Time for a post...

The time just keeps flying by especially since I’ve been busier lately. Workshops have all started up again at Domodungu so that is keeping me busy. I am participating in crochet, biking and guitar. I Last weekend I finished my crochet project from last semester and it ended up being a sleeveless shirt mostly because I was out of string and the store didn’t have all the colors but also because I was just ready to be done with it! My next project is a poncho. I bought my yarn this week and it was quite the adventure. Back in November I believe I bought some yarn at a feria that I really liked and decided I wanted to use it. When I decided to make a poncho I knew I’d need more than what I had so my hunt started. The problem is the yarn was artesian yarn and thicker than your normal yarn so finding a yarn that matched/complemented in color proved to be very challenging. I went to 6 different shops one day and ended up buying a grey yarn but wasn’t really satisfied with the color combo so the next day I went back to the last yarn shop that I knew of but was closed the day before and ended up finding yarn that matched well. So now I have all my yarn to make a purple poncho and am very excited to actually start crocheting!! (I need a pattern… I plan on asking Evelyn if I can borrow her poncho this weekend and maybe start). Guitar is going good but it’s not easy learning a new instrument! Today we learned a new strumming technique which required a lot more concentration so I could either strum or change notes but not both at the same time, haha. I pretty much have “La Petequita” mastered but I tend to speed up as the song goes on… but that’s nothing new, happened all the time when I played cello too… the whole cello section had a habit of speeding up all the time. I am teaching healthy cooking again and it’s been going well. I’m also teaching a baking workshop in Vilches on Monday afternoons. The women there are enjoying both learning new desserts and having a “social hour.” In both classes we’ve made some really yummy things such as pumpkin bread, chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream frosting, turkey burgers, quiche (loaded with veggies with a wheat crust), broccoli soup and oven roasted sweet potato fries. I continue going to the orphanage but have a more complicated schedule this semester and can only go on Fridays. Last week we decorated the house with red, white and blue ribbons because the Fiestas Patrias are coming up (sept. 18). Fiestas Patrias is Chile’s Independence Day celebration.

At the end of July I went to Vina del Mar and Valparaiso for a weekend. I meet up with a couple friends I met while studying abroad, the family I stayed with during the semester and also with a professor from Saint Ben’s who is from Chile and was visiting her family. I had a good time meeting up with everyone and the weekend flew by!

One of the newer things that is keeping me busy is the fact that I’m going to Brazil at the end of January through mid February. I am going with 5 others from Domodungu to a workshop. Every year they give a workshop with a focus on gender. This year’s specific theme is myths and rituals. We will explore how myths and rituals shape a society, where they come from, consequences, etc. The course is for people from all over South and Central America and the people who went last year had an amazing time and learned a lot. As a result we have been busy fundraising for the upcoming adventure. Another lady and I have been busy making brownies and muffins (banana, pumpkin and zucchini) every Monday and Wednesday. On average we’ve sold 8 dozen per week over the past three weeks. Yesterday and today we were busy all day preparing breakfast, lunch and a snack break for a group that came to use Domodungu for a workshop and they hired us to do all the cooking and serving of meals. Other plans include a raffle, garage sale and a fundraising event (Set for my bday complete with live music, dancing, food and drinks).

The rain has not stopped yet but at least it’s getting warmer out! I’ve been able to play tennis is a tshirt several times and in general during the day it’s pleasant outside but the mornings still are chilly. The 5 day forcast does not include rain so that is good but I was told today that usually it rains on either the 18, 19 or 20 of September for the Fiestas Patrias. If I remember correctly it rained last year on the 19th.

On September 1st Kym and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary in Chile. After playing tennis I went over to Kym’s house (which is only a couple blocks from the tennis courts) and we hung out chatting a bit about the year and later some of her friends came over and we had a good night.

The other day I just realized that half of 2011 has already passed!! When did that happen?? Seriously I can’t believe it’s already July!

Since it’s been a long time since updating I will just highlight some bigger events in the past month (plus some)…

One of the bigger things I did this past month was go to Costa Rica and Panama. This idea came about because one of my good friends Susan decided to do a summer course in Costa Rica so she proposed the idea to me and some other friends that we meet up in Costa Rica and travel a little. At first it was just a crazy idea but in the end it became reality :D It ended up being just three of us who all lived together last year. Susan, me and Laura. We all came from different places and hadn’t seen each other for almost a year. Laura S. his volunteering in Honduras and I’m in Chile and Susan has been going to school in Milwaukee so it was great to reunite! I took a crazy flight plan to Costa Rica and had a layover in Atlanta so Susan met me there and we flew to Costa Rica together. Laura joined us a few hours after we got to Costa Rica (after a long bus trip from Honduras). In Costa Rica we went to San Jose (capital) and Monetverde. We decided that San Jose wasn’t very interesting as we saw pretty much everything you would care to see in less than one day! We went to the central market, a museum, saw a bunch of plazas, a few churches, etc and still had time to waste. Monteverde was a small town about 4 hrs outside of San Jose. We had a good time there and did canopy and a coffee tour. Both of those were a lot of fun. For the canopy you were actually flying through the jungle which was really neat. We learned a ton on the coffee tour. In addition to coffee plants they also had sugar cane, bananas and plantains. We got to see the whole coffee process and taste some at the end. We also got to see how they process the sugar cane and make some candy :D On our last day (after coming back from Panama) Laura left early in the morning and Susan and I went on a tour that took us up to the top of a volcano and on a river boat ride. The volcano was neat and had a real cool blue green pool in one of the craters. On a clear day you can see both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans but unfortunately the clouds rolled in as we were reaching the top of the mountain. On our boat ride we saw lots of animals such as huge crocodiles, a sloth, some monkeys, lizards and birds. We also got to go on a short horseback ride, see some cool frogs and snakes and eat lots of delicious traditional food.

We made the 15 hour bus trek to Panama and spent a few days there. The bus ride itself wasn’t too bad, especially on the way there when they fed us breakfast and lunch. We also took the overnight bus so we got to sleep a lot. We stayed in Panama City were there was a lot more to do than in San Jose. We spent the days touring different neighborhoods and going to the Panama Canal. We saw lots of stuff such as the presidential palace, ruins of the old city center, hiked through the Metropolitan park (didn’t see as many animals as they claimed to have!), went to a big international artisan fair, the Bridge of the Americas and lots of other buildings and plazas. The Panama Canal was neat and we got to see a cruise ship and an oil tanker go through so that was fun. It makes a lot more sense when you actually see the canal in action rather than just reading about it. We also road on the Panama Canal Railway which goes along the canal and has a glass domed ceiling so you get a really great view. A funny anecdote about Panama is that it is one hour ahead of Costa Rica. We didn’t know this fun fact until about 6 hours before we were leaving Panama!! Good thing we eventually figured it out or we may have missed our bus back to Costa Rica!!

By the time our trip ended we had ridden just about every form of transportation possible: plane, train, buses (public and coach), taxis and a boat. Not only did we ride all forms of transportation but in many different ways. For example: on the bus back from Monetverde we got standing room only tickets and ended up camping out in the wheelchair ramp area. It was actually pretty comfy and we could stretch out our legs. Also, on another bus ride there weren’t any seats left so they just pulled out these stools and we sat in the middle aisle on our stools (which were really 5 gallon pails covered with fabric and a cushion).

Recently Sarah and I celebrated the Fourth of July. We made all sorts of good food (hamburgers, chicken wings, baked beans, potato salad, broccoli salad, veggies with dip, cheesecake and a red, white and blue cake). We invited some friends over and had a royal feast. Luckily it was a sunny day and we actually took off our jackets and enjoyed the meal outside. It was not the same as celebrating at home but it was a good day.

I continue to play tennis and we had another match a couple weeks ago. This time we played at the Montessori School where my first Chile coach is now working. It was different because they have cement courts there and now I’m used to playing on clay courts. Also it was right after I got back from my travel adventures… I didn’t win my games but the coach said he liked how I played so it could have been worse. After that match it rained and the courts were a mess for a good week and a half (almost two weeks) so we just started playing again on Thursday. I was very happy to start playing again! I played a set today against the coach and almost beat him!! (at one point I was 2 points from winning but then he started pulling out all these tricky shots with different spin and such so he ended up winning). Oh well, it was a good match and a couple months ago I would not have been close to beating him!

We just finished up a semester of workshops at Domodungu. Everyone left my cooking class very content. Last week we had the end of the semester celebration and many of the classes participated by singing, showing their paintings, modeling crochet garments, a yoga demonstration, several dance performances, taste testing food, etc. It was a good celebration and a lot of people showed up! We were pleased by the number of people who came because it was a very chilly afternoon and that tends to make people stay at home.

Time Flies

Wow, time sure flies when you are busy (and having fun)!! I can’t believe that it’s already the end of MAY!!! The days and weeks keep flying by.

Things at Domodungu keep going well. The ladies in my healthy cooking workshop have all been pleased with what they are learning to cook and the other supplemental (nutrition related) info I provide during the workshops. We’ve had a few new participants in the workshop so that’s nice but the kitchen is getting more and more crowded as the number of participants increases! A few of the things we have made in the last month and a half include pizza with whole wheat crust, broccoli salad (made with yogurt of course, not mayo!), chop shuey with quinoa (instead of rice) and spinach crepes filled with a tuna and corn salad.

Crochet has gotten easier and I’m making progress on my sweater (see picture below, i'm twice as far as the picture shows). At the rate I’m going I’ll be lucky to finish in the next couple months… especially because I’m playing with the idea of making a short dress instead of a sweater… We shall see how motivated I am once I finish the sweater part and if I’m still motivated it may turn into a dress.

A couple weekends ago Sarah and I had a baking marathon. We met at her house around noon and baked all day long. In the evening we went over to a friend’s house where they had family gathered and shared our goodies as well as the delicious empanadas they had made. All in all Sarah and I made pumpkin bars, apple pie, caramel rolls, choc chip scones, chocolate revel bars, Oreo peanut butter cheesecake and a pesto pizza. It was lots of fun spending the whole day baking and later sharing all the goodness with friends :D (See pictures below)

About a month ago a big hydroelectric plant was approved for the south of Chile. Not only will they build a huge plant in Aysen which will flood a lot of land but they will put smaller stations in many other parts of the country. In order to transport the electricity generated by these hydroelectric plants there will be high tension towers running from Aysen to Santiago. The majority of the country appears to be against this new plan and there have been lots of protests all throughout Chile. In Santiago the protests can get pretty violent but the ones here in Talca have all been peaceful. Last weekend I went to a couple protests with Evelyn and Sarah. Pretty much we just marched through town screaming different chants. There is a period of time for the vote to be appealed but I’m not sure exactly when the final decision will be made. Additionally most of the energy generated will not go to the general population but to foreign owned mining companies.

In addition to working at Domodungu and spending time at the orphanage I’ve been playing a lot of tennis. Generally I go three times a week to play. Sometimes there are other kids there when I play but often I play alone (with the coach of course). I’ve been having a lot of fun and can tell I’m improving :D On Friday I went to a tennis “match” between different clubs. There were kids of all ages from kindergarten through high school playing and it was fun to watch everyone play. Unfortunately I lost my set 4-6. The worst part is that I was up 3-1 and then ended up losing :( I know I could have won but something went wrong during the second half of the set… oh well, at least I could tell I was playing much better than when I played in a tournament at the end of December.

Two weekends ago I went up to Vilches for Saturday and Sunday. I stayed at a friend’s cabin and had a great time. We collected chestnuts and apples, made chicha (well, I just watched), sat around the bonfire, ate lots of good food and endured a 3 hr power outage. Chicha an alcoholic beverage made by smashing up grapes, boiled and then fermented. During the weekend we ate rabbit, homemade bread (tortilla), empanadas and of course drank lots of wine. It was lots of fun to spend time with friends and their relatives and enjoy the outdoors.(see pictures below)

Lately it has been really, really foggy!! One night recently when we left Domodungu you could hardly see half a block! All week it has been foggy to varying degrees both in the morning and at night. It also depends on what sector of town you are in because last night we went over to Milton’s house for dinner and it was incredibly foggy where he lives but at our house it was just a little foggy.

In addition to making my crochet sweater I’ve started knitting teddy bears for the kiddos at the orphanage. My goal is to have then finished for Christmas. Since I’ve been working a lot on my crochet project I haven’t gotten too far on my 15 or so bears but they will be made… eventually.

Welcome to... FALL

In the past couple weeks the temperature has definitely dropped and it’s clear that it’s no longer summer :( We’ve have rain on several occasions and after each rain storm the temperature drops significantly. Lately it’s been nice during the afternoon but the mornings and nighttime get pretty cold. All this week I’ve seen people raking leaves… I can’t stop thinking that it’s October because there are leaves on the ground but eventually I remember that its April… somehow this just doesn’t seem right! I’m not quite used to the months and seasons not lining up according to what I believe is “correct.” Also you can tell that the seasons are changing because it’s getting dark out earlier and earlier every day. This past week when I was playing tennis they turned the lights on at 7:00 pm because it was getting quite dark out, the week before it wasn’t necessary to turn the lights on while we were playing… talk about fast changes.

In mid March I went to the coast with Evelyn and her friend Ceci and Ceci’s daughter Myra. The goal of this trip was to visit a family that Evelyn had become close with while living and working on the coast a few years ago. We had a good day, walked along the beach a little and stood where the Japan tsunami reached, haha. There was a lot of worry about the tsunami waves reaching Chile and many people were evacuated along the coast but fortunately nothing much happened. There were some big waves but I don’t think there was much damage. For lunch we had the hugest grilled fish I’ve ever seen and it was absolutely delicious! Unfortunately the day was cut short by our need to work the next day and the limited transportation that passes through the town and we had to leave before dinner time.

Throughout the month there have been many changes in girls in my house at the orphanage. A couple girls “left”… I’m not 100% sure what this means in all the cases but I know that some of them went to live with families that had been visiting them. I don’t know if these families are their biological families or not but at any rate it’s great for them but I will miss them. Since some girls left we also got new girls, they are doing good so far at adjusting to life at the orphanage.

A couple weekends ago we had a workshop on Popular Education with Domodungu. Popular Education is about learning by doing and having a more horizontal relationship between the facilitator and the students rather than learning solely based on memorizing facts and the teacher being the only one with knowledge and power. We are encouraged to use Popular Education in our workshops at Domodungu. We were up in Vilches for the workshop and on the last day a bunch of us went to pick blackberries. Evelyn and I filled a 3 Liter pop bottle with berries and her mom made blackberry jam that night :D, homemade jam really is the best!

At the end of March Sarah, Luz Maria, another lady and I went up to Vilches to do some hiking. Sarah wants to organize a day hiking trip to offer at Domodungu. We took the first bus up to Vilches at 8am and came back on the 5pm bus. The hike was nice but not too difficult or too long. It took us 2.5 hrs to go there and 1.5 hrs on the way back. There was a lot more uphill on the way there and we made more stops. Our final destination on the hike was a big marsh/swamp area. It’s not the most amazing destination but for a hiking trip with inexperienced hikers it will be good because it is a pretty area and most of the hike is through the forest. Probably the funniest part of the hike was the dog that acted as our “guide.” We saw him at the entrance to the park and he walked in front of us/led us the entire way. When we stopped for some water or a snack he would sit a little ways ahead of us on the trail and wait patiently until we were ready to go again :) It was really cute!

On March 28th we had an opening ceremony where we talked about all the workshops that will be offered during the semester, gave a tour of Domodungu and explained other important information about workshops and Domodungu in general. All in all it was a success and many people signed up immediately for workshops. This semester I am giving a “Healthy Cooking” workshop. It has been successful so far and the ladies have really enjoyed what we have been making. The first week we made banana bread and pumpkin bread. In the banana bread we substituted some of the flour for oatmeal and talked about why these breads would be better than making a regular pound cake which is the most common type of “cake” here (because these are sweet breads they call them cake here…). I also found a great handout about nutrition labels so we discussed that as well. Last week we made black bean burgers with oven fries and everyone was very impressed by the results :D I am also taking a few workshops at Domodungu. In addition to helping out with the library and the greenhouse I am taking crochet and yoga. Crochet has proved to be difficult but I’m slowly learning.

The first weekend in April there was a tennis tournament and the Talca Country Club where I played tennis in December. Since I hadn’t played since the very end of December I didn’t play in the tournament but I helped serve food at the snack stand my host dad runs. I had a good time and it reminded me of working at the Mighty Mites concession stand :D. I have started playing tennis again on Wednesday and Friday nights. I have a new coach now because the other one didn’t return after summer vacation.

Yesterday I went to a baptism for Evelyn’s friend’s daughter. The baptism was not part of a normal church service but its own separate ceremony. Later in the day we went to the baptism party which reminded me more of a wedding reception than a baptism party! There was lots of food, an open bar and dancing. A good time was had by all!

Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of the past month…

Photos for the post