Student Blogs/Sierra in Chile
My first real week in Chile has felt like a lifetime! I have already gotten into a bit of a routine (which mainly involves suntanning on my balcony) and feel like a pro using public transit and navigating the streets of Viña.
The first real thing to note is the people here. They are all SO nice!! It is so easy to talk to people on the street to ask for directions or help because you know they are always happy to help. MOST people will also speak really clearly and slowly for you. Others have to be persuaded to slow down, but they don't mind!
I literally live on the beach. I could not live any closer because then I would be in the ocean. I love the sounds of the waves (and they're huge!) crashing on the beach, day and night. It is a little reminder of home, since I am from the coast.
Everyone walks everywhere because everything is so close. I live within walking distance of everything I need. There is a mall a block away with a big grocery store (the Chilean version of Walmart), restaurants, banks, the bus to school and direct buses to Valparaiso.
Public transit is so cheap! With my ISIC card (International Student Card, GET ONE!) I get charged between 100-160 pesos (about 20-25 cents) to go anywhere in Viña. Even without the card, its only about 300 pesos for a regular fare.
Before heading on exchange, you hear everyone's horror stories about how hard it was to get a residence card and register as a foreigner, but in Chile, it is so easy and stress-free! We went to the police station to register our visas which took about 15 minutes (there was no wait), then we headed over to the Registro Civil, where the wait was about 2.5 hours, but we needed to be home early so we came back 2 days later, waited an hour, and voila! I live here!
The other good thing about here is the system they have for queuing (lines), although at first it was annoying. You take a number rather than wait in line, so you can go do something else if it's a long wait or you can sit down if you want to. You better run once your number is called because they don't wait very long otherwise!
I hate being a gringo (foreigner)! You are constantly getting overcharged on the bus (still cheaper than OC Transpo!), ignored at stores and being treated differently than locals. I don't really even look different, they somehow just know!
On our first day of classes we had 'Branding' where our teacher, for some reason or another, showed up to class an hour late and then continued the entire class in the fastest Spanish you can imagine! Fortunately we talked to him after class and introduced ourselves as exchange students and asked him to please slow down. He was wonderful and completely understood and even offered for us to write our essay he had assigned in English, which we declined.
My roommate Ticia and I had a horrible day when we decided to go swimming at our pool (rough life, I know) and forgot our key. We had to pay $40 to get a locksmith to come and open our door, which was really frustrating and the day just got worse. We were SURE we had hit the "disillusionment" phase of adaptation, but really it was just a bad day and things went back to being wonderful after that!
Things are still a little confusing. I know adjusting will take time. It's good thing I am open to new things, otherwise I would never survive! I am so, so, so glad I chose Chile and I know the year is going to be fabulous!