Sé que practicamente nadie lee mi blog pero lo escribo porque:

1. Tengo que practicar mi español
2. Me da motivación por un razón u otro cuando escriba en línea
3. Es más fácil buscar algo que he escribido cuando está en línea, no en un cuaderno en mi ático

Entonces, voy a hablar sobre mi día, mis sueños y esperanzas...

Mi día fue muy interesante, dividido en varios partes como usual; muchas veces un día se parece como muchos días chiquititos, pegados juntos hasta que no se puede ver si ha tenido un día muy grande o muchos días cortos... Para empezar, traté a despertarme muy temprano (no tan temprano) a las 6:15 de la mañana pero cuando abré mis ojos todavía el cielo estaba oscuro. Pués re-puse mi alarma para las 6:30 de la mañana. No querría despertarme de repente pero me desperté por fín para leer la biblia, caminar mi perrito, estirarme, y hacer mis ejercicios para mis piernas. Despúes de regar mi jardín y preparar mi almuerzo fui a mis clases. La primer clase fue de Microbiología y despúes tuve Anatomía y Fisiología. Estoy un poquito nerviosa que no pueda sacar buenas notas o algo porque no siento muy lista. La clase de matemática no me parece tan difícil pues no estoy muy ocupada por esta. Creo que lo que me preocupa lo más es cuanto cuestan los libros! Despúes de comprar todos no sé si pueda afordar comida!

Despúes de clase y almorzar con Joe y tener otra clase, volví a mi casa para preparar por mi entrevista con Laurie Steelsmith, una doctora naturopática increíble. La entrevista estuvo buenísima y estoy muy emocionada aunque no me van a pagar a lo que estoy acostumbrada. No es tan importante a mi cuanto me pagan hasta que pueda aprender mucho de la medicina natural, trabajar con este doctora increíble y gustar a mi trabajo y la gente que trabajan allí.

Para terminar la noche, preparé salmon que fue tan rico con arroz para Joe y yo y despúes caminamos rápido al cerro de navidad. Mi perro fue muy felíz despús también yo estaba muy contenta con el día. Escribo más otro día, estoy cansada. Voy a dormir y despertarme muy temprano porque tengo que trabajar a los 7:30 de la mañana...

It's funny, when I was a freshman in KCC I couldn't picture where I'd be or what I would do or accomplish. 

Booker T Washington said, "Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome."

This quote brings me back down to earth for a minute then I go back to thinking about the things I have or haven't achieved and the social position I am at now. Coming from a homeschooled background, my forté was definitely in the humanities division. I loved art and music and reading and writing. Although I could have gone down the path of art or history I chose to move toward the direction of math and science because I wanted to conquer them. I didn't want to go through life avoiding a part of it. And where am I now? I am battling with the decision between going for my MD or NP degree. I have overcome although not conquered my math and science classes (meaning not always getting an A). Although calculus nor biochem were always required, I felt like they were a barrier to overcome and I did. Now being an alumnus of the University of Hawaii, I find myself jobless and confused as to where I am going next. According to Booker T. Washington, I am successful, I have overcome so much educationally (in the sciences), physically (athletics), personally (self-growth, values and goals), relationally (with my family and friends), and spiritually (with God), but what do I have to show for it? I haven't even received my diploma in the mail, and when I do, what will I do with it? But in some twisted, untangible way, I am successful. 

Now to my inquisition- Why would I want to be a doctor vs. becoming a nurse?

Let's see, I always wanted to be a doctor instead of a nurse primarily because of the title and amount of knowledge attained. There is nothing wrong with this although the other day I was reading in Ecclesiatstes: 

"Do not be overrighteous neither be overwise- why destroy yourself?"

I believe this might be talking about self-righteousness and those who kill themselves trying to be holy, but could this be talking about killing yourself over knowledge? I have learned through my five years of college that I am determined and can work hard but I often have to kill myself to get a B or possibly an A if I'm lucky, in my science classes. I'm not like some where things just click and I don't have to study excessively. If I have to kill myself for four more years of med school then again in residency and then in practice, how will I have a life? My passions of photography, travel and triathlons will be put extremely on hold. Am I willing to sacrifice that? 

My answer to that would be yes if I felt like God was calling me to that. 

What is God calling me to?

I feel like I am called to encourage and heal people. I have a desire to help underdeveloped countries develop a sustainable heathcare system- hygiene and health education and also to be able to sustain themselves without depending on pharmaceutical companies, corporations or developed countries. I want to be able to incorporate holistic and allopathic medicines. I feel that somehow my passion for photography and writing will be incorporated in my dreams. I want to be able to have a globally educated family, one that is driven to make the world more sustainable and to help people have a better quality of life. I believe that God wants me to be passionate in what I do and in that both he, I and those around me will find joy.

The big problem is- as a doctor will I have time for all of that? Will I be able to encourage and heal people more efficiently as a nurse? 

It's funny how even though I don't have a tv to totally brainwash me, nor did I grow up with one, the media has twisted my view of life and what it's supposed to be. My expectations of life, love and career are twisted. Sometimes I wish someone would hand us a paper that summed up our personality, traits, gifts and passions and tell us which job would bring us the most joy. I guess then we wouldn't be human and wouldn't have all the struggles we do... If only, if only...

Easter Devos

1 Samuel 12:20

"Do not be afraid," Samuel replied. You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart.

Even in the old testament where we usually see God as a God of "fire and brimstone," we se here that he still shows grace to the Israelites, constantly forgiving them and taking them back. All he wanted them to do was to serve him with all their hearts. 

note: a good example of full hearted service is Paul (2 Cor 11:16-33)

I am so grateful for God's grace, though I do not want to abuse it. I think that many people get the wrong idea of his grace and think that if they have sinned so much they should stop trying to please him because it is pointless because he won't take them back.

I have had this same attitude when it comes to my relationships. I either stop trying to please God and walk away from him or I decide that I want to try to please him so I walk away from the relationship. Reading 1 Samuel I do not believe this is what God wants. He wants us to be totally devoted to serving him in our relationships. This does not require giving up relationships necessarily but rather to dedicate them to him and strive to please him in all that we do.

Una brindis dice:
Salud
Amor
Pesetas
Y tiempo para gastarlos

Leí el otro día una cita en una taza de café en starbucks que dijo algo como: "Cuando por fin llegues al fondo de la escala de la empresa, compres tu casa en los suburbios, compres el coche de tus sueños, cases y tengas hijos, vayas a tener más de 40 años y quedarías sin tiempo para gastarlos.

El "El libro" de Eduardo Galeano, el cuenta de un [joven], Felisberto Hernández, que no hay que preocuparse con el problema de dinero. El tiene una ricachona que le paga para hacer lo que quieres. ¿Qué sueño no? ¿Hacer lo que quieres por los buenas gracias de un(a) financiero/a? Además él fue el recipiente de un libro que gustaría con billetes cada pocos páginas.

Estaba hablando con mi amigo el otro día de lo que quisiera hacer con su vida. Si no tuviera que preocuparse de dinero que quisiera hacer. También anoche hablé con un joven conocí en un restaurante sobre trabajos y la economía. Estuvimos de acuerdo que la calidad de trabajar duro fue una buena y siempre va a haber problemas en el mundo, problemas de dinero por lo menos pero si trabajaras duro todo vaya a estar bien. Aunque trabajar duro es importante no se debiera sacrificar su vida por el trabajo. Creo que todos deben perseguir lo que les apasionan y trabajar duro en esta cosa porque hay muchas oportunidades en el mundo aunque la economía está peorando, pero si a todos les valieron más su trabajo creo que el mundo sería un mejor lugar.

La Familia

Para mi, “La familia” de Carlos Fuentes fue uno de los cuentos más interesantes que he leído este semestre. No es porque él cuenta de países lejanos ni de drama, pero contó una historia sencillo con lenguaje sencillo en una manera interesante. Por los que han visto a la película “Ámelie,” el estilo de narrar éste película es muy semejante al estilo de “La familia.” Pude imaginar los colores que pudieron haber estado en el cuento de Fuentes cuando lo leí; colores antiguos o sepias cuando Fuentes estaba contándonos de sus abuelos los detalles sobre ellos. Cuando empezó a contar sobre sus padres imaginé los colores cambiando. Fue bellísima.

“La familia” me hizo pensar en mi propia familia. Empecé a imaginar mis bisabuelos cruzando el océano pacífico, vestidos en ropa antigua. Los colores en que imaginé también fueron en sepia en un estilo de cine antiguo con líneas negras interruptando al filme. Imaginé también ellos trabajando en el campo y construyendo a nuestra propia casa. Imaginé mis abuelos casando y mis padres se conociendo. Pensé en escribir las calidades obvios como Fuentes, calidades físicas, de sus personalidades y sus gustos y disgustos. Pensé en escribir pero todavía no ha escrito nada concreta… Posiblemente en mi próximo blog.

Lo que me apasiona
• La naturaleza
• El mar
• Buceando
• Bicicletas
• La rapidez
• La moda
• La filosofía
• El religión
• Personas diferentes
• Viajando
• Explorando
• Comida
• El arte
• La fotografía

Porque estudio español
• Porque la lengua es bella
• Porque hay muchos países que hablan español, entonces hay muchas oportunidades para viajar.

Mi carrera
• Español
• Pre-medicina

Mi trabajo ideal
• Ser una doctora que viaje y ayuda otros países estar más sostenible en el área de salud. Durante mis viajes sería ideal si tuviera tiempo para tomar fotos, bucear, explorar, etc.

Para conectar lo que me apasiona con mi carrera, mis estudios en español, y mi trabajo ideal sería bastante fácil (salvo muchísimos estudios). Si fuera una doctora que viaje, mi español me ayudaría mucho. Lo que me apasiona cae alrededor de mi carrera y siempre voy a incorporar éstas cosas en mi vida. Lo que quisiera enfocar en es la sistema de salud en otros países. Mayormente cuando hay un grupo que vaya a un país extranjero para ayudarles con su salud, el grupo traiga medicamentos de su propio país, por ejemplo, los EEUU. Por un par de semanas el grupo y los medicamentos ayudan mucho a la gente del país elegido, pero cuando se vaya el grupo, de nuevo la gente que han estado ayudado se enferman porque no tienen los medicamentos. Si pudieran conseguir los medicamentos que han traído el grupo medical, la gente ayudado tienen que dependerse en el sistema farmacéutico de los EEUU u otro país. Lo que quiero hacer es estudiar modos en que otros países pueden estar más saludables sin la dependencia en otros países, usando sus propios recursos de su propio tierra. En este aspecto, mi español me ayudara mucho cuando quisiera comunicar con los nativos de el país que quisiera ayudar.

Reseña: Gaudi: The Spirit of Barcelona.

Gaudi: The Spirit of Barcelona fue un documentario sobre las obras de Gaudi. Por los que no saben quien es Gaudi y que hizo Gaudi, él fue un arquitecto español, famoso, original y valiente. ¿Porqué él fue esas cosas? El fue famoso porque fue original y valiente porque trató nuevas cosas; cosas que mucha gente no trataron a hacer antes de él. En la filme había comparaciones entre Gaudi y otros arquitectos de su época. Algunas obras de él fue muy similares en el estructura básica pero las de él fue mucho más imaginativo. Por ejemplo, las colegas de Gaudi construyeron casas, departamentos, iglesias, catedrales, columnas y otros estructuras magníficos, clásicos y bellos pero Gaudi llevo sus obras un paso adelante. Él sacó su inspiración de la naturaleza, de la cotidiana, de los animales, de los cuentos de hadas y del estilo gótico para hacer su imaginación a realidad. No solo usó su propio imaginación para hacer sus obras sino también dejo sus obreros hacer lo que ellos imaginaron.



No hay una fecha exacta por la filmación o la publicación de Gaudi: The Spirit of Barcelona, pero me pareció bastante viejo por la calidad de la película y el estilo de vestir la gente. La calidad y el estilo de la filma fue muy similar a los de la película, Antonio Gaudi, hecho por Hiroshi Teshigahara de Japón en 1984. En las dos películas los colores fueron muy similares, las dos mostraron obras similares de Gaudi, y la época de las dos me pareció muy cerca. Lo que fue muy diferente fue que en Gaudi: The Spirit of Barcelona, hubo un narrador que nos contamos las inspiraciones de Gaudi, la historia de él y sus obras, y que pensaron sus colegas y los españoles que vivieron cerca de sus obras en Barcelona. En la película de Teshigahara, no hubo un narrador, solo música extraña y subtítulos explicando lo que estábamos mirando. En aquella vimos obras que fueron hechos muchos antes de Gaudi, obras antiguas, obras que fueron hechos en la misma época y obras de Gaudi mismo. Vimos obras famosas en las dos, incluyendo obras dedicados a unos amigos, una escuela, La Casa Milá, La Sagrada Familia y la parque Güell.


Una de las cosas que me gustó más fue una cita de Gaudi que “beauty is also disorder,” traducido, la belleza es también el desorden. Mirando los pilares y los mosaicos de él, podemos ver que el firmemente creyó lo que dijo. El desorden de él viene de los materiales que usó como cerámicas de platos y tazones y como manipuló las formas de sus mosaicos, esculturas y edificios. Yo estoy de acuerdo con Gaudi que el desorden es belleza. Creo que puede ver belleza en todo. Lo que es feo a mucha gente puede ser bello por un razón u otro. La verdad que belleza puede ser en todas las cosas no dio Gaudi una razón para ser perezoso y hacer cosas feos, pero por lo contrario. Él creyó en trabajo duro, ese es lo que dijo el narrador en la película. El despreció mucho la pereza y mediocridad. Se puede ver en todas sus obras que la pereza y mediocridad no tuvieron lugar en ellos. Cada obra de él es muy intrico y creativo. Muchas de sus obras, incluyendo una de sus obras mejores, La Sagrada Familia, no fue cumplido hasta después de su muerte. Todavía no está terminado completamente.

Instrucciones para sobrevivir en una recesión








Hemos leído instrucciones escritos por Cortázar para hacer cosas cotidianas como subir una escalera. En el pasado, vivir ha sido una cosa sencillo por muchos americanos, o por lo menos, ha sido más sencillo que hoy en día. En el pasado hemos comprado casas y autos y comestibles sin preocuparnos tanto en como pagamos. Hemos gastado dinero en lujos como manicuras, masajes y nos fumamos la pasta en compras sin pensar en si tenemos bastante dinero para comprar comida para la semana. Ahora todo está cambiando. Noté los cambios en el pensamiento del medio ambiente hace más o menos cuatro años cuando me conocí a unos chicos vegetarianos. Desde un año cuando yo mismo me convertí al vegetarianismo, todo ha cambiado en mis ojos también. He pensado más en reciclar y comer lo que es bien para nuestro medio ambiente y hacer todo lo que pueda (financialmente y con mi horario estricto) para ayudarlo. Cuando supimos del recesión y el plan de estímulos en los EEUU, no me sentí mucho pérdida porque ya no tengo trabajo, ya hago mi propia comida, ya no gasto más que $20 cada mes en gasolina, y ya ando en bicicleta para casi todas las partes. Pero lo que sí me siento es las emociones y el estrés de los alrededor de mi, especialmente con las nuevas noticias de Mufi Hanneman hoy en el periódico. Estacionamiento en el zoo subirá $1 cada hora, pasajes por el autobús subirán $0.25, impuestos en la tierra subirán bastante, gasolina está subiendo en precio, y compañías están cerrando y trabajos están difícil para mantener. Los americanos tienen más y más cuentas y menos dinero. Unas de las razones por supuesto es nuestra mal administración de nuestros fondos, pero tenemos una oportunidad para salvarnos. Aquí están unas instrucciones para vivir más saludable y prósperos:

1. En vez de ir en auto
a. andar en bici- es gratis y no tuvieras que ir al gimnasio tanto para hacer ejercicio.
b. comprar un pasaje anual por la transportación pública
c. ir en coche compartido
d. Caminar
e. Comprar un moto

2. Comprar comestibles en el mercado libre- apoyar los agricultores locales, comprar comida orgánica por buen precio o ir al barrio chino para comprar comestibles muy baratos.

3. Cocinar en casa por lo menos tres días cada semana
4. Llevar el almuerzo a trabajar o a la escuela. Loncherías cargan muchos
5. Dejar el Starbucks y hacer su propia café o té en casa
6. Entrenar su perro o gato para coger ratas y gallinas (chiste)
7. Reducir su vida- vender lo que no necesita en ebay
8. Comprar ropa a la venta o de segunda mano
9. Pagar con plata, cortar los tarjetas de crédito
10. Sea contente con lo que tienes y compra lo que necesita

Estas instrucciones son solamente unas de las cosas que puedes hacer para ahorrar su dinero y sobrevivir en nuestra recesión.

Dear Australia,
I saw the first two stars come out tonight and finally came up with a wish. You know that photographer you were talking about? Can't remember his name but anyway, he takes multiple series of photos and then makes one big picture. And remember when I said that life is like a spiderweb? Maybe life's a combination of both and I'm just stuck in the middle of a frame or something. Anyway, back to the wish. Although you and I don't really make wishes due to the fact that if we want something we make it happen, there's one thing I can't quite manage to grasp- my wish is just to see the bigger picture. There is suffering, hard times, injustice, sickness... but it all must be for something. And by the way, I guess the first thing I would say to God if I died and went to heaven right now would be- Show me the bigger picture.

Hope all's going well down under and you still have the chance to do your three things and watch the sunsets.

Love love love

Utopia

I just finished a project for my art class. We had to actually "answer" to a call for art and artists concerning "sustainability." We had to do a silk painting of what we saw sustainability as and such. It was very interesting... stressful, considering we had a week to create a peice with a new technique and considering that we had to cater to the specific requirements of the exhibition. Anyway, although my peice didn't turn out like i'd hoped, I had some interesting thoughts today, walking to and from the coffee shop with a collegue (fancy word for another guy in my class), about "sustainability."

Is environmentalism practical? I think it's a nice idea, just like communism, but I don't know if it would actually work for our society right now. We are (America) a culture that wants everything fast, convenient and comfortable. Is the hi 5 improving the percentage of hawaiians that recycle? Statistically no. It raising the price on all bottled beverages and giving the homeless and children something to do, but it isn't getting the job done. When I think about us conserving the environment, I think of us all wearing gloves in some overly sterilized building with all matching environmentally safe bio-degradable clothing, standing in some line for our daily rations of food. I think of monotony and pretty much socialism. All these liberalists who are rebel hippies seem to want the very thing they will be fighting against when they finally get what they want.

Utopianism. A peaceful society, capitalistic, with a clean environment, no wars, no problems... we think this would be perfection, what we want, but I myself cannot imagine living like this. Without problems what would I do? Without the sick, what would the doctors do, or aspiring doctors dream of doing? What would bring people together if they were already perfect? What would unite a country if their were no war? There will always be disagreements, petty or huge. There will always be sickness. There will always be the rich and the poor. What could we dream of fixing or when we try so hard to fix it and fail, what could we pray to God for or ask your friends for help for? I feel like a Utopian society would be so superficial, but maybe I'm wrong. I thank God for the bad so I can appreciate the good, so I can grow as a person, so I can actually feel. I will do everything I can to help the environment, but I'm not going to be afraid of living. Siddartha Buddha was right with at least one of the things he said (the main one) Live the middle path, don't live in the two extremes. If a string is too slack, it won't play. If it's too tight, it'll snap. If it's just right, you can play the most beautiful music... So maybe the real Utopia is the one we're living in right now and we just haven't seen it yet.

Entre el Oceano y el Mar

Erase una vez vivía una jovencita en la media del oceano y el mar. Ella no tenía ningunos recuerdos de su infancia ni como llegó a su isla. Todo que sabía era no sabía nada. La gente de esa isla en particular no eran tan amorosas, ellos solo se ocupaban por si mismos. La niña nunca vía la gente besando, abrasando ni caminando por la calle mano en mano; pero tampoco la ponía de pensar porque porque no había experiensada nada diferente. Las únicas cosas que le daba felicidad y consuelo eran: nadar en el oceano, bañar en el mar y hablar con su amigo extraño que tenía alas hechos de plumas. El le enseñaba del mundo lejos de la isla: de los países, la gente, los idiomas, el arte, la música, la arquitectura, y mucho más. El le contaba historias de su mundo arriba del cielo, de Dios, de los ángeles, los demonios, y de sus guerras. A la niña le encantaba hablar con su amigo que venía todo los días, pero un día el no vinó. Cada día por 365 días, ella lo esperaba pero cada día ella le dormía disolusionada. En el día 366, ella decidió irse de su isla, y decidió a ver todas las cosas que su amigo le contó. Asi que en el día 367, ella empezó subir el barco para que podría ver el mundo; pero al mismo tiempo el joven con alas llegó sobre la orilla y llamó la niña, “Vuelve, queda conmigo, ¡perdoname!”
Entonces, ella volvió para quedar con su querido. Ellos quedaban por un gran rato juntos, enamorados. Ellos les conocían mucho, caminando, nadando, y volando, pero un día ellos escucharon un golpe a la puerta y vió un hombre con alas. El joven vinó a la puerta para hablar con el hombre. Después que el hombre se fue, el joven dijo a su enamorada, “Tengo que irme, hay otra guerra en el cielo y ellos me necesitan. Todavia Dios no sabe que yo estoy aqui. Si supiera de nosotros, el me mataría.”
Pues ellos se despidieron. El estaba ausente por meses y la niña tenía mucho miedo que el nunca iba a volver. Cuando ella estaba lavando ropa, su enamorado se aparació. A ella se pareció como el estaba llorando. “Qué pasó, mi amor?” Ella lo preguntó. “Porque te ves tan grave? Te he echado mucho de menos mi amor ¿pero que te pasa?”
“Mi amorcita,” El la contestó, “te quiero más que el mar, más que el oceano, más que mi mismo y más que el cielo; y por eso, mi amor, es porque no puedo verte nunca más. Conté todo a Dios y el me dijo que tengas que vivir su propia vida, tengas que ver el mundo y encontrar una vida separada de mi. Voy a cortar mis alas para que no tendría tentación para verte y ayudarte nunca más. Pero al mismo tiempo te dejo mi corazón para que puedes llevarlo contigo por siempre. Dios lo convirtió en un collar para que puedas ponerlo. El me dijo que si te lo pongas por 75 años y todavia me amas, podemos vivir por siempre, juntos.”
Dejandola con su corazón en mano, llorando, el se fue, volando al cielo donde que se quemó sus alas para que no tendría tentación a volver. Todos que vivían entre el oceano y el mar vieron el humo que les parecieron a nubes y oíron las gritas que les parecieron a trueno. Solo la niña sabía que los eran en realidad Después de estar tanto de luto, ella decidió a ver el mundo de nuevo. Por todo de su vida ella recorría el mundo, llevando el corazón de su enamorado, cada día recordando de el; y después de 75 años, las olas levantaron al cielo para que ella podría estar con su enamorado para siempre. Y por su dedicación ellos pudieron vivir siempre, juntos y enamorados.

21st Century Flower Child

I have officially finished my first week and four days of school.
Before I get to my flower childness, I must explain some things:

1. I miss Chile
a. My friends
b. Traveling 50 hours on a bus to see some crazy world wonder for a couple days
c. The culture
d. speaking espanish
e. My friends...

2. Adjusting to my new/old life is crazy...
a. changed me adjusting to old Hawaii (culture, people, language... I do love the food though.)
b. I guess that sums it up if you want it short

3. I've had this weird struggle figuring out that I am not the all-powerful fixer of all things in the world.


So yes, I've been having a little bit of a challenging time being back. My goals this year are:
1. Make Hawaii my Chile
2. Find Bradley.

I swear I have others, but these are the most important.


So after finally getting all of my 17 credits I wanted in school... I had a couple of nervous breakdowns... maybe we'll just call them melt downs... Haha. Anyway, this is not the point. The unimmediate point is that I have two amazing teachers this semester, my physics teacher, which is hilarious and smart... and my religion teacher, who is... how do I describe him? He knows his shit. He challenges yours... he's great.

Today we went over the Jainism religion.
I think this religion is intriguing.
Please correct me if I'm wrong about any of this, considering I have only known this information for a day, but...

Jainism started off as a denomination of Hinduism and then eventually became it's own religion. It all started (unless you're a jainist and then nothing starts or ends...) when Vardhamana, a prince, studied the enlightenments of Parsva and Mahavira. He wanted to be enlightened and renounce all his earthly posessions. He respected his parents so much that he waited till they died to do this. After that he gave up his crown and practiced asceticism (giving up all worldly desires including new clothig) for 12 years. After 1 year his clothes detiriorated. After 12 years he became enlightened and reached "Kevala." He taught for 30 years.

Teachings:
There is soul (you) and non-soul (everything else, material world)
When soul and non-soul encounter each other they produce Karma.
To be enlightened you need to get rid of Karma.
Good Karma erases bad Karma...
You need to help others.
Highest form of good Karma is truthfulness and Non-Violence.

There are four kinds of Jainists:
Male renunciants
Male householders
Female renunciants
Female householders

There are two types of ways to dress:
The Digumbadas= sky clad (naked)
The Shwaykumbada= white clad (white clothes)

Goal:
To be free of all desires:
includes leaving family, clothing optional, fasting, meditation...

The final step would be to fast till you die, renouncing your desire for food... and then the desire to breathe. When you die your spirit is free and is inspiration for those who have not attained enlightenment and will be re-born till they do.


First of all, I think that this religion is very interesting and inspiring, and though I do not follow this religion I think there are things we can learn from it.


One thing that's weird about the US is that everyone is constantly on their phones, a habit I try not to get back into... but I did have one indulgence... talking to Shaun. We've been friends for about five years. I was telling him about my religion class and Jainism... He was like, "Charisa, please don't tell me you're going to fast till you die..."
"No," I said, "But they do inspire me, their conviction, their dedication, extremism... they live by example instead of pushing their beliefs on others."

We began to talk about beliefs and I asked him to tell me one thing he believed in. He told me that he believed in doing good and it'll come back to you, same thing with doing bad...
Alright, anything else??? No. Ok. I'm sorry Shaun, I love you like hell, but it made me sad that you (we, the majority of young people or people in general of the world) don't have beliefs or convictions like we should. We have no concept of real or truth. It's sad.

So he asked me what I believe in (here comes the flower child part...)
"Ah," I said, "I believe in love. I believe that with love anything is possible. I believe in peace and with love peace would be possible. I believe in ideals," I told him, " I believe in ideals that probably aren't reachable. I believe that just like the Jains believe, we shouldn't be attached to our material things, stupid things shouldn't matter to us, if someone needs something, we should be able to help them, emotionally, physically, materialistically... you know. I know that there will always be people we don't like, but it's possible to love them too because they're a part of our family too. I know there's disease, but we can work through it as a family, suport them, find ways to work through it. I know there are bad people in the world and none of us are perfect, but we can work towards it. We can work towards peace. If everyone would just do their best to make a world a better place..."

Andeh says that Winston Churchill said "If everyone wanted world peace as much as they wanted a color T.V., we would have it."

Well said.

As I was driving home, I thought of all the "gods" the Jainists have. They're not really gods to worship, just reminders and ideals. They all look alike because they're an image of an ideal. This made me think: People make a big deal about how Christ looks. Does it really matter? All we need is an ideal and a reminder of what we're living for. A goal to reach or to be. An example, a reminder. Maybe my other goal this year is to be able to live with conviction, which means I have to get myself edumacated. Yes. Learn. I don't know. I'd love to live with passion for what I believe in, find my identity in that. But what do I know, I'm just a 21st Century Flower Child.

Let me just emphasize how much of a loser I am: I traded in Black Eyed Peas Tickets and backstage passes for good grades on Composiciónes and Examenes. It's pass or fail loser!

My mom probably would have said- That would have been fun.

My dad would probably have said- At least you got your priorities straight!

Oh. My. Goodness.

Hola Hola faithful reader friends and comrades! I am once again realizing why as a child I had some kind of fixation with garlic. Garlic and peperoni... garlic and cheerios (they were gross but my babysitter made me eat them so I wouldn't waste them)... anyway, I am now eating dark chocolate with garlic on my hands. Why? For one thing, chocolate, garlic, pasta, tomato sauce and instant oatmeal are a summary of the things I have in my house I have to cook with. So garlic tomato sauce it is (and chocolate in the mean time). So what was the reason for this garlic etapa? Was it lack of resources or was it because I actually liked it? I think it was both. There's something about something sweet with something spicy, I went to Santiago and had ice cream with Bechara, Andy and Leslie, I had chocolate with pepper and Bech had strawberry with pepper. What crazy people thought of these mixtures? Dunno, but they sure are tasty. Besides my new/old-found happiness of garlic and chocolate, I am definetly looking forward to finishing classes. I do like to do things the extreme way, but there might be a fine line between extreme and monotonus. I need variety! I have to admit though, I have learned a lot, both in school, myself, and life pretty much. My spanish has improved like a million times over even though it still has a little work to do. I need to get to the point where I can understand people who talk really fast and slurr everything. I still have problems understanding Manuel, my trainer at the gym (which is paying off just to let you know). My gym is like a ghetto Rocky era gym, but I love it. The people are great. The hot topic today was the musculosos I saw at an exhibición culturismo en Santiago. Oh. My. Goodness. Some of these people were like monsters. The girls looked like men with womens heads put on top. Now women, why would you want to do that to yourself, it's just not attractive (no offense to my mom who is now a muscle builder... I guess you look pretty any way you are.. Hehe). Anyway, there was this one guy standing in the corner... with a hoody. His fake tan was dripping down his face because of the sweat. It looked like blood. My gosh, he looked like he could have been the devil himself. And then there was the beautiful one... Wow. He was so nice. I think he could have been an angel. Haha. It was great, Andy kept asking me to ask guys if they would take a picture with me. He was just like "He's so cute!" Haha. It was great. After spending a little to much time with muscle builders, we finally went to eat dinner at the "Paris Hilton of the gay society in Santiago." Yes, I would have had no idea beacause this guy was just fun. His apartment was amazing, original works from famous modern artists, furniture from others, Louis Vuitton suitcases as a stand for miniture artwork... We ate in this dining room, with candle sticks and champagne... Wow. I never thought I would be doing that.

Anyway... Since I haven't had time to write in here for a while, here's a recap of everything done in the past month or so...
I really shouldn't be writing a blog right now because I should be studying for my Braille test or writing one of my many compositions or working on my presentation, but yo tengo ganas para hacerlo (I feel like doing it).

I took a Tango class last week, which was fricking amazing! I think I need to find a place to do it in Hawaii! I got to dance with a really great chilean who cut in when I was dancing with my friend, and got cut in by the teacher. Haha, it was great. Josh had to dance with old ladies with bad breath. Whoo hoo!

I'm a dork and study at the beach.

Saw the descended or something like that with Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio... wasn't bad, kind of trippy how corrupt people can be.

Before all this fun of gramatica, composición, historia y culturas en contacto, we went to Buenos Aires and Iguazu. The beginning of the trip starte out crazy. I went to a drag show with Bech, Andy and Leslie. I think that was one of the most confusing/disturbing things I have ever seen. I have to admit it was entertaining, but some of these guys were so pretty. Ah! So I needed to be at the airport before 6am. I got there at like 5ish. No sleep at all for la Charisa. Anyway, we'll skip a little bit forward to the first morning in B.A. Breakfast wasn't very good, toast and watery hot chocolate. I was looking across the street and saw a little boy in with a blanket around his shoulders, calling a taxi for an old lady. I was thinking that it was really good that he wasn't just begging, he was trying to actually work. As he walked away I ran out the door. I asked him if he wanted to come eat breakfast and he was like, Quiero un shogur. Shogur??? I had no idea what he wanted. So I took him back to the restaurant under the hostel. Thomas, what's a shogur? We asked the lady if they had any. She didn't. So we went walking around looking for shogur. No one had it. Finally I figured out that he wanted yogur (yogurt). We ended up bying him something else something even healthier... McDonalds. After that little adventure, we hit up the antique fair. It was amazing, they had such beautiful things, things to wear, things to give, things to put in your apartment... It was heaven.

Iguazu. Three syllabals. A.Ma.Zing. First our taxi driver snuck us into Brazil and Paraguay. Voy a darte un consejo-Paraguay is not worth going to. Just had to get that out. Brazil was cool though, we went to a birdpark and saw birds I've never heard of, and Itaipu, the water damn elecricity builder... Generates the most energy in the world (for that kind of producer). Iguazu though... Ah, that is now my favorite place in the world. We had our taxi driver yet once again, Vito. He was definetly worth it. I forgot to mention the most amazing buffet of my life the night before. Anyway. We took the green passport tour or something like that. We rode through the almost amazon jungle in a open air military-like truck andthen got into a boat. First we went through the rapids with that speed boat. There were people with ponchos on, clothes on, and then a few of us with our bathing suits on. We were the smart ones. Everyone got soaked once we went under one of the waterfalls. First of all, the first view of the waterfall from faraway was amazing. I felt like I discovered the dinosaurs or something. I know, I know, I tell everybody that, but it's true! Anyway, that was the first of many. Many bigger ones, they were so giant! There were so many! It was so beautiful! We have picures, I just need to develop them. When we went under the waterfall it was a little scary because it was so huge! I thought there might be rocks or we might flip over. The video camera guy was on the front though so it was ok, he would have gone over first. That would have been pretty funny. The rest of the day went by, I saw a Tucan flying out in the wild! Vultures! I walked around in a bathing suit and hiking boots! It started pouring when we sat down to eat. Not just raining, pouring like there was a waterfall coming down from the sky. Everyone came into the restaurant and even then the poor harpist hardly got any applause. I figured it wouldn't stop raining anytime soon, so we went off to the garganta del diablo (devil's throat). That passage, the train, the bridges, the marsh, the pouring rain... was amazing. the devil's throat was unbelievable. It was so huge. I could believe why they called this place the devil's throat. By the time we got back, we were drenched. My hiking shoes are only waterproof if I have pants on I guess, and everything in our bags was soaked through. We went to the laundrymat before leaving. Just to let you know, getting the cama class in the bus is worth it especially for five more dollars.

Back to B.A., where I spen to much money, saw an amazing cemetery, museums, ate a four course meal for $5... MALBA museum was amazing. Art by Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera... modern artists... amazing. We ended up crashing our friends hotel for lack of money. Good decision. We got free breakfast of media lunas y chocolate caliente (crossaints and hot chocolate) to add to the greatness of it. To top off the trip, we payed $25 ( which is a fortune there and esp. for me) for the most amazing spanish food, probably 20 plates or so of tapas, different appatizers from spain. There was flamenco dancing... $25 was definetly worth it. I think that if anyone wants to come to South America, the lonely planet guide is definetly amazing. Don't just stick to that though, talk with locals, hostels, take advantage of free maps in hostels and airports... Aprovechar. Well gente, I'm going to go to school now! Ah, another long day of school. Well, that is life I guess.

Surfing in Chile








Me and the guys
Juan
Juan surfing
Michel, Hugo, Mateo
Trajes de surf

The Half-Way Mark

I was having a conversation with my mom, who told me about her conversation with Totoro (my dog), which sounded like the same conversation I had with my self... about the half way mark. I've been here for two and a half months. I've done so much, seen so many things, met so many people, learned so many things... My accent sounds more Chilean I suppose, meaning my pronounciation has probably gotten a little worse... or a little better, depending on who you ask. You know, D's aren't really pronounced, the endings of some words disappear... like gracias is pronounced like gracia. That kind of stuff. I am sad though to think that I have a limited amount of time to explore, go to Buenos Aires and Iguazu (the biggest falls in the world), San Pedro de Atacama (huge desert...), Pichilemu (longest left wave in the... world?), Patagonia, and of course, revisit La Serena to surf, Santiago to go to Pablo Neruda's house, and who knows what else.

Today was amazing. After pouring rain yesterday, it was so clear and blue today. Perfect. I woke up and expected gray, but all I saw was beautiful. So... Thomas, Ian, Susan, Will... and... ugh,why can I not remember the other two's names??? Anyway, we went to La Isla Negra to visit Pablo Neruda's house. Beautiful drive, an hour south, we passed trees and vinyards... I just wanted to get off the bus to lay under a tree. But I'm glad I didn't because then I wouldn't have seen Quisco, with the cactus in the middle of the ocean, big beach, and beautiful waves, and I would have missed out on Pablo Neruda's house. His house was amazing. Creative, Imaginative, and everything had some significance.

Si bebes el vino o el agua en una copa de color
Tienen un mejor savor

Pablo Neruda.

Everything was so beautiful, he had things from all over the world, what are they called, the statues carved out of wood that are on the front of the ship??? Anyway, from the way the house was done you could tell that he loved sailing, traveling, and the ocean. It seemed like a fairytale, like he wanted to make you feel like you had been where he had been, in his travels and in his mind.

So after riding in micros and buses, eating apple pie and empanadas, sitting on the beach and walking through a dreamland, I am once again sitting at the computer, drinking green tea, and ready to go to bed. Mmm, sleep...

Spring Break!!!

It is said that everyone has a summer.
I say that everyone has a spring...break.
I also think that since this wasn't actually my spring, it doesn't totally count, so I get at least one more;)
But I will definetly never forget the places I went or the people I've met.

Chandi (my traveling buddy) and I left the night of Thursday, September 14. So I arrived by colectivo by her house, and walked with my pesado (heavy) backpack (huge, huge, huge!). Before I left, Omar me dijo que mi mochilla estaba tan pesado (was too heavy), but I, of course, like to have everything I could possibly need, como, tasa(duct tape), bandaids, neosporin, shirts for every occasion, wet suit, bathing suit, pajamas... you get the point. I did only bring one pair of jeans though! Back to the story. I arrived at la casa de Chandi so that her padre could llevarnos al terminal de bus. Of course, while we're waiting for him to finish playing his new game boy, he teaches me some more garabatos (bad words). Haha, love it this time i learned ... I'm sure you can get it- ¡Conche tu madre!- I didn't understand it at first because he slurrs his words and mumbles a little, but he was like- Es como "Show me the money!"- I love that guy! He is so funny. Y la madre me dijo- Hija! No lo digas! No lo digas! Es un mala palabra! (Don't say that, it's a bad word!) Of course she thinks I'm a gringa who has no idea what that means... They are so great. During the whole car ride with him, he was telling me that Peruanos son sucios (they're dirty), no bebes el agua, they might give us false money( ha, which they did!), and they're malintencionado( bad intentions). And when a peruvian driver drives badly say- Conche tu madre! It was awesome.

Next stop- La Serena. How i love it. We arrived at 6am. i was worried about our hostel guy not finding us, but within about two seconds of waiting, out comes Andrès! We got to our hostel, awake as ever. i couldn't call any of my friends! No one get up till at least 10am! Dios mio! I ended up falling asleep till maybe 10am. You know, when in La Serena... Yes. So I called Juan, who was a little busy at the moment (i thought for sure they didn't get up till 12...) nad he told me that he'd call me in a little bit. From my bad experience with flaky Fabian, I thought for sure that he'd forget or something. No surfing for me. Oh well. We ended up meeting Enrique from Tejas? and his two friends. We ended up having an awesome, cheap lunch at this restaurant, Donde Gallo or something like that. The waiter was so great, he gave us a sample of chicken because we had no idea what he was talking about. He was so great.

We did end up meeting with the guys (surfers), after running all over town to get there. We packed in the car like a can of sardines, and headed off to see the wizard. I mean the olas (waves). After going to the gas station, driving down a dirt road, and riding in a car full of cigarette and such smoke, we arrived at puente teatino. It wasn't really sunny and the waves didn't look perfectly glassy, but this was where we were to surf. It was a right hand break. Damn. So Juan me prestò su tabla, and I headed out with Matias to the point. The channel was great. The first two waves I caught were the worst ever. I thought I had forgotten how to surf. That was twice now. I decided to take off my booties and try again. Back out to the surf. To my suprise, I caught the most amazing wave. I didn't fall. I didn't just kind of stand up again. I was carving and doing cut backs! I didn't forget how to surf! It was the booties!!! I couldn't believe how great it was. Two more perfect waves, another hour, and I went in. I had the biggest smile on my face! I had just surfed the best waves I had surfed in so long! Hugs to everyone! Juan was already ready to go. We watched him surf till the sun went down and we were attacked by mosquitos. Muy impresionante. We taught Matias and Negro the words "Ripper" and "Shredder." I don't remember the words in spanish, but they are pretty classic.

Sice Chandi was tired, she missed out on the all night long asado and pool game. I suck at pool. It's so awesome. What's even more awesome was that i was playing with Mateo (Juan's brother), who also sucked (maybe he was just trying to make me feel better). It was great. I did drink a little too much wine, which made me have a headache more than anything else. Yeah. I think it's time to stop with the alcoholism before it even starts. The next morning, Juan wanted to go surfing. Nope, I was out. Fabian's cousin came to the hostel to take me to the beach- No, no puedo, estoy cansada... No one could wake me up! It was great. Sleeping... Ah...

Pisco elqui!!! If this was all I had for spring break, I would have been totally content. A supposedly two hour long bus ride turned into four. Juan didn't answer his phone. Ay yay yay. What was I going to do? Chandi was sleeping. I called Juan's sister she told me I couldn't get a hold of him because there was no reception. Ay. So when we get off the bus, we looked for a hostal. Thery were all full. Mind you, it was already 9:30pm when we arrived. We walked around pisco elqui, asking to rent floors or couches becuase there was no way Chandi would camp with the guys even if we found them. We did look for them in campings (campsites) but they were no where to be found. If only we had checked the other campsite next door, but Chandi wanted to find a bus terminal even though there were no buses running. We bought pan y queso, and sat on a park bench en la plaza, and ate our bread. Everywhere I went I was hoping to run into one of the guys. We did run into someone from fùtbol, but alas, no one else. As we went to preguntar where the terminal was, we ran into a guy who had some rooms en la piscina(pool). I was a little suspiciosa, but I saw posters in the bus, so off we were. We ended up meeting Andrès (Andy), who was very handsome, stylish, and friendly. Out came three other guys, Bechara, Steve(o), and ... Oh no, what's his name? The other one. I am so sorry if you are reading this!!! Anyway, me encantan. Bechara, mi amore, (Andy's novio), is the most amazing, funniest guy ever! I love him! And Andy! They are so great! Poor Stevo, he was sick. To much pisco and too much sun. We all ended up going bike riding (except for what's his name) and took like a billion pictures. It was so amazing. Ice cream, electro music, bbq, we had our own little independance day party. I wish I went to la fonda though, I really wanted to dance queca (national dance), but sleep called. The next day we were on our way back. We went with the guys, they bought us cute little fruit tarts for breakfast ( they are the best), after they changed the flat tire. Our ride back wit them was great, as was everything with them. Andy said that he loved being with steve and... because they're from Lebanon, went through hard times, and now, they make the most of every second. He said that many of us live in the past or the future, but the most important is living right now. Memories are important, plans and dreams are important, but if we don't live now, we're not really living at all.

Juan called as soon as I got reception. So sweet. He makes me feel great. Ended up having lunch with him and Cris. Chandi had beans.

So longs and fare the wells were so sad. Ah... Te extrañarè Juan.

We rode for 22 hours to Arica. Met Peruanos who claimed that Pisco was peruano. Alejandro was our attendant, and since the bus was pretty much empty except for us, he just kept us company.

Arica. Slept at las palmas hostal, with crappy water pressure and stingy bread services. If someone's not in the kitchen and breakfast is supposedly provided, I will take, toast, and eat the bread. Oh yes, and drink the tea.

Train to Tacna, Peru. Everyone wants to get past the border!!!

Tacna to Ariquipa. "Ariquipa, Ariquipa, Ariquipa!" yelled a burly man with a loud voice. I will never forget him. Haha. Everytime I hear that name, I will think of him- Ariquipa!

We had lunch with a Japonese couple. They were so sweet. Miki and... I can't remember her name. Què lastima!

I was really sad that we couldn't see Ariquipa as we went through it on our way to Cusco. It was supposedly a beautiful city, "The white city," with volcanes. Ah. So sad.

Cusco. A city with great achitecture and great style... I mean there are so many people wearing their native dress, it's great. We went to Qoricancha, which was originally an Inca temple and then was taken over by the Spaniards. It was so beautiful. Can you imagine having the most important part of your culture being taken over by foreigners though? It must have been devastating. The architecture was a mix of Inca and Spanish design. It was so beautiful. There were paintings done by the spanish of the saints. They were so inspiring. so romantic. I know that maybe Christianity shouldn't be romanticized, but I love the stories and paintings, and everything that makes it beautiful. I wish that there was more of that now days, people dedicating their lives to make beautiful cathedrals, paintings, writings...

Bargaining at the mercado central was an adventure. I love how everyone tries to make you feel sorry for them and when hustling, they try to get even one Sol (like a quarter) out of you. -Es solamente un sol mas... It's awesome. I made some lady very rich that day.

I gave in. I signed up for a tour. Luckily we were the only ones in the tour(me and Chandi). We had an amazing tour guide, Alexis. We went mountain biking to Machu Picchu!!! Well almost, it was so beautiful. My hands were brused from all of the shock though. As I was waiting at the bottom of a hill... Along came Alexis... we waited... No Chandi. Five minutes more... No Chandi. So I biked up the hill as fast as possible. And there she was. lying on the ground, surrounded by the mountain people. They were preparing a fire, cutting up onions, and getting ready to eat her. I ran with my knife in my hand and started attacking them! I finally got her out of there even though we were being chased by mad indigenous people! Ok, ok, back to the part where she was on the ground. What really happened... she hit a rock and fell, dislocated her elbow, and the peopld didn't know what to do. Alexis went to the town, 15 minutes away, and I entertained her, singing "The ghost of corporate future" very strangely. I think the village people were confused. When we got to the hostal, I took pictures of Chandi's wounds before cleaning all the dirt off of her body. she didn't really want to be cleaned because it hurt, but I thought it was really important. Who know's what's in that dirt??? A bone doctor came to relocate her elbow. She was not happy. I wouldn't have been either, but it was for the best. She kept telling him to stop, and I'm sure that it seemed like forever to her, but he was fast and gentle.

The next day was strange, no one was really in a good mood because they were so stressed out, Chandi because of her arm, and me because I felt like I couldn't make her happy in any way. The journey was long to Aguas Calientes, and we walked the whole way. After lunch and getting some food in us, I was in a better mood, and fell behind, taking pictures and such. We walked for about four more hours to Aguas Calientes. Didn't have enough money to go to the hotsprings, sadly, but we ran into Charlie, Thomas, Raul, and Amanda while we were eating in a restaurant! I was so happy. Even though I supposedly renounced alcohol, I had a sip of sangria. Mmmm, so good. Like fizzy fruit punch... Spagetti was awesome. Food.

3am. It's time to get up. The time is three o'clock. Ugh. Alarm. Ran to the plaza because Thomas said he's leave if we were even 5 minutes late. They were 10 minutes late. I thought they had already left us. I was super stoked to go to Machu Picchu. I was again left behind, climbing the steps of the Incas because I couldn't breathe. I was so sick. Coughing all night long for three nights didn't do me any good. Oh well, just me and God and my dying flashlight. It was actually really nice. Very peaceful. Had the lamp to my feet and the shadow of death scriptures going on in my head at first... why didn't I pay more attention to those before, I can't even remember the whole verse! When I got to the top an hour later... at 5ish am, The guys were super bummed because they thought that M.P. opened at 5am. Sorry boys. I guess I was the only one who knew. Ha. It was great. So we had vanilla galletas, kind of likt vanilla wafers, but way better. There was no sunrise to see that day, even though that is supposed to be the most magnificent sight ever. It just rained. Lleve sobre mojado ( It doesn't rain, but pours). We found a path, a strange one, out of the way. I kept climbing, just a little more, just a little more, I told Chandi. We ended up climbing for over an hour and a half more. The view was increible. We were climbing Wayna Picchu, the highest peak in the area. We didn't make it to the top, though I wish we had. Only 45 minutes more and we would have made it. I guess I'll have to save that for another trip. M. P. itself was amazing, it was so huge! Way bigger than I had imagined it. I didn't mind the rain so much, even though I was pretty much soaked. I am so grateful for my waterproof hiking boots (thanks mom). Those and my pashmina have been life savers, the best things that I have brought on this trip.

Back to Cusco. Problems with the agency and changing our tickets, and having enough money to get back(since I stupidly forgot my debit card in the atm- thanks again mom for helping me out with that). But after going to the hospital (too many visits there on this trip for my taste), everything worked out really smoothly. We met some Columbianos and crossed the border with them (after riding on a bus for like 18 hours and being the only gringas on the bus). They were great Djs and Vjs on tour. Bus ride for like 40 more hours... altogether over 50 hours straight. I was so happy to be home. I've had amazing meals ever since I got back, and my bed doesn't move ( like the bus)! Yay! So now I'm off once again, tomorrow to Santiago for a day, to visit my love, Bechara and we are going to share music, photos, and tear apart the city. Bacan. Ya po. And then Thursday back to La Serena to take more photos, see my honey, Juan, and surf. Maybe go to San Pedro. Don't know, but that story will be for another time.

That's all for now folks!

Over and out.

The Bloody fingers Club Cont...
Shoes, Campsite, First s'mores ever made in Chile, A drunken moon, and me on Rodrigo

The Bloody Fingers Club
Cheers to empanadas, Chilean 4th of July, Local ganchos...

Con Con

So this is how my weekend started out... I was really stoked on going snowboarding for my first time ever in Chile all of last week. Ah, you have no idea how stoked I was. I was having dreams of snowboarding again... Even though I didn't know how to stop... Anyway, I was really stoked. Thursday I found out that no one else had paid for the trip. So, I planned on going with a different group. But no one paid from that one either. Ah, I was so bummed. So bummed. I was like in a depression for like the whole day. So after attempting to have company to go to Reñaca and surf by waking up two of my compadres... I went sòla. The waves were small, so I didn't rent a board. As I walked to the mall, some guy (very proud to be in the chilean marines) thought I was some Agentinean model or something. I wish I knew who she was but I think he might have been making things up. After pretending I didn't know much spanish (què terrible), I went to the mall to buy some yarn to attempt to make a blanket for my soon to be cousin. Yay! One successful thing done. I thought the funk would pass, but the next day, saturday, I was still down. Running helped, helps. Porque necesito liberar mis... se me olvidè. stress. Yes.

So Saturday after the run was wonderful, good oatmeal, good bbq... And then it happened. I go the call that i'd been waiting for... Thomas! Yay! Camping was on! So we met at Cafè Journal and headed off! Kind of. We had to wait for someone else, look for provisions, and make a pit stop at Nuts4Nuts to get me some mani (pronounced like money but really means peanuts). Ah, so wonderful and fresca. By that time Thomas' friend was a little, ok, a lot irritated because we were already doing more running around than he bargained for. We also got off at the wrong stop on the way to Con Con, took advantage of the supermarket, and had no idea where we were going. So he had it, told Thomas to feel bad, and called his friend who lived down the road to have a cup of tè. Very interesante.

Let's get back to the journey though. Con Con is about maybe an hour away, but a whole different world. It's totally country. I love it. The dunes, the horses... Ah. Lovely. Instead of meeting Charlie and Sarah like we were supposed to, we stumbled into a rodeo! Just to let you know, I've been dying to go to a rodeo like my whole life! This one wasn't huge, but it was so festive, with typical chilean cowboy music and cowboys and family cheerinng them on. It was wonderful. We go to talk with a bunch of the locals and take a bunch of pictures (which I will be posting as soon as possible).

After watching the stable boy ride away on his horse to fetch Charlie and Sarah, we were off to see El Mono, which has the best empanadas ever! Back to el supermercado, where I distracted a security guard while Charlie got some crates for firewood, and off to the dunes. The dunes were wonderful, great view, we had a great fire, sommores (how do you spell that?). I think we had the first sommores ever to be had in Chile. Very makeshift, but very wonderful. The night was freezing, so I couldn't move into the tent, slept by the fire, and got a nice burn hole in my sleeping bag. But hey, I bought a chilean flag patch to cover it up! So it's all good.

Horse riding the next day. Again, it was perfect. Riding as fast as the horse could take me down the beach, sea air in my hair. Wonderful feeling. And then... back to Viña, back to classes... Ah... But soon, more adventures to come during the Chilean independance day and our spring break.