speaking in Spanish with one of my best friends. We spoke in Spanish the entire time and just really had a good time, laughing and exploring and just simply being. The trip was so adventurous and relaxing, we saw a lot and though we had to get up really early the last day in order to walk the 7 or 8 or so miles to where the bus would stop, it was worth it. Public transportation was not really a high point in getting to the park or leaving but this added to the adventure of it all. I arrived home around 11pm, after nearly going crazy on a 6 hour bus ride alone (leslie continued south while I headed back north to viña), not showering for 5 straight days (it was pretty warm and dusty there), as well as camping for all 4 of those nights, I was a beautiful dirty mess. And it was amazing. We had been planning this trip to this park since just about one of the first weeks we had met each other so to finally make it all the way there and have a fantastic time was rewarding and awesome.
The next day, my dad arrived! (yes, these last few weeks in chile were pretty incredible) we spent a little over a day exploring Viña and Valpo, showing him my favorite places, meeting up with some of my Chilean friends for a Chilean style once (the evening meal) of tea, pie, and some little sandwich appetizers. He got a lot of practice with his Spanish and it was a really fun time to hang out with all of them. We also went out to dinner with some other Chilean friends and got the treat of eating the rare "loco", a creature that is similar to the abalone and lives in a huge shell. The Japanese steal many of the loco that live along the shores of Chile and for that reason it is hard to find. However, we found it and ate it with some leaves of lettuce…very delicious. We also ate more congor eel…yum.
After enjoying the warm summer sun and summertime in Viña and Valpo, we hopped on a plane to the end of the earth to Punta Arenas. A cold, cloudy, windy city, we explored and took a ferry 2 hours across the Magellan Strait, saw the shores of Tierra del Fuego and finally arrived to La Isla de Magdalena, the home of literally thousands of Magellanic penguins. Awesome! They were all over the island, waddling, burrowing, squawking, and we were able to disembark and walk right along the birds, so neat! For dinner we feasted on King Crab…oh how I love the pacific ocean and its delicious seafood! After Punta Arenas we took a bus 3 hours north-ish to Puerto Natales, another interesting city with a beautiful lake, more wind, and some mountain views. Then another mini-bus about an hour and a half to the impressive Torres del Paine National Park where we spent the next 5 days and 4 nights hiking and exploring this beautiful natural wonder. This time we didn’t rough it as much as I just recently had, we stayed in refugios with hot showers and bunk bed rooms with 4 or so other people. Though extremely windy as well (I guess the end of the earth is just windy) we had a good number of days with sun where I was able to hike comfortably in just a t-shirt and jeans. One day was rainy the entire day and pretty gross but we managed. We hiked along some beautiful colorful turquoise lakes to Los Cuernos (the Horns) and in between days hiked in between refugios around the park. The hikes were at times quite difficult, especially with our backpacks and the wind factor. But we made it. I also went on a solo hike where I climbed straight up and over large boulders to the base of Las Torres (the Towers), sheer straight mountains. This hike was really hard and I had been planning on it all semester, practicing difficult hikes and getting into shape. It felt amazing to finally reach the top and conquer the climb. At one refugio we met a really interesting and friendly Spanish couple with whom I enjoyed speaking. Different accent as well as different words to say things which made me realize that while I have learned a lot of Spanish here and can manage the language fluently, I have a Chilean accent and know lots of Chilean words that wont work in a lot of situations. Looks like I will have some more learning to do upon returning home! We took buses around the rest of the park and saw lots of neat lakes, some really cool birds including the majestic Andean Condor which soared on the thermal winds and was awesomely calm about life. Good views of the entire mountain range, some white glaciers, and lots of German tourists. The park was so unique with such huge, sharp mountains. It was really fun and special to explore it with my dad along my side, hiking along and discovering stuff together. We met a lot of interesting travelers, mostly from Europe and enjoyed the fact that we were so far south, so far removed from the world to the north.
After trekking back to the Santiago airport, I said goodbye to my dad for 3 days and headed back to Viña. Lots of goodbyes and "lasts". The last time to touch the pacific from the Chilean shores, the last time to walk down my street, to eat a cone of delicious ice cream, etc. It was a very full, very fun 3 days in which I slept very little but it was so worth it. Leslie cooked for her Chilean family and I got to eat with them as well, enjoying a relaxing evening of good conversation about our experiences, cultural stereotypes, challenging my Spanish and enjoying good friends. Leslie and I even survived our strongest earthquake yet! It was a level 5 in viña and occurred while we were in the supermarket. All the stuff started falling off the shelves, some woman started running around and screaming and everything was shaking and falling everywhere. It was intense but awesome because now I can say I have survived a real earthquake that was more than just a tiny tremor in viña. Sweeeeet deal. We decided the earthquake and subsequent 24 hours following were the Earth’s way of expressing its sadness over our leaving the country. I would have done the same thing, if I were the Earth. I enjoyed my last days of summer sun, skirts, and temperatures hovering around 75, 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Marc Leslie and I all had flights the same evening back to the States so we caught a bus together and all hung out in the airport until my flight started calling last boarding call and I had to leave. The following blog details a few of my thoughts while on the plane flying home.
Love,
Katie :)
Monday, November 26, 2007
Making Memories and Living the good life, cherishing the simple moments
Chile: Where every day feels like the best day of your life and no matter how hard i try, the wheels on this car keep going and speeding down this street, stopping for no one.
I find my heart preparing to break into a hundred tiny pieces. Not only will i leave a huge chunk of my heart here in Chile but that huge chunk is going to be divided into so many pieces to so many places. To each of the amazing people I have met and loved, as they all return home or stay in this country. To the streets I walked every single day and the people I passed along said streets. To the panaderías and plazas, the U.S. will never find a match. To my home in Viña. To the metro and the micros and the port. To the beach and the contemplative rocks where I sat to watch the sun set and the waves roll in. To the hills of Valparaíso and the many hidden treasures I discovered up there. To the starry Southern Hemisphere sky. To the many many many beautiful memories that I hope to never ever forget. These are where the pieces of my heart shall stay.
I´m waxing incredibly nostalgic and i havent even left yet. my excuse is that this week, in just two short days, the goodbyes are going to begin. as if they havent already begun. i hate goodbyes. i much prefer "see you later" over "have a good life". i cant imagine never seeing some of these people again and I know that I will. I trust that I will. And i hope to come back to Chile some day. it will never be the same and i might even be disappointed, but i hope to return all the same. i dont want to say goodbye. i dont want this dream of a life to end. this life where all i have is fun, intermixed with some work here and there, where i can travel and explore and walk for hours without even getting into a car or any other form of transportation other than my own two feet. the truth is, i dont want Chile to end. im sorry, i do miss you all. but i dont want Chile to end. i dont want the time to arrive when i look back at the thousands of pictures i have taken here and i remember the good times ive had as a distant memory, with a little smile playing on my lips or maybe a laugh out loud, in regards to a memory.
moving on from my realization that this is really and truly coming to an end and well, for me i have a bit more time than the majority of my friends here but still, saying goodbye to them will not be fun and i am NOT looking forward to tuesday. or thursday. or friday. these are goodbye days. think of me will you? i know you do, i think about you every day i am here but especially on those days. you are reading my blog so i assume i can count on you for that. :)
ill rewind a bit to Thanksgiving because everyone wants to know how my Chilean thanksgiving went. to be honest, i kind of forgot it was turkey day until Thursday arrived. i would tell you it was the best day ever but i know ive said that alot and as i said with what i started this blog with, just about every day here seems like the best day ever. can you see why i dont want to leave? its not reality, and i like that, being the idealist and dreamer and traveler that i am. but really, it was a GREAT day. the sun was shining and it was really warm and beautiful out. I woke up and went to my last Spanish culture class and said goodbye to all of those people that I had met and shared experiences and thoughts and learned Spanish with this past semester. I then went to the international office computer lab. i spent the next 2 hours or so laughing harder than i have laughed in a long time, having the time of my life. so many people pass through the intl office and we were all pretty giddy from finishing a lot of studying and projects and just being able to enjoy a pretty day. after being really loud and obnoxious with all of our laughter and camaderie i went to the market to buy a bunch of delcious fruit with adam jordan and leslie. i love fruit. bought some strawberries, peaches, chirimoya, bananas, oranges. remember how i told you i dont want to leave? summer time in chile means delicious fruit time too. hoo-rah.
the afternoon was pretty tranquil, I cut up the fruit and made a fruit salad. hung out with jordan and helped him buy presents for his family members, walked around in the day, ate some delicious ice cream and smiled.
i then ran off to a potluck with the group of characters i met the first week of school, my orientation group. we all brought food and shared it, talking about the end of the semester and our travel plans. no turkey. there is turkey in chile because i ate some last week but its expensive and they dont sell it whole. so we had chicken instead. fine, im in chile. the only thing i really missed was getting to eat pumpkin pie. that may have to be arranged for when i return...;) chicken and my fruit salad, salad with avocado, mashed potatoes, green beans, cornbread (but not how i like it, also going to make some of that when i return home..), some good red wine, and yeah, a meal. so that was fun. getting back to viña was a bit of an adventure as i was far out of town and there were no buses, but i eventually found one and it all worked out....
my next activity of thanksgiving was meeting up with the group in viña to meet heidis parents and share thanksgiving dinner with them. i´d already ate of course but we did have some delicious desserts. i had a frozen lúcuma cake which was amazing of course.
the third and final activity of the evening consisted of going to Valpo (Yay!) and hanging out in the basement level of a jazz club, dancing the night away to old school pop songs and laughing with friends.
all in all, a fantastic Thanksgiving. :)
today was super fun as well, i went to Valpo and climbed up one of the hills to a museum where they were having an outdoor foto contest, anyone could bring their prints to hang outside and be admired by passers-by. fantastic. i love photography. the area was brimming with people, looking at the photography, snapping pictures, hanging out with family, slowly wandering enjoying a lazy Sunday. i too enjoyed the photography, went into the museum and looked at more art and political cartoons which i understood most of but a few of the jokes were lost on me. finally i went to the main floor of the building and encountered a little cafe. im kind of obsessed with cafes. i had the best kuchen i have had in chile, raspberry. wow. it was incredible. along with a little cup of coffee and some gasified water. i spent time there delighting my taste buds and getting some writing out onto the pages of my journal. yeah, that rocked.
later this evening i helped decorate the Christmas tree. yes, there is one month til Christmas! ah! we put little balls and ribbon on it and it looks pretty awesome if my opinion counts. fun family activity, listening to the radio with its mix of english and spanish songs both of which to my delight i knew the majority of and could sing along. we dont do a whole lot as a family outside of lunching so this was special and fun.
im going to leave you all with a little gem of a story. a couple days ago i was sitting in the living room, chillin with my computer when the 2 dogs began to bark. peca NEVER barks. but there she was, literally throwing her head back howling while tula barked louder. for 10 minutes or so. obnoxious! i hate the dogs but it was annoying so i tried to comfort them but it didnt work. so i went back to my computer and turned up my music. a few minutes later, i had to get up to get some stuff in my room and i found a little pile of dog poo in the hallway. im not sure why i didnt deal with it right then, but i didnt feel like it...sometimes it works better for me if i just stick to one task at a time. so the poo pile stayed. fast forward to a few minutes later when i was running to my room to grab more stuff that i needed. well, im sure you can guess what happened. my barefeet landed right in the pile of poo, forgetting to jump over it in my rush. i stopped and just started laughing then super grossed out immediatley trying to wash my foot off. gross. so i guess i learned my lesson, clean up the poo first before continuing with other tasks. if you think on that deeper, you can find a life moral. good luck with that.
so apparently now i will have good luck b-c i guess thats what you get when you step in poo. so im told.
all is well here in Chileland, i hope you all can say the same in your respective places. send me some messages as far as how you are doing! see you all soon! :)
love and a BIG hug,
katie :)
p.s. i leave to go camping december 1st and after this time life is projected to be crazy between trips and goodbyes and traveling. my dad will be here til the 14th and then i might be able to write you a little but there will probably be too much to write about. ill see what i can do. needless to say, in case you forgot the date, i return to Indianapolis on Tuesday, December 18 around 12:30pm. im wearing my flip flops in protest of the almost certain frigidity of the weather. have a most wonderful week and i hope you get to experience a SUPER FUN day here soon enough! :)
I find my heart preparing to break into a hundred tiny pieces. Not only will i leave a huge chunk of my heart here in Chile but that huge chunk is going to be divided into so many pieces to so many places. To each of the amazing people I have met and loved, as they all return home or stay in this country. To the streets I walked every single day and the people I passed along said streets. To the panaderías and plazas, the U.S. will never find a match. To my home in Viña. To the metro and the micros and the port. To the beach and the contemplative rocks where I sat to watch the sun set and the waves roll in. To the hills of Valparaíso and the many hidden treasures I discovered up there. To the starry Southern Hemisphere sky. To the many many many beautiful memories that I hope to never ever forget. These are where the pieces of my heart shall stay.
I´m waxing incredibly nostalgic and i havent even left yet. my excuse is that this week, in just two short days, the goodbyes are going to begin. as if they havent already begun. i hate goodbyes. i much prefer "see you later" over "have a good life". i cant imagine never seeing some of these people again and I know that I will. I trust that I will. And i hope to come back to Chile some day. it will never be the same and i might even be disappointed, but i hope to return all the same. i dont want to say goodbye. i dont want this dream of a life to end. this life where all i have is fun, intermixed with some work here and there, where i can travel and explore and walk for hours without even getting into a car or any other form of transportation other than my own two feet. the truth is, i dont want Chile to end. im sorry, i do miss you all. but i dont want Chile to end. i dont want the time to arrive when i look back at the thousands of pictures i have taken here and i remember the good times ive had as a distant memory, with a little smile playing on my lips or maybe a laugh out loud, in regards to a memory.
moving on from my realization that this is really and truly coming to an end and well, for me i have a bit more time than the majority of my friends here but still, saying goodbye to them will not be fun and i am NOT looking forward to tuesday. or thursday. or friday. these are goodbye days. think of me will you? i know you do, i think about you every day i am here but especially on those days. you are reading my blog so i assume i can count on you for that. :)
ill rewind a bit to Thanksgiving because everyone wants to know how my Chilean thanksgiving went. to be honest, i kind of forgot it was turkey day until Thursday arrived. i would tell you it was the best day ever but i know ive said that alot and as i said with what i started this blog with, just about every day here seems like the best day ever. can you see why i dont want to leave? its not reality, and i like that, being the idealist and dreamer and traveler that i am. but really, it was a GREAT day. the sun was shining and it was really warm and beautiful out. I woke up and went to my last Spanish culture class and said goodbye to all of those people that I had met and shared experiences and thoughts and learned Spanish with this past semester. I then went to the international office computer lab. i spent the next 2 hours or so laughing harder than i have laughed in a long time, having the time of my life. so many people pass through the intl office and we were all pretty giddy from finishing a lot of studying and projects and just being able to enjoy a pretty day. after being really loud and obnoxious with all of our laughter and camaderie i went to the market to buy a bunch of delcious fruit with adam jordan and leslie. i love fruit. bought some strawberries, peaches, chirimoya, bananas, oranges. remember how i told you i dont want to leave? summer time in chile means delicious fruit time too. hoo-rah.
the afternoon was pretty tranquil, I cut up the fruit and made a fruit salad. hung out with jordan and helped him buy presents for his family members, walked around in the day, ate some delicious ice cream and smiled.
i then ran off to a potluck with the group of characters i met the first week of school, my orientation group. we all brought food and shared it, talking about the end of the semester and our travel plans. no turkey. there is turkey in chile because i ate some last week but its expensive and they dont sell it whole. so we had chicken instead. fine, im in chile. the only thing i really missed was getting to eat pumpkin pie. that may have to be arranged for when i return...;) chicken and my fruit salad, salad with avocado, mashed potatoes, green beans, cornbread (but not how i like it, also going to make some of that when i return home..), some good red wine, and yeah, a meal. so that was fun. getting back to viña was a bit of an adventure as i was far out of town and there were no buses, but i eventually found one and it all worked out....
my next activity of thanksgiving was meeting up with the group in viña to meet heidis parents and share thanksgiving dinner with them. i´d already ate of course but we did have some delicious desserts. i had a frozen lúcuma cake which was amazing of course.
the third and final activity of the evening consisted of going to Valpo (Yay!) and hanging out in the basement level of a jazz club, dancing the night away to old school pop songs and laughing with friends.
all in all, a fantastic Thanksgiving. :)
today was super fun as well, i went to Valpo and climbed up one of the hills to a museum where they were having an outdoor foto contest, anyone could bring their prints to hang outside and be admired by passers-by. fantastic. i love photography. the area was brimming with people, looking at the photography, snapping pictures, hanging out with family, slowly wandering enjoying a lazy Sunday. i too enjoyed the photography, went into the museum and looked at more art and political cartoons which i understood most of but a few of the jokes were lost on me. finally i went to the main floor of the building and encountered a little cafe. im kind of obsessed with cafes. i had the best kuchen i have had in chile, raspberry. wow. it was incredible. along with a little cup of coffee and some gasified water. i spent time there delighting my taste buds and getting some writing out onto the pages of my journal. yeah, that rocked.
later this evening i helped decorate the Christmas tree. yes, there is one month til Christmas! ah! we put little balls and ribbon on it and it looks pretty awesome if my opinion counts. fun family activity, listening to the radio with its mix of english and spanish songs both of which to my delight i knew the majority of and could sing along. we dont do a whole lot as a family outside of lunching so this was special and fun.
im going to leave you all with a little gem of a story. a couple days ago i was sitting in the living room, chillin with my computer when the 2 dogs began to bark. peca NEVER barks. but there she was, literally throwing her head back howling while tula barked louder. for 10 minutes or so. obnoxious! i hate the dogs but it was annoying so i tried to comfort them but it didnt work. so i went back to my computer and turned up my music. a few minutes later, i had to get up to get some stuff in my room and i found a little pile of dog poo in the hallway. im not sure why i didnt deal with it right then, but i didnt feel like it...sometimes it works better for me if i just stick to one task at a time. so the poo pile stayed. fast forward to a few minutes later when i was running to my room to grab more stuff that i needed. well, im sure you can guess what happened. my barefeet landed right in the pile of poo, forgetting to jump over it in my rush. i stopped and just started laughing then super grossed out immediatley trying to wash my foot off. gross. so i guess i learned my lesson, clean up the poo first before continuing with other tasks. if you think on that deeper, you can find a life moral. good luck with that.
so apparently now i will have good luck b-c i guess thats what you get when you step in poo. so im told.
all is well here in Chileland, i hope you all can say the same in your respective places. send me some messages as far as how you are doing! see you all soon! :)
love and a BIG hug,
katie :)
p.s. i leave to go camping december 1st and after this time life is projected to be crazy between trips and goodbyes and traveling. my dad will be here til the 14th and then i might be able to write you a little but there will probably be too much to write about. ill see what i can do. needless to say, in case you forgot the date, i return to Indianapolis on Tuesday, December 18 around 12:30pm. im wearing my flip flops in protest of the almost certain frigidity of the weather. have a most wonderful week and i hope you get to experience a SUPER FUN day here soon enough! :)
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Notes
Just wanted to write a few notes real quick.
1) For those of you who have sent me things, I have gotten the majority (I think) but for those that have included a little something in the envelope as well, I havent gotten any of that. Just so you know if you were thinking of sending me something other than a letter in an envelope. I just talked to a couple of people and apparently if its not just a plain envelope with a letter you have to go to the post office and send it from there or something. Just so you know if any one was going to send something in the next month (just passed the month til i go home mark..AHHH) im not really expecting anything but at the same time if you want to, go for it..i hope i get it! i am incredibly sad about the ones that have gotten lost....ugh post offices.
2) I´m sure most of you have already heard by now but there was a huge 7.7 earthquake in northern Chile last week. that happened about 1.500 km away from me so i didnt even feel the aftershocks. i made it through! it sounded pretty crazy though, lots of electrical outages and no phones but we in Valpo-Viña were unaffected. thanks for all your emails and messages of concern, i´m fine!! :)
all right, thats it for now, hope you all are doing well! love you
katie
1) For those of you who have sent me things, I have gotten the majority (I think) but for those that have included a little something in the envelope as well, I havent gotten any of that. Just so you know if you were thinking of sending me something other than a letter in an envelope. I just talked to a couple of people and apparently if its not just a plain envelope with a letter you have to go to the post office and send it from there or something. Just so you know if any one was going to send something in the next month (just passed the month til i go home mark..AHHH) im not really expecting anything but at the same time if you want to, go for it..i hope i get it! i am incredibly sad about the ones that have gotten lost....ugh post offices.
2) I´m sure most of you have already heard by now but there was a huge 7.7 earthquake in northern Chile last week. that happened about 1.500 km away from me so i didnt even feel the aftershocks. i made it through! it sounded pretty crazy though, lots of electrical outages and no phones but we in Valpo-Viña were unaffected. thanks for all your emails and messages of concern, i´m fine!! :)
all right, thats it for now, hope you all are doing well! love you
katie
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Content. and beginning to come to an ending point.
i suppose the best way to describe life in Chile right now is delaying the inevitable. i pretend i am on eastern standard time which gives me an extra 2 hours of time in the day to get stuff done. sure its 2am here, but its only midnight back in Indiana....this also correlates to 2 hours more of being in chile, until i have to leave. sure it doesnt really make sense but it seems to work fairly well, most of the time. i have less than 5 weeks left here and time is flying. not only the hours but the days and the weeks. im sure you are tired of hearing me say it, quite possibly every single blog. but time flies! i just cant get over that. so now more than ever i am looking back on everything i have done, everyone i have met, all that i have seen and learned and really reflecting.
in this reflection i have realized a few things. first of all, never in my teenage and above, now practically adult, life, have i ever been happier. i have never been more content and completely in love with life, relaxed and literally with very few responsibilities or preoccupations than i have experienced in Chile. i have never been so free and probably never will be. to give you an example, the other day was absolutely gorgeous. warm, sunny, small breeze. i had class and was running late to it (big surprise there) and as i was about to climb the stairs to run up 5 flights of stairs to try to beat the professor who is also always late, i stopped. and came to the realization that the attendance policy is to attend 75% of the classes. that translates to being allowed to skip an entire month of classes, without penalty. theres no reading to do for the classes i am taking or papers really, just two or three randomly spaced out tests and or presentations throughout the semester. so, i decided rather than sitting in class staring out the window wishing i was outside, that i was going to stay outside. so i went down to the beach and pulled out my lunch, music, and journal and spent the next 2 hours reflecting on the state of my relaxed life and people watching, along with wave watching as they rolled in near me. i´ve come to realize time and again that there is much more than studying and doing school work. not only am i here to study, but im more here to experience the culture, learn the language, discover what makes Chile Chile. so i did that. and have been making that my goal, to really experience Chile, formalities of attending or not attending class, aside. im here to learn what it really means to live life, in its most basic, pure form. and i think i have definitely attained that.
the semester is just about over. i have 2 days of presentations, a paper, and two tests next week and then after that am done until one last test on the 30th of november. not too shabby. not only have i had few responsibilities but the classes are just not hard at all. or challenging. and i am definitely okay with that. im appreciating it now b-c i know that come January, life will not be as sunshiney and content and wonderful as it is now. that being said, balance is probably a good thing.
aside from the constant ice cream and pastry runs and trying random foods, i´ve been exploring the hills of valpo on tuesday and sunday afternoons, finding a new place to hang out for a few hours and get work done, or rather, bring work to do and end up talking life with the people around me, eating some chilean dessert or drinking some fairly decent coffee. tuesday afternoons are also spent in these aforementioned cafes playing games with a group of gringos and chileans. the past few weeks we played pictionary with spanish words...good for the vocabulary building and this week we played some form of Risk which just really isnt my style of an enjoyable game. these cafes, which i have only recently just discovered existed, show the true joy and hidden treasure of valpo. hidden high up in the hills these cafes are varied and interesting. most all of them offer just about the same basic items: natural juices, coffees, pies, cakes, and sometimes some sort of actual food. theres cafes that offer music live in the evenings, are covered with photographs and postcards and notes from regulars, tons of books, artwork, each with its own interesting style and ambiance. love it.
i also dont think ive mentioned that i have been volunteering in a local high school teaching english. if i already mentioned this, sorry, im mentioning it again. i havent gone very many times but i usually go monday mornings and hang out in the english classes, helping with lessons or in some cases, coming up with lessons on the spot to teach english words. of the classes i have helped out in, most of the students dont know much english though there are a few in each class who really get it and participate a lot. however, for the most part its kind of tough. we are supposed to talk in english the whole time, to give the teacher and the students practice hearing a native speaker but its hard, espeically when they dont understand me. interesting experience nonetheless and cool to see a high school here in Chile...very reminiscent of Mexico and my high school experiences there, though perhaps a bit more organized here in Chile.
finally, this past weekend 10 of us rented a cabin in a beach town, Maitencillo, about an hour and a half north of Viña. the bus system to semi far away places like beach towns is interesting and we spent a good amount of time sitting at the bus stop, hoping a bus would pass by and take us where we wanted to go. i only went for one night and day but it was fun all the same. someone brought a guitar and we spent a lot of time with that, singing along to whoever was playing, grilling dinner, trying weird Chilean fruits, playing ultimate frisbee down on a deserted beach and just enjoying the sunshine and waves. it wasnt too hot the day i was there, perfect temperature actually with a good breeze. ultimate frisbee on the beach was definitely my highlight and it was fun to see another town, get out of viña, hang out with friends and relax. okay so i relax almost all the time but it was like a vacation from a vacation....my life is ridiculous. its going to be major culture shock coming back to the States and Butler and having a fairly set, strict schedule with work to do. sometimes i wonder if its just me who is maybe just doesnt have that hard of classes or something but upon talking to most of the other exchange students we have all decided that life in Chile is much better than life in the States, especially study time, stress level wise.
as i watch the weather report in the States get colder and more towards winter and the days tick by faster and faster, and realize that the dates that once seemed so far away back in August, are now arriving and people are making plans to go traveling before their flights back to their respective countries, i feel the end of this experience coming. its winding down, i will be saying goodbye to some amazing friends soon, some leaving as soon as november 27. im here later than most and plan to do lots of traveling as i think i mentioned in my last post, along with the arrival of my father in a few very short weeks!!! so ive still got a decent amount of time left but the daily routine (of sorts) that i have here in chile will soon change. my plan: enjoy whats left, dont think about second semester until i absolutely have to, remember how much i really do still miss all of you, and soak up as much of Chile as i possibly can.
life is good. im probably not going to write for a little while which is why i wanted to write now. ill be studying and finishing up my semester and saying goodbye. the goal is to write again before i start traveling come december 1st. so look for that. happy thanksgiving! a few of us are planning on having a potluck of sorts, find some rotisserie chickens b-c i dont think turkey exists here, and maybe attempting a pumpkin pie. i´d be content with fresh strawberries and hold on the pumpkin pie till the States when i know it will be quite tasty and something to look forward to. as a disclaimer, i really have done some work here in Chile but to reiterate, most of the learning has come from traveling and talking with people i have met and hanging out with the chilean friends i have met as well as those here on exchange, hearing and reading Spanish everywhere and trying to talk in Spanish almost all day long. i have learned a lot, it just hasnt been in attending classes.
oh yes, and my webshots is updated with pictures of argentina so after you get over reading through how long this post was, go on over and check those out.
and, in honor of Thanksgiving, i would also like to reiterate that i am thankful for all of you. that you read my blogs, are interested in whats been going on in my life, send me letters and messages telling me how much you miss me and cant wait til i come home. it will be you, my amazing family and incredible friends, who are my motivation for coming home, back to real life and the normalcy of life in the States and the Midwest. i often play out in my head seeing you again, for the first time in many months, and how exciting that will be. i am completely enamored with Chile and if i have to hitchhike all the way back, i will someday. but you are my roots. you are my true loves. and your support and encouragement means the world to me. so as i prepare to return and then actually do, and when i miss Chile, im counting on you. to be my motivation to stay in the States, at least to graduate, and my encouragement to enjoy life and adventure back at home b-c there is definitely a lot of happiness and contentment to be had back at home. and i am looking forward to that. to the days when i see each of you again. what sweet days those will be. :)
LOVE YOU!!!!
katie
in this reflection i have realized a few things. first of all, never in my teenage and above, now practically adult, life, have i ever been happier. i have never been more content and completely in love with life, relaxed and literally with very few responsibilities or preoccupations than i have experienced in Chile. i have never been so free and probably never will be. to give you an example, the other day was absolutely gorgeous. warm, sunny, small breeze. i had class and was running late to it (big surprise there) and as i was about to climb the stairs to run up 5 flights of stairs to try to beat the professor who is also always late, i stopped. and came to the realization that the attendance policy is to attend 75% of the classes. that translates to being allowed to skip an entire month of classes, without penalty. theres no reading to do for the classes i am taking or papers really, just two or three randomly spaced out tests and or presentations throughout the semester. so, i decided rather than sitting in class staring out the window wishing i was outside, that i was going to stay outside. so i went down to the beach and pulled out my lunch, music, and journal and spent the next 2 hours reflecting on the state of my relaxed life and people watching, along with wave watching as they rolled in near me. i´ve come to realize time and again that there is much more than studying and doing school work. not only am i here to study, but im more here to experience the culture, learn the language, discover what makes Chile Chile. so i did that. and have been making that my goal, to really experience Chile, formalities of attending or not attending class, aside. im here to learn what it really means to live life, in its most basic, pure form. and i think i have definitely attained that.
the semester is just about over. i have 2 days of presentations, a paper, and two tests next week and then after that am done until one last test on the 30th of november. not too shabby. not only have i had few responsibilities but the classes are just not hard at all. or challenging. and i am definitely okay with that. im appreciating it now b-c i know that come January, life will not be as sunshiney and content and wonderful as it is now. that being said, balance is probably a good thing.
aside from the constant ice cream and pastry runs and trying random foods, i´ve been exploring the hills of valpo on tuesday and sunday afternoons, finding a new place to hang out for a few hours and get work done, or rather, bring work to do and end up talking life with the people around me, eating some chilean dessert or drinking some fairly decent coffee. tuesday afternoons are also spent in these aforementioned cafes playing games with a group of gringos and chileans. the past few weeks we played pictionary with spanish words...good for the vocabulary building and this week we played some form of Risk which just really isnt my style of an enjoyable game. these cafes, which i have only recently just discovered existed, show the true joy and hidden treasure of valpo. hidden high up in the hills these cafes are varied and interesting. most all of them offer just about the same basic items: natural juices, coffees, pies, cakes, and sometimes some sort of actual food. theres cafes that offer music live in the evenings, are covered with photographs and postcards and notes from regulars, tons of books, artwork, each with its own interesting style and ambiance. love it.
i also dont think ive mentioned that i have been volunteering in a local high school teaching english. if i already mentioned this, sorry, im mentioning it again. i havent gone very many times but i usually go monday mornings and hang out in the english classes, helping with lessons or in some cases, coming up with lessons on the spot to teach english words. of the classes i have helped out in, most of the students dont know much english though there are a few in each class who really get it and participate a lot. however, for the most part its kind of tough. we are supposed to talk in english the whole time, to give the teacher and the students practice hearing a native speaker but its hard, espeically when they dont understand me. interesting experience nonetheless and cool to see a high school here in Chile...very reminiscent of Mexico and my high school experiences there, though perhaps a bit more organized here in Chile.
finally, this past weekend 10 of us rented a cabin in a beach town, Maitencillo, about an hour and a half north of Viña. the bus system to semi far away places like beach towns is interesting and we spent a good amount of time sitting at the bus stop, hoping a bus would pass by and take us where we wanted to go. i only went for one night and day but it was fun all the same. someone brought a guitar and we spent a lot of time with that, singing along to whoever was playing, grilling dinner, trying weird Chilean fruits, playing ultimate frisbee down on a deserted beach and just enjoying the sunshine and waves. it wasnt too hot the day i was there, perfect temperature actually with a good breeze. ultimate frisbee on the beach was definitely my highlight and it was fun to see another town, get out of viña, hang out with friends and relax. okay so i relax almost all the time but it was like a vacation from a vacation....my life is ridiculous. its going to be major culture shock coming back to the States and Butler and having a fairly set, strict schedule with work to do. sometimes i wonder if its just me who is maybe just doesnt have that hard of classes or something but upon talking to most of the other exchange students we have all decided that life in Chile is much better than life in the States, especially study time, stress level wise.
as i watch the weather report in the States get colder and more towards winter and the days tick by faster and faster, and realize that the dates that once seemed so far away back in August, are now arriving and people are making plans to go traveling before their flights back to their respective countries, i feel the end of this experience coming. its winding down, i will be saying goodbye to some amazing friends soon, some leaving as soon as november 27. im here later than most and plan to do lots of traveling as i think i mentioned in my last post, along with the arrival of my father in a few very short weeks!!! so ive still got a decent amount of time left but the daily routine (of sorts) that i have here in chile will soon change. my plan: enjoy whats left, dont think about second semester until i absolutely have to, remember how much i really do still miss all of you, and soak up as much of Chile as i possibly can.
life is good. im probably not going to write for a little while which is why i wanted to write now. ill be studying and finishing up my semester and saying goodbye. the goal is to write again before i start traveling come december 1st. so look for that. happy thanksgiving! a few of us are planning on having a potluck of sorts, find some rotisserie chickens b-c i dont think turkey exists here, and maybe attempting a pumpkin pie. i´d be content with fresh strawberries and hold on the pumpkin pie till the States when i know it will be quite tasty and something to look forward to. as a disclaimer, i really have done some work here in Chile but to reiterate, most of the learning has come from traveling and talking with people i have met and hanging out with the chilean friends i have met as well as those here on exchange, hearing and reading Spanish everywhere and trying to talk in Spanish almost all day long. i have learned a lot, it just hasnt been in attending classes.
oh yes, and my webshots is updated with pictures of argentina so after you get over reading through how long this post was, go on over and check those out.
and, in honor of Thanksgiving, i would also like to reiterate that i am thankful for all of you. that you read my blogs, are interested in whats been going on in my life, send me letters and messages telling me how much you miss me and cant wait til i come home. it will be you, my amazing family and incredible friends, who are my motivation for coming home, back to real life and the normalcy of life in the States and the Midwest. i often play out in my head seeing you again, for the first time in many months, and how exciting that will be. i am completely enamored with Chile and if i have to hitchhike all the way back, i will someday. but you are my roots. you are my true loves. and your support and encouragement means the world to me. so as i prepare to return and then actually do, and when i miss Chile, im counting on you. to be my motivation to stay in the States, at least to graduate, and my encouragement to enjoy life and adventure back at home b-c there is definitely a lot of happiness and contentment to be had back at home. and i am looking forward to that. to the days when i see each of you again. what sweet days those will be. :)
LOVE YOU!!!!
katie
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Argentina: The Land of Adventurous Enchantment
hello all! i just returned from the land of Argentina, crossing over the beautiful, still snowy Andes mountains to two different towns semi near the chilean-argentine border. first of all, let me express to you how much i LOVED argentina. it was fantastic to cross the border and experience a new country, new culture. though very similar in many ways to chile, argentina felt even more european than chile does and the accent in some of the people we met was nearly impossible to understand. they speak with an Italian accent and also use a ch, j sound for the ll in all their words. this i was able to catch onto but they mumble and use a lot of slang, as does Chile but i dont know as much of the argentine slang as i have learned here in chile. im sure with practice i could catch on and understand but for the short 4.5 days we spent, it was not enough to master the argentine accent.
the first city we spent time in was Mendoza which apparnetly back in the 1800s was part of Chile. now it is part of argentina and home to streets lined with sycamores and large moats in the streets like an irrigation system or something. the weather was very warm and sunny every day we were there, just like summertime. the nights too were delightful reminiscent of summertime and i enjoyed this very much. in Mendoza we explored the city a lot, ate really cheap amazing steaks, great coffee, delicious ice cream, pastries, chocolates, all sorts of things. argentina is a very cheap country to travel in now, 3 pesos to the dollar with a good sized steak costing about 2 USD. incredible. we had more food than we knew what to do with in most cases.
also, there are ice cream shops EVERYWHERE, my friends decided to call one of the streets Katie Heaven b-c it was covered in ice cream shops. of course there are special argentine flavors. my favorite was Tramontana which was vanilla ice cream with ribbons of dulce de leche and then small chocolate cookie spheres that were crunchy. it was delicious! so rich and creamy. their coffee was also incredibly delcious and very welcome from chilean instant nescafe grossness. much better than my bad coffee experience at mcdonalds which is normally delicious and awesome here in chile. last week i went to try to get wireless and bought a cup of coffee to try to get the code which i guess i already had. anyway i bought a Ristretto aka NASTIEST coffee on earth. it was a tiny tiny cup with half of this tiny cup full of liquid that no matter how much sugar i poured in still tasted absolutely disgusting. i drank the 3 sips or so that were in it and it was painful and nasty. thus Argentina made up for that terribly sad coffee experience. their steak was also incredible and very cheap. their most popular dish is a lomito which is a sandwich that has lomo, strip steak, and then an egg, ham slice, tomato, lettuce, and cheese. sooo good.
the first day we walked and walked and ended up at a huge park where we played frisbee and walked along the lake in a rose garden. we found Cerro de la Gloria and climbed this to view vistas of the city and surrounding area as well as a statue erected in commemoration to General San Martin, a key player in some important war back in the day. :)
the next day we traveled to Uspallata, a mountain town among beautiful multi-colored mountains where a movie starring Brad Pitt...something about Tibet i think, was filmed a while back. we rented a cabin and hiked to Cerro 7 Colores, some part of the mountain range that was gorgeous, varied colors and absolutely gorgeous. we climbed up the hills and played more frisbee, hiking and taking pictures. so wide open and a wonderful reminder of the sheer power and magnamity of nature. We rented bikes the next day to see more of the mountains and biked along the Mendoza River, more wide open vistas and beautiful mountain views.
The final day we were back in Mendoza and as Mendoza is home to 70% of all wine produced in Argentina, we rented bikes and visited a couple bodegas, wineries in the area. we picnicked in a field of olive trees and enjoyed the sunny day after biking around for miles with the snowy mountains off in the distance and the grape vines slowly growing to maturity. the harvest isnt until March but the vineyards were a lot prettier than when i arrived in winter. spring is here and summer is on its way!
aside from the camping trip in Cajon del Maipo, this was one of the first trips i have taken where all of us were on the same page. being only 3 (kelan luke and i) this also made it easier to decide what to do. plus they are super adventurous as well and loved tramping around the city, riding bikes, playing frisbee, taking naps every day, cooking and just purely enjoying life. it was a wonderful vacation from a vacation and entertaining meeting friendly Argentines and delighting in the days and nights. nighttime in mendoza was delightful, the wind calm and the temperatures perfect. after dinner or sometimes before if we ate late, we would walk through the plazas and ped mall, watching the people and seeing street performances and people sipping coffee out on the sidewalk in sidewalk cafes or just walking lackadaiscally.
buena onda (good vibes)
needless to say, i loved Argentina and was impressed by their culture and lifestyle and beautiful mountains and outdoor activities. 6 weeks until i return to the states with 2 trips left or so. i plan to go to the beach and rent a cabin with some friends this weekend, celebrate a haphazard Thanksgiving in some way or another in a couple weeks, go south with Leslie and Caroline and camp in a national park amidst waterfalls and then await the arrival of my dad in exactly one month from today when we will go all the way to the end of the earth in Chile to the famous Torres del Paine National Park, penguin colony, and Punta Arenas. done and done what is ahead looks exciting, what is behind was amazing and living life now is incredible. i literally wake up everyday with a huge smile on my face, completely in love with life and all that i have gotten the chance to see and experience thus far.
good luck with the rest of the semester-year, see you all super soon!
love and miss you,
katie :)
the first city we spent time in was Mendoza which apparnetly back in the 1800s was part of Chile. now it is part of argentina and home to streets lined with sycamores and large moats in the streets like an irrigation system or something. the weather was very warm and sunny every day we were there, just like summertime. the nights too were delightful reminiscent of summertime and i enjoyed this very much. in Mendoza we explored the city a lot, ate really cheap amazing steaks, great coffee, delicious ice cream, pastries, chocolates, all sorts of things. argentina is a very cheap country to travel in now, 3 pesos to the dollar with a good sized steak costing about 2 USD. incredible. we had more food than we knew what to do with in most cases.
also, there are ice cream shops EVERYWHERE, my friends decided to call one of the streets Katie Heaven b-c it was covered in ice cream shops. of course there are special argentine flavors. my favorite was Tramontana which was vanilla ice cream with ribbons of dulce de leche and then small chocolate cookie spheres that were crunchy. it was delicious! so rich and creamy. their coffee was also incredibly delcious and very welcome from chilean instant nescafe grossness. much better than my bad coffee experience at mcdonalds which is normally delicious and awesome here in chile. last week i went to try to get wireless and bought a cup of coffee to try to get the code which i guess i already had. anyway i bought a Ristretto aka NASTIEST coffee on earth. it was a tiny tiny cup with half of this tiny cup full of liquid that no matter how much sugar i poured in still tasted absolutely disgusting. i drank the 3 sips or so that were in it and it was painful and nasty. thus Argentina made up for that terribly sad coffee experience. their steak was also incredible and very cheap. their most popular dish is a lomito which is a sandwich that has lomo, strip steak, and then an egg, ham slice, tomato, lettuce, and cheese. sooo good.
the first day we walked and walked and ended up at a huge park where we played frisbee and walked along the lake in a rose garden. we found Cerro de la Gloria and climbed this to view vistas of the city and surrounding area as well as a statue erected in commemoration to General San Martin, a key player in some important war back in the day. :)
the next day we traveled to Uspallata, a mountain town among beautiful multi-colored mountains where a movie starring Brad Pitt...something about Tibet i think, was filmed a while back. we rented a cabin and hiked to Cerro 7 Colores, some part of the mountain range that was gorgeous, varied colors and absolutely gorgeous. we climbed up the hills and played more frisbee, hiking and taking pictures. so wide open and a wonderful reminder of the sheer power and magnamity of nature. We rented bikes the next day to see more of the mountains and biked along the Mendoza River, more wide open vistas and beautiful mountain views.
The final day we were back in Mendoza and as Mendoza is home to 70% of all wine produced in Argentina, we rented bikes and visited a couple bodegas, wineries in the area. we picnicked in a field of olive trees and enjoyed the sunny day after biking around for miles with the snowy mountains off in the distance and the grape vines slowly growing to maturity. the harvest isnt until March but the vineyards were a lot prettier than when i arrived in winter. spring is here and summer is on its way!
aside from the camping trip in Cajon del Maipo, this was one of the first trips i have taken where all of us were on the same page. being only 3 (kelan luke and i) this also made it easier to decide what to do. plus they are super adventurous as well and loved tramping around the city, riding bikes, playing frisbee, taking naps every day, cooking and just purely enjoying life. it was a wonderful vacation from a vacation and entertaining meeting friendly Argentines and delighting in the days and nights. nighttime in mendoza was delightful, the wind calm and the temperatures perfect. after dinner or sometimes before if we ate late, we would walk through the plazas and ped mall, watching the people and seeing street performances and people sipping coffee out on the sidewalk in sidewalk cafes or just walking lackadaiscally.
buena onda (good vibes)
needless to say, i loved Argentina and was impressed by their culture and lifestyle and beautiful mountains and outdoor activities. 6 weeks until i return to the states with 2 trips left or so. i plan to go to the beach and rent a cabin with some friends this weekend, celebrate a haphazard Thanksgiving in some way or another in a couple weeks, go south with Leslie and Caroline and camp in a national park amidst waterfalls and then await the arrival of my dad in exactly one month from today when we will go all the way to the end of the earth in Chile to the famous Torres del Paine National Park, penguin colony, and Punta Arenas. done and done what is ahead looks exciting, what is behind was amazing and living life now is incredible. i literally wake up everyday with a huge smile on my face, completely in love with life and all that i have gotten the chance to see and experience thus far.
good luck with the rest of the semester-year, see you all super soon!
love and miss you,
katie :)
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