Santiago, Vina del Mar, y Valparaiso

On Sunday around 2:30 am Andrea and I got back from our trip to Santiago, Vina del Mar, and Valparaiso.  This was a trip that made me completely fall in love with my life!  And with life in general.  So many little moments happened that both surprised me and took my breath away, and I found myself breaking out in smile or laughter at completely random times.  We spent a lot of time in different artisan fairs, wandering the streets, and watching live music.  

We stayed in Santiago for a few days with Judy, a Maryknoll lay missioner.  While there we went to Cafe Brasil, where we listened to two women sing while we drank bottles of wine.  Their voices were rich and sensual and powerful and resonated deeply in my body along with the musky red of the wine.  Cafe Brasil has live music most nights, and used to be a place of resistance during the Pinochet regime.  

the next day Andrea and I went wandering through the markets in Santiago, where we saw street performers singing opera, drank jugo natural, and were followed by trails of men asking what country we were from.  It was so exhilarating to feel like anything possible could happen, and we had the time and space to be present to it all.  

THEN!

We went to see the Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera exhibit at La Moneda!!!  These are probably my two most favorite painters of all time, and it was incredibly moving to be in the presence of their work.  It was nothing short of monumental.  

While passing through the Metro station, I convinced our friend Felipe, who is a violinist, to break out his violin and play with the street performers in the station.  It was so fun to watch them create music together.  I love how music can create community anywhere, at any time.  It again filled me with a sense of how wonderful the world is, and how everything is possible.  

That night we went salsa dancing at a charming, old, dark place with white taper candles on all the tables.  

The next evening we took off for Vina del Mar and Valparaiso, where we stayed with Mimi's friend Janie. Vina and Valpo are hilly coastal towns.  All of the hills are blanketed in house upon colorful house and full of secret passageways and murals.  In Vina we spent a lot of time lounging on the beach, wandering the artisan fair, and watching the majesty of the ocean waves crashing on the shore.  After sunset we saw animals jumping in the waves!  We also went to an old mansion that is now a public park, and explored the music stadium where Juanes will be playing in February!  (BUt I'll be in the States so I'll miss it :( . )

In Valpo we wandered several of the big hills, took a little boat ride and saw seals, and ate a fantastic meal in the garden at a restaurant.  Although the place was out of our price range, we were lured in by the Brazilian waiter and the amazing ambiance.  We sat amidst fuchsias and hibiscus overlooking the ocean bordered by the coastal towns with the mountains in the distance.  Thanks to Andrea speaking Portuguese, we were able to get a $60 bottle of Chilean Syrah for about $20.  Since we had only been eating one meal a day due to our economic situation, we figured we deserved a more fancy meal.

We went back to Santiago for Christmas.  On the 24 we went to mass and had dinner (Calf tongue!!!) with a family, and on the 25 we went back to Judy's for a light meal and wine.  One highlight of our second visit to Santiago was visiting the artisan fair of one of Felipe's friends.  Let me tell you, this place was a hippie paradise!   As soon as we arrived, various instruments were thrust into our hands (I ended up with maracas) and we made a hippie-band procession through the local markets playing "music" and handing out flyers about the fair.  Oh, my life is so random!  I love it!  Another great moment was seeing Arak Pacha, the Andean music band in which Felipe plays violin.  The "bar" that hosted the event wasn't clearly marked and we probably would have missed it if not for the neon strip club across the street.  The music was fantastic, and the band is really dedicated to nature, human rights, politics, and social justice.  They were very involved in singing out against oppression when Pinochet was in power.

Our last full day in Santiago we went to Isla Negra, where the poet Pablo Neruda had one of his homes.  We took a tour of the house and spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach there and watched the sunset.  I highly recommend this beach to anyone who comes to Chile!  I'll post some pictures so you can see why :)

End of the Year and a hot Christmas

The year has come to a close at Casa Ursulina.  Each class celebrated together with a special little meal and secret santa activities, and we had the end-of-the-year party this past Wednesday.  Most of the classes performed little skits reflecting what they had done and learned in class over the past year.  I was in several acts: circle dance, reflection and art, yoga, and the girls' english class.  Lots of costume changes :)  The highlight of my outfits was what I wore for the english skit.  We did a runway-themed sketch and the girls dressed up as different fruits or different styles.  I got to be an emo man, which meant that I had to wear lots of black eyeliner, black nailpolish, black tight pants, and a black and red striped shirt.  Since I'm both poor and creative, I safety-pinned red ribbon to a black shirt to make my stripes.  My look was a big hit with the girls, who informed me that I should be emo all the time - I looked so "bakan" (cool)!.  

Last night we had a big goodbye party for Kristy and Caryn, and the rest of the weekend/beginning of next week will be dedicated to more goodbye parties and gatherings.  They really have made such an impact here, and will be missed by all.

When Kristy and Caryn go to Santiago on Wednesday, Andrea and I will accompany them.  We'll be in Santiago until the 20th, and then head to Vina del Mar and Valparaiso for a few days.  Then it's back to Santiago, where we plan to celebrate Christmas with some volunteers who live there.  If all goes well, we'll spend the following weekend at the beach!  

It's SOOO freaking hot here in the afternoon, which makes it hard to remember that Christmas is on the way.  I put up and decorated the tree yesterday, though, and we've been blasting Christmas music pretty much constantly, so it's starting to sink in a little.

Now get ready to be jealous of me and my fabulous life:

On January 17, Andrea and I will be getting on a cruise ship to Laguna San Rafael to see GLACIERS!  We'll be spending a week on land in the Aysen region exploring national parks and seeing more GLACIERS, and then going to the island of Chiloe to see PENGUINS.  It's going to be a little expensive, but I figure it's worth it to see glaciers while they still exist on this magnificent planet that is being terribly destroyed.

Recently we went on a really fantastic retreat about water, but I'm going to write about that in a different blog since there is just so much to say about it.  

I'll be home in Chicago from Feb. 19-27, and I'm looking forward to seeing all of your smiling and freezing faces.  

Anyways, just wanted to let you know what I'll be up to... don't know what my internet access will be like over the next couple of months.  But I wish you all the best as you play in the snow and brave the malls!