In one word travelling to Chile was a
grueling experience, especially for someone who was travelling for her first
time ever in an airplane. I left the New
Orleans airport on the afternoon of May 16th with my longtime friend Mae Condalary.
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| New Orleans Airport |
We arrived in Miami with a layover until late that night, so we went to a Cuban influenced restaurant called KuVa. It tasty, beautiful, and had a pretty view! Finally it was time for us to catch our flight, but we learned that
our flight was delayed due to mechanical errors. For a first time flyer, this way scary. I wondered whether or not I should get on the plane when they announced it was ready. We waited for what seemed like forever while the crew worked to get the plane ready. We learned that we wouldn't be able to fly until the next morning, so we finally left the airport at 4:00 A.M. for a local hotel.
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| KuVa-Beautiful and fantastic food! |
We finally arrived in Santiago late Saturday, and we had to negotiate with a very helpful Chilean airport employee about hotel accomedations due to trouble with our flight contracts. One of the very first things that I noticed when we got to Chile was that everyone is very helpful. The man was able to get us a hotel room; however, that night I
had a small mental breakdown because I had a room by myself, and I had no way to
communicate with anyone. It was the
first time I felt really alone and all by myself. I got over myself and prepared for yet another
day of travel.
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| I loved being among the clouds! |
I was finally getting excited.
Reality was finally starting to set in:
I was in Chile, ready to meet my family and teach! When we finally got to the baggage claim in
Concepcion, the first thing I saw was my smiling host mom, Margarita, and sister, Fernanda, waving at
me. A wave of relief washed over
me! I had made it to Concepcion in one
piece, and my host family was eager to see me!
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| Fernanda, Mom Margarita, and Me |
That first evening in my new home, the nana, Barbara, prepared
a fantastic dinner of pork roast and salad for the family. Most of the rest of the week was spent getting
acquainted with our host families, the school, the city, and the teachers and
the students we are working with. All of
the people are fantastic. Everyone
smiles and says hello without fail. And
if you need help with anything, they are more than willing to assist you as
best as they can. That has held true
from the moment I stepped off of the plane in Santiago with nowhere to stay for
a night.
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| Welcome party thrown by one of my classes :) |
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| Lovely students |
Wednesday was a national holiday in Chile, so my host family took that opportunity to introduce me to the two local lagoons, the city, and a neighboring city called, Talcahuana. Everything was beautiful! I find myself continuously wanting to snap pictures to remember every single moment.
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| Barbara, Fernanda, Nicolas, and me at the larger lagoon |
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| The beautiful Talcahuana port |
This journey has been one of many
firsts—leaving my family for an extended period of time, flying in an airplane,
trying a medium cooked steak, and taking every opportunity that comes my
way. I hope the trip continues to
present these opportunities for firsts, and I can’t wait to see what else is in
store!
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