The first weekend in April, three of us travelled up to Santiago for the weekend. It was really fun to see all the other volunteers and hear about the first experiences teaching. Many stories were similar to our own experience at the Duoc site here in Conce. We all met up at an American-owned bar to watch the Final Four games and I have to say it was (almost) more jarring entering "Basic Bar" than it has been entering various public spaces here in Chile. It was like being transported to a sports bar in the US without any prior warning. The blond waitress told us to "grab a seat wherever," they had Bud and Pabst on tap and the majority of people inside were gringos.
The English was what got me. Suddenly, I understood idle chatting or conversations of those standing around me. I've been used to a steady buzz of language all around me for the past few months, catching a word here and there. To have everything click--without me even trying--was an odd feeling. It was fun for a night but I was glad to go back to my hazy world of Spanish buzz as we stepped out the door. Of course we walk out, step over a groggy dogs and spend the next hour getting home. Waiting for a bus that never came, hailing a taxi, struggling with the impossible to pronounce address...In Chile, transportation is always an adventure.
The next day, I ran in the Maratón de Santiago. The half marathon. The race itself is kind of a blur, but the experience of being there and running was really, well, cool. It was a sea of neon yellow t shirts, reggaton music blaring, little kids holding signs saying "¡Vamos Papi!", and gatorade cups strewn all over the ground every 5k. I finished in a little over 2 hours, very glad I didn't attempt the marathon. Maybe this fall??
Oh, and a word for the wise: don't run a 1/2 marathon then take an overnight bus expecting to "be fine" the next day.
As for the rest of the month:
-For Semana Santa (Easter Weekend), I went to Valdivia with four other WT volunteers. It was really fun to see more of the South. Definitely different from the big cities I'd seen. To walk around a small, quaint, tranquilo town was refreshing. The best part was the hostel: real coffee, wheat bread and a pet bunny! Happy Easter!
- I FINALLY started my 5th class last week. Seven weeks behind. yikes. Another example of Duoc's disorganization. It's ridiculous at times, but usually I find a way to laugh at the "But why?!" moments. One thing I've noticed now that we've had two quizzes and a oral test: Cheating is rampant. These students are technically University age but they still pull all the old tricks from middle/high school: writing on hands, tiny cheat sheets, writing on desks in pencil, cell phones etc etc. And I'm standing right there, staring them down the entirety of the quiz! NO shame. I definitely need to work on being more strict and following through with consequences. All I have to say at this point is if the students would come to class more than half the time, the 20 point quiz would be a lot easier. But alas, such is Duoc- a tiny peek into Chilean education. There are a lot bigger problems than my little classroom on Concepción.
-On the flip side of frustrating students, the Duoc profs are great. Last night, all 20+ of us went to a restaurant--quite fancy for those of us on volunteer budgets--to celebrate our boss, Jorge's, birthday. They love hearing about our classes, our host families, impressions of Chile etc. After drinks and the communal "parrillada," a steaming pile of meat or a fancy BBQ, we went to another teacher's house for more picso and potato chips. Potato chips are the eternal snack here. Only complete with a side of mayo.
This afternoon, I've got a pile of quizzes to grade. It'll be interesting to see how much the cheat sheets helped.
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