Since this is my first post in the Pio I think it would be appropriate to fill you in a little bit about who I am and just what I’m doing. My name is Arika Wieneke and I am a junior sociology major with an interest in public health and medicine. My study abroad program’s official title is SIT Chile: Public Health, Traditional Medicine, and Community Empowerment… so pretty relevant, I like to think, to what I’ve been studying at Whitman.
I was interested in this SIT (School of International Training) public health program in Chile when I heard about it from a fellow student at Whitman, but when I saw that it was in Arica, Chile I knew it was destined to be. So now here I am, as far north in Chile as you can possibly be, living with a Chilean family and attempting to make sense of the Chilean health care system. I will be here for about two more months, taking classes on public and community health before beginning a month–long research project (also called: Independent Study Project, ISP) either in Arica or elsewhere in Chile (TBD).
In my Chilean host-family I have a madre (mother) and padre (father) who both work for the ministry of education and a hermanita (little sister) named Victoria, or Vicky, who is 12 and very precocious. Unlike many families in Chile my host-parents tend to only eat healthy food, so while some of my classmates report drinking soda every day for lunch and being constantly plied with mayonnaise, I have really enjoyed the food I’ve been eating and feel at home with meals consisting of quinoa, fresh fish and plenty of salads.
It’s typical in Chile for people to eat a medium sized breakfast, often bread with cheese and/or sandwich meat, followed by a big, hot lunch around 1pm and finally a light dinner much later than most Americans typically eat. My family goes one step further and doesn’t have dinner at all, but instead has Once (similar to Elevensies – tea and bread). My family has Once around 8pm, but it still involves tea and bread along with fresh palta (avocado).
Mi madre studied abroad for a year in Sevilla, Spain when she was in college and told me that when she first arrived several people asked her if she bought her clothes when she first arrived in Spain or right before she left in a European store in Santiago. They thought that all Chileans dressed in traditional Mapuche, Aymara and other typical indigenous garb, not clothes that look like they could have come from Nordstrom, Gap or H&M. Still, life really isn’t that different in Arica than it would be for me in Seattle or Walla Walla. Obviously there are some differences but after a week here, let alone nearly a month, I have quickly and easily adjusted.
So in case you were wondering what some of the big differences are though, here you go:
1. More varieties of fruit. In the morning I usually eat a banana or some peach greek yogurt and after I get back from my morning class I’ll eat half of a cherimoya or a lúcuma. For Once we’ll often have bread with avocado and/or tomatoes, but there always blackberry or strawberry jam available too if I want it.
2. There are dogs everywhere. This I haven’t completely gotten used to, it’s really sad to think about all the homeless strays running around Arica. I have also not yet had any reason to fear that one might harm me, though I know a couple of my American friends don’t feel the same way.
3. My family has a housekeeper, a tiny Peruvian woman who mis padres (my parents) call Señora Clementina and Vicky and I call Nana (Nana is the typical name kids here call their housekeepers/nannies). Both of my parents work so Nanita cleans the house and makes our lunch Monday through Friday. My cousin’s Nana lives in their house full time though.
4. I have a 10,000 peso bill in my pocket right now… but that’s only $20 USD. I can quickly divide numbers by 500 now since that’s about the exchange rate between Chilean pesos and American dollars.
5. Arica has Collectivos, a hybrid between a taxi and bus. They cost about $1 and have fixed routes they follow but otherwise they are a sedan which holds 4 passengers (though we often squeeze 5 gringas in) and there aren’t fixed stops.
6. Endless piropos. Catcalls (piropos) are very common and are especially directed towards blonde girls and/or extranjeras (non-Chileans). It’s pretty harmless, though, and while I wouldn’t walk alone at night, they’re not intimidating or scary. Several people have also asked if they can take a picture with me and/or want to touch my hair.
7. Everything’s in Spanish… but actually that’s not completely true. A lot of the music that people listen to or restaurant play is American, as are most of the movies and brands (e.g. Herbal Essences shampoo, Great Value chips, Altoids, etc). My little sister knows words in English like “shuffle” and “seek” because of the radio in her mom’s car (a Ford Escape).
If you’re not terribly bored of reading about my adventures in Chile feel free to check out my personal blog.
