¡Una Semana!

¡Buenos días a todos!


One week from today and a handful of hours I will be in Cedar Rapids boarding a plane for Dallas, Texas from where I will board another (larger) plane for the longer trek to Santiago, Chile.  Wow.  I really cannot believe I only have a week left.  And in all honesty, I am kinda freaking out.  This isn't another Euro-trip and this isn't another Spain experience.  This is more... real life.  When I go down there and after classes are finished, I won't have college to rest on.  A little scary...  But like I say to myself and others constantly (probably to try to keep myself sane), One Day At A Time.  My new life philosophy.  (We'll see how well I do at actually staying true to that life philosophy but that's another story.)  Anyways, yes, one week.  Another reason I have been stressin' is because I have to PACK and actually fit my life (once again) into two 50-lbs. suitcases, which, as all the female readers can attest to, is painfully difficult.  Shoes? Everyday clothes? A few nicer outfits? Layers? Sweaters and sweatshirts? Boots? Coat? Don't even get me started on accessories!  Luckily, one of my best friends, Ali, is coming into town today and little does she know that she will be helping me go through my wardrobe.  :)  Hey, what are best friends for if not to help you coordinate outfits??  Furthermore, another reason I've been a little on edge is because everyone has seemingly waited until the last week before I leave to want to see me.  I have been bombarded with lunch plans, dinner dates, etc., which is GREAT!  Believe me, I want to see everyone too before I take off for... SOUTH AMERICA, but it's just a little overwhelming, as you may be able to imagine.  Have no fear, I am dealing.  One day at a time, right?


However, I digress... I wanted to spend a little time in this blog post to inform all my faithful followers :) a little about Chile.  For those of you who don't already know (or who haven't already Google Mapped it), Chile is the long skinny country on the Western side of South America.  It has about 4,000 miles (6,435 km) of coastline and never gets much wider than a little over 100 miles.  Chile as a country has about 16-17 million inhabitants and about 5.7 (ish) million live in Santiago, the capital city, which is surrounded by the beautiful Andes mountains and is only a little trek from Valparaíso, probably the most well-known port city to us US citizens.  Chile has a Mediterranean climate.  One of the world's driest deserts (the Atacama Desert) is located in the North.  However, the South is probably the area where you are all most familiar with - Patagonia (which encompasses land in both Chile and Argentina).  Patagonia is home to glaciers, volcanos, and penguins!! among much more.  


As many of you may remember, Chile has frequently been in the headlines.  I'm sure most of you recall the Chilean mining debacle awhile back.  (Big industries in Chile are copper and nitrates among other things.)  Also, there have been earthquakes... Chile stretches along the Ring of Fire of the Pacific Ocean.  There have also been volcano eruptions, which have interrupted air traffic in Argentina and Australia.  Similarly, there have been crazy amounts of snow in the Andes, which have isolated many smaller towns and villages.  Sound a little crazy and dangerous?  Naw... not really.  Furthermore, Chile is one of the most economically-developed and politically-stable countries in Latin America (minus the occasional protesting that occurs in the capital and is often followed by tear gas).  Another fun fact, although much of the population has indigenous ancestry, there is an abundance of European influence that stretches back to colonialism (obviously).  Um... I could spew off more facts from BBC country profile or CIA fact book but I think I'll let you do that research at your convenience and leisure...  


However, one thing I definitely want to share is a part of Chile's history that some of you may find interesting.  Most times in the United States we speak of September 11th like 9.11.2001 is the only noteworthy September 11th in history.  However, September 11, 1973 was and is one of the most memorable moments in Chilean history.  In 1970, Salvador Allende took office as the first democratically-elected Marxist in Latin America.  Obviously at that time, "we" were deeply involved in a deeply ideological war - aka the Cold War.  Anyways, there's no time (right now) to get into the US involvement but on September 11, 1973, the opposition led a "golpe de estado" (coup d'état), which resulted in Allende's suicide (which was recently confirmed after the exhumation of his body) and the rise of the dictator General Augusto Pinochet, who "ruled" from 1973 to 1989.  Thousands of leftists and suspected sympathizers were detained, beat, tortured, and executed.  Many more went into exile, including Ariel Dorfman and Isabel Allende.  (Both are famous Chilean writers.  Another famous name is Pablo Neruda, poet.)  This all was occurring around the same time as the Argentinean "Dirty Wars" and many other oppressive regimes and gruesome injustices.  Anyone interested in history I would highly encourage you to read up on Latin America during the Cold War - the dictators, torture and murders, US involvement (just Google-ing "School of Americas" is a good place to start on that one)...  Very interesting and heartbreaking.  Looking into a country's and a region's history is a good way to begin to understand each unique perception of the world.


Anyways, there is so much more to share with you but slow and steady is best and patience is a virtue.  :)  Hope you all enjoy the post and there will be many, many more.


Besos,
Sarah

Santiago, Chile

Map of Chile

Andes Mountains

¡¡Bienvenidos!!

Hello Everyone!!

Hopefully I will have a few new readers this time around seeing as I just sent out a mass email asking people to subscribe to my blog.  I am hoping that this time around I will have some avid readers and loyal followers all the way down to Santiago, across South America, and back in time (at least) for graduation in May.  (Yes, I know, it's scary... graduating from college!  I'm not ready for the "real world" yet.  Haha)

Well, seeing as I am about to embark, let me give you a little nutshell-version of the next few months so you all can have an idea of what you are getting yourself into by reading my blog.  :)

On August 23rd, I will hop on a plane out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  Then I will fly to Dallas and from there fly to Santiago, Chile.  All in all, the flight from Dallas to Santiago will be about 9-10 hours.  Luckily, on the big flight, I will be with some of the other students from my program, none of whom I know or have met yet.  But we will all be picked up at the airport in Santiago by our program director etc.  ((FYI:  My program is USAC - University Studies Abroad Consortium))  The first night we will be staying in a hotel in Santiago and get organized a bit.  However, after a day or two, I will meet and move in with my Chilean host family!!  ((I have yet to receive any information about who they are but that's typical... I'll find out about a week before I leave.))

Since I only have one more semester of college (I am graduating a semester early thanks to AP classes and good course planning), I only have to take a few general electives down there, which is great!  So I will be taking two just plain Spanish courses, a Spanish stylistics course, a photography course (which is going to be amazing!!), a one-credit Dances of Latin America course (learn a little salsa and merengue!), and then I will have an internship with an organization in Santiago, which is to-be-determined.  

On a different note, as some of you may know, I only have a one-way plane ticket to Santiago, which may seem a little crazy to many of you.  And honestly, sometimes I am surprised that I am not freaking out more.  But I am trusting God and taking it one day at a time, which leads me to my next note - what am I going to do after my courses are completed in December since technically I don't have to come back to the States until graduation in May????  Well, I would love to remain down in South America, perhaps Chile, and do some volunteer work or something!!  I have made a few contacts down in Chile while being in the States and I am certain that there are more contacts to be made once I get down there and figure things out.  I am trusting that God is going to present me with a sweet opportunity to lend a hand down in Latin America.  Perhaps an orphanage, maybe a summer camp (our seasons are opposite due to the whole side-of-the-equator difference), or even building homes or something of the sort... Honestly, the sky is the limit and I haven't a clue.  Kinda exciting, isn't it?

Alrighty, well I have been typing this out while sitting next to my mom, who is learning to upload pictures to Facebook, so I better go assist a little.  But thanks again for reading and I hope you subscribe over on the right side here to my blog.  Next time I will tell you all a little about Chile as a country and a people.  A little heads up on what I know about Chile already and a little on what I might encounter and expect.

¡Pásalo bien!  Y nos hablamos pronto.

((Translation (more or less) = Have a good time and we'll speak soon!))

Sarah

More: Needs & Wants

Hello All,
So today I started this new book/autobiography about this man who started this missions foundation called Gospel for Asia.  And in it, he talked about the first time he came to the United States.  He describe the abundance and prosperity that we, here in the US of A, enjoy daily and don't even think twice about.  In fact, he even observed that sometimes we seem to be annoyed with our affluence.  He, himself, was confused by all of this, especially those who claimed to be Christians but squandered their wealth on frivolous things instead of what truly matters in life.  BAM!  I felt like a ton of bricks had hit me.  I am a hypocrite.  After my experience in Spain, my outlook on life changed a bit.  I didn't want a big house or lots of "things" and I realized that life was about family and friends and a good cup of coffee. (Haha)  However, I am living my life like all the "things" matter.  And I am getting caught up in all the things the world tells us we should want.  But do they matter?  No.  Can we take them with us after we die?  Nope, not at all.  So perhaps in my head, I have a distaste of excess and waste and I definitely detest greed and love of money.  But am I living my life any differently?  Maybe yes, Maybe no.  But since when is being "lukewarm" about something okay?  
But anyways, this is just an insight into what I was thinking about today... So just take a moment and think about ALL that you have.  It is astounding.  When people around the world live in extreme poverty and live on less than a dollar per day, it is astounding.  And if you think about it long enough or seriously enough, it might make you sick to your stomach.  It does me.  Sometimes it is hard to really wrap our minds around all of it because we don't see that extreme poverty on a daily basis.  Regardless, I think we, in the US, should try to focus less on ourselves and materials and more on others who are truly in need.  I mean, what do we really need another tv for?  I am definitely guilty of this and am by no means without blame... Just a thought or two.  
The following appears in the book I am reading and it is an excerpt from Robert L. Heilbroner's book The Great Ascent:  The struggle for Economic Development in Our Time:

'We begin by invading the house of our imaginary American family to strip it of its furniture. Everything goes: beds, chairs, tables, television sets, lamps. We will leave the family with a few old blankets, a kitchen table, a wooden chair. Along with the bureaus go the clothes. Each member of the family may keep in his 'wardrobe' his oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. We will permit a pair of shoes for the head of the family, but none for the wife or children.

We move to the kitchen. The appliances have already been taken out, so we turn to the cupboards...the box of matches may stay, a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt. A few moldy potatoes, already in the garbage can, must be rescued, for they will provide much of tonight's meal. We will leave a handful of onions and a dish of dried beans. All the rest we take away: the meat, the fresh vegetables, the canned goods, the crackers, the candy.

Now we have stripped the house: the bathroom has been dismantled, the running water shut off, the electric wires taken out. Next we take away the house. The family can move to the tool shed...Communications must go next. No more newspapers, magazines, books--not that they are missed, since we must take away our family's literacy as well. Instead, in our shantytown we will allow one radio...

Now government services must go next. No more postmen, no more firemen. There is a school, but it is three miles away and consists of two classrooms...There are, of course, no hospitals or doctors nearby. The nearest clinic is ten miles away and is tended by a midwife. It can be reached by bicycle, provided the family has a bicycle, which is unlikely.

Finally, money. We will allow our family a cash hoard of five dollars. This will prevent our breadwinner from experiencing the tragedy of an Iranian peasant who went blind because he could not raise the $3.94 which he mistakenly thought he needed to receive admission to a hospital where he could have been cured.

Kinda places things into a bit of a perspective...  What if we all did less with "our" money for ourselves and the excess comforts and more with "our" money for others??  
With love,
Sarah