I was hoping to have made this a bi-weekly blog but at the least it will be monthly. July in Chile was fantastic! I took a trip to Buenos Aires for the weekend with my friend Mike. We stayed with Mike's friend from school and his host family. During the days, walked around the city and saw the famous sites including the cemetery, where we saw tomb of Eva Peron. During the nights we went to some of the dance clubs in the city. On the last day, we decided to really play "tourists" and spent the day at a large theme park.
A statue in central Buenos Aires (left) and the tomb of Evita Peron (right)
At end of July I united with CIEE, my study abroad program and left Santiago for Valparaiso. I enjoyed a couple days with about 30 other exchange students from various parts of the US and we arrived to Valparaiso on a beautiful day. CIEE led orientation panels and discussions for a few days to prepare us for the classes, travels and life on the Chilean coast. By the end of the orientation, I had become good friends with many of the other students.
Toward the end of the CIEE programs, I met the Vargas family, who will be hosting me for the next five months. They live a block from the ocean in Vina Del Mar (a few miles north of Valpraiso). Elizabeth Vargas, my host mom, like my mom from home is an incredibility loving person. Despite the fact that she is a social worker by day and part-time college student 3 nights per week, she has done a spectacular job with three sons. Hernando is 25 and he's an architect. Rodrigo is 22 and he just finished school to become a physical education teacher. Vincente is 14 and still in high school here. My host mom is a single parent but her parents come around a lot. We eat a family lunch frequently throughout the week (lunch is the most important meal here).
The Vargas family including my host mom, three brothers, their girlfriends Nacha and Connie and my host grandparents
I have really clicked with this family. Every member of the family is extremely musical. The three boys collectively play guitar, didgeridoo, piano and sing. They love the fact that I'm in the Chimes a capella group back at Georgetown and we've already had some late nights of singing their favorite songs from the US (80's music seems to be the big hit here -- I think I've heard "When a Man Loves a Women" on every radio I walked by).
I have a deal with Hernando that he teaches me how to play guitar and in return, I'll help him with English. This has been going well so far. We've ventured around some cafes in the area and practiced English and he's gotten me to the point where I can just about play the cords for "Knocking on Heaven's Door." Rodrigo surfs and wants to set up the same deal for surf lessons. By the end of my stay here, I'll hopefully be able to play guitar and surf more or less and these guys will be able to call the US and give me more pointers in English.
What I think has made me most at home has been the beauty of the area. The ocean has casted some of the most breath-taken sunsets. Though it is Winter now, the weather has not been overbearingly cold. We'll move into Spring in September and Summer in December here so this is about the worst of the weather.
I'll be starting classes within the next week or so (some start later than others). There was a large protest in the school system last year that shut the universities down for a month or so. As a result, the class schedule shifted a bit. By August 18 I'll have started all the classes, though. I'm studying for the semester in Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso. I'll be taking a Spanish Literature, Marketing, Social Organization, Philosophy and Religious Studies. My classes are all on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday so I'll have a longer weekend to study and travel.
So far it looks like I'll be traveling to Northern Chile on a few trips in the next couple weeks. We'll be taking a trip with the exchange students to La Serena next weekend and the following, I'll be going to Valle de Elko with my host brother, Hernando.
I have my friends David Lee and David Dawson visiting from Georgetown for a couple days so I've been showing them the sites here. It's surreal to act as a tour guide in a foreign country.
With Dave and Dave in an elevator car, going to the top of Valparaiso
All my pictures from the trip will be uploaded to this website. Definitely keep checking it out:
As always, I love hearing how things are going with the friends and family. My email is arthurw@missionthree.com. I'll be making an effort to write on the blog more often. !Mucho amor de Chile! (much love from Chile)
