Fall Is Here!

I was hoping for an eternal summer here in Viña but last weekend made me realize I should probably start bracing for cooler weather. 

The leaves in the neighborhood started changing colors and falling to the ground.

Then, the clouds started to roll in and before I knew it the rain began to pour. 

And we had a weekend of rain and dark skies.

A weekend of highs in the 50s and pouring rain means two things: soup and tea.  

The change in seasons is a reminder of two things. First, this means I am about to miss a 120 degree summer in AZ. And second, I have been living in Chile for almost four months now. I can tell I am finding my groove here: school seems to be going well, I am building friendships, I visited a new orphanage, and now I am off to a meeting with my host Rotary club. Although I may not get my eternal summer here, I can honestly say that I am really enjoying living here. 

Happy fall everyone!

Best Move

Over the last several months, I have watched a lot of my friends and family members make decisions, move places, get married, start schooling programs, graduate, change directions in their lives, etc. All of these changes remind me that we are on a different mission that only we can fulfill. After undergoing quite a bit of personal and geographical change in the last several months, I found myself thinking about one of my favorite quote from Viktor Frankl-

"[T]he meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment. To put the question in general terms would be comparable to the question posed to a chess champion: "Tell me, Master, what is the best move in the world?" There simply is no such thing as the best or even a good move apart from a particular situation in a game and the particular personality of one's opponent. The same holds for human existence. One should not search for an abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out a concrete assignment which demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone's task is as unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it."

Thank you for being part of the mission in my life and supporting me on my journey. I wish you all the best and all my support on finding your own, personal "best move."


Happy weekend everyone!

Sunset

Living in the Land of Street Art

The street art in Chile is one of my favorite things about living here. 

I snapped a couple pictures of the many, many art pieces here. I will post more soon but here are a few for now- 

I loved these colors

My favorite staircase!

This reminded me of Van Gogh

Allende still walks the streets!

A bird in a sweater

I love this one!

:)

21st of May: Naval Glory Day (or Beth Anne's Experience Bring Around More Guns in One Day than She Has Been in Her Whole Life)

Yesterday, the 21st of May, was Naval Glory Days in Chile. The national holiday is a celebration of The Battle of Iquique, which was Chile's naval battle with Peru in 1879. Eventually, this war lead to the Chilean military taking control of land in the north, which at that time belonged to Bolivia and Peru. Since Valparaíso is a port city and boasts a large naval base, one of the country's main celebrations was here. The city filled with tourist and there was something for everyone since this holiday includes a huge parade, multiple protests, and the president giving his state of the union speech. From my gringa perspective, I found this holiday interesting for several reasons.


First, Chile actually lost The Battle of Iquique. I was shocked when I learned we were celebrating a battle that they not only lost but also the same battle that Arturo Prat, their famous commander, perished. Although Chile eventually stole land from won the war against Peru, the whole celebrating a loss baffled me. I could not think of a single big American holiday where we celebrate a day we suffered a major loss.


Second, Chile apparently lost a bunch of land in the South. One of my friends, who works for the Navy, explained that while Chile's navy was fighting up north near Peru, Argentina seized the moment to steal some Chilean land in the south. The ironic twist is that the Argentinians recently realized this land has a lot of oil. Now Chile has another thing in common with Peru and Bolivia, they all want their historic land back. 


Third, while we were waiting for what felt like a really long time for the parade to start, my friend almost got pick pocketed. Thankfully that didn't happen thanks to a lovely little Chilean couple who was standing next to us and altered us. 


Fourth, I have never been around so many guns in my life. For real. I was actually a little worried. Here is just part of what I am talking about- 

Fifth, I found the uniforms to be quite funny. Not only were there several different kinds but some were just bewildering-

Ikea called. They would like their lampshades back. 

These "backpacks" looked like seat cushions. 

Who still uses bayonets? 

These hats befuddle me.

Female uniforms included red lip stick and black purses. 

Swords with gold handles!

They love swords and hats here. 

Drums!

It was like a free concert...

...kind of

Some people really know how to find a good view-

 And lastly, the protesters were out and getting beat up-

Of course the Chilean police were waiting for this to happen...

Party onward (with confetti!)...

Los Perros

Before I begin, this blog is dedicated to Buddy, my favorite dog in the world. 

Every time I leave my house I encounter dogs. Since I miss my dog in the US, being greeted, sniffed, and licked by dogs could not make me happier (except for when I see they are cover in flees but that's another story). 

So here is an introduction to some of the dogs in my neighborhood! 

While some dogs are strong and grow very tall

Other are fluffy and tend to stay very small

Some are clean, well-groomed, and neat

While others have lived their whole life on the street

There are dogs that greet me every day after I run

And dogs that stay on the porch and don't like to have fun 

Some like to investigate and smell the ground

And others just like shade and a place to lie down

Some try to scare me when I walk by at night

And others watch to make sure things are alright

I'm Officially Part of the Chilean Census!

Yesterday the door bell rang, I opened the door to find the census information collector. In Chile, a census is taken every ten years and the information collectors go door-to-door. None of my roommates were there to fill out the census, so I agreed to try out my Spanish on census questions. Thankfully, my Spanish did not fail me and I was able to answer the questions. I also found out that the information collector studied history and so we chatted for a bit about that. (I don't know if a lot of people study history or if we magically gravitate to each other but I have met a disproportionate amount of people who studied history.)

The one questions that I was surprised that was not on the census was the race question. Maybe because this question is such a big deal on the US census, I kept waiting for it and waiting and then realized that race is not a part of the Chilean census. I found this surprising for a country that talks quite a bit about heritage and the color of skin. On an exciting note, I received a sticker for completing the census. It reminded me of voting stickers in the US. (Sidebar, if you want to ask someone why they do not have a race question on their census make sure you use the word, "raza" for race. It may sound similar to the word "raíz" but that means roots. And yes, this is personal experience speaking here.)

In other news, the weather is cooling down here. The vibe in Viña definitely changes with the seasons and the city feels a lot emptier not that summer is over but it is still a beautiful city-

Live the Questions

Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books that are now written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. 

Rilke (1903)

A couple years ago as I was reading Rilke, I found this quote, wrote it on my mirror, and thought about it everyday for several months.

I realized that I like to plan things. I like to-do lists. I like getting things done, completing tasks, and figuring out what the next steps are in life. 

But after thinking about this quote I realized sometimes there are questions in life that I cannot solve right away, somethings I cannot plan or add to a list. There are locked rooms in the castle and indecipherable messages scribbled in aging books. Somethings I am not meant to understand and make plans for the future at this point in my life. 

Being in Chile is a process of opening some doors and finding other rooms locked. I now know that I am not always ready for the answers and also that I find within myself endless questions. I have found some answers but, more importantly for me, I am learning to live the questions and embrace what is unsolvable within me. 

Sometimes the process of living the questions is frustrating. Sometimes I just want the answers. I beat my head against locked doors. I read and re-read messages that I cannot interpret. The last couple years have been teaching me to be patient, to live the questions without stressing about finding the answers. 

I am learning to live everything, in every moment of the journey: the questions and the answers, the locked doors and the opened passages, the foreign tongues and the familiar stories. They are all part of the journey. Questions are always present, I can fret about them or love them. In Chile, I am reminded daily that I need to live the questions now. 

I'll Have a Grande: A Grande Beth Anne That Is

Grande. This might be the word that describes your favorite morning drink. (Though for most people I know, that word is Venti.) This might also be a word that describes a place you visited, like the Rio Grande. Now, this can also be a word that describes your favorite blogger in Chile. Over the last three months, I progressed from using the word grande to describe drinks and geographical locations to describing, yours truly, me.

When I first arrived in Chile, people would routinely make comments to me like, "Beth, you are SO grande," or, "Wow, have you always been so grande?," or "Beth is like so and so just a whole lot more grande." I should clarify at this point, "grande" generally translates into English as "large." Just what every person is dying to hear.

I thought about this for awhile. At first, I was offended that people, some of whom I just met, felt like making comments about my body shape. Granted, I would have never self-described as petite or tine but grande...really, come on!

Upon further reflection, I realized three things. First, I am grande...at least in comparison to Chileans. I have not yet met a Chilean women who is taller than me. I imagine this is what Gandalf must feel like when he is always bumping his head on the doorway of the houses in Hobbiton. I have done that too many times to count. (The bumping my head on doorways part not the going to Hobbiton part.)

Second, Chileans talk way more about weight, body shape, height, etc. I was initially taken aback about the "grande" comments because I thought these comments about body size were all directed at me. Then I realized they talk about shape and size all the time. Like the time my friends joked with one of our other friends that after eating dessert he was going to go from being six months pregnant to eight months pregnant. The great thing about that story- they were all doubling over laughing when saying this.

Third, Chile is designed for women who are a little bit more petite. So, basically living here will always make me feel grande. Thus, I have two choice: 1) Spend time being annoyed and not so happy about all the grande comments or 2) embrace being grande, laugh about it, and appreciate that I like my body and am okay with being "grande."

In case you are ever visiting a country and are wondering if you fit the "grande" bill, here is a check list you can use (free of charge)-

• Jeans- Is every pair of jeans you try on are instantly transformed into mid-calf jeans instead of full length pants? You might be a grande.

• Shoes- Do you visit the local shoe stores and think you are in the children section only to realize that your size does not exist in the adult section? Check.

• Bus- Sure the person across the aisle on the bus thinks you are staring at them longingly, don't worry we both know your knees just don't fit in the space between your seat and the next bench and you have to face the aisle.

• Doorways- Seriously though, was this doorway taken from a Hobbiton movie set? Your head is going to have some goose-eggs. 

• Chairs- Do you wonder why backrests are only mid-backrests in this country? It really is you, not the chair.

• Heels- Did you wear heels one time and realize that you were taller than all the women... and 95% of the men? Reconsider your shoe choice for next time or keep wearing them if it makes you happy. 

• Crowds- Can you see above everyone else when you are in a crowd? Congratulations! Being tall is almost like having a super power at crowded community events because you can navigate the crowd and see the performers all while other people are staring at the back of each other's heads. 

So next time you go to Starbucks and you order a grande (or any size for that matter), just know I am toasting you from Chile.

Yellow Submarine

In the town where I now live
Lived boats that sailed the sea
And I saw them in the port
In the land of submarines

So I sailed on past the sun
Till I found a Chilean sea
And I lived near the waves
Above the yellow grayish submarine

Disclaimer: This blog is a result of me working on homework, looking out my window, and listening to the Beatles for too long. 

Chile Is Changin' Me

Awhile ago, I wrote a blog about establishing new norms. Today, I was out running and started think about all the new normals in my life and the way Chile continues to change my perspectives. Here are a couple examples that immediately come to mind-

Fleas. Shortly after moving here, I woke up with small red bites. I freaked out because I thought I had bed bugs but then I realized I was only being eaten alive by fleas. Fleas are so common here that no one is worried about them and, apparently, they love gringa blood. Of course. In Arizona, if I had been bitten by fleas I would have been upset. Now, I feel like I am lucky because they are "only fleas."

Shoes. Apparently, I am not only taller than most Chileans but I also have bigger feet than most too. I went shoe shopping the other day. The first couple stores I went into I looked around and then asked about sizes. The salespeople literally looked at my face, down at my feet, and then back up at my face before telling me that do not carry my size. I guess they just wanted to check out just how big my feet are.

After several such encounters, I switched up my shopping strategy and I would just walk into a store and ask them if they carried my size in winter boots. I saved a lot of time this way. With the exception of the sales lady who told me they carried my size only to bring out a shoe that was a size and a half smaller. When I reminded her it was the wrong size, she told me I could "make it work." No thanks. Looks like I will be saving money on shoes here (and wearing flip flops more often).

Waiting in Lines. I am learning that any line related to any type of bureaucracy is going to take me awhile to get through. At first, this was frustrating. Really frustrating. Then I realized I can either be frustrated or I can choose to change my expectations of how long I think I should be forced to wait and deal with it. Now instead of bringing one thing off my to do list to work on, I just bring my whole to do list with me.

Side note, when I watch people wait I can usually tell just by watching their waiting style whether they are Chileans and Gringos. The Chileans are usually just chilling and waiting. The Gringos tend to be pacing, huffing, checking their watches, etc.

White Out. I did not realize people still use white out on a regular basis. The Chileans seem to love it though. I am the only student in my class that does not bring a white out pen to class with them everyday.

Clowns. Let's be honest, I never liked clowns. Scary. Obnoxious. Bothersome. Those are all words i would have used to describe them. Until I moved to Chile.

Not only do clowns line the streets here but we have a clown university. Clowns are the MCs for community events, they sell ice cream in the parks, they get on buses and try to make people smile, etc. I have never been around so many clowns in my life. They are not as scary here and the city wholly embraces their behavior. I have yet to go to a community event (ranging from political riots to crucifixions) where there is not as least one clown involved.

Clown at the burning of Judas, right before he tied my foot with a rope to get me involved in a community game.

My friend snapped this photo of clowns eating dinner in a plaza. I guess even dinner is an event worth performing.