Oh hot damn

So I just finished my first week of classes at UAI. Wow is all I have to say. I think some of these classes have the potential to be really interesting, if only I could understand everything my profs were saying. After playing around with my schedule numerous times, I think I have it: Organizational Behavoir, Finance, Competetive Strategy, Chilean Culture (with the other exchange students), and History of Cinema. My Organizational Behavoir prof is just a naturally fast talker; and I can't understand anything my Cinema prof says cause he has a nasally voice but watching old movie clips is cool so I'm not dropping that class. Really the only class that might be easy is my Competitive Strategy one because the teacher himself was an exchange student once and he told me that he knows what it feels like.

I am really not ready to participate in class yet because I don't know if I could think of what to say fast enough and all the Chilean kids around me talk really fast and they have their own slang that I don't know yet, so I just look down and doodle. I just don't want to say something that's already been repeated, you know, but because participation is part of my grade for every class, I guess I have no choice. Also for the first time ever, I actually HAVE to do my readings because I these reading tests called "controles de lecturas" every other week in every class. Bummer, but I guess I will have to do some work. Lemme just say that here, I don't think I could ever work and study like I do in DC. I just never have enough time. Tonight, I actually took a night off from going out just so I could sleep a bit.

I wasn't going to take the Chilean Culture class at first because it also includes a review of Spanish grammer and I feel like I've been reviewing grammer for so many years, but I decided to take it so that I could go out with the others after class : ) The Australians decided that from now on, all Tuesday nights would be Tetris Tuesday just because it's an internationally-renowned game, but we don't actually play it. This past Tuesday after class, we had an awesome pancake night and oh my god, I need to walk to school more often. Right now, I am taking a colectivo (a shared Taxi), and I think they are a great idea. One ride is like $0.80. My university is like an hour walk from me, but it is a very nice walk.

It is really interesting but frustrating at times to see how the school system differs here. The students don't buy books here because they are so expensive. You just need to go to the library and make copies or some professors put them online. One professor actually told us that we have to come in on Friday and he will put our readings on some random computer on campus and we just need to download them onto a zip-drive. I was like 'wtf?' But I guess that's how it's done. My Bolivian room mate told me that in Bolivia, the students just go to the streets and buy their books illegally. Also she said that there are no Blockbusters in Bolivia because everybody just buys pirated copies. My room mate from Ecuador told me that before McDonalds entered Ecuador, there was already a fake McDonalds in the country so there were some major legal problems there. I thought that was so interesting...

I really love getting to know all the other exchange students from around the world. I spend a lot of time speaking English with them though and I know that this needs to change. Me and my Lebanese friend Maria are making a pact to speak only in Spanish after Monday (hopefully we will not fail). I think I need to get to know more Chileans though. They are really nice people. Even the other day, I was looking at some cheese at the grocery store, and this guy just comes over and starts recommending some cheeses to me. Que bueno!

I have it REALLY easy here. Some people would not consider this a "true study abroad experience" I guess. I know it's not Egypt or Kenya. I really didn't have any Culture Shock and I don't think I'll be going through all the phases or anything. I mean right now, the apartment I am living in is SUPER sweet. I have a beautiful view of the ocean from my balcony, fully-furnished, less than half of what I would pay in DC for something far less luxorious. I sometimes look around and I am like "Why am I so blessed?" Also my cook/maid Marlen is the bomb. She can make a mean omelette and she is like a mother to me even though she has to repeatedly clean up my very very messy room. I really like her : )

Yesterday, I decided to have a party at my place and a lot more people showed up than I thought (this has happened before), and I guess it got too loud because the neighbors (next door and below) threatened to call the Chilean po-po. Holy shit. But I love my room mates because they didn't care and they were completely fine with it.

This past weekend, my Kelsey boo came to visit. It was a beautiful sunny Saturday so we went to the beach and she got red. hahahaha. I love seeing her though, and I took her to two big parties and we came back in the wee hours of the morning but it's all good. But at one point, we both were just like "This is so weird, being in freakin CHILE with you." We also saw Dania, and that was great because Dania is great and I took them to eat some empanadas and they were great too.

The other day, I realized that I really like Vina and I really wished that I had come a semester earlier so I could have studied here for a year. Alas, there are classes that I need to take at AU as a senior, so that's not going to happen. I love it here and I am very happy. I also feel really safe (I know my mother was worried about this, but I told her that I feel safer here than I feel in Baltimore sometimes).

One scary incident though: one night we went to the international club here Cafe Journal and 5 minutes after I left with a group of friends, another group decided to leave. There was one Indian- French guy in this group, and this freaking Neo-Nazi comes up to him and starts picking a fight. Some of the French dudes tried to talk to the guy, but then he pulls out a knife, and this Chilean guy standing nearby, just tells them all to run. So they keep running and this Neo-Nazi is just chasing after them, but finally like after 2 miles, they lose him. Scaryyy. Apparently there are many Neo-Nazis in Vina because there was a mass migration of Germans to Chile at one point in history (not like all Germans are Nazis or anything). I should have known because I've noticed some graffiti with Nazi symbols. I just need to watch my back at night and not walk alone. But yea, otherwise I feel safe.

Random fact: When you sneeze once, Chileans say "Salud" (health), twice- "Amor" (love), thrice- "Dinero" (monayyy). I love this.