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Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
otras cosas..
I have now been in Concepcion for about ten days, yet I’m still living under the wing of Antonio and Paula. I found myself a place to live (pension) but I cannot move in until March 1. I think it will be a nice place to live. I’m joined by 11 other “pensionistas” and a maid. I have my own upstairs room, which is quite private, and there are 5 bathrooms to share. This is a pension completa, so included in the monthly cost is three meals daily, internet, cable, water, lights, laundry once a week, and of course the room. The pension is 3 blocks from the U in a nice neighborhood situated at the bottom of the forested hills. The neighborhood itself has a lot of trees and foliage as well.
I’m anxious to move in there and out of Paula and Antonio’s house. Although it is very nice staying here, and I eat great, I’m ready to move into my own space and get settled. My pension is only blocks from this house, so maintaining regular contact with the couple will surely happen.
Speaking of food…. I have now eaten carne crudo two times. The second time was at P&A’s house. It was basically ground beef that had not been cooked. We spread it on bread and put other sauces on it. Again, I was hesitant, but, I survived and it was tasty. Another notable meal was a BBQ we had a few days ago. We had chicken, pork, sausage and a sausage I can’t recall the name of made from cow blood. All of this food was served to share as finger food as it came off the grill. We ate the cow blood thing last, and that was interesting. Lets just say the next morning I didn’t feel amazing.
This weekend we went to Talcuhuano, a port town about 15 miles away. There we bought fresh mariscos. I must admit, I had never tried raw seafood in such a setting. Again, I survived.
Other things I have done in the past week have included a lot of walking around the city shopping for little personal items (cell phone, soap, towel & ect), walking the university, and visiting P&A’s workout club. It is situated on Laguna Chica on the other side of the River Bio Bio. It has a couple outdoor pools and a large dock with diving boards and slides & ect on the laguna. We went there to go swimming, which was great. It is summer here and I have been itching to get wet.
On Saturday night, P&A and I and a friend of Paula’s, also named Paula, went out to a bar. It was very nice and modern. When I saw modern, I mean modern for USA standards.. Very nice and sheik, something you find in the city. Anyway, this leads me into another kind of quirky thing about Chile; how you pay for things. When you walk in the door of this place, you have to give your name and cell phone number. They then give you a little card, like a credit card. You then use this card for the remainder of the evening to pay for everything, and then when you leave, you go to the cashier and she scans your card and prints your bill. There is no money exchanged with the waiters or bartenders. This is kind of neat, but dangerous too. I don’t think all of the bars are like that here, but the cell phone store is similar.
Once you decided on the plan you want & ect with the customer service person, you then go to the cashier cage, pay, then go to another cage and pick up your phone, then go back to the customer service person to have them set it up & ect. The meat market store was the same as well. You pick out all the meat you want as in the US, and then the person gives you a little ticket. You then take the ticket to the cashier, pay, they give you another ticket, and then you go back to the meat counter and they give you your meat. I think I have a few more examples, but you get the point.
Since we are on the topic of Chilean customs, I must share one that I really like. Every greeting and goodbye between men and women, and women and women is accompanied by a kiss to the right cheek. Men usually just shake hands, unless they are family or very close friends, and then a hug is exchanged and sometimes the kiss. This interchange establishes respect and peace and affection that seem to keep most interactions peaceful and happy. There is also notable affection between parents and children, and all of the children I have interacted with are very well behaved. I have yet to encounter the common whining, annoying little bastards that run rampant in the USA. I’m not sure if there is a correlation here, but it is notable.
Again, I regret not posting photos, but blogspot is giving me fits…. I will use another site to host my images and post the link on here when I add to it.
Hope all is well in your world
Besitos
I’m anxious to move in there and out of Paula and Antonio’s house. Although it is very nice staying here, and I eat great, I’m ready to move into my own space and get settled. My pension is only blocks from this house, so maintaining regular contact with the couple will surely happen.
Speaking of food…. I have now eaten carne crudo two times. The second time was at P&A’s house. It was basically ground beef that had not been cooked. We spread it on bread and put other sauces on it. Again, I was hesitant, but, I survived and it was tasty. Another notable meal was a BBQ we had a few days ago. We had chicken, pork, sausage and a sausage I can’t recall the name of made from cow blood. All of this food was served to share as finger food as it came off the grill. We ate the cow blood thing last, and that was interesting. Lets just say the next morning I didn’t feel amazing.
This weekend we went to Talcuhuano, a port town about 15 miles away. There we bought fresh mariscos. I must admit, I had never tried raw seafood in such a setting. Again, I survived.
Other things I have done in the past week have included a lot of walking around the city shopping for little personal items (cell phone, soap, towel & ect), walking the university, and visiting P&A’s workout club. It is situated on Laguna Chica on the other side of the River Bio Bio. It has a couple outdoor pools and a large dock with diving boards and slides & ect on the laguna. We went there to go swimming, which was great. It is summer here and I have been itching to get wet.
On Saturday night, P&A and I and a friend of Paula’s, also named Paula, went out to a bar. It was very nice and modern. When I saw modern, I mean modern for USA standards.. Very nice and sheik, something you find in the city. Anyway, this leads me into another kind of quirky thing about Chile; how you pay for things. When you walk in the door of this place, you have to give your name and cell phone number. They then give you a little card, like a credit card. You then use this card for the remainder of the evening to pay for everything, and then when you leave, you go to the cashier and she scans your card and prints your bill. There is no money exchanged with the waiters or bartenders. This is kind of neat, but dangerous too. I don’t think all of the bars are like that here, but the cell phone store is similar.
Once you decided on the plan you want & ect with the customer service person, you then go to the cashier cage, pay, then go to another cage and pick up your phone, then go back to the customer service person to have them set it up & ect. The meat market store was the same as well. You pick out all the meat you want as in the US, and then the person gives you a little ticket. You then take the ticket to the cashier, pay, they give you another ticket, and then you go back to the meat counter and they give you your meat. I think I have a few more examples, but you get the point.
Since we are on the topic of Chilean customs, I must share one that I really like. Every greeting and goodbye between men and women, and women and women is accompanied by a kiss to the right cheek. Men usually just shake hands, unless they are family or very close friends, and then a hug is exchanged and sometimes the kiss. This interchange establishes respect and peace and affection that seem to keep most interactions peaceful and happy. There is also notable affection between parents and children, and all of the children I have interacted with are very well behaved. I have yet to encounter the common whining, annoying little bastards that run rampant in the USA. I’m not sure if there is a correlation here, but it is notable.
Again, I regret not posting photos, but blogspot is giving me fits…. I will use another site to host my images and post the link on here when I add to it.
Hope all is well in your world
Besitos
Monday, February 18, 2008
never a dull moment....
I took a walk on Thursday to Plaza Brazil to do some writing and people watching, and I could not help but notice all of the couples. There is no shame in PDA, apparently. I then realized it was Valentines Day. Ha. Anyway, this phenomenon is not isolated to such holidays, I see it alot in parks & ect. Anyway, happy belated valentines day.
Another very prevalent phenomenon in Chile is all of the vagabond dogs. They are everywhere, for the most part, just laying around in the shade. Very seldom do you hear one bark, or even move for that matter. So, I spent my Vday in the company of about 5 dogs all lying around me! (we kept our pda to a minimum, i´m still a little shy)
Anyway, my date with my friend Paulo for the afternoon fell through due to him being sick. So, I set off alone. First, I rode the subway to the bus station to buy my bus ticket for the next day to Concepcion. The subway was soooo packed. I could barely sneak in the door, and then I was practically jammed up against the glass. (this was about 7 pm) Anyway, I bought my ticket and then decided to walk back to the hostel. (about 45 min walk)
On the walk I got to peruse several little malls. All very old and reminiscent of Mexico, but people not really hassling you to stop and look at there stuff. Stuff included lots of clothes, hats & ect. The walk allowed me to see alot and to be amongst the people, but with a little bubble around me.
Later that night, I went out with a German lady and Uruguayan lady that work in the cafe above the hostel. We went to a popular bar/restaurant and we ate "carne crudo." Raw beef. It was tasty once I got beyond the fears of being planted on the john for the next week. Later we went to a salsa techa, danced and drank till about 5:30 am.
"The next morning" I hailed a cab about 15 min before my bus was supposed to leave and raced me and all my stuff to the station. Luckily the bus was a bit late. The ride was nice. I had an open seat next to me and I slept much of the time. When not sleeping I had great views of the Andes and the country side.
Antonio, Paula’s husband, picked me up at the bus station, took me on a quick city tour and then we relaxed and had some beers. We ate great food that was prepared by his bakery (Hanns & Grettles). Later, two of Antonio’s good friends came over and we drank beer, wine, tequila, pisco sour and piscola. Furthermore, they speak sooo fast. But Its great practice. I have heard almost no english since I have arrived, except in music. Antonio almost exclusively listens to english music, but can’t speak it.
The next day we went to Antonio’s parents’ beach house (about 30 mins) for his nephews birthday. In attendance were all of Antonio’s family, except Paula and Antonio’s 20 y/o son. This was a real treat. First of all, the house was amazing. Right on the beach, pool in the backyard, not huge but very comfy with an amazing view! We spent the day here drinking, eating, eating, drinking and a little sleeping.
We ate empanadas with cheese empanadas with beef, onion, and cheese as an appetizer. For the main meal we had grilled beef, chicken, duck and cow tongue. The tongue was very good; tender with a nice flavor, however a bit strange.
We spent the whole day there, it was very nice. Again, the people speak very fast. Surprisingly, I understand alot, but I don’t really have any context. Especially in the family setting. These people have obviously known each other for a long time, so I´m sort of out of the loop.
The next day, a friend of Antonio’s, Antonio, and I went to the coast where the River Bio Bio enters the sea. It was very beautiful. It was very reminiscent of the Oregon coast. I got to play tourist a bit a take some photos. Beautiful sunset. We then stopped at a little restaurant and had empanadas, machas, and locos. Machas and locos are sea food. Locos supposedly are difficult to get in other countries and are very expensive. This food was excellent.
We later returned home for a few more drinks. Antonio then went to bed, and I decided to go out walking solo.
Today, we walked around in search of a pension for me to stay in. There are many options, so I should be in my new place soon. Also today, Paula returns from the US, so I think the party may be coming to an end. At least with Antonio.
I have been learning sooo much since I left home. My brain is constantly being flooded with information. As I said before, I have only been communicating in Spanish. The people around me, thus far, only speak Spanish. This is very nice. At this point, I understand much more than I´m able to speak myself. When I´m being spoken to directly, I understand between 70 and 100% of what’s being said. When I´m listening to others speak, I understand, on average about 60%.
I am very pleased to be in Concepcion. It is a very beautiful city that reminds me alot of Oregon and Missoula. It is a college town like Missoula, and the university is very beautiful like U of M. However, the flora is more similar to Oregon. A bit more water here, so it’s a bit more lush than Missoula.
So I´m told, the city is going to fill up with students in the next couple weeks when school starts.
I regret not posting any more pictures at this time, but I´m going to wait until I have my computer hooked up. Saludos..
Another very prevalent phenomenon in Chile is all of the vagabond dogs. They are everywhere, for the most part, just laying around in the shade. Very seldom do you hear one bark, or even move for that matter. So, I spent my Vday in the company of about 5 dogs all lying around me! (we kept our pda to a minimum, i´m still a little shy)
Anyway, my date with my friend Paulo for the afternoon fell through due to him being sick. So, I set off alone. First, I rode the subway to the bus station to buy my bus ticket for the next day to Concepcion. The subway was soooo packed. I could barely sneak in the door, and then I was practically jammed up against the glass. (this was about 7 pm) Anyway, I bought my ticket and then decided to walk back to the hostel. (about 45 min walk)
On the walk I got to peruse several little malls. All very old and reminiscent of Mexico, but people not really hassling you to stop and look at there stuff. Stuff included lots of clothes, hats & ect. The walk allowed me to see alot and to be amongst the people, but with a little bubble around me.
Later that night, I went out with a German lady and Uruguayan lady that work in the cafe above the hostel. We went to a popular bar/restaurant and we ate "carne crudo." Raw beef. It was tasty once I got beyond the fears of being planted on the john for the next week. Later we went to a salsa techa, danced and drank till about 5:30 am.
"The next morning" I hailed a cab about 15 min before my bus was supposed to leave and raced me and all my stuff to the station. Luckily the bus was a bit late. The ride was nice. I had an open seat next to me and I slept much of the time. When not sleeping I had great views of the Andes and the country side.
Antonio, Paula’s husband, picked me up at the bus station, took me on a quick city tour and then we relaxed and had some beers. We ate great food that was prepared by his bakery (Hanns & Grettles). Later, two of Antonio’s good friends came over and we drank beer, wine, tequila, pisco sour and piscola. Furthermore, they speak sooo fast. But Its great practice. I have heard almost no english since I have arrived, except in music. Antonio almost exclusively listens to english music, but can’t speak it.
The next day we went to Antonio’s parents’ beach house (about 30 mins) for his nephews birthday. In attendance were all of Antonio’s family, except Paula and Antonio’s 20 y/o son. This was a real treat. First of all, the house was amazing. Right on the beach, pool in the backyard, not huge but very comfy with an amazing view! We spent the day here drinking, eating, eating, drinking and a little sleeping.
We ate empanadas with cheese empanadas with beef, onion, and cheese as an appetizer. For the main meal we had grilled beef, chicken, duck and cow tongue. The tongue was very good; tender with a nice flavor, however a bit strange.
We spent the whole day there, it was very nice. Again, the people speak very fast. Surprisingly, I understand alot, but I don’t really have any context. Especially in the family setting. These people have obviously known each other for a long time, so I´m sort of out of the loop.
The next day, a friend of Antonio’s, Antonio, and I went to the coast where the River Bio Bio enters the sea. It was very beautiful. It was very reminiscent of the Oregon coast. I got to play tourist a bit a take some photos. Beautiful sunset. We then stopped at a little restaurant and had empanadas, machas, and locos. Machas and locos are sea food. Locos supposedly are difficult to get in other countries and are very expensive. This food was excellent.
We later returned home for a few more drinks. Antonio then went to bed, and I decided to go out walking solo.
Today, we walked around in search of a pension for me to stay in. There are many options, so I should be in my new place soon. Also today, Paula returns from the US, so I think the party may be coming to an end. At least with Antonio.
I have been learning sooo much since I left home. My brain is constantly being flooded with information. As I said before, I have only been communicating in Spanish. The people around me, thus far, only speak Spanish. This is very nice. At this point, I understand much more than I´m able to speak myself. When I´m being spoken to directly, I understand between 70 and 100% of what’s being said. When I´m listening to others speak, I understand, on average about 60%.
I am very pleased to be in Concepcion. It is a very beautiful city that reminds me alot of Oregon and Missoula. It is a college town like Missoula, and the university is very beautiful like U of M. However, the flora is more similar to Oregon. A bit more water here, so it’s a bit more lush than Missoula.
So I´m told, the city is going to fill up with students in the next couple weeks when school starts.
I regret not posting any more pictures at this time, but I´m going to wait until I have my computer hooked up. Saludos..
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Once upon a time....
Well, I made it. I had a long 20 hour day of crowded planes and airports, but my 150 pounds of stuff and I arrived in good shape. I had arranged for a friend of a friend of my sister to pick me up at the airport in Santiago and deposit me at my hostel. The hostel is in a historic district, and very beautiful.
Oh by the way, I must insert that it is very hot here. This initially compounded by the two jackets and hiking boots I was wearing to conserve space in my bag. It was a little shocking, pleasently I might add, to come from several feet of snow to several inches of mercury. But I digress.
After getting settled in at the hostel and making arrangements to meet up with a friend who studied at U of M last semester, I was off to explore mi nuevo pais. I walked up and down and around Avenida Brasil and played tourist a bit, while trying not to appear to be doing so. I must say that Santiago is a very beutiful city sprinkled with parks, trees and colorful old buildings.
I was quite famished, and after looking at several restaraunts I finally chose one. I picked one that was moderatly busy (so I knew it was ok) and had seeting outside. I inspected the menu and quickley realized that the only thing I understood, aside from the drinks, was hamurguesa. So, of sourse I did not get a hamburger. Instead I chose one of the special dishes. I picked Chorillana and a famed pisco sour to drink. When the Chorillana arrived, it was like nothing I had ever seen before, yet exactly what I wanted at the same time. It was a big pile of french fries topped with beef and onions and on top of that was an egg sunny side up. The plate was rimmed with hotdog slices.
Later in the afternoon, my friend Paulo and I met up and walked around other parts of the city. We also rode the subway a couple of times, which was apparantly a popular form of transport. Paulo went home early due to headache, so I set out again solo. I left the hostel about 11 pm headed for the Barrio brasil. I popped into a bar restaurant, ate a pizza and drank more pisco sour while the bartender gave me a crash course in Chilean pop music.
I have about 24 more hours in Santiago until I jump on a bus and head to concepcion, my home base for the next year.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Welcome
Welcome to my travel blog. I intend on updating often with pictures and other tidbits from my time in Chile and travels throughout South America. I hope you enjoy!
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