quick update before i leave for ARGENTINA!

That's right, chicos, I'm leaving for Argentina in the morning to celebrate our four-day weekend in Bariloche, chocolate capitol of South America. !!!!!!

Words cannot express my excitement, but if you know me at all, you know that I am super buena para comer chocolate - basically, I am a chocolate fanatic. Not to mention, I've heard amazing things about Bariloche and I'm excited to see PATAGONIA and experience a bit of Argentinian culture. Supposedly Argentinian Spanish is a lot easier to understand, so I'm curious to hear that and to hear their accents as well.

Speaking of Spanish, I am learning it! It's a slow process, and there are definitely moments/days where I feel incredibly discouraged that I'm not fluent after two months. But then I realize, "That is ridiculous! Who becomes fluent in a language after two months? Nobody!" And I also have total epiphany moments every once and awhile (more and more often!) where I feel really competent in this language. For instance, when I first arrived in Valdivia I was listening to the radio with my family and I remember being terrified because I couldn't understand ANYTHING they were saying. Chileans speak very rapidly already, but radio personalities speak even faster and it was extremely daunting. A couple weeks ago, I was listening to the radio during breakfast (my family listens to the radio during every mealtime) and I realized I could understand everything they were saying, save the occasional random vocab word! IT WAS SO COOL.

Still makin' grammar mistakes pretty often (and still confused daily by subjunctive) but it's nice to understand what is going on around me and be able to converse with other Chileans.

Not much else to report on. I've been going to school, chatting with my host family, celebrating some birthdays, and learning a LOT. Oh, and eating tons of delicious food all the time. Last week was my host mom's birthday and we had kuchen, a German cake-tart-type dessert that's all over Valdivia (thanks again, German colonists!) for days.

As much as I love the Spring in Valdivia, I am a little homesick for the fall, pumpkin baked goods, and US Halloween celebrations. I've also been missing feminist activism a bunch. I keep meaning to write a post on feminism in Chile, but have yet to sit down and do it. One of these days! For now, here are some more cute pictures of me that have surfaced on Facebook recently:

me with a horse statue in Parque Saval, taken by Anna. Not sure what inspired this face.

Me, Danielle, and Jahni, exploring Valparaiso. I like this picture because I look like I'm pulling out my tour guide moves. (Sidenote: I miss my job!!) Taken by Jac.

Me at La Campana (where Charles Darwin hiked!) Taken by... Jeff or Jahni, I can't remember.


Jeff and I in Pucón, with a SWEET volcano house. Taken by Jahni.

A bunch of us in my history class, with Profesor Molina, exploring La Isla de Mancera. Taken by Jeff.

Gotta go finish packing and try to teach myself to roll my r's! Wish me luck!

2 months in Chile

photo of me eating chocolate by the river, taken by Anna.

It has been exactly two months since I got on a plane to come to Chile. I can't believe it! I feel like I have been here forever but I also feel like I've barely arrived. (Cliche, I know.) Recently I have been totally in love with Chile/Valdivia so it is slightly heartbreaking to think that I'll have to leave in two months. At the same time, I know my next two months will be AWESOME and when I return to the states my life there will be awesome, too. I have been feeling very sentimental and thankful and mushy in general lately because I seem to be always surrounded by wonderful people and things!

One of those wonderful things is SPRING in Valdivia. It still rains, of course, but all of the sudden there are flowers EVERYWHERE! On Saturday Anna & I went to the botanical garden on our campus and it was breathtakingly beautiful. It's still a little wonky to me that I'm on the opposite side of the earth and that it is spring during all the fall months, but I'm totally loving it.

Speaking of things I love... This past weekend there was a beer festival in Valdivia! Because Valdiv has so much German influence, we are known throughout the country as the city with the best beer, so it makes sense that we get our own Oktoberfest. People from all over the world were there! Most of the booths were giving out free samples, and it was really fun to walk around and try all the different kinds of beers. But I have to admit, one of the best parts of beerfest was actually the cheese booth.

Quick update on cheese in Chile: It does not compare to cheese in the US at all. Chileans say they have different types of cheese, but it all tastes the same and is pretty bland at that. Cheddar cheese doesn't exist here, and neither does feta cheese, goat cheese, bleu cheese, pepperjack cheese, muenster cheese, etc. It's a rough life.

BUT at this cheese booth at beerfest, I had OREGANO CHEESE and CURRY CHEESE. (Another thing that Chilean food is lacking is curry, so this was a double surprise.) And it was delicious. I don't know if curry cheese exists anywhere else in the world, but holy cow, what a combination.

But that's enough about cheese (for now). Last Wednesday and Thursday, all the trapped miners were rescued!!! It was amazing to be in Chile during such an incredible event. I watched the last four miners being rescued and reunited with their families and it was incredibly heartwarming. When they first sent up the message saying they were alive, I remember hearing that it could take up to four months to rescue them, and then all of the sudden people from around the world started coming together to form a plan to get them out as soon as possible. And it worked!

On Friday morning, my history class took a field trip to Isla Mancera, which is an adorable little island off the coast where Spanish fortress and castle used to be. The ruins of the castle are still there, so we spent a whole beautiful morning exploring. It's only a short micro ride and a short bus ride away from Valdivia, so I plan to go back again once I have my new camera and explore some more.

Pucón

This past weekend, my exchange group had an excursion to Pucón, Chile. Pucón is a lil' tourist city about 2 hours northeast of Valdivia. It's right next to the Andes, and the reason it is so appealing to tourists is because it is close to virtually every outdoor activity you could want. Hot springs, lakes, rivers, mountains... oh, and did I mention one of the most active volcanoes in the country?(Gracias a Wikipedia for this picture! Downtown Pucón with Volcán Villarrica looming in the background.)

When we rolled in (literally, in a tour bus) to the city and our first stop was a Mapuche Ruka, a small village built by some local Mapuche to simulate their traditional lifestyle. (The Mapuche are the indigenous people of what is now Chile.) The family that runs the ruka doesn't actually live there- it literally just exists for tourists. The Mapuche generally live in houses like the other Chileans.

I had/have mixed feelings about the ruka. I had a lot of fun with my visit. We rode horses, cuddled with baby dogs/cats/sheep, ate delicious empanadas and meat and potatoes, played a traditional Mapuche game similar to hockey, and witnessed some traditional dances acted out by the Mapuche. They were extremely gracious letting 30+ gringos run around with their animals and children and eat their food.

I wish I had more time so I could fully explain the relationship between the Mapuche and other Chileans. Perhaps some of you heard about the recent Mapuche hunger strike that took place a few hours north of Valdivia. But even before the strike, there were tensions between the Mapuche and the Chilean government/people. Tensions that go way back to the colonization of Chile by Europeans and the systematic destruction of Mapuche people and culture. (Sound familiar?) Now, the Mapuche culture is seen as distinctly separate from Chilean culture and many things, such as the Mapuche language and traditions, are disappearing. Very few Chileans that I've met are interested in Mapuche culture and many of them believe that the Mapuche are greedy, lazy alcoholics. (Again, sound familiar?)

Knowing all that, I feel grateful that I had the opportunity to learn about Mapuche culture, even if it was a tourist attraction. There are few places in Chile where I could learn about Mapuche culture from Mapuche. But I also kept in mind that the Mapuche are selling their culture to us because it is not considered a legitimate culture by the majority of Chileans, and the validation of tourists is probably the most validation they get. And the tourism industry may be one of the only ways for them to preserve their culture. Definitely not a best-case scenario. While I do wish that we could've had a more authentic experience of the Mapuche culture, I know that would be nearly impossible to coordinate respectfully with the size of our group. After all, we are tourists, so it made sense for us to go to a tourist attraction. And even if it was inauthentic, it did give me insight into the current situation with Mapuche in Chile.

Phew. Being in a new country and observing the role of indigenous people has been interesting. I'm trying to be as objective as possible because I know that I can't just waltz in from another culture and make judgments about indigenous/non-indigenous relations. And I know that my background in a liberal arts college has given me a very different perspective on oppression. At the same time, I am an anthropologist and I know that true objectivity is impossible. So I definitely have some opinions that I may blog about in the future.

The rest of my time in Pucón was EXTREMELY enjoyable. After the ruka, we had some time to explore the city, which involved me eating ice cream and gossiping on the beach. After that, we were taken out to a very posh restaurant, and after that, we went to some hot springs! We got there around 10 PM and the stars were breathtaking; we could see the milky way and everything. It was one of the best views of the sky I can remember. Not to mention I viewed in while sitting in a pool of extremely warm water in the middle of CHILE.

The next day, after a continental breakfast at our hotel, we went to the hills of the Andes for a hike. Our last group hike was us wandering around a forest for 3 hours and looking at the ocean, so I expected something similar. Not the case. This hike was 1 km of an uphill road and 3 km up an extremely, extremely steep trail. After that, we were told, there would be a 40-minute less-steep hike where we could see SNOW! And after 3+ hours, we reached the top of the peak and found ourselves in a beautiful snow wonderland!! I was so overjoyed.

That night, I stayed in a hostel for the first time in my life! It was easy since Pucón is so accustomed to travelers. The next day, me and a few of my friends kayaked on Lago Villarrica, got more ice cream, and hung out on the beach until we took the bus home. I should also mention that the whole time we were in Pucón, it was sunny and warm and gorgeous. All in all, I had an awesome weekend. Here are some pictures!

Me trying to cuddle with a lamb at the ruka. I look enamored; it looks highly uncomfortable.

My first sighting of SNOW! I am standing almost knee-deep in it at this point.

Same pose, new snow! I am literally standing on a frozen lake in the Andes. Too cool. Also, it was so strange to be wearing short sleeves in the snowy mountains and not feel cold at all.

My friend Caitlin and I kayaking in Lago Villarrica with an active volcano behind us!

I am still without a camera, so gracias a all my friends for taking pictures of me all the time. (BUT good news- my dad mailed me my new camera and I should get it in 7-10 days! Thanks dad!!) As for now, it's midterms week and I have hella studying to do. Chao!

bananos, Shakira y chilenismos

That's right, amigos, I am now the proud owner of a Chilean fanny pack! My friend Rachel (pictured above with me) and I decided it was time for us to jump on the bandwagon- here, fanny packs are worn without irony by the majority of Chilean youth. And they're actually super useful for keeping track of yr stuff while you're dancing (which we tend to do a lot). Oh, and the Chilean word for fanny pack is banano.

Speaking of Chilean words, I realized that I have yet to blog about chilenismos, or modismos, AKA Chilean slang words. Every culture has slang but Chile has an insane amount. When I first got to Chile I was overwhelmed with how many words I had never, ever heard before, but now I've at least learned the most common ones. In case any of y'all ever come to Chile, here are some good chilenismos to know:

pololear- to date. pololo is boyfriend and polola is girlfriend
fome- lame or boring
cachay? - ya know?
al tiro- right away
jote- vulture OR more commonly, a creepy vulture-like dude at a bar or club. the verb is jotear
bacán- very cool
carrete- a party. carretear is the verb
shuta- shoot/dang

There are tons more, but off of the top of my head these are the ones I use the most. Now you all can be experts at Chilean Spanish! My host family literally teaches me 2 or 3 new chilenismos every day during mealtimes, but I forget a lot of them.

I also have to say that I am STOKED because Rachel & I are in Spanish class together and next week we are giving a ten-minute speech on Shakira. (Our teacher told us we could pick any topic we wanted, so...) I spent a good chunk of my morning listening to Shakira songs, which I can now justify by saying I'm "doing research." Shakira Shakira!

OH ALSO Brazil almost has a female president! That will make it the 4th country in Latin America (after Nicaragua, Chile and Argentina) to elect a female president. Hopefully the US will follow suit soon. After 200+ years of a democracy, it's about damn time.