Food Glorious Food

My mom and I were the only ones home for lunch on Friday and it was really enjoyable to be able to have that one on one time with her. She also yelled at me for asking if I could wash the dishes after lunch. I don't like not being able to help with chores, especially with something as simple as washing a few plates. Instead of letting me help, she told me to go take a nap. And so, the rest of the afternoon was filled with sleep. I feel like I sleep so much here (in terms of naps and going to bed early) but thinking in Spanish is so exhausting. By the end of the day, my brain feels like mush.

Anna came over later on and we ended up going to a pub called Cafe Journal where we met Sean. Coincidentally, other people from our program were there too. After ‘pre-gaming’ it at Cafe Journal, we went to a karaoke bar a few blocks away. Various songs were sung throughout the night, but it took a while to get on 'the list'. With time, Anna, Roshard, and I sang Obsesion by Aventura (shout out to high school Spanish class for introducing that song years ago!). It's also safe to say that we lack musical talent.

{TRAVEL WARNING: Drinks in South America are a lot stronger than those in the States....}

Saturday the family invited me to go to someone's house. I don't really remember how everyone is related, but somehow they're all family. The moment I walked in the door, people started speaking English with me until I told them that I can speak Spanish. I was also being handed food left and right, literally. I would be talking with someone and someone else would come up to me and wave food around until I took it. Like always, I was extremely full after lunch--which lasted from 2:30 until 8 PM... It started with appetizers. Then they brought out the actual meal, which was meat (I forgot how good meat really is!), three types of salad, and potatoes. Then it was followed by dessert. And then a second round of dessert. And then birthday cake... And in between that, they kept filling my glass with wine, pisco sour, whisky, etc. I had to cut them off at some point and just tell them that I wanted water. But, they persistently asked me if I wanted a drink and kept asking me if I was hungry. 

They asked about life back home and asked if I thought that they were all crazy and I told them that my family back at home is just as crazy and that being with them reminded me of them. I was able to identify each person as being "x" person in the Mogensen or Reiske family. It was insane and kind of weirded me out for a while. But then at the same time, it was refreshing. It felt as if each person I love was here in Chile with me.

Claudia and I left before our parents did--they were out REALLY late. I showed Claudia how to make popcorn on the stove with just the seeds, oil, and a little salt and butter. It's her new favorite snack. We then just watched a movie and had some good bonding time.

I'm so thankful for this weekend because for the first time in weeks, I actually felt like myself. I'm at my 100% ALtential.

Hugs to everyone and see you in a month!

Pablo Neruda to Tear Gas: A Post of Randomness

It’s hard to believe that I’m finishing up my second week in Chile. Last week seemed to have gone very slow but this week has flown by. Which means, I only have a little over four weeks of my South American adventure left. I know that’s a ton of time and I have so much more to look forward to, but I am always looking at things in terms of numbers which makes me annoyingly futuristic. I need to work on living in the present so that I can enjoy every single moment of it. 

Contradicting the first paragraph, I’m going to live in the past momentarily. The past days have been wonderful and challenging all at the same time. Last week we took a tour of both Valparaíso and Santiago. Our first stop in Valparaíso was the home of Chile’s very own Pablo Neruda—a Nobel Prize winning poet:

 
We all spent time walking one of the more well known streets in Valparaíso called Conception. The reason it’s called this is because back in the day, it’s the street that the prostitutes used to wander... But now, it is filled with tons of small boutiques, cafés, art galleries, hostels, bars, pubs, etc. Wall art is everywhere and contributes to the character of Valpo:

To finish off the day, we had a boat tour, which was so beautiful! The water was so blue; there were baby penguins, sea lions hanging out with their friends, ships, etc. I might have felt a little queasy and had the tour gone fifteen minutes longer, I probably would have vommed...

Saturday we had our tour of Santiago, which is about an hour and a half away. I slept for the entire bus ride. Santiago isn’t anything like Valpo or Viña in terms of its beauty, but it’s still an incredible city—and GINORMOUS! The day was rainy so it was hard to fully enjoy it, however, it intensified the splendor of the mountains. We went to the moneda, which is their equivalent of the white house. We were able to see the guard change—which in my opinion, took longer than necessary:

We continued the day walking to the cathedral, some museums, an artisan village, and went to Santa Lucia (which looks over the entire city—it was breathtaking): 

                                    

In between all of our tourist activities we had lunch at the fish market. My plate was bigger than my head. We were able to choose from a variety of foods (chicken, fish, soup, etc.) and I started placing my order in English. Then the waiter had to call someone over who spoke English before I realized that I am perfectly capable of speaking Spanish. Honestly, I forgot that I was not in North America for a solid five minutes (yet another awkward moment). I ended up ordering the fish and it was ginormous—but delicious—and naturally, I got mashed potatoes to go with it:

                                 

[End Tour.]

Remember those awkward middle school and high school dances? Well, that’s what we ended up doing Friday night. It wasn’t a school dance, but it definitely felt like one. We went to a Chilean disco tec. Much of the music was in English and we were all pretty much the only one who knew the lyrics. Or at least knew what they meant. And, naturally, everyone was staring at the gringos who are not capable of moving their hips. So, we looked super awkward for reasons other than our height, hair, and eye color. But despite the awkwardness, it was still really fun!

Sunday Claudia took me to a boardwalk along the beach and afterwards, we went to lunch at my other sister’s club. I’ve never felt that full in my life—not even on Thanksgiving. First, we had a vegetable lasagna type thing. Then we were served soup. Followed by our entree—which was buffet style. And then salad. And then dessert. After all I ate, they still asked me if I had hunger. What the heck?!

Tuesday our group met at a coffee shop (Puro Café) a few blocks from the U where we were able to converse with Chilean students. It was great. Afterwards we went to a pub and just hung out. It made me anxious to be 21 and to just be able to go get a beer with friends.

And then there was Wednesday. The weirdest day yet. We got to class, where we were turned away because of all the student protests that are going on here in Chile. The students had taken over parts of the University and built a chair barricade:

When we found out that class was cancelled, some of us decided to walk to Puro Café. However, we had to walk through all the tear gas. It was worse than peeling an onion. And it burns your throat. And I made the mistake of rubbing my eyes... We then went to Lydia’s house where we made chocolate chip cookies for her family—the first time they have ever had them! They were a hit. We then were going to go on another tour of the city with our new Chilean friends, but they never showed up (due to protests). So then we decided to go to a movie. But the movie was sold out. And at this point, it was like 7 PM. Nothing had gone according to plan. Oh, and I made up a joke:

Why did the pepper jack need the number for 911?
IN QUESO EMERGENCY.

...

Even though I spend the days in class, it doesn’t feel like I’m in class. The groups are very small, and they all happen to be from Eau Claire. There’s six of us in my Chilean literature class and five of us in my Chilean sociopolitical class. Both of my professors are incredibly intelligent—one seems more like our friend while the other demands more respect from us.

The biggest challenge I have been faced with in Chile is being myself. It’s been difficult for me to be at my fullest ALtential in a foreign language. Things don’t translate the same and I often find myself shutting everyone out. Pablo Neruda once said, "La timidez es una condición ajena al corazón, una categoría, una dimensión que desemboca en la soledad." Or in English, "Shyness is a condition outside the heart, a category, a dimension that leads to loneliness." But at the same time, I am often listening to the conversations around me so that I can learn from them. It’s hard to be focusing on so much all the time. I also feel discouraged at times when speaking Spanish with my family because things are not always understood.  However, tonight changed my outlook on it all a little bit. My other sister, Lorena, came over with her two kids Emy and Dario. Emy is three and Dario 10. Let’s just say that Emy and I are new best friends. And I was able to help Dario with his English homework. So being able to converse with them and Lorena was refreshing and allowed me to focus on other things. I don’t know if it’s just living with an older couple where communication is a bit different or if it’s just me not fitting into the culture? It’s been a battle but I know that I’m not the only one going through it. After all, my main reason for being here is to improve my Spanish immensely.

Emy and I hanging out. She is the cutest 3 year old ever.

#awkward.

{backstory: tuesday I was super sick and spent the afternoon sleeping/vomming (but don’t worry, I’m okay now). and so, that leaves Wednesday wide open for the start of my awkward journey.}

Life wouldn’t be normal without a little awkwardness in it. Or, a lot of awkwardness. Actress Rachel Lefevre noted that her awkward stage extended well into high school. Well, mine has extended well into college, and will probably continue for the rest of my life. 

Awkward moment 1:
I woke up Wednesday morning for my daily shower and it was cold. Meanwhile, my host mom and dad were knocking on the door telling me to turn off the water. By the time I comprehended what they were telling me, my shower was over. I walked out and they were laughing at me because the hot water had not been turned on yet for that morning (which is why my shower was cold)...

Awkward moment 2:

At lunchtime on Wednesday, my mom had asked how I was feeling and I told her that I felt like a million dollars! However, instead of saying “me siento como un milón dolAres”, I said “me siento como un milón dolOres”. Which translates to, I feel like a million pains...

Awkward moment 3:

Wednesday I had my appetite and was actually able to eat lunch. My family asked if I was hungry and I said, “Sí. ¡Tengo hambre--yo puedo comer un elefante ahora!”, or roughly, I could eat an elefphant right now. We had soup that day. They didn’t understand...

Awkward moment 4:

Yesterday we took a tour of Valparaíso and right as someone told me to watch out for dog poop everywhere, I stepped in it. And afterwards, our tour guide told us to watch out for the dog poop on the streets...

Awkward moment 5:

We had a boat tour of Valpo and as I was getting in the boat, I naturally tripped and had to awkwardly regain my balance to avoid a face plant. Meanwhile, everyone else was able to get in gracefully... 

Awkward moment 6:
I’m not really sure what the protocol is when it comes to answering the house phone. And so, last night, I ignored the phone all three times that it rang. This morning, my parents asked me why I didn’t answer the phone when they called...

Awkward moment 7:

My mom told me to try a piece of her homemade piecrust. I successfully broke a piece off and it tasted delicious. However, in the process, crumbs flew everywhere. The floor had also just been cleaned. And she was about to go to bed.

Moral of this post is that I’m still awkward—even in Chile.

¡Bienvenida a Chile!

Hello, my lovelies! 

These past few days have been filled with so many things. Things ranging from touring Cochabamba to meeting my new family!

Let’s travel back in time to a day that seems like forever ago: Friday. It was my last day working in the hospital and my last full day in Cochabamba. I chose to work with Zulma once again. One of the patients brought in her niece who was nine years old. Her name was Ana and one day, she hopes to be a famous singer, or the next Selena Gomez. To keep from boredom, Ana asked me to teach her English. I spent about two hours teaching her things such as animals, colors, body parts, numbers, etc. There was a smile plastered on her face the entire time. Anddddddd, probably on mine too... Not only was I teaching her things but she was also teaching me tons, especially essential vocabulary. For instance, unicorn is unicornio.

Saying good-bye to Zulma was harder than I had expected it to be. She gave me a huge hug and wished me safe travels and that she’ll see me one day in the future—in the U.S., Bolivia, South America, or even Heaven. Seriously, the sweetest woman.

Friday afternoon we took a tour of a house of a miner/architect from Bolivia. But leave it to me to forget the name of both the house and architect... We weren’t allowed to take pictures of the inside of the house but I took lots of the outside! The entire interior of the house was European inspired and absolutely breathtaking. The wallpaper was made of silk fabric; and there were tons of secret passageways. The interesting thing about the house is that no one ever lived in it because the unknown miner/architect had died before it was completed. But here is a photo of the outside:

Saturday was kind of a weird day. Actually, really weird. Several people were sick and it felt as if everyone was anticipating our departure. We had spaghetti for lunch and homemade garlic bread (good job cooking team if you’re reading this!). My stomach was content. The day was spent doing random miscellaneous things: walking to the store for snacks for the plane, photos, packing, sleeping, etc. Before we knew it, it was 6:00 PM and time to say good-bye to everyone: Necco, Rose, Alba, Kayla, Leah, Gina, Ali, Phoebe, David, Heidi, Elizabeth, Stephanie, Nicole, Kirk, Janiece, Bethany, Hannah, Rachel, and Emily. Each and every one of them holds a special place in my heart, as do the volunteers who having been coming and going the past few weeks (Rachel, Lorenzo, Josh, Steven, Clayton, and APU):

So, that’s my final day in Bolivia—kind of. Here are some things to remember if you decide to go to Bolivia one day:

•             toilet paper can’t be flushed—I might have had to stick my hand in the toilet six times...
•            ‘caliente’ doesn’t necessarily mean hot—I’ll let you guys look that one up.
•             things run much slower—8 PM really means much later than 8 PM
•             greet people with a kiss on one cheek (the right, not both cheeks)—both makes you look       really awkward...
•           being called a gringo is not a bad thing
•           people will come up to you and ask to take pictures with you, like this family and their son:

•        you’ll constantly be whistled at
•         they don’t really check to see if you have your yellow fever—safe yourself the $100+
•         Bolivian Spanish is very easy to understand
•         Everyone is friendly
•         you won’t regret going (:

Anna, Lydia, and I had a flight from Cochabamba to La Paz at 8:15 PM. Our flight landed in La Paz a little after 9. We then had a layover until 6:30 AM. It was the longest night ever. Sleeping was nearly impossible because there was no way to get comfortable. It was cold. It was a hallway type setting. The altitude was extremely high (4,061 m). We almost missed our flight because it was scheduled to leave early but there was no announcement and the boards were not updated. We got up and rushed over to check our luggage and fill out paperwork to leave the country. Lydia fainted in the process. Anna thought Lydia’s passport was stolen (but don’t worry, it wasn’t). Then we were rushed through security. I felt super sick and nauseous—wanting to vom the entire time. Then we got on our flight to Lima, Perú and landed safely. I still felt really sick. Our layover was really short. Then we flew to Santiago, which seemed to take forever. The guy next to me probably thought I was crazy because I’d fall asleep, but then my body would spasm and my arms would flail. Literally. So I decided it’d probably be best to not sleep. Then we landed. Finally. Is this paragraph a little dramatic? Probably. But it’s all true. 

Once we got through customs and grabbed our bags, we were greeted by our driver, Jorgé. The car ride from Santiago to Viña del Mar was about an hour and a half.  It was beautiful--rolling hills, tons of vineyards, the mountains, and the sea. The roads are much like those back in the States.Along the way, Jorgé was asking us about our lives and what our favorite foods were and what we were craving the most. We all said something fresh. And before we knew it, we were stopped at a little food vendor where Jorgé bought all of us coffee and a plate of fresh vegetables and cheese. The purpose of it was not only to give us a great welcome, but to make us feel more confident about being in a foreign country. Such a great guy:

Lydia was dropped off first. Then me, and then Anna was last because she lives the farthest away. I think that I was so excited, nervous, and anxious that I was making myself sick (I really need to get my emotions in check) because when we pulled up to my new house, I really thought I was going to vom. My host family greeted us outside with open arms and grabbed my bags. The moment they did that, I think they regretted it... They joked around saying that I had a Boliviano in my bag. At that moment, I knew life would be great because I was living with a family of jokesters.

Here’s an extremely short family tree: Teo is my dad, he’s about 72; then there’s Elsa, my mom (assuming she’s somewhere around Teo’s age); and then I have two older sisters—Lorena (40) and Claudia (43). Claudia lives with us and I have yet to meet Lorena and her family.

I walked in the door and said ‘¡me encanta!’, which means I love it! Little did I know, that that would be the line of the night. Who knew I could be such a jokester? After my tour of the apartment, I unpacked my ginormous duffel bag and had some once—which is a giant snack that kind of substitutes for dinner. There was bread, avocado, homemade jelly, tea, cookies, ham, vegetables, juice, and coffee. After talking with them for a little bit, I decided it was time for me to sleep (it also helped my nausea go away). Sadly, it was only 7:15.

When I woke up on Monday morning I was greeted by warm bread, fruit, tea, coffee, jelly, avocado, yogurt, etc. Claudia took me to school for orientation. The university is in Valparaíso, which is a larger city that borders Viña. In order to get there, I have to take the metro. It goes right along the sea and ports of Chile. So basically, it’s breathtaking. Claudia took me there and showed me how to navigate through the metro and she picked me up. Then we had lunch—which was full of even more food. Chicken. Potatoes. Vegetables. Salad. Juice. Dessert. Claudia then took me to the mall early in the evening because I didn’t pack enough underwear (that always seems to be the one thing I forget when I travel...). Claudia also showed me where she worked, took me to exchange currency, got me minutes for my phone, etc. I also found out that she loves Michael Bublé—instant best friends.

Today, I wasn’t allowed to leave without a bufanda (scarf) and gorrito (little hat). It’s definitely chilly in the morning, but nothing compared to those Wisconsin winters. Class was at 8:30 this morning and will be for the rest of my time here. I came back and had some tea/coffee/homemade applesauce with mom and we chatted. She loves cleaning. Today she cleaned the bathrooms and organized her closet/drawers and showed me and made me smell how clean everything was. Maybe that sense of organization and cleanliness will wear off on me... She’s now preparing hamburgers for lunch. But not just that, we also have an appetizer. And the main course. Can’t have lunch without dessert. And of course, we’ll drink more coffee/tea. My stomach has not seen hunger thus far.

 Viña and Valpo are cities much like those in the States. Besides everyone speaking Spanish, having an ocean ten minutes away, and there being tons of colorful houses, it really doesn’t feel that much different than home. I’m so happy to be here and know that I am in great care! My family is so wonderful and I wish you all could meet them!

¡Hasta Luego Bolivia!

With only a few days left here in Bolivia, I have not yet seen a llama or alpaca in its natural habitat. However, I have done the next closest thing to seeing one. I ate one in the form of jerky. In Bolivia, they call it charque. It’s texture was that of bacon and as Anna would say, it tasted like deep fried salt. I don’t know if it is something I would eat again, but I’m glad I had the opportunity to try it. I think that maybe a llama patty would taste better than llama jerky...

Monday afternoon we all had to go up to the store room in the hospital and take inventory of all the medicine, gloves, dental equipment, etc. I went into it very positive and not feeling overwhelmed. But then I actually walked into the room and felt my insides tighten from the stress the storeroom presented. And this is only part of it:

It only took a couple hours to inventory aisles 1-47 with a group of about ten people. At times it was discouraging because of some disorganization and little to no instruction, but it was an accomplishment—despite the dead pigeons that may have been sitting on top of medicine boxes and sterile sheets...

Monday and Tuesday morning I worked with the PT, again. I absolutely loved it because there was so much conversation between the patients and myself. One woman made me so happy because she told me her entire life story. It started with her talking about the States because her son had moved there. It was so apparent that she was incredibly proud of him and her three other kids in Brazil. Her son in the States is working with universities and alumni to help those who can’t afford education. And her kids in Brazil are working as missionaries. She also told us how she grew up in the countryside of Bolivia and had a hard childhood. But then thanks to God, she was able to make a life for herself and end up the woman she is today with a husband she loves so much.

I also met Dianna, Sulma’s daughter. And let me tell you, she is so sassy but so great. She was sitting at the desk working on homework while Sulma was with a patient and eating a sucker, which mom told her not to eat. But she did anyways and kept playing with it resulting in her having to wash her hands several times throughout the morning because of the stickiness. She kept running around and talked about princesses and words just cannot describe her cuteness:

Tuesday afternoon was emotionally tolling. We went to the pediatric hospital again and four of us went to the burn unit. Seeing children twelve and under with burns all over them was devastating. One girl, Jackelin, was covered in bandages and casts from head to toe. I spent some time reading a book to her. My voice was shaky because I was unable to fathom the trauma she must have gone through and the journey that she’ll have for the rest of her life. She was only able to move her eyes and toes. There were two other children sitting and watching a Bolivian version of The Wiggles. They were about two or three years old with burns covering their arms and legs. Both got very sad towards the end because one of them started bleeding while the other’s legs were in a lot of pain. Another boy about twelve years old had burns and scars all over his face. I talked with him for a while about his sisters, his favorite sports, etc. It was hard for me to put on a brave face for them when my heart was shattering into a thousand pieces. Imagine having to live with those scars for the rest of your life and always having people stare at you.  Being at the burn unit opened my eyes and made me so appreciative for what I have. It’s not fair for me to feel homesick when I’ve only been gone for three weeks while these kids have probably been away from home for months. It’s not fair for me to complain about having an upset stomach or runny nose when their health is worse off. I feel as if I have no right to complain about my imperfections and insecurities because the scars I may have are nothing compared to what those kids have to live with.

Wednesday morning I went to one of the local elementary schools with two of the other volunteers, Bethany and Rachel, and we had to do oral exams of each of the kids and tell certain ones to come to the dentist the following day at 9:00 AM sharp. Their teeth are unbelievable. So many of the children have one too many cavities and rotting teeth because of all the sugar and candy they eat. The dentist was telling us that for breakfast, many of the kids drink water with sugar and have a piece of bread. Their parents send them to school with some money so that around lunchtime they can go to the local street vendors to buy ice cream, candy, and coke. The dentist gets frustrated with the parents for letting their kids eat so much sugar when they have a hard time getting toothbrushes and toothpaste. The schools were given toothbrushes to handout to the kids in February and it is now June. Knowing children, they probably lost their toothbrushes...

Spending the morning with the dentist was incredible. She only saw one patient, but we spent a lot of time just talking about life. She was giving us so much advice about various things: love, travel, Christianity, etc. It was one of my favorite mornings.

Last night we played Wallyball, which is basically volleyball but you can use the walls. We had three teams of five—and guess who was chosen as captain against her own will? I must have been having an out of body experience or something because I was actually doing really well and was scoring points... You’re all probably laughing because you know my coordination, grace, desire to exercise, and athletic ability are all non-existen t. There also may or may not even be bruises on my knees from digging and bruises on my arms from actually making contact with the ball... someone even told me that Wallyball is my calling... what the heck?! 

Even though the past few days have been great and I’ve learned so much, they have still been so confusing to me. Because of the fact that I have to analyze everything in my life, I’m still trying to figure out why I’m here. I know that my Spanish has improved and maybe that’s it, or maybe it’s to remind me that I need to go back to education. Was being in the school yesterday a coincidence or was it God telling me to open my eyes and remember my passion for teaching and helping kids? Seriously, life should stop being so confusing. If only I could see like two seconds of my future: am I working for an ad agency in South America or standing in front of a classroom in South America?