Rotary Meeting Outfit

 

First Rotary Meeting

 Guess what I did this week?!

That's right, I went to my first Chilean Rotary meeting. 

For those of you who may not know, Rotary is the name of the program that I am doing my exchange year with. Part of the exchange student experience through Rotary includes attending events and getting to know the club in your new country, so that is exactly what I did on Tuesday evening. 

This Rotary meeting started at 8pm, which personally for me was a little too close to my bedtime, but that's neither here nor there. 

The purpose of this meeting was to celebrate Chilean independence, consume some traditional Chilean food, and to socialize with everyone in attendance. It was a bit more formal than what I am used to, but that's okay. All part of the adventure right? My understanding is that this event was a party meeting, not a get down to business meeting, which I appreciated because that means I get to postpone giving my presentation about my hometown for another month or so. 

To be clear, I don't mind giving presentations at all. If you know me, you know that I honestly kind of love them because I get to talk with good reason. However, in this particular situation I am a bit nervous because the whole presentation is in Spanish...wish me luck!

The event actually started with a cueca demonstration, which was very nice. I love watching the cueca, it never gets old. Then after that we had empanadas. Again, no complaints. 

If you're not familiar with the word empanada, they are basically a large hand pie and are traditional in Latin American culture overall. 

After empanadas, they brought out this dish that was heaped with a bunch of meat and potatoes. There was pork, chicken, beef, and this sausage thing that I tried because Claudia likes it. It is actually not sausage at all, but diced onions soaked in blood wrapped up in intestinal lining. Don't think too much about it, because I'm trying not to either. 

Then came dessert, which was a bowl of peach juice filled with wheat berries with a dried/rehydrated peach in the center. I learned that this desert is super common during September 18th festivities and is called "Mote con Huesillos". Definitely not as sweet as I am used to desert being, but it was still delicious and in my book, fairly healthy as well. 

After dinner, some of the gentlemen did a bit of a history session about Quillota during the independence era, and I think maybe a little bit about their Rotary club as well? Don't quote me on that, because it was nearly 11pm and my Spanish goes downhill fast after 9:30. 

Overall, an excellent experience. I got to meet some new people and eat some great food, which is always a win. 

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I did meet another foreign exchange student named Tarek. He is from Quillota and just got back from his own exchange in Aspen, Colorado in June. It was nice to chat with him because he understands what I'm going through and also was super patient with my Spanish. 

I talked to him a fair amount about his exchange, and I learned some new things about my home country in the process. For example, Aspen is a super fancy and rich skiing town, insanely fancy and rich. Tarek told me about a girl who got a Porsche for her 16th birthday and then crashed it and I assured him that this was not normal American behaviour and that Aspen is a bit outside of the normal from the rest of the country. 

Well, I guess I'm not positive about that because I haven't been to all of the country. But it's safe to say that is not normal in rural America, and a lot of America is rural so that's my logic. 

Not much else to disclose about my first Rotary event, but please stay tuned to hear about my friend Angela's "junta" and about Chilean rodeo.

Much love always from South America,

Anna

2 "Juntas", an accidential hike, and Abuela's birthday

 Howdy from South America. My most sincere apologies that my last post was 4 days ago, but I have a feeling you'll understand why when I start to describe all of the things I have been up to. 

I should point out that this whole week is filled with festivities in Chile because their Independence Day is on September 18th, and you best believe they milk it for all it's worth. I'm kind of embarrassed because it really puts the 4th of July in Salem to shame. 

Now, let's go back to Friday. 

I went to school, but I didn't have classes which was pretty epic. Instead we went to the school sports stadium. From 8:15am to 12:45pm, all of the 11th and 12th graders from the Rafael Aritzia Institute participated in a variety of games, ate traditional Chilean empanadas and churros, and watched or participated in a "cueca" competition. 

The cueca is the traditional dance of Chile. Pronounced "kweh-kah", this dance is meant to mimic a mating ritual between a rooster and a hen. In all sincerity, it is so beautiful. The girls wear traditional dresses that are all puffed up with tulle and the boys wear ponchos and boots with big huge spurs. Check out the photos I've posted to get a better idea of what I'm talking about. 

The competition itself lasted from about 8:30am to 10:30 am because we had to do introductions and then both grades had individual competitions before everyone came together for an ultimate elimination round to determine who was the real champion. Each cueca competition lasts for three songs because that is customary. The beat of a cueca song has a very distinct 1, 2 feel. Google one and you'll see what I'm talking about. 

At the end of the competition, my friend Augustina and her partner Fabricio won the whole thing. Me and my other friends from school were cheering so loud, it was epic. Their cueca was truly flawless. 

Then it was time for empanadas. Each person got one for free and if you wanted more you could stop by the concession stand and buy more. The options were cheese or pino, which is some kind of seasoned meat that is delicious. I opted for pino and have no regrets.

I also purchased some churros and french fries that I shared with my friends as we hung out, playing soccer, and watching the festivities. Don't worry, I did participate a fair amount. They had a bouncy house thing that I went on with a few of the girls and after I did the egg toss competition and then some normal dancing. 

This part is where the first "junta" comes in. 

The word "juntar" in Spanish means "to bring together", so a "junta" by definition is a get together, or a hang out. 

I got invited to go to my friend Antonia's "junta" after school on Friday to hang out and play games and eat traditional Chilean food. 

I have friends here already guys, it's actually crazy. I probably shouldn't act so shocked, but I am honestly floored by the level of friendliness everyone exudes here. They love to include me and are always so excited when I try anything new. This particular "junta" was with most of the kids from my class so it was really fun. 

First, we went to the mall and sat in the food court together and ate 4 Papa John's pizzas. Yup, they are all the rage in Chile. I just went with it.

After that we bummed around the mall for a little while until Antonia's mom could come and pick us up. Antonia, or Anto, lives in San Pedro which is a small town about 20 minutes south of Quillota. When we arrived, we helped Anto's mom bring everything inside and then we changed to go play some soccer. I had a sweatshirt, and then my friend Catalina aka Cata, let me borrow her shorts so I was set to go. 

There was a small park just around the corner from Anto's house to play soccer in. The field was cement, not grass, but it had all of the lines for a soccer game, so off we went. Teams got split up, I got put with Nehuel, Francesa (Fran), Franceso (also Fran), Rodrigo (RoRo), Augustina (different Augustina, that name is really popular in Chile. I know at least 4), and Amaya. 

If you know anything about me at all, you know that I am not that athletically inclined. I am capable of mediocre participation, but most of the genetics that code for strength and coordination went to Molly and Nolan. It's safe to say that I am not good at soccer. 

However, all of my friends were so excited that I was trying. I was shocked at how laid back their rules were and the game was overall. I figured that because it was South America that they would take their soccer very seriously, but in all honesty, we were just messing around and having a good time. 

We played in the foothills of San Pedro for almost 2 hours. 

Sidenote of something that I noticed, my friends are so carefree. They exude a type of innocence. Obviously they are very aware of all kinds of wrongdoings that happen in the world, and they say the Chilean cuss words and make inappropriate jokes, so it took me a second to actually pinpoint where this innocence comes from. Then I realized, it is because the idea of responsibility is different here. 

In New York, I'd like to think that I am a responsible person. I have a lot going on and a lot to do. I've had a job since I was thirteen years old. I have siblings that I have to be an example for. I have my license, and have to worry about college and my future. Everything feels so heavy sometimes. But my responsibilities are heavy by my own design. 

In Chile, that is not the case. I'm not saying that kids here have less responsibility, I'm just saying that the responsibility they acquire is lighter, less dire. In the U.S., I take everything that I am doing very seriously and pursue opportunities with rapt focus and energy.

That's not the Chilean attitude. Here, we lay down our responsibilities completely for a few hours and play games and eat food and live. I've tried to do this before in NY, but I always felt the pressure of life looming over my relaxation, if that makes sense. Maybe it's because here my only true responsibility is to socialize and learn Spanish, who knows.

 Either way, just a small thing I noticed. I am curious to see how this attitude manifests itself within me. Stay tuned for more thoughts within this vein in the future. 

Back on track now. 

After the soccer game, we went back to the house and played a Chilean card game that I really didn't understand but I tried my best. Then it was time for "choripan". We all headed out to the patio to socialize and wait for the boys to cook up dinner. 

"Chorizo" in Spanish translates to sausage. "Pan" means bread, so take a wild guess at what "choripan" is. Yup, sausage in a bun. Choripan is a very typical Chilean food. A short, seasoned sausage thrown into some Chilean bread, topped off with ketchup, mayo, or "pebre" which is a type of Chilean salsa. Delicious. 

My friends were so excited for me to try it, and there was lots of whooping and hollering for my first bite. I didn't have the heart to tell them that I had actually tried it already during the barbeque with Sebastian and Isaac. Instead, I just nodded enthusiastically and told them that I loved it and it was delicious, all of which was true. 

We did some dancing after that too, my friend Martina even tried to teach me the cueca, which I failed epically at but everyone got a good laugh so it was still fun.

At one point in the evening there was some drama between a few of the girls, and there was a decent amount of gossiping. 

Just like I would have done in NY, I politely removed myself from the situation and went and watched Star Wars in Spanish with Nehuel, RoRo, Fran, Damian, and a few other of the boys. They were kind of surprised that I like Star Wars, which I thought was funny. 

Claudia and Gonzalo came and picked me up at about 9:40, and I was exhausted. On the car ride home, Claudia told me that Isaac had invited me to go with him and Sara in the morning on some type of excursion. I was too tired to translate, and figured it would be fun no matter what so I said yes. It was around that time that I also received a text from my friend Ornella, asking if I wanted to go to another "junta" with her tomorrow afternoon. Claudia and Gonzalo said it was okay, so the plan for tomorrow was settled. When I got home I went right to bed because I was exhausted. 

In the morning, I had to get up around 7am because Isaac and Sara were coming at 8:30am so we could head out. 

Based on the words I had heard the night prior, I was thinking that we were going to go look at a house. Isaac and Sara are about that age, and I heard the word "casa", and I figured it was a long car ride and that was why we needed to get up so early. 

Yeah, that was all wrong. 

Instead we were hiking all of Chile. 

Okay, that's an exaggeration. But we did hike almost six miles. Up huge Chilean mountains. I don't care that technically the Chilean's call them hills, after having hiked 3 of them, I'm calling them mountains. 

It's a good thing I'm young, that's all I'm saying. 

The overall experience, once I got over the excruciating pain in my calves, was really fun.

Sebastian came with us again as well as Isaac's other friend Tomas. When we got to the top of the hill, you could see all the way to the coast on one side, and all the way to Argentina on the other. It was pretty amazing. There was also a cute dog named Ramazotti, which translates to Aperol Spritz in English, so that was cool too. I posted some pictures, so make sure to go check those out.

I did fall over and scrape my arm pretty good, but my pride is more hurt than anything. Isaac cleaned me up good, so I really am okay. 

When we got back to the house, I had about 30 minutes to shower, change and eat before I needed to meet Ornella for the second "junta". Good thing I only get 7 minutes of hot water in the shower anyway. 

I made sure to thank Isaac, Sara, Sebatian, and Tomas before I left for Ornella's. 

When we arrived at her house, which was only 10 minutes away, we hopped in the car again to drive about 30 minutes to Augustina's house (this is the same Augustina that won the cueca competition). She lives in Nogales, which is another smaller town than Quillota. I know Augustina because we have Design and Architecture together. She is actually in a different class than I am, but we are in the same grade. Because I am cousins with Ornella, we became friends really quickly and I know most of her friend group as well. 

I took a quick nap on the car ride because I was so exhausted from the hike, but after that I was ready to rock and roll. 

At Augustina's party, she had a huge outdoor space where everyone hung out. We drank sodas and ate more choripan, and "completos" which are basically hotdogs loaded with avocado, ketchup, mayonnaise, and tomato. It's a very Chilean food, but I swear it's good. We also danced, and played volleyball.

This group of friends plays a relay game called gymkhana that I participated in as well. To start you had to spit ten times around a broomstick, then run to a chair that had a candy hidden in flour. After you had blown the flour away and found the candy, you had to balance an egg on a spoon in your mouth and walk with it to the finish line. There, for the final activity you had to blow up a balloon and sit on it until it popped. I lost, but it was still really fun and everyone was cheering so I couldn't have done that bad right? 

I would also like to note that I met one of the foreign exchange students from South Africa at this "junta" because she is living with my friend Angela. 

My school participates in a short term exchange program, where a group of students come for 3 weeks to learn a little bit more about Chilean culture. Sometimes they send Chilean students to South Africa, or Ireland, or Australia, also, but this time it was my school's turn to receive students. 

Her name is Maya, and she didn't speak a lick of Spanish, only English. She is 15 and from Durban, which is a big South African city that honestly looks a lot like Miami from the photos I looked up. The poor girl had just gotten off the plane at 1:30 that morning and they lost her luggage in Brazil so she was wearing Angela's cousin's clothing. 

She looked really overwhelmed, and I could relate to that so much, so I chatted her up and made sure to look out for her for most of the evening. 

It did help that there were a lot of kids at the "junta" who spoke English really well, which surprised me. None of them had spoken much English with me, because I asked them not to. But this whole time, they all understand it for the most part. Crazy. 

Ornella's parents picked us up at about 10pm, which means I got home around 11pm. I felt bad for keeping Claudia and Gonzalo up so late because they had to pick me up, but they said they were used to it because of Almendra. 

Still, I wish I had my car and could drive. I really miss that freedom. I really miss a lot of things from home but we can't get into that because I'm going to get emotional. 

The next morning was Abuela's birthday, and we all had brunch together in the restaurant. It was super delicious, and the cake was unlike anything I had before. 

It was less sweet than cake from the U.S and instead of having two parts, it had countless little layers of flaky crust with a light cream between each. I definitely ate too much this entire day because my stomach hurt. I probably should be more careful about that. Oh well. 

When I say "we", I am referring to the whole family, plus some of the restaurant staff, and the girlfriends of both Isaac and Gonzalo. It was quite the shebang. 

We all ate a big lunch too, but that is what's normal here, and after that we took a nap. I'm glad we did because I needed it. Especially because that night we drove to Viña del Mar to an all pink cafe/restaurant thing that Abuela likes. 

I got pineapple juice and a huge piece of chocolate cake, which was heavenly. The whole thing was a pretty American themed idea, and my host brothers all told me so, but it was fun and I had a good time. I got pictures of that too, don't worry. 

This upcoming week is vacation for me, and there really isn't that much going on. I did a lot of reading and writing today, mostly in English. I need to start practicing my Spanish more in my off time, but I find myself resisting that a little bit because I miss English and home so much. I just keep telling myself I have time to get over it. 

Well. That's all I've got for now. I hope you can forgive me for not posting in so long, but as you can now see, life's been a little bonkers. 

I'll catch you on the flip side, until then

Much love always,

Anna

Cafe Rosa

 

This huge piece of cake

 

Junta #2

 

Chilean Coast

 

The big mountain in the distance is Argentina

 The mountain is right in line with this sentence

My Million Mile Hike

 My face is so red because I was actually whooped by the time we got to the top

Junta #1 featuring Mati and Mati (both are named Matilda)

 

The "Cueca"