Proyecta UC/Welcome to Maintencillo

Hola Amigos,

Finally, I get to sit down and share some adventures. January has already proved to be one the best months in Chile, but also one of the busiest. I said goodbye to my sister on the evening of the 1st, which was a tough goodbye. After 20 days with her after not seeing her for 6 months, I wanted more time! However, I didn't have much time to sit around and let the sad feelings sink in. On the 3rd, I left for Proyecta UC (Universidad Católica) with host university  There were ten groups of about ten people each, assigned to a different small town in the regions of either Rauco or Hualañé. I was put in the town of Quilico, in the Hualañé region. When I got to campus the first day before departure, I was definitely feeling nervous. I knew I was the only foreigner in my volunteer group and would be the only on in the town as well. However, these feelings quickly disappeared when I met my group, probably some of the nicest young Chileans I've ever met. 

 For some background information, Quilico is a really small town that was badly affected by the huge earthquake in 2010. The once adobe houses have been rebuilt to be more modern. After the earthquake, there was unfortunately a fire that burned down the local schoolhouse. Now, the kids in the town have to take a bus everyday. There is no telephones, internet, or cell service (unless you walk 15 minutes to the top of a hill). 

The next 10 days can only be summed up as amazing. Our task was to build a playground equipment for Quilico, although it wasn't pure construction. We also hosted talleres (workshops) for the locals, usually arts and crafts with household items. I also got to play with the kids a lot, who were just adorable and sometimes crazy. They called all of us tío/tía, so I was “Tía Eliza.” I think what they enjoyed most of all was snapping photos on my camera. The older people within the community were just about the most welcoming and nicest people ever. They invited us over for onces (tea time) and lunches, and they would often drop off some fresh baked bread, kuchen(a kind of German cake), or a homecooked dish. The place we were staying didn’t have running water, so they ran hoses through our window to fill up giant tubs and offered up their showers. A few of them even helped with the construction! Their kindness just proved you don’t need to have much to be a giving person. The simplest gestures can still mean a lot.

My group, who were all Chilean students from my host university, was also really a great bunch. At times the language barrier could be tough, especially given the fact they used a ton of slang. But they were really patient about my confusion and I tried to make light of the situation by joking that my Spanish was “turned off” (as in “Sorry haven’t had my coffee yet…Spanish is still off!). One of our bosses taught me some funny phrases. My favorite was “Estoy Liz Taylor” as in “Estoy lista”(I’m ready), because I guess Liz Taylor and lista kind of sound the same.

As far as construction went, I helped where I could since I didn’t have much experience. I tried out everything though, including hammering and sawing. We were actually working up until the last night.   That didn’t stop us from taking a break to have an asado(barbecue) with practically the entire community. It came out of nowhere, to be honest. I went to take a shower, came back and suddenly there were 3 or 4 grills piled with meat and the locals were setting up tables and food outside! This was there last big gesture of gratitude.A few people went around and said a few words of thanks. They even asked me to say a few words…in English!  None of  the community members understood it, but they just really wanted to hear me speak it. I thought that was really sweet, especially since I think English kind of sounds boring compared to Spanish. 

         The final morning came and I it was a bittersweet departure. Part of me was ready to get back to consistent showers, more than four hours of sleep each night, and internet service. At the same time, I was really going to miss the people of Quilico and the simple kindess they offered.  

At the barbecue on the last night. Quilico I will always remember you!

         With little down time in Santiago, I am already in Maintencillo, a little beach town about two and a half hours north of Santiago. I signed up for a help exchange network, where you work in exchange for meals and a room. The woman I’m staying with, Ethel owns a set of cottages and is about of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. Her husband works in Santiago, but he comes every weekend to help with repairs. All of her kids are grown up, but I've gotten to know her daughter who is on vacation between graduation and a new job. My first day of work was spent clearing a ton of weeds from a lot between two cottages. There’s also little tasks, like tidying up the cottages between users. And I’m learning some more cooking basics. I even got to teach Ethel one of my favorite dishes my mom makes.

When I'm not working, I have time to actually do summer reading, journal, and take walks on the beach. Ethel and our maid Ellie have also been taking me to a baile entrentenido class, which is like zumba witha  Latin twist. I really like it! Since it's free, it's  in a new location each week. The first one I went to was outdoors, with a view of the ocean!
All in all January can be summed up as living the simple life and stepping off the beaten track. Between volunteering in a town with no phones or internet to coming to the simple beach town of Maintencillo, I'm really just taking time away from busy Santiago or super touristy places. As a result, my Spanish has been improving significantly lately. I don't think I've ever gone days and days speaking zero English until now.

I'll be back in Santiago early February, to meet up with my Dad. I'm counting down the days till I see him! Chao for now!