Lota, Family, and Fun ... Oh My by Mae Condalary

Yes, family and friends, behold my cheesy title - I went there.  If there are any misspellings in this post I apologize in advance (I´m using a Spanish keyboard, and the computer is marking every word in red, haha ... I seem to be a pretty terrible speller).

Anyway, I had another wonderful week learning Spanish, exploring the Concepción area, and meeting plenty of new and awesome people.  So much happened that it´s difficult to select highlights, but I´ll try.

Last Sunday, my family took me to the town of Lota to tour Isibel´s botanical garden overlooking the sea.  Ms. Betty told me that Lota has always been a mining town.  The housing for miners in the town is characteristic of Chile, particularly Lota, and is very distinct.  Though some of the buildings are dilapidated, the buildings have a certain charm to them, and I can only imagine how much history dwells within them:

The dog really adds to the composition, I think.

That Sunday was a special day devoted to Chilean culture, and so many people were visiting the garden (we even got in for free!).  On the way into the gardens, I saw a group of carabineros and, on a crazy whim, decided to ask for a picture with them.  They were all happy to oblige me, and even smiled.

This picture showcases the quintessential differences between me and the Chilean people.
Is it any wonder I have trouble blending into a crowd?

 Many others on the blog have posted pictures of Lota, so I want to include the ones that are most special to me - the ones with my family in them.  Here´s Ms. Betty and Mamí looking wonderful for the camera.

Did I forget to mention how awesome these people are?

As we picked our way through the garden, I got a rare glimpse of Chile´s national flower.  It grows on a vine, and so several flowers were laced through the dense undergrowth of the garden.  In Chile, it´s against the law to pick them because they´re so difficult to cultivate.

There are five in this picture.  Can you spot them all?

 And, okay, I had to include at least one picture of the beautiful view.  It´s even more breathtaking in person.

Mountains, sea, city, sky ... this picture has a little bit of everything.

 This week, my companions from the program and I traveled down to two separate universities, the Universidad de Concepción and Universidad de San Sebastian.  Amanda, Señor Olave´s student teacher, happily agreed to accompany us as a translator when we went down to Universidad de Concepción and showed us the best places downtown to eat and buy souvenirs.  My group split two a special Chilean dishes called chorrillana (french fries with eggs, shredded pork, gravy, onions, and cheese) and pichanga (fries with sausage, eggs, tomatoes, avocadoes, and cheese, I think?).

From left: mis amigas Amanda, Emily, and Valerie

 Ms. Betty´s husband, Francisco, came home from el Norte on Thursday.  He brought back this dried yerba plant from the desert; it smelled amazing.  Yerba can be used in a multitude of ways, including teas, drinks, and marinades.  Speaking of plants, we also had the tree planting on Friday ... I´m pretty sure the group pictures from that are floating somewhere within this website.  I´ve never met such tough girls as the eighth grade girls who dug the holes for our trees!

The differences between the fresh and dried yerba plant are staggering.

 I´m having trouble accessing my photos on this computer, but yesterday, Mr. Francisco´s last day at home, he barbecued for the family (omg the best sausage I´ve ever had!).  Since I am currently unable to find that picture, I´ll leave you with a picture of my awesome nail art instead, courtesy of  Connie.  Honestly, I wish the paint would never chip or fade so that I could carry this experience in Chile around with me forever.  And I still have one more week here in Concepción to make memories!

These roses took at least an hour and a half.