The gardener

29 November 2007 at 11:47 am · Filed under homes, jobs

The official residence of the ambassador of New Zealand to Chile is next door to our apartment building. It is a large home with a large front yard and two gated entrances. It has very well-kept gardens, and we often take a peek through the gate as we pass by.

 Yesterday Rachel saw a sprinkler running inside the gate. “Mommy, why do they have that sprinkler? Don’t they have a gardener?” she asked me.

“Well, Rachel,” I said, “the sprinkler saves time so that someone doesn’t have to stand there with a hose and water all that grass and all those flowers and plants that they have.” Secretly I was thinking that this was a rare opportunity to teach Rachel about one of my favorite North American values: efficiency.

“Does the gardener just play in the water then?”

I can hardly hold back the laughter. “Um, no. I think the gardener can do other things, then.”

About this time we passed the second gate to the house. As we peeked in, we saw the gardener. He was standing there with a hose, watering the other half of the lawn.

“Like hold the hose somewhere else,” I said. My chance to pass on my value of efficiency was thwarted once again.

Leave a Comment

Bus Adventures

29 November 2007 at 11:37 am · Filed under food, jobs, purchases, travel, weather

As we travel around Santiago by bus these days, we are often surprised at the things that we experience. Here are a few from just this week:

  • The man riding beside us with his young daughter sleeping on his lap bought Rachel a 4-ounce Coke from the vendor who got on the bus with his soft-sided cooler full of about 30 little bottles to sell to the passengers for about 50 cents each. I think the man felt guilty for drinking his little Coke in front of Rachel, so he bought her one, too.
  • Many singers, usually with guitars, get on the bus to sing and ask for donations, but this week dreadlocks and drums were a unique bus ride show.
  • Vendors of all kinds get on and describe their product in loud voices. This week we had the opportunity to buy ink pens, sewing needles, file folders, coloring books to teach us English words (!), and socks.
  • Beggars also get on the bus. They have a pattern to their stories. First they get your attention and say that they hate to have to do this, but there is no other way for them to feed their family. Then they tell you their story, without looking anyone in the eye. Then they say God bless you all and have a safe trip, and walk through the bus with their hand out for coins.
  • The favorite of all bus riders at this hot time of the year is the ice cream man. He has either a foam cooler or a masking-tape-reinforced cardboard box full of popsicles: blackberry, pineapple, orange dreamsicle, plain orange, chocolate cream. Only 20 cents each!

Leave a Comment

The Van

24 November 2007 at 7:04 pm · Filed under jobs, purchases, travel

Those of you who read Mark’s blog (itismark.wordpress.com) will already be aware of the recent demise of our van, may it rest in peace. This van has plagued us from the start with problem after problem, and I for one am glad that it is finally dead.

But what exactly do you do with a kaput car in Chile? I mean, in the States I would sell it to the junk yard, or give it to charity to be fixed for someone who needs it, or at least recycle the scrap metal somewhere. But here in Santiago, where people leave things outside by the curb to just disappear when they are done with them, how do you get rid of something as big as a van?

Well, we didn’t just leave it at the curb, in case you were wondering. In fact, we sold it to the first person who came to see it on the first day it was for sale! (Maybe we should have asked for more as far as the price, but to me it is priceless just having it sold.)

I called the buyer directly. See, last year when we were still in the old house, this guy came riding a bike down our street handing out his business card to anyone and everyone. He makes his living buying cars like ours that have some good parts (ours had a decent exterior and interior) and some bad parts (ours needs a new engine). Then he puts together new vehicles and sells them. We’ll call him the puzzlemaker.

So, as is my habit, I had glue-sticked his business card into my spiral notebook of cards. This is how I keep track of all the people who I meet or get recommended. I have no idea why I thought I might need to know the puzzlemaker someday, but his card was there, so I called him.

“Yes, how much do you want for it? I’ll come this morning.”

One trip to the notary later, and it’s gone. He towed it away with a nylon rope and his car. I wondered if his method of towing would work (slippery rope, small car, big van), but you know, it’s not my problem anymore. What a relief!

 

Leave a Comment

Happy Birthday to Rachel

7 November 2007 at 10:05 am · Filed under food, holidays, people

As I have said many times before, my parenting is one the most gringo things about me, and I am okay with that.

Rachel turned five this past week, and it was a busy week of birthday preparations. We had no less than 25 people (friends, their parents, and their brothers and sisters, plus us) at the park for chocolate cake and strawberries. Strawberries for your birthday is one of the benefits of your November birthday being in the spring in Chile. We hung a piñata and the kids all smashed it with a stick, but finally we had to put it down ourselves. All sorts of fun.

Here’s a picture of Rachel blowing out her candles:Rachel birthday candles

On Sunday, Rachel went to the birthday party of another girl who had been at Rachel’s party. She was turning seven.

It was a High School Musical Party. (“That’s SO cool, Mommy.”)

They opened the presents as soon as they arrived. Each child just gave the gift to the birthday girl when they arrived, and she opened them up on the spot. Very Chilean.

They played party games in Spanish even though all the kids were from English speaking families. There’s the culture gap between us and our kids, and they are only five or a little older!

They hung the piñata and just pulled the string so it would shower the kids with candy. No sticks. Also very Chilean.

They ate hot dogs (well, not Rachel, but everyone else). The birthday girl didn’t get a hotdog because they had more guests than they expected. She didn’t seem to mind too much.

They sang Happy Birthday and Felíz Cumpleaños. She blew out her candle (shaped like a 7) and then did the most Chilean thing yet: She begged her parents to let her plant her face in the birthday cake.

They said no. Not very Chilean.

On the way to the car, I said to Rachel, “Did you see that? She wanted to put her face in the cake!”

Rachel said, “Yeah, Mommy. Abby did it at her party.” Like that was the most normal thing in the world.

Comments (1)

The Rotunda

14 October 2007 at 8:09 pm · Filed under travel

It seems that in every direction from our apartment, no matter which way we have to drive, there is a traffic circle, also known as a rotunda. Supposedly, these traffic circles are meant to speed up the flow at high-traffic intersections.

At one traffic circle near our apartment, six streets meet at a large circle. Each street has one, two, or three lanes that meet the circle. Needless to say, merging is an important driving skill.

Around the circle itself, there are also three lanes. The inside lane is supposedly the fast lane. The outside lane, one would assume, is for the cars that are about to exit the circle.

The important words are one would assume. I should know by now not to assume anything here is the same as the way it would be if this situation were to arise in the US.

In actuality, I have yet to figure out what mysterious force keeps all these cars from crashing into one another every few minutes.

Cars will enter the circle into either the outside or middle lanes, sometimes right in front of an oncoming car. It seems that I get cut off like this by entering cars more often if I am traveling in the outside lane of the circle, so I try not to do that unless I am about to exit.

Cars will exit the circle onto one of the connecting streets from ANY lane of the circle. It does not matter if I am traveling in the outside lane and about to exit, I have to pay close attention to the other cars traveling in the circle to make sure I am not cut off unexpectedly by a car that is exiting from the middle, or even the far inside, lane.

All this while trying not to hit any of the pedestrians who cross the streets in the crosswalks just at the exits.

Seriously, if someone figures this system out, please let me know, because I am dangerously lost!

Leave a Comment

Where are you from?

4 October 2007 at 9:04 pm · Filed under people

I was walking from the school to the bus stop with Rachel this afternoon, and a random question popped out of my mouth. “Rachel, where are you from?”
“I don’t know, Mommy.”
“Are you from Chile?”
No answer.
“Are you from America? The United States?”
Still no answer.
“Are you Chilean?”
“Yes.”
“Are you American?”
“No. I don’t know, Mommy. Why do you ask me questions I don’t know the answers to? You don’t like it when I do that to you, Mommy. You really shouldn’t ask me things I don’t know the answers to.”
I apologize. I do hate it when she asks me crazy questions I don’t know the answers to. I am glad she figured that out.
“Mommy? Where am I from?”
I have to think about it for a second.
“Denver. You were born in Denver, Colorado. But now you live in Santiago.”
“Yeah, I knew that.”
I’m not so sure she did.

Comments (1)

Cabin Fever

25 September 2007 at 6:07 pm · Filed under purchases, travel

This weekend is our national staff women’s retreat. Carey and I have been planning this for some time, and I am really looking forward to it. (No, I won’t give away the surprise about what we are going to do there!) But the hardest part, as usual, has been the accomodations.

First, we looked online for cabins that we could use. The key to cabins is that we can cook our own food, and thus reduce the cost of the conference for our staff. At first, we found lots of cabins online between Santiago and Concepción, the two cities our staff women live in. But as we began to call these so-called cabins, we noticed that many of them are not equipped with kitchens or kitchenettes of any kind! I still can’t figure out how that can be a cabin, but we narrowed down the list.

Then we began to call about the prices. Commonly, even if they have a website, Chilean hotels and cabins will not list their prices. You have to call to find out how much it costs to stay there. Why have a website? So we narrowed it down to a few that we could afford.

Finally, we tried to get reservations. I sent two separate places reservation requests through their own websites. No response. Again, I ask you, why have a website? So I called them. Please use our website, one said. I did, I said. Try again, they said. I didn’t.

In the end, there is only one set of cabins that has kitchenettes, affordable prices, and will actually talk to us. Never mind that their website only worked for about three days, and now we can’t see it anymore. They sent me an email last week to confirm, and I responded in the affirmative, so we are all ready to go. Right?

Since I have had experience with this happening before, I also called to confirm that reservation a few days ago. “Oh yes, of course. Señora Amanda. We have your reservation right here. Just give us a call right before you arrive so we can unlock the front gates.” Okay, we are in business.

Today Coté called them to get directions to the cabins from the bus station. “A reservation for HOW MANY people? Six, right?” No, it is for ten people! “I don’t know if we have that much availability…” Coté called me right away.

I called them back, “Yes, Señora. We have your reservation. One cabin for five and two cabins for two people each.” That makes nine, I explain. They told me the big cabin would hold six before. (I have the email as proof!) “Hmm, well, I will see what I can do…”

I guess we will see what he can do, too….

Comments (1)

Happy Birthday to “Chile”

18 September 2007 at 5:48 pm · Filed under holidays, language

Today, September 18th, is the 196th anniversary of the founding of Chile. We’ve been calling it Chile’s birthday around here. My “Chile Moment” came today when Mark started singing “Happy Birthday” for the country.

He pronounced the word, “Chee-lay”, as is proper in Spanish. Jenna immediately started scolding him, “No, Daddy. No say chee-lay. Say chi-leee!”

img_0896.jpgimg_0896.jpgAfter trying a couple of times to convince her, he gave up and reverted to his prior ways. “Okay, Jenna. Chi-leee. Red or green?”

“No, Daddy. Chile is yellow. And brown.” I guess she meant the ground. Will there ever be anywhere where my child is completely normal?  

img_0896.jpg

Comments (2)

The Empanada

12 September 2007 at 9:52 am · Filed under food, holidays, purchases

September in Chile is the beginning of spring and, as if to celebrate our exit from the cold and wet of winter, we celebrate two days back-to-back of national holidays. September brings the height of Chilean national pride, with national flags being sold everywhere and everyone looking forward to their days of vacation. It’s almost like if in the US our Fourth of July and Labor Day were rolled into one big holiday in April.

As you can imagine, the whole month is devoted to preparing for these holidays, celebrating these holidays, and recovering from these holidays. Part of the preparation includes the annual “10 Best Empanadas of Santiago” competition.

An empanada is something like a Hot Pocket, but homemade. It’s traditionally filled with pino (a mixture of beef, onions, and spices), a few raisins, a slice of hard-boiled egg, and an un-pitted black olive. It’s one of the very few foods that Chileans eat with their hands. (Fried chicken and pizza always require a fork and knife.)

When you pick up the empanada, it feels warm and firm. You hold it at one end of the semi-circle, and bite into the pointy part at the top. The first bite is usually mostly bread, because that’s where the crust comes together. But the second bite is usually the juiciest. The meat-onion juice may come squirting out the top if you are not careful, and the steam will make your glasses fog. As you eat it down, you will definitely need several napkins, and if you are in the company of friends or family, you may decide to lick up some of the juice that runs down your hands. 

This is the appetizer for the coming meal of grilled steak and boiled potatoes. Maybe a few tomatoes, but you ar definitely going to feel your meal later. No wonder they eat it at lunch. It takes all day and night to digest!

Yesterday on the way to pick up Rachel from school, I walked by the place I would put at the top of my personal Top Ten Places to Get Empanadas. Against my better judgment, I decided to buy one. The first bite was all bread, but in the second bite I struck paydirt: the grease-coated olive jumped out of my empanada and ran right down my chin and my jacket before bouncing off the toe of my shoe and onto the ground. Chalk that up to a Chile Moment!

I hope that wherever you are, you have a Happy Dieciocho!

Comments (1)

The crazy taxi driver

1 September 2007 at 9:04 pm · Filed under jobs, purchases, travel

I went to the bus station to pick up Millie, who visited from Ohio the past two weeks. She was coming back on a day bus from Concepción, six hours away. Millie had two suitcases and a backpack, which we got into the Metro and out at the end of the subway line near my apartment. We decided to take a taxi from there.

 At the subway exit is a taxi station. A group of taxi drivers have organized a system of waiting at the exit for passengers, each taking their turn.

We went to the lead taxi, who was supposed to take the next fare. I had to knock on his window before he would even acknowledge my presence. That was the first bad sign.

The second bad sign was that, after loading our bags and taking off, he did not turn on the meter. I leaned across the seat and pointed at the meter. He said, “It’s only three blocks. I’ll take you for free.” Big red flag. But by this time we were halfway to my destination. I just shrugged, “Okay,” I said.

I showed him where to pull in, and he got out to unlock the trunk, but made me lift the heavy bag. Well, it’s free, so I don’t complain. I hand him 300 pesos as a tip. Then it gets weirder.

He tells me I owe him 650 pesos. I remind him that he didn’t turn on the meter, and that he said it was free. He tells me it would be more than 300 pesos to take the bus. I tell him that 300 pesos is more than he would get if it were truly free, and I turn to leave, thinking him an ungrateful person. Millie, not understanding what has just happened, follows me.

As we walk away, and the taxi is waiting at the red light, the taxi driver stands up in the street and starts yelling at us that we are cheapskates, unethical, rude, uneducated, and of course, spoiled foreigners.

Knowing that it was his fault he didn’t turn on the meter when I asked in the first place, and also that he was stuck in traffic and wouldn’t leave his taxi unattended, we just walked away. “Another Chile moment for my blog,” I told Millie.

I hope she didn’t leave Chile with a bad taste in her mouth. It would be great to have her back again sometime.

Leave a Comment

« Newer Posts · Older Posts »