Traveling and Teaching in Chile - weeks 1 & 2 by Jackie McCool

Not that long ago, spending two weeks in Chile is something that was only a dream to me. But now, two weeks isn’t even the halfway point of my time down here [internal excitement overload]. The first week was spent traveling around with friends, Sarah and Lizz (pic 1). We were able to cover quite a bit of ground. Our first stop – outside of our second home, the Santiago International Airport – was Chilean Patagonia! Upon landing in Punta Arenas we took a bus up to Puerto Natales, a very beautiful town along the Última Esperanza Fjord (pic 2) and just outside the Torres del Paine National Park. We took a day trip into the park and got to see the so much: The Andes Mountains, the cave of the Giant Sloth, herds of guanacos, a curious little hairy armadillo, a mated pair of Andean Condors, and probably the most precious—glaciers! Any amount of time spent in the area is time well spent. Mountains are hidden from view for most of the morning, but when the clouds clear and the sun comes out, the fjord is absolutely breathtaking. When we got back down to END OF THE WORLD, a.k.a. Punta Arenas (pic 3), it was noticeably cooler, but completely tolerable for a person born and bred in the very warm southeastern United States. We took a boat and bus tour of the Straights of Magellan to see King Penguins and more of the coast. All of our small visits in Patagonia have given me but just a taste of what’s there. It is a place I will spend more time in the future. 

Before starting the LSU Teaching in Chile Program, we made our way back up to Santiago (pic 4) to get a few more days of traveling in. Santiago is a great, big city with so many historical and cultural offerings. I enjoyed our time spent walking the mercados and touring the museums (pics 5, 6)… But I was more than ready to get out once the smog got to be too much. All of the heating is provided by burning wood so as the smoke gets trapped by the mountains, multiplied by several million people, a trip out to the coastal city Valparaíso, or “Valpo,” was very much wanted. This city is super rich in history and the location of several firsts for the entire country of Chile (the first Spanish Language newspaper is one that I can easily remember). Currently, it’s more of an artistic destination with the most interesting architecture and street art—definitely worth a trip. Santiago and Valpo are connected by route 68 and the buses run to and fro all day, which meant we could ask to be dropped off anywhere along 68...which is how we found the Casas de Bosque vineyard (my first winery!). The guide seemed to like us and gave us a few extra samples from the private reserve. Learning about and tasting so many wines definitely made me appreciate the craft way more. It was a long day, but a day full of art and wine, so pretty great.      

 




Valparaiso:

    

Casas de Bosque Vinedo:

The next morning, we got up early and headed to the airport for our three week stay in Concepción. I try to go into everything without expectation, but meeting my new host family was the most nerve wracking thing I've done in a long time. A week in, and they've definitely eased my nerves. I don't know much about them still-Jaime, the father, works in petroleum; the mother, Magalí, is a wild one; Andrea, the oldest, is 19 and perusing law at the university; and Edu, the youngest, is 16 and attends the Colegio Concepción. I hope to get to know them better. My time at both school campuses has been spent assisting with labs. At campus Huertos, I helped the 4 and 5 year olds conduct experiments in magnification and wind energy, respectively. They were so cute and even though the teachers don't use words like "no" to redirect them, they listened quite well. I found the same kind of environment in the lab for the older students of campus Villa. They are given few rules and a lot of freedom of movement even around precarious lab equipment--something my 20+ years of American education system learning will probably never grasp. 

My Host Family (and me):

Vive Chile!