Yo Doy Gracias

Ok a heads up before y'all read this blog: I actually started writing it around Thanksgiving and never got around to finishing it. Sooo, it's been collecting dust in my draftbox, hiding from all of you! After I retrofit my blog with this post, I'm going to share few journal entries and other stuff I wrote over the summer, which wasn't a ton, but will give you a nice idea of what I was up to the past two months. Enjoy!

In honor of the Thanksgiving season, I'd like to dedicate this blog post to the things I am thankful for in my life. Living in another country--thousands of miles away from my family and the everyday comforts I once took for granted--has once again (mind you I had a brief stint studying abroad in Guatemala) shed light on these things.

Lately I've been reading Jack Keruoac, which may lend a feeling of spontaneity and stream of consciousness to my writing. What an interesting personaje he is! My interest in his life began when I picked up an old copy of On The Road, which belongs to my buddy Tipton from Georgia. First of all, the book itself has an intriguing vibe to it. It's really old; the pages are as brittle as brown fallen leaves in autumn; you can smell the passing of years as you flip through the chapters. As I held that rusty paperback for the first time, I could tell it had seen a lot, which is a fitting personification for such a book. Maybe I'm biggin' up this work more than some would like. In fact, Tipton himself said he hates Keruoac. Nonetheless, I love it, and if my readers aren't down with Jack, then they can skip down a few paragraphs and read about me being sick.

Al continuar, as I read of Sal Paradise's (really Keruoac's) exploits with his friend and tragic hero Dean Moriarty (Keruoac's pen name for Neal Cassady), travelling impulsively across the vast and horrible continent--From Jersey to New York to San Francisco (Frisco) to LA back to Jersey then to Virginia and once again to Frisco only to return to New York before roaring south to Mexico, with numerous stints in Denver in between--I kept picturing a 20th century Don Quixote of sorts (which I am planning to read in Spanish by the way), in search of his true love, his doncella, whose role is played by the very road he travels on, endlessly beckoning, forever opening the expanses of America and all its people and ideas. It made me yearn for a similar experience this summer in my South American continental hazañas (exploits).

Is anyone else over this swine flu bologna? While duking it out with my own respiratory ailment in November, mi mama sent me some electronic literature about H1N1, which led me to read further about the latest "world health crisis." After dabbling in local health periodicals, reading blogs, scanning online articles, I have come to the conclusion that H1N1 is a product of evolution just like everything else (as unnatural as that evolution may be), and that combatting a potential pandemic will not be up to a vaccination (and I could go on for days about the H1N1 vacuna), but to each family and/or individual's initiative in living a healthy life. In giving thanks for my own health, I shall cite three central tenets to well-being: diet, exercise, and happiness.

"Careful how you season and prepare your food," says M-1 of Dead Prez. I'd like to go back in time to my adolescent lunch eating habits for a moment. In sixth grade, my lunch consisted of a bag of chips, cookies, and a Surge--the precursor to today's "energy drinks." In seventh and eighth grade, my school outsourced Pizza Hut and Chick-Fil-A to serve us lunch, so nothing really changed regarding nutritional value there. And for virtually all four years of high school, I ate from the Wendy's dollar menu. Today, I ask how I let myself make those decisions while resolving to learn from my mistakes. Although I now have difficulty visiting Santiago's bigger fresh-produce markets (have I mentioned how ridiculously busy I am lately?) there is still plenty of legit goodies to be found at nearby corner stores and local fruit 'n veggie stands (right now (December) there's a bunch of delicious cherries, peaches, and apricots to be disfrutado--mmmmmmm). And again I highlight the joy of living with two great roomies, Mel 'n Trish, who enjoy cooking as much as I do! Oh the meals we've created...

On the 28th of November, we hosted our own little Thanksgiving banquet--potluck style (the older Chileans, los ancianos, call it a malón). We invited a bunch of close friends we'd made over the last 5 months, and each person contributed something tasty to share. Excuse me as I briefly ride this human tangent of thankfulness, for isn't food a sacred coefficient in the formula of a healthy society? Shouldn't it be something we cherish? Why did Abraham Lincoln start our beloved holiday of Thanksgiving amidst the chaos and misery of a horrible civil war, anyways? Could it have been something he and others on his political team saw in the idea of food and our connection with it? And its way of connecting us with our planet and each other, perhaps? Claro que si! What worries me more and more lately is our culture's conceptual representation of food--how we understand its role in our lives, how we go about choosing our food, etc. It seems that food, something so precious and important, has just become another involuntary, automatic, fabricated commodity in the well-oiled machine of consumerism. Crank 'em out, pack 'em up, and disperse 'em; cop it, consume it; repeat. Y claro, I'm defitinitely not an exception to this "rule," I but I would like to see a departure from our current state of food consumption, and perhaps a return to the idea that food connects all of us and needs to be urgently cherished and protected, almost as if it were an endangered species. From the moment a drop of water hits the earth to quench a plant's thirst to the moment a plate of food rich in time-transcending nutrients sits before a panorama of smiling faces, our food has a story to tell! As I sat down with my homies that evening, admiring the spread of colors and flavors ready to dance yummy in my tummy Yo Gabba Gabba style, I gave infinite thanks for all the naturaleza, gente, y vida that helped bring those nutrients to my body, mind, and soul, sustaining my self and contributing to my contribution.

Maintaining an active lifestyle has always been very important to me. Growing up in Denver, working for the Department of Parks and Recreation, provided tons of opportunities to get out 'n about, move 'n shake, and share my love of playing with others. (Shout out to all my Summer in the Parks crew!) In the Santiago metropolis, it's been tough to stay active at times these past months. There are a lot of parks, but with little open space (they're more like pedestrian malls). Many days this past semester, I'd come home at 7 p.m., cook dinner, and by the time I washed my dishes it would already be bedtime. I did find opportunities to get my heart racin' and body movin' as the months passed, however. Playing soccer, tag (which they call pinta--paint), and capture the flag with my students during recreos was a good start, but my body yearned for more. I started playing in the weekly soccer game after school, which was a nice weekly workout, but not enough, so I began doing weekly jogs with Melissa in Parque Bustamante as a supplment. Later on in the semester, I started tagging along with David, Guille, and Jean, my compañeros de trabajo, for weekly matches of baby football, a version of indoor soccer that is very popular all over Latin America. As the weather warmed up, my gringo buddies and I started hitting up the pick-up basketball sessions in Parque Araucano in Las Condes (a neighborhood many call "The Other Chile" for its posh, modern buildings and upper income tax brackets). My buddy from Teaching Chile, Zach, connected me with an ultimate frisbee club in Santiago, and I played in a hat tournament (teams selected at random) on Thanksgiving day. Little by little, I was able to bring myself back to a level of activeness that I had always enjoyed back home. This coming year, I am hoping to build on this; I am looking to become more involved with the ultimate community in the greater Santiago metro area, and will also be starting up an ultimate workshop at Colegio San Francisco de Paine, where I worked last year.

And finally, happiness, which I believe boils down to one thing: mix it up, baby! Whether it's my food, my leisurely activities, or the people I surround myself with, implementing variety in all spheres of my life, I have found, is paramount. Yes, true, having some consistency and predictability in life is nice--some would call it a source of stability and comfort--but c'mon, a life chock full of the s.o.s. day after day? No es justo! Here's a few ways that I've mixed it up that might interest my readers... For one, I've decided to adopt a popular Chilean hairstyle--the choco, aka the (euro)mullet, aka the faux-hawk, aka business in the front and party in the back! Many chuckle, but you'd be surprised to know many people, even professionals like doctors and lawyers, have been known to don the style...ok, many of you are probably laughing even harder now. Trish, a woman of many talents, had her hand at cutting her first mullet, and I commend her efforts, as the result was a success: carefully-done layering in the front to complement my lazy locks in the back. Niiiiiice.

Secondly, I've expanded my musical horizons! Many of you know I picked up the guitar about a year back. Well, now I play two instruments (three if you include my voice)! After the school year expired in Paine, I was invited to a "teacher's breakfast," which turned out to be a Ben Westlund farewell, a very thoughtful gesture. After some of my cohorts and I shared our meditations, they presented me with a parting gift: a charango! A charango is like a mix between a ukelele and a mandolin, and produces a very bright sound. Originally fashioned by first nation peoples on the Bolivian altiplano from armadillo shells and horsegut (the snooty Spanish colonists didn't let the "heathens" play their sacred instruments), they are now made of wood and nylon strings. Going back in time a bit, Guillermo brought his charango to school one day, taught me a few chords, and let me fiddle around with it. I fell in love with the instrument, and I believe it was his idea to give me such an awesome gift. My charango accompanied me throughout my travels (oh by the way this is Ben 2010 narrating now), and during the past two months I've managed to learn nearly all its chords! I'm excited to share this beautiful instrument with all of you when I get back!

I end this installment with a final meditation of thanks: for everyone who poured out their support, concerns, and prayers after the earthquake in the fifth, sixth, and metropolitan regions of Chile. Although was far away from the events as they unfolded, I was also very anxious to learn more about the state of affairs where a lot of my friends were in Santiago, as well as the dicey situations in coastal towns affected by the tsunamis, such as Concepcion, Pichilemu, Boyeruca, Constitucion, and many others. A few have shown interest in becoming more involved in the relief efforts in Chile, as well as Haiti. Aside from the obvious option of opening your wallets, I would strongly recommend looking into organizing food and clothing drives and, or course, reading about people's experiences during the quake, the aftershocks (over 200!), the tsunamis, and the aftermath.

More to come, folks. Keep your compys, lappys, and smartphones ready! -B

Trabajo, Vacaciones, y La Vida en General

Allow me to begin this post with an apology--disculpas. It's been nearly a month since my last post, which is pretty weak. Looking on the bright side, I have tons of things to tell y'all about! So let's get to it!


Everything's going splendid with mi trabajo...with one exception: my salary barely pays the bills! I make the rough equivalent of $500 USD per month, which I thought would be able to support my relatively modest lifestyle out here. Then, to my dismay, expenses began stacking up faster than I could pull out my wallet, and then my debit card, until last week, finding myself in financial dire straits, I said, ¨¡Basta (enough)! It's time to start looking for another pega (that's a good Chilenismo--job).¨ And so, as soon as I returned from my trip to San Pedro de Atacama and Antofagasta (which I will talk about shortly), I contacted Señora Rosario V., the directora of Instituto Chileno Norteamericano, which is the largest English institute in the country with an impressive network of campuses and participating schools and businesses. I have just received confirmation of my employment with ¨Norte,¨ as many folks call it here, which begins in March of 2010. Not only will I be doubling my sueldo mensual, monthly wage, but these guys will also insure me and hook up three weeks vacaciones at the end of my gig, which will last around one year (I will now return around January-Februaryish 2011 instead of July). Pretty tip-top, I'd say!


Now that I've been confirmed as an employee for the 2010 school year, I must abandon my contract with Colegio San Francisco, which I am not looking forward to. When I broke the news to my boss about my desire to move on, she began scrambling to try and keep me there for the rest of my expected time, saying she would try to broker an additional 100.000 pesos per month from the school itself (I am payed by EducaUC, which is a part of Universidad Católica) and work to comp my transportation costs, which was validating, yet despite her, and many others, wanting to try and keep me there, I need to do what I want to do while I'm here so that I may accomplish my personal and professional goals. A wise woman, my sister Abby, recently told me, ¨Ben, you're going to find yourself in positions where people will be drawn to to you, and will want to be a part of your life, but it won't be right for you, and when that happens, and when people try with all their might to keep you in their life, you need to muster up the strength to say no to them.¨ I think this is one of those times, and I thank you, Abby, for having given me that advice this past July.


It will be a difficult time saying goodbye to the people at San Francisco at the end of the year. I have come to love the people there dearly, and I feel they love me, too. David Brull, one of my co-teachers, continues to be one of my closest friends in Chile, but I also have a close relationship with Guillermo, one of the gym teachers (that's right, one of four gym teachers--can you believe that?), as well as with several of my students. Guillermo, or Guille, is basically a Chilean Ben Westlund. We see eye to eye on a lot of things, from philosophy to politics to education. There's never a dull moment with him, either. He has a great sense of humor and never passes up an opportunity to joke around. En realidad, really, that's how it is with everyone I work with at CSFP. There's such a relaxed atmosphere, yet it's balanced with collegiality and professionalism, and I am so grateful to have been a part of it.


Some other noteables include Christian, the music teacher, and Etienne and Macarena, two other gym teachers. I really appreciate Christian's musical talents, and he's a great teacher, too. I enjoy sitting in on his classes when I have the chance. Before I left for the Dieciocho de Septiembre--Independence Day--vacations, I approached him with my desire to sing the Chilean National Hymn (not an anthem--look it up) to commence La Festival de La Chilenidad, the Chilean Heritage Festival, on September 26. I wanted to do this because at the Music Festival earlier that month, after singing some Beatles and Kansas jams to everyone's enjoyment, I was asked to sing one more song, and for some reason I sang the American National Anthem, which I now sort of regret. Therefore, learning and performing the Himno Nacional de Chile was my way to make up for that. Christian gave me all the guitar chords so I could practice over break, and helped me master the specific style in the days leading up to the festival, which was important because many older Chileans in particular are very sensitive about the song. Apparently, I did well; I was approached by a bunch of older people after the festival who told me how much they enjoyed my rendition. Many were touched to witness an extranjero (foreigner) singing their national song.


Etienne, or Eti, is very charismatic and funny, and to be honest I'm hopelessly in love with her, but it's never going to happen because she's married with kids. At least she likes to coquetear, flirt, so that's enough for me! Right now we're choreographing a group dance that we will be performing at this week's school spirit festival. We are Alianza 2: Los Hippies. There are three alliances, comprised of teachers, students, and staff, who will be going head-to-head in a series of competitions ranging from the dance-off to capture the flag (captura la bandera). Anyways, I always have a great time with Eti. Maca is also super legit, and also married with kids. She teaches a basketball taller (workshop) every Wednesday, which I of course crash on a regular basis. The woman can ball, too! She's not afraid to throw her weight around in the paint, and she knows how to share the rock, which I admire.


I'd like to highlight just a few students, lest I write for hours on end! In primero básico, first grade, I have a few faves: Benjamin, Lukas, Florencia, and Josefa. Benja and Lukas are some whippersnappers, but gosh are they clever little dudes. They crack me up daily. Florencia is a trip to talk to. She seems like she's already entered high school when you hear her; very confident in the way she carries herself. Josefa is the sweetest thing to exist since sugar, and she loves learning, so I can't complain there. There is another Florencia in segundo básico whose father is from Canada, so she speaks better English than me, and she amazes me constantly with what she is intellectually capable of. Fast forwarding to medio, high school, we have Javiera and Tomás (primero medio--freshmen), Enric and Camila (tercero medio), and Valentina and Diego (cuarto medio). (Segundo medio is sophomore.) All of these students are amazingly capable as learners and leaders. The gifts--dotes--that they contribute on a regular basis (and I can say this for many others as well) invigorate the life of the school. They all have incredible amounts of potential, particularly Camila and Valentina. Camila, according to David, has shot up from a beginner to arguably the best English speaker in her grade in less than three years. The way Valentina commands a given group of peers with her presence is unrivaled; very confident and intelligent. I think she'll either end up being a teacher, lawyer, or entrepreneur.


Recently, Chile celebrated its Bicentenario (Bicentennial), which falls on the 18th of September, but one date I really find interesting is the 1973 coup d'etat, which shares the 11th of September with the U.S. as one of the most tragic days in recent world history. I can't help but visualize a room full of [plural explitive] somewhere in Langley, VA discussing the best possible way to demoralize and defeat a people: ¨How about we orchestrate a coup and usher in an era of tyranny, injustice, and horror, and let's do it the week before they celebrate their independence. Brilliant!¨ Okay, my ranting is over. However, it should be mentioned that gringos are strongly encouraged to avoid any demonstrations on the 11th, and although I didn't see anything too crazy, I felt a little tension in the air that week without a doubt.


Getting back on track, Chile's Independence Day, El Dieciocho (the eighteenth), is widely touted as one of the largest and craziest carretes (another Chilenismo meaning ¨party¨) in South America, perhaps second to Carnaval in Brazil. ¨Even the President gets trashed!¨ is what some chilenos have told me. Although I can't say I witnessed any ragers over the holiday--probably because I was in the more rural town of Antofagasta--I will admit that Chileans, despite the aforementioned tragedies, are some of the proudest gente (people) I have ever known.


Let's rewind to the beginning of mis vacaciones, which I spent with four chicas! Melissa and Trish, along with Jenny and Brooke (our fellow compatriotas who live in Rancagua to the south), provided lovely company for a week full of adventures in the Atacama Desert, which by the way is the driest desert in the world. Fun, random facts are great, aren't they? Melissa, Trish and I began our sojourn al norte on a plane to Antofagasta, a rural but respectably-sized mining town and la capital del norte--copper mining is the region's primary industry. We immediately caught a bus to San Pedro de Atacama, but it wouldn't be our last experience in the city where the desert meets the ocean. After a long and hot trip, which I spent reading Allende's La Casa de Los Espíritus and watching reruns of Punk'd, the pop culture phenomenon of the early 2000s, we finally arrived in the dry, dusty pueblo.


Brooke and Jenny wouldn´t arrive until later that evening, so my roomies and I were on our own to find the hostal we booked--La Iquisa. The directions provided on their website weren't entirely clear, so we found ourselves ambulando (wandering) por San Pedro, asking locals where the place was. Their assistance was just about as confusing as our directions, but despite our troubles, after about 45 minutes lugging all our stuff around the desert, we finally arrived at La Iquisa with daylight to spare. We settled in, unpacked, cooked dinner, and made friends with a couple of uruguayos, old childhood budies who decided to rent a car in Argentina and drive it all the way to San Pedro for the weekend. That night, instead of spending 20 lukas (over forty bucks) on hors d'œuvre and over-priced drinks, Melissa and I joined Fabian and Rodrigo (Trish was uder the weather) drinking litros of Cristal (cerveza, not the champagne) in the streets, which was way cooler anyways.


The next day, having added Brooke and Jenny to our crew, we all went into town to check out tiendas artesenales (artisan shops), buy water, and book our adventures for the next two days. We ended up paying around $80 USD for two days of excursions to a sandboarding area, La Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon), Los Geysers de Tatio, Las Lagunas Saladas, and Los Ojos de San Pedro (The Eyes of Saint Peter). Not too shabby. That same day we checked off sandboarding, which was cool, as well as La Valle de La Luna. I managed to master the sandboard and was cruisin' by the end of our session, but I think I prefer the snow. El puesto del sol (sunset) at La Valle de la Luna was magnificent; I've never seen such vibrant reds, pinks, oranges, or blues in my life! And the lines created by the shadowing on the reliefs and and other land formations contributed a moving aesthetic to the splendid panorama.


The next morning, we boarded a van at 4 a.m. to make it to Volcàn Tatio's crater by sunrise, where we enjoyed the serene sights and sulfuric scents of the geysers. Don't compare these wonders to Yellowstone, or to Iceland; they weren't immense. That didn't bother me, though. My experience that morning was very emotional. For over two months I had been isolated in Santiago's concrete jungle. Y bueno, I do work in rural Paine, but I hadn't been immersed en la naturaleza for so long, and when I finally had the opportunity to really look it straight in the eye--the sunlight hitting the landscape, rendered bright yellow by the paja brava, a native sedge, the sulfur vapors steaming from the bubbling agujeros (holes), the vibrant colors created by ancient subterranean minerals--something came over me. I can't explain why, but I started sobbing. It was powerful, refreshing, and healing; an experience that I'll never forget.


On our way back from Tatio, we enjoyed the native fauna of the Patuta and San Pedro river valleys por el camino (along the way), including small groups of vicuña (think hybrid between llama and deer), flamingos (strange to see what I had thought to be a tropical bird in such a cold and dry climate), and tagua cornuda, which is a type of pheasant. The paja brava dominated the mountain slopes, the river valleys were lush with a moss-like grass that I can't recall, and once in awhile we'd see a cactus that we learned was called cojín de suegra, which means ¨mother-in-law's cushion.¨ We made several stops along our way home to take pictures of the wildlife, check out an indigenous pueblo called Machaco, and sip agua dulce, which is fresh water from el yacimiento de la cordillera--the freshwater basin underneath the mountains. It was bakán! (Chilenismo meaning ¨awesome¨ or ¨cool.¨)

Our afternoons and evenings spent at La Iquisa were lovely. Our antifriones (hosts) were very accommodating and sociable. There were Silvia an Juan, the abuelos (grandparents), Roberto, their youngest son, Kati, his German girlfriend, and Estefani, the daughter or the eldest son. I particularly established a good rapport with Silvia and Estefani, as did the rest of the crew. During or final day in San Pedro, while the ladies went into town to shop, I stuck around and played music with Estefani. She was very intrigued by the guitar and enjoyed strumming while I played diferent chords. We also had brought Trish's tamborine and Estefani showed great zeal in playing it while she danced around--seriously, it was the most adorable thing I have ever seen in my life. We took turns singing songs, both rehearsed and ad-libbed, and then Estefani suggested making up a song together. Our creation process went about like this:

Ben: What should our song be about?
Estefani: Ummm...flowers!
B: And what are the flowers doing?
E: They're singing.
B: What are they singing about? ...We need three things.
E: About fruit...about plants...and about...bananas.
B: Hmm, well, bananas are a kind of fruit...I know; why don't they sing about people?
E: Yeah, I like that!
B: And why are they singing about all those things?
E: Because...they are beautiful!

We went on to sing a lovely song following that sequence. My experience with Estefani that afternoon was one of the most candid yet fulfilling things I have been a part of in my recent history, and like the geysers, it is forever etched in my memory.

Our visit to San Pedro culminated, we returned to the bus terminal in Roberto's van, bid him and Kati farewell, and were waiting for our bus when I heard a female voice say, ¨Hey, Colorado Rockies,¨ referring to my Rockies cap, and then, ¨wait a minute, Ben Westlund?¨ And to my surprise, there was Amelie Kastning, one of Kate's closest friends from Crested Butte, Colorado! Amelie is currently studying abroad in Valparaíso, which is on the coast, and we had been throwing around the idea of meeting up with each other, but neither of us had imagined it would happen in such a coincidental manner! Por casualidad (by coincidence), we both travelled to San Pedro around the same time and were now taking the same bus back to our respective destinations--myself going to Antofagasta, and she to Valpo. I was introduced to her friends Celine, Bailey, and Jeanie, and we ended up chatting and playing telephone pictionary, a sweet game by the way, to pass our time on the way back. It was too cool!

Antofagasta in no way compares to San Pedro, but it was enjoyable in its own way. We arrived on the 18th in the afternoon, which meant we had some time to rest and relax in preparation for La Ramada, which is a Dieciocho celebration chock full of carnival games and rides, música y baile Cueca (traditional Chilean style of music and dance that I love), anticuchos (shishkabobs), completos (hotdogs), chorripan (think polish sausage in a bun with guacamole, tomato, and mayo), cerveza...good, wholesome fun! We enjoyed ourselves heartily and returned home by medianoche (midnight) to crash.

Brooke and Jenny left the next morning. Trish, Melissa and I spent the 19th riding random buses through town, observing the hustle and bustle and making our way to La Portada, which is a natural landmark and Antofagasta's official calling card. It's basically a great big stone arch (I believe some sort of conglomerate of sandstone, gravel, and ancient seashells, but don't quote me) in the middle of the water just off the coast on the north side of town. We hiked around, searched for seashells, rocks, and other interesting artifacts, saw a dead dog, and took our picture in front of La Portada. Then we had to rush back, as Melissa and Trish needed to pack and head out to catch their flight. I chose to stay an extra few days, which I spent sleeping in late, eating empanadas and anticuchos, reading, and playing soccer down by the beach with the locals. It was a nice, low-key way to spend the dwindling moments of my vacation.

I returned to Santiago Tuesday morning the 22nd, bleached my whites and did my laundry, cleaned up around the house, began making plans to inerview with Norte, and got back in into my groove. Following my first week back, CSFP celebrated their annual and aforementioned Chilean Heritage Festival, which I enjoyed very much. It was so cool seeing all of the students to the traditional dances of Chile, singing the national hymn, eating more anticuchos, and getting in on some Cueca sessions with various teachers and students. It was a great display of Chilean pride, and I now feel I have a little Chilean inside of me. These last several months have been so amazing and fulfilling, I can't believe I still have so much time to continue that positive trend.

I leave you all with well-wishes, happiness and love, and would love to hear from all of you when you have the chance.

Que les vaya bonito (have a lovely day),

Ben

¨I Put In Work And Watch My Status Escalate¨

*Note: my title for this post is a quote from the song Working by Gang Starr, one of the rawest hip hop groups of the '90s. If you don't know 'em, then you don't know rap music, boyeeeeeee... or girrrrrrlllll.....

A big fat que pasa (what's up) to all you party people out there in internet land! I hope that y'all have been well, that summertime en el norte is wrappin' up nicely, and that you've been missin' me! I have had a few minor bouts with homesickness, but then I remember how exhilirating it is to be down here and it's allllllll good!


Before I go into details about mi trabajo, I'd like to highlight a few happenings outside of the 9 to 5 realm. I've been getting a decent taste of la vida nocturna here. I am incredibly grateful to have acquired a solid back ground in Latin dance before arriving--¡me sirve muy bien (it serves me very well)! I am now an official member of the Chilean community after obtaining my cédula, which is the national I.D. card issued to everyone living within Chilean borders. My Spanish feels great; I'm using more and more Chilenismos and have started talking with a Chilean accent the best I can (although it's really tricky); I buy a newspaper every Monday and read it cover to cover, which is expanding my vocabulary; I'm finishing up the Paolo Coehlo novel I started before arriving (The Devil and Miss Prym) and am moving on to something more advanced: La Casa de Espíritus (The House of Spirits), written by Isabella Allende, a famous Chilean author and niece (thanks Lena!) of Salvador Allende, the president before Pinochet (google Pinochet now if you don't know him). And on the subject of la literatura, this past Saturday I accompanied my roomies and a whole pack of gringos from our program to La Isla Negra (The Black Island), the former summer home and now national musuem of Pablo Neruda, who I believe I've mentioned before in this blog. I learned a lot on this trip about Neruda: his filosofías about love, politics, and the human condition; his political activism--his poetry was very influential during la revolucion comunista in Cuba and he was very close to Ché and Fidel; and his vast collection of relics from all over the world. The man's poetry continues to blows my mind!

Okay on to the good stuff! Having nearly completed one month of work at Colegio San Fransisco de Paine, it is evident that I've become quite the fixture! From the start I stuck out because of my foreign features, although there are a handful of students of German descent who I would have mistaken for gringos had I not known in advance. At this point, however, I can safely say I now stand out in many other ways, all of which are positive!

First impressions are monumental. As with every teaching job I undertake, I made it a point to learn every student's name as soon as possible (I still can't remember all 200 something, but I'm very close), which my fellow teachers were very impresed by. I also made it a point to set a positive yet demanding tone for the rest of the school year. I accomplished this by striking a nice balance between my sense of humor to break the ice and my expectations of respect, collegiality between all participants in the class, and willingness to push one's limits. I basically gave the same spiel in all 13 classes, switching up my rhetoric based on age level. I was more successful in some classes in others; I think my biggest challenges in classroom management will come from 5th, 6th, and 7th grades. Not to sound cocky, but I pretty much have everyone else wrapped around my finger ;)

The other night, David called me on the phone after an evening of drinks with a bunch of other teachers, and he basically spilled his guts about how much everyone is enjoying my presence at CSFP. I think everyone was particularly jazzed about me that night because it was the same day I was chosen to play in a scrimmage against the boys basketball team in front of the entire school; after the game they all kept talking about how I play ¨like black people from the Bronx,¨ which still cracks me up. Anyways, I was flattered by the phone call, and I truly feel, as David kept telling me over the phone that night, like I am ¨one of them.¨ I couldn't have gotten luckier in my job placement, and feel that I should stay the entire year as I initially intended. I was considering a job switch in the pursuit of (financial) happiness, but am starting to realize more and more how blessed I've been to be a part of such a great place. Besides, I can teach priviate lessons to earn more income, which I'll hopefully be accomplishing muy pronto!

I think my posts from this point until December will chronicle the growth of both my students and my teaching abilities. Once in awhile I'll throw in some extracurricular morsels (I am planing a trip to the Atakama Desert in September), but now it's time to shed light on what goes on in my classes and within the greater CSFP community. But now I gotta finish planning and catch the 2:30 back to Santiago.

Hasta la próxima,

Ben

Assimilación

It's 6 a.m. Santiago time, and I have an hour to burn before I link up with my carpool, so why not blog?! It's been a few moments since my last post--mi culpa--so let's catch up on what I've been up to the last few weeks!

I am now completely settled in at the new apartment with my homegirls Melissa and Trish. The complex is located at Baquedano, a super central location that's buzzin' with culture (El Teatro Universidad de Chile is literally attached to the four building complejo), young folks (who all smoke like chimeneas), and la vida nocturna. Getting everything squared away with our arrendador (renter) was quite a process; let's just say I was missin' having my Pops as a landlord. The dude's name is Raúl, and every request we posed to him was answered, "Ok, bueno, mañana..." which really means next week. The place was a little dirty when we moved in--hair all over the bathroom and kitchen, dirt and grease por todo (throughout), condom wrappers, yeah you get the idea. Anyways, we now finally have everything (ojala--I hope) figured out. Despite the hiccups in our transition, we are very happy with our situation; we are literally footsteps away from the metro, the departamento is spacious and accommodates us well, and the elevator is one of those cool old-fashioned ones! Since we only have two bedrooms, we are going to switch off who gets the single room with the queen bed. Since Melissa has her little fling goin' on at the moment (with a guy from Colorado, jaja), she gets to enjoy it first. I'll most likely be next in a few months, and then Trish will enjoy it when her boyfriend comes and visits in the Fall, aka y'all's Spring. I love grammatically defunct vernacular.

Quick aside: Wow, I just dropped the biggest deuce in my entire life, and it was amazing. To all the readers out there who are uncomfortable with trivial things like pooping, I'll say this: get over it! I love the book Everybody Poops, and am adamant about it being in today's canon of contemporary children's literature. I'm sure many of you would prefer the title Nobody Poops But You. C'mon, I mean let's get serious: I need a small list of necessities to be happy--water, food and shelter, love and friendship, and smooth stools. Give me those things and I'm good to go! Melissa and I have poop talks weekly, and they have brought us a close bond as well as many laughs. Who's with me on this?! Ok moving on...

The 9 to 5 is amazing. I don't even feel like I'm working! I've established a solid rapport with most of my students (I've learned almost all 200-some names, which has also impressed the staff), I've started easing into my role as teacher (confidently planning and teaching more and more lessons, which is helping David and Solange, who are super busy at the moment), and I can't stop talking about how much I love my school! Job placement, as I'm sure many of you can attest, is a crapshoot here. I must have amassed some serious karma points after my last job at Knight Fundamental Academy (no offense Mrs. Keeton--principal of Knight), because CSFP is by far superior to the other colegios in its staff, teacher-student and student-student rapport, level of collegiality amongst cohorts, and administrative organization. Melissa and Trish are in kind of crummy situations; their schools are highly disorganized, the rapport is minimal (a lot of the teachers, from what they tell me, are burnt out and apática--apathetic), and the English curriculum is strictly based on following the books, with little to no room for creativity, not to mention accommodations and adjustments. They're both troopers and I know they'll be fine, but let's just say they'll be seeking new employers for the Fall semester.

It is time for me to link up with David, my co-teacher, for the carpool with the principal of CSFP, María Teresa, who is very sweet. David is also wonderful. A very good teacher who knows how to keep things tranquilo, we're very similar people who get along great. I'm excited to hit the town with him and get loco.

Much love to everyone, and hollatchaboyeee! I love comments, so get it poppin', folks.

Paz,

Benja

Hyperlink To Trish's Blog

Just a quick post! I haven't found much time to geek out with my digital camera and upload the photos I've taken. I promise it'll happen soon, but in the meantime I'll provide a hyperlink to Trish Molina's blog, which has a bunch of great photos for your enjoyment. The url is http://www.trishinchile.blogspot.com.

Enjoy!

Benny

Double Post: Mi Gastronomía y Mi Trabajo

I shall begin this blog entry with a brevísima relación (brief telling) of my gastrointestinal adventures--lo bueno y lo malo.

Since arriving in this wonderful country, I have been able to taste a sizeable variety of comida. Whether eating at restaurants or cooking up delectable dishes in the hostel (that I'll be moving out of this week), I must admit that I am spoiled here in Chile--but not without its repurcussions!...

The seafood here is second to none. My first taste came when my fellow teachers and I went to La Casona Limeña, an excellent Peruvian Restaurant in Barrio Bellavista, where I ordered un plato típico of Chile: ¡ceviche! Ceviche is kind of like seafood salad, for those who are unfamiliar. This particular order consisted of two types of pescado (fish), camarones (shrimp), and pulpo (octopus). Served with fresh onion, cilantro, a leaf of lettuce, and topped with lemon juice, aceite de aceituna (olive oil), sal y pimienta (salt and pepper), and there you have your cevishe. The dish blew my mind, needless to say. I suggest throwin' it down the hatch with chilled white wine. ¡Maravilloso!

Craving more seafood a couple days later, the crew and I decided to have our hand at pasta al mariscos, and we hit it right on the nail! Melissa Shaw, one of my soon-to-be roommates, definitely knows her way around the kitchen, and I can confidently say the same for myself (big ups to Drew Lopez, my former roommate, amazing chef, and culinary inspiration). Our first dish was pan-seared chicken with fried eggplant. I played the role of executive chef and had Mel and Trish (other roomie) by my side to help the kitchen gears grind smoothly. The second time around, I chilled in the background, focusing on the white wine sause for the shellfish and pasta, which was the bomb.com. Quick sidenote, we bought 3 kilos of the freshy fresh--black and white mussels and clams--at mercado central for 3000 pesos, which is the equivalent of just under 6 bucks. Ridiculoso. And if the value itself is not enough to whet your appetite, just imagine mowing down mussels the size of your ears! No joke, people, it's amazing. We outdid ourselves with that feast, and con certeza (with certainty) I tell you it won't be the last time!

And now I change the key of my food ballad to a sombering diminished minor. After a night at the karaeoke club, which was fantastic, and where tenía ganas de tomar cerveza (I drank a good amount), I came down with the stomach ailments somethin' fierce, what the Chilenos would call buitrear. I woke up in the early morning and felt as it some kind of demonio was raising cain inside my digestive system. As the sun rose, so did the contents within my tummy; I spilled my cookies about 7 times, and as I laid convulsing in my bed, I begged God to make it stop. Later that day, unable to hold down anything, not even water, I finally mustered up the strength to amble to the pharmacy, where I spend 10,000 pesos on two types of medicine in the hopes of alleviating the agony I was going through. I also bought 5 liters of water because the chlorine-tainted stuff coming out of the faucets was making me gag. Between those two items, that was probably the best investmet I've made for myself since arriving; I was ready to hang out with the amigos that same night (avoiding even eye contact with a drop of alcohol), and by the next day I was playing beer pong and eating food again, ¡gracias a Dios!

Continuing on, I change gears from food to work. I am actually writing this entry during my break here at El Colegio San Francisco de Paine, which is a preK-12 school in the rural pueblo of Paine. The commute from Santiago takes about an hour and 20 minutes, which I really enjoy, as I can read, people watch, enjoy the paisaje (countryside), and relax. I arrive most days by 9 a.m., some days más temprano (early) and some más tarde (later), and get right into my grind. My official position is Teacher In Practicum Specialist, or TIPS. I am not in charge of entire classes by my lonesome; I team teach (team teaching is the way to go in my opinion) with another English teacher at the school. At CSFP, there are two other English instructors, so I split my time between their horarios (schedules). I teach each grade level, from preK (preschool) to 12th grade, on an average of twice per week. This week, I'm just getting to know the students, so I'm doing a frisbee activity in which we pass around a cloth frisbee (thank you Colemans; that gift will be put to goooooooood use) and take turns saying our name and something we enjoy doing--in English, por supuesto (of course)! I am speaking a lot of Spanish for the first session to better establish my rapport with everyone, but from that point on I will give lesson strictly in Inglès. Outside of class, however, I speaking Spanish, which I am getting better at each day. It's fun. The atmísfero here is one of casual collegiality between staff and students alike (teachers go by their first names--excellent), and the teachers are very passionate about what they do, but they balance work and diversión (fun) very well, so it's a super chill place to be working. I love it! I am planning, however, to only work one semestre here in Paine, because I have been informed of an opportunity to acquire employment with El Instituto Norteamericano, which is a language service offered to adults, college age and above. I think it would be cool to mix it up, and also that position pays double what I'm making here at the colegio, so that's pretty enticing. I should be heading in for an entrevista (interview) sometime soon.

I leave you all with some good news: Melissa, Trish and I will be moving into our departamento tomorrow, which we are all very excited about. Okay I already said that in this entry but whatever I'm stoked. We make a good trio, we get along great, and it's gonna be sweet. Now, it's time for me to go chow down in the school cafeteria, where the food is 10 times better than school meals in the States, and I get hooked up for free!! How about them apples?

Ciao y'all,

Benja

Blog rapidfire!

Howdy, folks!!

I am lounging in an internet cafe in Paine, having just finished my first day of work, awaiting the train back to Santiago. I have about 20 minutes to relay a week's worth of experiences, let's get it started!!

I have found two great friends in my cohorts Melissa and Trish, and we've decided to rent an apartment together. It'll be my first time living with women (aside from family) so we'll see what happens! Trish has a novio (boyfriend) and although Melissa and I appear to be friendly with each other, we're strictly plutonic. (I have a knack for accumulating friends of the opposite sex, it seems. No novias...not yet, at least! ;) Back to the apartment search, so far we've seen a two bedroom right in Baquedano, a very central, happenin' area. We'd all really like to have our own dormitorio though, so we're gonna shop around this week.

Having a few weeks to get settled in has been nice. It's been almost like a vacation (and I've been spending my plata--cash--accordingly, so it's definitely time to chillax on that matter). In that short-lived, but extremely fun, span of time, I visited the famous house and museum of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (check him out, y'all), which is designed to emulate the elements of maritime life that he loved so. In front of the house stand 6 stellas, or sculptures, engraved with one of his most famous poems. I'm gonna be honest, folks; I read the poem and was nearly moved to tears as I translated it to my friends. Seriously, this guy was a genius, and maybe a little egotistical, but then again most brilliant minds are (I try to stay humble--guiño!! That means wink). Outside his complex lies a conrete outdoor theatre. Inspired by our visit, Melissa and I took turns reading aloud poetry from a book called Essential Neruda, which we both purchased in the gift shop. You'll see those pics as soon as I get the chance to post 'em.

Runnin' outta time quickly here... One can find much to do in Barrio Bellavista, and this oftentimes includes, but is not limited to, consuming exceptional quantities of alcohol--let's just say my friends and I have been livin' it up a bit while we can. One of my favorite spots is Club K.O.K., a karaeoke bar! It's the best because nobody goes there and I can sing 10 songs in a night, as opposed to maybe singing one or two back in the states. Brian Eley would be in heaven.

Gotta run, people! Mucho amor y cariño, como siempre,

Benja

Pictures: first installation

Already At Home In a Faraway Land

Saludos a todos! Hello, everyone! Thank you for choosing to keep up with my experiences in Chile. I will be here for one year, sin regresar (without returning), and I am looking forward to a prosperous epoch in my life, full of learning and teaching, travelling, and growing.

I arrived early Thrusday morning, the 16th of July, eager to dive into this amazing country. I was settled into my hostel within an hour, and by the end of the day I reconnected with Lee Miller, a close friend of mine from college who is also in the TeachingChile program (and who encouraged me to follow him out here). I spent my first night with Leeskimo, who is living with another Saint John's buddy and TeachingChile participant, Phil Giesen.

My luck would have it that I would be initiated into Chilean culture in a way no one wants: I was robbed my second day here! Chile is one of the safest, most stable countries in Latin America, but also has THE highest rate of petty theft, perhaps in the world. Matter of fact, Spain is actually blocking many Chileans from entering its borders for that exact reason. Anyways, I was briskly jogging to catch the metro, on my way to Lee and Phil's place. Ironically, as I passed the former U.S. embassy, it happened. Two young girls in front of me looked behind them, shrieked, and began bookin' it. ¨Are they running from me?¨I thought to myself, as I looked behind myself to find a pack of high school-aged ¨flaites¨ (thugs) grabbing for me. Had I realized what was happening a second earlier, I would have been able to evade them and make it out into the open, merely a half block away. They pinned me against the wall, socked me in the forehead, held me at knifepoint, ripped open my favorite shirt (probably looking for a money belt), and made off with about the equivalent of $30 USD, my wallet (which contained a few credit cards, my license, my SJU ID--no more free drinks at Chipotle in the States--other random stuff), and my toothbrush, which I was bringing with me in the case I stayed the night at Lee and Phil's. I understand the money and wallet thing, but my toothbrush?! What would they need that for?

All being told, I was very disappointed in my bonehead decision to walk alone at night along a dimly lit street, but I didn't let the experience damper my otherwise amazing experience so far here in Santiago, the enormous capital of Chile. My cohorts, all around the same age range, are all very cool, and from all parts of the U.S.; Bruce and Andrea, my primary points of contact and the ¨executives¨ of TeachingChile, are the best bosses I could ever ask for; the neighborhood where I'm temporarily staying--Bellavista (Pretty View)--is an awesome Bohemian area filled with incredible graffiti art, hip cafés, and nice people; the food and liqour is cheap (don't worry Mom and Dad); the women are quite linda (pretty); basically, ¡todo está bien! It's all good!

That's all I'm gonna share for the moment, as I'm freezing my buns off in this internet café and burning through my plata (cash) simultaneously. I will start a picasa account where I'll share all my photos, but I'll post the highlights in this bloggerooski, so get ready for some cool pics, lots of information, and (hopefully) a bundle of insightful commentary. I have titled my blog ¨Los Cantos De Mi Lengua¨, which is a line from an essay by the Chilean poet Pablo de Rokha. It means ¨the songs of my tongue,¨ and the line ends ¨...tienen ojos y pies...musculos, alma, sensaciones, minimas, simplisimas, de recién nacidos, aúllan y hacen congojas enormes... ¨ and holy smokes does that line go forever, so I will not finish it, nor will I translate it--I leave that up to you! I think it fits nice with what I'm doing in my life right now, and am using it as my mantra in sharing my experiences, reflections, meditations with all of you :)

¡Que disfruten lo que comparto con uds.! May you all enjoy what I share! My next entry will probably be installed once I begin my job, which I am super amped to jump into. My school is in Paine--pronounced ¨Pie-nay,¨ a quaint town about a half hour south of Santiago. I hear good things.

Ciao!

Benja (akin to Benny)