Visiting California

So my week in California has come and gone.
It was a great visit, full of friends, good food, warm sunny weather, and all in all good times.

My first stop after taking the Flyaway from LAX was Union Station and Olvera Street. 

With lots of architecture and historical buildings dating back to the founding of Los Angeles, I always enjoy hanging out at Olvera Street. The Mexican food is delicious, and the strolling musicians and shops bring back fond memories from going there in college and bringing my Spanish students there for a field trip using public transportation from Woodland Hills.  I was surprised to see Mr. Churro (which has delicious churros with a variety of fillings) had moved, and there was also a new cafe on the corner which was really nice.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The next part of my trip was spending time in Pasadena and Eagle Rock.  I stayed with friends in Pasadena, and they only live three blocks from the school where I taught kindergarten.  I'm still in contact with some of the teachers there, and so I visited my students that are fourth graders now.  They've grown so much (go figure) and it was rewarding to seeing how they are doing and catching up a bit with my former colleagues. 
 
After that it was off to Eagle Rock via the Metro Rapid bus.  I got to see the familar places: Swork coffee shop, Jamba Juice, Senor Fish, and of course Occidental.  It was warm and sunny, and the walking around made me feel nostalgic. 
 
The other highlights of the trip were visiting the Rose Bowl, the Americana in Glendale, hiking in Eaton Canyon, the good food, and just catching up with friends.  It was so refreshing to be somewhere familiar and reconnect with the people that I haven't seen in a long time.  Some people I saw during my last visit to California in November 2009, but one of my friends I hadn't seen since we both left Germany in July 2001.
 

My trip wouldn't have been complete without complications due to an impending snow storm.  Around 9 at night I started putting two and two together, and I realized that US Airways allows you to change your ticket without any fees if there's a weather advisory.  My flight was scheduled to leave at 11 in the morning and arrive at 7 at night, which was right in the middle of the heaviest forecast snow.  I was too late to catch the redeyes that night, but luckily I was able to get on the 6:30 AM flight. 

The next challenge was finding a way to the airport.  One of my friends was working near LAX the following morning, but he only had to get in by 7 and couldn't get me there early enough to check in.  After calling up multiple shuttle services and finding many without any availablity, I lucked out and found one, and it picked me up at 3 AM.  I was at the airport by 4:15, and after waiting for security to open I got checked in and camped out at my gate.

The flight was surprisingly empty, and they needed to shift people from the front of the plane to the back in order to balance out the weight distribution.  At first people were reluctant to move their seats, but there were plenty of empty window and aisle seats with empty seats next to them.  Besides that the flight was uneventful.

 
I was so grateful to have had the opportunity to travel to Los Angeles.  I didn't get to catch up with everyone I wanted to or visit every place I wanted to, but it was such a wondeful feeling spending time with such great friends and being able to stay in contact with them. 
 
Now I have one week until my return to Santiago on February 3rd.

On my way to Los Angeles

My laptop is open, and here I am typing this blog post.  I see 3:17 AM staring at me in the face, and I am pretty exhausted now.  But I do this to myself on purpose so I can sleep on the 6 hour plane ride to Los Angeles and prevent myself from letting the 3 hour time difference affect me too much.  (My flight leaves from Philadelphia at 7:35 AM)

I've been putting off updating becuase I haven't been feeling particularly inspired.  I've been putting this pressure on myself to come up with amazing stories that will make people want to keep on reading, but unfortunately there hasn't been too much exciting happening lately.  I figure that updating with less than exciting thoughts is better than not updating at all.

The lack of work and lack of meaningful things to do was challenging for me the past few weeks, but I've made it through it.  This last night here was spent over a friend's house playing Magic and video games and included all types of random jokes and of course ordering a pizza for a late night dinner.  Even though it was nothing special it was a really great night.  Thinking back to about a year ago, I realize that I spent my last night in New Jersey with those same exact friends before my flight out of New York during the snowstorm.

I also got to visit some friends near Harrisburg last weekend, and it was a really nice weekend just getting away from home.  Just spending time together watching TV, sharing a meal, and reconnecting with others that also have an interest in traveling and other cultures was a refreshing experience.

I'm realizing I spent too much time focusing on what wasn't going right (not being able to find a job, letting small things frustrate me), but this night helped me refocus on the good friends that I do have and to make the most of my last two weeks.  Plus I'm going to Los Angeles and will get to see friends, eat good food, and visit familiar places.  I already know that being there will feel like a time warp for me, as I cannot fathom that I lived in Los Angeles for 7 years and did not take better advantage of all of the cultural opportunities there.  At the same time, I was also without a car for 5 of those 7 years.

I know that time is going to fly by once I am back from California next week.  I'll have one week to pack, celebrate the family birthdays, go to a Linkin Park concert, and say my goodbyes to family and friends for an indefinite period of time.  And no, I don't think the fact that I have a one way ticket back has hit me yet.

Flying Home

So I'm leaving for the airport in about an hour. 

My flight leaves Santiago at 1:15 this afternoon, and I arrive in Sao Paulo to a nearly 5 hour layover.  Then my next flight leaves around 10:30 tonight, and I will touch down in New York at 5:30 AM Tuesday.

I was going to arrive at the airport at 11, but a friend told me the airport was crazy so I'm arriving there at 10.

Goodbye Santiago (for now), and thank you to all of the wonderful people here that I've met.  Some of you I will see again upon my return to Chile, but for others of us will have to wait until some other time in the future to meet up.

And also thank you to all of the people that have been reading my blog.  When I hear about people reading from my dad, it gave me the encouragement and willpower to keep posting.

See you soon USA.

A One Way Ticket Back!!!!!!!!!

So 20 minutes ago I purchased my one way ticket back to Santiago.

I had been talking with my dad about him visiting and trying to get a decent one way airfare for me and round trip airfare for him to fly together, but it wasn't working out easy to match up our flights to travel together.

I had been checking cheaptickets.com, as a fellow teacher advised me that she got her one way ticket for $450 from there.  Most of the flights I found were for $670 and up, and that was flying out of New York. 

I heard that searching for flights around midnight on Wednesday and Thursday nights are the cheapest time to get tickets, so that's exactly what I did.  I got a one way flight out of Philadelphia for $535 on February 3rd, the day after my birthday.  I'll have a layover in Fort Lauderdale and then in Bogota, but they are both reasonable times and it's worth the price I got.

It's such a relief to have this next step of my life planned.  I really feel that I've started to make a life for myself down here, and I feel excited that my dad will be coming down to see what things are like here.  The next step now is finding his flight and planning to travel to Buenos Aires for a bit, but that will have to wait for another day.

Oh, Hello October!

Sunday the 10th will be the 8 month mark of my travels.

I have found myself really busy with the teaching and preparation for my classes, but in a good way.  Maybe it's just me, but I really enjoy figuring out interesting ways to teach new concepts to students and making class entertaining but also useful for them.  I found a really interesting podcast called NPR Planet Money.  They are about 20 minutes each, and they have something to do with the economy or money.  I've created a listening guide for one podcast about the adventures of an economics professor giving his children an allowance, and I'm working on one about the history of Brazil's economy after 50 years of inflation and how it was solved with a new currency.

I now have my schedule worked out so that I have a few hours of free time a few days a week, and with that time I've been going to the store where people meet to play Magic.  Now that I have my binder of cards I find I talk to a lot more people there, and I have been trading and selling some cards.  I feel like I'm becoming more integrated there, and I have become more outgoing by striking up conversations with people even if they don't approach me first there.

It's hard for me to believe, but I will be seeing Linkin Park in concert here in Santiago in less than 48 hours.  I always thought in the back of my head that it would be cool if they came to Chile while I was here, and this time my wishful thinking came true.

To make it even better, they released a new album about 3 weeks ago, titled A Thousand Suns.  It is true to Linkin Park's style in that it pushes the limits as to defining their style of music.  The album has songs that are rough and angry to soft and inspiring.  They even have a few tracks that have a man speaking like he's giving a speech or protesting something, but it's set to music in the background.  One such track seems to me criticizing corporate America and portrays a man that is stuck in a system he knows is corrupt and immoral, but he cannot escape it without major consequences to his reputation and future career opportunities.

My favorite song off of the new album is called Iridescent.  It's about going through tough times and feeling down on yourself, and also holding on to feelings of anger and loneliness.  I know, it sounds pretty pessimistic.  But then it turns around completely, and they sing to remember how difficult and painful that was and to "let it go".  It's such a simple message, but the way that they combine it with piano, guitar, and eventually multiple voices is really inspiring.

I published the lyrics below, but they don't do the song justice.  You can hear it and see the lyrics by following this link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpt7RJUGpdE

When you were standing in the wake of devastation

when you were waiting on the edge of the unknown
with the cataclysm raining down, insides crying save me now
you were there and possibly alone.
Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
you build up all the failiures all you've known
remember all the sadness and frustration
and let it go, let it go.
And in the burst of light that blinded every angel
as if the sky had blown the heavens into stars
you felt the gravity of temper grace falling into empty space
no one there to catch you in there arms
Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
you build up all the failiures all you've known
remember all the sadness and frustration
and let it go, let it go.

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
you build up all the failiures all you've known
remember all the sadness and frustration
and let it go,
let it go
let it go
let it go
let it go
Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
you build up all the failiures all you've known
remember all the sadness and frustration
and let it go, let it go.

I've been saving up for my plane ticket to come back to Santiago, and I'm really satisfied with what I have so far.  I've basically cut eating out out of my budget for the most part, and now I write out a menu on the weekend for the following week.  That way when I go food shopping I only buy what I need.  If I can keep it up I will have enough for my flight as well as money for gifts for Christmas and spending money for the time I will be back home.

That's all for now.

Flight to Santiago and first few days here

My alarm went off at 3:30 AM, and I got changed and brought the last of my luggage downstairs to be ready for my taxi at 4.  The girl working at the hostel assured me that I would have plenty of time to get there for my 6:05 flight, but I still felt uneasy about it.

I got to the airport around 4:15, and the line to check in to TAM Linheas Areas (my airline) was stretching haflway down the terminal.  I was mad at myself for not insisting on catching my taxi early, but figured all I could do at that point was get in line and hope for the best.

I got checked in 5:05 or so, and according to my ticket I was supposed to be boarding right then.  I hurried to get to security but was misled by the signs and was down in a shopping area.  After talking to a few people I made it there and got through security quickly.

It's about 5:20, and I'm in the line for the immigration police.  I clutched my passport and paperwork they gave me when I entered, hoping things will go quickly.  I finally get through around 5:35 and dash to my gate.  I get there, and nothing is showing on the screen, and no one is there from the airlines.  I was puzzled and asked a woman holding a small child if it was the correct gate for the flight to Sao Paulo, and she assured me that it was.

The airline staff casually strolled up to the gate at 5:55 and proceeded to go through the gate and disappear without talking to anyone.  They came back about 5 minutes later and were bombarded by passengers with questions.  We started boarding around 6:15, and I had a surprise on board.

I was trying to find seat 10K and wasn't able to do so at first.  Then I realized that for some reason they put me in the last row of first class.  This was totally awesome and unexpected, but actually my 2nd time flying 1st class on an international flight.  Here I am enjoying my seat that reclines:

I just wish that this would have happened on my flight that was 4 hours from Sao Paulo to Santiago instead of the 1 hour flight from Rio to Sao Paulo.

By the time we take off, it is almost 7:00.  We landed at 8:00, and my connecting flight is scheduled to leave at 8:55.  Luckily I am one of the first off the plane, but we had to all pile into a shuttle bus and take it to the terminal.  By the time I get to the terminal it is now 8:15, and I'm assuring myself that everything is going to be OK.  I checked the monitors, and they are all flashing that they are making the last call for my flight.

After a few wrong turns, I find my way to gate 27.  Of course, my gate is the one furthest away from where I am.  I break into a run for short times, as I am not as in shape as I could be and also am carrying my laptop case and a backpack.

I got to the gate at 8:30 and noticed the plane pulled up.  A few seconds later a woman walked up from the connector, and I asked her about boarding.  She gave me a confused look, and I eventually figured out that they changed the gate from when they printed my boarding pass earlier that morning.

I rushed to the nearest monitor, but it had just changed to a screen for advertisements.  The next 30 seconds felt like an eterninty, but the screen finally switched, and I noticed it moved to gate 20A.  I made a quick dash and was out of breath when I got there, but I was able to board with 20 minutes to spare.

I sat down in my seat and breathed a huge sigh of relief.  I was starving and was planning on getting something to eat in the airport, but that didn't happen given the circumstances.  Then of course the flight was delayed for over an hour while we sat on the plane.

I arrived around 1:00 that afternoon, and got my bags and to the hostel without a problem.  After a quick phone call home, I got to meet some of the other people in the program.  It turns out we are all roommates for this first month, and Rochelle had already bought a bottle of wine to celebrate our first night here:

Afterwards I took a trip to the supermarket, and when I was back some others had arrived and we all went out for dinner.  We went to Patio Bellavista, which is comparable to the Americana in Glendale.  There were all types of restaurants and small shops, and we ate at a nice restaurant overlooking a patio where live jazz was being played.  There were people seated all over enjoying dinner and walking around enjoying the ambiance.  Sadly I didn't think to bring my camera with me, but others told me they will send pictures to me.

Today I was up early and made breakfast and unpacked a bit before going out to explore on my own.  I went to the Santa Lucia area, which apparently has lots of shops and a good place to get a haircut.  I wandered around and explored the area and got a haircut for 3300 pesos (or about $6.60).  I also stopped and got some tea and toast:

 In a department store later on I got a nice pair of sandals for 5000 pesos (about $10) and then headed back.  A bit later on everyone decided to head out to explore, and we got to ride on the Metro for the first time and ate some Doner kebabs at a local place.  I haven't had one since I was in Europe last time in 2005, so it was really delicious.


Then we headed to Patio Bellavista again, as some people were craving yogurt.  While we were there I snapped some pictures, but they don't do justice to the night ambiance and jazz that was playing last night.

It's hard to believe that the entire day has gone by already. I'm so happy to be here and want to enjoy every moment of it.

First day traveling and first day in Rio

So the trip out of New York was the start of one big adventure.  I am on a public computer now so pictures will be inserted once I have wifi.

Here I am camping out at the airport:

I befriended a native Brazilian that was on the 4:15 flight from JFK going directly to Rio, and with the snow getting worse he suggested trying to get on that flight rather than the 5:40 one I was scheduled for.  I tried, but apparently I was too late to do so.  Here is what things looked like while I waited:

The snow was piling up, but we boarded around 5:40.  For the next 3 hours we sat while huge machines were de-icing the wings and entire plane.  Looking out the window I could see frost and ice accumulating on the window, and I thought that was not a good sign.  When I asked a flight atendant when we would take off, he told me that the captain was debating cancelling it at that moment.  Here's what it looked like:

Luckily the plane took off around 9 at night.  The flight was pretty comfortable, as I had a seat free next to me and they had video screens in front of us to watch movies and play all types of games.  The food was good, and we landed in Sao Paulo around 9 the following morning.  Here we are touching down:

By that point I missed my connecting flight, but they had rebooked me on a flight leaving at 12:30.  There were 2 problems with this: 1.One of my luggage pieces did not show up and 2. The new flight was leaving from another airport in Sao Paulo.  I spent about 45 minutes trying to get to talk to somoene from the airline about my bag but finally got to file a report.  I then spent half an hour standing in the wrong line waiting to get info on how to get to the other airport.  Once I found out I was supposed to be outside waiting for a shuttle but, it was already 11.

I got on the shuttle bus at 11:30, and I thought there was no chance of me making the 12:30 flight.  Luckily flights to Rio from there run every half hour, so when I arrived I got booked on the 2:00 flight and had to board right away.  I made a mad dash to the gate and made it there at about 1:35.

The next flight was uneventful, and after asking for help with a taxi I was able to get a legit one for 37 reales (about 20 dollars).  I got checked into my hostel around 3:30 or so, and it was such a relief to be there.  The heat here is crazy, as it must be about 90 degrees and there is humidity on top of that.  Once I got settled I went out exploring with an English couple, and we got some nice pictures of the Santa Teresa area and then got a bite to eat.  I got a hamburger made of lamb, but it was served without the bun.

Now I am working on plans for hang gliding and taking tours over the next few days.  I am in serious need of a tan, so the beach is definitely on the agenda for tomorrow.  It is such a good feeling to finally be here and that everything has worked out.