19 Days Left

A year ago I spent 3 months studying at Oxford in the UK, and I loved it. I had some wonderful and life-changing chances to visit Venice, Paris, and Prague. I learned a ton about what life is like in England, and I didn't want to go home to the US because Oxford actually started to feel like home. I got used to my life there, but I had to return to the US to finish college.

Life in the States has been okay, but I've always longed for something more exciting, different, challenging, and enlightening. I like the jobs I've had here working with kids, so I'm thrilled that I will be teaching kids in Chile (and WELL-BEHAVED, normal ones who won't throw chairs or shampoo bottles at you, have hissy fits, or get restrained...).

For a while, I'd seriously considered applying to the Peace Corps or other long-term programs, but those were a huge commitment, and I wasn't ready to just leave my boyfriend for two and a half years because things probably wouldn't work out. I don't like the idea of long-distance relationships, but travelling / living abroad has always been important to me.

In my mind, tossed around the ideas of doing the Peace Corps or similar year-long programs in Guatemala or Mexico, and started researching different organizations or programs abroad. One of them, called Cultural Embrace, offered lots of affordable and shorter-term ideas. I requested more information and thought of it as a "maybe I would like to do this later, but now I have a full-time job" sort of idea.

Then one day out of the blue, I got an email from CE saying that they still had positions open for a 4-month program in Chile, and that this was the last call for interested applicants. I admit, it was a really impulsive decision to make, but something about it felt completely right. Within the next 2 days I gathered up my letters of recommendation, wrote a personal statement, and worked on a letter completely in Spanish, and I mailed it in. I didn't think about it a lot or debate whether I should do this or not. For some reason, Chile had always appealed to me, and 4 months was a long enough time to learn about Chile, visit lots of places, and immerse myself in the culture. However, it was also a short enough period of time that I wasn't worried about my relationship falling apart.

...So back to the present. My flight out of O'Hare leaves in 19 days. I've been doing LOTS of reading, studying, and information-seeking. I am part of the way through "Crónica de una muerte anunciada" by Gabriel García Márquez, in attempt to improve my Spanish, which is a tad bit rusty after 7 years of classes, 3 years of waitressing in a Mexican restaurant where I was the only gringa, and 2 1/2 years since I last took a Spanish class or waitressed. Most of it seems like it's coming back (or that I still remembered), and I am picking up all sorts of wonderful, quirky Chilean phrases. I got this book called "Chilenismos" which explains tons of words and phrases I'll probably hear while there.

Overall, I am confident that my Spanish is good enough for me to be decently comfortable while there, but part of me is kicking myself for stopping taking Spanish classes 2 1/2 years ago. I loved it when I was learning it, and it felt like I was good at it and a quick learner. I had one really annoying Spanish teacher in college, and after that I decided not to take more classes. I really wish I would have though. I cringe to think how fluent I COULD be now if I hadn't quit because of one lousy teacher. Then again, I'm still young and have lots of time to pick it back up.

Anyway, everything is in order for me to leave. I just need to figure out the whole cell phone situation because I don't want to pay the expensive rates per minute AT&T will make me pay. I think I'll just communicate via email. I also need to narrow down my list of things to bring with. I usually pack pretty light, but I want to make sure to leave room in my suitcase for anything I might buy in South America.

I have this thing where every city I visit, I buy a painting. It's much more awesome than tacky, touristy souvenirs. If possible, I like to meet and talk to the painter who made it. Then our apartment is filled with beautiful and one-of-a-kind artwork. I am looking forward to selecting paintings that capture some of my experiences in Chile (and probably Peru and Bolivia).

I wonder what my host family will be like. I wonder if they'll have kids, if they'll be accepting of me being a vegetarian, if they'll have a dog or cat, if they'll live in the city or the country, what their house will look like, whether their home will have air conditioning, computers, or TV's. Honestly, I am completely fine with it if they have none of those things. I am thrilled I will not have to deal with all the problems of having a car, driving, traffic, etc. I hope my host family will be nice, and that they'll be understanding of my broken Spanish.

I am looking forward to a more simple lifestyle, not like in the US where people live outside of their means and rely too much on material things for their conceived sense of happiness. I cannot wait to see the Andes, the Pacific, going on long, exhilirating runs in the Atacama, and just soak in the solitude of the desert. Hot springs, geysers, swimming, horseback riding, stargazing, cacti, and the idea of heat and no rain sound amazing. If I go to Bolivia, I am itching to try high-altitude running to see what that's like. Maybe I'll be coordinated enough to try sandboarding, but I think I'll stick with running.

As of now, I'm working my way through taking a course to get certified in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). So far it's not too hard but very time consuming. I really like it though, and it is helping out with all sorts of neat ideas to use with my future class. I really feel like this could be a career thing for me, not just a 4-month teaching job in Chile. Maybe this is part of the answer I've been looking for, and it will open many more doors for me.

At any rate, I need to get back to creating lesson plans for my TEFL homework. I'll be sure to keep writing.

Sarita Esperanza:)

written by  Sara Florecita on July 3, 2010 from Rock Island, United States
from the travel blog: año de dos inviernos (Chile 2010)
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