Except for all the people yapping away in Spanish at the tables beside me, I could easily be in downtown Indianapolis right now in say... November. It's chilly (no pun intended). I leave the house everyday in my hat, scarf, and coat, and I wish I'd brought gloves.
Look familiar? I am sitting in this Starbucks that serves my favorite little cake balls listening to one of my favorite songs from the movie Garden State play over the loud speakers while emailing Chilean organic farmers. Still working out where I will be in the near future. I think I'm in Chile? Right?
I know this does not look like one of the slightly beige, very slightly distinct houses that line Brixton Lane back home in Fishers.
This is tio Juan's house. He lives here with his daughter Claudia and his in-house help, Carolina. It is my home for now, probably for the next week, and it will be my home base here in Chile. It's located in the hills on the eastern edge of Santiago. I told Mom and Basey on skype that I think it looks like a rich hobbit's house. At 5:30am, when I arrived at this door for the first time, I felt like I was entering a giant white mushroom.
But, no worries family, this is a luxurious mushroom.
So for those of you who were imagining me in some cold field doing back-breaking labor and collapsing in my tent at night, breathe easy. I couldn't have imagined more wonderful accommodations or a more gracious host. I came to Chile expecting to gradually build relationships and trust with strangers who I would eventually be able to call my friends and my Chilean family. It has been a wonderful surprise to find that it is already here for me. Thank you Aunt Norma!
Yes, tio Juan is not actually MY uncle; he is the uncle of my Aunt Norma who is married to Mom's younger brother, my Uncle Chris. A distant connection. But he has opened up his home as if he were my grandpa who I visit every weekend.
Tio Juan is an architect, and he designed this house over 30 years ago. Here he is working on some recent blueprints at the living room table. He is patient with my spanish (other than skyping with my family, I've only spoken Spanish since I sat down on the plane in Miami). We will sit for over an hour at the dinner table each night. I will ask a cultural or political question about Chile or the United States and he will tell me what his opinion is on the topic, with me interrupting every once in a while to ask about the meaning of a word or phrase. Last night as we ate our red jello (which I learned is called jalea), he entertained me with detailed descriptions of all the desserts here in Chile. I understand....most of what he says. I ask as many questions as I can without spoiling the flow of the conversation. I get all of the key concepts. I am learning.
All of the desserts and wonderful meals over which we converse are prepared by my new friend Carolina. She is from Peru. She has worked for tio Juan for 9 months and she has 3 little ones back home. This is her first time outside of Peru, and when she came to Santiago in January it was her first time on a plane. I taught her how to dance merengue this morning.
She will have dinner waiting for us soon. I will go begin my walk back up the hill. I'm glad to be here. I needed a change. And I still do. Changing locations is just the beginning. I love the people and places from which I come that continue to shape me and remain a part of me. I guess I came to Chile as a challenge for myself. To jump into the unfamiliar--a language I don't speak, a land I've never seen, a people I don't know--and to see what I can become from these experiences, to see what I can discover. I want to know more... to feel more... to be more.
For now I have all of Santiago out my back steps. We will see where this leads.
