La Vida Diaria (My Daily Life)

Today was my third day of classes here in Chile, and I have now attended all of my classes at least once. Since I am taking only three classes, my schedule is relatively relaxed. I never have classes before 9:30am and never past 12:30pm. And I have no classes on Thursday! We have not been told our our placements for service learning, so right now I feel like I have a lot of free time! I figured I could go through my last three days so that you can get a feel for what I've been up to!

Monday, we had an orientation for my university and then my first class. I take the Metro to class, which is like the light rail, and it is very quick! We were welcomed at Universidad Adolfo Ibanez with open arms- I like it here alot. It is a very small campus, near the ocean, with palm trees everywhere! Very different than Minnesota! We were paired with a Chilean 'buddy', so that we have someone to converse with, ask questions to, etc. My buddy, Alex, is hosting an asado (like a barbeque) this Saturday in Valparaiso (Valpo). I'm very excited to be in Valpo for the first time! My first class was the History of Chile and I think I will enjoy that class very much. I doubt it will be terribly hard, it's not meant to be, but very important to know while I'm living here. We are going to go to Valpo as a class in a couple weeks also. After class, I come home for almuerzo, which is a later lunch (around 2 or 3pm). It is the biggest meal of the day, which I'm still getting used to. I've enjoyed the food I've had here- different vegetables, fruit, meat than I'm used to. We drink tea, juice or coffee at each meal. The Chileans don't drink much plain old water, so I just drink out of my water bottle when I'm not at home. Anyway, after almuerzo, a group of friends and I walked to the mall, which is no small walk! It took us about 30 mins at least, but it was a great way to see the town! The mall has three levels and two parts, which are connected by a bridge. It looks just like any other mall in the US, but it was nice to go get a few necessary items (like thick socks for my cold apartment!).

Tuesday, it rained literally the entire day. It was cold, wintery rain- not fun! I had my first Senior Seminar class, titled 'Justice and Impunity in Latin America'. We are learning about some intense events in Chile, Argentina, Peru and Guatemala. This is the only time during the week when our entire group is together. As a group, we will be taking a few small day trips, to Valpo and Santiago, and one week-long trip to the island of Chiloe in southern Chile. When I returned, I took a little siesta and then had almuerzo with my mom and sisters. Then, McKenna, a friend who lives close to me, and I ventured out despite the rain! We went to get our student transportation cards, which makes it half price to take the metro! It is approximately 20 cents USD for each way to school. We also visited an artesania, a place where many artists sell jewelery, scarves and other cool things. I could spend a lot of money there- but I only bought a pair of earrings. After our wet adventure, I ate cena (a light dinner) at McKenna's apartment. It was very interesting to eat with another family, how they do things differently, etc. Where I live is much less formal, because Erika is not married and my sisters are off doing different activities or seeing their friends. Sometimes we eat with all four, sometimes it's just Erika and me or a combination. And after that, I returned to my apartment for a bit and went out one last time to a bar in Chorrillos, the neighborhood that I live in. There are about 10 other students from CSB/SJU that live near me and we all met up there. It was fun there, but I had class earlier than everyone so I left after about an hour (and yes I walked back with other people, Mom).

Today, I had my first Literature class. I am very excited for this one-- it is taught by the brother of the head of the Hispanic Studies dept at CSB/SJU, who I had my freshman year of college. Soon enough, I will have taken class from both Jose and Julio Fabres! This class has only 5 people in it, and I think I will really enjoy this one. Julio told us to draw a picture and left the room for about 20 mins and then we discussed them for the rest of the time. It was quite hilarious, and he said that we won't survive his class if we don't have a sense of humor! I will look forward to this one from now on! After that I had my second History class and then we had a presentation about the upcoming presidential elections in Chile. They will take place in December- I'm very excited to be here during such an exciting time! He told us about the three candidates running for election. One is an ex-president. Here you cannot be re-elected consecutively, but you can run again after another term has passed. Another is a 'pretty boy' who has garnered a lot of criticism for picking arguments, as opposed to proposing new ideas. And the final is from a strong family here, who has the most support of any of the candidates as of now. We will see what happens! Moving on, this afternoon was my favorite of all-- I went to the beach! I met up with some friends at a cafe right on the beach-- poor me! I had tiramisu ice cream, which was delicious. I still can't get over where I am right now! I'm liking my life here more and more, as I'm learning my way around and meeting new people. No complaints here!

Sorry for this long-winded post, but I hope it helped paint a picture of mi vida Chilena!