Pucón

This weekend we had a big trip to a city in the south of Chile called Pucón. The trip was organized by the exchange program, Council, and so we didn’t have to plan anything. It was strange to travel with a group of 25 gringos after having spent so much time with Chileans, but it was fun to feel completely comfortable with people of my own age and culture.
The first day about eight of us decided to go horseback riding in the mountains and we had an absolute blast. There weren’t exactly rules like there are in the U.S. about where you can go and what you can do and if you have to stay in a line or not. Basically we spent three hours of pure freedom on horseback. We were able to gallop, explore, race and feel like Chilean huasos or cowboys. The scenery was beautiful and the air felt refreshingly clean after being in smoggy Santiago for so long. After the long ride we relaxed in the natural hot springs that Pucon is known for. Pucon is famous for being a touristy city, but since it is winter here and in the off-season there weren´t very many people.


Another reason that Pucon is well-known is that it is home to a large, active volcano called Villarica. During the day the huge, snow-covered volcano towers over the town and you can see smoke constantly billowing from the top. At night the top of the volcano glows a deep orange. There are several tour companies that take groups up to the top and provides them with the proper equipment and several guides. The trek is very intense and the ascent and descent together takes about 10 hours and can only be done in good weather because there are frequent storms at the top of the volcano and the excess of toxic gases at the top makes it dangerous as well. Several of us had decided that we wanted to try and climb the volacano and rose early Saturday morning with an attitude of perserverence.
We drove to the tour company and were outfitted with helmets, ice picks, special boots, pants, and a jacket, a backpack, sunglasses (the glare of the sun on the snow can burn your retinas - they told us) and cramp-ons (gear that fits on boots to walk on snow and ice). Our group numbered 14 (8 guys and 6 girls) and after cramming into two vans, we drove to the base of the volcano.
After a brief explanation of how to use all of the equipment, the dangers of climbing the volcano, and the plan for the day, we started the long, slow, climb in the snow up to the first checkpoint. I can honestly say that climbing the Villarica volcano was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my entire life. Not only was it intensely physically demanding because we were using and wearing bulky equipment and walking in snow in very steep inclines, but it was mentally demanding as well because we were constantly looking at how far the distance to the top remained.
At the first checkpoint many of us were already exhausted from climbing almost straight up for two hours and we were advised to eat things with a lot of calories. We inhaled juice, candy and cookies in preparation for the next leg of the trek. There were two girls who turned back at this point knowing that they wouldn´t be able to make it any farther. I was having doubts myself about my ability and current physical condition but I wanted to give it a shot anyways.
I think the second part of the climb was the hardest for me. The wind was blowing hard, pieces of snow and ice would fly at us, the incline was grueling and I was very very tired. At times I wanted to give up and it was literally all I could do to lift one foot in front of the other. My feet felt heavy becuase of the weighty snowboots and cramp-ons and I was afraid that I would fall and slip down the slope of the volcano. Our guides were constantly reminding us to make sure that all of the spades of the cramp-ons were deep in the snow so that we wouldn´t slip - because, they advised us, if we slipped, we could reach high speeds of sliding down the slippery volcano in mere seconds. I remember hating the fact that I had decided to do this and promised myself I would never do such a thing again. I tried taking my mind off the pain by thinking about other things, but all I could think about was how hard it was to keep going.
Finally we reached the final resting point before reaching the top and we practically collapsed in a semi-secluded spot from the wind and gobbled down any remaining food. At this point two other girls decided not to continue and that left me, one other girl, and the eight guys to make it to the top. The peak of the volcano still seemed so far away and our guide told us that it was another two and a half hours from this point. During the final part of the hike I felt a second wind and it was a little easier because although the incline was severe (and I felt like I wanted to hold on to someone´s hand) it was so difficult that we would walk for ten minutes and rest for ten seconds. When the incline became more steep and icy, we would walk for five minutes and rest for ten seconds. Pretty soon the guide was directing us to literally rest as much as we were walking. The scariest feeling was that I became so tired and felt weak, that I was afraid that I would lose control of my balance or footing and fall. But fortunately I didn´t and we kept walking and soon began to smell the actual fumes from the volcano.

We reached a place where we had to leave our backpacks for the final ascent. We put on our gas masks and began the last hard climb up to the actual opening of the volcano. I have never been so excited to reach a certain goal - it was so fulfilling and satisfying to get to the top and look over the edge into the giant hole of the volcano. The air was hot and the gases from the volcano burned our throats. For several minutes we simply stood and watched the inside of the volcano. We actually got to see hot, bright orange lava splash and erupt inside. Some of the guys got a picture of it but I was to intent on staring at it to think of taking pictures. After awhile, our guide said we had to start our descent, which would take an equally long time, because we had to make it to the bottom before dark.

Although going down was difficult as well because of the incline and the footing, we were proud and satisfied that we had made it to the top. After many more hours we finally made it back to the base and one of the guys actually threw up from the exertion. All of us literally threw ourselves on the snow so tired that we didn´t want to move. Although climbing the volcano was a challenge and a huge natural high, I am not sure I want to do anything like that again for a long, long time.

Teaching English

One of the requirements for my class Pobreza y Desarrollo en Latinoámerica (Poverty and Development in Latin America) is to volunteer at least 6 hours a week in a low-income community. My internship is in a poor community about an hour outside of Santiago called El Monte. I teach an English class for students between the ages of 10 and 16. The internship is a lot of work mentally, physically and emotionally. Every Thursday I leave campus at 11:30 and take the metro to the main bus terminal. From there I take a bus to the small community of El Monte – I usually arrive at around 1:30. The building where I give the class is a community building run by the government for the benefit of the children in the neighborhood. During the afternoon, I set up the classroom, hunt for supplies, have lunch with the secretaries that work there, and get ready to teach the lesson.
I have found that teaching is terrifying. I remember that the first day I had to give the class I was practically shaking. It is scary for me because I have to teach the class in Spanish and I have to teach how to speak and write English. This may sound simple, but I have realized that the method of teaching a foreign language, even if it is your own, does not necessarily come naturally. For example, I have struggled with where to begin, what to cover, and how to make it fun and interesting. What is also difficult is that I am teaching adolescents who don’t hesitate to make fun of my Spanish or let me know when they can’t understand me. This is a good thing, but it is very hard to get used to.



Things are going better now after about a month of class and I am starting to love my students. I am impressed that they come to an English class voluntarily after a full day of school because they truly want to learn. Some students have started to come about forty minutes early just to hang out in the room, chat, and draw on the board with markers. The lesson is only an hour long but I usually end up staying a little later. Unfortunately I have another class on campus in Santiago at six and have been late about every time. It’s worth it though, because every time when I go to clean up the room, my students have written “Gracias tía Sarah” and have signed all of their names. It never ceases to surprise me how people who don’t have much, are grateful for such simple things. Even though it is really scary to do, it is an honor to be able to teach an English class in El Monte.

Family Time

My sisters and I (from top to bottom: me, Catalina (Cata - 14), Maria Jose (Kote - 17)
Living with a Chilean family has been a really fun experience and I have learned so much more than had I been living on my own. My family spoils me like crazy and it will be hard to go back to living by myself. My Chilean mom stays at home and takes care of the house, so every day my room and bathroom are cleaned, my clothes are washed, my breakfast is laid out on the table, my lunch is packed, and my dinner is ready for me when I get home. Sometimes I feel like it is the life of luxury here because I don’t have to go grocery shopping or cook. The only thing that I have had to get used to is keeping my room clean. My Chilean mom likes things very organized and gets upset if I leave things on the floor or if I leave my bed unmade; thus, out of respect, I have had to change habits of being a semi-messy person into being a very organized person. I think, however, that the trade-off is more than fair =)
Slowly but surely I have been getting to know my Chilean sisters better and the other night we decided to have a photo shoot. We posed in a lot of different positions and there was definitely a lot of laughing involved. Yesterday I went shopping in one of the huge open-air markets with my sisters and they helped me pick out some cool Chilean things. Being 14 and 17 they are totally into fashion, music, and guys and it is fun to hang out with them. Since the beginning, though, the 14 year-old, Catalina, has wanted to cut my hair in a Chilean way and I finally let her do it last night. Thus, the pictures of me in the photo shoot are the last ones I have of me with my normal, long American-looking hair. Catalina is very good with hair, nails, makeup …etc. And my haircut is definitely Chilean . . .it is very interesting, but fun and I am having a good time learning how to be more Chilean like them fashion-wise.

Traveling

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness - all foes to real understanding. Likewise, tolerance or broad, wholesome charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in our little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.
-Mark Twain


(photos from La Serena)

A weekend in the north of Chile: La Serena

For the first time since being in Chile we decided to travel north for the weekend and Thursday night we boarded an overnight bus that was bound for La Serena, a desert city in the north on the coast. We arrived very early in the city and found a youth hostel. After sleeping for a few hours, we decided to take a guided tour to a famous spot on the coast called Punta de Choros where we could take a boat tour to and island called Isla Damas.

The scenery along the drive up to the coast was beautiful and very different from the scenery that we had seen before in the south. It was all desert, sand, and cacti – we even saw alpacas, an animal similar to a llama. Upon arriving at the coast, we boarded a boat for the trip to the island. The weather was beautiful and the waters were clear and really cool shades of blue. This island is famous because of a colony of penguins that lives there. Along the way we saw sea lions, pelicans, lots of different types of birds, and finally many groups of penguins. We were able to land on the island and spent about two hours exploring, hiking around, and taking pictures. We liked the tour and the guide so much that we decided to hire the same company for the next day.


The following day we visited the Valle de Elqui, or the Elqui Valley which is known for producing amazing grapes used for wine and Pisco, practically the official alcoholic drink of Chile. It was really cool to see how the lush, green valley fit inbetween the tall, dry, mountains. We stopped at local stands to try real sun-dried raisins and also visited the Pisco factory. Later at night we were able to visit one of the star-gazing observatories which the desert in the north of Chile is famous for. There are many large and famous astronomical stations there because of the constant clear skies and lack of pollution. We were given a presentation of the constellations seen in South America and then we were able to look through two different types of telescopes to examine groups of stars, the moon, Saturn, and Jupiter. The guide even took pictures of the planets for us through the lens using our digital cameras!




The next day we were tired from all the traveling and decided to sleep in. We explored the small city of La Serena and took a short horseback ride along the beach. We were on the bus again at 5:30 headed home ready for another week of school, but excited that were had been able to see so many new things.

Argentina

This weekend I travelled to a city in Argentina called Mendoza. The trip was different from others in a lot of ways not only because it took place in a different country. It was mainly different because I did not travel with gringos (Americans) but with Chileans. This weekend we had Monday free because of it being a holiday and so there was a group of Chileans from my volunteer work who decided to go to Mendoza and invited me along.

Obviously I was thrilled to have the privilege of spending a long weekend with Chileans, speaking Spanish, and hanging with a group that for once wasn’t tourists. The trip to Mendoza is both beautiful and a bit dangerous because one has to cross the Andes and this involves narrow roads and crazy turns at ridiculously high altitudes. At the top of the mountain range we had to get out of the car and go through customs.

Chileans love to go to Mendoza because it is known to be both very beautiful as well as cheap. For example, we found a hostel for all of us for about ten dollars a night. In addition the food is incredible and also very inexpensive. Usually when tourists and Chileans go to Mendoza they make a point of eating meat every night because it is said that the red meat in Argentina is the best in the world. After trying the beef there my first night I am prone to agree – I can say that it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten in my entire life. When I asked why the meat is so different, the Argentine waiter told me that it is because the cows only eat the natural grasses in the valleys in Argentina and because the meat that is served in restaurants is always fresh, never more than one day old.

During this weekend I felt like I was on vacation instead of feeling like a tourist. We slept in, walked around and explored the city, talked a lot over coffee and meals, went to the movies and generally just hung out. I feel lucky that they invited me along and the more that I am in Chile the more I realize how hard it is going to be to leave now that I am feeling more at home, getting accustomed to the language, and making new friends.