Gringas take Putre

Hello from Putre!

We are now 10,000 feet above sea level, a 3 hr drive from Arica (including 3 stops to acclimate to la altura, learning about the Aymara people, an indigenous tribe that lives here as well as in Bolivia and Peru. I took a poll of the general mood of the program participants on day 1 in Putre and these are the results:

Those of us who were stressed are so because we have ISP Project Proposals, Institutional Review Board (IRB) applications, and an oral exam due monday yet have no wifi! AHH this is the high-strung gringa´s worst nightmare. 

It is definitely hard to breath at 10,000 feet but the SIT team is well prepared with oxygen, coca leaves, and glucose. The first day most people had headaches and were feeling pretty lethargic. I am feeling a lot better adapted to the altitude today and was able to go on a very light jog around town with friends. 

I have found our classes in Putre very interesting and am paying close attention to the differences in the healthcare system and culture between the Mapuche and Aymara communities we have studied thus far. 

Health Care system in Putre 
Our excursion leader Aldo (a matron or midwife) has seen serious growth in the healthcare system in Putre during his 25 years of service 
When he first came there was only a postal de salud in which the whole medical staff lived. The team that not only treated humans, but also animals. 
1,120 people live in Putre and the surrounding smaller pueblos and 90% of the population is Aymara 
climate: desert marginal...as we have learned it is very hot during the day and very cold at night 

Components of the Putre health care system
2 rural postals (just have paramedics)
1 Center of Salud Familiar (CESFAM) 
1 Casa comunitaria (where the traditional healers work)
*The closest hospital is in Arica 
ambulances are available

The whole system including the modern and traditional medical professionals go on bimonthly rounds to the nearby pueblos so that these more isolated residents have medical access. 

               

Class con el Yatire (Aymaran doctor):

The Yatire treats patients through ceremony and herbal remedies. He also is able to read ones fortune through coca leaves, a skill he says anyone can learn with time and practice. 

We started the class with a ¨Pawa¨ceremony outside in which the Yatire asked for us to be helped and guided in our studies. The ceremony included prayers to God and the Virgin Mary as well as Pachamama (la tierra/the land). The Catholic influence was very interesting to me. The wife of the Yatire helped him in the ceremony as is customary in any ceremony since the male and female sex are seen as complimentary and both necessary. In fact, most indigenous medical practitioners in both the Mapuche and Aymaran tribes are female. 

The Yatire taught us about a variety of herbs he uses in his treatments:

uña de gato: anti-inflammatory properties involved in treatment of tumors, rheumatoid, cysts

pingo pingo: diabetes and other kidney treatments, urinary pain, prostate issues 

 eucalyptus: cold treatment

poleo: stomach pain/ digestion difficulty 

flor de llareta: altitude sickness (we used it a lot in Putre!)

Whenever the Yatira takes plants from nature he asks permission through prayer and gives some coca leaves to the land in return. It is also important to ask permission when entering into natural spaces. Both the Aymara and Mapuche cosmovisions include the idea that everything has a spirit (plants, animals, mountains, rocks, illnesses etc). It is very important not to interfere in the spaces or times of other spirits which is why asking permission to enter natural spaces or take from the earth is essential. 

Here are some photos of the Yatire and us watching the Yatire and his wife perform the Pawa

We look bored...but we were not!

We also were lucky enough to have a class with an Aymaran partera, La Usuyiri. In an attempt to reduce the mortality rates for both mothers and babies during births, a law was passed prohibiting births from taking place in houses. This means that every pregnant mother must go to the hospital in Arica to give birth. Therefore the Usuyiri can no longer attend to births alone in Putre but will rather go to the hospital in Arica with clients and do house calls relating to fertility, contraception, STD´s,  pregnancy, and the postpartum period.

Birth: el parto

To give birth: Dar la luz -This phrase is so beautiful it makes me want to cry. It directly translates to¨ give the light,¨ because children are the light parents bestow upon the world

Pregnant: Embarazada 

Pregnancy: El embarazo

Baby: Guagua or wawa-mimics the sound of a crying baby

Some knowledge from the Usuyiri:

• Expectant mothers cannot take any medications or herbal remedies until the 5th month of pregnancy for these may affect the fetus during an essential period of development and cause birth defects
• At 8 month the Partera begins to look into the babies positioning and performs repositioning ceremonies ¨manteo¨if necessary (see movie below).
• After the baby and placenta are delivered, the placenta and umbilical cord are kept in the house for 15 days then buried in the ground at a location that hold a significance for the families wishes for the child. 
• If there are too many people in the delivery room during the birth the mother and baby may be frightened causing the baby to go higher up into the uterus and delay the delivery. For this reason only 1 or 2 family members/friends are allowed in the delivery room. 
• The mother is not supposed to bathe for 8 days after her delivery. If she bathes their is a risk that water will enter through her nails and chill her blood. When she does bathe there is a special cream made of mule fat and straw that she coats her nails with to seal them. 
• During a delivery the mother may be encouraged to drink a little bit of wine, walk around a little, and receive a massage, to heat up her body and speed up her labor. 
• The most common birthing position is on ones knees 
• Circumcisions are performed but by a doctor rather than the Usuyiri. It is common for families to wait a few months before the circumcising their baby.
• Giving birth to a baby boy is a harder pregnancy 
• Causes of prematurity: poor diet and heavy lifting. Prematurity often occurs en el campo (farmland) where the mothers continue working all day and may not have the means to consume sufficient nutrition. 

Aymara Contraception Methods:

• The consumption of a piece of a mules toenail is thought to prevent a pregnancy.   A women takes la ¨uña del mulo¨ (nail of the mule) during her period for 4 or 5 days every month
• Another method (if for example a mule isn´t available) is ingesting the herb salvia everyday.
• Parsley can cause an abortion-This home remedy is well known especially because medical abortions are illegal in Chile

Here is a link to a video of the Usuyiri  demonstrating a ¨manteo¨ procedure on me. This procedure would be performed in the last week or so of a pregnancy if a fetus was positioned incorrectly in the uterus. The fetus must be positioned with the head facing down towards the ground(Cephalic rather than Breech positioning). This way, the head and shoulders, the largest parts of the baby´s body are delivered first.  A breech delivery also poses increased risk of oxygen deprivation for the fetus. 

Considering I am not pregnant, I am not sure if this actually works, but if it does it is much more pleasant than the inversion procedure practiced in modern medicine! 

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=246570895528301&set=vb.163460390506019&type=3&theater

La Usuyiri performing el Manteo 

 We also went to a ¨guatia,¨ a traditional Aymaran meal. To prepare the food for the guatia, a big pit is dug into the ground in which a fire is started. Large stones are heated in the fire. The fire is then put out and the food: meat, vegetables, and potatoes in large pots and bags  are placed in its spot. The hot stones are places on top of and around the food to cook it and are then covered with leaves. A mountain of dirt is placed on the leaves to keep the heat in and a tower of stones are placed on top of the dirt.The food cooks in the hole from early in the morning until the feast in late afternoon. There is a ritual to determine if the food is fully cooked.

The host throws a stone at the rock tower and if the stone tower falls, the food is ready. It the tower holds up the food needs to be cooked longer( ¨falta un poco¨) At my guatia, my hand–eye coordination would never permit the food to be fully cooked, but what are you gonna do!

Some of my favorite memories from Putre were waking up early to hike up a mountain and watch the sunrise and exploring the local farms and fields in our free time.

Sunrise hike!

 We made friends with two men who run a rockclimbing gym and a program for the youth of Putre. The program is an initiative to promote a healthy lifestyle and prevent the use of drugs and alcohol. In this program local kids take and oath to abstain from drugs and alcohol and in exchange they get to come to the rockclimbing gym after school to learn to climb, exercise and meet new friends.

At the end of our Putre trip we visited lago Chungara, one of the highest lakes in the world, it was formed by an avalanche 8000 years ago. We also went to the hot springs Termas Jurasi which was incredible. 

Falon and me at Lago Chungara 

Volcan Parinacota

Hanging out in the hot springs at Termas Jurasi

Me and my primal friends


Ps:This was 3 weeks ago I just have not posted it. We are currently relaxing in San Pedro de Atacama before our Independent Projects start.

xoxox,
Carrie 

Things that made me happy this week

Hey Friends and Family,

Happy National Siblings Day! 

Shout out to Raffi! I don´t know what I would do without you and love all the time we spend walking in parks and falling asleep on the living room floor together <3 

This blog post is inspired by my friend Katie who graciously let me borrow her book ¨The Happiness Project¨ by Gretchen Rubin. It is about a women´s year long-journey to improve her happiness by making small changes in a variety of areas in her life including work, marriage, family, friendships, and hobbies. I had been wanting to read this book for a long time and recommend it!

*I do not recommend this book to people who dislike talking about feelings. People who are my father or similar to my father should not read this book. 

Anyway, this week has not been my favorite week in Chile due to a lot of school work, not enough sleep, and missing my family a bit. However, I was thinking about the things that have made me happy this week, was pleasantly surprised by how long my list was, and decided I would share! 

1) My Independent Study Project (ISP) got approved for Tufts Credit by the Tufts Child Development Department. It is such a relief to have figured out my project and to know I will get credit for it. I originally wanted to do a comparison of birth practices in traditional/ indigenous and modern medical settings. Unfortunately, and to the frustration of the indigenous Mapuche community, all births are now required by law to take place in hospitals. My study abroad program focuses on primary care so I am not allowed to work in a hospital and will be unable to observe births or interview women or medical professionals there.  

Small setback, but here is my new topic: 

I decided to focus on female infertility in the indigenous Mapuche community and will probably be staying with a Mapuche family located close to Temuco. 

General Objective: Analyze the treatment of female infertility in the Mapuche population of Temuco and reveal the community perceptions of infertile women. 

 In the Mapuche culture, a women´s role is with the family. She is expected to have children, raise said children in the Mapuche tradition, and not work outside the house. The birth of a child represents the perpetuation of the Mapuche tribe and is therefore is not only important to the family, but to the community as a whole.  I want to:

1) Identify the public perception of a women´s role in the Mapuche community

2)  Describe how Mapuche healers (Machi, Lawentuchefe, Peñeñelchefe) treat infertility

3) Qualify the indigenous societies´ perceptions of infertile women and these women´s perception of themselves. Are infertile women shunned in the community? Do they feel purposeless or useful in society? How do their husbands react? 

2)  Yesterday my friend Erica and I went to a rugby practice for the women´s rugby club in Arica! It was really fun and today my whole body hurts (which I like cause it means I worked hard!) We have another practice tomorrow and a tournament on Saturday. The women´s league plays 7´s instead of 15 players to a team. Considering this change and my general level of (un)expertise in Rugby, this weekend should by interesting...but really fun!! I can´t wait!

3) After talking for 3 weeks about how badly I wanted to get part of my hair braided, I finally did it!

Some say I look like an 8th grader on vacation and some say I look like a drug dealer, but I like it and am happy! You may make your own judgements off of the picture located below

#selfie 

4) Pierra and I worked on her english and together we made a card introducing me to her music teacher who is a gringa as well. 

5) Turned in a semester-long research paper on the sexual health of young people in Arica!  Part of my research involved me making surveys and handing them out to young people in el centro. I learned a lot about contraceptive use, average age of first sexual intercourse, the casual nature of sex in this area, and adolescent pregnancy. I also did a literary review and interviewed a matrona (medical professional who deals with reproduction, women´s health, and sexual health) and a psicomotor evaluator who gave me insight into the prevalence of adolescent pregnancy and its impact on child development. 

It turns out, surveys are a wonderful way to learn about people´s sex lives and a tactic I may employ in the states next time I am curious! ( I am kidding- all surveys were conducted in a professional, authorized manner). 

6) My host mom made really awesome tacos with all the fixings. 

mmmm avocado, tomatoes, chicken, corn, beef, mushrooms, onions etc! 

7) Registered for classes in the US. Here we go senior year!!!

8) There were a lot of friends and family staying in/visiting the house this week due to the earthquake. Some people who live near the beach or in tall apartment buildings had to evacuate. The fact that people had to evacuate obviously doesn´t make me happy, but the bright side is that house has been extra lively and fun! It also makes me happy to see how impressively the community came together in a time of crisis. My host mom happily welcomed 5 friends/family members into her house for the 6 days following the earthquakes. Being together kept everyone positive and calm. 

9) Well this one doesn´t make me happy per say...but it is embarrassing and made my host family laugh A LOT so I think it is worth sharing. I bought my host mom and sister gifts in Temuco but could´t find anything cool to get my dad. In the airport I had my last chance to get him something and bought him a wooden mug and ¨Secret of the Machi tea¨.

 I didn't read the tea box carefully before buying it, but my host dad did and apparently one of the tea´s herbal remedy properties was A POTENT APHRODISIAC....My host mom danced around happily and my family and the 5 extra people staying in the house made sexual innuendo jokes in spanish that I half understood for the next half hour as I blushed and repeatedly apologized. 

 I will be reading tea boxes extra carefully from now on.

10) I Learned about the mental health care system in Chile and visited an Establecimiento de Salud Mental Ambulatoria (ESSMA) or outpatient mental health care facility. Ester, the women who runs all the mental healthcare facilites in the area gave us a tour of the ESSMA and lead a seminar for my program on the mental health of Chile this Tuesday. Ester is bad-ass and inspired me to think about healthcare administration.

Allie and I at ESSMA Norte

The largest mental health problems in Arica are currently anxiety and depression. There is a high rate of post-partum depression, related in part to the large amount of adolescent mothers. There is also a high rate of substance abuse and addiction. Here is a distribution of the mental health issues affecting Arica.

It was an interesting time to learn about mental health status of Arica considering the current state of anxiety caused by the recent earthquakes. 

11) Tomorrow my first class isn´t until 11 am and is a trip to a local HIV/AIDs facility. I am running to the beach with friends beforehand which should be beautiful! 

I better go to bed now or I wont be able to keep up with Randal in the AM! I am working on a post about my incredible experience in Temuco which will be coming shortly. 

Thanks for reading and keep smiling!! 

Besos,

Carrie 

Ps: sorry for the arbitrary bolding

1 month in Chile!!!

¡Hola!

Sorry I have not blogged in a while, time has a way of slipping through my fingers without me even realizing it.  However, a friend recently asked if I was in a hut somewhere wearing a flowey dress helping deliver babies...so I decided it was time to catch you up on my life...

I have been in Chile for about 5.5 weeks and I am in my fourth week of school. I am settling into some sort of routine here in Chile, but not too much of a routine, cause that would be boring. Besides playing in the sand while drinking beer on the beach (see below), I am learning a lot about the Chilean health care system, constantly working on my spanish, preparing for my Independent Study Project (ISP), shadowing medical professionals, spending time with friends and family, and eating lots of mangos.

Chilean Health Care System (in brief): Chile has both a public and a private healthcare sector. About 80% of the population uses FONASA, the public sector and the remaining 20% use ISAPRE. The wealthier Chileans have ISAPRE and it has become a status thing of sorts. In FONASA there are 4 programs (A,B,C,D) depending on one´s income and number of dependents. Everyone in FONASA pays 7% of their income excluding FONASA A who have no income. If hospitalized or when seeing specialists, group A and B have no co-pay, group C pays 10% of costs, and group D pays 20% of costs. A person with ISAPRE pays 7% plus however much their specialized plan is depending on illnesses and dependents. FONASA and ISAPRE have different health centers, specialists, and hospitals. There is currently a deficit of specialists in the public sector because doctors, who make much more in the private sector, opt to work there. 

There are a few health amendments that assure proper care for anyone that needs it. The ¨Ley de Urgencia¨ states that no healthcare organization can deny rapid attention to a person in need or deny them care due to lack of proper documentation. There is also a program called AUGE/GES for people who have one of 80 specified pathologies including Diabetes, Hepatitis B and C, Breast Cancer and AIDS. A person with a ¨patología GES¨ is guaranteed the best treatment available in a specified time frame. Due to this amendment every person with a serious illness gets attended to equally. 

Some of the most serious health problems affecting Chile right now are HIV/AIDS (increased 40%) which coincides with the 40% augmentation in TB rates, adolescent pregnancies, and childhood obesity.

The Chilean Healthcare system is a 3-tier system. The third tier deals with people who are hospitalized. This could be for a chronic illness or only for a few days like after delivering a baby (parto). Level 2 consists of specialists and referrals from primary care. The majority of the focus and funding is in level one, promotion and prevention. This level consists of CESFAMS ( Centros de Salud Familiar or Family Health Centers, CESCOFs Centros de Salud Comunitaria Familiar or Rural Health Centers, and Emergency Rooms. The Healthcare professionals in primary care include paramedics, nurses, doctors, physical therapists/ respiration specialists, matronas (specialize in women´s and sexual health), child educators and psychologists. In my program we are focused mainly on the first level because that is where the majority of the public health initiatives take place. I have shadowed a matrona, a child psychomotor evaluator and a paramedic. I really enjoyed talking with the psychomotor evaluator who told me about the TIPSI test that all 3 year olds take which evaluates coordination, language skills, and motor skills. The educator also holds a variety of mandatory workshoppes for parents and I got the opportunity to sit in on a workshop for parents of 4.5 year olds discussing prevention of sexual abuse. 

Things that have surprised me in my pasantías (CESFAM shadowing):

• Children get frequent checkups, but adults do not get yearly checkups and only come in if they are having a problem. I saw one many with very serious ulcers and an infection on his leg that he had ignored for the last 20 years. 

• Lack of confidentiality: Doctors freely talk about patients and show us patient folders, patients are called from the waiting room by their full name, there are maps of the wall indicating where all of the chronic care patients live color-coded by illness: mental health, TB, bedridden etc-the purpose of this is so doctors and nurses know where to make house calls, but it still is a violation of privacy in my opinion. 

• There are TONS of posters on the walls advertising healthy lifestyle choices, cervical cancer screenings, child health, sun cancer prevention etc. Even better, people actually stop to read them! 

• The hospital signs are in both Spanish and Mapudugun (the language that the indigenous Mapuche community speaks). However, Mapudugun is an oral not a written language so the written equivalent was created non-indigenous people and many older Mapuches cant read it.

• All medication from the pharmacy is free! This includes contraceptives, condoms, and the morning after pill. 

Weekly Horario (schedual): 

Monday:  AM: Pasantía (fieldtrip) to a local CESFAM´s where we shadow doctors, nurses, matronas (midwifes), paramedics, etc.
                  PM: Métodos de Investigaciones where we prepare for our Independent projects
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday AM: Spanish 9-12 
Tuesday Thursday PM: Salad Pública Seminar
Friday: Pasantía to a CESFAM in the AM
              PM: Week review 

For our biweekly seminars we are taught by local experts on a variety of public health related themes. We learned about the chilean healthcare model, environmental health of Chile, familial and marital violence and prevention, and AIDS prevention among other themes. 

Other Things That Have Happened:

• There was a level 7 earthquake in Iquique (the closest city below Arica) two weeks ago followed by residual tremors everyday for the next two weeks. Some of the residual tremors got up to 6.4. During the earthquake I was playing volleyball on the beach and had to evacuate due to preventative tsunami warnings. I didn´t really feel the earthquake since I was playing and laughed in disbelief when my friend Randal said the ground was shaking. Some people are very frightened by the earthuakes and they have been the most common topic of discussion for the past two weeks. Ironically, when the earthquake went off Rihanna´s ¨Sound the Alarm¨ was playing on the beach....

• Went to two karaoke barbecues at Randall´s house. Chilean adults definitely go harder than American adults...Randall´s parents and parent´s friends invited us for some intense karaoke and adult beverages as we ate meat Randal´s dad had been cooking for over 2 hours!! Nancy, Randal´s mom, pouted until I sang Amy Whinehouse´s ¨Rehab¨ with her at both barbecues 

 ¨ A ella le encanta la GASOLINNA¨-Daddy Yankee

• I went to Iquique with 8 friends last weekend. Iquique is another beautiful beach town with a little bit more of a modern, metropolitan feel. Iquique draws more tourists that Arica so there were more gringas and we didn't stick out like sore thumbs...as much. The night before Iquique we went to a karaoke barbecue at Randal´s house then took the 1:30 AM bus to Iquique. My host mom, a proud Iquiquean, said the morning bus was the only way to go ¨Para que no gastas la día¨ so as to not waste the day. We got into Iquique at 6:30 AM and were thankfully able to check into one of out hostel rooms where we snuggled/ siesta´ed until breakfast places opened up. For the rest of the weekend we hung out on the beach, shopped in El Zofre, a tax free mall, celebrated Randal´s birthday on our balcony, went to a club called ¨spacio¨, surfed and other water sports, and explored the city. 

  

  The gang in Iquique. As the sign says, ¨Long live the family¨ !!

Beautiful Iquique sunset

• I formed a barrio gang called ¨Las Chicas de Azapa¨ with the other girls in my area. Anyone can join, but you will be hazed.

Azapa girls go salsa dancing

• Signed up for the MCAT!! Woohooo making moves toward the future.

• I stumbled into the 1 year celebration mass for Pope Francis in a church designed by the same architect who designed the eiffel tower. It was a beautiful experience that I will never forget! 

• Celebrated my friend Allie´s birthday with her family and 3 other girlfriends. After dinner Allie´s host dad and mom (Rodrigo and Maria Paz) sang her a beautiful duet called ¨Magicas Princessas¨ The song is about a father´s love for his daughter and his wish to protect her heart from any heartbreak and keep her small as long as possible. By the end of the song all four of us were bawling and really missed out dads. Rodrigo naturally responded by making sure we understood every single lyric of the song than singing it again #tears. It was an incredible sweet sentiment made even more special by the immense love Rodrigo and Maria Paz have for their 4 year old daughter, Paz Belín, who contently sat on her father´s lap during the performance. 

Here are the lyrics to the song in Spanish, a below average english translation thanks to google translate. It is definitely corny, but enjoy! 

Spanish:                                                     

                                                      Tengo dos excusas en mi mente, 

para recordar mi vida ya mi casa regresar, 

son un par de magicas princesas, 

con pijamas y con trenzas que juegan a ser mama. 

                                                 Ya se han dado cuenta que soy debil, 

y con solo una sonrisa pueden todo conseguir, 

de mi corazon se han vuelto dueñas 

y me alegran la existencia con solo en ellas penzar. 

                                                           Entre gimnasia y la tarea, 

                                                           van creciendo muy de prisa. 

Hay hay hay. 

Las quisiera detener, 

Pero un dia se iran de casa 

y en sus cosas llevaran un pedazo de mi vida 

que jamas regresara, 

mientras tanto quiero darles tantas cosas, 

quiero darles tanto amor tanta atencion, 

y enseñarles cada dia su importancia y su valor, 

quiero cuidarles el corazon. 

Son como un jardin en primavera, 

que se viste cada dia de belleza y esplendor, 

son como palomas mensajeras 

que el Señor mando del cielo 

para hablarme de su amor. 

                                                              Entre gimnasia y la tarea, 

van creciendo muy de prisa. 

Hay hay hay. 

Las quisiera detener, 

Pero un dia se iran de casa 

y en sus cosas llevaran un pedazo de mi vida 

que jamas regresara, 

mientras tanto quiero darles tantas cosas, 

quiero darles tanto amor tanta atencion, 

y enseñarles cada dia su importancia y su valor, 

quiero cuidarles el corazon. 

Hay hay hay. 

Las quisiera detener.

English:  

I have two excuses in my mind,

to remember my life and return to my home,

They are a pair of magical princesses,

pajamas and pigtails pretending to be mom .

Already have realized that I am weak,

and with just a smile can all achieve,

They are the masters of my heart

and I rejoice in their existance .

Between sports teams and homework,

they grow very fast.

Hay hay hay .

I want to keep them small ,

But one day they will leave the house

and in their possessions take a piece of my life

they will never return,

Meanwhile I want to give so much,

I love them, give them attention ,

each day and teach their importance and value ,

I want to look after your heart.

They are like a garden in spring,

each day of beauty and splendor dresses,

are like pigeons

the Lord sent from heaven

to speak of his love.

Among gymnastics and homework,

they grow very fast.

Hay hay hay .

I want to keep them small ,

But one day they will leave the house

and in their possessions take a piece of my life

they will never return,,

Meanwhile I want to give so much,

I love them so much attention ,

each day and teach their importance and value ,

I want to look after your heart.

Hay hay hay .

I want to keep them small .

• My 28 year old host brother visited from Valparaiso and we went to an indigenous festival in celebration of water in the nearby San Miguel de Azapa. I really did not know what I was getting myself into...It was a full on adult water war. Throughout the town center people were selling water balloons which were used to peg mercilessly at others. I will always remember the feeling of getting pegged in the head by a grinning Aymara grandmother. I was also perplexed as to why there were so many small children in this war zone...? It was an exhilarating time. A full bucket of water was dumped off a balcony onto my friend Falon´s head. Aymaran dance groups paraded traditional dances and songs down the streets. My host brother told me that we experienced the last day of the 7 day festival... such endurance!   

Water Wars selfie #terror

Getting to interact daily with a community so different from that in which I was raised has  made me think a lot about my life in the states and the things I need to be happy. I talk to Americans who quit their job to hike for 2 years, indigenous healers who are attempting to straighten a world in disequilibrium, first generation chilean high-schoolers completing their technical degrees, and I realize that the high-stress, competitive lifestyle I have been raised in is not the only life out there. 

People here are fueled by their children, their hobbies, their travels, and have jobs that purely pay the bills. The importance of family, respect for your elders, and tradition shine brighter than I have ever seen them. I still have the same goals for myself: I still want to be a doctor, I still want to work with children, I still want to bring healthcare to underserved populations. If anything, I feel more centered in my goals with the understanding that there are different lifestyles out there to explore if I so choose, and that at the end of the day family, culture, sun, nature, and helping others make me happier than a high-paying job and a big house ever will. 

Besos y Abrazos,

Carrie ¨continuing to be a small fish in a big sea¨  Zimmerman

¡Introducing: Mi Familia Chilena!

Hello!
I have been LOVING life the last few days and can‘t wait to tell you all about my host family! I knew nothing about my host family until 2 days before I moved in with them...which was terrifying. Two days before our move in date we had a big ¨Host Family Powerpoint Presentation¨ where our families were revealed. I almost threw up I was so nervous....but it turns out I had nothing to worry about because my family is incredible!!

I have a mamá named Verónica (Vero) a papá named Jean-Pierre, and a sassy 7 year old sister named Pierra! Here is a photo of the the of them at lunch, the biggest meal of the day. Vero is a wonderful cook! She also puts meals together very quickly which according to Jean-Pierre is almost as important as the quality. In the Chilean household breakfast is a small meal-usually consisting of bread and butter/cheese and coffee/tea. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day and Jean-Pierre, like many other parents and students, comes home to eat lunch with his family daily.

 Vero prepares very healthy meals including a lot of avocado (palta), olives (aceitunas) and fruit (fruta). In the meal pictured below we had homemade watermelon juice, avocados stuffed with chicken salad, corn (choclo), olives, a salad of onions and tomatoes, and a celery salad. We do not eat a full meal for dinner, but instead have tecito, or a small meal of tea/ coffee with bread and avocado or cheese. This meal is also called ¨once¨ and is a little different in every household. Family friends often come over for tecito and we can spend hours chatting while drinking tea on the back porch. My family is also very welcoming of my gringo friends and tells me to invite friends over for tecito whenever I want.

Jean-Pierre is the regional census coordinator as well as a statistics professor at the local university. Jean-Pierre and Vero have a very fun-loving and teasing relationship which reminds me of the relationship my birth parents have. Jean-Pierre saids I am similar to Vero in that I am always laughing and making jokes. I am the 8th ¨gringa hija¨ Vero and Jean-Pierre have had. They are well versed in my study abroad program and have a lot of practice caring for American students. They seem to trust my judgement and as long as I keep them informed as to what I am up and follow safety rules, they let me do as I please and encourage me to go out a lot!

Me, Vero, and a neighbor

I love my sister Pierra, a sassy little girl who would probably remind my parents of me at that age( a.k.a a handful). Pierra likes baking cupcakes with her mini cupcake machine, watching the Disney Channel show ¨Violetta¨ and swimming in the pool. She does not like boys because, ¨los chicos son aburridos¨ (boys are boring). You go girl!!

Yesterday Pierra and I played games in the pool and choreographed a little dance together. Later when some of my friends came over for tecito she put a jar on the table and  said,  ¨No permite Inglés en esta casa. Si se habla en Inglés tienen que pagarme. Voy a usar este dinero para comprar más cosas Violetta.¨ ( English is not permitted in this house. If anyone talks in English they have to pay me. I will use this money to buy more Violetta toys).

Pierra bailando

La preciosa Pierra

¡Vamos a la piscina!

On Sunday I went to “ El Agro“ with my chilean family. This is HUGE open air market that sells mainly fruits and vegetables. Uhm it is my new favorite place. My host mom made me try lots of new fruits like tumbo and tuna ( a fruit not a fish). The market was super crowded and exciting and we pretended Pierra was a fruit we were gonna eat for lunch as Jean-Pierra pushed her  around in the shopping cart. El Agro is connected to another market that sells clothes and games  which we also visited and I thouroughly enjoyed. I bought a pair of overalls for about 3 dollars and am very happy about it. 

Pierra la fruta 

El Agro

Trying tumbo. Consensus: tasty but wierd 

La vida es tan rica here in Arica. (Life is good/rich). I don’t think I have been this relaxed in a very long time. The pace of life here is slower and I am soaking up every minute of it.  Today for example: I went to spanish class from 9-12, went to Allie´s house for a quick swim before 1:30 lunch with the family, walked to my 3-5 class with friends, drank beer on the beach till sunset, came home for tecito with family friends, did a little home work, worked on this blog :)

Modeling our hospital visit jackets (delantal)

Relaxing at the pool pre-lunch

Chilenismos:

• Pololo/a : Girlfriend-not as serious a relationship as ¨novio/novia¨ which implies the possibility of marriage. 
• ¿Como estái? :This is commonly used by young people instead of como estas. 
• La previa: Pregame 
• Bacán: Awesome 
• Cancha: Sports field/court. Cancha de tennis/fútbol...etc
• Cacho: Yes I understand. This is the response to Cachai or ¨Do you understand?¨
• Al tiro: Right away
• Paco: slang for police-equiv. of po po or fuzz. The actual word for police is carabineros.

I miss you all muchisimo!! 

Nos vemos pronto.

Besos y abrazos,

Carrie