I'm not a fan of long plane trips ("long="7 or more hours for me), but then again, who does? The tight space, that annoying crick in not one but several places in your neck, and the lack of sleep are enough to drive one crazy for so many hours. But we adapt. Or we just complain and push ourselves through. After all, these flights can be the start of a grand adventure!
To the left is what I busied myself with for a portion of the ~10 hour trip. This is called lazy creativity: I didn't want to write and stuff so I decided to play self-Bananagrams with an unlimited supply of letters. I had a lot of lazy, creative fun! And without the beautiful journal, I couldn't have done it (shoutout to the gals from Greenview!)!
Throughout this build-up to my study abroad experience, the idea of living in Chile for six months was something I could never quite grasp. Even when I saw the beautiful mountains of Santiago coming closer as the plane descended, I only felt a very small--pequeñito is a better word--twinge of reality. Everything still felt like a vacation. When Menina, my darling of a host mother, showed me the apartment that I would be calling home for the next several months, I felt that slow, creeping reality once more. It finally hit me when I woke up the next day and looked at myself in the bathroom mirror. I would be waking up nearly every day for the next few months and looking into that same bathroom mirror. A strange time to realize out of all the other moments, yes, but it's better than going through denial for the next few months, right?
I've already seen so much here in this wonderful land of Santiago, much of which is very reminiscent of either the United States or Pakistan, two places I call home. I went with Menina; her daughter, Daniela; and Daniela's cutie-patootie son, Damian, to a huge nearby mall with a Wal-Mart-esque store that covered the entire main floor. I had an amazing tea time with Menina; her son, Juan Renee; and Juan Renee's novia, Cynthia--we talked into the late hours o' the night about topics as diverse as religion, politics, Chilenismos (Chilean slang), school, and more. I spent my first day at Campus San Joaquin, the main campus of La Catolica, and got to know Evelyn, our amazing residential coordinator; our Spanish professors; and the other gringos (I use that affectionately!) in the group! The metro was a fun and safe adventure with Menina, and I wrapped up the day with an asado (barbecue)/birthday party for Menina's son-in-law. There was a lot of family there that I was meeting for the first time, but I felt like a member of the clan. I had a great time with cousins, the in-laws, brother and sisters...AND THERE WERE BABIES AND A KITTEN AND A DOG EN TODAS PARTES (everywhere).
And yes, everything's been in Spanish. And I love it! I can already notice the progress I've been making after barely two days of living here, and I can't wait to see what the future holds. The language is beautiful, the people here are beautiful with their kind hearts, and I'm having a wonderful time!
Chau!
To the left is what I busied myself with for a portion of the ~10 hour trip. This is called lazy creativity: I didn't want to write and stuff so I decided to play self-Bananagrams with an unlimited supply of letters. I had a lot of lazy, creative fun! And without the beautiful journal, I couldn't have done it (shoutout to the gals from Greenview!)!
Throughout this build-up to my study abroad experience, the idea of living in Chile for six months was something I could never quite grasp. Even when I saw the beautiful mountains of Santiago coming closer as the plane descended, I only felt a very small--pequeñito is a better word--twinge of reality. Everything still felt like a vacation. When Menina, my darling of a host mother, showed me the apartment that I would be calling home for the next several months, I felt that slow, creeping reality once more. It finally hit me when I woke up the next day and looked at myself in the bathroom mirror. I would be waking up nearly every day for the next few months and looking into that same bathroom mirror. A strange time to realize out of all the other moments, yes, but it's better than going through denial for the next few months, right?
I've already seen so much here in this wonderful land of Santiago, much of which is very reminiscent of either the United States or Pakistan, two places I call home. I went with Menina; her daughter, Daniela; and Daniela's cutie-patootie son, Damian, to a huge nearby mall with a Wal-Mart-esque store that covered the entire main floor. I had an amazing tea time with Menina; her son, Juan Renee; and Juan Renee's novia, Cynthia--we talked into the late hours o' the night about topics as diverse as religion, politics, Chilenismos (Chilean slang), school, and more. I spent my first day at Campus San Joaquin, the main campus of La Catolica, and got to know Evelyn, our amazing residential coordinator; our Spanish professors; and the other gringos (I use that affectionately!) in the group! The metro was a fun and safe adventure with Menina, and I wrapped up the day with an asado (barbecue)/birthday party for Menina's son-in-law. There was a lot of family there that I was meeting for the first time, but I felt like a member of the clan. I had a great time with cousins, the in-laws, brother and sisters...AND THERE WERE BABIES AND A KITTEN AND A DOG EN TODAS PARTES (everywhere).
And yes, everything's been in Spanish. And I love it! I can already notice the progress I've been making after barely two days of living here, and I can't wait to see what the future holds. The language is beautiful, the people here are beautiful with their kind hearts, and I'm having a wonderful time!
Chau!
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