Not too much energy to write after a major individual tutoring session... For practice reading, my tutor brought in some information about the state of the HIV epidemic and the prevention/treatment efforts in various countries throughout Latin America. It was cool, but a little tiring.
My whole body aches a bit from the boarding on Saturday. Achy in a good way. Now I can say I've boarded in the Andes which is very cool. I even almost managed to pull off a few turns without falling over!
Yesterday I went to Pablo Neruda's third house, the one here in Santiago. That man was eccentric and fabulous. The house was great. I'd love to live in a house designed to feel like a ship. I bought a book of his "essential" poems that's in both English and Spanish and am excited to read them. I'll write more about him in the future.
I'm loving the fact that this is so much more than just a language course. I'm learning quite a bit about Chile through my classes and am loving this country even more as a result!
If you want to see more photos, just click on the pic.
8.22.2005
8.20.2005
Today we skiied & boarded. Very fun -- although I managed to break my binding so I spent the second half of the day entirely on my heelside and now my calves are insanely tight. We're really spoiled in California with the quality of our mountains for skiing. I knew this, but to have a very good snowboarder from Boston be so completely amazed with this resort was a good reminder; he'd never seen a mountain before. Any. Ever. Our lives have been different...
I came home to much conversation con mi familia aca, some homework and red wine with dinner. I fully intended to upload some photos for you all, but it's not going to happen. Estoy tuto (it's a Chileno term for "passing out" used for over tired children). Mañana voy a poner las fotografias aqui.
I came home to much conversation con mi familia aca, some homework and red wine with dinner. I fully intended to upload some photos for you all, but it's not going to happen. Estoy tuto (it's a Chileno term for "passing out" used for over tired children). Mañana voy a poner las fotografias aqui.
8.19.2005
Today I learned the future tense, but not the past. This is a problem for a blog, where nearly everything is in the past... but this is my lesson for today. The past is inaccessible so I have to look to the future.
Este noche, mis companeros y yo vamos a los bars, y en la manana vamos a esquiar. Whoo hoo!
Este noche, mis companeros y yo vamos a los bars, y en la manana vamos a esquiar. Whoo hoo!
8.18.2005
I have to second one of Bert's posts: If you're feeling unpopular or unfeminine (por ejemplo, if your boyfriend dumps you saying that you're just a buddy), then you should go salsa dancing where there are more guys than gals. Even more, you should get your butt on a plane and go dancing in Latin America. Last night bailo mucho y felt muy bonita! But boy did it work me. Today my legs are sore... It's been a long time since I've danced... That will change. I think I'm going to reclaim my dancing self. I liked her.
The warmth of the people here is astonishing. I feel as if I've been adopted by my family here and every Chileno I've met is friendly. I met two boys from France who've been here for over a month and they say that's how Chilenos are; I'm not having an unusual experience.
My classes are going well and my family is complimenting me with how well I'm doing. I have to stop speaking English (and writing it), but 1) most of you can't read Spanish, and 2) I'm frustrated with only knowing the present tense. I'm starting to communicate better, but I know that it's still such an odd way of speaking. Ah well. Only 3 days so far. Let's see what happens.
Hoy, it's clear & warming up. It's probably temporary, but it's nice since I don't have too much in the way of warm clothing here. I was trying to look nice, but my only non-sandal shoes are hiking boots or my nice boots which are not really comfy enough for all day (although they were ok for salsa!) It was also beautiful walking to school today. I could see the snow-topped mountains that ring this city. Hoy dia es muy lista.
The warmth of the people here is astonishing. I feel as if I've been adopted by my family here and every Chileno I've met is friendly. I met two boys from France who've been here for over a month and they say that's how Chilenos are; I'm not having an unusual experience.
My classes are going well and my family is complimenting me with how well I'm doing. I have to stop speaking English (and writing it), but 1) most of you can't read Spanish, and 2) I'm frustrated with only knowing the present tense. I'm starting to communicate better, but I know that it's still such an odd way of speaking. Ah well. Only 3 days so far. Let's see what happens.
Hoy, it's clear & warming up. It's probably temporary, but it's nice since I don't have too much in the way of warm clothing here. I was trying to look nice, but my only non-sandal shoes are hiking boots or my nice boots which are not really comfy enough for all day (although they were ok for salsa!) It was also beautiful walking to school today. I could see the snow-topped mountains that ring this city. Hoy dia es muy lista.
8.17.2005
Mi clase in Espanol es muy bueno. Aprendo mucho cada dia. Pero, uh... I´m stuck in the present tense y no tengo multos palabras. I know it´s only day 2, but I´m impatient.
In general, this is a great thing for me to do right now. Something positive for myself and also very absorbing. Only bummer is when we were practicing out loud today and el profesor asked me two questions in a row: "In what city is your house?" and "How many boyfriends do you have?"
I considered making up a story before I came here and not talk about reality with anyone, but that seemed like so much work. I´m weak. I've decided instead to only reveal a little and appear more like a slacker than anything. "no, I have no job, no house, no boyfriend, never been married, no kids. No real plans. Don´t know what I´m doing next." Leave it at that. Maybe someone will think I´m some rich spoiled kid...
Tonight: Baile! I´m excited for that. Dancing is always a release for me and I haven´t danced in too too long.
In general, this is a great thing for me to do right now. Something positive for myself and also very absorbing. Only bummer is when we were practicing out loud today and el profesor asked me two questions in a row: "In what city is your house?" and "How many boyfriends do you have?"
I considered making up a story before I came here and not talk about reality with anyone, but that seemed like so much work. I´m weak. I've decided instead to only reveal a little and appear more like a slacker than anything. "no, I have no job, no house, no boyfriend, never been married, no kids. No real plans. Don´t know what I´m doing next." Leave it at that. Maybe someone will think I´m some rich spoiled kid...
Tonight: Baile! I´m excited for that. Dancing is always a release for me and I haven´t danced in too too long.
8.15.2005
Now I´m in Chile and I´m loving it. I´m staying with a family here and only one speaks English well so I´m having to learn quickly -- which is what I¨m here for. They´re so warm and loving. It´s fantastic. Mom and Grandma just finished teaching me how to cook a Chilean specialty, Papas Rellenos. I tried to make one myself and it was tough. But all fun since I was speaking only in Spanish with them.
The city of Santiago is much larger than I thought: 5.6 million people. Yesterday I hiked to the top of San Cristobal and had great views of the city all the way up. It´s ringed by mountains, many of which still have snow on them. Good skiing is only 1 hour away from the heart of the city and ít´s not too pricey by U.S. standards. Everyone I meet here is so friendly! It already feels like a great place for me to be, and I´ve only been here for a day!
The city of Santiago is much larger than I thought: 5.6 million people. Yesterday I hiked to the top of San Cristobal and had great views of the city all the way up. It´s ringed by mountains, many of which still have snow on them. Good skiing is only 1 hour away from the heart of the city and ít´s not too pricey by U.S. standards. Everyone I meet here is so friendly! It already feels like a great place for me to be, and I´ve only been here for a day!
8.13.2005
6.09.2005
6.03.2005
A few days ago, a reporter in the New York Times who's been covering the crisis in Darfur received a letter from a man in Oregon. In the letter, he asked why America should care about Darfur, particularly when there are so many things going on in the U.S. that are not getting enough attention.
The reporter responded by personalizing the issue, creating a story about one woman in the crisis and then saying that she's only one of many.
I expect that this is not enough to sway the man in Oregon.
I had a very complex reaction to the letter. I agree that there are many issues in the U.S. which need attention. Desperate attention. Both mental and monetary attention. I also feel strongly that we should care about what's happening in the rest of the world, and that there is something to be said for using our internationally strong position (both politically and monetarily--but not militarily so much) to help in times of crisis... But I don't think this would be enough for the Oregonian either.
So... The best way to respond is perhaps from a position of American self-interest, since that seems to be the driving force behind so many actions these days. Or, actually, I'd like to re-introduce the idea of reciprocity into this debate. As explained by philosopher Michael Taylor, "Each individual act in a system of reciprocity is usually characterized by a combination of what one might call short-term altruism and long-term self-interest: I help you out in the (possibly vague, uncertain, and uncalculating) expectation that you will help me out in the future. Reciprocity is made up of a series of acts each of which is short-run altruistic (benefiting others at a cost to the altruist), but which together typically make each participant better off."
It seems that at one point much of American society operated largely on a system of reciprocity. Tocqueville noted it as a cornerstone of American democracy. A cornerstone I believe we have removed and dropped into some piece of landfill somewhere.
So why should we help out on anything happening in Africa? If we took our role as global stewards seriously (not a God-given role, just a practical end-result of having more of lots of things than just about anyone), then I think we should turn our attention to eliminating disparities around the world. All types of disparities: economic, health and political. Were we to approach the world from this standpoint, then resentments of our "freedoms" and our economic position would necessarily be chipped away. These resentments are the foundation of so much anti-American feeling globally that I think it's ridiculous to ignore them. I was always taught that to deal with the symptom and not the disease was short-sighted.
I would tell the man in Oregon that taking care of Africa helps to reduce the global burden of poverty, and that that is good for everyone in the world. Africa -- a continent currently struggling under the weight of painfully high rates of HIV, TB and malaria, a continent daily under the siege of civil wars and genocide -- Africa is still a continent which provides the rest of the world with many natural resources, with diamonds, with oil, with awe-inspiring athletes, with brilliant politicians and musicians... If we help Africa elevate itself, then down the line the continent could become a source of so much more. It was once the "cradle of civilization." Why should we think it can not rise up again?
If we truly took reciprocity to heart, this behavior would not just extend internationally, but would also be turned domestically. Were we to universally elevate the education and health levels throughout the country, then I am confident that less money would be spent on jails and emergency rooms. That's taxpayer money that could be redistributed for the good of society as a whole.
So I guess that really my answer to the man in Oregon is not that we should care about Africa, but that we should not be drawing lines. Today's society is not insular, it's global. And a global society built on reciprocity is one in which I would like to live.
The reporter responded by personalizing the issue, creating a story about one woman in the crisis and then saying that she's only one of many.
I expect that this is not enough to sway the man in Oregon.
I had a very complex reaction to the letter. I agree that there are many issues in the U.S. which need attention. Desperate attention. Both mental and monetary attention. I also feel strongly that we should care about what's happening in the rest of the world, and that there is something to be said for using our internationally strong position (both politically and monetarily--but not militarily so much) to help in times of crisis... But I don't think this would be enough for the Oregonian either.
So... The best way to respond is perhaps from a position of American self-interest, since that seems to be the driving force behind so many actions these days. Or, actually, I'd like to re-introduce the idea of reciprocity into this debate. As explained by philosopher Michael Taylor, "Each individual act in a system of reciprocity is usually characterized by a combination of what one might call short-term altruism and long-term self-interest: I help you out in the (possibly vague, uncertain, and uncalculating) expectation that you will help me out in the future. Reciprocity is made up of a series of acts each of which is short-run altruistic (benefiting others at a cost to the altruist), but which together typically make each participant better off."
It seems that at one point much of American society operated largely on a system of reciprocity. Tocqueville noted it as a cornerstone of American democracy. A cornerstone I believe we have removed and dropped into some piece of landfill somewhere.
So why should we help out on anything happening in Africa? If we took our role as global stewards seriously (not a God-given role, just a practical end-result of having more of lots of things than just about anyone), then I think we should turn our attention to eliminating disparities around the world. All types of disparities: economic, health and political. Were we to approach the world from this standpoint, then resentments of our "freedoms" and our economic position would necessarily be chipped away. These resentments are the foundation of so much anti-American feeling globally that I think it's ridiculous to ignore them. I was always taught that to deal with the symptom and not the disease was short-sighted.
I would tell the man in Oregon that taking care of Africa helps to reduce the global burden of poverty, and that that is good for everyone in the world. Africa -- a continent currently struggling under the weight of painfully high rates of HIV, TB and malaria, a continent daily under the siege of civil wars and genocide -- Africa is still a continent which provides the rest of the world with many natural resources, with diamonds, with oil, with awe-inspiring athletes, with brilliant politicians and musicians... If we help Africa elevate itself, then down the line the continent could become a source of so much more. It was once the "cradle of civilization." Why should we think it can not rise up again?
If we truly took reciprocity to heart, this behavior would not just extend internationally, but would also be turned domestically. Were we to universally elevate the education and health levels throughout the country, then I am confident that less money would be spent on jails and emergency rooms. That's taxpayer money that could be redistributed for the good of society as a whole.
So I guess that really my answer to the man in Oregon is not that we should care about Africa, but that we should not be drawing lines. Today's society is not insular, it's global. And a global society built on reciprocity is one in which I would like to live.
5.24.2005
I'm starting to think that the phrase "I'm living vicariously through you" is one of the most sad and painful things to hear. It smacks of regret, inaction, unrealized hopes, loss of hope. I've heard it twice recently, each time from a woman who has much to look forward to. Once it was directed towards me from a woman who is about to get married and who is about to go back to school, and once directed towards a friend of mine by a woman who is recently married and currently pregnant.
I don't know why it's bothering me so much. It's not a compliment to me. It's said as a joke, and a way of saying that my friend and I are each doing interesting and exciting things (which we are), but somehow I just want to stop them from even joking like that. That kind of comparison and regret cannot make people happy. And that bothers me.
I don't know why it's bothering me so much. It's not a compliment to me. It's said as a joke, and a way of saying that my friend and I are each doing interesting and exciting things (which we are), but somehow I just want to stop them from even joking like that. That kind of comparison and regret cannot make people happy. And that bothers me.
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