yea, so i haven't been much for communicating recently. to the few of you that read this, i'm sorry. but with less than two months left here in chile (gulp) i'm trying really hard to just be present here. and avoiding thinking about not being here...
so, heres a few bullet points of an update, purposely with no explanations because i prefer to be 'mysterious.'
--i love santiago. love it.
--i love courtney.
--my hair is purple.
--had my first presentation in front of all chileans and a profesor other than the exchange coordinator. rocked it.
--got back a lit test. didn't rock it, but did...okay. (lest you think the life of an exchange student is one big vacation.)
--was "forced" into performing a mini concert for my host dad's birthday.
--discovered the underground/artistic culture of santiago. and it only took 5 months...
--santiago's sewer system is...less than desirable. 2 days of rain i'm paddling to school.
--i'm trying to learn some new things, none of which i want to mention in case they don't stick by the time i get back. but if they do, you'll know.
--need to sleep, thursdays are my 14+ hour days.
chao chao!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
buenos aires
hey all--my communication's getting worse and i'm getting busier by the minute. but in the interest of putting off the paper i have to write for a few more minutes, here are some pictures from the week (and i think even a video of tango!).
it was really great. i loved bs as, but it also made me happy i chose santiago and excited to come "home."
this is the widest street in the WORLD! courtney and i thought it was pretty funny that it was an "attraction" listed in the guide book.
these are mothers of some of the thousands of "desaparecidos" or "disappeared ones" from the dictatorship. the gather every thursday to protest various causes. the women with white scarves on actually lost children.
this is a plaza outside in the centro, just love the pic. wish i knew how to rotate it.
this is the view from the apt we stayed in. a great place.
us on the first day and...
us on the last day, on the way to chile! (and i'm wearing the same thing...never a good sign.)
a street antique fair in a neighborhood called san telmo.
a tango group in san telmo called las ranas. we bought their cd.
the cemetery there. it was amazing. this is one of many fotos.
and this is the mausoleum of eva peron. (think "don't cry for me argentina." thank you andrew lloyd webber.)
and, if it works, here is a video of some tango dancers we watched during lunch one day. they were amazing. there were coed couples, but both guys were better, so it was great when they danced together. and that was another thing i loved about bs as, diversity! a short escape from the homophobia of santiago! :)
chao!
it was really great. i loved bs as, but it also made me happy i chose santiago and excited to come "home."
this is the widest street in the WORLD! courtney and i thought it was pretty funny that it was an "attraction" listed in the guide book.
these are mothers of some of the thousands of "desaparecidos" or "disappeared ones" from the dictatorship. the gather every thursday to protest various causes. the women with white scarves on actually lost children.
this is a plaza outside in the centro, just love the pic. wish i knew how to rotate it.
this is the view from the apt we stayed in. a great place.
us on the first day and...
us on the last day, on the way to chile! (and i'm wearing the same thing...never a good sign.)
a street antique fair in a neighborhood called san telmo.
a tango group in san telmo called las ranas. we bought their cd.
the cemetery there. it was amazing. this is one of many fotos.
and this is the mausoleum of eva peron. (think "don't cry for me argentina." thank you andrew lloyd webber.)
and, if it works, here is a video of some tango dancers we watched during lunch one day. they were amazing. there were coed couples, but both guys were better, so it was great when they danced together. and that was another thing i loved about bs as, diversity! a short escape from the homophobia of santiago! :)
chao!
Saturday, May 10, 2008
quick update
haven't written in a while, so just wanted to update a bit.
things are going well, as always. i booked my flight for returning to the states the other day. i'll be getting back friday, the 25th of july. i'll be in iowa for the following week, then to chicago for lollapalooza, then back to iowa. all tentatively. life's pretty unpredictable after all. i'll admit, it was tough to spend so much time thinking about going back. i won't dwell on it now, as i know that everyone who reads this is there, but the fact is that even though i'm incredibly excited to see everyone, i have all my life to live in the states (not that that's the plan) and only two and a half more months to live here now. time is such a tricky thing. how has it been 4 and a half months already?
i went to a jazz club with my host brother last night and it was absolutely wonderful. as i mentioned to camilo, there was something perfect about sitting in the dimly lit jazz club, sipping red wine, listening to great jazz music, and getting to have a conversation in spanish with such a good friend. it reminded me a lot of the green mill in chicago, but with the south american touch, which i couldnt begin to describe. all in all, a wonderful experience, and i will definitely be going back in the next 2 and a half months.
on tuesday i leave for buenos aires. i will be meeting courtney there and i couldn't be more excited. i absolutely cannot wait. we'll spend about 6 days there, then she'll come back to santiago with me and spend about 10 days there before heading off to peru to meet up with her mom. i'm really excited to spend time with her.
but, i'm also (though not equally) excited to see buenos aires. i've heard so many amazing things. i will be sure to post pictures after.
thanks for reading.
chao.
things are going well, as always. i booked my flight for returning to the states the other day. i'll be getting back friday, the 25th of july. i'll be in iowa for the following week, then to chicago for lollapalooza, then back to iowa. all tentatively. life's pretty unpredictable after all. i'll admit, it was tough to spend so much time thinking about going back. i won't dwell on it now, as i know that everyone who reads this is there, but the fact is that even though i'm incredibly excited to see everyone, i have all my life to live in the states (not that that's the plan) and only two and a half more months to live here now. time is such a tricky thing. how has it been 4 and a half months already?
i went to a jazz club with my host brother last night and it was absolutely wonderful. as i mentioned to camilo, there was something perfect about sitting in the dimly lit jazz club, sipping red wine, listening to great jazz music, and getting to have a conversation in spanish with such a good friend. it reminded me a lot of the green mill in chicago, but with the south american touch, which i couldnt begin to describe. all in all, a wonderful experience, and i will definitely be going back in the next 2 and a half months.
on tuesday i leave for buenos aires. i will be meeting courtney there and i couldn't be more excited. i absolutely cannot wait. we'll spend about 6 days there, then she'll come back to santiago with me and spend about 10 days there before heading off to peru to meet up with her mom. i'm really excited to spend time with her.
but, i'm also (though not equally) excited to see buenos aires. i've heard so many amazing things. i will be sure to post pictures after.
thanks for reading.
chao.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
the 'rents came to visit! (and the phrase "it's chilly in chile!" never got old...)
so, i couldn't keep you all in suspense for too long. since it'll take my dad a good 3 months to put these on a cd, i thought i'd pick out a few good ones to show. plus, it means i get to put off catching up on my studying for another couple hours.
overall it was a GREAT visit. it was really wonderful to have them here and get to let them in on this world of mine.
the highlight was definitely having my parents meet my host family. it was such a beautiful moment. when my parents first met my host dad on the day they arrived, just to stop by the house, i think my 'dads' hugged about 15 times, no exaggeration. it was really beautiful to see. because they couldn't communicate verbally, they communicated...physically? (that sounds dirty, but you know what i mean.)
the day after we had dinner together, (while i was recovering from 3 hours of translating and my mom was recovering from the 3 pisco sours my host dad served her) with my parents, they were raving about the family. how loving they are, and how well they take care of me. and then the next day, after my parents left, my host family was doing the same thing about them. how affectionate and kind they are, not what they expected. i had to clarify that my family didn't really hold to the 'personal space' rule that i had talked about most united stateseans having.
anyway--the question remains, how do you pick 'a few good pictures' from the 430 my dad took during 6 days? i'll try to guide you all a bit.
the garden at my house
jake and leslie sent me real coffee!!!! yay!!!!
a few shots of valparaiso
dad next to the virgen at cerro san cristobal
a unique chilean treat. called 'mote con huesillos"
this is the parents on the WAY to the day of wine-tasting
a couple at the vineyard
me with my host family! por fin!!!
all my parents and me
one of my favorite shots from the hotel balcony
my mom, teresa (my nana and now good friend) and me
la moneda--the chilean capital building
this is alejandra, my colombian friend, and quite possibly my favorite person that i've met here
my cafe!
sarah and pipe went to dinner with us one night. they, too, are amazing people.
and my other favorite shot of the city
ok, enjoy!
overall it was a GREAT visit. it was really wonderful to have them here and get to let them in on this world of mine.
the highlight was definitely having my parents meet my host family. it was such a beautiful moment. when my parents first met my host dad on the day they arrived, just to stop by the house, i think my 'dads' hugged about 15 times, no exaggeration. it was really beautiful to see. because they couldn't communicate verbally, they communicated...physically? (that sounds dirty, but you know what i mean.)
the day after we had dinner together, (while i was recovering from 3 hours of translating and my mom was recovering from the 3 pisco sours my host dad served her) with my parents, they were raving about the family. how loving they are, and how well they take care of me. and then the next day, after my parents left, my host family was doing the same thing about them. how affectionate and kind they are, not what they expected. i had to clarify that my family didn't really hold to the 'personal space' rule that i had talked about most united stateseans having.
anyway--the question remains, how do you pick 'a few good pictures' from the 430 my dad took during 6 days? i'll try to guide you all a bit.
the garden at my house
jake and leslie sent me real coffee!!!! yay!!!!
a few shots of valparaiso
dad next to the virgen at cerro san cristobal
a unique chilean treat. called 'mote con huesillos"
this is the parents on the WAY to the day of wine-tasting
a couple at the vineyard
me with my host family! por fin!!!
all my parents and me
one of my favorite shots from the hotel balcony
my mom, teresa (my nana and now good friend) and me
la moneda--the chilean capital building
this is alejandra, my colombian friend, and quite possibly my favorite person that i've met here
my cafe!
sarah and pipe went to dinner with us one night. they, too, are amazing people.
and my other favorite shot of the city
ok, enjoy!
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