Wow.... this month has really flown by. Especially the last week or so. Tonight I didn't feel like going dancing or to the pub or bar because my body needs a break. And, I'm just not really in the mood. Tomorrow I'm going to have a cookout with Jose's family and another family that I'm close with... and I think it will be the last time that I see them & today I ate dinner with the Fuentes family.... I leave Tuesday afternoon for Santiago, Viña del Mar, & Valparaiso so it's hitting me that I'm not going to get these moments back.
For any of you that know me really well know that the past year or so of my life has been rather fast-passed and stressfull. Work...school....ski team.... relationship.... This has been the perfect relaxer for me. I've been able to unwind and really have fun. No responsibilities no obligations. And I've come to appreciate every single moment because life is too short. I had one month here and I can honestly say that I did everything I possibly could. I went surfing, parachuting, to parties with a lot of different people.... I was homesick one day/night and only was bored for 2 afternoons. As I reflect on my time here, I can't recollect much time spent sleeping. Everyday I did something different. I'm really proud of myself for actually "livin' it up" as much as I possibly could....
At least Patti & I are coming back here for Spring Break.... that makes things a little easier for me to say good-bye to my friends and new families here....
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Friday, August 04, 2006
~Staci Malibu~
Okay okay.... maybe I should talk about the culture here a little bit. Any of you that knows me very all, knows that I am a very time & detail oriented person. I always like to know what time I need to be places and what time events start & whose going to be there and what we are going to do. Not that I'm ever on time or it really matters, I just like to know. Yeah... here it's impossible to know any of this stuff. Which makes it rather difficult sometime. Especially when someone is like do you want to go out tonight. Sure, what time? Whenever..... that doesn't make things very easy for me. Or they'll say 11 and won't show up until almost 12.
They eat mayo on EVERYTHING.... which now I do too. It's actually kind of good on a hot dog w/ some ketchup & avocado. Or rice... or corn.... yeah I know sounds gross but it's good
The girls are all pretty and laid back. The guys are cute & love to dance.
Parties don't start until at least 11:30... you don't go to the bar until 1... it stays open until at least 5 or 6 a.m. Drink specials start at 11:30 and end at 2. By one, get one for "happy hour" most of the time.... Pretty nice for those people that don't like to go out early. Adults go out and go dancing until 5 a.m. ANNNDDD they go out during the week sometimes, and stay out late even if they have to work in the morning.
Lunch is the most important meal. Families typically eat together and eat a big lunch. It's normally to take 2 hours off of work for lunch.
THERE ARE DOGS EVERYWHERE. Like homeless dogs... it's actually really sad because noone takes care of them so they are kind of ugly....
PDA is normal. It's normal to see people cuddling and kissing on the beach or in the parks. You greet y our friends with a kiss on the cheek, and you typically greet everyone when you enter a party. (which to me is kind of annoying because i don't know everyone and it's so time consuming)
Empanadas are amazing :)
Most families have at least one nanny to care for the kids and cook. Sometimes two. And other families don't have any.
Every house has high walls or gates over doors and windows because robberies are common. All the houses are extremly bright and colorful. The insides are gorgeous, most everyone has a pool in their yard. Grass is not common because it never rains. There is grass, but it's expensive because it has to be watered ALOT.
They listen to a lot of techno in the club, which i can't stand. Salsa is soooo fun to dance to, but I need practice. And of course my favorite is reggeaton & hip hop. It's really common to hear old American songs from the 80s and 90s. But their the classics so it's fun for me. I can flash back to different eras. I love it when they play American songs because I can sing along. Not very many girls wear heels here.... which sucks for me because i LOVE my heels. It's just so hard to walk here because of the sand and dirt and uneven sidewalks and distances. It's easier to dance in tennis shoes anyway.... hmmm what else.....
Noone knows what the hell a "coach" bag is.... 9 west & Guess are really popular. Sketchers for tennis shoes too, but the sketchers here are actually cute. The tennis shoes here as a whole are really cute. The clothes are more or less cute, some I like others I don't.
EVERYONE watches the Simpsons (it's in Spanish) and everytime I introduce myself the first thing they say is "ooo Staci Malibu" yup... I'm a Barbie here. LOL I'm pretty much the only girl with "blonde" short hair and honey colored eyes. So, I'm normally the center of attention because I'm different. Which is cool sometimes, but sometimes I just want to be normal you know?
I hate being called "la gringa" or a "gringo." I hate it when people try to talk to me super fast and when I don't understand they automatically assume that I can't speak Spanish when the truth is they just don't talk properly. And they ALWAYS want to practice their English. Honestly, if I wanted I probably could never have to speak Spanish. Chileans speak really poor Spanish for the most part, a lot of slang, and they slur their words together. But, when I talk to people who are paciente and can speak properly if they try or if they are from Peru or Colombia or another country I can understand. It's fun for me to talk with people from other countries because I don't feel so bad about my inability to understand everything because they tell me how hard it was for them at first too and Spanish is their native language. :) And they always tell me how good my Spanish is which makes me feel good because sometimes I get so frustrated.
hmmmm that's all I can think of for now.... and I have to get ready to go out dancing... it is my last Friday in Iquique gotta live it up while I can ;)
chau
They eat mayo on EVERYTHING.... which now I do too. It's actually kind of good on a hot dog w/ some ketchup & avocado. Or rice... or corn.... yeah I know sounds gross but it's good
The girls are all pretty and laid back. The guys are cute & love to dance.
Parties don't start until at least 11:30... you don't go to the bar until 1... it stays open until at least 5 or 6 a.m. Drink specials start at 11:30 and end at 2. By one, get one for "happy hour" most of the time.... Pretty nice for those people that don't like to go out early. Adults go out and go dancing until 5 a.m. ANNNDDD they go out during the week sometimes, and stay out late even if they have to work in the morning.
Lunch is the most important meal. Families typically eat together and eat a big lunch. It's normally to take 2 hours off of work for lunch.
THERE ARE DOGS EVERYWHERE. Like homeless dogs... it's actually really sad because noone takes care of them so they are kind of ugly....
PDA is normal. It's normal to see people cuddling and kissing on the beach or in the parks. You greet y our friends with a kiss on the cheek, and you typically greet everyone when you enter a party. (which to me is kind of annoying because i don't know everyone and it's so time consuming)
Empanadas are amazing :)
Most families have at least one nanny to care for the kids and cook. Sometimes two. And other families don't have any.
Every house has high walls or gates over doors and windows because robberies are common. All the houses are extremly bright and colorful. The insides are gorgeous, most everyone has a pool in their yard. Grass is not common because it never rains. There is grass, but it's expensive because it has to be watered ALOT.
They listen to a lot of techno in the club, which i can't stand. Salsa is soooo fun to dance to, but I need practice. And of course my favorite is reggeaton & hip hop. It's really common to hear old American songs from the 80s and 90s. But their the classics so it's fun for me. I can flash back to different eras. I love it when they play American songs because I can sing along. Not very many girls wear heels here.... which sucks for me because i LOVE my heels. It's just so hard to walk here because of the sand and dirt and uneven sidewalks and distances. It's easier to dance in tennis shoes anyway.... hmmm what else.....
Noone knows what the hell a "coach" bag is.... 9 west & Guess are really popular. Sketchers for tennis shoes too, but the sketchers here are actually cute. The tennis shoes here as a whole are really cute. The clothes are more or less cute, some I like others I don't.
EVERYONE watches the Simpsons (it's in Spanish) and everytime I introduce myself the first thing they say is "ooo Staci Malibu" yup... I'm a Barbie here. LOL I'm pretty much the only girl with "blonde" short hair and honey colored eyes. So, I'm normally the center of attention because I'm different. Which is cool sometimes, but sometimes I just want to be normal you know?
I hate being called "la gringa" or a "gringo." I hate it when people try to talk to me super fast and when I don't understand they automatically assume that I can't speak Spanish when the truth is they just don't talk properly. And they ALWAYS want to practice their English. Honestly, if I wanted I probably could never have to speak Spanish. Chileans speak really poor Spanish for the most part, a lot of slang, and they slur their words together. But, when I talk to people who are paciente and can speak properly if they try or if they are from Peru or Colombia or another country I can understand. It's fun for me to talk with people from other countries because I don't feel so bad about my inability to understand everything because they tell me how hard it was for them at first too and Spanish is their native language. :) And they always tell me how good my Spanish is which makes me feel good because sometimes I get so frustrated.
hmmmm that's all I can think of for now.... and I have to get ready to go out dancing... it is my last Friday in Iquique gotta live it up while I can ;)
chau
Parapente
So.... I just realized that I haven't written anything about when I jumped off a mountain. I'm sure you've all looked at the pictures though....
My first weekend here my Spanish wasn't so great. I understood the majority of what people said, if I listened really closely.... but normally I didn't listen very closely. Which made my life rather exciting. So when Jose asked me if Saturday I wanted to parapente, sure. No problem. Then.... Saturday morning rolls around and I figure out what parapente is. We drive up to the top of the mountain here in Iquique, me, Connie, her dad, and another guy (the other guy has this huge brightly colored bag thingy).... I'm looking around at the top of this mountain like "wow, this is really pretty up here" and I'm taking pictures. Then I turn around and this guy is putting on a helmet and hands me one. Okay.... what did I get myself into? Connie decides she doesn't want to do it because she's scared of heights (loser) and it's just me and this instructor. But for some reason I'm not really nervous. I get all strapped into this contraption (a giant parachute) and watch another guy take off. He just walked to the edge of the mountain and was in the air. Pretty simple. I'm thinking to myself, "okay if I watch one more person I'll be fine, I won't be nervous or anything" but nope. My instructor (who is strapped in behind me) tells me to start walking and because I am a midget I didn't even have to jump off the mountain. The wind just lifted us right off the ground. I think he jumped though because he was like a foot taller than me.
It was so relaxing. We just floated around with the birds for like a half hour or more until we landed on the beach. So beautiful.... so relaxing.... and I was not nervous or scared at all. Definately an adventure I recommend & would love to do again....
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Another adventure...
Okay, so yesterday I went to a friend's for lunch, then with Jose to change my flight so that I can go to Santiago, Viña del Mar, and Valparaiso for a few days, then the mall. While I was at the mall (of course buying new clothes because I´m bored with mine), I called a friend. He says, sure come to my house don´t walk around alone. Problem, I can´t understand how to tell the cab driver how to get to his house. Which is different than the last time I was there b-c he moved. So, I get in the cab, he tells the driver how to get there. 10 minutes later, I´m standing on the street in a place I don´t recoginze and my freaking phone won´t work. Yeah.... you know how in Morgantown around 9 or 10 on a Thursday or Friday it´s nearly impossible to get a call out. You know that weird beeping and then the disconnection that we get? Yeah, that happened. EXCEPT the difference here is that my phone here isn´t a plan. It´s like prepaid minutes or something, I don´t know and I don´t really understand. And whenever it feels like it, it runs out of minutes and I´m stranded. On the street in front of what might or might not be my friend´s house.... Thank god the cab driver was concerned for my safety and didn´t just drive off. He waited and then offered to take me back to my house. So, as we´re driving along chatting (the driver insisted on practicing his English which was fine with me) BAAAAAMMMMMM we get hit from behind. Yup, I was in a traffic accident yesterday. Minor, I mean I think the cab got messed up a little bit, but I was perfectly fine. So, we continued on our merry way back to ¨my¨house. As soon as I walked through the door Christian called wondering where the hell I was.... it would happen like that. He couldn´t have called when I was standing outside his door.
I hate my cell phone here, it is worthless. I´m sorry, but it is pointless to have prepaid minutes because when you have an emergency and you´re out of minutes, your screwed. I will always and forever have a ¨plan¨ even if it is more expensive!!
I hate my cell phone here, it is worthless. I´m sorry, but it is pointless to have prepaid minutes because when you have an emergency and you´re out of minutes, your screwed. I will always and forever have a ¨plan¨ even if it is more expensive!!
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
posting
YEAHHHH
Thank god Clemens is intelligent, because I'm definately not. Now you guys can post comments without signing up for an account.
SWEETNESS. I like reading your guy's comments, it makes me smile & remember how amazing my friends are.
MISS YOU ALL
Thank god Clemens is intelligent, because I'm definately not. Now you guys can post comments without signing up for an account.
SWEETNESS. I like reading your guy's comments, it makes me smile & remember how amazing my friends are.
MISS YOU ALL
My Cellphone
Hey, I'm going to take a minute to talk about my cellphone. Yesterday I had like 5 phone calls, but I answered none of them. I just want to let everyone know that for me to use my USA phone, it's like $1.50 a minute. And when you call me, your name & number doesn't show up. So for all I know, instead of it being a close friend it might be someone that I really don't feel like talking to you know?? Not to mention my dad just might kill me if my cell bill is outrageous from answering all these phone calls. Buuuuttt.... I do have a cell phone here, a Chilean cell phone. So, if you REALLY want to talk to me great. Leave me a message on here, facebook, AOL, or e-mail me and I'll give you my cell number here. ORRRRR just talk to me on AOL. It's totally up to you. I just don't want you all to think I'm being a brat by not answering my cell. I just enjoy my life too much to see it end when my cell bill comes in the mall for the past month. ;)
Fotolog
Okay, so today I hung out with a new friend (Maria Jose) and she told me about Fotolog. It's like a blog for pictures. I can upload pictures and you all can leave messages really easy. I am under the impression that to leave a message for me on here it's a pain in the ass because you have to create an account, but on Fotolog you don't have to. It's like posting stuff on facebook for those of you that know what facebook is. The only downfall is that I can only post one picture a day. (and I didn't know how the rotate the picture, so the first one is sideways....i'll figure it out someday) So, I'm going to add a new picture of me every day, write a little bit about the picture and then you guys can leave me some love.
You don't understand how much I appreciate the comments left on my blog, it makes me feel like you guys really do miss me. I write this blog for those few people that enjoy reading it, and for my friends and family that I miss so much.
So check out fotolog if you feel like it and leave me some love so that I know I'm missed....
*MUAH*
You don't understand how much I appreciate the comments left on my blog, it makes me feel like you guys really do miss me. I write this blog for those few people that enjoy reading it, and for my friends and family that I miss so much.
So check out fotolog if you feel like it and leave me some love so that I know I'm missed....
*MUAH*
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