Work: The name of the game has been "go with the flow!" Last you heard, I was anticipating working about 3 hours a day doing English workshops for a bevy of sweet little kids, and spending the rest of the day on the beach, getting a tan through the pounds of sunscreen I put on every day. Instead, I spent the last 7 days in the bookstore (here it is!)
up to ten hours each day, preparing and doing arts-and-crafts, games, and dancing to "High School Musical" with a little bit of English thrown in for at most 4 kids (two of whom are my coworker Pao's kids) , and I've been to the beach now twice during the day, for a total of an hour and a half. I am wearing sunscreen though! What's more, for a few days in there, I was even doing "workshops" for two kids from Ohio, whose mom wanted them to be immersed in Spanish (this required us to recruit the friends of Carole's kids, who were great and very patient in teaching the gringos the most up-to-date Chilean slang). I'm still pretty hopeful about more kids showing up... the two gals who we did get to sign up are having fun!The place:
The vibe here is really interesting: it's a small place with two little streets, but on each of those streets you might find a pricey oyster bar, decadent bakery or women's clothes boutique. Of the many gorgeous, rail-thin Chilean gals I've seen on the street, I think maybe one hasn't been sporting some supersweet throwback Nikes and designer jeans. When I'm walking up the cobblestone street to the bookstore every day, proudly sporting my red polo shirt uniform and lugging a giant tupperware container of glue and glitter, it's almost like I'm back at Vassar or in NYC, jealous of the superhip beauties all around- only here they also rock at Spanish! But don't cry for me, Estados Unidos: Zapallar is just as beautiful as its inhabitants. Out my window, I see the hills that by morning are covered in mist and by mid-day bathed in gorgeous sunlight. To walk to the beach, you have to pass through a lovely, shady forest, and when you actually do hit the beach, well:
Plus,even though it's the most exclusive beach in Chile, it still has kiosks! Score!
The People: Here's where I really hit the jackpot! I am living in a great house
with an ever-changing cast of characters. The regulars are Carole (my boss, who's constantly in and out, traveling between Zapallar and Santiago), her two kids (Seba and Vale, 16 and 14 and totally awesome), tons of their friends (right now there are four 15 year old boys bunking with Seba), the previously mentioned and absolutely awesome Pao, who basically runs the show here in Zapallar and has an unending supply of positivity, creativity and energy, her two kids Kevin and Leti (6 and 3), her mom Noemi, who takes care of the kids and cooks yummy food, and Roberto and Liroy (20 and 22), who work in the bookstore and at the bookfairs and are really great and fun. And then, every Thursday night, four actors from Valparaiso (Cesar, Cota, Carina and Claudia, or "Quadruple C," as I call them in my head) arrive to put on a kids' play they put together themselves. >
They're all super talented, warm, wonderfully bohemian and always down for drinking beer on the beach, which has been most of my social activity in Zapallar, so far (plus an awesome hip-hop and reggae concert we wandered into last Saturday, but that's another story!) So basically, things are good. I'm pretty tired, but as I get into the swing of things I think that'll get better. And hey, at least I finally got to the beach!
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