Vallenar, Copiapó, Huasco, La Serena, Coquimbo, El Valle de Elqui. EL NORTE DE CHILE (The north of Chile) plus other random business.

Would you check out that monster of a title! ^^

Random Business

Hi everybody!  It's been a while since I've written, as I have been really busy lately.  I was on vacation in northern Chile for two weeks with my host parents and other family, then I came back to Viña to greet the new study abroad kids, then I had a week to prepare for the new school semester, and then, well, classes started!  Last week was my first week of classes and I still don't know exactly what courses I will take.  This semester is really weird (as there is a new boss) and we are only allowed to drop classes, not add them.  Last semester we could do both.  So, I signed up for ten classes--yes, ten. And I know some other people who signed up for like twenty!  Anyways...it's no big deal as in the end I will end up with only five classes.  And three of them only meet once a week.  Surprisingly enough, I won't be taking any psychology or gym classes this semester (I took three gym classes and one psych class last semester).  I'm not taking a psych class as last semester I was disappointed with my psych class.  I didn't really learn anything--besides how to say things in Spanish...which is not a bad thing.  Also, I have to take other more difficult classes this semester (a science lab and an art history), so I didn't think I would have enough time to invest in the psych class--which I would have liked to do if I did take one.  Plus, I don't need to take a psych class, so, no worries.  About the gym classes...trust me, I wanted to take one or many gym classes, but they just didn't quite fit in my schedule.  Bummer, eh?  So....I won't tell you what class I have now, because I don't even know for sure.

The arrival of the new CIEE kids!  The second-semester bunch of American students studying abroad through the program, CIEE, arrived the week I got back from the north.  Because I've already done everything and know everything (well, almost), I helped out instead of participating in orientation.  It was so much fun to see how they all were...just like I was...picked up and plopped in a foreign country, culture, language, etc.  It was so much fun to talk to them and to answer ALL their questions!  I also got some fun questions myself.  Many had thought that I had already graduated and was working here in Chile for CIEE or that I was even Chilean!  Crazyyy!!  But it made me feel sooo good...so, it was appreciated!   

Vallenar, Copiapó, Huasco, La Serena, Coquimbo, El Valle de Elqui. EL NORTE DE CHILE (The north of Chile) , 

All the photos are on Facebook.  Go to my picture albums, and they are under three albums titled, "Viaje al Norte"

I stayed in Vallenar, a small town in el Norte Chico of Chile, for the first week of my vacation.  There is where my host parents raised their two daughters (my Chilean sisters, Ingrid and Sonita).  They also have lots of family there--so, naturally, we stayed and visited with them the whole time.  It was absolutely wonderful!  I stayed in the house of my host mom's niece (who has two super cute little boys) and my host parents stayed in the house of my host mom's brother.   While in Vallenar, we also went to Copiapó (the city where the 33 miners were) for a day.  We also went with the family to Huasco, which is like a mini-Valparaíso.  It was really interesting to see the difference between the north (and this isn't even that far north) of Chile and the south of Chile (Valdivia, which either isn't that far south).  They are so different!  The north is dry, the rivers (if they exist) are small, the green you see is very few,it's hot., the sun is really strong, etc.  The south is full of green, water, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, grass, rain, etc.   It was sad to leave as the time went by so fast and I really felt like family there.  Wilsito, the three year old little boy that I shared a room with (he called me Iliana as he couldn't pronounce, Diana...so cute!) bawled when we said good-bye and got on the bus.  He cried, because he didn't want me to go and was saying that he wanted to come with us!  Soooo cute!!

For the second week, we were in El Valle de Elqui (Elqui Valley), which is where my host mom was born and grew up.  This is also the land of the famous Chilean poet, Gabriela Mistral.  When we arrived in El Valle de Elqui, my jaw dropped and hung open practically the entire car ride.  The mountains, the fields, the agriculture, the valley, the sky, the everything was simply incredible.  I've never seen such a thing in my life!  We stayed in a house of a family there which was located in Pisco Elqui, a small town in the Valley.  The house, just so happened to be located, smack dab in the valley!  I would walk out the front door and see a huge mountain in front of me, behind me, and the valley to my right and left!  At night, uuuufffff, it was so beautiful!  I also met one of my very close little friends there, Josefa.  My host mom is her great aunt.  Making her my second cousin?  Right?  Anyway...that's what we said we were...cousins! haha!  She's nine years old and for about three days we were inseparable!  She was more like a little sister...the little sister I always wanted!  She would ask me sooo many questions about me, the USA, and English.  She was so fascinated!  When it was time to say good-bye, she started crying--and of course, so did I!  I really don't like good-byes...I don't know what I'm going to do when I have to leave Chile in July!  I'll probably bawl my eyes out until I go blind or something.  Anyways, Josefa and I are going to be pen pals and write letters to each other!  I received my first letter (she made me a book!) from her just two days after I arrived back in Viña.  I sent her a letter last week. :)

  

Highlights of the trip: 

-Seeing Julio!!!  He had gone to the north about a month before we did as he had a job there.  It was so good to finally see him again! 

-Meeting more family!  I felt so much at home my whole time I was in the north, just like I do when I'm in Viña.  In fact, I'm going to try and go back to the north by myself to visit the family one more time before I head back to the states.  Oh, also, Mom and Dad, I've already invited them all to come and stay in our house in Warrenville....hehhee...I hope that's okay! :)  Josefa really wants to come!  Mom, I know you won't have a problem with that....Dad...you'll be fine too, as you've had tons of practice already. 

-Seeing the contrast of scenery...between the north and south of Chile.

-Seeing where both of my host parents grew up/were raised/and where they raised their daughters (before moving to Valparaíso). 

-Being in el Valle de Elqui.  Seriously, I could live there.  I HIGHLY recommend going there if you ever get a chance some day!

-Trying new fruits!  I ate: copao (a cactus fruit that is kind of like the kiwi), sweet cucumber, natural figs (not dried and not Fig Newtons..haha), peaches, pears, and grapes picked straight from the tree/vine, and there was something else I tried, but I don't remember.

Vallenar

The ''river'' in Copiapó

Copiapó

Huasco

La Sererna (It's known for it's Colonial architecture)

The beach in La Serena (it's also know for its coast line) and across the water is Coquimbo.  La Serena and Coquimbo :: Viña del Mar and Valparaíso

Horcon, el Valle de Elqui, almost on the border of Argentina.

Josefa and me in Pisco Elqui!  (Look what the sun has done to my hair!...really, the sun is a lot stronger here, thanks to the depleted ozone layer above Chile).

Copao!!!

Natural figs! picked right off the tree!

Valdivia (el sur de Chile) [the south of Chile]

Hellooooo! Jelouuu! 

One of the things I did this summer, was teach English in Valdivia, Chile.  I've been meaning to write about my experience for the longest time, so, here it goes!

I was in Valdivia for one week (Jan 9 - Jan 15), teaching English through 'English Opens Doors' English Camps.  I met up with one other American who has been teaching in Chile since last March and then three Chileans who live and study in Valdivia (studying to be English teachers).  Within our team of five, we planned, taught, and led for a week of English Camps.  Camps started at 10am and ended around 5pm each day.  The goal was to speak English the entire day.  For me, easy, right?  Kind of.  I mean, of course it was easy for me to speak English, but when the kids didn't understand, it would have been SO MUCH easier just to say what I had just said, but in Spanish.  Instead, I had to work really hard on speaking slowly, pronunciation well, not saying too many 'ums' or 'uhs', and using lots of hand motions. haha.  Also, just because you know how to speak a language, doesn't necessarily mean you know how to teach it--explain it--make it comprehensible.  

There were many 'pluses' to working for this program.  One being that the kids that participate have to have received good grades in English along with having good behavior.  Oh, the kids were High School aged, as well, so it was a lot less babysitting and lot more teaching/learning/interacting.  Another 'plus' was that everything was paid for!  For the kids and for me!  The camp was free for the kids, along with two snacks and lunch per day and a t-shirt!  The program also paid for my transportation, my hotel, food, and also gave me a little bonus.  I'm still considered a volunteer, because it's not enough to say that I 'worked', but it's nice to get something extra. :)  And really, I would have done it with out the bonus.  It was so much fun!  The Chileans that we worked with were absolutely wonderful!  I miss them!  We all worked together and got along so great!  They were also really nice and took LeighAnn (the other American) and I around Valdivia so that we could squeeze some turisty things in our trip as well.  The first day we were there, we went to the beach, had seafood empanadas (that I liked!), went to Niebla (an old Fort), around town, and to the Fish Market.  It was great!  Throughout the week we visited the Botanical Garden, the biggest University in Valdivia (where they go), the Kundstman Brewery (Valdivia has a lot of German influence), and the Chocolate Festival!  We had the opportunity to see many things, but I still felt short on time there.  Short on time to see the city and surrounding areas and short on time to spend with my new Chilean friends.  Valdivia is also known for it's RAIN.  It rains A LOT. "On average there are 201 days per year with more than 0.1 mm (0.004 in) of rainfall (precipitation) or 17 days with a quantity of rain, sleet, snow etc. per month" (http://www.climatetemp.info/chile/valdivia.html).  Yes, lots of rain.  Luckily, the week of English Camps it only rained Thursday morning and then all day Saturday (the last day).  I never though I would miss rain, but it was so refreshing!  It's doesn't rain much in Viña, well, at least not during the summer.  The only bad thing about it raining on our last day, was that we couldn't do the touristy things we had planned that day, nor, make it to the fair to buy souvenirs.  So...for that, I must go back!  Some day!  I absolutely LOVED Valdiva (aka the South of Chile) and I know that someday, I will be back, baby!  My favorite part of the south, everything is green!  It's also a lot less like a city.  I've been lacking some nature, and there, it was abundant.   

Here are two pictures (if you click on them, you can see them bigger) of the River Calle Calle that runs right through town.  Our hotel was located right next to it and it was absolutely beautiful to walk along the river everyday!  (For some reason I ran out of space or something, so I can't put up more pictures on my blog right now.  I guess that means that I shouldn't put so many pictures up!  I'll try and figure it out later.  Meanwhile, ALL of my pictures from Valdivia and the Camp are in three albums on Facebook...so check them out!) 

 

News: I'm going NORTH!  I'm heading to Vallenar which is in northern Chile.  My host dad is there now working, so I'll be going with my host mom and meeting him there.  They are from that area so they have lots of family up there.  We are leaving February 8th in the morning around 10am and will arrive around 8pm (via bus).  I'm so excited to meet their family and to see Julio again (it will have been about a month)!!!! WOOO!!!!!!  I miss him!!  It's going to be a great opportunity to meet more of the family, see where my host parents are from, time to spend with my host parents, and to get to know another part of the country.

summer in the south and MOU

If you haven't realized yet, it's summer in Chile right now!  Yesterday as I was talking to my beautiful friends, Lora and Bekah, on skype, they reminded me of the snow back home and one of the questions they asked me was, "So what do you do when you're not at the beach?"...or something like that.  Hahaha...gooood question.  Actually, the last time I was at the beach, there was a tremor off the coast of Chile near Temuco.  The waves were huge and the water came really close to us, but that's about it.  No big deal!  Sooo...no worrying back home--it's not allowed.  I wasn't going to tell the story, but now I think I should...sorry if it gets to be really long.  So last Sunday I went to the beach with some of my friends and we were playing UNO (with the cards that my parents sent me!) and we were watching the waves as they kept getting bigger and bigger.  There were two guys laying down with their eyes covered semi-close to the water.  Each time the water would come further and further up on shore and, thus, closer and closer to getting them wet.  Then a huge wave came...and bam...the water sweept right in under them!  It was so funny.  We then get a call from one of my friends mom's saying that there was an earthquake in Temuco, in the south of Chile.  The waves get bigger and I decide to make a video. hehe.  We leave the beach and start walking towards the mall which is up hill, just in case a tsunami were to come.  When we get to the top, we're listening to the radio and turns out it was just a tremor...no big deal...no big deal at all.  It was fun to fake freak out though. haha  So, to conclude, I am safe. :) yessssssss.

 

Here's a video of the waves...I get a little over spastic at the end of the video, but FYI, it's fake panic.  So no worries. 

MOU: Misión Operación Urbana

December 26th to December 31st I participated in MOU, which in English, stands for Operation Urban Mission.  It was basically a retreat in which about sixteen different churches in the area participated.  We stayed at a school for the week, different speakers came each day, we had worship sessions at least three times per day, and we also went out into the community to share God's word.  It was very tiresome, as we went to bed late and woke up early (7am) each day, and all day we were busy busy busy.  The experience, as a whole, was great!  Some of the things I learned include: 

1. Our job, as Christians, are to plant seeds--for the Lord.  We are to talk about God and what He did for us when He sent His son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins.  In fact, some people have NEVER even heard this before!  I always knew this before, but I never really knew it.  Ya know? (haha)  For some reason, it never really clicked in my head like I thought it had before.  

2. It's all for HIS Glory!  Not for us--but for Him!  It is all because of Him and for Him.

3. We can talk to tons of people we have never met before about Jesus--but when it comes down to our most loved ones--we often times stay quiet.  They should be the easiest to talk to, because we know them.  So many times we get caught up with ''offending'' them that we forget what we're dealing with--a relationship with Jesus Christ--eternal life.  What's up with that?

4. It is God that sustains us--gives us energy--gives us strength--even when we are very tired (as I was very tired the entire week).

5. Missions: The city is a very strategic place to evangelize as people come and go from all places to the city and then back to where they came from.  As I have thought (still thinking and praying) about being a missionary someday in the future, this made me think even more.  I'm not a city girl, at all.  I'd much rather run around outside barefoot breathing the fresh air.  But if I feel lead to live in a city, well, then I will do it.  (That took a lot to write that...as writing it makes it feel more real. Oh, gosh.)

Here are some pictures from the week!

My friend, Cony!  She's the one that invited me to MOU!

Worship.  See the 'CHILE' in the background?

The school's gym (worship/message place)

Rachel and me!  She was my last American friend to leave Chile! :(

On the micro (bus) to downtown Viña with Cote!

It was like slumber party every night!...and I was always the first to fall asleep. hehe

During the march with my dear Fran!

The school's parking lot/court.  Someone had an American flag towel at MOU! haha!! USA USA USA!

I save the best for last...I LOVE this picture!!! and I LOVE my friends, Paloma and Rachel!

Here's a video of the march:

At the end of the march we ended at a plaza in Viña, danced, sang, and had some fun.  (Notice the street dogs...yes, I'm in Chile.)

La Navidad y El Año Nuevo

Holaaaaa!  Long time to write. hehe
So much has happened in these past couple of weeks!  Usually when I start writing another blog post, I look through my pictures to see what all I have done and what all I need to fill you in on...let's just say that I take a lot of pictures. haha

My first Christmas away from home, and, it doesn't even feel like Christmas!  This helps on decreasing my feelings of missing home.  The food alone is an example of how different it was...

Shrimp and avocado! On Christmas Eve! hahah!! We're definitely on the coast!  No, I didn't eat the shrimp, but yes, I did try it.  The avocado was delicious though!

Watermelon! Sign of summer here! First time eating watermelon for Christmas!

YES! You guessed it!  We ate CHILI on Christmas Eve in CHILE!!  Before I left for Chile in July, everyone was always asking me, "Are you going to eat chili in Chile?..hahaha.." and I would respond reluctantly, "he...he...probably not."  But..what do you know!? I did! This is due to the fact that my Chilean host sister's husband is from Colorado, therefore, loves chili.  His mom, taught my host sister how to make it.  And it was, delicious!! However, not as good as the best chili ever made by Grandma Lund!

There was one thing that brought me back to Christmas in the states...Pumpkin Pie!  When I made pumpkin pie for my family for Thanksgiving, they absolutely loved it!  My Chilean niece, Camilia, really wanted to make pumpkin pie for Christmas.  I taught her how to make the pie crust and gave a her a copy of the recipe.  Instead of canned Libby's pumpkin, we used yellow squash.  It turned out really well!  Great job, Cami!  The square pie is blueberry pie and the round one is the pumpkin pie!  Look at the lights on the hills in the background! 

Overall, Christmas Eve was very nice.  We played Clue (I won!), went to the Christmas Play at my church, came back to eat dinner, read a part of the Bible about Jesus' birth, and the opened gifts.  Here in Chile, they celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, open all the gifts on Christmas Eve, and then Christmas Day is just a day of relaxing,playing with the new toys, going to the beach, etc.  I thank my host family so much for accepting me as part of their family and for loving me!  Even thought it didn't feel much like Christmas, with it not being cold, no snow, etc...I most definitely still felt the love from the people around me.  I thank God for that!

From left to right: Ingrid, Alan, Camila, Sonia (Osy), Julio (Cuyin), me.  This is in Ingrid and Alan's apartment.

Cami and me in the water!  It's COLD!!

Ingrid and Cami on the beach.  It was really windy, so we didn't stay that long.

New Years!  New Years in Valparaiso/Viña del Mar is HUGE!  The fireworks being the big attraction!  They lasted 25 minutes and were absolutely spectacular!  Here's a short video and some photos of them:

 

The view from Ingrid's apartment.  We could see about 7 points of fireworks...and that was probably just about half of them!  If I come to Viña/Valpo for another New Years, I'm going to watch the fireworks on the beach! :)  It was sooo nice to watch them with my host family though!

The Grand Finale basically just lookes like really bright lights. hahaha! SO many fireworks!

Later, after the fireworks, we gave everyone a hug and had a toast.  It's a New Years tradition to hug everyone you know and wish them a Happy New Year...even for about a week after the celebration.  They also put pineapple ice cream in their champagne...or in their ginger ale for the kiddies (me included..hehe).  It's basically like a root beer float, but with different flavors!  They also broke out the crazy hats...as you can see...

Esteban smiling!!!

My host parents and me before the fireworks.

Oh my...the laughter!

Sammy and Estefy on the balcony waiting for the fireworks to start.

My host mom and me

Julio, Ingrid, and Sonia celebrating the New Year!

After the fireworks, Estefy fell asleep and Sammy and I played Jenga!

Then, I headed out to meet up with some of my Chilean friends and Rachael, my only American friend still here (she left yesterday!).  Rachael and I were so surprised that here we were, at 2am in the morning, and just LEAVING to go out. HAHA!  That's how it's done here in Chile...especially on New Years.  In fact, my host family just told me to stay in Valparaiso until the morning as it's not very safe to come back in the middle of night...better to wait until the sun comes out.  So, that's what we did.  We went to a dance club in Valparaiso and danced the night away, literally.  The music was great as they played everything...rock, reggeaton, salsa, merengue, cumbia, techno, rap, pop, American music, etc!  One of my Chilean friends and I left the club around 6:50am and then the others followed at 7am, because the club was closing.  It was so weird when I walked out of the club and it was LIGHT OUT!  All in all, we had a wonderful night.  It was nice, because the group that I went with were friends from church, so we were all very safe.  I didn't drink anything the whole night, except for half a glass of coke and three ice cubes.  That was a mistake...I was sooooo thirsty when I got home...aguaaaa is what I needed!  hahaha  To sum up, I spent New Years the Chilean Style!    

All of the buses going to Valparaiso were PACKED!

2am...the streets still full with people! New Years in the Summertime!

Me, Rachael, Nicole, Benjamin in the club

SNOW!!! nope, just kidding, only paper. :) A girl can dream, can't she? (My friend, Paloma, and me).

In the morning, when we left the club...

New Years Day: I got home around 8am and woke up around 12pm as I didn't want to miss lunch at my host sister's house with the kiddies (and I didn't want to mess up my sleep schedule too bad)!  Yes, I was tried, but it was worth it!  We had yummy choripan, grilled chicken, watermelon, cantaloupe, honey dew, cherries, etc.  It was a great lunch!  Then...we went to the pool!

Best photo sequence ever:  Esteban is famous for being cute (this is the blanket my mom made for him!)...Julio is known for sleeping anywhere--anytime (not sure where this blanket came from).