Day 34 - !Chow Chile!

My father told me on Day 15 that he thought my last post should be all in Spanish. So here it is:

No hay palabras para explicar lo feliz me ha hecho este viaje.!Me gustaba mucho mi tiempo in Santiago con las hermanas y con los profesoras y las alumnas de St. John Villa Academy! Fue un experiencia muy especial para mi. Gracias a Dios por este maravilloso regalo. Espero volver algún día de nuevo.

Day 33 - triste adiós (sad goodbyes)

I am exhausted.

I woke up at 8:30 to get ready for my big day. First I had to get the cakes ready for the professors, then I had make a sign to put near it. Sr. Consuelo helped me with the wording "Gracias por hacerme sentir muy acogido en St. John Villa Academy" (Thank you for making me feel welcome...).

I dropped the cakes off at the Salon de Profesores (Teachers' Room) and then went to stop by the offices of Fernando (the director) and Alba (the principal) with my cards and empanadas. When I returned to the Teachers' Room at 10am (coffee break) I was welcomed with thanks and hugs and well wishes... They really appreciated the gesture and I was glad to see that I had made enough for everyone.

Solange accompanied me for another trip to Jumbo for the rest of my photos. We had to be back by 1:00 for lunch with the sisters, and I still had to finish all my cards. We got back to the house at 12:00.

At 12:30, Sr. Justine asked me to come to the school with her, and I was back in Alba's office with Fernando, Sr. Justine and a few staff members. They thanked me for the cards, and asked me to have coffee with them. They encouraged me to come back to Chile again and next time stay for 3 months so I could become more fluent. they gave me a card and small gift...and thats when the tears started.

Sr. Justine and I rushed back to the house at 1:00 and everyone was outside waiting for us to get in the van and go to the restaurant. Somebody said something about it being my last day, and I started tearing up again. Sr. Marie Isabella gave me some tissues.

The restaurant was a really special place. It had a rotating floor so you got to see the whole view of the city. Unfortunately, there was a lot of smog, and the view was obscured, but it really didn't matter. Everyone from our house was there (except for Sr. Luz Irene-unfortunately Sr. Assunta's brother passed away in Argentina)., including Senora Elsa and Sr. Consuelo who was visiting from Ovalle.




















Everything was going fine...and then they gave me gifts...and singing a song about Chile...




















I was having a hard time with all this. I think it is partly hormonal, combined with lack of sleep and just time moving too quickly. Plus, I am sad to leave all my new friends and family.

When we got home I ran back to my room to finish working on my cards and tried to pull myself back together. Sr. Justine knocked on my door and told me it was time to go to mass in the chapel.

I should have known. Sr. Justine had her guitar and she started the mass with a long introduction to a prayer which focused on my travels. Sr. Marie Isabella handed me another pack of tissues. After the mass, the priest asked me why I had to leave, with all my tears he seriously must of thought I was being forced against my will!!!

Anyway, after the mass, I finished my cards and washed my face. I set them out with my baked goods for the sister in the dining room.






Then Sr. Teresa and Sr. Marie Isabella took me to Macul to say goodbye to my friends there. Thankfully, it was tear free and was a very nice visit with Sr. Romilda, Sr. Alfonso Maria, Sr. Carmen and Sr. Bernadita. I gave them their cards, and said goodbye.

Tomorrow my plane leaves at 11:am. Sr. Bernadita will be here at 8am to pick me up. I don't know who will be joining me, but someone left me 3 packs of tissues.

Day 32 - Cooking and Crafting

Today I woke up LATE. It was 11 am.

I had a VERY QUIET lunch with the sisters (no talking...today was a day of reflection). This week was Sister Zoila's turn to cook. She made a dish with beef, it was delicious but I didn't feel comfortable taking a picture on this day of reflection. Worst of all, I couldn't tell Sr. Zoila how much I enjoyed her cooking.

After lunch, I headed to Jumbo for my pictures and then got to baking. I made guava empanadas for the sisters, and the directors of the school and 4 cakes for the teachers, which I planned to leave in the teacher's room for their coffee break at 10:00 am as a thank you for making me feel so welcome. I had aspirations of doing a bunch of bundt cakes, but after the first one stuck to the bottom of the pan, I decided to go with the boring sheet cakes in the disposable pans. I was baking for about 4 hours.

I finished right about the end of the Sister's day of reflection, 6pm. I joined them for a quick bite to eat (with talking). They were all excited about my baking. Sr. John Marie told me that tomorrow, the sisters would be taking me out to eat in Santiago in a resturant that overlooks the city. Senora Elsa would be joining us too.

After that, I headed to my room to start on my cards for everyone. My project was very ambitious, writing everyone a little note (most in Spanish) and including a few photos of some of my special moments with them. I was up most of the night working on it...and at about 4am, realized that at least 10 of the pictures I had planned on using were never printed. I decided to move foward with the things I could do, and somehow make it work.

Day 31 - Los Angeles - Santiago - Winding down.

We left Los Angeles at 8:30 am. I didn't sleep too well last night. I think I got too much sleep on the bus from Valdivia to Los Angeles.

Nothing too exciting to report about the ride from Los Angeles to Santiago except that Sr. Justine is STILL laughing about my camera. This is my last photo in the "Sleeping Sister" series.















We arrived in Santiago around 3pm. I was supposed to go to Vina del Mar with Francisca, but she was busy and it turned out for the best. I was pretty tired. Plus, I had grand plans of baking cakes for the teachers at the school and making personalized photo cards for all the sisters.

Solange and I went to Jumbo around 6:00pm, to buy ingredients for my cake and get some photos developed. I was planning on making an applesauce cake, but couldn't find the ingredients I needed (applesauce for one) and settled on box cakes. I was running out of steam. After, I treated Solange to Dunkin Donuts while we waited for the photos to get developed.

The guy who works at Dunkin Donuts is so sweet. He is so nice to me every time I go there. After 5 days speaking English with Sr. Justin, I was having trouble ordering a hot chocolate and 2 donuts and a sandwich. He was so patient and then took time to explain to me that I would get a better deal if I got a value meal and just added another donut (so I did).

After the coffee I went back to the photo place to get my pictures, but they weren't ready. Solange and I had to go to mass in the chapel at 8:00. I told the people I would be back the next day. We jumped in a cab and raced home.

We went to mass, and then I was really ready for bed. Sr. John Marie said tomorrow was a day of reflection, so it would be very quiet. Apparently the sisters will not be able to talk all day.

I figure it will be perfect for my cooking/crafting plans.

Day 29 - !Por Favor!

For the past 3 days, I have been having nightmares of my pending travel home to the US, because I had a nasty (new) cold. I know it was just a cold because there was no fever, but what was getting me nervous was that there is no relief from the weather here in Los Angeles and Sr. Justin and I have a pretty busy schedule.


Everywhere we've gone...schools, office buildings, restaurants, is just wet and cold. I haven't washed my hair in 3 days...I can't bring myself to do it. It takes everything I have to get into the shower in the morning. I can't deal with a wet head.

The good news of the day is that my cold symptoms are pretty much gone. The cough is really mild and the nose is clear...Yahoo! Maybe it was all the mountain air yesterday or the oranges the sisters gave us for our trip. I have no idea.

Today was another yucky rainy day in Los Angeles. Sr. Justine had one school to visit this morning. It was a small school in Los Angeles. Father Ramon picked us up at 9:30AM to take us to the bus station to buy our tickets to Valdivia and then drop us off at today's local school. (Father Ramon is a busy guy. In addition to his work in the 10 schools he is responsible for, he also runs a radio program.)

I had suggested to Sr. Justine that we leave tonight and stay in a hotel (flashbacks again to my camping trip) so that we could have the whole day to enjoy the city. It is a 6 hour bus ride. I didn't want to do 12 hours of round trip travel in one day. I offered to pay for the expense of the hotel to guarantee that this would happen. Father Ramon told Sr. Justine that I would probably swing for a 5 star hotel, which I think is code for "make sure you go to a nice place, this girl really needs to wash her hair." Sr. Justine agreed. We bought our tickets to leave Los Angeles at 8:15pm.

This school visit was like all the others, Sr. Justine warmed the girls up with a song. This particular group really liked to sing and convinced Sr. Justine to do 2 songs...here is the video.



After the school, Sr. Justine and I had lunch and then she met with a few priests to talk about discussing vocations to students at the University level. Then we to a supermarket to buy some gifts for the Sisters of Charity, who have been taking such great care of us the last few days, and a little thank you for Father Ramon.

I don't know if I mentioned this previously in my blog, but the supermarkets will wrap gifts for you for FREE with bows and everything.












Our bus arrives in Valdivia at 1:00am on Friday.


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Day 30 - Hostel o Hotel?

When we got to Valdivia, it was 1am. Sr. Justine and I jumped into the first cab (we may have cut the line) and asked the cab driver to take us to a hotel. He asked us if we wanted a hotel or the type of room the sisters usually stay in. I told Sr. Justine..."Please, a hotel."

The taxi driver took us to a nearby hotel, he knocked on the door and the attendant came out and asked us if we had a reservation, when we said no, he told us that they were booked. The driver went to the next place a few doors down a hostel, and told us to wait in the car. Sr. Justine said, "Oh but it is a hostel, and I said, "let's just do it...its getting late." The attendant came out and said that they had rooms and we jumped out of the taxi.

The attendant told us that the room for 2 would be $40 USD. From the outside, the place looked like a motel...I was expecting the worst. After the attendant took my information he brought us to the room...I couldn't believe it... It was perfect!!! Big beds, heat, and a nice shower. Sr. Justine and I were dancing for joy. After we took this picture, I jumped in the shower! IT WAS HEAVEN!!!!














We were up at 8am to start our tour of Valdivia. We had to catch our bus back to Los Angeles at 4pm.

Valdivia is a beautiful little town with strong German influences, so different from Los Angeles or Santiago. It was really special. Sr. Justin and I walked across a bridge to visit a botanical garden, and then headed on a 1 hour boat tour. We saw the huge seals coming to the piers for their daily meal and beautiful sights on the river. We had lunch, visited a museum and then had a hot chocolate.

As we were walking back towards the hotel (over the bridge) to get our stuff, I realized my camera was missing and started to search frantically for it. Sr. Justine, told me to look in my bag (I did), my pockets (I did). Then I looked at Sr. Justine (she was smiling). I screamed "JUSTINE!" and she laughed and laughed and laughed (she still is laughing about it.) Imagine me yelling at a nun...with all these people walking by.

Here's what happened: I had left my camera and my pocketbook on the table in the cafe (WITH SR. JUSTINE...the cute little sister I had been living with for the past 30 days) when I went to the bathroom. Sr. Justine says that she thought that my leaving it on the table was very irresponsible, and she thought she would teach me a lesson and hid it in her bag. When I went back to the table I assumed it was in my bag and left the museum with Sr. Justine. She says, that I never noticed that it was missing, so I wasn't careful with my stuff. My answer was, and still is, "I LEFT IT WITH A NUN!!!" The lesson...you can't trust ANYONE these days.


Anyway, here are a few photos (from my recovered camera) on this glorious trip.

















Nothing too exciting to report about the ride from Valdivia except that Sr. Justine was still laughing about my camera. That's why I don't feel bad about posting this picture.




We arrived back in Los Angeles around 8:30pm. We said goodbye to the sisters and gave them thank you gifts (mine was chocolates and candies for the girls). Father Ramon came over to the Srs of Charity house to say goodbye to us. We are leaving early tomorrow.

Day 28 - Un paseo (muy rapido) con Padre Ramon.

Today we went with Father Ramon to the country. It was about a 4 hour ride through the Cordero Mountains to visit two of the 12 schools he is responsible for. Fr. Ramon´s niece came to evaluate a student, and Don Pato, a friend of Fr. Ramon came along for the trip.

The roads were VERY windy, and Father Ramon drove incredibly FAST. I closed my eyes for about 30 minutes to pretend I was sleeping, so I wouldn't have to look. Some turns you couldn’t see what was around the bend, and others, you could see, and it was just a cliff! At some point, I decided I better look, because I was missing some beautiful views. I took over 150 pictures (half of which were a miracle of modern technology, because father was driving at light speed). The other half were when Father Ramon stopped and insisted that I get out, and if he didn’t like the picture I took, would take my camera and take one for himself.

















We stopped off at the first school to drop off some things. Then headed for the next school in Copahue about 2 hours away (borders Argentina). We never passed a car, only people walking or riding on their horses.

When we got to the school the students were outside playing. These students were Mapuche and live at the school during the week. The classes taught here are both in Spanish and the Mapuche language. Their clothes are a mix of both cultures.

We unloaded 6 new computers from the school and started loading up the old ones into the car. Unfortunately, the school doesn´t offer internet access, but these were probably faster than the computers they had.
















Then after lunch we visited the children in the classrooms. Sr. Justine showed the students where the Philippines are on the globe and then a guitar magically appeared and she sang a song in Tagalog. After one of the teachers sang a song and then Father Ramon took the music outside and began singing. It was great! Here’s some of the fun…check out Don Pato dancing with Sr. Justine)



Finally, we headed back to Los Angeles… here is a video and photos of some of the ride…I am not sure if this really captures how crazy it really was. I kept telling Sister Justine that I only had a few days here left...and I wanted to get home alive!!! Father Ramon explained that he knows the roads well, he makes this (LONG) trip about 2 times a month, and there isn't much car traffic, so he doesn't have to worry about other vehicles (though there are people walking, animals running loose, and riding horses on this road). I think by the time we headed home, I was used to it.




This was really a trip of a lifetime. You could never get this much of the culture on a normal vacation tour. I enjoyed every moment and can thank Father Ramon (and Sr. Justine) for some incredible memories!

Day 27 - Me fui a trabajar con Sr. Justine

Today I went to work with Sr. Justine. We started with breakfast with Father Ramon and the sisters (I learned today that these are the Srs. of Charity of St. Vincent.)




The first stop was a school called San Gabriel. There were over 1,000 students at the school. Sr. Justine met with a few different classes to talk about vocation with them. She made a point to introduce me in the back of the room and have me tell the students who I was and where I was from. The students were excited to hear I was from the US, and then even more to find out New York. Sr. Justine started each of her presentations with a song, and all the students and teachers participated. She would then discuss vocations and encoraged students that religious vocation is also a choice.



Then we went to another school, Padre Hurtado where Sr. Justin met with individual girls that she had met on her previous trip to Los Angeles. At the end of the day, we went to a house of a family who had visited the house in Santiago. Maria Cristina, Berlin (not sure if I spelled correctly) and Luti. They were three very smart and beautiful girls. They showed me around the yard, naming all the trees, showed me pictures of their recent travels, and then played their instruments (flute and keyboards).



Of course, Sr. Justin got her hands on a guitar! (Every where we go someone hands one to her...she plays very well). The father (of course very proud of his daughters) joined us towards the end of the visit, mom was still working, and later brought us back to the convent.





Tommorrow Sr. Justin and I are going to the country with Father Ramon.

Day 26 - Un Viaje con Sr. Justine

Today, I woke up around 10am and went to have breakfast. Senora Elsa said not to eat too much because I would be having an early lunch. Sr. Justin and I were leaving for the bus station around 1:15.

I took a nice walk with Sr. Anni to Jumbo to buy some snacks for the trip to Los Angeles, and then came back to have lunch with Sr. Justine. At 1:15, we got in a cab and headed for the station.

Our bus left Santiago around 2:30. There is nothing to exciting to report about the ride. The scenery headed south isn´t as picturesque as the trip to Ovalle. And thankfully, there were no encounters with the police. Sr. Justin and I talked a bit, then Sr. Justine slept while I watched the movies (The Longest Yard with Adam Sandler, and some really bad Disney movie about a girl who races cars). Our bus driver stayed below the speed limit for buses (100 KPH), so the annoying beeping alarm that indicated when he went over the limit didn´t go off often.















We arrived in Los Angeles around 9:00pm and took a cab to the convent house. We met the sisters there (I don´t know all of their names yet), and then Sr. Justine and I had a bite to eat some coffee and then went to our room, to unpack and prepare for the next day.

According to Sr. Justine, the grounds of this particular convent are used for a home for young girls. There are 5 houses, each one has a house mother. Our room is down a long enclosed walkway from the convent house and borders a large empty room with a fireplace. When we got there ALL THE DOORS to the outside were WIDE OPEN. I don´t know what the temperature is here, but it is COLD.

Our room has a small bathroom with a shower and 3 beds in it. The ceilings are very tall, and the small heater in the room doesn´t make a big impact. I have been having flashbacks to a camping trip in Maine with Erika and Aimee, where we opted to pack our things and find a hotel. As I bundle up for the night, I keep imaginging NYC and how warm and sunny it is right now. As cold as I am, I am still glad I made the trip with Sr. Justine.

Tomorrow we go to a school in the area for Sr. Justine to discuss vocations with the students.

Day 25 - un día más en Santiago...

Well, I don't know how they knew, but the Sisters knew I was out late last night (Seriously, Guaton! That's the last time I trust a white dog with lopsided ears to keep a secret!)

Anyway, I woke up to a beautiful, sunny day. I packed my bags for the big trip down south with Sr. Justin, and went to the kitchen for breakfast, and learned that we weren't leaving today, we were leaving tomorrow. I am sure Sr. Justin told me this several times, but for whatever reason, I thought we were leaving today.







So after breakfast, I headed out with Solange, Sr. Anni and Sr. Justin to la ferria. As we walked through the neighborhood towards the bus stop, I found the view of the Andes to be even more beautiful and brighter than the day before. I made everyone stop to take a photo.












I was excited about this little trip, because it was my first time taking the city bus in Santiago (called Transantiago). Sr. Anni gave me her extra bus pass, which I learned you can buy in just about any grocery store in the city (the buses don't take change).















The Ferria was about 4 blocks long (maybe longer) and has everything from fresh local vegetables to used clothes. I purchased a (new) hat and gloves set for the big trip. The sisters shopped for deals on pantyhose and shirts. In the middle of all this excitement, I made plans with Francisca to go to Cajon De Maipu about 1 hour west of Santiago in the afternoon.















We got back just in time for Sr. Teresa's delicious lunch. Today's menu was Beef with mushrooms, followed by a coffee bread pudding, plus an assortment of chocolates and a store brought cake. (You should know that the sisters are now art directing these photos. This one had to be taken twice, because the first one I took didn't include Chilean wine...I wish they would have noticed my dirty fork next to the plate.)
















At 2:30pm Francisca picked me up and we headed out for Cajon De Maipu. I didn't know much about it, but Sr. Marie Isabella and the rest of the sisters said that I would be able to see Los Andes even better. Sr. Luz Irene asked (with a smile) if it would be another late night.

Francisca was great, stopping to let me get out to take pictures. After a while I realized that this was going to be just like the Great Wall of China. I was going to end up with 300 pictures, one more beautiful then the other. Today we talked for about 1.5 hours in Spanish (a record for me).






The road to Cajon De Maipu was lined with hotels and restaurants and had a very European (mostly German) feel to it. We stopped at a tourist center to ask for directions do a little hiking and get good photos and get a bite to eat. The guide, Pablo, told us that there was a place about 10 kilometers ahead, that was "super economico" and very good. We drove and drove, turned around, asked people, but never found the place. It sure was super economico, Pablo! We didn't spend a peso! There were a lot of stray dogs in this area (more than what I've seen elsewhere) Francisca explained to me that this is where people sometimes abandon their older dogs. In the town, we saw signs encouraging people not to do that.

We ended up stopping for a bite at Cafe Vienes, a place that Francisca knew for "Once" which is what they call "tea time" in Chile. It is time of day to have a light meal (almuerzo, lunch, is the biggest meal of the day here) and it actually happens around 5pm not at 11, as the name would suggest. We split a Chilean Churrasco sandwich, which is made of beef, tomato, stringbeans and mayo and each had a coffee. It was delicious. After, we headed back to Santiago. Long day...but a very good one. (I was in the house by 8pm!)



Tomorrow...I head south (for real this time with Sr. Justin.) We leave the house around 12:30.