I arrived in Santiago!

I made it to Santiago and I can’t believe it. The flight was long and tiring, but all is well.

All 20 WorldTeach volunteers are staying in a hostel together. We are like a big happy family that does everything together. Our American bubble is a little much at times, but everyone is very nice. I am staying a room with 4 other girls plus our many pieces of luggage. It is a bit crowded. Currently, we are training everyday except for the weekends. We train from 9am to 5/7pm depending on the day.

I got to see my teaching site is week because it is where we are training at for the rest of the month. The neighborhood is beautiful and seems pretty safe. It is one of the wealthiest neighborhoods of all of Santiago.

Yesterday, we went exploring and went up a funicular to San Cristobel and hiked the rest of the way down the mountain/hill. At the top, we could see the whole city of Santiago. I could not believe it. I saw city houses and buildings as far as I could see (although the smog hindered the view, Santiago is HUGE). It is somewhat intimidating. Coming down from the hike, we ended up in Providencia (where I will be teaching) in a neighborhood that reminded me of Orange County, California. There were gated mansions and fancy cars. I thought I had traveled back to the U.S. for a moment.

I am still working on finding out where everything is at, from the best grocery stores to a Laundromat. We are staying in the downtown area of Santiago called Bellas Artes. It has the same hustle and bustle of New York, but with more stray dogs that follow you around.

I am not yet used to the cat calls and stares and I am not sure if I ever will get used to them, but surprisingly people here are more intrigued by Americans than put off by them. They ask where you are from and introduce themselves. I feel like I am supposed to be really cool or something.

The peso makes my head hurt at times with having to do the conversion. I have 10,000 pesos in my wallet daily. It sounds like a lot, but really it is about $16 US dollars. So I feel like a star and have thousands of pesos to spend. I think Chile is trying to make me feel like a movie star….if only that were true.

Also, I learned more about Chile’s history and how much has happened in the past 20 years. I could not believe that in 2006 divorced just became legalized. The way that Chileans have adapted to this restraint is quite strange. I don’t really get how and why they have the relationships that they do. (I will explain more later.)

For more general information, the food is pretty good. They enjoy their deep fried breads and potatoes and hot dogs covered with tomatoes, avocado and mayo (needless to say, it was an interesting experience). Also, the water is drinkable, but you cannot throw your toilet paper in the toilet. Instead, you have to throw it in a garbage can next to the toilet.

When I first arrived, I could not believe that Chile (and/or Santiago) is considered a developing country, but on a daily basis I am reminded of it, from the number of stray dogs to the bad smelling river that runs through the city. You would never expect a city with huge high rises to lack so many amenities of a developed country.

In one of our classes last week, I learned why we are in Santiago. Chile has one of the highest income gaps in the world. This is reflected in their mismanaged and unequal education system. The Chilean government is struggling to create more opportunities for lower income classes. In a huge bustling metropolitan, I never expected there to be such a large difference between the poor and the rich. One side of the city has nice houses and apartments, while the other side is considered to be a shanty town.

I am excited to continue learning about Chile and all that is has to offer. I will write again soon and post pictures once I have more. We have been training so much that I haven’t had much time for exploring.

Besos,

Tara

PS Thank you all for leaving comments on my blog. I love it!