Chile Ancient Cultures and El Norte Grande

Each student has a unique and individual experience on their Experiment program. The following essay is a single glimpse into a program from one student's perspective.

Danny Egan

My Summer Abroad

I really don't believe that it was until I was sitting alone in the terminal in New York that I realized that I might be just a bit out of my comfort zone.

When I finally met my group and my very energetic leader, Graeme, a good deal of my fears subsided. They were kids just like me. In addition, on the long plane ride over I happened to sit next to a Chilean who had been in New York City at a medical conference. It was this interaction that finally brushed the surface of what I was in for during the next month. This long discussion not only taught me a lot about Chile and what I could expect there, but surprisingly enough, made me do a double take on the country I was leaving. For instance, when we spoke of education and schooling I really began to notice an aspect of my life that I atrociously take for granted. The opportunity for education here in the US is phenomenal and should be realized by everyone, not just overlooked as a system that is here to occupy the hours of 8-3 every day for our country's youth. This is only one of the many things I would come to recognize, learn, and appreciate during my four short weeks with this program.

After flying for eight hours, and sleeping for half of one, we were quickly swept off into the city of Santiago. It was here that I realized my Spanish needed help and fast. I can't say I was feeling so great after realizing that not everyone in the world spoke English and my Spanish was less than elementary in the speaking world, but I wasn't going to let that get me down, after all I was having a lot of fun with my group of 14 other kids. They were from all over the US, which was really awesome, but what truly astounded me is the amount of talent and ability that seemed to be gathered in this one group. Everybody had there own gifts, and most had many. This situation, which might have been a little overwhelming at first, was truly rewarding. I don't think I have ever, or maybe even will ever be part of such an amazing group of young adults.

In Santiago our group really began to build a support structure amongst ourselves, something that we would soon find to be very necessary as we stepped out into the Chilean world. After a short plane ride north, we arrived in La Serena, our homestay town, and I first got a sight of my new family. My host dad and host brother, Benjamin (11), were waiting for me at the airport and it was very apparent that they could not speak English. Yes, this does sound like a stupid statement, but for one reason or another, before the trip started, I had the strangest inclination that my host family would speak English. However, even in Santiago I got the feeling that a lot of my expectations were going to be very wrong. Soon we were off to pick up my host mother and little sister at the kindergarten (she is the teacher there and Trini, my host sister, goes to school there). Even though communication was difficult, I could quickly tell that these were a few of the kindest people I had ever met in my life. As I arrived in our home and put my things in my room, I began to have this terrible feeling that I would have nothing to do here and was going to feel terribly out of place. I went back downstairs with Benjamin and played a little soccer. A few minutes later I came to realize that I would never have that same feeling again. After a gigantic lunch (I ate more than I ever thought possible), more soccer, a trip to the mall and grocery store, David, a fellow experimenter, came to my house with his two host sisters. He ate dinner at our house and we talked about struggles amongst ourselves and with my new family and really had a great time. Then I went with him to meet his family and ended up eating another dinner.

Just the next day I had one of the best experiences of the trip. Every Saturday Benjamin goes to his school to play sports, like soccer and basketball. David and I decided to join him and they were playing soccer. We joined in the fun. Whereas language may have divided us off the field, when we were playing and doing drills everyone spoke the same language. It was simple, fun, and everyone, even the instructor, seemed to be really excited to have a few gringos playing with them. That very same day my family hosted a barbecue like none I have ever seen. With a family down the block, also hosting an experimenter, we ate, danced, talked, and played from 12 in the afternoon to 12 at night.

My next big experience came at the Hogar de Cristo, our community service site. Talking with my friends beforehand was really fun. After a weekend of non-stop Spanish, the English language sounded so good I could almost taste it. However, this great feeling was soon rained on by the situation we found ourselves in. The Hogar de Cristo is a home for the elderly or "abuelitos" who have no family and no money to support themselves otherwise. The men and women there were helpless. It was a sharp contrast to the easy trip we had taken thus far. This clearly was going to take some determination and love. Over the first few days I think it was obvious that we were a bit uncomfortable there. We could not communicate with most of the inhabitants and had enough work to keep us occupied. After these first few days I really felt unimportant, I wanted to do something, I wanted to help someone, but, up until this point, I didn't think I could. In a desperation effort I just went up to one of the men there and, in the best Spanish I could muster, sparked up a conversation with him. Quickly I started to ask him about his life before this place and really ran into a rough story. It was during this encounter that I think I really started to realize what we were doing here and what this place was all about. I was pulled away from my conversation by Graeme when it was time to go but I noticed something I hadn't before. The place seemed to have a new life to it. The ladies working in the kitchen were singing, a couple of the abuelitos were playing dominoes and everyone clearly had a sort of energy that wasn't there before. That is what made the rest of my work there really rewarding and special to me. I realized what we were doing. We were making these people feel less ostracized and less helpless. Even through our presence we were bringing a much needed energy to the home. The work we were doing was just an excuse to get us in there, get our smiles in there, and brighten up an otherwise dull day for a group of people that have seen so many dull days and, unfortunately, have very little ahead of them. The Hogar is a special place, it is sometimes hard to understand, but it is still a very special place.

The rest of my homestay was filled with so many great memories and stories that I could fill up ten pages. From the serenity of the starry night skies to the long conversations I had with my family, it is just too much to put down on paper. I will never forget what a great feeling I had one day after picking up my host mom, Benjamin, and Trini after school and really feeling like part of the family. Yes a slightly tall and very white part of the family, but a part nonetheless. Over the two week stay my relationships with my family members developed, especially with my 3 year old host sister Trini who went from cowering in fear of me to hanging all over me, as well as the relationships that I had formed with the people of the community there. The homestay portion of the trip was the most rewarding part of the trip for me.

Next my group was off to Iquique to start a whole new adventure. This began the travel portion of the trip. We experienced the beauty and majesty of northern Chile over a two week span. This part of the trip is where I really got to know the kids on my trip a lot better. While the homestay may have divided the group a bit into separate parts based on where we lived, the travel portion really united us. I really had a lot of fun at all the activities, especially sand-boarding and the La Tirana religious festival, but I think it was the company that I was with that really carried me through this part of the trip.

Overall, my trip was amazing. When people ask me "How was Chile?" I really don't know how to respond because they could never possibly understand. It was freedom, it was fun, it was new, and it was amazing and unpredictable. It was something I will always remember, even if I can never really communicate what it meant to me.