Semana Dos

Hola from Chile!  I’ve had a very lively past few days so I thought I’d write a quick post while it’s all still fresh in my mind!

One of the high points of my week was an encounter I had on Wednesday.  My friend Allyson and I were walking down Avenida Libertad, one of the busiest avenues in Viña, on the way to meet some friends at a movie theater to see a popular Chilean movie.  As we were walking, we passed a guy who I made long awkward eye contact with.  It took me a second for it to hit me, so I was already past him when I realized that I had just passed Michael Cera.  Allyson realized it too, but we had already passed him so we debated for a good 3 minutes whether or not to go back and talk to him.  Although he tried to disguise himself with a red hat and sketchy moustache, there was no doubt in my mind that it was Michael Cera.  The problem was, I had no idea how to start a conversation with him without being extremely awkward. We finally decided that we really had nothing to lose so we turned back.  He was still just chilling in the same place we left him so, after a few deep breaths, I approached him.  The conversation went something like this, except all in Spanish:

 

 

A: Umm, hi. Do you speak English?

M: Only a little, do you? (what a liar)

A: Yes, yes, of course.

M: Where are you from?

A: The U.S.—Minnesota. And you?

M: Canada. (Confirmation that it was, indeed, him)

A: (trying not to freak out) Ohhh…is your name Michael?

M: Yes.

A: Oh! I’ve seen your movies. (Smooth…)

M: Ah, yes. 

After this painfully awkward introduction we actually ended up having a pretty normal conversation.  He talked about how he’s studying Spanish at a language school in Santiago and how he barely ever gets recognized here (my host sister and mom had absolutely no idea who he was).  We talked about the riots and protests and all the craziness going on with the education system.  It was surprisingly relaxed and not too awkward except, of course, when I asked him for a picture.  I was trying not to be an annoying fan but I knew no one would believe us otherwise. What a crazy coincidence.

 

Another highlight of the week was an asado that our university hosted for us to meet Chilean students and get assigned Chilean “buddies” to show us around.  It was a lot of fun to meet all the other “extranjeros” from the U.S. and Europe as well as Chilean students.  Unfortunately, it was extremely windy at 50 degrees outside, at best…   I’m going to allow myself to go on a tangent for a minute about the cold here.  Being from Minnesota, I never thought the cold would be something I would have to worry about when I traveled to South America.  Ohhhh how wrong I was.  If I were you I’d probably be thinking, what the heck, Anna--it can’t be that bad.  However in order to understand my situation you need to understand that almost no one here has heating in their houses.  It is winter right now, and the average temperature during the day is 50-55 degrees F, and much lower at night. My house is always the same temperature as it is outside.  So when the sun sets and the temperature outside drops to 42 degrees, I’m in for a fun night of layering on as many clothes as possible and laying in bed with my covers over my face so that the warmth of my breath will stop me from shivering.  Thanks be to god, it is almost spring and I have already noticed it starting to warm up a little bit.   

Yesterday and today, for example, were so beautiful—60 degrees and sunny.  I spent yesterday exploring Viña with some friends and touring a castle on the ocean.  Today, my host mom and sister took me to historic Valparaiso for the day to show me around—it was a great time, one of the most uniquely beautiful cities I’ve ever been to.  Other than that, my days have been filled with classes, homework, hanging out with my host family and Chilean nightlife—very fun. Tomorrow marks the start to my second week of classes.  Wish me luck!  I miss you all!