Friday, December 27

Today I got up around 10 and went for a run, and then packed up and got ready for the day. Around 2, Katie W came over to my house and we then walked all the way over to the Homecenter shopping center. It was nice to catch up with Katie after not being alone with her for such a long time, and she was also in a really good mood today because we were going to pick up her real parents from the airport that night. In the shopping center, she bought some gifts for her parents, and we bought gifts for the white elephant gift exchange we were doing with the other Rancagua exchange students today. We took a micro back to Katie’s house and waited there for Sally to arrive. Then we all went in collectivo to Katie H’s house where the party was being held. We tried to catch a collectivo all together, but there was none with 3 seats available, so finally I let Katie and Sally go together and I went alone. It was a little nerve wracking because we didn’t know exactly how to describe where we were going and I had only been to her house twice before, but I ended up making it there okay. When we arrived, Pierre, Nigel, Julius, and Katie H were already there sitting in the backyard and talking. We talked for a while, and ate café helados, and then played a long and intense game of boys vs. girls soccer. We all took our shoes off to play in the grass because some people were in sandals and it wouldn’t have been fair. Half way through the game, I stepped on a bee and it stung the bottom of my second toe. It hurt pretty badly, but I just rested for like 10 minutes then put shoes on and joined the game again because it had stopped hurting fast. Later, we were all dying of heat stroke, so we went swimming for a while. Then we did the white elephant exchange and ate completos while talking for a while. I really like the other exchange students (even the boys and Christine whom I don’t get to see very often because they live farther away) and I have an awesome time with them. Around 9, Katie W and I left and took a collectivo over to the bus station, then took a bus to Santiago while we watched Pitch Perfect. We then took a taxi from the bus station to the airport and got there around 11. We bought some sodas to wake us up and Katie bought a big paper to make a sign and we sat on the floor and watched the rest of Pitch Perfect while Katie made a welcome sign. Around 12:30, when their plane was supposed to land, we went over to this hallway of glass windows that overlooks the baggage claim so that we would be sure to see them right away. We were so excited to see them (well Katie was excited to see them and I was excited to see how happy Katie would be when she met them), that the minutes dragged by like hours and we just made short, nervous conversation, while Katie kept her eyes glues to the hallway where people were coming out. Finally after what seemed like forever, they came out and saw Katie and me waiting above. I had Katie’s camera and I took pictures of all their reactions. Then we went downstairs to actually greet them, and although no one cried or screamed, it was still cute to see their reunion after 4 months apart. Then I met each of them, and without thinking, I greeted each one with a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and they were all pretty weirded out, but I couldn’t stop myself. I feel like it would be more uncomfortable now not to kiss someone on the cheek when you see them. We took a bus to the hotel because it was too late to pick up the rental car, and the conversation was pretty normal. I think because they talk on Skype so much, a huge debrief and “I missed you” session wasn’t really necessary.

We got into the hotel rooms (I shared a room with Katie and her brother Cameron) around 2 am and her parents immediately went to sleep. We stayed up longer. I helped Katie plan where she wanted to take her family in Santiago the next day, and then Cameron caught Katie up on all the drama that went on in their town while she’s been away. I was pretty tired, so once we all got in bed they kept talking but I went to sleep.

Thursday, December 26

The day after Christmas was another fantastic day. I went for a run in the morning and when I got back, my mom told me that there had been an emergency somewhere in Rancagua and the water would be shut off until like 3 in the afternoon. It was really hot outside and I was grossly sweaty, but there was nothing I could do, so I cleaned my room and then went around doing house chores for a while. We did a deep clean, mopping and vacuuming, dusting, polishing wood, cleaning bathrooms, changing sheets, everything.

Then I finally got my shower and I took it happily. Around 5, I walked over to the Jumbo to hang out with my friend Pablo (hi Pablo here’s another shout out for you). While I was waiting for him, Vicente, Augustin, and Heian came up behind me and about scared me half to death. We hung out for a while and walked around the Jumbo while I waited for Pablo. When he finally came we all hung out a while and ate ice cream and rode skateboards in the Jumbo. They are some guys who really know how to have fun. I need to hang out more with them. Then they had to leave and so Pablo and I went outside and sat on the grass for a while. Katie W joined us a little while later and we all talked and hung out for a while. It was really fun because they are both incredibly sarcastic and hilarious people, and they treat me like I’m used to being treated by people in the US, meaning that they laugh and make fun of me (but in a nice way that’s funny), which not many people here do. Around 8, Katie and I said goodbye to Pablo and walked back to my house where our friend Coti was already waiting for us. We had planned to have a Christmas movie night, but we hadn’t seen her in so long that we just popped popcorn and sat in my room talking because we had so much to catch up on. I had missed her a lot and it was nice to spend some time together. Katie and Coti both left around 11 and I was really tired after a long day, so I went to sleep early.

Wednesday, December 25

Christmas day! Apparently I didn’t get the message that we were all going to sleep in really late today, so I got up around 10 and went for a run, and then showered, got dressed, wrote a little in my blog, and read my book for a while before the rest of my family got up around 2 in the afternoon. We went back over to my aunt and uncle’s house in the afternoon to eat a lunch of leftovers from Christmas dinner and hang out for a while. Monse, Maxi, Laurie, Vicente, and I went on a super long bike ride all throughout their huge neighborhood and stopped at a bunch of different playgrounds along the way. Then I Skyped with my mom and dad for a while to wish them a Merry Christmas. I thought that Skype call would make me sad and missing home, but it really didn’t. I think I’m incredibly lucky to be in a family here where I can really feel that I am accepted and loved. We had a small dinner and sat around drinking tea together for a while as a family. I told them stories of all the funny things that have happened to me here, and we had a great time. We ended up going home around 11 and I went to sleep pretty quickly after that.

Tuesday, December 24

Christmas is celebrated today instead of tomorrow here in Chile. I got up early and went for a run, and then Nancy, Monse, Maxi, and I started to decorate the millions of cookies that we had made the night before. We decorated for like 4 hours while we talked and listened to Christmas carols.

Then I went on Facebook and sent Merry Christmas messages to my friends from the US. I sent some to people that I haven’t talked to at all since I’ve been here, so it was nice to let them know that I’m still out here and breathing and loving and missing them.

By that time it was like 5 in the afternoon and we had to get ready to go over to our aunt and uncles’ house (they live like 5 minutes away) where we were going to celebrate Christmas with both sets of grandparents, our cousins, and our aunt and uncle. We brought all the presents that were under our tree because we were going to open them there.

When we got over to their house, Monse, my cousin Laurie, and I went out for a long bike ride. When we came back, we chilled in the house with the other kids for a while until 11 at night when they served a big dinner of fillet mignon and chicken and salad and potatoes and lots of other things.

They have their Christmas dinner a day early here. Then, we Skyped with Cristobal for a while and wished him a merry Christmas. The Chilean tradition is that at midnight, the family has to leave the house to walk around the block so that the Viejo Pasquero (Santa) can come to the house and leave the gifts. Before we left on the walk, I took off my jacket so I was in nothing but jeans and a thin tank top. After everyone got out of the house, I freaked out and realized that I was cold, so I had to go back to the house to get a jacket, and Maxi went with me. We quickly went in and put the Santa presents under the tree, then scattered a bunch of chocolates in a trail in the front walkway to alert the kids that el Viejo Pasquero had been there. Then we rejoined the group walking around the neighborhood.

There were a bunch of other families with little kids walking at the same time. When we got close to the house again, the three kids, Monse, Laurie, and Joaquin started running to see if Santa had come. When they saw the candy in the walkway they got super excited and picked it all up and then we all went inside to open presents. It was a whirlwind of everyone opening everything at the same time. Except the difference was that every time someone handed you a present from them, you have to hug and kiss them on the cheek before you open the present. I wasn’t really expecting much, but I was surprised to receive jeans, shorts, a few workout shirts, nail polish, and a bath set. I also think they were all really happy with the gifts I had chosen for them. I took the opportunity to wrap up the souvenirs I had brought them from Patagonia and give those away too. In that moment, when everyone was hugging and thanking each other, and getting excited about new presents, I really felt like I was a part of their family.

Most people say that Christmas is one of the hardest days for an exchange student because they miss their family so much, but that wasn’t true for me. I know my family loves me and will always be there for me, and I have always known that. However, this feeling of being completely accepted into the most important family celebration of the year with a new family in a new country was priceless and unforgettable and absolutely incredible. After opening presents, I played the new twister game Monse had received and then we went home around 3.

 

Monday, December 23

Today, the day before Christmas, I woke up around 10 and went over to Jose’s house for a little while to watch movies (he really wants me to see the Lord of the Rings movies) and eat lunch with his family. I got back to my house around 3 and then went to the Jumbo with Katie H. We bought the last touches on Christmas (I just needed wrapping paper and tape), and then went to this coffee shop nearby where I tried my first Café Helado. It’s like a root beer float except instead of root beer it has iced coffee. It’s absolutely amazing. I walked back to my house around 8 and Nancy and I were the only ones home. We ate dinner together, and then started cooking Christmas gingerbread cookies. She made the mix, and then I helped her cut the cookies into shapes. It quickly became clear that she had made waaaay to much mix.

We ended up with like 8 batches of cookies to put in the oven, and we didn’t finish them all until almost midnight. It was a great conversation with Nancy though. I love when  I get her alone because she explains really interesting things to me and I feel like I can ask her or talk to her about anything. Today we talked about the difference in levels of freedom between kids in the US and in Chile. Here, if you ask to go somewhere and your parents say no, they are not required to give you an explanation of why not. They can just say “because no” and you have to accept that. I don’t know about all families in the US, but that would not fly in mine. I find it incredibly stupid and childish for a parent to limit their kid from doing something for literally no reason and I don’t think I would be able to deal with it. I guess I’m really fortunate that my parents in the US treat me like an adult and are always open and rational with me when I ask for things. I don’t mean that I want to be allowed to do whatever I want, I just mean that I want to understand the reasoning behind why my parents allow me or don’t allow me to do things. After we finished the cookies, Maxi and I shut ourselves in my room and he helped me wrap up all the gifts I bought for the family.

Eric—neck pillow and slippers because he loves to sleep and he should really get more rest

Nancy—cookbook for chicken (because I don’t eat meat) and another one for chocolate

Monse—hairbrush (so she’ll stop stealing mine), nailpolish (because I always steal hers), and Violetta pencils

Maxi—snapback and this metal puzzle

Whole family—Brighton picture frame that I brought from the US with the first picture we took together in the airport when I arrived

 

Sunday, December 22

Today I woke up at Katie’s house around 11, and everyone else was still asleep, so when the shower water came out cold I had no one to ask for help and I ended up taking a cold shower and then just waiting around for Katie to wake up. I had plans to go to church with her family, but then my dad called me and told me my family was on their way to pick me up and take me on their annual Christmas tradition, which is a trip to a famous mall in Santiago, called Alto Las Condes. It was really nice to be in the car with them and have a nice long talk. I feel like I’ve been away from them way too much lately, and I kind of miss them. We drove to Santiago and then stopped at their favorite restaurant, called El Pollo Caballo to eat a huge lunch of chicken and French fries. Then we drove to the mall and started the incredibly long shopping trip. I helped Nancy find a few nice shirts as a Christmas present for her mom, and then Maxi and I went off and walked around the mall and looked around.

We spent a really long time in the bookstore reading books on how to learn a language quickly. I actually had a really great time with him and I finally feel like he wants to be my brother and we are getting along well. Before, I really didn’t like him because I could only see his bad qualities, but now I can easily look past those and see how awesome he really is. After a while we got tired and went to find Nancy, Eric, and Monse. Then, as a family, we walked to the food court and they had their first self serve ice cream.

It was the weirdest thing because they had all told me that I had never been to this mall before, but when we walked into the food court I realized that we came there on my first day in Chile after going to look at la Moneda (even before I saw Rancagua). It was such a weird feeling sitting in the same food court with the same family (minus Cristobal) 5 months later and thinking about how much has changed. I understand them when they talk now, I feel comfortable with them, I feel comfortable in Chile, and who I am as a person has changed a lot too. It was a pretty cool reminder that even though sometimes I feel lost and stupid and new, I really have accomplished a lot in these past 5 months. After the ice cream break, everyone except Nancy and I were tired, so we kept shopping around while they went to a store that sells massage chairs and lay around for a while. Around 9, we all left the mall and went home. The parents had bought the necessary Christmas presents for the kids (which they kept hidden in bags so we didn’t know what they were) and the annual tradition was accomplished. I was really tired and slept in the car on the way home. Then we stayed up for a while longer and watched TV together before I actually went to sleep.

Saturday, December 21

Today Katie and I woke up early and went downstairs to eat hotel breakfast and meet our tour guide at 9. We were booked for an all day private walking tour of Valparaiso with a dude who spoke absolutely perfect English. We met him and talked while eating breakfast, and then we started the tour. We walked to Castillo Wulf, which is now an art gallery.

Then we took the micro from Vina into Valparaiso. I don’t remember everything we did in order because it was a huge long day, but we walked all through the hills of Valparaiso. The guide, Cristian, told us all about the history of Valparaiso (one of the first and most important ports in South America) and showed us everything.

We rode up and down the famous slanted elevators that are used to get up the city’s steep hills; we rode on the trolley, and walked through the street market.

We walked up into this sketchy neighborhood where he made us leave our backpacks with a shop owner who was his friend before we actually went into the neighborhood. When we rode the elevator up to the top, I asked him why he was so conscious in this area. He confessed that he and another tour group had been robbed at gunpoint here about 5 months ago and that this neighborhood has a 70% delinquent population. He had taken us there because it has some of the prettiest and most elaborate graffiti in all of the city, and so we carefully walked through looking at the amazing murals and also looking behind our backs often enough. We went into the famous Chilean poet Pablo Neruda's house and got a 30 minute audio tour of the whole place.

Around 4, we were absolutely starving, so we went to this super tradition restaurant called J Cruz. The restaurant only serves one dish—Chorrillanas, which is French fries topped with caramelized onions, scrambled egg, and strips of beef. It was surprisingly not that bad, although I felt like I was about to get diabetes the whole time I was eating it. After the giant meal, we continued walked through the financial district of Valparaiso, where the buildings quickly changed from small and incredibly colorful to imposing and well arcitectured.

Then we got to the marina, where we boarded a private boat and went for a tour around the port. We saw where they unload the boats, we saw the fireworks already ready for the giant and super famous new year’s firework show in Vina (which I will be going to), we saw the navy boats (Valparaiso is also the Chilean Navy’s base), and we saw lots of sea lions. It was a really beautiful view of Valparaiso and Vina, with all their colorful houses all packed together on the hills. After the boat ride, we walked around in the more touristy part of town, going into little shops and walking through the hills.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped to get some ice cream from Emporio de la Rosa, which is one of the 25 best ice cream shops in the world! We got back to the hotel around 9, making that a 12 hour walking tour. I had been energetic the whole tour, but as soon as we got in the car to drive home to Rancagua, I completely crashed and slept the whole ride home. We got back to Katie’s house around 12 and we both went straight to sleep.