tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89956705940552876082024-03-06T15:00:57.601-05:00Adventures in ChileThis blog will follow my adventures traveling around South America and teaching English in Santiago, Chile.Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-86574548394950670322019-02-01T10:00:00.001-05:002019-02-01T10:00:38.552-05:00Reflections, Nostalgia, and a New Beginning<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I'm sitting in a Santander Work Cafe in Ñuñoa. Outside it is a scorching 37 degrees, but luckily it is air conditioned here. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As I sit here, I am overcome with a wave of nostalgia. I started this blog in January 2010, a little over 9 years ago. At that time little did I know the adventures I would encounter over that time period which included earthquakes, traveling around South America, getting to know a beautiful country and its people, and making new friends all along the way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My time started working as a teaching assistant at a school and living in a house in a run down area of downtown Santiago. I then moved to an apartment living with 2 Chileans in the neighborhood of Ñuñoa, and after being there for 6 months I got my own apartment. After 7 years there I made the transition to a larger one bedroom apartment but only 4 blocks away. Come to think of it, I am around the corner of the apartment that I shared here in Ñuñoa.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As for my career, I was barely scraping by when I first arrived. Living in Santiago is doable if you work hard and keep your costs low, but that isn't always easy. Starting out earning 360,000 Chilean pesos a month, I was naive and didn't understand the cost of living. I was able to make the transition to teaching at institutes where the pay and conditions were much better, and from there I moved up in earnings through new opportunities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If you had asked me in 2010 if I would still be living in Santiago and if I saw myself being my own boss, I would have probably laughed in your face. But here I am.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Now that I have my own website, I feel it's time to take my professional plans more seriously. One part of this sadly means bringing an end to this blog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I will continue blogging, but all new blog posts will be on my website, <a href="http://www.danielguim.com/">www.danielguim.com</a>. There I plan to update regularly with posts about what's happening in my life but also posts about English teaching in Chile and in general.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thank you for everyone who has read and commented over these past 9 years. I don't get notifications when comments come through, so if I somehow missed your comment along the way feel free to get in touch through my new website and blog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nos vemos!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-10303206117967349792017-12-31T22:14:00.001-05:002017-12-31T22:14:14.541-05:00End of the Year Post<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So it's New Year's Eve.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm lying in bed, and I can hear the dance music from the Estadio Nacional loud and clear as I type this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the inability to share photos since mid year thanks to the change in Photobucket's policies, my motivation to post updates has been stymied to say the least. Despite that, I think an end of the year post is still in order.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since my last update, the most significant events have been a trip back to the States, a Bruno Mars concert, and visiting a nutritionist.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was back in Jersey and also visited friends in Colorado for a quick summer trip. Once I took out the travel days, it was about 9 days altogether. I was in Jersey for a few days before heading off to visit friends that live in the Snowmass/Basalt area. Ironically they are friends that also came to Santiago with TeachingChile. Two of them came in 2010 at the same time as me and then returned to the States, only to end up working at the same bilingual elementary school in Colorado. Another friend came a few years later after having found this blog, and after having lived in England with her husband for a few years they moved to the same area of Colorado when he got a teaching job in the area. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We hadn't seen each other since they left Chile, and so getting to catch up was so nice. We spent time enjoying the beauty of Colorado on some easy hikes, had some great food, and I taught them all how to play Settlers of Catan. Seeing what they are doing with their lives really helped strengthen our friendship and reminded me how much I enjoy traveling and value maintaining my social connections.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Back in New Jersey I caught up with friends and there was the usual summer family barbecue, and it was nice having some time to enjoy the summer weather before returning to the Chilean winter. I was supposed to see Linkin Park in concert with a friend, but given Chester's passing it was cancelled. We spent the day together, but we were both disappointed and had the concert on our mind. It was a short trip, but it was a nice break from Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next big event was the Bruno Mars concert in Santiago. It was at the Estadio Nacional, so just a 15 minute walk from my apartment. It worked out nicely that we were able to order Peruvian food for an early dinner before heading out. We got there early, and they had some photo opportunities set up. They not only took your photos in front of some pretty nice cars and in a scene of a 24 karat gold hotel (for the 24 Karat Magic World Tour), but they also printed out the photos and put them on a fridge magnet to keep as a memento.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We got cancha tickets, which means we were in the middle of the stadium standing up. There were huge screens set up on both sides of the stage, and we had a pretty good view most of the time. Bruno Mars puts on a great show with not only his singing and playing guitar, but also his dancing. The other band members also danced with each number, and they must have been exhausted by the end of it. The concert only lasted for about an hour, so given that we had paid $60.000 pesos I thought it was a bit short. Despite that, it was a really cool experience having seen Bruno Mars in concert.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The least glamorous thing that has happened in the second half of the year was a visit to a nutritionist. I had been putting it off for a while, but I came to the realization that no one is going to take care of me except for myself and that there was no point it putting it off any longer. It was hard hearing the nutritionist describe the meal plan I was to follow, but in the end it hasn't been that bad. Small changes like sweetener instead of sugar in my tea, light jelly instead of butter and jelly on bread, and lemon juice instead of olive oil on my salads haven't been that difficult, and I now have the added benefit of truly feeling Chilean now that I use lemon juice on salads.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I type this, the DJ playing the music has pumped the music up a few more notches and is playing Gangham Style.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what are my thoughts on 2017?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a year with the goal of maintaining my social connections and getting out more. I feel like I did pretty well in this area, however I've also learned that not all friendships work out for the long run. Despite that, I can fondly look back and remember the good times.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was also a year of travel. Visiting friends in Europe, Colorado, and Peru were deeply fulfilling experiences, and seeing new places helps me to get to know myself better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In terms of professional growth, it has also been a good year. I went to the IATEFL conference in Puerto Montt as well as the TESOL conference in Santiago, and the dialogue with other teachers is something that is important to improve my professional practice. I've created podcast listening guides that my students can use to develop their listening skills outside of class, materials to help develop writing skills for international tests, and other materials related to various grammar points. My students have made progress with their goals with some of them moving to Canada and the UK for Masters and PhD programs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In terms of personal growth, I've learned to be more patient with myself while also expecting more of myself. Working with a coach has helped me to get back into journaling, which has really helped me focus on my goals, pay attention to my thoughts, and process my emotions in a healthier way instead of just tuning out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've also dealt with disappointment as some projects and classes haven't worked out as I was hoping, but that's part of the process. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All in all, I'm grateful for the people I have in my life and the experiences I've had this year. I hope everyone reading has a Happy New Year and wonderful start to 2018!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-80975629036796618632017-07-24T10:00:00.002-05:002017-07-24T10:00:23.603-05:00A Trip to Peru and Unexpected News<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been missing in action for a while, as I've put off blogging until I let the dust settle on some things.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few weekends ago I visited some friends in Tacna, Peru. It's along the border with northern Chile, and it's not really known as a tourist destination. I caught an early flight from Santiago to Arica Friday morning and then got a taxi across the border. One more taxi from the Tacna bus station got me to Allison and Alex's bright pink house with a blue door.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We became friends in Santiago, so getting to see them in another part of the world was really great. I enjoyed walking around town with them, playing Settlers of Catan, and eating delicious food. Allison had made some butter cookies, and they were perfect to go with tea and catching up. On Saturday night they also had a barbecue, and it was so nice playing Setters of Catan while enjoying good food and warm weather. We continued playing as the sun went down and then sat around talking.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The weekend flew by, and before I knew it I was back to Santiago on Sunday evening. Although it was a short trip, I'm glad that I took the chance to visit them and get out of Santiago for a bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the past two weeks I have been hit with 2 pieces of unexpected news.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first one is that Photobucket (a website that lets you upload and store your photos) changed its policies overnight. Before now I was able to store my photos on Photobucket and then use a link that they provide to put my photos up on my blog. Photobucket has decided to change that policy, and so if I want my photos and videos that are on my blog to reappear again, I need to buy a premium membership to the tune of $40 a month or $400 a year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While I can understand that businesses need to make money, the fact that this change occurred overnight with no warning and that there isn't a more affordable option really frustrates me. Almost all of my photos from the past 8 years have been linked through Photobucket, so essentially the visual element of my blog is gone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have the following options if I don't want to pay Photobucket:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Download my photos and videos from Photobucket, and then upload them to a website that does something similar for less money. In that case, I would have to take down all the broken links to photos and videos and reupload them from the new site. For 7 YEARS OF BLOG POSTS.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Donwload my photos and videos from Photobucket, and get my own website and see if I can import my blog there. In that case, I would still have to reupload all the photos and videos and hope that there would be enough storage for them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. Leave my blog as it is. It would break my heart to do this, but I'm overwhelmed with the amount of work it would take to restore it on another site. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At this point I don't know what I'm going to do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other unexpected news was the death of Chester Bennington.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For anyone that doesn't know me, I'm a huge Linkin Park fan. I first saw them when they performed at Rock am Ring in June 2001 in Germany. I bought Hybrid Theory and have been hooked since. I've never been one to really fit into social groups or have an easy time expressing anger in a healthy way, and I've gone through life feeling misunderstood and written off by others. At times in my life, their music has eerily given me advice on working through difficult situations. I remember sitting in German class in college with <i>Don't Stay</i> stuck in my head. I was incredibly stressed out and unhappy at that point of my college career, and despite trying to work through difficulties of getting a degree in music it was at that point that I realized I had to change my path. I then changed my course of study to Spanish, German, and Education. My mother passed in April 2007, and a few weeks later Linkin Park released their album <i>MInutes to Midnight </i>with the song <i>Leave Out All the Rest. </i>I saw them in concert in Los Angeles a few times, Philadelphia once, twice in Santiago, and I got to meet them before a concert in Las Vegas in 2008. I had tickets to the August 1st show, but it has been cancelled.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As someone that has dealt with his share of mental health challenges, it breaks my heart to see someone take their life. Despite that, I'm really working towards focusing on the positive impact Chester had on the lives of so many people. He survived being abused by an adult male as a young child. He turned to drugs and alcohol in middle school and high school to cope, but then he found music. Being a part of something bigger and pursing his dream of making music gave him the chance to channel his energy and use music to express what he had gone through, but ultimately he lost his battle with depression on July 20th. He took his life on the day of Chris Cornell's birthday, a friend of his who he really admired and had taken his life earlier this year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you look at their newest album <i>One More Light, </i>you can see some eery references that might have been alluding to his suicide if you look at the song titles:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Good Goodbye</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Sorry for Now</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Talking to Myself</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's still hard for me to believe that I won't ever get to hear Chester sing live again. It's a huge loss for not only Linkin Park fans but also the history of music. Despite that, I'm trying to focus on the positive impact Chester has had and the memories I have from seeing him in concert.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd like to post some tribute photos from concerts I've gone to over the years, but thanks to Photobucket that will have to wait for another time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't like to end blog posts on such a down note, but these things are a part of life. Now it's just a matter of finding the positive and focusing on it.</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-53412165847171493832017-06-11T12:05:00.000-05:002017-06-11T12:05:03.151-05:005 More Years<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About a month and a half ago, I started the process to renew my permanent residency in Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The process is fairly straightforward. Once you have permanent residency, you just have to bring 3 or 4 documents to the civil registry. They then take a new photo, ask you a few questions, and give you a temporary ID card until your new one is ready.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've found that what is straightforward in practice, however, is not always so straightforward in Chile. Why do I say that?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, after carefully reading the requirements on the civil registry's website I made an appointment online (something that is relatively new here) and brought the required documents with me. At the front door of the area specifically for foreigners renewing their ID cards there was a woman checking everyone's documents. It turns out that the certificado de permanencia from the international police that I brought from 2012 wasn't valid. I needed to get an updated one from the international police. As she told me this I smiled and thanked her, while inside grumbling that while it made sense that I needed an updated one that it made no mention of it on the website.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Getting any document from the international police in the past few years has proven to become a daunting task. If you need to get a document from them as a foreigner in Santiago you must go to one specific office. This results in incredibly long lines, and I've heard of people arriving at 5:00 in the morning in order to get in line. (The office opens at 8.) After having mistakenly gone to the wrong office to get the document I needed, I then enlisted the help of a lawyer. If you provide him with the information about the visa and paperwork that you need, he will get it for you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I made contact and after a few emails he determined he was able to help me. I went to a notary near my apartment and signed a power of attorney and emailed him scans of the necessary documents to get the certificado de permanencia on my behalf. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few days later, he contacted me that he had gone to the office, but they refused to accept a photocopy of my tarjeta de permanencia. They told him that they needed to see the original.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's not uncommon for people in government positions to interpret rules and requirements differently, and so if you need a document or visa you are at the mercy of the person helping you. Apparently in the past he had been able to get the document I needed with a photocopy. That means that either people in the past had given him paperwork not following the rules of seeing the original document OR the person that was helping him with my paperwork wasn't reading the requirements correctly that a photocopy was acceptable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In either case, after some internal debate I gave him the original. The following day he was able to get the document I needed and returned the original to me. I now had everything I needed!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I didn't have the necessary paperwork when I went the first time, I booked a new appointment for the week after. I made my way back to the civil registry in downtown. I presented all my paperwork to the same woman, and she frowned in disapproval.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">According to her, I needed a photocopy of one of the documents IN ADDITION to the original. I distinctly remember the website making no mention of it, but I knew better than to argue about it. I went out, made the photocopy, and returned a few minutes later.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I made my way inside, and after waiting a few minutes my number was called. The woman looked at my paperwork and told me that I didn't need the photocopy of the document I just copied and accepted everything else. She verified that my address was current, asked me where I'd like to pick up my ID card, and also if I'd like to register to vote. I told her I'd get my ID card in Ñuñoa and agreed to registering to vote, and then she took my picture. As is the case every time, the glare off of my glasses and my propensity to blink made the picture-taking process a challenge. Luckily she was patient. She handed me a confirmation of my enrollment to vote, a code to check the status of my ID card, and my temporary ID card.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I walked out, I breathed a sigh of relief. My ID card was set to expire May 31st, and I had completed the process a few weeks in advance. My new ID card was supposed to be ready around June 6th, and I got an email that it was ready on the 1st. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After my Friday morning class last week I went to civil registry office in Ñuñoa and was in and out in 5 minutes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what does this mean and why is it so important?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the most basic level, I have another 5 years that I can stay in Chile without having to file any paperwork or renew any visas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But there's so much more to it than that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I was catching up with a friend over coffee a few days ago, he told me how much he admired how I came here 7 years ago knowing no one. Looking back at the journey of starting as a teaching assistant at a school, working at institutes and universities, and now teaching completely independently makes me realize how far I've come professionally. Managing my finances in another country, paying off my loans from graduate school, getting an apartment, and the day to day tasks of cooking, cleaning, and staying healthy while maintaining a social life and growing personally and professionally has been no easy task. Sometimes I fail to recognize that, and I'm so grateful for the people in my life that give me those reminders.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another part of it is The American Dream. The idea that if you go to college and graduate school, study hard, and work hard at your job that you can achieve financial security. I followed those steps, but the financial stability was already deteriorating when I entered the workforce as a teacher in 2006. While I didn't expect to be handed a job on a silver plate, given my three teaching credentials and MA in Education I didn't expect to have such a difficult time finding a job and having to accept whatever job offer I got. I didn't expect having to move from one school and one city to another to follow where an opening was located. It was very disheartening to pour my heart and soul into a school only to find out that I was being let go due to budget cuts. The American Dream had failed me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chile has given me so many unique opportunities. I'm able to live in a safe part of Santiago with an incredible view for an affordable price. I've been able to travel around this beautiful country to see deserts, forests, mountains, and lakes. I've been able to work with people from all types of industries and present at national teaching conferences. I've been able to get to know people from all over the world, each from a different walk of life and at varying ages, all in Chile for a variety of reasons. I've been able to open up my mind to new ways of thinking and adapt in ways that I never thought would be necessary. I've been able to grow in so many ways that I would have if I had stayed in the United States.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I type this, I feel immense gratitude to not only Chile but also to all of the people that I have met along the way that have been a part of my experience. Whether the friendship or relationship was positive or negative or short or long, all of them have helped shape who I am today.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I begin my journey of 5 more years in Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-35164052319034876332017-05-18T10:28:00.000-05:002017-05-18T10:36:42.894-05:00Linkin Park Returns to Chile, A Cybersecurity Threat, and Offending a Police Officer<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After 7 years, Linkin Park returned to Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I bought 2 tickets when they went on presale back in December, and I was excited about it to put it mildly. Unfortunately I ended up having an extra ticket at the last minute, and despite my efforts of trying to find someone else to go with my no one was able to go with such short notice. I was disappointed to not have someone to share the experience with, but I decided to make the best of it and make it a date with myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I put on my Linkin Park hoodie that I've had since college, spiked my hair, and headed out. I had never been to a concert at the Movistar Arena before, so I wasn't sure what to expect with the line and wait to pick up will call tickets. There were a ton of people, but as I went through the lines for security everything moved quickly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then I realized that I needed to show my ticket to get through. I made my way back and to the area off to the side, and I was able to walk right up to will call. I passed my ID card through the bars, and then I signed my name, date, and signature to confirm the reception of the tickets. I opened the sealed envelope and admired the tickets.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I made my way through security with plenty of time to spare. After walking around to look at the shirts and hats on sale and the food offerings, I settled on a snack of French fries with a soda. I then made my way to my seat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It was about 8:20, and Rage Against the Machine was playing. My seat was left of the stage near the front, and I had a really nice view. (I sprung from the most expensive tickets that weren't a VIP experience). I anxiously ran to the restroom at 8:58 and rushed back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rage Against The Machine had left the stage, and everyone was waiting in anticipation. The lights darkened, and at 9:05 the show started.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In case you haven't ever seen them in concert, Linkin Park puts on an AMAZING show. They play their songs, perform alternate versions of their hits, and get the audience involved. They played for almost 2 hours, and the feeling of euphoria was indescribable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As they were on stage saying their goodbyes and waving to the audience, I decided to head out to beat the crowd. After waiting for buses, then 2 cancelled Ubers, and then waiting for another bus I made it home in at about 12:30. I had the music running through my head all night, but I eventually fell asleep.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The positive vibes will continue, as their new album One More Light is coming out tomorrow. In addition, I was able to grab 2 pre-sale tickets to their concert when I'm back in the States in a few months.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The following Sunday I got a rude awakening. When I tried to check my email, I didn't have an internet connection. After tying in my password, I was told it was incorrect. I then noticed that there was a new wireless connection. It had the same exact name as my wireless connection, but it was open (and therefore unsecured). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It freaked me out, and I gave the conserje (front door guy) a call. He told me it was a security issue and that I should call the police right away. I did so, and in the meantime I posted to Facebook from my phone asking for advice. I got a stream of helpful and supportive comments, and about half an hour later a police officer arrived. He was probably in his 50s with greying hair. As I explained the situation to him and showed him my computer, my doorbell rang again. It was his partner, a female officer probably in her early 30s. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The male officer seemed reluctant to file a report since there was no evidence that anything had been stolen or damaged at that point, but the female officer told me it would be a good idea to have it as a precaution in case anything happened in the future.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the end I decided to file a report to be on the safe side. As she took the report, the male officer spoke into his walkie talkie, and then we got to making small talk. He brought up foreigners living in Chile and mentioned how when he went to eat in a Korean restaurant and assumed that the people that worked there were from China and called them <i>chinos </i>there were a bit offended and corrected him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> As is the case in Chile in general, he didn't seem to notice cultural and ethnic distinctions that people from other countries recognize and consider important. This is something that irritates me, and I've been working on speaking up when people say things that are ignorant or disrespectful in a tactful way. In a calm voice, I brought up that if he were in the United States and told people he was from Chile, he might be mistaken for being Mexican, Argentinean, or Peruvian. The male officer was unphased, but the female officer's eyes turned wide and she was visibly taken aback. She said that she wouldn't mind being mistaken for Mexican or Argentinean, but (in her words) Peruvians are so lazy that she would be insulted.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The rest of the event went smoothly, and they gave me the necessary information if I needed the police report.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next step was to call my internet service provider, VTR. After about 40 minutes, I got a new wireless connection created with a new password. It worked for a few hours, and then I was once again locked out of it and my password was incorrect.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After another call to VTR, they told me that they needed to send out a technician. I scheduled a visit for the following day (Monday) between 1 and 4. In the meantime I consulted the advice I had gotten on Facebook and called a friend that works with computers, and he patiently explained the situation to me. Basically somebody had figured out my modem's username and password, so no matter how many times I reset a wireless connection they would be able to change it on me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I used the wireless hotspot from my phone to connect to the internet, and after about 10 minutes I was locked out of that connection and a duplicate open connection appeared. The situation left me anxious and frustrated, so I gave up on technology for the day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the end, everything worked out. I got a confirmation call from VTR at 11:45 for the service visit, and the technician arrived at 1:45. He explained everything and helped me set up a much more secure modem username and password as well as a new wireless connection, and he was done by 2:15. VTR even called me later in the day to be sure that the situation was resolved.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm pretty careful about my safety and security, but this situation was a reminder to be more cautious with my cyber security too. Luckily I didn't lose anything, but it's important to remember that I'm probably a bit more vulnerable than I had thought. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The anxiety that gripped me on Sunday has subsided, and the heightened awareness is a positive feeling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part of being alive is feeling range of emotions and seeing the positive sides of things, and I'm in a place that I'm able to do that. For that I'm grateful.</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-26732620084440822592017-05-07T13:51:00.002-05:002017-05-07T13:51:59.262-05:00Puerto Montt, the National Census, and Networking<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the first full weekend of May, and I'm writing this from a bed and breakfast in Puerto Montt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've been down in the south of Chile for the past few days. The IATEFL Conference was in Puerto Montt this year, and the theme of the conference was meeting the needs of Special Educational Needs (SEN) students. There were 2 plenary speakers/presenters that really stood out to me: Sally Farley from the University of Kent and Phil Dexter from the British Council UK. They both have a vast amount of knowledge and expertise in the areas of inclusive education, and they were both very engaging speakers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There were much fewer people at the conference that I knew this year, and I found myself not in much of a mood to get to know people or socialize. Having a conference that starts at 8:45 in the morning and goes until 6:30 in the evening on a Saturday makes for a long day, so I'm telling myself that it's not realistic to be "on" during that entire time, especially as an introvert. Despite that, it was nice seeing what is happening with inclusive education and to see that I'm already doing things that are considered inclusive practices.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Knowing that the conference was going to be an all-day affair, I booked my trip to Puerto Montt giving myself the day before as well as the day after the conference to relax. Walking through the streets on Friday afternoon was a nice reminder of how much more tranquil southern Chile is compared to Santiago. It's greener and things move more slowly here. People know each other, and you don't have smog constantly overhead when you look to the mountains.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The experience of traveling here has been so nice. I stayed at a <i>hospedaje</i>, which is like a bed and breakfast. The family is warm and welcoming, but they let me go about my business. I have my own bedroom and share a bathroom, but I haven't actually met any of the other guests. I got a nice lunch at a restaurant called <i>El Fogoto de Don Pepe, </i>a well-known steakhouse in the area. I'm not usually one for sopaipillas, but when I saw how fluffy they were I knew I had to try them. The waitress wasn't lying when she told me that they are the best in Chile. Granted I'm not a sopaipilla expert, but I wish they were open today to enjoy them again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That same evening I took the bus to Puerto Varas and got to meet up with a former student. Natalie was a part of the CORFO class I taught in 2012, and we hadn't seen each other since then. We ate at a German restaurant and caught up about what has been happening in our lives over the past 5 years, and it was so great reconnecting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Besides this trip, another "big" event that happened in Chile was the national census on April 19th. It was a Wednesday, and with the exception of businesses run by their owners everything was supposed to be closed. At least one person of each household was expected to stay home in order to answer questions when the census takers arrived, and families all over Chile spent the day at home waiting for their doorbell to ring. Those with children baked cookies or prepared a small meal for them as a sign of their appreciation for the civic duty they were doing. Chileans shared their stories of the visit from census takers as well as those who were census takers, and it was interesting reading my Facebook news feed to see what everyone's experience was like. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for me, I had a Skype call in the morning and then a class to teach in the area around lunchtime. I spent the morning doing some light cleaning and preparation for classes. I felt nervous as I headed out to my class, as I saw a census taker sitting in the lobby. After a relaxed class and chocolate cake that came straight out of the oven from my student, I made my way back home.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I walked into my building at about 2:45, and now there were 4 census takers sitting in the lobby. I thought I had missed them, and I started to get anxious.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"<i>Perdona, soy del dpto 2103. ¿Ya pasaron?" (</i>Excuse me, I'm from apartment 2103. Have you already visited my apartment?)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"¡<i>No, por nada! Alguien debe estar en tu piso ahora." (</i>Not at all! Someone should be on your floor now.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I breathed a sigh of relief and made my way up to my apartment. The census taker was knocking on my neighbor's door as I got out of the elevator. About 10 minutes later, he rang my doorbell. He was about 18 years old, friendly, but down to business. A few times I had to ask him to repeat a word that I wasn't sure that I had understood correctly, but he was patient. It was over in about 10 minutes, and I got my new</span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> sticker.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While I wouldn't have gotten in trouble for not being home when they knocked on my door, it would have been a pain to have needed to go to the municipality in person to answer the questions or try to figure out an online form as a foreigner.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As a part of my commitment to maintaining connections as a way to stay happy, I went to the business networking alliance's monthly meeting last week. It was at a microbrewery in Bellavista, which is the type of place I probably wouldn't go to on my own. There was a mix of friendly and new faces, and catching up with others while meeting some new people was a really nice experience. Given that I had had classes earlier in the day and my introverted batteries that drain quite easily, I headed out after a few hours.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The weather is changing as fall sets in, but summer has been teasing us from time to time with a day getting up to 80 or so every once in a while. While I don't like winter, I am happy to have a change of season as a reminder to myself that just as we experience seasons of the year we also go through different seasons in our life.</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-33063051692574633102017-04-15T10:28:00.000-05:002017-04-15T10:28:18.844-05:00Making Progress<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sitting at my favorite coffee shop in Santiago, Condi. It's the day before Easter Sunday, and I'm getting over a cold that started mid week.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I get sick, it's often a sign to me that something isn't working in my life. In this case, I haven't been good about managing my time and keeping up with all my professional responsibilities. I hold myself to a high standard, and when I fall short and fall into a cycle of self criticism, not taking action, and then the cycle repeating.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Taking a day off helped me to pause and evaluate how the year is going so far. I'm grateful for the wonderful students I have in Santiago. I'm developing new material for classes and am keeping them fresh while helping students stay engaged with English both in and outside the classroom. I have wonderful friends here and have made social plans and met up with them on a fairly regular basis. (Maintaining my social connections and meeting up with friends on a regular basis is one of my goals for this year.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite that, my people-pleasing tendencies and fear of change are holding me back. It's not always easy for me to turn down potential students and projects and put limits on my time, and it's easy to fall into familiar patterns of escaping from the world through watching excessive television and eating unhealthy rather than engaging in meaningful activities that will help me grow both personally and professionally. The idea of expanding my independent teaching into a business seems very daunting and overwhelming when I consider the amount of work that would go into it, but it's something I want to do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looking at the bright side of things, social gatherings in the past few months have been a wonderful source of joy. A friend had left Santiago but then decided to move back, and some friends and I organized a surprise party. It had been his birthday a few weeks before then, so it worked out to be a nice way to bring a group of friends together to start out the year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There have also been a few birthday parties. One friend celebrated at a brewery in Talagante. They had a variety of handcrafted beers, wine, soft drinks, and pizza. The outdoor space was lovely, and the weather was perfect. The following day another friend celebrated her birthday by playing laser tag. I hadn't played it in over 10 years, and it was a lot of fun. Both of my friends have such interesting social circles with people from all over the world, and I really enjoyed talking with people and the social connection.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">My laser tag team. We ended up winning!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but not least, I've started having a weekly lunch date with a friend. We go to a different <i>picada </i>(a small family-owned restaurant) in downtown each week and catch up about how our classes are going. It is a great way of being sure we keep in touch, and it's so nice having someone to talk to on a regular basis about our professional lives.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are always the meetings with friends to play Settlers of Catan too. There's friendly competition in the group with banter that goes back and forth, and it's always an enjoyable time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This weekend is a time for me to start taking some steps outside my comfort zone and continue growing. The first step I've taken is purchasing a courses that interest me from The Great Courses: <i>The Secret Life of Words: English Words and Their Origins</i>. I've always found etymology interesting, and it will be something that will enhance my the knowledge that I bring to my teaching. Other steps will take time, but I know to be patient with myself and to go at my own pace.</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-52651631053178242352017-03-03T12:50:00.001-05:002017-03-04T14:47:53.383-05:0013 Years Later, Back to Europe!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I spent two weeks of February in Europe, and it was awesome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I split the trip between the Netherlands and Ireland, and it was my first time in both countries. During that time I was able to meet up with friends in different places in each country, which made it that much better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To give some background, I spent a year as an exchange student in Germany from 2000 to 2001. I made some lifelong friends, got to travel to a lot of European countries, and my time there was what sparked my wanderlust. In college I spent a semester in Granada, Spain and then spent the summer of 2004 in Germany, and that was an equally great experience. I also took two trips to Mexico after finishing grad school and the year after that, going off the beaten path for most of the time in Mexico City, Tepoztlan, Oaxaca, Guadalajara, and Puerto Vallarta.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have wanted to go back to Europe for years, but huge student loans, just starting a career in teaching, and a fragile economy did not make for expensive trips far from the States. Now that my student loans are paid off and my finances are in better condition, however, I feel in a much better position to follow my passion for travel once again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This year I've told myself that I'm going to go outside of my technological comfort zone, and so I've made a photo story of my trip. It's really cool because it scrolls through my photos, has captions and text, and even has music to go with it. I wanted to share it on here, but it turns out you can only share it on the computer your created it on or by email.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So here are the pictures and details in 4 parts:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part 1: A Layover, An Ice Bar, and a Bike Tour</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I flew with a low cost airline called WOW Air. After the add ons (paying for my seat, checking a bag, etc) my ticket came to $580 round trip from Newark to Amsterdam with a layover in Reykjavik. I left Newark at 5:35 PM and arrived in Reykjavik around 3:00 the following morning. I had an hour and a half layover, which was enough time to wander around the airport in a daze but not enough time to wait in the long lines or sit down for a proper breakfast. I settled on a yogurt and blt sandwich for breakfast before boarding my flight.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">tired travel selfie</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I arrived in Amsterdam safe and sound later that morning. I got checked into my hostel and after crashing for a few hours went out exploring. I didn't stray too far from where I was staying, but opted to walk around, explore, and get a sense of the things to see and do while I was there. (I arrived on a Wednesday during the early afternoon and was there until Friday afternoon.) After booking some tours I got some food and hung out at the hostel for a bit before crashing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next day was my birthday. I didn't want to make a big deal about it, and it was mostly a day of exploring the city on foot and then going to Amsterdam's Ice Bar. It's a bit touristy, but I felt like I couldn't pass up the chance to visit a bar completely encased in ice. I needed to make an appointment to go in, so with ticket in hand I walked in at 5:00 PM. The entrance ticket gives you 2 free shots from shot glasses made of ice as well as a drink at the traditional bar attached to the ice bar. There were different flavored types of vodka, and I opted for whipped cream flavor for mine. After taking some photos and taking advantage of a free drink at the regular bar I headed out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That night I saw one of the guys that was in my room the night before, and we got to talking. I told him it was my birthday, and we went down to the hostel's bar and talked about life over drinks for about 3 hours. It wasn't a typical birthday, but I enjoyed it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Friday was a bike tour of Amsterdam. The weather was unseasonably warm, and at about 50 degrees I got away with wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants. I never really learned much about Dutch history (besides the standard things you learn about when they settled in the States), so hearing how they were business people and learning about the history of Amsterdam and how the canals affected the city over the years was really interesting. On part of the tour we stopped at what's supposed to be the oldest bar in the city which is still run by the same family that started it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After the tour I hopped on the train and was on to the next leg of my adventure: Eindhoven!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">obligatory train selfie</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part 2: Magic, Videogames, and Catching Up</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What was waiting for me in Eindhoven you may ask? That would be one of my close friends, Rudolf! (No, he doesn't have a red nose, and he's not a reindeer! Admit that you were thinking that right when you read that name!)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We became friends in Chile, but he has since moved back to the Netherlands. The weekend included playing Magic: The Gathering, Wii U, eating New York Pizza as a pitiful substitute for Papa John's Pizza, walking around the town, and seeing the Phillips Museum.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rudolf and I are both gamers, and it felt great to reconnect with our hobby. A new set of Magic had come out, so it was cool trying out the new cards together. Rudolf took me to a hipsterish indoor market that had things for sale as well as places to eat. I had currywurst for the first time in 13 years and tried a Dutch food called Stampotten, which is a combination of potatoes and vegetables that are mashed together. We also went into the shopping area of Eindhoven, and we visited the Phillips Museum. Rudolf works for Phillips, so he was very proud to show me all the technological innovations that have occurred since the company was founded. Now they're really working to develop medical equipment for MRIs and such.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think the best part, however, was the homemade chocolate croissants he made for breakfast one morning. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even though it was just one weekend, it felt so great to spend time together and to get to visit a close friend in his home country.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part 3: Dublin, Touristy Stuff, and More Social Encounters</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After saying goodbye to the Netherlands for a bit, I made my way to Ireland.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I arrived in Dublin, and I had time to get my bearings during the day. It's a nice city because you can get around to most places on foot. I really liked how friendly people were and how easy it was to get around. Unfortunately higher prices come with that, so I tried to be a bit frugal when possible. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the evening I met up with Martin, and we caught up on what has happened since he left Chile a few years ago. It was great seeing him and hearing him talk about the history of the country. Prior to then, I had no idea how big of a history buff he is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The following day I took a walking tour for a bit and then headed out to Limerick, which is close to the west coast of Ireland. I stayed with Heather and Terry who are living there. We became friends when working at the same institute in Santiago back in 2011 or so, and we've stayed in contact since then. I enjoyed catching up, getting to know their 3 cats, and playing board games together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I booked a tour to the Cliffs of Moher for one of the days I was there, and it was amazing. They're out on the west coast of Ireland, and the beauty of the water crashing against the cliffs is breathtaking. The tour gave us 2 hours to walk along the coast. Heather had warned me about the wind, and it was really strong and biting. I wore my long johns and had a hat and scarf, but even with that I only stayed outside for about 40 minutes of that time. There was a small museum, gift shop, and cafe inside, so there was still plenty to do. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After being in Limerick for a few days, I made my way back to Dublin. There I caught up with Amanda, another friend and former coworker that I met in Santiago as well as some former students that are studying in Dublin. I'm not much of a drinker and didn't think I'd like the pub scene in Dublin, but it was actually really nice. Maintaining social connections is such an important part of staying happy, and seeing that happening with the pubs in Dublin was a very positive part of the culture there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In addition to catching up, I visited Trinity University and had breakfast at The Buttery (their on campus eatery with great food and very reasonable prices) and took a tour to Powerscourt Gardens and one of the national parks. Being out in nature was really nice, and the amount of green there was never-ending.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part 4: Windmills, Clogs, Cheese, and More</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My flight from Dublin to Amsterdam was delayed, and I consequently arrived at about 5 PM instead of 3 PM. By the time I got check into my hostel the day was shot. It had snowed earlier in the day, and so I got a taste of what winter is more typically like in Amsterdam. I got something to eat but was too tired to do much else except book a tour for the following day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was up bright and early the following morning to take a tour of the countryside. We started out by visiting some windmills along the coast. It was really picturesque, and going inside a windmill was really cool too. I don't remember learning much about how windmills work or how important they were to world economies throughout history when I was in school, but it was so interesting to see how they used them to cut wood, pulverize flour, and do other things. It never crossed my mind that windmills could be rotated 360 degrees and that the flaps could be attached or detached as needed based on the wind.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next part of the tour took us to a shop that makes and sells clogs. A woman in typical dress showed us the process of how they are made, and afterwards we had time to kill in the shop and were encouraged to buy souvenirs. After that, we took a ferry that then took us to a cheese factory. They showed us how round wheels of cheese are made, and we got to taste some of them. It was interesting to see the different types and ages of the cheeses.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After a lunch break, we then went to a famous bakery that makes stroopwaffles. A woman gave a demonstration and showed how the two cookies are made and attached with caramel in the middle. Apparently there was a married couple with 9 children that lived in the 1800s. The husband was a fisher, but he died in an accident one day. The widow was left with 9 children to take care of. She tried baking bread to sell, but there were plenty of bakeries that already did that in the area. She then began experimenting with cookies, and she invented the stroopwaffle. The demonstration occurred in her basement, and they had the original tools that she used on display. The main floor is now the store/bakery, and it was interesting to see how a woman's entrepreneurial spirit and desire to care for her children had such an impact on Dutch history.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After getting back to Amsterdam, I then hopped on the train to meet up with a friend in Utrecht. Ty and I met when we were exchange students in Germany in 2000, and since then we've managed to maintain our friendship despite the distance between us. I believe we've only met up 3 times since then, with the last time being in 2009 in Venice Beach. His life in Europe and mine in Chile have made catching up in person difficult, but not impossible. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It was great talking about life and catching up, and living outside of the United States we have both encountered a lot of the same challenges despite the differences between Europe and South America. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the time I got to my last day in Amsterdam, I was pretty tired of being a tourist. I dragged myself out to go to the Rijksmuseum, a huge museum that documents a lot of famous Dutch art and history. The sheer amount of things there was overwhelming (think the L'ouvre in Paris), and after about an hour and a half I was already overloaded with beautiful art, facts, and historical objects.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I do have one huge regret with this trip. I put off finding information about going to the Anne Frank House. I naively thought I would be able to just show up and get in, but it turns out that it's recommended to get tickets online a few weeks in advance. You can only get in from 9 to 3:30 with an online reservation, and then after that you have to wait in line. By the time I had gotten there, I would have needed to wait in line for a few hours. While that is nothing compared to the atrocities that happened during the Holocaust, I was a worn out traveler that doesn't tolerate cold weather much more than he has to. I've resolved that it will be at the top of my to do list for my next trip back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The trip ended up being more expensive than I was anticipating, and it touched on my anxiety about spending money and getting into debt. I then have to remind myself that sometimes travel is going to be a bit expensive once you add in transportation and eating out, but ultimately I'd rather have a passport full of stamps and a life full of memories rather than a house full of stuff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm returning to Chile feeling renewed (in Chile they would say <i>con las pilas cargadas, </i>with your batteries recharged) and grateful for the time I had in Europe and back in New Jersey.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope everyone else has a great start to the year back in Chile or a wonderful start to </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">spring/fall wherever in the world you're reading this from.</span><br />
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Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-41064255150036712062017-01-17T18:41:00.000-05:002017-01-17T18:41:49.782-05:00Starting the Year Off Right<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm feeling good about the start of 2017.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Research shows that one of the keys to happiness is social connections, and I've been keeping pretty busy over the past few weeks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A friend of mine was visiting Chile with his family and had a day at the end of their trip in Santiago, so we met up. We walked up Cerro San Cristobal, and it was interesting talking with them about our experiences traveling and living abroad. I made it to the top, but it showed me how I've slowed down and gotten out of shape over the past few years. It was New Years Day, and so it was a nice start to the year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also met up with some friends that were back in Chile for a visit. They're now married and have a son, and it was great catching up and talking about what has happened in the past 3 years. We both came to Chile with TeachingChile, so it's amazing to think about how our lives have changed since then.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another friend of mine has been really patient and helpful getting the games and data from my Wii transferred over to my Wii U. If you're doing so in Chile, it requires the use of two transformers since you must have both systems on at the same time. Rodrigo brought his transformer over, and the first time we tried to do the transfer it didn't work with my SD card. The second time was much better, and it took some time but was worth it. It gave us time to talk about life and to get to know each other a bit better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not usually the type to go out for drinks at night, but some friends of mine (actually former students from 2012) wanted to meet and catch up. We met in Bellavista. For those of you that aren't familiar with it, it's the area where people go to drink and dance. It's run down and a bit dodgy, and I typically don't like going there. But it was worth it. Talking about what's been going on in our lives since we had last seen each other (probably a year or so ago) was really nice, and we also talked about the other students in the class and reminisced about the fun we had then. It's cool hearing about their careers progressing and them buying apartments and improving their lives. Even though we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like, it's always nice when we do get to catch up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then this past weekend I visited a friend down in Concepción. His cousin was staying with him, and it was interesting getting to know him. We went out for dinner on Friday night, and then I taught them how to play Settlers of Catan. On Saturday we went to the beach, and it was really relaxing. That night we played two more games of Catan, but this time with another cousin joining us. Even with all three of them teaming up against me I still remained victorious. We ended up playing until 3:00 in the morning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some pictures from the beach trip:</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't think this photo does justice to show how white my feet were.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I almost stepped on him!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing up on the rocks</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Almost to the top!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I made it!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie! It was so windy up there that I made my way <br />back right after snapping this.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Staying socially engaged over these past few weeks and the quiet time at the beach has helped me make some realizations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't like the atmosphere of Bellavista too much, but I have let negativity and fear of getting robbed prevent me from going there. The likelihood of that actually happening is pretty low, especially if I'm walking with my friends and stay alert. In the end going there was fine.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other realization came when I was at the beach. There were some huge rocks along the beach that you could climb up on, and it looked like the perfect opportunity to take some beautiful pictures. My thoughts immediately went to the possibility of slipping and falling and breaking a bone and going to the emergency room. At that moment I thought, "What has happened to me?" I had gone from being adventurous and risk-taking to being worried and afraid of the worst case scenario.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I decided I wasn't going to let that fear keep me from getting some nice photos. As I walked over to the rocks, I took a deep breath and started climbing up. "One foot at a time, watch out for the moss because it's slippery", I told myself. Slowly but surely I made it to the highest area, and damn was it windy. Even though I wasn't that high up off the ground, the wind was strong and was making me feel a bit off balance. I took some photos and snapped a few selfies before carefully making my way back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a great start to the year, and I'm looking forward to continuing to engage socially. In the past I've let the rejection from friendships not working out affect me a bit too much, but at the same time it has been a valuable learning experience. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite a less than ideal political situation back in the States that has me worried for the well-being of friends that are minorities and vulnerable to new policies that may be enacted as well as a rise in hate crimes, I'm choosing to remain optimistic and speak out in the face of injustice. I know that last part is easier said than done, but here's to giving it a try.</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-47442840104095984182016-12-31T21:57:00.002-05:002016-12-31T21:57:48.512-05:00Reflections on 2016<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's New Year's Eve, and I'm relaxing in my apartment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Outside I hear pounding music from a celebration, most likely from one of the bars across the street. The are lights on and people talking on the balcony of the apartment building that is now across the street from mine, and some of them still have Christmas lights hanging up. (Note to self- I should get around to installing curtains sometime in 2017).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's been so long that I don't quite know where to start with this post. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What are the highlights of the year?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Paying off my student loans is a huge one. Having had them hanging over me with every paycheck I got (or didn't get at times) and each financial decision was a huge weight on my shoulders, and I'm glad that it's one that is gone. I managed to pay them off in 10 years, saving huge amounts of money in what would have been thousands of dollars in interest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The trip with my dad to Universal Studios in February was great. He gets to travel a lot with other members of the family, so finding a place he'd like to travel to can be a challenge. I noticed that they had an area of the park devoted to The Simpsons and he's also a Harry Potter fan. Logistically it took some planning since I was coming up from Miami and he was flying in from Philadelphia, but it worked out fine. My dad has always been there for me no matter what, and being able to take a trip with him and pay for his ticket was a way for me to show my appreciation for all he's done helping me grow up and his unwavering support as I follow my dreams.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This year I joined a business networking alliance, and it has been a great experience. Talking with other business owners has helped me to continue adding value to my classes. Monthly meetings were great to get to know other people in my shoes, and </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think they won't all just be business connections but also friendships.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In November, I took a trip back to Jersey for a friend's wedding and also celebrated another wedding in Chile. They were both beautiful events, and I felt so happy to be included in their lives. Besides the wedding in New Jersey, I also went to a concert with a friend and enjoyed time catching up with my dad and other friends. It was so nice feeling appreciated and that people were genuinely happy to see me, and it also reaffirmed my choices of who I keep in my life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There were other highlights, albeit less important: going to a Coldplay concert unexpectedly was an important reminder to stay open to new experiences, and catching</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> up with friends in Lima and Concepción for a weekend helped me realize how important travel is to me, the values that we share, and how much I value my friendship with them. Regular meetings to play Setters of Catan with friends have been a lot of fun and also a bonding experience. Presenting at IATEFL Chile was a great experience. Two of my friends gave TED talks this year, and I was fortunate to have been there for one of them. They are both great people that are doing amazing things, and they have been an inspiration to keep growing and chasing after my dreams and goals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What are the downs from this year?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Death has taken some people far too early in their lives. A friend of mine lost her husband to cancer, another friend lost her son to health complications, and another friend lost her mother due to heart problems. None of these people got to live life to their full potential, and while I had never met these three people in person, from what I've heard of them they were great people that still had a lot more to do on this earth. I have been left with feelings of sadness and not exactly knowing what to do to help my friends recover from their losses.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some opportunities that I had to develop professionally didn't work out the way I had hoped. A company I was teaching classes to directly decided overnight to stop, leaving me with huge spaces in my schedule after they had committed to taking classes for the entire year. I took them for their word and didn't draw up a formal contract to hold them to, so it took some time to recover financially. Other classes didn't follow through with their commitment which is disappointing, but sometimes happens.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Developing social connections isn't always easy. I've put myself out there trying to get to know people and develop friendships, and a few times this year I've fallen flat on my face with failure. It has hurt and made me feel stupid for trying, but at least I took the chance rather than not knowing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also tried living this year according to other people's standards. I've felt guilty for spending money traveling (despite it being something that makes me happy) and have doubted the correctness of the lifestyle I've chosen. This doubt has made me spiral downward into the patterns of sleeping excessively, eating unhealthily, and watching TV to escape the reality of my feelings. The amount of lost time and potential is disappointing looking back. Over time I've realized that I should just live life according to my standards and not worry about keeping others happy. Sometimes I need that reminder.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What are my lessons from this year?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've learned to say "no" to things that no longer serve me or aren't for my highest food. Not everyone is going to like me in life, and lots of distractions are going to come along to complete for my attention and time. I've started learning to focus my time and energy on what's important.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've become better at trusting my instinct. Sometimes I've felt an intuition that someone or something wasn't quite right, and I've gone with it. It's hard to say if it has been right or not 100% of the time, but I've seen it work out right in a few instances.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've learned to look for those (healthy) things that are going to stay constant in my life. I know that every Wednesday I can listen to Gretchen Rubin's podcast <i>Happier</i>, from which I will most likely pick up a nugget of wisdom. I know that I have guided meditations I can listen to as well as healthy food that is easy to make that isn't far from where I live.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think my biggest lesson is that I'm learning to stay true to myself. I've started speaking up to express my opinion, even if it's not popular. I've had conversations with people expressing a viewpoint that has clashed with theirs, and being able to hold my emotions in check but express myself clearly has been a bit accomplishment. I've learned that sometimes it's best to let go of friendships and relationships that are no longer healthy or positive. Despite that, it's still great to see the beauty that there was in a friendship and the positives that occurred over a period of time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what does 2017 have in store?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spending time with friends and strengthening my social connections. Numerous studies show that social connections are a key component to a happy and healthy life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Figuring out how I can keep developing personally and professionally. (Maybe I should get around to reading the numerous books I've acquired over the past few years that are collecting dust or are untouched on my tablet)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A trip to Europe, partially in celebration of paying off my student loans and partially as a way to rekindle my desire to travel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Linkin Park concert in Santiago in May. This will be their second time in Chile and my second time seeing them here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cultivating healthy habits and staying true to myself, the values, and the standards that I choose to live by.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wherever you're reading this from, I hope that you have a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2017!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-980755088299618542016-09-12T15:57:00.000-05:002016-09-12T15:57:10.318-05:00Resparking My Sense of Adventure<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For those of you that know me or have been following my blog, you know that I have been in Chile for over six and a half years now. In that period of time, it has been easy to fall into patterns and habits and not really try things that are new or different.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, I had a reminder about how long I've been here as well as some inspiration from a podcast I listen to.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first thing that happened was that my BIP card has stopped working. For those of you that are unfamiliar with the public transportation system in Santiago, you load money onto a plastic card the size of a credit card. When you get on the bus or subway, you hold it up to an electronic sensor, and it automatically deducts the cost of the trip from your balance on the card. Given the name, it's no surprise that the reader produces a loud pitched beep after scanning your card.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've had my BIP card since the day I came to Chile. It was given to me as a part of my welcome packet with TeachingChile, and I had never had any other card until that point. As the woman told me that it was no longer working to reload it with money, it made me think about all of the travelling I'd done all over the city with the card. I bought a new one but have saved the old one as a momento.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That made me think about how I'd lost my sense of adventure this year. I'm not talking about the travel to another part of Chile or another country and see amazing sights kind of adventure. I'm talking about being spontaneous, exploring new parts of the city, and taking the time to just do something different from my routine kind of adventure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This made me think back to a podcast that I had heard the week before. In her podcast called Happier, Gretchen Rubin spoke about going on an errand date as a way of having an enjoyable afternoon and evening, and she told the story of running mundane errands with her husband but taking their time and then deciding to stop and get drinks at a nice bar they had often passed by before but never visited. It turned out to be a really nice afternoon for them, and it made the errands that much more enjoyable.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lo and behold I'm single, but I needed to run some errands and had the afternoon free. I decided I was going to make it an enjoyable experience and not rush myself as I usually do. </span></div>
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Before even starting anything I stopped and got a strawberry smoothie. The weather was warmer that usual today in Santiago, and it put me in a good mood to get started with the errands. After going to get the details to mail a package, I then went to the bus station to check out prices on tickets for a trip I was planning. On my way there, I found the packing materials I needed for my package, and then I decided to walk to my next errand instead of catching the bus or subway. As I walked along, I stopped in some shops looking at bags that I could use to get back to the gym.</div>
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As I took the bus home, I decided I wanted to give myself a spontaneous treat. I called up a Peruvian restaurant near my apartment that prepares meals for pickup, but they weren't open that day. I then remembered that a former student of mine told me about another Peruvian restaurant near my apartment, so I decided to check it out. 6:30 is early for dinner in Chile and it was empty, but the food and service was great. I left with a full stomach.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Aji de gallina, my favorite Peruvian dish. <br />It's chicken in a yellow pepper sauce.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">As I walked back to my apartment, I passed by a small music school. In high school and college I played the bass, and they advertised that they offered lessons. I went inside to check it out. They didn't have any basses to rent, but they suggested a business not too far away that probably did. I explained how I used to play, but I was concerned with storing a bass in my one bedroom apartment when I came to a realization. I had always wanted to pick up the viola, and it looks like this is the perfect opportunity for me. The price for classes fits into my budget, and now I'm just waiting to see if the professor and my schedule coincide for classes.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Since then I've also gotten back to the gym. I've gained about 20 kilos in the past few years, and I've finally prepared myself mentally to start the adventure of getting back in shape. The gym is high tech (Each piece of equipment has a button which you can press, and there are trainers wearing smart watches. When you press the button, it signals for them to go to you and help you with whatever you need.) and has an upscale feel to it, and I really like it. On my first visit I was given a routine, and it's easy to follow. Next month they will review it with me and give me a new one.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">In past experiences at the gym, I became turned off by it not being open at the hours it was supposed to, rude and incompetent staff, and other factors. Rather than approaching my return to the gym on the lookout for things to go wrong, I'm telling myself that it's going to be a positive experience and remind myself of the excellent personal trainer I had back in California and how I was able to manage a gym routine and how I was in great shape then.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">I've been to the gym twice since I joined 3 days ago. In the words of Linkin Park from the song <i>Waiting for the End, </i>"The hardest part of ending is starting again."</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-88678859206811947582016-08-19T20:13:00.002-05:002016-08-19T20:13:38.801-05:00A long overdue update<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've had a long absence from my blog.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It would be easy to make up excuses or avoid the elephant in the room of what has been happening, but I don't think that's the best thing to do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've been struggling with depression.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Talking about it isn't easy, as it's a personal struggle. Opening up to people is hard for me and leaves me vulnerable and open to judgement and criticism from others. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before you read any further, form any opinions about me, or have a a desire to offer any advice, I'm going to provide a list of statements that aren't helpful:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1. "You just have to snap out of it." (usually said with a tone of condescension)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2. "It's all in your head." (How is that supposed to make a person feel better?)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">3. "Well, my situation was worse........" (One upping doesn't make a person dealing with a rough time feel any better.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">4. "You should...." (I didn't ask for advice. I'm trying to open up and would really appreciate you listening and acknowledging my reality.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few days ago, I came across a post on Facebook that really resonated with me. It's the story of a woman who wanted to prepare her daughter for middle school.</span><br />
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“I gave her a tube of toothpaste and asked her to squirt it out onto a plate. When she finished, I calmly asked her to put all the toothpaste back in the tube,” Gardner explains. Of course, her daughter looked at her like it was an impossible task, because it is. Her daughter began to say things like <em style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But I can’t!</em> and <em style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It won’t be like before!</em></div>
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That’s when mom dropped some serious knowledge, with some words her daughter will probably never forget:</div>
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“You will remember this plate of toothpaste for the rest of your life. Your words have the power of life or death. As you go into middle school, you are about to see just how much weight your words carry. You are going to have the opportunity to use your words to hurt, demean, slander and wound others. You are also going to have the opportunity to use your words to heal, encourage, inspire and love others. You will occasionally make the wrong choice; I can think of three times this week I have used my own words carelessly and caused harm. Just like this toothpaste, once the words leave your mouth, you can’t take them back.”</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of the things I've heard from people close to me in the past year have really affected me. Hurtful comments and hard to stomach truths have shattered my self esteem and self worth into a million little pieces, and I've been working to pick up them up one by one and glue them back together again. I had fallen into a pattern of e</span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">ating comfort food, sleeping, and watching TV to help deal with the pain. While some people escape their reality through drugs and alcohol, for me it is through food and television.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Despite these challenges, I feel like I'm in the best place I could be given the circumstances. I have a wonderful group of friends here that I know I can depend on for anything. My students are wonderful and easygoing, and if I'm not feeling well we either cancel the class or reschedule it. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With my health insurance I've been able to get affordable treatment with antidepressants and therapy to work through these challenges. All in all I find the expat community here is so wonderful; we have the common bond of deciding to leave our home countries in search for something else, and we understand the struggles that we go through and appreciate living a lifestyle outside of the mainstream.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Getting that out of the way, here are the highlights month by month since my last update.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">February </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I made my last payment for my student loans from getting my Masters degree. It is such a good feeling being debt free and finally being able to start focusing on saving for my future. I managed to get $42,000 in loans paid off in 10 years, and it's a sense of accomplishment that not many understand unless you're in the same position.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Regarding travelling, I got Global Entry and TSA Precheck. This allows me to bypass the long security lines at airports in the United States, and I can also go through an expedited line when entering the United States at most airports. It's good for 5 years, and it will certainly take out one of the hassles of travel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I also took a vacation to Universal Studios in Orlando with my dad. He and my mom have been my rock and support no matter what. He worked two full time jobs when I was growing up to make ends meet, and his hard work ethic is something that has always been with me because of him. I'm finally in a position that I can start giving back to him, so for his birthday I bought his ticket to Universal Studios. I hadn't been there in almost 20 years, so it was a great experience. I think my favorite part was exploring the Springfield area of the park complete with Krusty Burger and Moe's Tavern. My dad enjoyed the Harry Potter area, and it was cool seeing kids getting so excited about something and using their magic wands to activate things in the park. It turns out a friend from high school was there with her husband and daughter, and we were able to catch up for a bit.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">A Krusty Burger with fries</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">March</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">March is always a month of new beginnings in Chile. Summer is coming to an end, and kids go back to school. People return from their vacation and begin to settle into their work routine again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For me, the new beginning meant taking a critical look at my living space. Since I've lived in the same apartment for 5 years now, it has been easy to just keep things the way they have been. I'd been holding onto things I'm not really using more out of laziness than anything else, but I decided it was time for a change.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I got rid of a dresser that I was only half using as well as my bulky propane heater in favor of an energy efficient tower heater. I also upgraded my old bed that I had had for 5 years for a new one that opens up and has storage inside, which has been great for organizing my living space. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last but not least, I got a desk and a computer chair! It's so nice to have a space to sit to do work (that isn't my kitchen table) as well as put my office materials away and keep them organized.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">April</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There were some really strong rainstorms, some meetings with friends to play Apples to Apples and Setters of Catan, and a weekend trip to Viña to have a change of scenery.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Little did I know what would transpire during that weekend in Viña.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">At breakfast on that Saturday morning I got to talking to two guys from Liverpool. They told me that they were going to Santiago the next day for the day, and it turns out they were going to the Coldplay concert. After a bit of conversation, one of them told me that they had an extra ticket since his girlfriend was pregnant and unable to fly, and he offered it to me! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">So Sunday I helped the two of them get a bus ticket back to Santiago with me, and they left their bags at my place while they hiked up Cerro San Cristobal. Once they got back we got some Peruvian food and then walked to the concert. It was at the National Stadium, just about 4 blocks from my apartment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The concert was really cool. The special effects and visuals were all really well thought out and nicely planned. At one point of the concert, they moved to a mini stage about 20 feet away from where we were standing. It was awesome to get to see them up close.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We had to leave before the concert was over, because James and Paul were then catching an overnight bus to Pucón that same night. We said our goodbyes and have been connected on Facebook ever since, and it will just be a matter of time before we get to meet up again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">May</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A friend of mine lost her husband to cancer in May. Although I never met him, I knew that he was a great person from what Kari told me about him. This left me thinking about life and to be grateful for each and every day that I have.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I also came to the realization that some activities that I had been involved in weren't contributing to my happiness. After giving them a sincere effort I felt like I had to at least take a break for a while and focus on me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">June </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The weather started getting colder as winter made its appearance, and I became a member of a business networking alliance in Santiago. We started meeting once a month with the same group of people with the goal of helping each other grow and expand our businesses. It is unique in that there is only one person from any given sector, and I have met some very interesting people.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of my friends from back in Jersey were in Peru, and we were able to meet up in Lima. It was so great connecting with people from back home and getting to show them around a bit. Even though we only got to spend an afternoon together, it was so refreshing to get to spend time with other people that enjoy traveling as much as I do. I also enjoyed the food as well as the cat park.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">July</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">July is the middle of winter in Chile, but it really wasn't that cold. Some of my students were on vacation, which gave me more free time than I usually have. I told myself that I was going to use that time to be productive and get my living space organized, but I wasn't really too successful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The IATEFL Conference took place in Santiago, and it was great. There were some really amazing presenters, and they always get me thinking about my teaching. I caught up with other teachers I hadn't seen since last year in Concepción, and I also gave a presentation. While I enjoy the conference each year, this year I found myself only being able to take in so much information before feeling worn out and overwhelmed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At the end of July I made a weekend trip down to Concepción to catch up with some friends. While I didn't get to see everyone I had hoped to, it was nice getting out of Santiago and doing something different.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">August</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This month I started teaching classes via Skype. One of my students wanted to continue classes after leaving Santiago and moving to London, and it was flattering that she wanted to continue specifically with me. Teaching online classes is quite different than teaching in person, but I'm adjusting to the change.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">My health has suffered a bit with the smog, and I had a nasty cough and sore throat for a little over a week. I've also been dealing with some back pain, but luckily I've found a great chiropractor that speaks English.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">There was a nice event in Ñuñoa last weekend. They organized a food truck event in Plaza Ñuñoa, and it was great. There were food trucks with burgers and fries, kebabs, schwarmas, baked goods, crepes, and more. There was music playing, face painting, and a light, festive atmosphere. The weather was unseasonably warm the day I went, and I had a good time catching up with friends.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I've made strides in choosing my friendships carefully, and I'm getting better of listening to my intuition. I've started mapping out my professional and personal goals for the next few years, and it has helped me to see the steps I need to take to reach them. I have my work cut out for me, but I'm feeling positive about what the rest of this year holds.</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-45387980737314465562016-01-08T07:34:00.000-05:002016-01-08T07:34:04.164-05:00Christmas, Adventures in Cat Sitting, and New Years<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy 2016 everyone!!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The weather was hot down in Chile for Christmas and New Years. This year I decided I wanted to spend Christmas at the beach, so I went to Viña del Mar. I arrived on the 23rd in the late afternoon and stayed at my usual hostel. It was relaxing enjoying nice meals at restaurants, talking with other travelers over breakfast at the hostel, and seeing the people who work there again. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The best part, however, was Christmas Eve dinner. The hostel organized a dinner since everything is closed on the night of Christmas Eve. There was steak, chicken, salmon, salad, dessert, and drinks. There were people from Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and Lithuania. Having a sense of community and meeting such an interesting group of people was a really nice way to spend the night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some restaurants were closed on Christmas, and when dinnertime rolled around I was getting hungry. I found out that Papa John's was open, and I got to introduce one of the travelers to the wonder that is Papa John's. We had an interesting conversation about our backgrounds, traveling, and life around different parts of the world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Upon my return to Santiago on the 26th, I was given a unique opportunity. Some of my friends were going away on vacation, and they asked me to take care of their cats. I was so excited leading up to it and really enjoyed it. They asked me to sleep over each night, and they had food in the fridge and showed me how to use their Netflix account. I enjoyed watching Friends, making sandwiches, and playing with Tommy and Tigresa. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So what are the cats like? They are both a lot of fun. Tommy doesn't drink water from a bowl like normal cats. Instead he drinks from the tap. Tigresa eventually decided she wanted to be like her older brother, but when she tried to copy Tommy when he was drinking from the tap he lashed out at her. She then went into the bathtub and was meowing at me to turn on the faucet for her to drink from that faucet. I could only imagine what would have happened, so I didn't. Tommy also likes jumping into a red cooler and being taken around the house like he's in a plane, so that became a daily activity. Besides drinking from the tap and the cooler plane rides, Tommy was pretty laid back most of the time and just did his own thing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tigresa has a lot more energy. She played with my sandals, meowed to be petted, and enjoyed playing with a cardboard box as well as a mouse on a string. When I worked on my laptop while watching Friends she mostly left me alone, but the last night she started sitting down on my teaching materials, meowing at me insistently, and trying to walk on my laptop while I worked. I think she was getting comfortable with me. It didn't bother me at all; she just wanted attention and the work that I was doing wasn't pressing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While I enjoyed my time in Viña and cat sitting, I was glad to get back to my apartment. I hadn't slept in my own bed in a week, and I needed to do some cleaning and get food in. I decided to stay in for New Years and enjoy some video games and reflecting over the past year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a year with challenges, changes, and accomplishments. Leaving a job, paying off one of my big student loans, becoming more assertive in my professional and personal life, and realizing that I am capable of being my own boss were some of the memorable events of 2015. My hard work and persistence has paid off, and I've had to ignore the naysayers that told me that I should move back to the States. But with time those naysayers are becoming fewer and fewer. Having been able to live in another country for over 5 years is an accomplishment that I sometimes forget about. It's easy for me to write off things that I do well and compare myself to others, or I look at areas of my life that aren't the way I want them and focus on what is missing or what I should be doing better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2016 is going to be a year of further development. It's going to be a year of developing my communication and leadership skills via Toastmasters, creating a savings/investment plan, and visiting friends that I haven't seen in a while. Life might throw me some curveballs this year, but I have learned that I am stronger than I thought and am capable of handling whatever comes my way.</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-83765577436567134692015-12-17T13:47:00.000-05:002015-12-17T13:47:05.627-05:00Facebook, Podcasts, and Realizations<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Life in Santiago has been pretty routine the past few months, hence the lack of updates.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've been thinking about a lot of things lately, and this post is going to be quite a bit deeper than my typical posts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What do I love about it? I love being connected with friends and seeing their good news. I can't always be there for milestones like engagements, birthdays, weddings, and the birth of their children. It's obviously not the same as being there, but I love seeing pictures and the feeling that I still have a connection to them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I also love the instant communication. I can have a quick chat with a friend I've been out of touch with. I can plan an event and update guests virtually and share news and photos. I can buy and sell things with a wider audience than if I didn't have Facebook, and I can also get advice and recommendations about restaurants and services. People also post news about protests and happenings, which is handy when I'm traveling around the city. They have even added a feature to mark yourself safe when a natural disaster happens. When the earthquake happened in September, I was able to mark myself as safe so that my Facebook friends knew that I was ok.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What do I hate about it? Well, the way some people choose to use Facebook.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before I continue, I have to admit that I am far from perfect. I look back at posts I made 3 and 4 years ago and realize the pointlessness of my previous posts or my desire for attention.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some people give a play by play of an event that they are at. Sometimes it includes pictures of every course of their meal or every picture of their vacation updated by the hour. Don't get me wrong; it's great seeing some photos of a friend's vacation posted after the fact. I'm happy for people that are having a great time. It seems, however, that some people just want to show off how great of a life they have. And Facebook is the perfect platform to do that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Other people post about how much fun they had at an event or how much they miss a person, but they do it on their timeline. There's nothing wrong with sharing this information, but is it necessary to do so in a public way to show off your friendship? Sometimes it continues on with a string of replies back and forth about some type of inside joke or making plans for the next social event. Maybe it's just me, but I find it annoying and unnecessary. There's Facebook messenger, email, Whatsapp, and phone calls that can communicate the same thing in a non public way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes you find out that you are excluded from an event or that someone has lied to you via Facebook. Being on the inside of a social event is great, but being on the outside when you thought you were going to be included is a very isolating feeling. People saying they are sick and can't meet with you but then post publicly to make plans with other people for the same exact time have also left be with a feeling of loneliness and rejection. You could either be honest about things or at least be more discreet if you're going to lie or exclude a person.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another thing that really gets to me is political posts. There's nothing wrong with posting a news story if you're interested in having a civil political debate or that shows a point of view that you hadn't considered before. Unfortunately I see people that post things with blatant misinformation or that seem to play on people's fears rather than using facts and statistics. Why would you want to share something like that? How is it helpful trying to engage people with different political views if you're not willing to have a civil discussion about things?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then there are posts that are offensive and people that don't even try to understand another point of view. I don't know about anyone else, but I find Conan O'Brien's "I ate all your Halloween candy" skit that he shows each year a disgrace. For those that aren't familiar with it, a parent videotapes themselves telling their son or daughter that he/she ate all of their Halloween candy. The child then throws a tantrum or bursts out crying. This is intended to be a joke, and parents are encouraged to send in their videos each year to be shown on national TV.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why in the world do people think that it's acceptable to manipulate a child's feelings in order to get a laugh? Do people really value being on national TV more than their children's mental health? This does not seem like a good way to cultivate a bond of trust and happiness between parents and children. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last but not least, there are posts that make fun of others. Inside jokes and poking fun of friends is one thing, but making fun of people you don't know doesn't seem like a very productive or happy thing to do. Do you really not have anything better to do than make fun of other people? This also applies to posts that make fun of politicians, usually ones that have differing viewpoints than the person who's posting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All in all, I have such mixed feelings. I love being in touch with people, but you can only see so many posts that a single person makes about their amazing life, awesome vacation, or strong political views with no desire to discuss them. I have found the unfriend and unfollow button very useful, and I'm also trying to spend less time on Facebook. All in all, I think it hasn't been contributing to my happiness.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Given all that, how do I think Facebook should be used?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In my opinion, Facebook should be about bringing people together, making our lives easier, and helping contribute to happiness. How can this be done? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>1. Share photos and personal news that is relevant and interesting. </b> If it's meant to incite jealousy or show off, don't post it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>2. Share helpful and interesting news. </b> Is there a road closure in your area? Is there new research about a cure for cancer? Did you find a new shop that might interest a friend? Are there some kitchen hacks that will make cooking easier? If so, share!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>3. Help brighten people's day. </b>Share a funny story, joke, or video. My personal favorite is the Suprised Kitty video that went viral on Youtube. I have quite a few friends that are cat lovers, so any videos or stories that I find relevant I share with them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>4. Make fun of yourself. </b>A friend of mine jokingly told me that he hated me because of the travelling I had done. A few weeks later I went to the ER with a badly sprained ankle. I ended up wearing a boot for 2 weeks. I posted a picture of my leg on his timeline with the comment, "So do you hate me now?" It's something that he and I will always remember, and it was a good way to help diffuse his "hatred".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>5. Find groups of people that share a common interest with you, and connect with them. </b> Not just through a screen, but by actually going out and meeting people in person. I've made some great friends this way, and the in person connection is a way to help build community.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Will I ever give up Facebook? I doubt it. I do know one thing though. Facebook has helped me to become more humble. I share what is necessary. I don't (or at least try not to) flaunt my success or staunchly post about my political views unless I'm willing to entertain a civil discussion about it. I don't need to make a post about how blessed I am at Thanksgiving, and I don't need to change my profile picture to the colors of a country's flag in order to support them. I do what I can to help others (even if I don't post an update or a video of it on my timeline), and I work to maintain my connections to people while connecting with others that will bring happiness into my life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another thing that technology has brought us is podcasts. For those that aren't familiar with them, it is like a radio show that is on the internet that you can listen to at any time after it is published. There are podcasts about almost everything in any language. I've started listening to some that I find really interesting and helpful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first one is Nation Public Radio Planet Money. It's about what's happening in the real world regarding economics, but it is geared towards people that don't have a degree in economics or finance. They have such interesting stories, and they make for great conversation with people.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another one is called The Tim Ferriss Show. He's the author of The Four Hour Workweek and interviews guests that have been successful. He also shares his habits and routines that help him to be successful. It's interesting hearing from people about what they do and don't do, and it has opened my eyes to things that I can start doing differently in my life. I particularly enjoyed the interview with Mike Shinoda from my favorite band, Linkin Park.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I also enjoy listening to Happier, a podcast by Gretchen Rubin. She's the author of The Happiness Project, and she studies happiness and the development of good habits. Each week she and her sister tackle an issue in an interesting way. They share their experiences and ask the audience to share their experiences, and it's so interesting to hear that others go through the same challenges that I do. They also talk about how other people see the world differently, which really helps to understand other people and how to live harmoniously. They had a podcast about getting fired, and I wrote to share my experience having gone through it. It was an incredibly hard time of my life, but a lot of positive came out of it, ultimately convincing me to make the move to Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The last big one is called The Voluntary Life. It's all about finding freedom and financial freedom. It includes ideas about investing, saving money, living a minimalist lifestyle, and various paths to financial freedom. This has been particularly helpful for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Over this year I have doubted my lifestyle of living in Santiago, having a cheap one bedroom apartment, and being my own boss. I can make enough money to live, pay off my student loans, and put money into savings. I don't have (and don't want) a car, because it's not necessary. I'd like a larger apartment, but it's also not necessary. I don't really buy many material possessions, but I do enjoy spending my money to eat out from time to time and travel. People tell me I'm throwing money away by renting and they suggest I move back to the States and "get a real job". Apparently there's something wrong with my lifestyle if I get such strong objections from people about it. Or so I thought.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After listening to The Voluntary Life, I came to realize there's nothing wrong with my lifestyle. I've chosen a lifestyle that doesn't include consumerism (with the exception of eating out and some things I enjoy like video games) and the accumulation of material goods. I have chosen to be my own boss and manage my free time and workload. I value experiences and travel, and that is how I choose to spend my money for the most part. By living below my means and not buying a larger apartment or house that I would then have to spend a lot of money on to furnish and maintain, I prefer to save my money and use public transportation. When I'm back in the States, I can rent a car if necessary. I don't need to stay in fancy hotels when I travel; hostels or a room via couchsurfers work just fine. When others voice their objections to my lifestyle I no longer have to justify it; their comments are a reflection of their own insecurities regarding their lifestyle choices.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I've become more cognizant of how I spend money as well as the possessions that I have. I have started downsizing my selling or giving away things I'm no longer using, and it's a good feeling. I've also started going through the vast amounts of paper that I have any getting rid of anything I don't need. I've done the same with my email inbox. I now have everything organized by category, have unsubscribed myself to lists, and deal with emails within 48 hours of receiving them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I have 2 major goals for next year:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Be as paperless as possible.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">There's an app called Evernote which allows you to take pictures of business cards, receipts, contracts, and other important documents that are then stored securely. I already use Dropbox for my teaching materials, but being able to get rid of more paper will be a really good feeling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Pay off my last student loan and set up an investment plan.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I got my unsubsidized loan paid off earlier this year, and it was a great feeling. I have one more to pay off, and then from there I can start focusing on investing for my future. I know I'm late to the game compared to most people, and I've endured harsh criticism for it. While enduring that criticism, however, I've been busy crafting a lifestyle that works for me and that allows me to save a significant portion of my income each month.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope everyone is staying warm or cool (depending on where you're reading this from and what the weather is like there), and I hope you have a wonderful holiday and end of the year!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-67043959916952593022015-10-21T19:55:00.000-05:002015-10-21T19:55:26.588-05:00Fiestas Patrias, Personal and Professional Growth, and When Clowns Attack<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I type this, I find it hard to believe how quickly the year is going by.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The weather has been unseasonably cold, and we have been getting rain beyond when the rainy season is supposed to be. I've had a few days when I've been able to see my breath on my way to work in the morning. Hopefully spring will be on its way soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fiestas patrias this year was pretty low key. I met with a friend and one of his friends, and we made food in his apartment. It was nice having a small gathering, and they showed me how easy it is to make hummus.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The following day I went to a fonda with some friends. We went to the one at Parque Padre Hurtado. It was crowded and had the typical meat, bread, and terremotos along with various displays about Chile's naval and air force. There were games for kids, and they had bumper balls!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Elana and I decided to get in touch with our inner child. Inside the ball I woke up a sweat, and it wore me out even though I was only inside for about 5 minutes. Being heavier worked to my advantage, as I was able to knock people over easily and was only knocked over once. I tried to be gentle with the little kids, but even when I tried to bump them lightly they went flying (or rolling I should say). A friend took a video of the experience, but apparently the file is too big to post on here. You can see it on Youtube by clicking <a href="https://youtu.be/ndOCEuohoNA" target="_blank">here</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the benefits of being my own boss is that I have control over my schedule and free time. I haven't been very good about making good use of my free time, and for me it's easy to fall into the pattern of watching TV and spending too much time on Facebook. I feel like I haven't been nurturing my mind to contribute to my personal and professional growth, but I've started making progress in a few ways.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First of all, I found a free online course offered by the British Council about taking the IELTS. For those non-English teachers, the IELTS is an international tests that non-native speakers of English take in order to study or live in the UK or Australia. I've been participating in the course for the past 4 weeks. The videos and links that they provide are very useful, and it's interesting seeing other people's comments regarding the test. On the website I've also found a few other online courses that I'm considering taking in November.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm also meditating on an almost daily basis. It leaves me feeling more relaxed and calm, and I'm more prepared to tackle what I need to do any given day while feeling less anxious.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition, I've found a few podcasts that I enjoy listening to. The first one is The Happier Podcast with Gretchen Rubin. It's really interesting hearing about a different topic each week and what people do in other to develop habits that make them happier and healthier. Another one is Freakonomics. It was suggested by a friend, and it looks at interesting economic concepts related to current events. The 4 Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss is also very interesting. He's always trying something new, and it's interesting to see what he's done in his life to become so successful and happy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Taking in all this new knowledge and information is great, but at the same time it leaves me feeling a bit overwhelmed. There are suggestions of new habits to try, new books to read, and articles that are worth checking out. There are also a lot of interesting people here in Santiago that I could meet with in order to network and develop personally and professionally. But where do I start? Sometimes I feel a bit paralyzed and find it hard to start at all, but I'm trying to be patient with myself. Between that and meditating I'm taking small steps to try new things and become the best version of myself personally and professionally.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Living in Santiago wouldn't be complete with some type of completely random event happening every once in a while. So what happened this time?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was attacked by a clown.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, you read that right. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, how did it all happen?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was riding the bus home from my morning class, and a man dressed up as a clown got on the bus. He had on a wig, a clown costume, and his face was painted white. This isn't uncommon in Santiago, as entertainers in the form of instrumentalists, singers, and clowns will get on the bus and provide some entertainment. In exchange they then ask for a small donation and walk around the bus accepting what is offered and thanking the passengers. The clowns usually put on some type of comedy show. If they are in pairs, they provide some quick-witted banter back and forth which usually gets anyone listening laughing. If they are alone, they might make jokes or tease people. They tend to try to get people that aren't paying attention to them to laugh or respond.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This clown was different, however. He was seated on the other side of the aisle and spoke to me, and I ignored him and continued checking my emails on my phone. Then he actually kicked my foot lightly and spoke to me again, but I continued to ignore him. I thought it was strange that he wasn't trying to entertain people, but at that time I didn't think much of it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eventually he changed his seat to sit behind me, and then he moved back to his original seat. A woman sat down next to me when we got to the next stop. About a minute later, the clown started speaking loudly and stood up. The woman fled from her seat, and he came closer to me. He then stuck me on the head, and my glasses flew to the ground.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He was screaming at me, and I realized that he had been asking for money the entire time. I'm not normally one to ignore someone that asks for help, but there was something strange about him from the beginning. I shielded myself with my bookbag for about another minute while I called out for someone to help me. We came to a bus stop, and he got off the bus. As we were at the bus stop, he banged on the glass from the outside and continued to yell at me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My hands were shaking, and I managed to pick up my glasses off the ground. Luckily they weren't damaged. A man came over to me and asked if I was ok. I told him that I was fine, just a bit shook up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was fortunate that it hadn't been any worse. The Chileans that I've spoken to say that it was a very strange situation and that they had never experienced nor heard of anything like it before. I feel like I stood out because of my lighter skin, and he probably thought I was rich and would give him money. The incident served as a reminder that I need to keep my guard up, even when I'm out and about during the day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And now you can add me to the group of people that has a slight fear of clowns.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-68544877878972401992015-09-17T16:06:00.000-05:002015-09-17T16:06:01.138-05:00In the Clear<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you've all probably heard by now, there was an earthquake in Chile. Don't worry, I'm ok.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The epicenter was north of Santiago, near La Serena. It was an 8.2, and apparently it was really strong. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, why do I say apparently? Well, I didn't feel it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was on the bus on my way home from work. At about 8:00 I got off the bus, and when I walked into my apartment building I saw a lot of people outside. I asked what was happening, and they told me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While I waited outside, I started to contact friends in Santiago and family at home. 5 years ago I needed to communicate through TeachingChile in order to get through to my family, and I had to wait until the next day to get to an internet cafe to be able to call home. This time I was able to email people directly and communicate via Whatsapp. What a difference 5 years and having a smartphone makes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After about 15 minutes, I decided to go up and check on my apartment. The doormen told me that the elevators were working, so I decided to take it up rather than walking up 20 flights of stairs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another person joined me in the elevator, and we chatted until he got off at the 13th floor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the doors closed, it seemed like an eternity to get to the 20th floor. Why was that?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, things started shaking again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I felt it, and I was able to see thinks shaking through the cracks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Luckily, the elevator still made it up to the 20th floor and opened. I went right to the doorway of the stairs and stood there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While I was there, the shaking continued. I heard one of my neighbors calling out in despair. Eventually he went to his doorway, and I talked with him and told him it was going to be ok. He has family that lives along the coast, and he wasn't able to talk to them. I motioned for him to come over to me, and I gave him a hug and told him it was going to be ok. I told him we'd charge my cell phone once the shaking stopped and we'd get in contact with them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few moments later he went back inside, and the shaking stopped. I checked my apartment, and only one thing was knocked out of place. I moved my TV down to the ground and secured it between the TV rack and coffee table, and then I proceeded to pack an emergency bag.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my friends invited me over, so after turning off the water and taking my bag I went right back out the door. (But this time I took the stairs down.) I arrived about 20 minutes later.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We talked about our experiences with the earthquake and watched the live coverage while we had our cell phones out. We spent the time updating Facebook and messaging people to see how everyone was doing. There were some more aftershocks, and each time we gauged if we should stay where we were or go outside. Luckily we were able to stay inside for all of them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They set up an air mattress for me, and I went to sleep around 12:30. It was difficult to sleep given the continued aftershocks, and one was so strong that we thought we´d have to go out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I set my alarm for 6, and after thanking my friends for having me over I headed out. After a taxi ride and quick breakfast and shower, I was back out the door for my only class of the day at 8 AM. I had communicated with the student to confirm the class, and seeing that we were both fine we still met.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We spent about half the class discussing the earthquake. When I returned home, I took a look around the city. Everything looked pretty normal, and I doubt that there was any major damage in Santiago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have enough food in, but just to be on the safe side I decided to give the supermarket a try. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 2010 when I went it was a madhouse, so I was prepared to wait in long lines and to be patient. The smaller grocery store Unimarc was almost empty and fully stocked. I picked up some essentials and then went home for some much needed rest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have my emergency bag packed and ready by the door in case I need it, but I think the worst has come and gone. Despite my good fortune, there are coastal areas that have been ravaged just a few days before the country's independence day holiday. If you have the means, there are organizations to donate to in order to help people that are now homeless or without running water or electricity.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll update with more details in case anything else happens.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One more test to show how strong we are.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-55362994396444777942015-08-24T14:17:00.000-05:002015-08-24T14:17:12.337-05:00Weekend Travels, A Potluck Dinner, Some Despedidas, and the End of Winter<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the exception of two weekend trips, things have been pretty uneventful lately.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end of July there was the IATEFL conference in Concepción. I took the bus down on Friday morning and arrived that night. I stayed with the same friend that I stayed with for the wedding back in 2013, and it was great catching up. We went out to a traditional restaurant for dinner on Friday night, which means seafood, fish, and more seafood. I ordered <i>chicken a lo pobre</i>. (I'm already fishy enough).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The conference started bright and early on Saturday morning, and I went around to some workshops with friends. I also saw one of my former colleagues from Universidad de Talca as well as some amazing teachers from previous conferences. I really enjoyed the professional collaboration and seeing what is happening with English teaching around Chile. My workshop went well, and I had about 30 people attend. The conference was supposed to go til about 8 at night, but by 7 I was worn out and headed out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That night I went out for dinner and karaoke with friends, and I had a great time. We spoke in Spanish, and I was able to understand and participate in 90% of the conversation. It was a really satisfying feeling, and it helped me realize how much my Spanish has improved compared to when I arrived in 2010.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Sunday we slept in and then hit up Papa John's for lunch. This was my first time eating it outside of Santiago, and it was a nice lunch to have before getting back on the bus to return to <i>el gran capital</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After having paid off my big student loan and managing to establish stability working independently, I decided that I had earned a weekend trip to the beach. I cancelled my Saturday morning class and moved my Sunday morning class to the evening, and I made my way to Viña del Mar on Friday afternoon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I stayed at the same hostel that I stayed at in December of last year, and it was really nice. It's quiet and in a safe and central location, and there were some really interesting people there. I shared a room with a guy from Germany that had just arrived to spend a semester in Viña, and there were 2 women from Germany studying in Santiago. It was cool to talk about their experiences and impressions of Chile,and we had a little German breakfast corner which allowed me to practice my German. At one point the guy turned to me and asked if I had any idea of how loud I snore, and we all got a good laugh out of it. The hostel owner is also a great guy, and he remembered me from my last visit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Besides the socializing, I enjoyed some nice meals, journaling and working at coffee shops, and just general exploring of the area. The air is cleaner there, and it´s much calmer than Santiago. While I love my work, working 7 days a week starts to wear on you after a while. Going to Viña was such a nice change from the hustle and bustle of the city, and I'm glad I got away for a bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyone that knows me well or that reads my blog regularly knows that I enjoy bringing people together, and so I hosted a potluck dinner a few weeks ago. I explained the concept to my Chilean friends, and some of them seemed puzzled that it wouldn't be ok to just bring potato chips. Others thought it was strange that they would make some food that they liked but then have to share it for other people, and some thought that they had to prepare food for 15 people. Explaining it seemed a bit strange to me since Chilean culture values the community over the individual, but in the end it was a success. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About 12 people made it, and there was a mix of chicken, mac and cheese, Iranian food, cole slaw, beef stronganof, nutella crepes, leche asada, apple crumble, and a few other things that I'm forgetting at the moment. It was an interesting mix of people, and I'm thinking of making it an annual event to bring people together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the great things about the expat life is meeting really interesting people. One of the challenges is then knowing that those people may one day return to their country of origin or move on to another place. This is the case with a few of my friends. Rudolf is returning to the Netherlands with his Chilean girlfriend, and Martin is moving to Germany with his Chilean girlfriend. Because of other social engagements and travel plans I wasn't able to attend their official <i>despedidas</i> (farewell celebrations), but I still made a point to meet up with them one last time. Them moving away makes me realize how much I value their friendships, and I'm hoping to stay in contact and eventually visit them on my next trip to Europe.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but not least, winter is coming to an end. The weather has been much warmer than normal, and talking with friends we are all surprised that June was pretty cold but that July and August were quite mild. There has also been very little rain in comparison to previous years, which unfortunately doesn't help the pollution and air quality.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">September is around the corner, and soon everyone will be in a festive mood for the upcoming 18 holiday. There will be empanadas, wine, pisco, fondas, and lots of cueca. It will be a nice way to celebrate the start of spring.</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-29986943856537680882015-07-22T20:58:00.003-05:002015-07-22T20:58:56.712-05:00A Long Overdue Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm back to the blogging world!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After an absence of almost 3 months, I'm updating my blog.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what happened to me? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, a few things. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First off, I decided to focus on some personal and professional development. This has meant more reading, listening to podcasts, journaling, and connecting with other English teachers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end of each day I felt mentally exhausted, and so I preferred to spend time watching TV or doing some other mindless activity on my own. Such an attitude doesn't lend itself well to keeping a blog updated regularly, unfortunately.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this time, I have come to some realizations.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been reading a book about being introverted, and it has been really interesting. Not only do introverts (like me) have different preferences about how they spend their time, but they also think differently. They process information differently, and even their physiological makeup is different. These differences account for differences in energy levels, communication styles, and a myriad of other things. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The book has helped me realize that I'm not a strange or bad person if I want to spend a quiet weekend mostly to myself. It's not strange that if I'm out at a social event that I feel tired after 2 or 3 hours and am ready to go home. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another realization is that one of the most important relationships you can have is with yourself. I think that being able to spend time by yourself, find activities that interest and nourish you as a person, and not need to depend on others for happiness is an important accomplishment to achieve in life. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The third (and perhaps most important) realization is the reminder that I got from a podcast that a person's happiness largely depends on the connections that a person develops with others. For some people it is very easy to withdraw from social situations and keep to yourself, but it's not always the healthiest thing to do. During this time, I have made a conscious effort to connect with my friends and spend time together, and they have also made an effort to be sure that I get out and stay social.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what else has happened over this time period?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some very positive things!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. I paid off one of my student loans.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyone that knows me personally has probably heard me talk about the loans that I took out to attend graduate school, and over the years I have felt frustrated to be paying back an unsubsidized loan that accrued interest every single day regardless of if I was working or unemployed, healthy or sick. I decided that I wanted to have this particular loan paid off by the end of the year, and as I made payments I realized that I was closer to paying it off than I had realized. I made my last payment on July 3rd.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Chile won the American Cup.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chile hosted the American Cup this year, which meant a huge influx of tourists. It also meant that there was a lot of traffic around my neighborhood before, during, and after each game. Chile won round after round, and each time the victory was celebrated with honking horns, celebratory chanting, and drunken revelry. In the final it was Chile versus Argentina, and when Chile won the city exploded in celebration. The game happened on the 4th of July, and knowing that the game was scheduled to end at about 7 or so I decided to just stay in and recharge my batteries that day. It was a good decision after hearing about people trying to travel from one part of the city to another after the game finished.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. I I was selected to give a workshop at the IATEFL Chile conference in Concepción this weekend.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I always enjoy going to conferences and getting to share teaching strategies and ideas, and being selected to present this year is a huge honor. This will be my first weekend trip outside of Santiago since I returned in February, so I'm really looking forward to it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. I've been able to start a gym routine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have some new classes located in downtown Santiago, and I have a 2 and a half hour break between some of them. This allows me enough time to get to the gym, work out for an hour, shower and change, and run a quick errand or two before my next class. My schedule will allow for me to do this 4 days a week, so my goal is to get to the gym 3 days a week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To make up for all the text in beginning of the post, here are some pictures of social gatherings/events that have happened over the past 3 months:</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150702_180438_zpsofgubszb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150702_180438_zpsofgubszb.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Moe's Tavern</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150704_202642_zpse9ojblcw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150704_202642_zpse9ojblcw.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the fireworks from my apartment after Chile won the American Cup</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150625_192351_zpszlhiukcd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150625_192351_zpszlhiukcd.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A burger at Hard Rock Cafe in Santiago</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150718_140822_zpsbdhk93nr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150718_140822_zpsbdhk93nr.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vanilla tea and pumpkin pie at a new coffee shop</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150428_191300_zps7mfk7tjj.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150428_191300_zps7mfk7tjj.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meeting up with Cristobal. We were both exchange students in Germany 15 years ago.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG-20150503-WA0000_zpsofebexyy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG-20150503-WA0000_zpsofebexyy.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the polka dot art exhibition with Ellen</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_111155_zps3odss8i1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_111155_zps3odss8i1.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A room of changing colors in the polka dot art exhibition</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_105309_zpsuiusuqzk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_105309_zpsuiusuqzk.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An interesting room in the art exhibition</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_112305_zpslgzhtall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150503_112305_zpslgzhtall.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the polka dot sticker room. Everything was covered in stickers.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150523_190919_zpsx9m35lyl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150523_190919_zpsx9m35lyl.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A dance troupe performs caporiera at an Africa Day celebration</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150611_125046_zpsdfmwow6m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20150611_125046_zpsdfmwow6m.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having fun at a cat cafe</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope everyone up in the Northern Hemisphere is enjoying the summer! Until my next update.</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-88948242089410267912015-04-26T16:55:00.002-05:002015-04-26T16:55:34.134-05:00Following your dreams<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The idea of following your dream has been something that has guided me throughout life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I remember being introduced to the double bass in middle school and deciding that I wanted to learn to play it really well. I began practicing at school each day, convinced my parents to let me take a school bass home over the summer to be able to practice, took lessons, and played in as many orchestras as I could. I was very fortunate to have the unwavering support of my parents in the form of attending concerts and driving me all over the area for lessons, rehearsals, auditions, and concerts. I also had some inspiring teachers that always believed in me and helped me to become the best musician I could be. By the time I left the States in 2010 I had played in my high school orchestra in New Jersey, South Jersey Youth Orchestra, New Jersey All State Orchestra, some community orchestras, and even the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another vivid memory of mine was meeting some exchange students when I was in high school. I went to a presentation about being an exchange student during my freshman or sophomore year, and it sounded like a great experience. I had this dream about living abroad, learning a new language, making new friends, and being immersed in another culture. At that time I decided it was something that I couldn't do for financial reasons. The following year I met and became good friends with an exchange student from Spain, and it rekindled my interest in the idea. I decided that I was going to apply and see what happened with it. In the end, I was accepted to the program and was an exchange student in Germany for a year. During that time I lived with host families, attended school, played in the school orchestra, and traveled. Some Germans there told me that there was no way I could master German in one year, and that lit a fire in me that made me even more determined to master the language. By the end of the year, I was fluent and at the point that I was dreaming in German. I once again had the support of my family to help make the experience happen, but this time I also had the Rotary club that sent and received me, my host families that opened their homes to me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I didn't see myself being happy staying in New Jersey or anywhere nearby to go to college. I didn't know what it was, but something about California was calling out to me. With the help of a generous financial aid package, I was able to fulfill my dream of going away for college. Meeting people from different parts of the country and even different parts of the world broadened my horizons even further. Being so focused on my studies, not having a car, and also needing to work didn't allow me to have as active of a social life as I would have liked to have, but I still have great memories from my undergraduate studies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During my time in college I knew I wanted to travel and see more of the world. After having spent a semester in Spain, I decided I didn't want to go back to Europe. Something about Chile was calling to me. While I was still in Spain during the spring semester of my junior year I started applying to a program to teach in Chile. By the time I got back the program requirements had changed to needing to go to Asia for 2 years first, and I didn't want to do that. I made contact with someone with a bilingual nursery school and wanted to give that a try, but that fell through. I also applied for a Fulbright to be a teaching assistant at Universidad Católica for a year, but my application was shot down in the preliminary round.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At that point I figured that this was a sign for me to start my teaching career in California. Due to a desire to expand my teaching skills and also make myself recession proof, I got my Masters in Teaching and my multiple subject teaching credentials after having gotten my single subject for Spanish and German. The economy in California was already on the downturn by the time I started teaching in the fall of 2006, and after moving from one school ,city, apartment, and subject matter to another for 3 years in a row it was obvious that my opportunities in California weren't going to improve.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The hard work and constantly getting laid off was exhausting and beyond frustrating. I wasn't happy, and I decided it was the time to go after the dream of traveling and living abroad again. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chasing my dream led me to Santiago, and after a brief stint as a teaching assistant as a colegio I got into institute work and began to pave my own path here. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Over the 5 years here I've met people that have also followed their dreams. A dating couple that I became friends with grew tired of Santiago and decided to move to Istanbul. Another couple of friends that I met really wanted to experience life in Asia and moved to Cambodia and Thailand. Other people I know weren't happy living in New Jersey. After putting in a lot of hard work into searching for the right place for them, they made the move to another part of the country where they could have more space to grow their own food and live in a calmer area. I have met other people on my travels with dreams of expanding their small tour companies and hostels to be able to show more people the beauty of South America, and yet others have taught themselves how to repair electronics and build furniture but lack the funding to get their own business off the ground. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No matter at which stage people are at in their pursuit of their dreams, hearing the dreams and what drives people is something that is really inspiring for me. It reminds me that I have those dreams too and no matter what other people say or think that my dreams are worth chasing and that I am capable of realizing them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One person that has been particularly inspiring for me is a good friend of mine named Ellen Dizzia. I met her when she was working as an administrator at a low income school in Santiago managing the English program, and she worked incredibly hard to give the kids at the school the best experience possible with an exposure to English. Since then she has moved on to form an NGO called Access Inglés. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The gap between the haves and have nots in Chile is large, and one of the roots causes is access to a quailty education. In short, Access Inglés wants to improve English instruction for schools in Santiago. Ellen has worked tirelessly for the past four and a half years to develop the program and help end the inequality with access to quality English instruction for students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. When opportunities have arisen, I've donated resources to the school and done what I can to help her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She has started a fundraising campaign in order to help the program continue to grow. If you'd like to read more about it, click <a href="http://accessingles.wix.com/english" target="_blank">here</a> to visit the website and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/accessingleschile" target="_blank">here</a> for the Facebook page.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you'd like to read more about the fundraiser effort and/or contribute to it you can click <a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/developing-english-programs-to-decrease-inequality" target="_blank">here</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To give full disclosure, I am listed on the website as one of the teachers supporting the program. I am donating a portion of the money I make from any classes I receive through Access Inglés back to the program. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I think back to my past dreams and the people that I've met and their dreams, I also feel conflicted as I hear the voices of naysayers in the back of my mind that suggest I change careers or move back to the States. Seeing others achieving their dreams around me just inspires me more to follow my dreams and create my own path.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you'd like some inspiration about following your dreams and creating the life you want, I recommend reading <i>No Opportunity Wasted </i>by Phil Keoghan. He writes about almost dying as a teenager and then vowing to pursue his dreams, no matter how crazy or difficult they seemed. He lays out a roadmap for how to do so as well as common themes he associates with doing so. It's a really easy read, and he includes anecdotes from his own life as well as others he has helped to realize their dreams. If you want to learn more about it you can visit the website Phil has created <a href="http://www.noopportunitywasted.com/" target="_blank">here</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some thoughts to finish this post:</span><br />
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<img height="240" src="http://www.quotesvalley.com/images/24/whether-you-think-you-can-or-think-you-cant-youre-right.jpg" width="320" /><br />
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<img alt="Image result for it's the possibility of having a dream" height="320" 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" 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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My dream is broad. I want to help people reach their goals in relation to English. I want to inspire fellow educators and help improve the teaching of English in Chile. I want to teach people, help them expand, and inspire them to chase after their dreams. I want to help people see that you are capable of doing anything you put your mind to. Doing these things, I hope I can bring about positive change in the world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what is your dream?</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-12439654368091461492015-04-10T13:55:00.000-05:002015-04-10T13:55:06.713-05:00A visit home, some challenges, Easter, and a new beginning<div dir="ltr">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I arrived back in Santiago the third week of February, and a lot has happened since then.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My trip back to the States was all about connecting and reconnecting. I saw the family and friends that I usually get to see, but I also reconnected with people I hadn't seen in years. A friend from high school had been on Jeopardy a few weeks before I got back, and my dad saved it on DVR for me to see. I got to meet up with her and met her 2 year old daughter, and it was so nice catching up since we had last seen each other in 2009. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another friend from college who quite possibly saved my life during a motorcycle accident now is going to vet school in the area. (In 2006 was hit by driver who wasn't looking where she was going and knocked off my motorcycle and was lying in the street. My friend parked her car in front of me, preventing any cars that might not have seen me from running me over while lying on the ground.) Although we had been in contact via Facebook over the years, this was our first time seeing each other since the accident. She got to experience the magic of New Jersey diners, and I got to embarrass her with the waiters and waitresses singing her Happy Birthday, as her birthday had been a few days before then.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another friend got married in September, and I traveled out to Pennsylvania to spend time with her and her husband. They took me on a culinary tour of the area, and we also went to an arcade game place. You got a card and was able to play as many games as you wanted, and you just paid based on the amount of time you were there when you left. I beat The Simpsons game for the first time and got to play Smash TV and Paperboy, both games that I enjoyed playing as a kid. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I reconnected with some other friends from my time when I first came to Chile that have since moved to San Diego, and another friend from my exchange year in Germany was also in the San Diego area. I stayed with a friend that's interested in moving to Chile, so we had some things in common to talk about, and getting out to the West Coast was a really nice experience given the cold weather in New Jersey and since I hadn't been to San Diego in over 5 years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the same time, I have mixed feelings whenever I go "home". </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I say home with quotation marks because I feel like that concept of home is a fuzzy one for me. I'm from New Jersey and I consider that my home, but I have an apartment, job, friends, and life in Chile. I also consider it home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back at my dad's house I have a lot of books, teaching materials, and general things that I own. Every time I go home my dad asks me to organize them or do something with them. Most of them are in the basement so they aren't bothering him, but they are collecting dust and taking up space.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've always told myself that I need to hang onto my teaching materials. For those of you that don't know, teachers are usually pack rats. The textbooks that schools provide (if they provide one) aren't always motivating, accurate, or updated, and as you grow you develop materials that fit your teaching style and student population. Even thought I taught a relatively short time in the States, I have things to teach elementary school, Spanish, and German.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have this internal debate with myself. Part of me says that I should give these things away to teachers that can use them now. Another part of me says I should hang onto them in case I need to move back.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this visit home, I painstakingly sorted through some of my things and eliminated one of the bookcases in my room. Part of this was possible because with my new job I have an office where I can store and use my books about teaching methods, which I took back with me to Chile. This then allowed space on another bookshelf to put books from the one I had just gotten rid of.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's still a lot more to sort through and decide what to do with. I really thought why this has been so hard for me to do. Having things occupying space in my dad's house gives me a sense of connection to one of my homes. The way I see it, I have a foot placed solidly in Chile and a bit less solidly in the States. By giving away or getting rid of the things I have at my dad's house, I feel like I would be lifting that foot up off the ground in the States. This would leave me with the option of putting both my feet down on the ground in Chile or standing on one foot in Chile, not sure what to do with my other foot. I think both of those ideas are a bit more for me to deal with than I can handle at the moment, hence me dragging my feet on my dad's request each time I'm home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this last visit home I had the same feelings as the past few times. I feel like a tourist in the same area where I grew up. I did a pretty good job of occupying my free time, but another feeling came up. This time I felt like I'm drifting away from people. My lifestyle of living outside the States, being able to hop on a bus and get to the beach for a day or inexpensive weekend trip, being able to rely on public transportation instead of maintaining a car, and other factors are so different from other people's lifestyles. As time goes on, with some people it seems like you have less and less in common and less and less to talk about. You grow and change in different rates and in different ways. Unfortunately it's not always easy to deal with these things.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was great returning to Santiago, but I faced some unexpected challenges.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In early March I had an accident and had to go to the emergency room. I was walking towards the bus stop, and when I saw people starting to board the bus I started to run to try to catch the bus. There was a hose on the ground that I didn't see, and I fell forward on my chin and my teeth went into my lip. My white dress shirt had some varying shades of red due to the blood. I laid there for a minute or so trying to figure out what to do, and a kid jumped out of his father's car and helped me up. They took me to the clinica, and there a dentist took some X rays. My teeth were fine, but I needed stitches in my lower lip and my right hand was scratched up from the fall. For about a week and a half I could only eat soft food, but after that I got the stitches out and I'm back to normal. I thought everything would be fine with my insurance, but since a dentist took care of me they considered everything as dental work that was done. My insurance doesn't cover emergency dental work, and so none of it was covered by my insurance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A week after the accident I started having problems with my phone. I checked it one day, and the screen was a scramble of images and colors, and shortly after that the screen would only show a lovely shade of black. I could hear that I was receiving notifications and the touch screen still worked, but not being able to see anything rendered it useless. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I tried going around to get it fixed, but after visiting Samsung's repair shop and 3 other stores here I gave up. I contacted Amazon since Samsung in the United States wasn't able to do anything, and luckily they agreed to give me a refund if I mailed the phone back. (I had had the phone for less than 6 months when the problem happened.) I didn't feel confident mailing it back to the States from Chile, but luckily a friend of mine was traveling to the States and mail it back from there. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the end things worked out fine, I got a new phone down here, and I got my refund. I was just left feeling anxious, as there was a period of almost 3 weeks when I wasn't able to see any of the notifications I received. I lost all my Whatsapp conversations, so I don't know what I missed during that time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but certainly not least, I was excited to start my new job as the coordinator of the language program of the Santiago campus at Universidad de Talca, but in the end it wasn't the right position for me. I don't have any administrative experience, and I naively thought that it was something I'd be able to pick up and learn on the go. In addition to managing the program (scheduling classes between 3 different schools, dealing with constantly changing schedules, creating an annual plan, opening a tutoring center, overseeing the tutoring center of 5 different campuses, managing conversation classes and the problems of over 400 students), I had to teach 7 courses. The stress got to me, and my anxiety was so bad that my hands were shaking at work, I couldn't sleep, and I couldn't concentrate to do any work. My health was taking a serious toll, and I had only been on the job for a little over a month.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I called up my boss last Friday (it was a holiday here), and I resigned. I had mixed emotions about it. I felt like I was letting the university down and that I was abandoning the students I had been teaching. I felt like a failure for not having been able to live up to the expectations of my bosses and manage the program. The hardest part was packing up my office and writing a letter to the students explaining that I was leaving. I went in early Monday morning to clean out my office and drop off my keys, and as I walked home I ran into one of my students. It was really hard to see him and know that he was going to be without a professor until they find a replacement. I also had this dream in my mind that I would one day be a university professor, specifically the type that pushes his students to achieve their dreams and see them move on to accomplish their dreams. With my resignation this dream came to an end.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite the challenges, some good came out of the situation. I had a great time teaching the summer course in Talca, and I'm still in touch with my former students there. Some of them are now starting their musical careers and have moved to Santiago, and it's so great seeing them pursuing their dreams. I met some amazing teachers in Talca, and the sense of community and collaboration there was inspiring. The staff at the campus in Santiago was great, and they did what they could to support me and help me with the job. I also got an insider's look at the inner workings of a university of Chile, and I think it's quite a unique experience that not many foreigners would normally have. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but not least, the contract that I had was to issue boletas and didn't have any health benefits or retirement contributions. Essentially, I was an independent contractor. While that doesn't sound like a good situation, a contract of that type allows employees to be fired at any moment. On the flip side, employees can also quit a job at any moment. It became quite clear to me that I didn't have the necessary skills for the job, I was miserable, and my health was suffering, so this allowed me to get out and opens things up for a more qualified person to take over.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this time, I had great support from my family at home as well as my friends here. I organized a barbecue to celebrate the beginning of the new job the second week of March, and we had a great time.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGfBZibQ_BqdFDiVyN7Gna14OX5kEqgzxwBckwvSYrKO6KFRfsm01EE6PvOWUVDxPCJ4a6t7CaIgTDmqtxvO0ecwtUKM-itzuq_O643BIf_wV4OXMXUuPqFcusX9d2FfipbkRVTlln8F6p/s1600/asado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGfBZibQ_BqdFDiVyN7Gna14OX5kEqgzxwBckwvSYrKO6KFRfsm01EE6PvOWUVDxPCJ4a6t7CaIgTDmqtxvO0ecwtUKM-itzuq_O643BIf_wV4OXMXUuPqFcusX9d2FfipbkRVTlln8F6p/s1600/asado.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With Martin and my CORFO students from 2012</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpcc344pJ7UiYucYBxq-aisw0ZYImcCHNaOery6lhxR2YDb_2wHE7WzsICvuC6tQ9UT4wkklxZRc7sIKB1km3e1NtxTR23B9BmkUGCkG4omAIYb8X3MWSIldVBj6Mh6MvFJitpAQI8r9F/s1600/asado2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpcc344pJ7UiYucYBxq-aisw0ZYImcCHNaOery6lhxR2YDb_2wHE7WzsICvuC6tQ9UT4wkklxZRc7sIKB1km3e1NtxTR23B9BmkUGCkG4omAIYb8X3MWSIldVBj6Mh6MvFJitpAQI8r9F/s1600/asado2.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Friends from all over</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My friends also talked me through the difficulties I was having, visited me, and made a special effort to spend time with me, and it was really helpful having their sympathetic ears and support.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then it was Easter Sunday. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was unconventional in the sense that there were no Easter baskets, no Easter bunny, and no visit to church. I met up with a friend and we walked to the top of Cerro San Cristobal, and in the afternoon friends came over for drinks, food, and to play Settlers of Catan.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCr_rl6SbdFFOArc-jIAp85WCbN3VB3Azkmom9L6kyRGIN6PBzEWZ-SWBW_cDoMpI6cKfDkWtt6bgkRZKGYRhdQnP9yXm5fyXIrsK6gL4VYrk6et0AsXlBcubBtmKNV1wNdHdywWri4bs/s1600/settlers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCr_rl6SbdFFOArc-jIAp85WCbN3VB3Azkmom9L6kyRGIN6PBzEWZ-SWBW_cDoMpI6cKfDkWtt6bgkRZKGYRhdQnP9yXm5fyXIrsK6gL4VYrk6et0AsXlBcubBtmKNV1wNdHdywWri4bs/s1600/settlers.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Settlers of Catan with friends. Thanks to Rodrigo and his selfie stick for the picture!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In another way, however, it was a bit conventional. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not a very religious person, but Easter was a time of resurrection of Christ. It's springtime, a time when flowers bloom and flourish. I feel like the same is happening for me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After thinking it through, I don't think that having a conventional job is for me. I like being my own boss, deciding which classes I'm going to teach, and which projects I'm going to work on. I like the flexibility of deciding my own hours and workload.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So this Easter season is a time of rebirth for me. It's a time of taking control of my professional career . It's a time to reestablish healthy eating habits, an acceptable work life balance, an exercise routine, and help people meet their professional goals in relation to English.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This new beginning is exciting for me. I don't know how it is all going to play out, but I know that in the end everything will be fine. In order to start the new adventure I'm meeting with friends tonight for Mexican food and margaritas to celebrate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now I just need to strap myself in for the ride.</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-61066949845399460582015-02-18T08:07:00.001-05:002015-02-18T08:07:22.935-05:005 years in Chile<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">February 18th, 2015 marks 5 years since I came to Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm actually in the States for a visit home now, so I'm not in Chile on the official 5 year anniversary. If I had realized it when I booked my ticket, I would have tried to fly into Chile on the 18th instead of the 20th.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Doing anything for 5 years is a significant part of a person's life, and it makes me think of what has happened over this time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This question was actually brought up by one of my friends a few months ago when we were walking up cerro san cristobal. She asked me what has changed in Chile since I had arrived.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what's the answer? Well, here's my best shot at it broken down by category:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Economic Development</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The landscape in Santiago has changed. A lot of apartment buildings have been built, and it feels like the city has been taken over my constant construction. Every afternoon when I look out my apartment window now I see a huge crane constructing a new building on the other side of the street.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition, new companies and businesses have been constructed. When I first came to Chile, there was a ton of construction around the intersection of Avenida Providencia when it connects to Avenida Vitacura. I remember the sidewalk being blocked off and having to walk the long way around to teach classes at Banco de Chile. That is now the Costanera Center, which is a huge shopping mall.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There was also construction happening at Plaza Ñuñoa, which is about a 15 minute walk from my apartment. That construction created an underground parking area and about 8 new restaurants. The parking has attracted more and more people to the area, and I think it has helped the businesses in the area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now that I think of it, there has been even more construction. Portal Ñuñoa used to just have a Jumbo supermarket, but it became a mini mall with Paris, a movie theater, food court, and other smaller stores. Mall Plaza Egaña was also built as the first "green" mall in the area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The arrival of new businesses is another thing that I´ve noticed. Due to my love of food, it has been easiest to notice the restaurants that have arrived. Among them are Dennys, Cinnabon, Johnny Rockets, Wendy´s, and probably a few others I´m forgetting. I´ve also noticed the expansion of a few others: Ruby Tuesday, TGIFridays, and Papa John´s Pizza come to mind. While these places help stimulate the economy, it makes me wonder if they are causing Chile to lose its cultural identity and also contribute to an unhealthy lifestyle.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Public Health</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About 2 years ago Chile instituted a smoking ban on inside public areas, including bars and restaurants. Some places have an outside smoking area, while others don´t. People seemed angry about it at first, but from what I´ve seen they have been respectful of the new law. I don´t know if it has resulted in people to quit smoking or fewer people to start in the first place. Cigarette prices are still pretty low in Chile, so it still remains affordable to people.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometime in 2014 Santiago instituted a program to encourage exercise and walking. I don´t remember the exact name, but for particular stretches of main streets they close half of the street and create a detour for cars. It happens on Sundays from 10:00 until 2:00, and people can walk, run, rollerblade, or bike without having to worry about traffic. There are traffic guards that direct traffic at intersections as well as small rest areas set up with water coolers at specific places throughout the stretches, and it´s nice walking through the area and seeing people getting out to exercise and enjoy being outside. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Education</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Educational changes have been underway. The student protests that started in 2011 where huge and dominated the headlines from 2011 to 2013 or so. Students were fed up with getting an inferior education just because they didn't have money as well as being enslaved to a job just to pay back the loans they took out to study. The loans are so bad that some people work their entire life just to pay them back. Their persistence paid off, and eventually some of the leaders made their way into Congress. Government officials had no choice but to listen, and free and subsidized education is going to be phased in starting in 2016. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Transportation</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Transportation has changed too. Some new bus lines have been added. The 422 passes through La Reina and Ñuñoa and connects it to downtown Santiago, and it's a bus that I take frequently when traveling to downtown. The 106 has been extended to go past Manuel Montt and now goes all the way out to Pajaritos, and the 126 is an additional bus that was added with the same route as the old 106 that runs from the morning rush hour until the evening rush hour. Other routes have been modified to better serve the traffic of commuters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not sure if it's every train or just some trains, but there is air conditioning on trains on line 1. Some people have protested that it serves just some of the people that take the subway and think that putting restrooms into the subway stations would have been a better use of the money. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And as anyone who lives in Santiago knows, the cost of public transportation has been steadily increasing. When I arrived in February 2010, I believe the most expensive fare was about 500 pesos. Now that same fare is 720 pesos. While this seems like a small amount for 5 years, it´s over a 40% increase. When you travel and take public transportation multiple times in a day, it adds up quickly. People say that people fare evasion is a big problem, and it can be infuriating seeing people sneaking on the bus without paying. At the same time, with the minimum wage in Chile commuting to and from work on the typical fare consuming over 30% of a person's salary I feel that I have to suspend judgement of those people.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />Relations with the USA</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An easier visa process to enter the United States for Chileans was a big announcement last year. Chileans can now enter the United States with a passport and by paying for a tourist visa that is valid for 90 days.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Prior to this, they had to complete an application, show that they had a certain amount of money in their bank account, and go through an interview with someone in English to get their visa. Chileans have told me the luck of the draw and the mood of the person who interviewed you that ultimately determined if you were granted the visa or not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This will improve international relations between the USA and Chile, and it's exciting to know that travel to the States is now easier for my friends and students here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what's in store for Chile in the future? I'm not a fortune teller, so I guess we'll have to wait and see!</span></div>
Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-72725428976879141832015-02-04T10:13:00.000-05:002015-02-04T10:51:46.021-05:00A wedding, a new city, summer school, and Gringolandia<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">January was a whirlwind month.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It started off with a friend's wedding. Erin came to Chile at the same time as me, and we both worked at the same colegio through TeachingChile. She has been a great friend over the years here, always willing to listen and give advice when I was struggling with a decision or difficult situation. The celebration was in the backyard of a family member's house, and it was amazing to see people flying in from California, Canada, and even France to be there. It was a really beautiful event and they are such a nice couple, and I felt honored to have been there to take part.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The wedding was on a Saturday night, and the following day I was off to Talca to prepare for the training and summer course I would be teaching.. I already had my bags packed and was pretty much ready to go, but I still get anxious leading up to any type of trip that I'm forgetting something.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The bus was comfortable with air conditioning and wifi, and we even got a drink and snack included with the bus fare. My boss met me at the bus station, and she showed me a bit of the campus and got me to my hotel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The three weeks went by quickly. For the first two weeks we had professional development in the morning, and I got to meet the other people that work at the university. There are actually campuses in Talca, Cuircó, Linares, Colchagua, and Santiago, so it was a convergence of people that don´t always see each other. I really enjoyed getting to know the others and being in an academic atmosphere talking about effective language teaching and seeing what the university is doing with language teaching. Everyone was really friendly and helpful, and I feel very fortunate to be a part of such a great team.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the same time, I was also teaching a summer course to undergraduates. It was a really interesting experience, as I had never taught a summer course before. I had an eclectic group of students. Some of them only had the summer class left to graduate. Others decided to take the course in summer to be able to focus on English, and I don´t know if it was true for my students but some of them take the course in summer because they failed it during the academic year. They also came from a variety of different majors. I had a class of musicians, accountants, agronomists, and even business and a dental student. The students made an effort to get to know each other, and they were such a nice group. Three of them had birthdays during the class, so we sang for them. The music students planned ahead when they knew a birthday was coming, and they sang Happy Birthday with harmonies based on their vocal ranges, and it was so amazing to hear.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was strict with the students and gave them homework to do. Homework isn´t considered a part of their grade, so I wasn´t sure if they were going to follow through and do it. All of them did almost every single assignment, and it really helped them develop and improve their writing. In the end all of the students passed, and they celebrated with a barbecue at the end of the course. It was a really nice way to finish the experience.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The days in Talca were long. We started at 8:30 and had meetings until 1 or 2 each day, and then I taught the summer course from 3:15 to 6:30. I was pretty exhausted by the time I finished, and so I didn´t have much desire to go out and explore Talca during the week except to get something to eat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So what is Talca like you wonder? It's smaller and calmer than Santiago. The buses are smaller, and they only cost 500 pesos. You can flag them down anywhere along their set route and get off at any point along the route. There appear to be more family-owned businesses and a sense of community with people attending church each night of the week, others standing outside talking with neighbors and kids playing in the streets. There are a few malls, but the one I went to was quite small. There are some movie theaters and a few big supermarkets, but beyond that there isn't too much of a big city vibe. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did, however, find one place that made an impression on me: a restaurant based on Homer Simpson.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In contrast to the actualy city of Talca, there's plenty to see and do in the surrounding area. Coworkers told me about taking the old train from Talca to the beach town of Constitución, hot springs to the north, <i>la ruta del vino </i>(the wine trail), and a nice national park called <i>siete tazas.</i> I stayed in Talca for one of the weekends I was there, and so I decided to do a beach trip that Sunday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The train left at 7:30 in the morning, so I was up early and got to the train station by 6:50. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was greeted by a long line of Chileans that were in line buying their tickets. I was getting excited as I got closer to the front of the line. Then four people in front of me the tickets sold out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It would be an understatement to say that the people in line weren't happy. They immediately started complaining to the woman at the ticket counter about how it was unfair that they couldn't get tickets (there's only one train per day), and she calmly explained to them that there were no more seats on the train and that they have no way of knowing when they are going to sell out. They then turned to the security guard complaining in the same way, and when he didn't have an answer for them they did the same with the man in a suit that was walking into an office next to the ticket counter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I asked them about the possibility of buying tickets online or in advance, and they don't have that capability with the old train system. I feel bad for the families that woke up early with their kids and spent time waiting at the train station, but for me it didn't really matter that much. It ended up being a nice day to walk around, do some journaling, and relax at the pool.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before I knew it, the three weeks were over and I was saying goodbye to Talca and everyone there. It was nice getting out of Santiago for a bit and being in a place with a slower pace of life. I will definitely miss the collaboration and community that I experienced on a daily basis in Talca, but at the same time I was excited to return back to Santiago and start seeing how things are going to shape up with the English program at the Santiago campus. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back in Santiago I got to visit the campus, and it is really nice. It is modern, and the classrooms are large with whiteboards and projectors. The building is air-conditioned, and I got to meet a few of the directors of each of the different schools. I got a campus tour and met some of the staff too, and it was nice getting to see my office and the materials I have to work with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had a few days back in Santiago before flying home for a visit, and it was really nice. I got to catch up with friends I hadn't seen in a while, and I did some souvenir shopping.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now I'm back in the States for a visit, and I'm enjoying the time with family and friends as well as the food. I'll update more about that in a few weeks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ciao for now!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-12627451617897590242015-01-01T13:30:00.002-05:002015-01-01T13:30:25.264-05:00Christmas and New Years, 2014 in Review, and a New Beginning<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy New Year everyone!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Christmas holiday and New Year for me has meant summer weather and enjoying some downtime in Santiago. I was worn out from working up to 8 PM on December 23rd that I was content to have time to myself for Christmas Eve and on Christmas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To some people, this might seem strange. While spending holidays with people can be a wonderful experience (especially when you're away from home), it's also a really nice experience to reflect on the year, do some journaling, and decompress from a year's worth of work, growth, and experiences. I also have been having some stomach problems that have left me with frequent bathroom visits, so that complicated things too.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I received a package from home with things I had requested: some cereal and tea, a body scrub, a microwavable egg cooker, some cleaning pads for my Swiffer WetJet, and some Kit Kats. I actually cheated and opened it a week early because the floor was filthy and I needed to clean it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Christmas turned out to be a really nice day. I enjoyed a breakfast with my favorite cereal, made an omelette with the egg cooker, and after calling family I watched some Christmas movies in the early afternoon. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the early evening I went to a volunteer activity with a friend to prepare food for the homeless. I think it's so easy to take everything we have for granted and to forget about others on Christmas. I also think that the materialism has really taken away the message of Christmas, and I wanted to give back. After walking through some winding streets, we came to an old house where the event was taking place. We helped chop up vegetables, and they prepared a soup using huge pots that you could barely fit your arms around (just like you see on TV for restaurants and such). After that we helped make Christmas cookies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More and more people kept coming, and there were literally too many cooks in the kitchen. We had been there for almost 3 hours, so we decided to take off and give the new arrivals a chance to help out. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was so nice to see people coming together that knew each other and that welcomed others to the group. They have been organizing the event and cooking the food and delivering it to the homeless for 10 years, and their dedication to helping others is really inspiring.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for New Years, I was invited to dinner with some friends. It was an interesting mix of Venezuelan food and conversation, and at midnight we had a nice view of the fireworks going off in different areas of the city. I was tired and headed home shortly after midnight. As I was walking out of the building, there was a group of people posing for a picture. I offered to take a picture of them all together, and it turns out they were walking in the same direction I was.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we walked we chatted a bit. I was surprised at how full the streets were in Ñuñoa. There were people wearing colorful wigs, masks, and enjoying drinks while making noise and yelling out about the new year. It seemed everyone was walking towards the Estadio Nacional.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We eventually came to a police barricade, and then I walked up one of the side streets. When I got to the main street of Campo de Deportes, it was like a huge block party. If I hadn't been so tired I would have stuck around and enjoyed it a bit more.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I said my goodbyes and made it to my apartment just in time to see the fireworks at the Estadio Nacional from my window. They were beatiful, but I was tired and it was loud with all the celebrating. Eventually I got to sleep and woke up in 2015.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, how was 2014 as a year for me?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a year of travel. It started in New Jersey and took me on vacation to Costa Rica, reminding me of my love of travel and adventure. A 3 day stopover in Miami prepared me to return to Santiago. Weekend trips to Santa Cruz, Viña del Mar, and El Quisco helped me get out of the city and appreciate the beauty of Chile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a year of professional growth as I started a new job with more responsibility and new challenges, and I worked with great coworkers and excellent students. I worked between two different textbook series to create lessons for 11 different levels of classes, and I also taught individualized classes to people in high positions. I completed midyear and end of the year reports in Spanish, and most meetings in the office were conducted in Spanish. At IATEFL Chile I met some amazingly inspiring people, refueling my desire to keep improving my teaching skills.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was also a year of personal growth. I let some friendships go that weren't contributing to my happiness, and I made new friends that I have more in common with. I've gotten more in touch with my inner thoughts and how they affect my behavior and relationships with people, and I've become more comfortable with expressing how I feel to people. I've become more open-minded when listening to other opinions and have learned to ask questions to better understand another person's opposing viewpoint. I gained an appreciation of the hard work that goes into cooking Peruvian food. I've become more outgoing and social with my friends rather than staying in all the time, and overall I feel much happier and in control of my life than I did a year ago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It certainly wasn't a perfect year. My physical health could be in better shape, and I haven't been very good about exercising or eating healthy. I struggled with some private classes that didn't work out as well as I was hoping, and my financial situation could have been a bit better. Overall though, I'm very satisfied with how the year turned out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One last event put the icing on the cake of 2014. On January 5th I start a new job as professor/coordinator of the English program at the Santiago campus of Universidad de Talca. The Santiago campus opened in 2013, and so the program is relatively small now but growing. I'll be responsible for teaching classes and coordinating the entire program. I'll find out more details when I go down to Talca for a 3 week training and to teach an intensive summer course to some undergraduate students. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sad to leave my old job, but at the same time this will be a new challenge and great experience, adding one more adventure to my experience here in Chile. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you to all of the readers out there and I hope you have a wonderful 2015!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-27334971943866533422014-12-27T11:29:00.000-05:002014-12-27T11:29:47.529-05:00Thanksgiving and Summer Weather<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So it's almost the end of the year. The year is once again flying by.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what was Thanksgiving like here?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was able to arrange my evening classes I would have had on Thanksgiving Day for other days of the week, and I went to a nice dinner at The Black Rock Pub. I had never been there before, as I went to California Cantina last year. I wanted to try something different, and it was great. I met a solo traveler there named Kimberly who decided to travel the world. We talked about our experiences traveling and living outside of the States, and it was a really nice conversation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The food was AMAZING. Turkey, ham, roast beef, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, and more. It was set up as an all you can eat meal, and so I took full advantage of that. The chef even came out and asked everyone how the meal was, and I got to chat with her before leaving. Her English was perfect, and I was surprised to learn that she's Chilean.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Saturday of Thanksgiving was another celebration. One of my friends Allison graciously offered to host at her apartment. She prepared about 6 or 7 dishes, and it was a US/Chilean celebration. The US element was the typical food from home, and the Chilean element was grilling meat. My contribution was StoveTop stuffing that I brought back from my visit home in August and my mom's recipe of mac and cheese.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Allison had reserved the grilling area, but it was overcast and cold In the end we celebrated in one of the multi-purpose rooms. Everyone brought something to contribute, and we were almost equally divided between Chileans and Gringos (with the exception of Allison's Peruvian boyfriend). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There was plenty of food and drink, and I really enjoyed chatting with my friends and making new ones. I arrived at about 2 and stayed until about 8, but when I left the celebration was still going strong. Apparently afterwards everyone started grilling meat too.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These two celebrations really made me realize how fortunate I am. Even though I'm away from family and my friends from the States, I still have opportunities to celebrate my holiday. This year I've met some wonderful new friends and started a new challenge with my job at SII. Work has been relatively stable, and despite the desire to lose weight I am still in good physical and mental health.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's the end of December, but it certainly doesn't feel like it to me. The weather is hot, and up until still very busy with work. Classes at my work ended the first week of December, but after that there were final exams to give, final reports to write, makeup tests to give, and programming and preparation for the following year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wishing everyone a very belated Happy Thanksgiving and less belated Merry Christmas!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8995670594055287608.post-67953169242340021692014-11-24T19:39:00.000-05:002014-11-25T20:27:05.879-05:00Walking to Work: An Unexpected Adventure<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been walking to work for about a month and a half now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I walk through a variety of neighborhoods and get to see some nice sights along the way, so I decided to turn it into a blog post. More precisely, t</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">wo Thursday nights ago I made the decision that I'd take pictures of my commute to work, but I had no idea what was going to happen in Santiago that following morning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That morning I left my apartment around 7:15. I carry the typical teacher essentials in my backpack: emergency materials in case I can't print or copy what I need for classes at the office, extra white board markers, hand sanitizer, aspirin, blank paper for lessons where we create spontaneous stories, and my tablet for individual classes. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also had my lunch, sunblock, clip on sunglasses, bottled water, and a small luggage lock so that no one can get into my backpack to steal my tablet while I'm walking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To give you an idea of the route here's a map:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The stars indicate the starting and ending point. I start in the lower right corner and walk towards the upper left corner.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My journey starts at my apartment building, which is near the intersection of Irarrazaval with Antonio Varas. I have a bus stop in front of my building, so it can be tempting to sleep in and catch the bus. I've been pretty good about resisting on my walking days of Monday, Wednesday, and Friday despite the temptation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I walk out of my apartment building I put on my headphones and choose the music for the day. I usually listen to Linkin Park's Living Things or Paul Oakenfold's Great Wall. Both albums have songs with a steady beat that makes for good walking music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> For the first leg of the trip, I walk down my street Irarrazaval a few blocks until I get to Manuel Montt. Unimarc is a grocery store here, and this particular one was constructed about a year ago. It's a bit small but has pretty much anything I need, so I go there often.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then I walk up Manuel Monnt until I get to the next main street, Sucre. Manuel Monnt isn't the prettiest of streets, and it's not very well maintained. Turning onto Sucre, however, is a big change. It's lined with trees and doesn't get much traffic compared to other streets here. </span><br />
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<a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_072512_zpswnjua7ig.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_072512_zpswnjua7ig.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then arrive at a nice park at the intersection with Miguel Claro. It was about 7:30 when my phone rang. It was my boss, and she told me that there was a fire in the La Moneda subway station and that lines 1, 2, and 5 of the metro weren't running. On top of that, a lot of buses weren't running either. She knew that I walk to work some days, and I told her that I was already on my way to work and that I didn't anticipate any problems getting to work for my 9:00 class. Just to be sure, she told me to call her if she needed me to cancel my class.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's the park I pass by:</span><br />
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<a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_072846_zpsm7kyen6p.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_072846_zpsm7kyen6p.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then another surprise happened. As I was walking on Miguel Claro, a dog came out of its house and started barking and growling at me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was only a few feet in front of me. I froze and wondered how the dog got out. I stood there trying to figure out what to do for a few seconds, and then I took a few steps back. I crossed the street and continued on my way. It was then that I noticed that the owners had opened their gate to drive out of the driveway. I was lucky that I wasn't a few steps ahead of where I was; otherwise I could have had another dog bite situation here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After that, I made my way down the street Rengo. It's another calm tree-lined street. After about 5 or 6 blocks I get to the intersection of Salvador, one of the main streets that runs north to south. There's a pedestrian crossing, and cars are supposed to stop for pedestrians. I emphasize supposed to.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I usually leave around 6:50 or 7:00 in the morning, so by the time I arrive there it's about 7:20 or 7:30. It was now about 7:45, and traffic was considerably heavier than usual. If you don't step out in front of cars they won't stop for you as a pedestrian. Situations like these have helped me develop nerves of steel and become more assertive.</span><br />
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<a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_073648_zps3tsqsj6e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_073648_zps3tsqsj6e.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I walk down Rengo until the street ends, and then I walk up Gibraldi. This is unfortuantely another street that isn't really well maintained. It's a shame because just one or two streets away is Avenida Italia, an artsy and interesting area with some cool restaurants, bars, and boutiques. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then walking north I get to Santa Isabel. At this particular intersection I can then walk a block west and then about 3 blocks north on Condell to get to Marin. Condell and Marin are other tree-lined streets, but they get a good amount of traffic as people avoid the busier main streets. There's a nice mural that I enjoy seeing as I walk by each morning:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walking down Marin, I eventually get to Vicuña Mckenna. This is one of the main streets that runs north to south in Santiago, and the metro line 5 (that was out of service that day) is a vital connection between people that live in the southern part of the city and the downtown area to the north. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By this time I have listened to the entire Living Things Linkin Park album, and I then put on their album titled A Thousand Suns. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Crossing Vicuña Mckenna I continue on Marin for about 3 more blocks until I get to Portugal. By that time it was about 8:10 or so, and there was considerably more foot traffic. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walking up Portugal you have to be careful when you get to the intersection with Curico. There are bike lanes and plenty of people that take advantage of them. If you're not careful a biker could take you out!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A bit further up I see something that breaks my heart every time I pass by. There is a line of homeless people that live in front of the public hospital. Some of them sleep on pieces of cardboard with a blanket. Others of them have actual mattresses and a comforter, and some of them share their "bed" with another person. I didn't think taking pictures of their living conditions would be very dignified, but here is the sign for the public hospital to give you an idea of it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For those of you that remember reading a post I made about a beggar last year, it really affected me. You can reread that post by clicking <a href="http://gringoinsouthamerica.blogspot.com/2013_10_01_archive.html" target="_blank">here.</a> Seeing people living in such conditions breaks my heart. I can't imagine what people like that have gone through in their life. Their broken dreams that they never got to achieve, fighting for survival each day, and depending on the kindness of strangers to make it from one day to the next.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first time or two that I walked by it really tugged at my heart strings, and it made me think what I could do to help them. I made a resolution to take the money that I would have spent on a bus fare that day and to leave it for one of them on their mattress while they were asleep. I try to put it under a blanket or in a place where it won´t be noticed by anyone walking by. It might only be 600 pesos, but for them that could be a meal or two and the difference between going hungry one day to the next. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Each time I walk by I get a sobering dose of reality about how fortunate I am and to appreciate everything that I have in life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After that, I walk up Diagonal Paraguay, which connects to Alameda. Alameda, also know as Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins, is the main street that runs east to west from Providencia, through downtown, and going all the way out to Estacion Central. When I got there, I encountered absolute chaos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Subway line 1 runs along Alameda and is a lifeline for the majority of Santiguinos. It extends further and stretches to Las Condes. There are buses that will also run this same route, but given the street traffic they are often much slower.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That morning, however, those buses or taking a taxi were the only option people had to get to work. There were mobs of people waiting at the bus stops. It wouldn't surprise me to find out that people were injured with the pushing and shoving and fighting to get on buses. I didn't get too close to any mobs, but here's a picture of confused people trying to figure out how to get to work:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To get to work, I walk down Alameda about 4 blocks. The foot traffic was considerably heavier than normal, and it was about 8:30 by that time. I saw something that aught my attention, and I couldn't help not taking a picture:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, that is an underwear company advertising their new fast food line of underwear.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then I can cut through Nueva York, a street that makes me feel like I've stepped into a time machine. The cobblestone streets and stone buildings are such a contrast to other parts of Santiago. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then walk west on Moneda and pass the presidential palace and plaza. I'm rewarded with the following view:</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_082925_zpsxtu9eezk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_082925_zpsxtu9eezk.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I work in the building on the left.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_083119_zpsmdcqdxtp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u655/dguim2006/Mobile%20Uploads/20141114_083119_zpsmdcqdxtp.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie in front of my work</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I arrived at work at 8:40 that morning, and I was actually the first one into the office. The other teachers didn't make it in for their first class, and I only had one student out of 3 regular attendees in my class. One of my coworkers walked from the Los Leones subway station to work, which is 9 metro stations away. Walking that probably took her over an hour. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unless people drove to work, people arrived an hour to two hours late. Given the situation to get home, government workers were allowed to leave work at 2:00. My boss cancelled 2:30 classes, and since I didn't have a 1:15 class that day I left at 1:00.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm glad I left when I did. I was able to get a bus that connected to another bus to get home. The usual 25 minute trip ended up being about an hour, and it was about 85 degrees. Walking home would have been a grueling ordeal.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The metro only got up and running again the following day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what caused the whole fiasco in the first place?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I haven't been able to find any news sources with facts in writing, but someone told me that 600 workers that maintained the electrical wiring of the subway stations had been laid off. Rather than keeping those jobs as public ones with benefits, they have been outsourcing the work to a private company. The lack of maintenance resulted in the fire that caused the meltdown.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">300,000 people were affected by the failure of the metro. The president of the metro as well as a few others have resigned, and they have been replaced.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course there were some interesting memes that came out of the situation:</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbexternal-a.akamaihd.net/safe_image.php?d=AQAEpmbN28rULcqB&w=487&h=291&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpbs.twimg.com%2Fmedia%2FB2accYcIMAMoze_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://fbexternal-a.akamaihd.net/safe_image.php?d=AQAEpmbN28rULcqB&w=487&h=291&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpbs.twimg.com%2Fmedia%2FB2accYcIMAMoze_.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Translation: The bus is coming!!!!!!!!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbexternal-a.akamaihd.net/safe_image.php?d=AQDLJOouMyqM7Mas&w=487&h=394&url=https%3A%2F%2Ft.co%2FwMItwG0UgV" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://fbexternal-a.akamaihd.net/safe_image.php?d=AQDLJOouMyqM7Mas&w=487&h=394&url=https%3A%2F%2Ft.co%2FwMItwG0UgV" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Translation: All 30,245 of us passengers in the <br />bus are fine.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jokes aside, I was very fortunate in the situation. I don't have kids to pick up from school and didn't have any classes that were out of the way. I can't imagine the frustration that other people went through on what should have been a typical Friday for them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This highlights one of the political struggles that is currently going on in Chile: the rise of private businesses and fall of public jobs. I´m not one to follow politics too much, but I think that people are getting angry here and are not shy to express how they feel. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's an adventure being in Chile when things like this happen. I feel like this is something that no one will ever forget, and I feel like I'm living a part of history.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's all for now. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!</span>Gringo In Chilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05229883422304518637noreply@blogger.com3