Concepción

What I liked about Concepción:

1. Our hotel made it so easy to get to places we wanted to go. Even though we basically were staying in the middle of nowhere, it was a piece of cake to get a taxi to any place nearby. Also, there was a free shuttle provided by the hotel that ran during certain nours during the week, so that was cool, too. (Although the woman who drove the shuttle scared me. She always seemed angry when picking us up from anywhere!)

2. There were so many great museums, and they were free! All were within walking distance of the centre of town (except for one that was close to the beach, but I'll forgive it because it was close to the beach!), and they had lots of really interesting things to see. I want to pick a favourite, but really, I liked them all. 

3. It's much more beautiful here than it looks. On first glance, Concepción looks like a regular city. Nothing special, very commercial-looking in areas. Then, as you start to explore it, you find beauty hidden everywhere. Like the forest of Endor that showed up while we were climbing a hill. Or the park with a gazebo and fitness stations that we found on the way to the lake. Or the university, which is filled with activity on a Saturday afternoon. 

4. The people here are nice. Really nice. I know that's a huge generalization, but pretty much everyone here that we've met (aside from the grumpy shuttle bus driver, and really, she did pick us up and take us places for free, so I can't complain!) has been friendly and pleasant. The hotel staff are always smiling and patient with our Spanglish. A guard at the art gallery gave us free books and encouraged us to wander around the university campus because it was so beautiful. People slowed down in their cars to chat with us when we were walking alongside the road. (Ok, technically the people in the car were Canadian, but since it happened here, I'm counting it as a point toward Concepción.)

5. There are libraries here. One of the things that bothered me about La Serena was that it didn't have a library. Every city should have one! Actually, every city should have more than one! And Concepción does. They may be small, but they're mighty!

If I ever come back to Chile in the future (and I see it as a strong possibility), I could definitely see myself returning to this place. 

Zen moments

So Very Tired...

I'm surprised at how tired I feel here all the time. It made sense when I was volunteering, because my days were packed. But now that I'm vacationing, my schedule is a lot more flexible. However, I feel more tired than ever!

Maybe it has to do with the amount of sun I'm getting? Here in Concepción, I'm basically spending all day, every day in the sun. (And using lots of sunblock, don't worry!) Or maybe it's from hiking around so much. Or possibly from eating badly. Now that I'm no longer living at Vilma's, my eating habits have gone downhill. I no longer eat three square meals a day, and am back to eating stuff that I didn't touch for four weeks (hello Lays chips and Diet Pepsi! Nice to see you again!). 

Well, whatever the reason, I think extra sleep tonight wouldn't hurt. Big day tomorrow of museum hopping in the downtown area. Can't believe this is my last week in Chile! Where has the time gone?

A New City

Concepción looks nothing like Santiago. Or La Serena. Of course, I haven't seen much if it yet. It turns out our hotel is not, in fact, close to the city centre as I previously thought. Rather, it is close to the airport, and directly off the highway, which means nothing is within walking distance. 

The good news is that the hotel seems very nice, with a restaurant on site and breakfast included. And it wasn't too expensive.

The better news is that they have a hotel shuttle that can take us to nearby places like the mall, the beach, and the centre of town.

Looking forward to see what this place is like in the coming days. For now, here is a view from our hotel window.

Santiago

I arrived in Santiago on Sunday, but have been silent on the blog because I've had tons of problems here with the internet and have had difficulty downloading my photos, and didn't think my words could do this place justice.

I still can't seem to post my pics, but I have stolen some from Chris, and hope they will suffice for now. This place is great. Very different from La Serena, but not better or worse. Just a change! 

Our apartment here is two levels, with a kitchen, living room, dining room, and bathroom.

I am still loving the Chocapic, but I failed at turning Chris into a fan. :(

This is the cathedral in the Plaza de Armas. It's huge and beautiful. We went to mass on Monday night and I managed the Lord's Prayer and all the Hail Mary's in Spanish. Sadly, my Spanish has been weakening every day since then, as so many people here speak English!

Santa Lucia hill. It's beautiful, free, and apparently a very popular make out spot!

We did a tour that lasted ten hours. This was at one of the wineries. The air actually smells better here!

This was just outside Pablo Neruda's Valparaíso house. The guy had three houses and was planning to build a fourth just before he died. I wish we had been allowed to take photos inside the house. It was spectacular!

Chris' yummy lunch of conger (eel) soup and Chilean salad.

And my veggie risotto. Look at that view out the window!

Viña del Mar. I think this place is a bit more upscale than Santiago or La Serena.

A bunch of dogs just chillaxing. They don't have owners, but people look after them by feeding them and building houses (see background) for them.

A giant cedar tree. I'm standing at the base of the tree, but it's really hard to spot me!

Outside Pablo Neruda's Santiago house. Another gem! (The tour is great, too! So organized, and you go at your own pace! Plus, it's available in six languages!)

Pastel de choclo (or corn pie). Corn, beef, olives, hard boiled egg, onions, raisins, potatoes, and a bunch of sugar. It made me think of Rachel's trifle in that Friends episode. (You know, "Custard? Good. Jam? Good. Meat? GOOD!")

And of course, a little reading in the park. (That's apparently the face I make when I do a French accent.)

Tomorrow we head to Concepción for a few days. Hoping for good weather, but expecting it to be colder than it is here! (Santiago is much warmer than La Serena!) Cross your fingers!

Final Thoughts in La Serena

Today was my last full day here in La Serena. I thoroughly enjoyed it, going to the beach one last time as well as cooking empanadas with my host mom and playing with Lisa the cat. I'm sad about leaving tomorrow, but also looking forward to travelling a bit. Here are some of my thoughts on La Serena and my time here:

-La Serena is a small town, but has pretty much everything you need. I think I could live here and be quite comfortable.

-My host mom is one of the nicest and funniest people I've ever met. She also makes amazing food, and I think it hasn't actually sunk in yet that I won't be living with her after this. (I have invited her to come to visit me in Canada, though, so hopefully that will happen in the future!) I have had host moms in the past, but Vilma has been my favourite by far.

-It's easy to learn Spanish quickly when you don't have a choice. Nobody here really speaks English, so in order to understand and be understood at work, I had to learn a lot of Spanish in a short time. It got much easier after the first few awkward days.

-I really enjoyed walking to and from work every day. It gave me a chance to relax before and after working with the seniors, which was a nice start and end to my working day. Maybe I should look into doing this more often in Canada, too.

-The people here in La Serena are really nice. When I pass someone on the street and say hi, they always smile and say it back. (Just like back home!)

-I wouldn't mind coming back here in the future.

Here are some photos from today:

Breakfast at Vilma's. (They really need to make Chocapic cereal in Canada!)

Lisa being adorable, as usual.

Me, learning to make empanadas.

They tasted even better than they look.

Thoughts

I'm down to my last two days at the hogar. It's been a great four weeks here, and I'm going to miss the seniors so much. The staff, too, although I found it easier to connect with some of the seniors because I had more opportunities to chat with them. (The staff there work 12-hour days, and are super-busy the entire time.)

I was the first volunteer that A Broader View has sent to this nursing home. It was a learning experience for everyone, I think, and there are things that could be improved in the future, but I feel like everyone did their best in an unfamiliar situation. I wonder if it will be hard for some of the residents to have volunteers come in, get to know them, and then have them leave a few weeks later. 

I am excited to see Chris on Sunday, though. And looking forward to some travelling, which will be a completely different experience than I've had so far.

Shout Out to Chilean Food

I want to take a minute to acknowledge just how good the food is here. When I was leaving Canada, I was a bit nervous about what I would eat here. I have been known to be a bit picky in my eating habits at home, so I had no idea what to expect when coming to Chile. In the past, I have been pleasantly surprised by the food in a certain country (Costa Rican fried plantains, anyone?), frustrated (salad that was too spicy to eat in India), to downright horrified (meats of every animal you can imagine in Vietnam).

Luckily, Chile has been a fantastic experience when it comes to food. The fruits and vegetables here are much sweeter and better tasting than back home. At the market, everything smells fresh. I could just eat raw fruits and veggies here and I'd be happy. But then there's the bread. Oh my god, the bread. We get it with every meal, so you'd think I would be sick of it. Yeah, right. I feel sick at the thought of not eating it! I don't know if it's tastier here, or just a different texture, but I think I've gained ten pounds just on bread alone.

And then there's my host mom's cooking. She makes the best meals: empanadas with chicken, turkey burgers, quiche with egg, spinach, and carrot, lentil stew, and so many more. I haven't been disappointed once. In fact, often when I am finishing a meal, I am completely full, but already looking forward to the next one! (That's not an exaggeration. I was excited about breakfast as I was finishing dinner last night.)

Sadly, I fear I may have to learn to cook. Either that, or I will be going through some serious withdrawal when I get back home!

Randoms from the week

There is a café next to work. The price of coffee and hot chocolate changes depending on who takes your order.

One of the nuns at the hogar gave me a rosary and is teaching me prayers in Spanish.

I have been getting travel advice from this amazing lady, who happens to be my best friend at work.

We had a mystery meal at someone's house. It was pretty good, but did not in any way compare to our host mom's food.

We may have had some Chilean wine.

Going out

Guess who got dressed up (i.e., brushed her hair) for dinner?

We're Not in Canada Anymore, Toto

Chile is awesome. 

Today, while walking home from work, we happened to pass by the house of a woman who works (part time) at the nursing home. (We didn't know she lived there.) She just happened to be outside, and after introducing us to her family, invited us to come over for dinner tomorrow night. Totally normal, apparently. So tomorrow, after Spanish lessons, we get to go out for dinner. She is Venezuelan, and has promised to make some traditional Venezuelan food for us. Very exciting! 

We should really do more of this kind of thing in Canada.

Starting Over

Yesterday was Jenn's first day at the nursing home. It felt like it was my first day, too, because it was really different. (Not better or worse, just different.) When I started, I had to figure out how I fit in there, and what I was able to do, without making more work for the staff there. And it took a few days, but then it got a bit more comfortable, and there was a rhythm to the day.

Now we're trying to figure out how Jenn fits in there, so there has been a shift, and I feel like I have to find my place there again, too. Change is a bit overwhelming at times for me, but it's a good thing, because it forces me out of my comfort zone. (This whole trip so far has forced me way out of my comfort zone. It hasn't been easy, but the experience is invaluable.)

Rest assured, we will have found a rhythm again within a couple of days. I'm sure of it!

So, This Happened...

Chile just got a whole lot louder. And more Canadian.

We took about a million photos last night, and this was one of the better ones, believe it or not. Off to see some penguins today!

Things Said to Me at the Nursing Home

These are some of the things the abuelos have said to me this week. (They've said a lot more, but I still struggle to understand a lot of it!) I have kindly decided to translate all phrases into English for you. (You're welcome!)

"Miss, when will I get bread? You have such a pretty face. I like looking at it. And I'm really hungry."

"Why the hell am I sitting here by myself?! Did you forget me?!"

"The pope is cool. He's from Argentina. But he lives in Rome."

"You speak English? My breakfast here!" **

"If you don't want to be elbowed in the face, stop trying to make me eat!"

"Clap your hands, Gringa!"

"Are you studying to be a nun?"

"Does your Spanish dictionary translate into Chilean?"

"Americans are all criminals. Are you American?"

**I did not have to translate this. A very angry abuela yelled it at me this morning.

And now, for a moment of zen. Brought to you by Lisa.

If You Give a Dog a Cookie...

He's going to follow you home.

Chris, do you think Reese would like a playmate?

Mostly Mute Monday

Some pictures for your viewing enjoyment.

(Destruction from the tsunami.)

(Mine, too!)

Weekend Plans

Well, originally I had hoped to go on a tour this weekend, but it's not easy to do when there's nobody else going. (The tour company books trips with 2 or more people and there wasn't any interest - except from me - to go on certain tours this weekend.) so, instead, I will be spending my weekend at the beach! Yes, that's right. The beach is close enough to my house that I can walk there. Very exciting!

It's hard for me to believe that it's already the weekend again. My days are so busy that they fly by. It's a good kind of busy, though. A "typical" day (I use quotes because there really isn't any such thing as typical here) looks like this:

8:00 - breakfast

8:25-9:10 - travel to the nursing home

9:10-10:00 - breakfast for the seniors

10:00-10:20 - breakfast for the staff (I usually spend this time visiting with the seniors)

10:20-12:00 - help in the bathroom (blowdrying hair, cleaning faces and ears, helping those with low vision get into and out of the bathroom stalls)

12:00-12:30 - bring all seniors to the dining room

12:30-1:40 - lunch for the seniors

1:40-2:00 - lunch for the staff

2:15-3:00 - walk home

3:00-5:00 - free time (I usually go somewhere in town)

5:00-6:30 - Spanish lessons

6:30-6:50 - break (and dinner)

6:50-8:00 - Spanish lessons

By 8:00, I'm usually exhausted, and I'm asleep by 9:30 or 10:00. (Such a party animal, I know!)

Here are some pictures of the beach. (I was there on Tuesday evening, but only for a little bit, because it was freezing.)

The last picture shows some of the damage done by the recent earthquake and tsunami. Even though they build everything here with earthquakes in mind, stuff happens.

 

First Couple of Days

I have to say, despite it being difficult to get here, Chile has really impressed me so far. (Well, at least the parts of it that I've seen.) Here are some of the highlights:

My host mom is kind, makes amazing food, and understands my limited Spanish. (She doesn't speak English, but she understands a lot of it.) She is also understanding when I make mistakes. Like yesterday, when I thought she said she was going to meet me after work at the nursing home, but she actually said her home, which resulted in my being very late, because I waited around, not wanting to miss her.

The other coordinator, who is my Spanish teacher, does speak English, so she is able to translate when I don't understand. She is also hilarious, and cracks me up every day.

The Spanish here is very different from other countries. Everyone speaks really quickly and some letters fet dropped off the end of words. I thought my Spanish was ok(ish) before coming here, but I only understand maybe one in five words in every sentence. (So I try to listen for the important words.)

I started working at the nursing home on Monday. Everyone there is fantastic. The staff are very patient with me, and the abuelos seem to understand my Spanglish. (Or maybe they're humouring me, which I don't mind at all!)

I get to do things like serving breakfast and lunch, help with washing hands and faces, blowdrying and styling hair, washroom support, and more. Yesterday I got to go to the market to buy food with one of the nuns from the nursing home, and a local volunteer. That was fun. I didn't have as much trouble understanding Sister Margarita, and I told her that. Turns out she's from Mexico, so she doesn't speak the same way as people here.

Yesterday I got a tour of the area with my host mom and Spanish teacher. I took quite a few pictures, but am having trouble downloading them. I'll see if I can post a couple below.

Those are taken at three different churches.

We also went to the beach. There was a lot of damage done by the earthquake and tsunami a few weeks ago.

Speaking of earthquakes, there were two yesterday. One in the middle of the night and one in the morning. They were not big, but my bed was shaking, which woke me up!

Going to walk to and from the nursing home today. Should be good exercise for me!

The Challenges of Chile

Actually, the title of this post should be "The Challenges of Getting to Chile," but it didn't have the same ring to it.

Let's go back to Saturday evening. Everything was on track. I was at the airport in plenty of time, no problems with my bags, no major lineups, and boarding was a piece of cake.

Welł, except that I was travelling with the Quebec Synchro team (according to their jackets), which seemed to consist of at least thirty screaming teenagers and one coach. Although I was hoping not to be sitting in their section, I ended up smack dab in the middle of them. (The girl beside me kept leaning over me to talk to the person on the other side of the aisle.) 

Oh well, I thought. I can just watch movies and tune out the noise. No problem. So I got out my headphones and went to plug them in. Only they wouldn't plug in. There was a problem with the jack. I admit, this made me panic a bit, but then I figured I'd be proactive and flag down a flight attendant and ask to change seats. What I didn't realize was that the flight attendants were i tentionally avoiding the section of the plane filled with screaming girls.

So I pushed the call button. Still, no one seemed to be coming. Finally, one showed up, but instead of saying anything to me, he just turned off the call button light, assuming, I suppose, that it had been pushed accidentally by one of the rowdy teens. So I made clear that I had pushed it on purpose and showed him the problem. He said there was nothing they could do, and no, I couldn't switch seats because they were completely filled. He did suggest that I switch seats with one of my friends. I told him I was alone, and that it would have been a lot to ask someone to switch with me and go with no entertainment for ten-and-a-half hours.

To his credit, he did look apologetic, but then he said, "I wish I'd known this earlier so I could have done something about it." Unfortunately, in my stressed out state, I took this to mean that he wished I had told him earlier. So I got kind of mad and asked him when exactly I could have told him earlier, seeing as I'd just realized the problem. He clarified, and said that the last flight crew should have said something. Then he walked away.

Luckily, I still had my mp3 player, so I started listening to music. Then I realized that I could still watch movies, they just wouldn't have sound. So I did. Inidentally, "Paul Blart, Mall Cop 2" goes well with Serena Ryder's "Together We are One" in the background. 

The flight itself was fine. The meals were good (yes, I like airplane food) and I managed to sleep. I woke up whenever there was turbulence, but amazingly was able to fall right back to sleep. (At one point I was awakened when the girl beside me rolled onto me and continued sleeping with her head on my shoulder and her arm across me. Awkward.)

How much do you want to bet that the next flight crew was not informed about the headphones problem in seat 50F?

Santiago airport was nice, relatively easy to navigate (although no one speaks English), and before long, I was sitting at my gate, waiting for my plane to be called. Or at least, I thought it was my gate. What I didn't realize was that there was an announcement about a gate change, but I missed it because it was in Spanish. Also, a guy had actually come and scanned my ticket, so I assumed I was in the right place. Sadly, once I realized there was a problem, I had missed my connecting flight.

Fortunately, I was able to fly standby on the next flight to La Serena (leaving three hours later), and able to let my host family know about the later flight. (Thank you Starbucks wifi!)

Aside from the hassles to get here, Chile seems lovely. My host mom (Vilma) is very nice, and the other coordinator, Tania, speaks English, which is a big help.

My room is small, but comfortable.

Oh, and flushing toilet paper here is a big no-no, so I have to remember that.

It's a bit chilly here in Chile, and also rainy. I'm hopeful that it will warm up (and dry up) soon! 

Today is my first day at placement! I'll let you know how it goes!

To Pack or Not to Pack?

Ugh. Packing is one of the worst parts of any trip for me. I end up second guessing myself and repacking at least three times. On one hand, I don't want to overpack. I did that when I went to Costa Rica a few years ago and ended up only needing half the things in my luggage. On the other hand, I don't want to underpack and end up needing things I don't have. (Although I can always buy things there, I suppose.) It's just nice to know you have everything you need before you get there.

Right now, I think I have the essentials, plus a few extra "luxury" items. I'll try not to worry about it anymore.

The flight however, is a different story. I am going to worry about flying, and that's just the way it is! 

Getting Ready

Am I ever going to feel like I have everything I need before I leave? I'm so worried about forgetting something, but at the same time, trying not to pack too much. Ugh. I guess once I'm at the airport, anything that I haven't packed, I either don't really need, or can get while I'm there. 

The weather here is amazing. Thank goodness for these extra two weeks.

Two Weeks!

Ok, so technically I leave in two weeks and two days, but still...

The nerves have set in, but they're mixed with excitement. I have no idea what to expect in Chile, but I have been assured by several people that I will enjoy myself immensely. Let's hope that's true!

I have to admit, I'm happy to be here (in Canada) for the fall colours. My original departure date meant I would be leaving this weekend, which just feels too soon. I mean, we've only had a couple of days of fall weather!

(Sadly, this is not my photo. I got it from here: http://www.ferguseloracoupons.com/discount/2009/09/northern-reflections-canada-online-discount-coupon-code-save-10/ so full credit goes to Northern Reflections, but here's hoping I'm able to take a couple of pictures like this before I leave!)

Introduction

Well, here I go again, trying to start a blog. I have high hopes for myself this time, though, since I do tend to blog more while travelling. And I will be travelling in a couple of weeks!

I will be heading to Chile in October to do some volunteer work through A Broader View. I volunteered with this organization back in 2010, and found it to be really good. Not so expensive that you have to save for eight months just to volunteer for two weeks, and not so inexpensive that you're sacrificing your safety (or paying to "volunteer" where you aren't actually needed). Also, I like the communication with this organization. Any time I e-mailed with a question or problem, I would get a response almost immediately. (Or at least within 24 hours!)

What will I be doing, you ask? Well, since I'm a teacher (on leave this year, yes, but still a teacher), naturally I'll be working with kids. Looking after them, teaching them, playing with them, etc...

Kidding!! As much as I like kids, I wanted this year to be an opportunity for me to try new things. So I'm going to be working with the elderly while I'm in Chile. Doing activities, helping with meals, taking them to appointments, and lots more. Hopefully it will be very different from my job back home, and a good experience for me.

I'll be staying in La Serena, where most people speak little to no English. This will be a great opportunity to learn a new language. It will also be extremely challenging, as my Spanish is high basic, at best. ¡Yo soy Michelle! ¿Como se llama usted?

 (My future best friend)


More updates to come as my travel dates approach! Stay tuned!