A True Chilean Experience

Here I am, more than a month into my program and I have just had my first true Chilean experiences...according to a variety of gringos and chilenos.

Thursday: We threw a surprise party for our friend Ryan, who turned 21 on Monday. We made Carne al Disco, which is basically an entire dead cow plus some sausages, a few chickens, a package of hot dogs and a few vegetables. SO.GOOD. I also made a pretty good cake, at least that's what everyone told me when they were really drunk...I'll take the compliment. Then we went out to Huevo, a 5 story club, including a terrace on the roof for dancing. pretty epic.

Friday: My host sister Gaby started to teach me 'La Joya del Pacifico' by Joe Vasconcellos, which is basically Valparaiso's anthem that any good porteño (person who lives in Valpo) should know how to sing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBP8owL4mQ0

I was invited to a Peña at Casa Central (our main campus building) put on by the Agronomia majors. My host mom told me that they party the hardest out of all the majors at PUCV...truth. There was navegado (which is basically mulled, warmed wine with oranges and cinnamon), chorripan (chorizo+pan, sausage and bread), empanadas and a live Chilean folk band that had pan flutes and drums. It was such a great time, and a wonderful way to meet some more people from outside of my classes/major. Turns out that Peñas were banned during Pinochet's regime here, he claimed they had communist roots, but mostly he wanted to keep people from singing songs with political conotations and gathering in large groups. My host mom was a bad ass and went to them down the street from our house when she was about my age. You had to know the secret knock to get in and if the carabineros (cops) came you had to run.

Saturday: Marina's host mom decided to show us around Valpo. Our first stop was 'Porto Viejo', which is a restaurant down by Plaza Aduana. To round out our Chilean cuisine experience we had empandas de camaron y queso (shrimp and cheese, not my favorite, but pretty delicious), a bottle of white wine and parillada de marisco. Parillada de marisco is probably one of the best seafood dishes I've ever had. It was a tiny grill filled with coals and on top of the grill was a plate piled sky high with every seafood imaginable; clams, oysters, mussels, fish, shrimp and topped with some delicious green leafy thing. I was pretty sure I was going to have to be rolled back home. After lunch we made a stop at Plaza 21 de Mayo, since Marina and Max hadn't been yet. It was a totally different view with the sun out. After that we walked around and wound up at a plaza right by Plaza Annibal Pinto, that is brand new, and is the site of a new mosaic project. At first we thought it was just a scout project, since there were only scouts working on it, but it turns out that anyone can come and work on it. I'm trying to get my family to go with me. Oh, and did I mention lunch was followed with Flan flavored ice cream? We then met up with some Chilean friends and drove up to Cerro Mariposa, which is the highest cerro in Valpo, to watch the sunset. Beautiful, though the drive was a little unnerving.

Sunday, Monday: Pretty run of the mill days here, beautiful weather. Stuffed my face with gelatto at Bravissimo with Dan, while walking along the beach, you know the usual :)

Tuesday: Started the day off with a trip to the CIEE office to deal with their inability to be direct and specific about anything...such is the way of life in Chile. I did manage to get a run in which was needed and very satisfying. Less cat calls than expected, could be due to the fact that my legs haven't been shaved in awhile, who knows. On my way back from CIEE to Casa Central I sat on the back of the micro. My host dad once told me, in typical vague Chilean style, avoid sitting on the back of the bus if you can, so I usually sit towards the front. What he should have said was 'Don't sit on the back of the bus BECAUSE it's easier for people to rob your shit and then run off the bus.'
So I'm sitting on the back of the micro because there were no other seats and I didn't want to stand for the 25 minute ride to campus. I'm listening to my ipod, holding it inside my jacket pocket and thinking about how lucky I am to be here, in this city, sitting on a bus that drives by the ocean. This guy next to me stands up to get off of the bus and brusquely rubs up against me (not unusual on a crowded micro) but consequently tugs on my jacket and backpack strap (which was on my lap, secured with both hands). I stand up, at first thinking it was an accident and then realize that this fucker's hand is in my pocket and he is stealing my ipod. I start yelling obscenities at him in English as he runs off the bus. I had one of those split second thoughts of 'Do I run after him?' and just ended up standing there speechless while the micro pulled away. I sat back down and the guy in front of me said 'Te robo?' (did he rob you?) and I nodded. The girl next to me then said, in English, 'I'm sorry, you can't trust nobody here.'
All of this got me thinking about life in a different country. I'm honestly not worried or upset about the loss of my ipod. I am annoyed that this punk had the audacity and lack of respect to take my ipod. Part of me can't help thinking, 'well maybe he has a family or pregnant girlfriend to care for', but then what are the chances of that? In my social work class here we've been talking about the different values in every country, and talking about how Latin America really values family and community, and really look out for each other. however, that is only true to a point. When it comes down to bad shit happening, it's really every man for themselves here, nobody is going to stop you from getting robbed or anything. I've heard and witnessed it, from gringos and Chileans. So what does that really say about the value of community? In a way, I think that community and having each others backs only extends to your blood lines, and forget anyone else. After telling this story to my friend Tim he said 'That would never fly in the states, somebody would have stopped him.' But I'm not sure I agree. Would anybody have really stopped him if this same thing had happened in the states? I've never lived in a city before, so I couldn't give an insightful answer.
Either way, don't worry about me. I'm still safe and sound here in Valpo, and I'm not concerned about this. It's part of daily life.

So now that I've had a variety of "true" Chilean experiences; traditional food (from Valpo and greater Chile), traditional parties and I've been robbed, I can claim I'm a Chilena right?

to further my Chilean heritage I will be learning how to dance the Cueca, Chile's national dance, this Friday. Imagine a gallino (rooster) chasing a gallina (hen); basically the girl plays hard to get and the guy doesn't leave her alone. I told my host mom I didn't need lessons on this dance, it happens to me every time I go out clubbing, haaaaaa. but actually.
here's a link to some professionals dancing this dance, which according to my host sister, Gaby, is 'muy fome' (very lame).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvGURVqOmH0

Love to you all!

Fotos: Dan and Yogi Bear (His real name is Gregorio, but in Spanish a nickname is Yuyi, so I obviously decided to call him Yogi Bear) making Carne al Disco; Ryan and his birthday cake; La Cecilia (Marina's host mom) with the parillada de mariscos; view from Plaza 21 de Mayo with sun!; Me, Max and Marina (if you're wondering if I hang out with other people, the answer is no); View of sunset and Valpo from Cerro Mariposa.