Usted no puede dejar su hijo acá. Saca la vuelta

Buenas!

Greetings from Arica, Chile. A semi-large city with a great calidad de vida (quality of life). I'm in the north of Chile on an excursion with my program and have learned soooo much that it's quite overwhelming if you ask me.

 I should actually be in Putre, Chile (3600msnm-meters above sea level), but me apuné (I got altitude sickness) and had to climb down from the mountain. Though sharing the minute details would tickle my (now calm) estomago, it might make you sick. But if you were wondering about Putre, I'll tell you:
 

(This foto isn't mine. I left my memory card in Arica....2 hours away)   

 The pueblo is home to mainly immigrants from Bolivia or Peru and also of the Aymara culture. Interestingly, there are a good handful of hotels and hostels because it's a happenin' spot for turists from Europe (Germany, France, España etc.) and for Chileans who want a change of scenery. Jimmy, a very kind hotel personnel, informed me that people come here before heading north and that he enjoys working in the hotel with his family because the hostels no son como eso. I personally ran into 2 Spanish men travelling north in S.America. They thought Putre was nice and quaint. :)
 
         It is possible to walk through the pueblo in about 30 minutes, but my heart struggled to keep up so it took me a whole lot longer. Lucky I, the clinic was 5 min away from our hotel and, unfortunately, I was there 2 times for about 45 min. each time receiving oxygen. I did get a chance to check out the murals that told leyendas andinas (legends from the Andes region) and do some star gazing with others in our sleeping bags. It's quite cold at night and very warm during the day since it is more or less a desert. To find out more, visit Chile or your local world wide web!

(Mi foto desde mi casa de Arica-My photo of Arica from my house)

Arica, on the other hand, is a city of about 190,000 fab. people who haven't been exposed to much in life (from my point of view). I'll tell you about the port city and then contar (recount) my experience here. The city how two "centers". A center of commerce and the actual center. It is a mixture of cerros (hills), playas (beaches) and a bit of desert. It doesn't rain a whole lot here-if ever (as you might be able to tell because the roofs are flat instead of steeple like and some of the homes don't have "roofs"). I live in Cerro La Cruz and can get to the center of commerce in about 15 minutes. The center of commerce is mas o menos (more or less) one long calle (street) named 21 de mayo. You can find McDs, banks, shopping stores, pharmacies, and streets that lead you to artesanal 'tienditas' -little stores where you can find lots of great (and kind of inexpensive) gifts and clothes made from alpacas or llamas. The rest of the city gets more spaced out the further away you get from the center of commerce. Along the playas are other markets and plazas/playgrounds. The life here is very tranquil, so much so that I forget what day it is here because it seems that no one ever goes anywhere. Is it still Saturday?

    
      I can't compare Arica to Valparaíso, so I'm not going to, but I will say that because Arica is smaller, the people (and their stares, glares) are more pronounced. I'm not generalizing the people who live in Arica by any means, but I felt more out of place here than I do in Valpo. Although no one has "done" anything to me, the discomfort I sometimes feel is bothersome. From really weirded out stares to "be carefuls" to people shoving their kids to the side as I pass got me thinking about where I am. I realize that I'm one of 10 people who look like me in Arica (not a real fact) and that my features are super interesting (at least I think so), however, me molesta que I feel like I'm part of a museum exhibit 16/7. I cease to be a person when someone grabs my hand/hair to see how it feels. If you ask me, sure I'll take a picture with you, but snipping pictures is not cool. -I know I snipe pictures, but I at least ask permission if I can or only snipe when I know it's something performed/is part of a group or activity.- I also don't think I've been feared before, but here I am...On the other hand, I've gotten a lot of "I would like to stand next to the negrita" ie. me. We were taking a group photo with an group that performed typical Aymara dance and a (nice lady...I'm sure) dancer said this. I'm shaking it off, but I know that they just want to remember having a black person around. Whatevs.


I don't want to rant and rave (because I could keep going) because I know that it's part of the experience and I can't do anything about it, except for vive la vida (live the life) I've been given and love the people in it. En serio, I hope you all got something from this blog.

To end on a good note, I'm not sick and have met some genial (nice, great, kind, etc) people here.
P.S. Here's a video that explains the title: Chocolate cake made me late

Until next time,

Mucho amor, ife, amore, love, houb, amour, sayang,

<--I went sand boarding!

Ife 'Quipayan' S.