The Great Cilantro Battle Finished?

Well, I believe the cilantro battle is over. We've called it a draw. I have grown accustomed to it for now, and can eat it without detest. However, history repeats itself, and sometimes battles continue despite a draw. We shall see.

P.S. I discovered cilantro's attributes to health. It is rich in vitamin C and aids in digestion. Wow...not all super powerful are we now cilantro?! Natalie 1, Cilantro 0

Chile Blog Numero 5

I've been in Chile for exactly 8 weeks and 3 days. Time has flown by quickly, and I can not believe how much my Spanish has improved. I am not nearly where I want to be conversational wise, but I can understand much more then when I started. I have even begun using the Chilean idioms and slang. That took the most getting used to and, I have a nice grasp on it now so that feels good. And if I have a conversation with just one other person I can basically understand everything. It is the following and listening to conversations between more people and long lectures in class that are the tough part. I have been reading Harry Potter in Spanish lately, and that is helping me learn new vocab and understand the gramatics of Spanish better, and it gives me something fun to do that is not just Spanish homework. There is a lot of that and it involves often reading newspaper articles and writing 3 page papers in Spanish. Granted I try to use my dictionary as much as possible, but I'm still falling in to using Google Translate...So hopefully by December that will not be in use anymore. I promise I am trying really hard to not use it. I recently just passed my home sickness period which lasted 2 weeks, so I am glad that is better, it is just hard for me because there has been a lot happening in my friends' lives back home that I am missing out on. So being here I feel isolated at times, but thank God we have the internet and Skype. That has been helping me stay connected, but it does not compare with the physical touch of the people. School is plugging along, and I still am loving Valdivia, but I am definitely ready to start traveling more and meet new friends. Hopefully Chilenos. I am going to talk with my program cordinator today to see what activities I can do. I'm glad I have a great support group here with the program leaders and my family and friends back home. Thank you all.

Hiking and the Mapuche

8-10 de Octubre;

I was very excited for this trip right off the bat when I heard we were going to go on a hike and get to spend time and have lunch with the Mapuche. (the native people of Chile) We got up early and took a 2-hour bus ride to Púcon, which is a touristy town near the beach. Once in Púcon we went on a short hike up to an imitation of a section of a Mapuche village.  We walked past a lake and an active volcano that was pure white with smoke billowing from it in front of the brilliant blue sky that took my breath away. At the "village" we were able to meet a Mapuche family who graciously showed us their thatched roof homes with their beds and other everyday objects used by the Mapuche. Since this was a place more for tourists I was disappointed that there wasn't more villagers or an actual village. But I enjoyed my time with this family. I also watched some boys playing with an old school top that had to be hand wound each time, and the way their faces lit up when it worked was precious. We then proceeded into another thatched roof home where there was a long table circumferencing the room with benches. We ate some traditional orderves including mini empanadas, fried bread, and some nuts that had the texture of beans. They were bland, but we had a yummy jam like spread to add to them which was good. Then we had the main course of carne asada (steak), potatoes and salad. It was all delicious and I felt honored to enjoy it with them. After lunch we went back outside into the sunshine and some people rode horses and played a game like field hockey with wooden sticks and balls. I played the game and had so much fun. It was neat because the children also put on a performance for us of a traditional healing ceremony. They were dressed up and did an excellent job. We got to see something on the inside of their culture that I'm sure many outsiders do not get to see. That was a special moment and one of the best days I've had here. I wish to spend a longer period of time in a real Mapuche village, and maybe later on the trip I will be able to.

Healing Celebration.

The rest of the day we spent at the lake eating gelato and then went to a hot springs in the night when we could see the stars in the sky. That is something I miss from Ellensburg and I felt connected to you all back home because even though we may see different stars we are still looking at the same sky.

The next day was the extreme hike many of us were hesitant to go on, but excited at the same time. But what we had ahead of us was unlike anything we could have imagined. It was a 7 hour hike up hill through the mountains with only a sandwich, an apple, an orange , a banana, half a chocolate bar, a liter of water and our mental abilities to get us through. Luckely I was hiking with some fun people, and our humor and Eminem got us to the top. Even though we were exhausted, I was proud of myself in making it all the way. We even made it up to the frozen lake while hiking through the snow. Needless to say I fell into the snow a couple times, and got really sweaty but it was worth it. Coming to Chile I did not think I was going to see much snow during the summer so it was a pleasant surprise and I loved it. Danielle and I made snow angles and Simon, Brent and Ian went swimming in the glacial water. They are some of the neatest guys you will meet. It was amazing, and I have never enjoyed a weekend more. I also had my first cup of mate, enjoyed it and am going to bring some back for my family and friends to try.

Lunch!

He's healed!

Ceremonial Drummer

Lake or "Make Out Point"

It does not end!

View a little lower on hike.

Frozen lake

View from the hike.

Shoes after hike...

Beach in Pucon

Chile Blog Numero 4

This is an entry from my journal. Nothing special, but a good look into my life here in Chile. I'm also listening to Schoolyard Heros right now and the Punkness of it makes me happy.

27, Septiembre 2010

Today was a good day. Nothing spectacular happened, but I felt really happy and my classes went well. I rode to school in the orange number 20 micro and heard Alejandro by Gaga with Maggie and we talked a little. My culture class was really long as always but my prof was wearing skinny jeans, boots and a bright red, pink, and orange sweater. She is a short, cute older lady and always wears sweaters but she was especially trendy today. It makes me laugh because she always disses her Chilean culture, and thinks the US culture is great.  I took the micro home with Alicia and we talked about the future trips we wanted to go on. I'm excited to explore my Chilean world. hen I got back to my house I started watching Date Night and cleaning my room. Then cut cilantro for lunch. We had tortellini with cheese sauce. So good. Then I had coffee and went back to school for class. I like my conversation and Comp. class and we wrote dialogs using formal and informal speech. Jordan and I worked together and of course wrote about zombies. It is gonna be pretty great. Then he and I rode the Micro together and had a nice conversation about our families. I heard Alejandro again and when I got home went upstairs and watched the rest of the movie. Ate dinner, we had eggs and avacado on bread and coffee then went on the computer. I talked with lots of my friends back home, cause I've been a little homesick, and met Issac (Siri's friend) finally. I got ready for bed and now am going to sleep. I'm so jazzed for Friday. Here is what I'm doing: Going to Niebla the local beach, reading in my favorite coffee shop, skyping with Joel, and then celebrating Joe's birthday at my favorite bar/hang out spot in Valdivia. It will be a good Friday.

Life Again.

So recently I've found out 6 boys commited suicide because they were bullied for being gay. 6! Then 3 more college boys commited suicide for the same reason this last week. 9 deaths in 2 weeks is too much. I am deeply hurt by this because how could someone think it was ok to ridicule someone for being gay. They are a person just like anyone else with feelings, dreams and relationships. Last year my friend Matt Stanley (Glow Dances) commited suicide for this same reason and no one tried to stop him or was aware he was at the end of his rope. I lived 4 hours from his school and would have driven to his school and run after him to prevent him from doing what he did. What hurts me the most is he had friends, and a loving family that he had to live for, but he was so sick of being ridiculed they weren't enough for him to live for. HIS FAMILY!!!  This is what is happening in our world now. It's not going to stop, unless we do something. I'm tired of being silent. I'm going to start a campaign with my friend Micaela to take a stand and reach out to people there is always someone to live for and someone to talk to. There are enough deaths that happen to young people by accident that deaths by purpose is something that can be prevented. My friend's brother Logan Ernsbarger drowned last year in a terrible accident. That was a terrible loss in my life as well as other people in his. Logan just like Matt was a great guy that touched many people's lives and their missing from the world is something that will take a while to heal from. My deepest sympathies and prayers go out to the families and friends of Matt, Logan and those 9 boys. Lets do this people. Stop being jerks and listen when someone reaches out to you for help. We can help save lives, I hope you will join my campaign when I get it set up, until then do your part.

Neat.

So today I went to a really neat hippy like bar called Trotamundos Bar. My friend Simon was playing his guitar and singing. The atmosphere was lively and the place was packed. We sat on cushions on the floor around wooden tables that were hand painted. I drank a coffee and loved listening to Simon play his guitar. He had great stage presence, and you could tell he loved playing and was doing it for him and sharing his gift with us. After Simon finished playing me, him and Erin went to The Ultima Frontera to have a beer and talk with our Cinema teacher. This discussion was one of the best I've had and it was in Spanish! We talked with him about the movie we watched today and about other life situations. We talked about what makes us happy and our opinions on the movies we've watched in the past. We also discussed our future plans and the difference of Chilean Spanish with the other ones.  For those of you that are wondering what makes me happy and all I need in the world it is my family and the beach. I am happiest when I am with them, or when I am on the beach with the waves, water and the sun surrounding me. This night was one of the best I've had.