Let’s
just say, this week has treated me well. However my adventures are hard to describe with just words. I know there is a lot written here so if it's too much, definitely check out the pictures at the bottom. To start let’s go back to Friday
night, my birthday. My family had a big gathering at our house until about 4 in
the morning. I could not hang in for that long! It was bedtime for the gringo.
We ate food, played card games, laughed (well the others laughed because I did
not understand what the hell was going on), and just had a good time.
The next day, I
woke up at 2 o clock. I have never done that in my whole life. Let me tell you,
being an exchange student drains everything out of you. I have never been so
tired in my whole life! Valentina (my sister) and I went out and about in town
to take pictures of Coyhaique. We started on the roof of our house and then
proceeded to leave Coyhaique and take some beautiful pictures from a-far. It
was amazing, despite the freezing rain. Patagonia is just the most beautiful
place in the world. Before I knew it Vale and I were walking in the dark as it
had gotten late very quickly. This walk around Coyhaique was a great time for
me to work on my Spanish and just have a nice conversation with my sister. She
is the sweetest girl. We finished our tour of Coyhaique with a stop at Sandwich
Patagonia. I got the “Complete” and it was so great. The sandwiches are huge!
When we returned to the house Vale and I got changed and ready for a small
party at a friends house where they celebrated my birthday and the honored the
soon to be departure to France of Vale. It was great to hang out with some
friends outside of school and meet some new people.
Sunday, the day
where most people sleep in till the afternoon. For me? Nope. Vale and I were
going skiing with family friends. We were ready and out of the house by 9. As a
skier up in the US I was very excited about going skiing in Chile, IN
PATAGONIA. The drive to the closest mountain is about 40 minutes and it was
quite the climb. We may have gotten stuck a couple times/had to tow someone out
of a snow bank, but we made it alive! If you don’t have the right type of car,
you aren’t skiing at this mountain. I did not have any equipment so I had to
rent. Despite the rental gear being quite subpar, and the snow was some crust
on dust on crust on dust action. The day was magnificent. It was sunny and
everything overlooked the Andes. Words/my pictures cannot describe it. I guess
you’re just going to have to visit me! We skied for about 4-5 hours and then
the mountain closed and it was time to make it down the treacherous mountain.
Did we have any troubles? I am not sure because I was asleep the entire time…
So this week in
school was “El Aniversario” (the 58th anniversary of the school). Every year
they have a full week of activities and events scheduled for this occasion. So,
classic new kid, I was selected to be the “Rey” (king) of my alianza (part of
the school). There are 4 alianzas, about 250 people in each. Each alianza has a
Rey and Reina (king and queen). I was also put on the “Lista Rosada” which is a
list of all the handsome men in the school. Second day of school and I was
killing it! Unlike the US, the teachers do not censor the students. We can
pretty much do what we want. The seniors run around school all week with pant
brush pens and proceed to write the name of their class on everyone’s faces. On
Tuesday I was presented to my alianza as the Rey with my Reina (who is 12 years
old, very nice and very cute, a little awkward don’t ya think?). I had to do
things like, get danced on by a random girl, dance on a random girl, and have
girls take candy from my mouth, with their mouth…welcome to Chile gringo!
Wednesday and
Friday were the two most important days of the celebration. On Wednesday we
paraded around the plaza (the four alianzas) with the Rey’s and Reina’s. We
were treated like royalty it was so cool. We had togas on and were pulled
around in a car while waving to all the people watching. I’d say this is an
interesting way to get to know the school. Before I touch on Friday, Thursday
was a Catholic holiday and I did not have school. Because of this I accompanied
my family in bringing my sister to the airport for her exchange to France.
Unfortunately things took a little turn and there was a crazy snowstorm on the
way there. It took us twice the normal time to get to the airport and once we
got there we immediately found out that the flight was moved until the next day
at 5:30. For some reason I am not sure of, because ya know I can’t speak
Spanish, we stayed at the airport for another hour. In the car my family and I
boiled water with their hunting kit and drank maté and coffee, which hit the
spot. A long car ride later--filled with snow, Spanish music, and sleeping—and
I was home for the night.
Now Friday--was
a whole new world. In the morning each person in my class ate two hamburgers,
which I thought was pretty strange for 9 in the morning. Then my friend and I
were taken out of the room by two girls and blindfolded. We were then taken to
a different location in the school. When I was stripped of my blindfold I was
welcomed to a room of the other men on the Lista Rosada and 20 senior girls. I
was given a present for being on the list and then it started to get weird.
Every girl put on a ton of red lipstick and kissed all the guys all over their
face. Then we had to play the game with the candy in the mouth with more people
I did not know and on the way out of the room the girls lined up to manhandle
each guy. Then we all went into the gym for a big fun music/games assembly with
different people from the alianzas. I was selected to represent my alianza in a
contest with 8 other men. I had to take my pants off and 4 different girls felt
up our legs and kissed our legs then voted on the winner. Hey now, I won! Oh
yeah and it this was in front of the whole school. Then I had to play the candy
game with my queen, Vale (awkward cuz she’s twelve). Next was an hour of
dancing to one of my classmate/friend’s band, it was really fun and the band
was great. All Chileans know how to dance it’s ridiculous. Plus it’s really
awkward because there’s like six different dances to six different types of music,
and I don’t know any of them. The afternoon was the modeling of the Reyes
(Kings and Queens) and the finale of El Aniversario. I had to bring formal
clothes, sport clothes, PJs and party clothes. In between the modeling they had
dances and videos that the kids had put together. I ended up having to take my
shirt off 3 times which was a little excessive. But overall the week was just
amazing.
My Spanish is
improving, I am making friends, fitting into the community, and all of this was
a big help to my sister, Valentina. I wish her the best on her trip and am
going to miss her very much. I also want everyone reading this to have one of
my friends from school, Natalia Squeo, in their hearts. On Wednesday her father
was in a fatal car accident. She is a very nice person and has been vital in my
transition into the school. Thank you.
Photos from activities of "El Aniversario":
Photos from the Snow Storm in Balmaceda:
PHOTOS FROM SKIING AND SOME VIEWS OF COYHAIQUE ARE ON MY CAMERA AND WILL BE UP ON THE NEXT POST
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