Host an exchange student

I have a request to all of you readers out there! My host family is hoping to send my host brother, Sebastian (pictured to the right), to the U.S. next year for six months to study. Would anyone be interested in hosting a sweet, loving Chilean boy?

He's only fifteen, but Eva and Sergio want him to study in the States because being fluent in English, especially down here, is a huge advantage for his future. His sister, Camila, did the same thing a couple years ago in Canada. I'm a testament to how well she speaks English (and sometimes I'm jealous at how good her English is in comparison to my Spanish) and I know it'll be such an advantage to her, not only in her everyday life, but also as she studies to be a doctor at university next year. They want the same for their son. Since I've grown so close with the family, they'd love it if Seba could be near me in North Carolina or Virginia next year.

Anyway, Seba would arrive in time to start the school year next Fall 2010 and return to Chile the beginning of February 2011. He'll be in his Junior year of high school, and obviously his parents will send money to pay for living expenses. I can't say enough how wonderful he is, and I want to do anything I can to give him the opportunity to study in the States.

If you know anyone or would feel comfortable asking around, I'd really appreciate it!!

Love and grace to all of you. Can't wait to see you in five weeks!!!!!!!!!

A heart in two places

The beautiful bride and groom

Charlotte ladies at the wedding

Trivia/telephone game at el Oasis retreat

'Put me in, coach!'

The awesome el Oasis crew at Vilches Bajo

Two weeks ago I flew home for Jessica and Bryan's wedding. It was absolutely wonderful being a part of their special day. Even though I didn't get hardly any sleep between Wednesday night (when I flew out) and Monday morning, it was totally worth it. I'm so honored to be their friend and so excited for what the future brings them (including, hopefully, lots of Sunday night dinners!)

I have to admit the week I got home to Santiago was a bit difficult adjusting back to my life in Chile. There was nothing wrong at the house or at school, but I guess after seeing a few people at home, I started thinking more and more what it was like to be in their everyday lives. It was a little taste of home, and I couldn't get it out of my head. Fortunately I have an awesome Chilean family, and after a week of getting back in the groove AND an awesome retreat with El Oasis, I'm back to my normal Chilena self.

El Oasis put on a retreat this past weekend in an area about 3 hours south of Santiago, called Vilches Bajo. The theme of the weekend was basically 'the Sexes'...and no, it wasn't about sex, entirely. What I mean is, we had an awesome husband and wife, who are missionaries in the south of Chile, talk to us about how to have a healthy relationship (whether dating or married) with Christ at the center. As the majority of the church community are college-aged students, I thought it was a wonderful topic to lay on the table. It was really cool to get perspective from both a guy and girl (let's face it, most ministers are men) about relationships. They were honest about struggles they'd had in the past, including their marriage, but how they finally came together closer than ever with God at the center. It reminded me of the 'Stogies and Stilettos' series at Watershed, so it was awesome to see similar things being discussed halfway around the world...in Spanish. It was a very humbling. I admire Mark and Eli (the missionaries that have been working at el Oasis for almost four years) so much for what they're doing in these students' lives.

In addition to some quality discussions and reflecting, we also had lots of fun and recreation during the weekend. For one, we played 'Futból Flamenco' (Flamingo soccer) where the guys could only hop on one foot (no running) and kick the ball with one foot the entire game. I thought this would've given the girls an advantage, but it seems guys are just too good at soccer and they won in overtime 5-4. We also had a dance competition Saturday night where everyone paired up, labeled with numbers and all, and competed with each other for the best rhythm and moves through a variety of styles of music. I was awkwardly put with someone I didn't know, but it was still lots of fun. But let's go back to the soccer game...can I just say, that's the first time I've EVER played soccer! I hope everyone is proud!! I'm sure I was hilarious to watch, with my sweet running skills and all, but it was a blast :)

Now as I'm wrapping up my last five or so weeks here in the most southern part of the world, I'm trying to keep at peace about the next big transition coming up. I've been so blessed this entire year and formed some amazing relationships, that I can't stand thinking about Dec. 14 when I have to head to the airport. But at the same time, I can't wait to see all of you at home. Just like in January and February, I find my heart in two places.

Whirlwind

The past few weeks have absolutely flown. I honestly don't know where the time went. School has been going great as we bring the year to an end. And not only have I been busy with classes and students during regular hours, but I feel like we've been together on weekends too!

A couple weeks ago the school put on it's annual Folkloric Gala where each grade level dressed up and danced native dances from Chile and other countries all over the world. I was so impressed at what the students had learned and perfected in the past few months and blown away by the day. Children from pre-kinder all the way through 12th grade dressed up in hand-made costumes and performed choreographed dances, including tango, the cha-cha, a Spanish dance, a Mapuche dance, and of course cueca (Chile's national dance). My little brother was part of the Spanish dance with 9th grade and Camila danced four different dances. Not only did she perform tango and cueca choro, but also helped 11th grade with the cha-cha and finished with the father/daughter, mother/son cueca finale. It's a tradition for all of the Seniors to dance cueca at the end and celebrate their last gala. I was in charge of taking pictures the entire day, and at one point I looked back at Eva watching her daughter and hubby dancing with tears in her eyes. It was so cute and brought back memories when I was graduating from high school. I love how Colegio San Marcos has this tradition, and even after it's 50+ years of existence, still puts on the gala every year. It's very special for the modern students to still be learning traditional dances, especially those of their country. People kept asking me if we have a traditional dance in the States, and I was a little embarrassed to admit I didn't think we had one, or at least I didn't know what it was. Does square-dancing count??

This past week has been full of fun and parties it seems. On Wednesday night, the entire family went to watch Chile vs. Ecuador. Camila and I both bought fake soccer jerseys, and we all got to watch Chile beat Ecuador 1-0. The Saturday night before, Chile qualified for the World Cup after beating Colombia. So even though this game didn't technically count towards the World Cup, it was still very exciting experiencing a professional soccer game in South America. I wish soccer was more popular in the U.S.! It's so much more exciting than baseball and it's played all over the world! What's wrong with us??

Then on Thursday we started celebrations for Día del Profesor (Teachers' Day). There was a party at school that evening, and then classes were cancelled on Friday. Instead, the teachers got together for mass in the morning, had breakfast and took a bus outside of the city to the countryside. We went to a breath-taking lake and joined the other teachers in our network with EducaUC for lunch and relaxation. If that wasn't enough, Saturday was the Paseo de la Familia (Family Picnic). So Saturday morning we packed our picnic baskets and headed towards the mountains for a full-day picnic with the entire school and families. It was a wonderful day being outside and sharing food and laughs with everyone connected to Colegio San Marcos.

This week is the anniversary of the school's opening, so we only have a day and a half of classes before the entire school breaks out into games and competitions. I have no idea what to expect, but I'm excited! I think teachers are as thrilled with having no class as students...or maybe it's just me :)

Most of you probably know, but for those that don't, I'm heading to the States for a VERY short trip on Wednesday because Jessica and Bryan are getting married!! I feel very honored that I get to be part of their special day. I arrive two nights before the wedding and leave the night after, so this means I won't have time to see most of you...but just think, I'll be home in less than two months!!

Aaah, I can't believe this year is already coming to an end. I have to admit I have mixed feelings about it because even though I'm so excited to finally see all of you and get home, these last eight months have been incredible. I'm going to miss my students, Chilean family(ies), co-workers and friends so very much!! I about lost it this past week when a few of my students asked if I'd be back next year and I saw their faces when I said no...

Jones y Pucón

Another vacation is sadly over, but I guess I have no right to complain ...2009 has been full of fun adventures and this week was another one to add to my favorites. For those of you that don't know, Kayla Jones arrived on Friday, September 11 and just left tonight. My host mother, Eva, was sweet enough to get up early with me on Friday morning to pick her up at the airport. Eva had 'met' Kayla briefly on Skype a few nights before, so we both waited anxiously for her to exit the international flight gates.

We came back to my new house and she was immediately immersed into my new life, and especially the Chilean culture. We ate breakfast and rested for a little while, but then we headed to school for my last day before 'spring break.' Little did she know that she would be joining me in a Freshman and 8th grade class, including fun Chilean Independence Day celebrations through out the entire school. We only spent about an hour doing real school work, and then joined the rest of the school outside on the patio for empanadas, music, and cueca (the typical Chilean dance). After school, we also had a party for the teachers to celebrate Fiestas Patrias a week early, including empanadas and wine! Only in South America is wine served at school, hahah.

On Friday evening we laid low at the house because, ironically, September 11th is a dangerous day in Chile. Back in 1973 when Chile was ruled by a communist government (I think...I could be getting my history a little backwards, Paula-help me if I'm telling this wrong!), the military invaded the government buildings in an effort to take over the government. To date, many Chileans still act out on this day in rememberance of the military take-over. It's basically just people doing stupid stuff in the street like starting fires or cutting out electricity. Fortunately we live in a safe neighborhood and my family reassured us that nothing would happen to us. It worked out well, too, because it gave Kayla a chance to relax after a long flight and festivities at school.

Saturday the girls (Camila, Kayla and I) went out and explored a little bit of Santiago before getting on our overnight bus at 11pm to head south to Pucón. When we arrived Sunday, we were sad to find it raining the ENTIRE day. We literally didn't do anything in Pucón on Sunday except read, sleep and try to warm up by the one heater in the entire hostel.

Fortunately, the weather cleared up the rest of the week and we fell in love with Pucón and the surrounding areas. On Monday we went whitewater rafting, and it was awesome! I might even say it was the best whitewater rafting I've done. The New River in West Virginia has some competition after rafting the lower Trancura. We also met some other gringas and a German girl, so it was fun making friends and hanging out with others on our adventure. On Tuesday, we went canopying (basically climbing trees and gliding across steel lines between trees). It was a blast and brought me back to my Young Life days when I would go ziplining at camp...only this time we were much higher up and we ziplined across rivers! On our final day in the south, we hiked part of the Parque Nacional Huerquehue, about an hour outside of town. It was a pretty intense hike, but had absolutely amazing views of Volcán Villarica (shown above). I think I remembered some of the scenes from Todd's old Chile photos. Kayla nicknamed me 'Super Monkey' because apparently I not only walk fast, but take long, fast strides hiking as well (if only I could run, dang it). Despite the mud, I was able to keep up with our German friend in her waterproof boots. Needless to say though, Kayla and I are a bad combination together. Everyone knows me for being clumsy or 'torpe', but I think Kayla might've had me beat on this trip. I fell twice, but she fell three times. We were both covered in dirt and mud by the end, haha. TRECE TRECE :) Good news is the hostel let us rinse off and change clothes even though we'd already checked out so we could get on the bus somewhat clean.

Thursday morning we got home and read and slept practically the entire day. There were two old women on the bus the night before that didn't shut up the whole night, so we didn't sleep much. It was nice to have a lazy day Thursday to get ready for the Fiestas Patrias festivities on Friday. We had so much fun celebrating Chile's Independence Day with the Soto/Muñoz families! Sergio and his brother-in-law, Patricio, grilled out the entire day, and we ate lots of choripan, steak, potatoes, empanadas, etc. My host parents also danced cueca for a while and we toasted with lots of Chilean wine and chicha!

Yesterday Kayla and I went out on our own. Eva offered me her car again, so I actually navigated our way through Santiago. I never thought I'd know such a big city so well! We did make a few U-turns, but we still managed very well. And today my family took her out to lunch before she had to head to the airport. It was so much fun! I'm so glad Kayla got to spend time down here with me, but I'm also so grateful that she got to know and love my host family and the culture as much as I do. We talked about how it's so much different experiencing it than the stories I try to tell everyone all the time. She knew I loved living with this family, but only now can she fully understand it. I think it was hard for everyone to say goodbye this evening!

Tomorrow means back to work, but I can't believe in a month I'll be home for Jessica and Bryan's wedding! Time is going by too fast!!

Keep checking my Picasa album, titled 'Jones y Pucón' for our pictures from the week. I've uploaded the photos from my camera, but I'm also waiting to get some from Kayla when she gets home.

On another note, I keep jumping every few minutes as I sit here writing this blog. My host father, Sergio, is watching a tennis match and yelling whenever the Chilean player gets a point. It's so funny because it reminds me of Dad yelling and getting excited watching a Hokie football game, hahah.

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the Fall and football...have fun at those tailgates for me :)

Lots of love,

LG

Familia nueva

Little sis and me! This is before our movie night out last Friday :)

Mother and daughter, Eva and Camila.

My new 'mom', Eva! She's hilarious, full of energy and so loving. I caught her dancing in the kitchen :)

It's been a few weeks since I moved into Poeta Augusto Winter 4146, and I must say, it's already been a big change. I was welcomed with open arms immediately when I arrived, and I don't think there's been a quiet moment yet! I've spent two weekends here in Santiago hanging out with the entire Soto family and a few extended relatives. We've sat, laughed and talked around the table for hours. But by Sunday evening, it's always back to studying for Camila and Sebastian...oh I'm so glad I'm not a student anymore. Then on Monday the week is off to a busy start as Camila, Seba and I go to school, Sergio goes to work and Eva is running errands and preparing meals all day. In the evenings, we all have lots going on too. Poor Camila goes to PreU every evening...PreU is what most high school students attend in their Junior and Senior year to help them get ready for the huge tests required for all high school students in order to graduate. Imagine taking the SATs and multiplying them by ten...that's how much information kids have to learn and remember for these 'right of passage' tests. So not only does Camila attend school every day from 8 to 4, but then she goes to PreU in the evenings from 5 to 8:30...ugh. Too much. Sergio, the dad, also works super long hours. He usually stays at the office until Camila gets finished with PreU and picks her up on the way home. Needless to say, I can't complain about my long Wednesdays any more!

It's really cool living here and seeing what a typical Chilean family does every day. I definitely felt like I'd adjusted to the Chilean lifestyle before, living in the apartment, because I visited the Cisternas' so often in Viña. But now, I'm experiencing it so much more. Obviously there are a few cultural differences, but family life down here seems pretty much the same as what I remember growing up in Chesterfield. I think one thing I really appreciate here is the time set aside for the entire family to enjoy meals together...on a regular basis. Even though Camila and Sergio don't get home until close to 9pm, we still all sit around the table together when they get home for Once. Since I basically spent my high school years as an only child (Todd and Mark were both already off to college), I think that aspect of our family eating nightly dinners together went away. I was busy in so many after-school activities and both Mom and Dad were working so hard that I don't think we took advantage of those last four years as much as would could have. One cultural tradition I definitely want to take home with me is making meals an important time for anyone/everyone I'm around...whether that be friends, roommates, or family.

Last Friday evening I had a fun afternoon shopping with Eva and Camila for Camila's graduation dress. In Chile they don't really have a prom, but about a week after the graduation ceremony, Camila will get together with her 25+ classmates for a dinner with all of their parents. After dinner, most of the parents go home and others stay to chaperone a dance. I guess it's a small version of prom because she told me they'll stay out all night and even have breakfast together the next morning. Eva, of course, is going to be a chaperone. So anyway, Camila was really excited to go out and find a dress for her big event! I was thrilled that they invited me to tag along. It brought back fun memories of when Mom and I went shopping for my homecoming and prom dresses in high school.

On Friday night Camila and I continued our girls day into the evening. We went to the movie theater nearby and saw a chick flick. Aaaand for the second time since being in Chile, I drove! Eva and Sergio asked me if I wanted to just drive the two of us since it was only five minutes away from the house. Although we experienced a small technical difficulty figuring out reverse (for some reason the reverse is in the opposite side of the gear shift in Eva's car), it was a smooth and safe ride. I think Camila felt especially 'bakan' because she didn't have her parents taking her out somewhere...this time she had her 'big sister' driving her around! I have to admit, I also enjoyed having a little sister for the night :) I treated her to the movie and we snuck McDonald's fries into the theater...such rebels. It was definitely a gringo evening!

Then I headed to Viña on Saturday morning to spend the rest of the weekend with the Cisternas'. We had a lot of fun watching the Chile vs. Venezuela soccer qualifier on Saturday night even though they tied. Chile plays Brazil this Wednesday, so it'll be another stressful evening for fans. I hope Chile gets to the World Cup as much as the U.S.! As usual, I was spoiled with lots of love and food at the Cisternas' home and loved hanging out with the Ubilla's (including Gaby again finally, woo hoo!) too.

Tonight, I have to admit, after I got back to Santiago, I was really missing all of you at home. Like I said before in one of my earlier blogs, this comes and goes...and well, tonight is one of those nights that I just wish you were all here with me. Even though I have two WONDERFUL families down here, I still love and miss all of you very much.

Grace and peace on your week,
LG

I know, I know, I've been delinquent about writing! I'm wonderful and safe with my new family. Update coming VERY soon!
Love to you all!!!!!!
LG

Chauuuuu departamento

Tomorrow is my big moving day! Which also means, tonight is my last night in this comfy bed (where I'm writing) in this gorgeous apartment. I have been so incredibly lucky to live here the past six months (gracias Nelo y Ximena!). It was definitely an adjustment living alone, but now I love it. It's going to be interesting going back to living in a shared space again. I'll miss the quiet (well, except for that awful traffic, those car alarms, dogs barking, etc. that wake me up at 3, 4 and 5 in the morning!) and privacy. It's been such a blessing to have a safe haven to come home to after an overwhelming day at school with my angels or just pure exhaustion from living in this huge, foreign city.

I'll miss the views out the window of the cordillera (on clear days) and the lights at night. I also got amazing sunset views from my bedroom window. I'll miss walking to the metro, oh, you were good to me Cristobal Colon! I'll miss the Blockbuster across the street and my 780-peso-Tuesday-night movies. I'll miss the park near Francisco Bilbao and the Sunday afternoon closing of Sanchez Fontecilla so families can walk, jog, run or ride bikes freely through the street. I'll miss my friendly and trusty security guards downstairs (Marcos and David). I'll miss being able to walk to my friends' apartments and favorite pizza restaurant-Tiramisu. I'll miss my walks to Jumbo too. I'll miss the corner coffee shop (Doce Trece) that saved me when my stolen internet was being fickle. I'll miss the little window in the shower where I could look out into the city while washing the smog off my body for the millionth time. I'll miss the walls covered in closet doors. I'll miss that shudder that goes down over the outside of the bedroom window that I just found out about a month ago. I'll miss the water pressure. I'll miss my little nook in the kitchen where I enjoyed breakfast and once. I'll miss all of the Friends episodes on DVD. I'll miss my trash chute.

But I WON'T miss those gastos comunes.

So long, Mariano Sanchez Fontecilla 1180, Dpto. 1203...you've been good to me!!

New semester, new opportunities

I'm way over due to be writing to you all...I hope you know that despite my delinquency, I've been thinking about you often! Here's an update on the what I've been doing the past month and what lies ahead.

Paula and Amelia arrived on July 10th, and I immediately went to Viña to spend time with them as soon as school let out. I had a great time hanging out with Paula and her family in Viña for a week, including eating lots and spending time with close friends, before Mom arrived the following week. It was amazing to see how much my little niece has grown in the past six months. She just turned two on July 9th and is already turning into a little girl. I kept wondering, what happened to the little baby Amelia?! But how fun it is to spend time with her and watch her talk and goof off. She has an incredible spirit and lots of energy! She speaks Spanglish (which is to be expected with a Chilean Mommy and Gringo Daddy) and calls me 'Nauren'!! How cute is that? I love the 'n', and I'm impressed that she can pronounce the 'r'. I remember having difficulty with my own name until I was probably seven, haha.

When Mom arrived the following week, we hung out in Santiago for a night...just us two girls...then our adventure really began. The reason I say adventure is because Mom and I travelled almost the same way I've been traveling since being down here. She had to ride the metro with me across the city to get to the bus terminal and then take a bus to Viña. It was hilarious when we got to Viña because Amelia woke up about five minutes after we arrived, and her face was priceless when she saw her Gigi. I think she was a little confused to see her Gringa grandmother in Chile. She was so cute and so happy. While in Viña, we all celebrated Amelia's second birthday (for the second time, haha), went out for walks on the beach and through Valpo, and even got to have Once and a game night with all of the Cisternas' close family friends.

After four days in Viña, Mom and I hopped back on a bus to go to Santiago to catch a plane to Buenos Aires for five days. Once we got to BA, we were stuck in the airport for another hour because of course the hotel shuttle didn't arrive when it was supposed to. But when we got to the hotel, I was in amazement. As you all know, I've been staying in hostels and traveling in the cheapest way possible since coming to Chile, but thanks to my wonderful Daddio, we got to stay at the Marriott using his hotel points. I felt so spoiled! And of course Mom treated me to delicious meals the entire time we were there too. Unfortunately it was rainy and windy the first two days, but that didn't stop us from having an awesome time. We still had lots of laughs, went to an outstanding tango show and explored the whole city. Our favorite part, though, was our last night's dinner. We went to a fabulous steak restaurant right on the port and were treated like royalty. I don't know what aura we brought with us that night, but after the wait staff had already brought over a ton of delicious bread and complimentary appetizers, one brought over two glasses of champagne. I quickly turned to the waiter and said, 'Umm, we didn't order this' (in Spanish of course), and he said, 'It's on the house!'. We looked around and we were definitely the only people with champagne, but hey, it was free! We must've been super chic that night, hahah. And on top of that, we shared probably the best steak I've tasted in my life...mmm!

When we got back to Santiago, I had to go to work on Monday and Tuesday. Mom accompanied me both days, and I think she really enjoyed seeing where I spend most of my days. I even had a class of seniors that sang to her in English and Spanish (pictured above). They were full of themselves, but I couldn't help but laugh. Despite her fun with this particular class, I think Mom was a bit shocked about how the school systems are run down here...all the freedom the students have, no heat in any classrooms, no discipline, etc. But all-in-all, she enjoyed herself and probably realized even more how happy she is to be retired!

On Thursday morning, Matt arrived. I was so excited to pick him up after not having seen each other in five months. (Even though I had to leave my apartment at 6:30am to head to the airport! That was the happiest I've EVER been that early in the morning). Little did he know that once he set foot in Santiago, we had lots of things to do! We spent the first day with Mom going to a beautiful park called Santa Lucia followed by a typical Chilean meal in Bellavista. That evening we took Mom to the airport to catch her flight home. It was rough saying goodbye to her, Paula and Amelia, but fortunately I knew I had Matt to spend time with for five more days.

On Friday we didn't plan to do much but pick up my paycheck from school and go on a wine tour. Unfortunately when I arrived at school, my check wasn't there! Go figure...that's the second time it's happened where I almost haven't gotten paid. Oh Chile. After a couple hours of waiting and hanging out in my school's neighborhood, my check was finally ready and we headed down to the Concha y Toro Vineyard. We had a great time seeing where the famous wine is produced and enjoyed our taste-testing :)

On Saturday, though, our real adventure began. Matt, my friend Molly, and I took a tour bus up to Portillo, one of the most popular ski resorts in the world. Matt's friend, Justin, had coincidentally been skiing and training there for the past week, so he was really looking forward to meeting up with his friend from Vermont. Unfortunately, the bus was late leaving Santiago (so typical down here), so we didn't get up to the mountain until about noon. Matt was only able to see Justin for about five minutes, but that didn't stop him from having an amazing day on the slopes. I felt bad for not being able to accompany him on the expert slopes, but I guess that's what I get for having only skied twice in my entire life (once in WVa and once in NC). But to me, the view alone was worth it. I couldn't believe how incredibly gorgeous it was up in the Andes, covered in snow. I've never seen anything like it in my life.

Once we finished our day in the snow, we rushed back to Santiago to catch a bus to...guess where...the beach! Only in Chile can you be in the mountains and the beach on the same day!! We had a wonderful three days in Valparaíso, just hanging out and relaxing. I spend a ton of time in Viña and usually take day trips to Valpo, so it was cool to stay there for an extended period of time with him and really get to know the city. We had long lunches, rode the ascensors, walked up and down LOTS of stairs, went out for tea and dessert, and just enjoyed spending time together. It was funny not being able to put him on 'mute' for five days straight...we joke about this often since the majority of our relationship has been on Skype and sometimes there's feedback in the microphone, so we have to put one another on mute to talk. But seriously, I'm really looking forward to hanging out like a 'normal' couple when I get back in December :)

So now that all of my visitors have left me (well at least until September when Miss Kayla Jones gets here), I've finally gotten back into my normal routine...although I don't know if I can say normal because this semester is starting out busier than before! Fortunately the chaos at school has calmed down a little bit. We now have a permanent replacement for the teacher that quit, but were just informed that another English teacher is leaving the end of August to get her Masters at UMass. Sooo hopefully the school will have enough time to find a replacement this time around!

Also, I'm starting to work with my new host family's father on a side business. He is starting up a program to bring down university students to Chile to do internships. How cool would it be to do an international internship? I love the idea, and he wants me to be the USA 'relationship manager', so I'm going to help with making connections in the States and doing any interpreting/translating from Spanish to English. I'm so excited to be getting some international business experience in the upcoming months too! We have our first meeting Friday evening...we'll see how I do in a meeting conducted completely in Spanish...eek ;) Feel free to check out the website if you have a chance: www.regardingchile.cl

In addition, I'm going to be getting more involved at El Oasis helping with 'Café a lo Gringo'-an English cafe that they do each week for an hour to help Chilean university students practice their English. They usually play games, sing karaoke, or just chat, so I'm going to plan some new activities for that. I'm excited to get to know some of these university students better. I think in the long-run I'd prefer to work with this age group rather than K-12, so it'll be really cool to build relationships with some college kids down here.

And on top of all of that, tutoring continues on Wednesday evenings. Whew, this semester is going to fly faster than the first, I have a feeling! But I'm so excited about these amazing new opportunities I'll be having in the next four months.

Last thing, I'm moving in with my new host family on the 22nd! I'm super excited to live with the Soto family and learn more about the Chilean culture. My new Chilean Mom's name is Eva (pronounced Ava), Dad is Sergio, sister is Camila (17 years old) and brother is Sebastián (14 years old). Can't wait.

Thanks for all the continued prayers and sweet messages, cards and notes I've been receiving! I'm so grateful. Love and miss you lots!!
LG

Dream yourself along another day

I listened to this song by Pete Murray over and over on my flight down to Chile as I thought about all that I was sad to leave behind, but had to look forward to. Now that some of my wonderful visitors have come and gone, I'm listening to it over and over again...

What a wonderful opportunity I've been given to be down here. When I'm lonely or missing the people that mean the most to me, this song has a way of speaking to my heart and reminding me why I made the decision to come to Chile.

And so it goes another lonely day
You’re saving time but you’re miles away
Your flower’s drowning in some bitter tea
For seeing lost opportunity

Find your mirror go and look inside
And see the talent you always hide
Don't go kid yourself well not today
Satisfaction's not too far away

Hold on now your exits here
It's waiting just for you
Don't pause too long
It's fading now
It's ending all too soon, you'll see

Soon you'll see

Your coffee's warm but your milk is sour
Life is short but you’re here to flower
Dream yourself along another day
Never miss opportunity

Don't be scared of what you cannot see
Your only fear is possibility
Never wonder what the hell went wrong
Your second chance may never come along

Hold on now your exits here
It's waiting just for you
Don't pause too long
It's fading now
It's ending all too soon you'll see

Soon you'll see

Hold on now your exits here
It's waiting just for you
Don't pause too long
It's fading now
It's ending all too soon, you'll see…soon, you’ll see

(you can check out this recording of him singing it with John Mayer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZcxOla-Y-s&feature=related)

Grabill Girls in Chile

A small selection of photos to see what the Grabill girls have been up to (the rest are in my Picasa album).

Mom & I at the Ubilla's house for 'Once'

Panchy and me

Hermanas!! But we're missing Romi :(

Chichi, you didn't have good luck at darts because we weren't on a team together! Here I'm presenting Chichi and Victor's fifth place prize...haha we're all goofy.

Mom and I won third place...we got the rest of the chocolate cake as our prize, woo hoo!

The entire crazy crew

Amelia loving Aunt Nauren's music on her ipod :)

Trying to find something Amelia will like listening to. Look how long her hair is!!


Taking a short break on the bench in Valparaíso...Amelia was ready to go again


The story is the people that settled here used leftover paint from their ships to paint their houses...that's why they're such bright colors


Strolling the streets of Valpo


Amelia enjoying rides at the mall with her Tata and Wewy (Chilean grandparents)

The children were allowed to come pet the puppies in the pen...little did I know that when I went to help Amelia, one would jump in our laps! I'm saying 'whoa!', but Amelia's as calm as can be...go figure.

We went to a dog expo at the mall. Checking out the puppies with both of her grandmothers...Wewy and Gigi

Amelia's birthday cake selection number two...or was it three?

Sisters finally reunited! Paula and Panchy :)

Daniel got a mask with hair to wear for his birthday and Amelia got a crown...he decided to try them both on at the same time. Lookin' good!

Singing Happy Birthday/Feliz Cumpleaños to the chiqui...very special that she got to spend her birthday with both grandmothers! (This was right before she started crying because the flame scared her!)

Birthday girl, Mommy and Tia Nauren

Amelia got sick of her crown so Mommy wore it instead!

Feliz Cumpleaños Princesa!!

Gigi's in Chile!!!

Mom and me her first night in Chile. I took her out to dinner for some yummy pizza in Santiago :)

No falta nada!

Thanks for the prayers everyone :) I got the notebook of grades on Sunday evening after getting home from an AWESOME day. I've been working vigorously to get the remaining tests graded and course books updated for my students. I even gave them an end-of-semester gift...I took their best grade for the semester and doubled it. I also let them correct errors on their written tests for extra points to help their grades. Tomorrow is the last day of school for the semester, and we (teachers and students alike) can't wait!

But what I reeeeeeally can't wait for is Paula and Amelita arrive in Santiago tomorrow morning! Paula's family is going to pick them up from the airport and they'll head to Viña. I'm going to leave Santiago Friday morning as soon as I wake up. I've waited five months to see family in person and now it's here! No falta nadaaaaa :)

So about my awesome day Sunday...I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but I was talking with one of my 12th graders, Camila, a few months ago about how I would be looking for a family to move in with in August or September. Paula's brother and his family will be returning from Barcelona, so I knew all along that I'd have to find another place to live for the remainder of my trip. Anyway, Camila did an exchange program in Canada a couple of years ago and lived with a host family. She had a wonderful time and said she'd love to give that opportunity to someone else. She talked it over with her parents, and they said they'd love to have me move in with them! They invited me over for lunch on Sunday to get to know them a little bit and see their house. I got there around 2pm, and as I should've expected from typical Chilean lunches, I ended up staying there for about six and a half hours! Her family is absolutely wonderful. We had a delicious lunch and sat around the table talking and getting to know one another all afternoon. Then they took me around for a tour of their house and showed me the room and bathroom they had available for me. The father was also very excited to show off the business he's starting to help college students get internships in Chile. He already has a contact in Germany and the U.S. and is constructing the site now. Basically he's starting an agency to help foreigners get internships abroad in areas of their choice...how great is that? If only this had been around about four years ago when I was looking for an internship!

All-in-all it was a lovely day, and I can't wait to move in with them! They said they are so excited to have another daughter (oh yeah, they also have a son who is about fourteen...he's a very good student too). Towards the end of my visit, the father asked his son, Sebastian, what he thought of his new big 'sister,' and Seba said I was bakan :) That means 'cool' in Chilean Spanish, haha. Anyway, they told me I can move in whenever I'm ready! I can't wait to feel like part of a family again.

Peace and grace on the rest of your week!

Love,
LG

Katie, me, Vanessa, Molly & Brian at a 4th of July fiesta we went to Saturday night. It was hosted by a friend of theirs who works at the U.S. Embassy.

Happy 4th!

Hey everyone! How are things in the U-S-of-A? I hope you're all enjoying the Independence Day festivities. I've got a cold, but that's not going to stop me from finding a cheeseburger this evening :)

I just wanted to reach out to everyone because I'm in need of a few prayers. For those of you that have been keeping up with my blog, you know that one of the English teachers, well the English coordinator, at my school has been out for about a month. I've been working with two new teachers to cover her 10th-12th grade classes, but things aren't looking good for the future. I've been emailing back-and-forth with her a little bit because I'm trying to get her notebook of grades so our students know where they stand at the end of this semester, and after three weeks of trying, I still haven't received them from her. She's been having some personal things going on in her life that I don't fully know, and just yesterday she told me she needs to make a decision. Again, I'm not sure what that means, but I think it might mean she's deciding whether or not to come back to our school second semester. I was wondering if you guys could pray for her and everything she's going through. I feel helpless because I don't know many details, but I wish I could do something to make her feel better.

On the other side of that, if she decides not to come back, could you pray for my students? They've all been adjusting to two new teachers, who have busy schedules in other schools too, so they're constantly having to adapt to chaos. I've had numerous discussions with students this past week because they're worried about their grades, and I can't do anything about it. I also spoke with the coordinator for high school on Friday for a while to try to brainstorm some ideas with her, but she said there's nothing I can do. She said the students are just going to have to deal with pending grades for the first semester. I don't like feeling helpless! We also talked about the rest of the school year, and I told her I would be up for taking over those classes completely second semester, but that means that I won't get to work with my 7th-9th graders any more, and that's not really fair to them. So, even though winter vacation is only a week away, we all have a lot going on right now, and a lot of decisions need to be made. So please pray for my students and the coordinator.

And lastly, I'm really hoping this cold will be gone by the time Paula and Amelia get here Thursday. The last thing I want to do is get one or both of them sick! I went to the pharmacy yesterday and got some medicine, and I've been sleeping a lot this weekend, so hopefully I'll be back to normal by Thursday. Please pray for my health too!

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it!

Alright, take lots of burgers, fries, baked beans, coleslaw, etc. to the face for me today!! And enjoy those fireworks :)

Love and miss you all!
LG

Fotos de la familia

Fortunately Panchy took a few photos over the weekend :) From left to right during our 'bistec a lo pobre' dinner Saturday night: Daniel and Sonia (Paula's parents), Pablo and Viole Ubilla (Gaby's parents), Chichi (another wonderful lady from the Cisternas' church who I've become friends with/my Chilean dance teacher), and Pablo (Gaby's brother)

Like I said, I get really spoiled when I go to Viña and Valpo. The Ubilla's (Gaby and Pablo's parents) own a bakery in Valpo called La Folia. It has the most amazing cakes and desserts I've had in my life! I think I've had at least two slices of pie/cake each time I've made a visit...I wish you all could experience this little piece of heaven!!

The three of us won during Pictionary...Chichi must be good luck! We also won the night before when the two of us were on a team for Scrabble. Here we are with Chichi's daughter, Valentina, holding our 'prize.' I thought they were making silly faces too...apparently it was just me...

Me, Vale and Chichi again :)

Counting down the days

Hi everyone! How are things going? I'm well, hanging out in Viña del Mar again. Today (Monday) is a holiday (or feriado) in honor of St. Paul and St. Peter (San Pablo and San Pedro). It's been so wonderful to have a long weekend!

Classes went pretty well this week, but I was very excited for a three-day vacation. My students are adjusting better to the change in teachers now, so hopefully we can make some good progress before winter break. As I've told many of you, one of the English teachers I work with has been out for almost a month now. The first couple weeks she was out, my classes that I usually have with her were pretty chaotic. No one knew why she was out and whether or not we would continue with classes. Even though my teaching contract states that I'm not supposed to teach classes alone, I didn't want my 10th-12th graders wasting their time. I took over a few classes and then another teacher was brought in to help. Unfortunately she can only be at our colegio in the mornings because she does classes somewhere else in the afternoons. So I was handling the afternoon classes alone for a couple of weeks. When we found out that the regular English teacher won't be returning until next semester, the school asked one of the student teachers if he could work with me during the afternoon classes. So now my students are having to adjust to two new teachers each week. They're doing a great job though, and I appreciate them being patient with us. As you can tell, there aren't substitute teachers readily available down here, so normally students just have free classes when a teacher can't come to school (well, at least for the older kids I work with). Also, unlike the U.S., teachers don't have readily available lesson plans for replacements, so that makes it even more complicated. Luckily I was able to update the new English teachers on our lessons, so after about two and a half weeks of chaos, we're finally getting into a rhythm. The poor students...they're stressed out enough as it is because they're taking final exams for the semester, so I know they are annoyed at the disorganization of it all. At least I'm still with them and they know me, right?!

Anyway, after another long week at school, I went to a going-away costume party Friday night for a couple that has been in Santiago for about three years working at El Oasis. I didn't want to spend any money on a costume, so of course I pulled together some 80s attire quickly and dressed up as an '80s aerobics instructor'...just like Paula's birthday party this past year, haha. It was a fun party...some of the students put together a wonderful slideshow of pictures from the Mosby's time in Chile. What wonderful memories they've made down here as mentors for these university students. I really admire them for all that they've done!!

On Saturday I met my friend Hillary for breakfast at our favorite 'gringo' spot to say goodbye. She got on a plane Saturday night to go back home to New York. She starts Law School at American University in August, so I know she was excited to get home to spend time with her family before going back to school. After breakfast, I got on a bus to head to Viña to hang out with the fam. As always, we ate lots of food and hung out with wonderful friends the entire weekend. We got together with friends Saturday night and played team Scrabble (it's quite harder in Spanish) after eating bistec a lo pobre (steak with french fries, grilled onions and a fried egg...mmm talk about clogging arteries!), a classic Chilean dish. Then on Sunday we went to church and relaxed most of the day before getting together with friends again last night. This time we played Pictionary (yet again in Spanish). Surprisingly my team won both Saturday and Sunday night!! Maybe I'm better at games in Spanish than English? I never win at home!

Today we've been hanging out and planning for our visitors in a couple weeks! Paula and Amelia arrive on Amelia's 2nd birthday (July 9) and Mom gets here on July 16. Amelia's Tata (grandfather) has a birthday on July 10, so we're going to celebrate his birthday on Friday and Amelia's on Saturday (she's only two, so she won't know if we celebrate a little late, right?) We're all so excited that they're coming...even though I'm bummed my Dad can't make it anymore :( Poor Dad, he needs a break from work!! Oh well, we're still counting down the days and looking forward to spending lots of time together. Sonia and Panchy already have some great ideas of things to do when they all arrive, so I can't wait to come back after school gets out for winter vacation on the 10th, woo hoo!!

I'll be getting on a bus to head back to Santiago in a little bit to say goodbye to my other friend, Jaclyn. Everyone is leaving me!! It's okay though...I have lots of visitors to look forward to, and I can always come to Viña when I need family time :)

I hope you all have a wonderful week, and I'll talk to ya soon.

Love,
LG

P.S. My camera broke on my last trip to the dunes...being the clutz that I am, I fell carrying my camera and sand got inside. Now, the lens won't even open. Until Mom gets here and I can use hers, I'm going to have to steal other people's pictures I guess. ¡Qué torpe!

Ready to move to Viña

Hola a todos! I hope you've all enjoyed your weekend (and the heat!) I had a wonderful weekend in Viña with Paula's family...or as I like to refer to them, my Chilean family. I was, once again, spoiled with lots of love, laughter and food. I arrived Friday evening and Sonia picked me up from the bus terminal. She informed be that both Daniel and Panchy wouldn't be home until late, so it was just us girls for a bit! My British friend, Rebecca, was also coming in town, so we picked her up a little later when her bus finally made it from her small town of Los Andes. Poor thing was dropped off on the side of the road because the bus she took only stops in Valparaíso. Fortunately, Viña is small enough that it only took us about five minutes to find her.

After a delicious home-cooked meal and chatting around the dinner table (until about midnight...dinners are late here), we all crashed. Saturday morning we had a big breakfast and then Sonia took us gringas around Viña and Reñaca for a bit. We lucked out with sunny weather, so even though it was a bit windy and chilly, we were able to walk around comfortably for a little while. Later we came home for another delicious meal and after met up with our friends on the huge sand dunes in Concon. For those of you that knew me back in high school, you probably remember me talking about these sand dunes when we came down to Chile for Todd and Paula's wedding. For the rest of you, you wouldn't believe how high these things are! They make the sand dunes in North Carolina look like ant hills. We struggled to get up to the top with our boards we rented for about a $1 per half hour. When we finally made it up, though, it was worth the struggle. We looked out to the Pacific and then inland and could see for, what seemed like, miles. After a few minutes of taking in the scenery and catching our breath, we hopped on our boards and went 'sand sledding' back down to the bottom. It was so much fun! But let me just warn you if you ever go sledding on sand, don't scream because you will have a mouth full of sand! By the time we went up and back down a couple more times, I was wiped. On my last ride, though, I somehow got the BIGGEST clump of sand down my pants...and by that I mean underwear. Ugh, talk about uncomfortable! I had to do a few shakes walking around at the bottom of the dunes so it would fall out...classy, I know.

Then today we went to the Cisternas' church and headed over to Gaby's parents' house for lunch afterwards. It was wonderful seeing all of their friends again! They are such an amazing group of people and always make me feel so welcome. After eating paella and two desserts, time had flown and it was time for me to get on the bus to head back to Santiago. I have to admit, I got really sad today when I was getting on the bus today. It really is incredible how much family and community can impact your life. I just love being with my Chilean family and being a part of their world that I didn't want to come back to the big city.

When I got on the bus, I started doing some more thinking and remembered a quote from a book I've been reading. The author, Donald Miller, says, "...the times in my life when I have been most happy haven't been the times when I've had the most money or the most freedom or the most anything, but rather when I've been in love or in community or right with people." That's so true. As that quote popped in my head, I thought back again to all the times in my life I remember being happiest. They're always when I'm in community. All of my favorite memories are of people and time we've spent together...not the things we had nor exactly where we were or what we were doing...but just being together. I've definitely been having an amazing time down here, but since I'm living alone in a huge city, I miss that sense of community. When I go to Viña, I get a part of that back...and it's so refreshing. I'm so fortunate to have them down here, and I can't wait to go back soon.

On another note, I have less than a month until winter break! (Yes, winter break in July, so weird). I've been a bit resfriada (had a cold and sore throat) this past week with the change in weather, and with one of the English teachers out at my school, I'm looking forward to relaxing. (We've also had five cases of the swine flu at my school, so I'm ready to get away from the germ-y students for a while). However, before I call it a night, I have another confession...so I was working with a substitute teacher in 11th and 12th grade this past week since one of the teachers was out, and, well, I got a little bit of joy out of how my students were acting. This is going to sound awful, but you see, they were all clinging to me the whole week because I don't think they particularly liked her. (She was a very nice lady, and we actually hit it off quite well, but the students weren't huge fans). So every class I went to, they all wanted just me to work with them and help them. They weren't super nice to her, so I feel bad saying all of this, but I just loved feeling more connected to my students! Sometimes I wonder if I'm actually impacting them because they all know I'm only here for a year, but the last few weeks I've been feeling much closer to them. They come up to me all the time outside of class and strike up conversations in class now too. It's a cool feeling. Anyway, I tried not to encourage their behavior this past week, but I secretly got a kick out of it. Haha okay enough confessing tonight, please don't judge me!!

Love you all very much, and please know that I'm always thinking of you!

Grace and peace on your week,
LG

More gringas visiting Chile...siiiipoh!

This past weekend I had my first visitors!! Melissa, Katie and Jen took a bus to Santiago all the way from Buenos Aires, Argentina. For those of you that don't know, Katie has been in Buenos Aires since last September, teaching and traveling through South America. Melissa and Jen bought tickets to fly to B.A. and arrived on May 24. After a few days visiting Argentina's capital, they took a bus to Mendoza (wine country) and finally came all the way to Santiago last Friday! That bus trip is about 24 hours total...do I have awesome friends or what?!

Unfortunately when they arrived it was gross and rainy outside, but that didn't stop us from having a wonderful time! They got here around 2:30pm, and I can't tell you how excited I was to see them sitting in my apartment building lobby when I got home from school. From the second we saw each other, it was hugs and screams all around! Typical girls, right? The conversations didn't stop all night, or all weekend for that matter. I took them to an area of the city called Bellavista for a yummy Italian dinner, and then we came back and chatted some more. Saturday morning we decided to leave the cloudy city and headed to the beach. We stayed in Viña del Mar Saturday night and toured both Viña and Valparaíso on Sunday. First the girls thought it'd be fun to stop at the casino in Viña since none of us had ever been in one. Katie played one of the slot machines with her $1000 bill. And by that I mean, 1000 Chilean pesos...which is only about USD$1.60. After a few spins, she won, 30,000 pesos!! Hahah we yelled with excitement in the casino at like 10:30am...I think everyone thought we were crazy. Now we understand why gambling can be so addicting! Katie won like USD$55-60 just from playing one slot. However, we weren't stupid and cashed in our winnings immediately and left.

After our exciting morning in the casino, we walked around some of the castles in the resort town and found the famous Viña clock made of flowers. Eventually we made our way to Valpo and decided to check out Pablo Neruda's house (a famous Chilean poet). It was beautiful at the top of the hill, but too crowded, so we went to another hill in the town called Cerro Concepción. There we had a delicious, long, Chilean-style lunch that lasted almost three hours. Then we walked around, soaked up the scenery and finally took a cable car (ascensor) down the hill to catch a bus to Viña. We wanted to rush back to the beach to watch the sunset over the Pacific.

We arrived in Santiago around 9:30pm Sunday night, and it was back to school Monday morning for me. The girls went on my favorite city hike to Cerro San Cristobal and after school we went to a really cute area of the city. Some of my friends had told me about it, but I'd never been, so it was fun exploring the area with Jen, Melissa and Katie for the first time. It reminded us of Europe, with quaint boutiques and unique restaurants. We enjoyed another 'rico' meal, and the girls headed out on Tuesday morning.

It was such a wonderful time!! My favorite part was just being able to catch up with the girls. We reminisced about college and all of our fun times, and brought each other up to speed on our current lives. I loved being able to share some of my Chile experiences with them and teach them a little about the culture too. Some of the girls' favorite Chilean phrases were 'siiipoh' and 'obvio!' ...I hope they bring them back to the States and everyone is talking like a Chilean when I get home :)

I can't wait for my next round of visitors in July and September...you know who you are! Get ready for some fun :)

Love and miss you all!

Grace and peace on your week,
lg