Last Night

I crawled into bed at around 5AM last night. We went out for sushi and then to three bars in Provedencia. We started at Budapest, a bar in Bilboa. Next, because my friends, locked in their American ways, decided to go to an Irish pub. Which I am against just because I think we´re in Chile in order to meet Chileans and experience their culture, not Irish culture.

But at least it was fun. We actually met Irish people, funny meeting Irish people at an Irish pub in Chile. They had very nicely sounding accents and were just a riot to listen to. Apparently, Irish people adapt well to a pub environment.

With sayings like --I´d burst into flames if I went into an English pub-- which is about the most appropriate thing said last night. And the rest should be forgetten by humanity and never brought up again.

Interestingly though, one of the fellows there was half-Irish, half-Peruvian. He wasn't a fan of the Chileans and was there on business. Apparently, there is a lot of racism in Chile against Peruvians. That wasn't suprising to me though, I've heard many here say that Lima is a dirty, ugly city. Additionally, in the Plaza de Armas, there is the Peruvian corner where the migrants sit and wait for work. It seems here, Peruvians are like Mexicans in the US.

Ah Choo

Apparently, Chileans don´t say ´god bless you´ or ´gazuntheit´ or even salud. I talked about with my Spanish professor today and she said that it recently became rude to say it. It's baffling how a country of 15 million people can come to a decision like that.

After my Pobreza and Desarrollo class I went with Mark and Ryan to the Pre-Colombian Art Museum near La Plaza de Armas. It cost 2.000 pesos which was kind of steep compared to the other museums that only cost 600 pesos. The museum was very well run with interesting exhibits although it was kind of small. It only had one floor.

The exhibits had a lot of pottery and statues. Apparently, that´s what they did back then. Interestingly, they also had an exhibit on pre-colombian textiles which was different. Apparently, there are a number of ways to stitch alpaca wool together depending on whether you want to make clothing, tablecloths, or carpets.

I came back around 4PM and had my host mom´s stew waiting in the fridge which I gobbled up. There was also some mint chocolate laying around which I nibbled on. She´s been taking a cooking class on chocolates which I would say is working out in my favor.

A Rash and a New Experience

Well it's official. I have a rash. I tried to go see a doctor but I got on the wrong bus. As a result, I'm just going to wait till I get back to the US. I'm sure it won't spread too much.

If there is any silver lining in this storm cloud is that I got to see a totally different part of Chile. I got directions to the doctor from Paola but, as I am incompetent when it comes to directions, I got lost regardless.

I ended up taking the bus to the wrong part of town, the really wrong part of town. I didn't realize my mistake before it was too late and so I ended up having to ride the route until the bus got off the highway so I could catch a bus at the very end of the route in order to catch another bus going back.

Traveling in a part of town that I had never seen before, I quickly noticed that the quality of housing was deteriorating and when I finally disembarked at the bus depot, I found myself in an area that was devoid of grass and full of shacks. It was quite different than the affluent Los Condes I am residing in now. As I walked to the nearest bus stop, two miles away, I began to see how regular Chileans lived their lives, Chileans who were not as lucky as my neighbors. I felt as if I could taste the smog in the air. The neighborhood was filled with dilapidated houses.

While I tried not to stand out (luckily my host mom had bought me some Chilean clothes so I didn't stand out too much), I discretely peered into shacks whose roofs were covered with garbage bags to keep out the rain. It just stunned me that what appeared to be such a modern country can have such abject poverty. After seeing so much concentrated poverty, I realized that even though Chile has modernized tremendously there exists terrible inequality that many do not know about or simply overlook.

Going into that part of town was like entering a different world.

Pesaj

Last night I went to the Sedar held by one of the local synogagues. The dinner wasn´t held at the synagogue but rather a community center. One of the members told me that they held it their because it was closer to everyone´s homes, rather than the synagogue which is in the center and far away.

About 100 people showed up to the dinner. It kind of surprised me because none of the folks looked chilean, it looked like they had planted a Jewish community in the states in Santiago. Isadora sat with me, she´s a friend from my program who found the sedar.

There were a bunch of tables and the rabbi and the cantor sat on the stage and led the ceremonies. We played Passover Bingo, and sang songs, and did all of the traditional stuff, although at a brisk pace, I think the Sedar only lasted about 2-3 hours. Just the way I like my religion short and sweet.

Our Hagadah´s were in spanish and hebrew, although I thought it was interesting that when the rabbi led the sedar he didn´t speak hebrew with a chilean accent. However, when they were talking to one of the kids on the microphone I noticed he had a chilean accent when he spoke. The ´ch´ sound in hebrew, ´ch´as in Chanuka and Chag Sameach, is with a J, as in Pesaj.

The dinner was okay it was just chicken, latkas, and two glazed carrots. We also had gefilte fish, which I thought was dry and surprisingly fishy tasting. Not as good as grandma´s definitely, I like it sweet. They had horseradish too, the purple kind. But for 6.500 pesos what do you expect?

All in all, it was a neat experience. Isadora and I got a ride back to our houses from one of the congregation members who were sitting by us. She came with her daughter. It turned out she was a commercial realtor, very nice. We got back around 1030 just in time for to study for today´s test in my Teoria de Politica Moderna class, which I couldn´t finish because it was so hard to right such complicated things in spanish. At least I´m only taking the class for credit and not a grade. But the Sedar was very nice

The Rehab Center

Today we had a field trip to the rehab center in a small chilean town outside of Santiago. It was a group home we´re people recovering from drugs stayed. We ate lunch at the place, grilled chicken, potato salad, cauliflouwer salad, and oddly colored jello for desert. I´ll have to ask Mom if that´s standard at rehab centers. ( The jello was like bright green and bright purple--I didn`t touch it).

We were split up into two groups afterwards. One group went to the women´s center, my group to the men´s. We entered a room and sat down in a large circle with 30 other Chilean patients. The social worker introduced us and then everyone went around the room introducing themselves. After that they gave each of us a patient as a tour guide. I started with four tour guides but it slowly whittled away down to one. I forget the guys name, although the guy looked like he had his face punched in. He told me he was in their for a cocain habit. He showed me their rooms, the kitchen, the pool etc... Interestingly, they made their own honey there. They had a bee farm that the patients managed.

My tour guide eventually disappeared and I tagged along with another group in order to keep myself occupied. Other than the patients showing me around, the other patients seemed to enjoy the experience. After seeing their rooms and the way they acted though, nervous habits, joking etc...they kind of seemed like unruly high schoolers.

But anyway we left and I was left wondering if these are the guys getting help, how many people are out there not getting help at all?

Argentina (continued)

Mendoza was a pretty cool place. It`s actually a college town. What made it different then Chile was that the place had a more European feel to it. Chile feels like it`s caught between North America and Europe while Argentina is clearly culturally with Europe.

Also interesting was the number of old run down cars in Argentina. Chile has a free trade agreement with the US so they get new cars all the time but Argentina has huge trade barriers against cars and you can see how old and decrepit they are.

It also seems like Argentina is a little poorer then Chile. Although, I've heard it said that culturally Argentineans think themselves as wealthy, because earlier in the century the country had the 11th strongest economy in the world.

Another thing that I noticed is that Argentineans seem to be a lot more social than Chileans. Every Argentinean I spoke to seemed really excited to meet someone from the states. Chileans, in comparison, seem to be a bit timid and more self-absorbed. I wonder if that's a result of the dictatorship?

Argentina (continued)

I have returned to Chile, the more expensive neighbor of Argentina. After an 8 hour bus ride through the Cordillera, the mountain range that divides the two countries, it was good to get back and stretch my legs.

It was a very awesome 3 day visit to Mendoza. On Saturday we switched hotels, one with towels, unripped matresses, and privacy. We signed up for a wine tour that was 25 pesos. We saw two vineyards, an olive oil factory, and a chocolate factory.

The vineyards were neat. We saw the whole wine making process from vine to bottle. It smelled sickeningly sweet throughout the entire factory. We saw them crushing the grapes with machines and then placing them into tanks in order to ferment, then moving them to barrels to age, and finally the bottling plant. Apparently, that region of Argentina is known for Melbeck. When I asked our guide what he thought of Chilean wines he said that their popularity was mostly due to marketing. Apparently, there`s a rivalry. We also learned how wine snobs judge wine. Apparently there`s a lot of ridiculous stuff like looking at the color of the wine through the glass into a napkin, swirling, smelling, and drinking etc...I thought it was a big waste of time, either drink it or don`t.

After the two vineyards we went to an olive oil factory. Apparently, olive oil can be made from either pressing the olives or putting them in a centerfuge. Extra virgen comes from pressing which I liked better then the other way. Extra virgen seemed more flavorful. At the end, they gave us samples which was great because I love olive oil.

Next, we went to a chocolate factory. Not quite Willy Wonka´s and it was disappointing not to see any Oompa Loompa´s. Although the free samples were nice.

Dinner on Saturday was awesome. We ordered a parrillada which is a plate of different grilled meats and vegetables. I think they must have killed 7 animals, at the very least, in order to make our dinner. There was beef, chicken, lamb, and pork in the big plate in the middle of the table. All sorts of grilled kidneys, tripe, ribs, wings, blood sausage etc...Fantastic. I found Argentinean beef to be of really high quality and it tasted really different than American beef. Apparently, most cows in Argentina are all grass fed in comparison to our hormone pumped cows in the US.

Another thing I noticed is that the vegetables in our meal acted as meer garnish. I read a quote somewhere that "a vegetarian in Argentina is like a duck out of water". Partly true, they do have great pastas so I`m sure the non-carnivours could find something to like.

Moving On In Argentina

Tom, Mark, Ben, and I just checked out of our skeevy hostel. The mattresses were quite worn down and I don`t know how much I liked sharing a room with 8 other foriegners. The place had a funky smell too. But for 17 Argentinean Pesos that`s what you get. We just checked into an actual hotel for tonight. It costs about 68 pesos a night which is like $20 US.

Currency seems to go a lot farther here.

Argentina

Well, it`s 3AM here in Mendoza, Argentina. We just left the bar and we passed an internet cafe so we decided to stop in. The trip here was relatively painless, only an 8 hour bus ride. I got my passport stamped so it proves I´ve been here. I also took care of my tourist visa so now I can stay in Chile until May, sweet!

Anyway...off to more activities.

Chao

Off to Mendoza This Week

As it turns out you need your travel visa to leave the country. Apparantly my passport wasn´t good enough. Luckily, the bus attendent told me this before I got on the 6 hour bus ride to the Chilean-Argentinean border. So this weekend I´m definitely going, with all the necessary documentation coming with me.

Not too much going on this past week, just working onpapers since their due dates are approaching.

On an interesting note, I had Peruvian food last week at the Parque Arroyco Mall. Apparently, they have a really nice restaurant there. I´m not such a fan of the malls here because they´re more expensive then other places but some of the restaurants are good. I found Peruvian food really spicey which I liked because I like spicy food a lot. I had a seafood paella which is a rice dish with different sea foods, like scallops, clams, and other assorted stuff. It was mixed with a hot pepper sauce and other stuff that I can´t put a finger on. It was good regardless and I washed it down with a fresh glass of rasberry juice. They seem to juice everything here although the most popular, at least from all the bottles of Nectar (local brand), is peach juice. Peach juice is alright and I can tolerate in tiny quantities but I find it a little too thick.

The Embassy

Two days ago I went back to the embassy in order to get some tips on taking the Foreign Service Exam. Natalie, one of the girls on the trip is working for the Foreign Service after she graduates because she got a scholarship. All she has to do is pass the exam. I´ve been thinking about the Foreign Service but I am not sure if I want to do it yet. However, from the time taking the test, assuming I passed, grad school etc...it would be three or four years later in the future. Hopefully, I could make up my mind by then.

We talked about life in the Foreign Service with some of the embassy staff. They´ve been really nice so far. We went earlier in the semester too, with the program, in order to get the US´s view on Chile. This time they discussed the test which seems difficult but not impossible. It tests grammar, US Foreign Policy, geography, US History, culture, government et...I hope after working three years at International Relations I can guess a few answers on the test.

The life seems interesting although I am not sure whether I want to stay out of the states that long. Usually, you don´t get to go home that often.

What was impressive to me though was that the Ambassador stopped by to say hi, talk about the foreign service, and answer a few questions. I think everyone was a little surprised when he came in. The embassy staff shot out of their seats and we were unsure whether to stand. Apparenlty, the Foreign Service is very hierarchecal. The ranks correspond with military ranks. A junior officer is like a private while an Ambassador is like a general. Being hierarchecal, you stand up when the Ambassador walks in the room. However, since I pay taxes and don't work for the Foreign Service I don´t have to stand up.

Ambassador Kelly is a Bush appointee. He´s been a career foreign service officer and he started about 20 years ago. He gave a nice little talk and I thought it was nice of him to answer questions. For someone whose probably really busy he gave us a lot of time. I liked his answers too, you could tell he´s had to talk to the press on occasion. One girl in the room asked whether someone in the foreign service should join if they wanted to radically change US Foreign Policy. His answers was something like ´if your against democracy, economicy prosperity and spreading freedom´then you shouldn´t join the Foreign Service.

Which although that was a politician type answer he´s right. The US Foreign Service implements US foreign policy. Before a policy is choosen they can give their two cents, but once it´s made it´s their decision to carry it out. If you don´t love the United States, don´t have a warm fuzzy feeling when you hear the Star Spangled Banner, and can´t support the US in whatever it does, the Foreign Service isn´t for you.

While at the embassy I asked the Ambassador about how the foreign service works with the other agencies that work in the embassy. I had taken Analysis of US Foriegn Policy the year before and I was kind of interested how the bureacratic decision making model worked in real life. He said that in their embassy which was small, all the agencies work pretty well together. Although he hinted there are occasions when the different bureacracies don´t work so well together. I imagine at larger embassies where it´s harder to keep track of what everyone is up to this becomes a problem.

If I recall my Analysis of US Foreign Policy class properly, the institution in-fighting can be pretty vicious at times. But for the State Department it´s kind of hard to get in a say all of the time because they´re such a small bureau. They only have 11,000 employees, the majority of which are abroad. Thus, the DoD and the Department of Agriculture have a huge domestic constituency which gives them a lot of power to influence the debate back home while State really doesn´t really have many folk pulling for it.

The Knee Move

I´ve noticed on the bus the Chileans have an odd custom. When someone is sitting on the aisle seat they refuse to move over if you ask to sit down, they simply move their knees to the side and you get to squeeze on through. I don´t know, I feel like in the US people would just move over. But maybe I´m wrong.

Also interesting is that when the bus is full. People who get on from the back and can´t get to the front will have their money passed to the front. It´s amazing to see people pass a 1000 peso bill, have it get handed off and then have the change passed back. Carol, our director, says that has to do with the dictatorship which created culture of obeying the law which allows passing money on the bus to work without cheating by dishonest passengers.

Schedule for Next Year

Here's an article from the Eagle that I wish was true.

http://www.theeagleonline.com/news/2005/03/31/News/Sis-Profs.Abolish.LateHw.Penalties-908095.shtml

I also got registered for classes too. I signed up for Political Economy, International Political Economy, Human And Global Security, International Development, and Introduction to Fundamentals Of International Business, and Yoga...

So at least from outward appearences I should be productive.