Two hours after learning about Kenya, I was on a bus to Valparaiso. On the bus ride, I met a nice man who was in the middle of editing a video for the government on a senator who recently passed away. He gave me some video tips and told me about the people he had interviewed and what they were like in person. I always love meeting people on buses! They always end up being so interesting!
In Valparaiso, we found that the hostel we had been recommended was a very strange place, full of bright colors and funky old furniture. Our room had rickety beds and a single lamp, and a carved gold and turquoise ceiling that looked like it was once really beautiful, but is dusty and peeling now. The best part was a trapeze in the main room downstairs! So awesome. It was all a little grungy and bohemian, in a very good way. The people were very nice and showed us how to use the trapeze :D
Later that night, we went out to a discoteca called La Sala. It was kind of sketchy but ended up being really fun. One half had a mix of spanish and english pop and reggaeton music, and the other had reggae music. I think we stumbled upon the Rasta niche, because most everyone in the room seemed to have a joint in hand, a knit cap, or dreads.
After hanging out and dancing for a few hours, a bunch of us realized we were all dancing with a group of guys who had also come together. They were a group of 11 friends, all in their early 20s, who live in the same area that I do, but were staying in a beach house near Valparaiso for the week before their classes started. As we were leaving, they invited us to an after party at their house, which the two Emilys and Mireille and I decided to go to, despite the fact that it was about 3:30am. It ended up being the best choice ever! What a crazy night. We spent the next six hours listening to them play music on guitar, many types of drums, an egg, and a thumb piano, and singing along whenever possible. (La Bamba, anyone?) They also got me to play a few songs, which was fun. I've never played for such an enthusiastic crowd! They were all very funny and used so much slang that I could barely understand anything they said.
One song they played was a Cueca song, which is the national dance of Chile. I made the mistake of saying that I didn't know what the Cueca looked like... and so of course, they decided to "teach" me the dance. This consisted of Francisco ("Tisco") putting a piece of toilet paper on each of our shoulders, dancing around twirling the paper in the air, and trying to push me to where I was supposed to be twirling mine while the others played a song. It was kind of hilarious. Later, I found out that he was in the national Cueca dancing championship in high school. I've been trained by the best!
After hours of similar nonsense, they drove us back to the hostel at 9:30 in the morning. First, one of them accidentally shut my fingers in the door. I always wondered what that would feel like- it hurts.
I slept for a little over an hour before my bed collapsed under me. Decided after that to call it a night and go for a hike up to one of the tall points of Valparaiso before heading back to Santiago. Emily, Cassie, Paige and I headed up a random road, and ended up accidentally finding the Museo al Cielo Abierto, an outdoor mural museum that leads up to a high point in the city. It was really cool, and so amazing to stumble upon! So many colors in this city. I am determined to live in this area of Valparaiso someday, it is one of my favorite places I have been to.
After having lunch in a tiny restaurant in someone's house that we came across, we headed back to Santiago. I slept so well on the way back! That night, my other host sister Maka (23) came to visit with her fiance, Rodrigo. I had never met either of them before, but they were both very nice! They don't live in this apartment, but will be very nearby.
On Thursday morning, I woke up at 9:30am- the same time I had gone to bed the day before. Maka and Rodrigo took me to Calle Rosa, where there are lots of craft and party stores. We found them a box for their engagement rings, and had the most enormous sandwiches I have ever seen near Plaza de Armas. They were literally as wide as the plates, and at least four inches high! Even I didn't have enough appetite to finish one. Later, Maka and Rodrigo dropped me off at the Facultad de Architectura for my Urban and Rural Sociology class. I couldn't find the class, and it was supposed to start at 2pm but the lady who has the list of classrooms wouldn't be in until 2:30. By some stroke of luck I found the classroom by looking at the lists on the doors (this is a very large faculty, so it really was quite lucky that I found it) and saw that they had changed the class to 3pm. I left for a while and found a nice park next door, which is tucked away behind the faculty and I had never noticed before. When I came back at 3, nobody was there! I found the lady with the class lists, and she told me that it would be postponed until next week. So this is what they mean when people say that the first few weeks of class are hectic.
Friday night I went out to a movie at Hoyt's with some Tufts friends and Jon's host brother. We watched Mi Villano Favorito. It was really funny! Afterwards we went to a bar and got Mango Sours. Saturday I stayed in the house for most of the day, probably recuperating after such a busy week! (and -1 nights of sleep...) That night, I went to Daniel's house with Javi and two of her other friends to watch 500 Days of Summer. Her friends were really nice, but once again, I found the Chilean slang almost impossible to understand. Sometimes it sounds like a completely different language! What a difference from the adult spanish used here.
Today is Sunday. This morning my host family and Daniel's family drove to the Zoo, only to find out that it was closed due to the rain. Instead, we headed to the casino/arcade nearby. I had never been to a casino before, but had always thought it would be fun to try out. I guess there is such a thing as beginner's luck, because I won $30.00 in the course of about a half hour! I was also in need of a little cash after Valparaiso, so this was perfect timing. Now we're back and I'm trying to sort out what classes I'm going to tomorrow. First real week of classes is going to be interesting!
~Molly
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