Payasito, por favor no te subas a la micro!

Nos ha pasado a todos. Estamos en el paradero mirando la gente y las micros pasar. De pronto y de reojo, lo vemos...nuestro enemigo numero uno: el payaso (ta-ta-ta-tan). Cuando un payaso anda rondando el paradero, siempre existe la posibilidad que se suba a nuestra micro. ¿Cuántos hemos esperado para ver a que micro se sube primero? ¿Cuántos hemos pensado "Ay, no! Que lata!" cuando estamos sentados y vemos que se sube?

Yo soy la primero en reconocer que yo hago ambas cosas...siempre. No tengo nada contra los payasos y mucho menos tengo coulrofobia. Entiendo que desempañan una labor para llevar comida a sus mesas, pero ¿porque me tiene que hacer participe de su acto?

No necesito (ni quiero) que hagan sonar un celular chanta para que lo contesten y me digan que es para mi. No necesito que me digan que soy la hermana de Harry Potter. No necesito que me digan: ¿Porque tan poco riseños chiquillos, si solo es un poco de humor?

Srs. Payasos si quieren que nos lo pasemos bien en las micros yo veo una de dos opciones: cambian la rutina (porque TODOS repiten los mismos chistes) o no me involucren en su acto (porque si no tendré que empezar a cobrar como actríz de reparto, JA!)

Summer + Viña = Seaside stroll

Last Saturday, I went to Viña with my sister and cousin, Yusi. We had lunch at Pizza Hut (yay!) and decided to take a stroll across the beach on our way to the mall. It was a gorgeous day, and luckily I had my camera with me. Enjoy the pics!

Sorry, wasn't in the mood to stitch the photos, but I think you can get a gist of the whole picture.

The pier you see in the background is scheduled to be torn down. What a shame, it's a local landmark where ships carrying sugar would embark. Unfortunately, it's in such a state of decay that it's no longer safe to walk on.

Sand art. I love the Homer Sand dude. hahaha.

My sister and Yusi on the boardwalk.

The poor pier.

"27 Hours of Love"

I always complain about the bad things this country has to offer: spite, mockery, laziness, tardiness, etc. However, I must as readily accept that there are certain things that are truly impressive and praise-worthy.

One of the most impressive is the Teletón. The Teletón was begun in 1978 by a famous, Chilean television host: Mario Kreutzberger aka Don Francisco. He invited the Society for Disabled Children (founded in 1947) to work together through a televised event. The idea was to raise more money and help even more children. Now, thirty years later, there are several establishments throughout the country dedicated to helping and rehabilitating disabled children and young people and their families.

Tonight, at 9:00 p.m., the Teletón begins its yearly transmission which lasts for 27 straight hours. Every year a monetary goal is set. Large companies, philanthropists and the ordinary Joe donate money to attain that goal. It isn't always reached within the 27 hour limit, but it's a true testament to the Chilean people's solidarity and committment to this cause. The whole country comes to a standstill. No matter where anyone goes, they always ask a store clerk, the bus driver or a random stranger in the street: "How are we coming along?" or "Are we getting close to our goal yet?"

It's a beautiful thing. During the televised transmission, we hear stories about families that have had to learn to live and excel with a disabled child: heart wrenching. I don't know of anyone who can sit and watch the whole 27 hours. I, myself, can only sit and listen to a couple or three per each Teletón.

Anyways, I just wanted to spread the word about this wonderful cause. I wish every Chilean luck in reaching this year's goal.

Business....as usual

Hey everyone,
I'm back from vacay. It was great! I promise to upload some pictures as soon as I can. Between Facebook, replying emails and paying the very-important-after-vacations-visit-to-briefly-describe-the-wonderful-food-and-sites-I-was-privy-to to most of my friends, I am totally out of time. Oh, and I forgot to mention that I also have to work every once in a while, hahaha.

Even though I had decided to take a break from architecture, my vacations gave me a fresh outlook on the problem. So, while I work on other projects (crafts and stuff) that I have lined up, I will be getting back into the architectural swing of things.

So let me see....right now I'm working on:

• 3+1 projects that are only paperwork. Those projects have already been built sans the proper permits. Therefore, I have the "pleasurable" task of putting together the properties' municipal dossiers with all of the missing documents, plans and reports. bO-ring and tEE-di-ous. At least they are almost in the bag.
• 3 bids (or estimates, not sure how to call them) for different projects that have yet to be built. All of these require design (my FAVORITE part). One is a restaurant, the second is a group of small cabins, and the third is the headquarters for a moving company. That sounds a lot more impressive and glamorous than it really is, believe me. I'm not sure if they'll except my bid yet, but I'm keepin' my fingers crossed.
• 1 project to turn two houses on one lot into collective housing...just paperwork and the owners are a pain.
  
• 1 project that was supposed to be finished by now. But the owners decided that the project they approved is now too expensive and they want us to change it to a less expensive budget without us charging for that!!!!!!! Clueless, they are completely clueless.
  

You know, I had to admit that I live a bohemian lifestyle and I like that. It's not something that I'm willing to give up just yet. I could never conform to a structured work day. I would, literally, die. So what was I thinking trying to fit into the real world?

Planning this Vacation is going to Kill Me

Okay, it¡s been about two weeks since I last posted. I've been so busy trying to tie up loose ends and trying to plan my upcoming vacations. Vacations, FINALLY!!!! I haven't had any vacations in 12 years. I'm not kidding. When I was a kid, my parents, sister and me would go to Alberquerque, NM every summer. But when I came to Chile, the fun stopped along with the vacations. My one and only vacations were in 1995 o 1996 with a friend and her family. Let me just tell you by experience that no vacations is NOT the way to go.

Anyways, I'm stoked and at the same time stressed out!!!!! My parents always did the planning, and I just went along for the ride. Now I realize all that vacationing entails: reservations, checking schedules, itineraries, money and millions of other details. I still have to buy a memory card for my camera and shampoo! Should I take warmer clothes or just a heavy jacket? We're traveling by train and bus, so picking the right things to not have to carry too much weight is essential. It all so daunting.

On the upside, our vacation spots are most definitely some of the most beautiful places in Chile. We have a road trip planned, kinda sorta backpacking but with swankier lodging. :) We're planning on hitting Concepción, Valdivia, Puerto Varas, Frutillar and then onto Chiloe.

Chiloe is an island and as such has a particular cultural. The churches that were built all over the island are all wooden. No nails if I remember correctly. And they were declared world heritage a few years ago.

We leave Sunday to Santiago where we'll take the train to our first destination spot, Concepción. We get back Nov 2 or 3. When I get back, I'll be posting about the trip, hopefully city by city. Until then. Bye! :)

How to Make Chilean French Toast

Okay, I'm back. Sorry about the disappearing act, but I'm trying to get a lot of work done before I go on vacay (yea!!!!!!!!). But, more about that later.

During my absence from blogging, I got a craving for one of my favorite foods in the world: French toast (thank you Denny's for making me an addict;)). Let me just tell you that there is NO French toast in Chile :(...at least not around Valpo. So several years ago I "created" Chilean French Toast.

Since this is a fusion dish, I couldn't just use the same old bread that comes pre-sliced (yes, that I can find in the grocery store) or the typical syrup (also in the grocery store, although it's a little pricey for plain, old maple syrup). So, I tried using bread from the local bakery.

In Chile, there is a bakery or small store selling fresh bread on every other block, even Santiago. Therefore, you are never far away from fresh, crispy bread. You will find several types of bread at any one of these stores, but the most popular types are hallulla (ah-yu-ya) and batido (literally whipped, but I'd go with kneaded. it's also called marraqueta in some places). In the first type, the dough is rolled out to 1/4" thickness and cut with round cookie cutter-like things. In the second, the dough rolled into the shape you see below.

So, here goes the recipe:
Have the whisked eggs ready with a little bit of milk in them. Take your day-old batido and slice it to about a 1/4". The bread can't be too fresh cuz it will turn into a glob of mush. I suggest discarding the slices from the top and bottom crusts.

Dip the slices into the egg and milk mixture and let them get soaked through. The milk will help soften up the bread, which can get a bit dry and hard. Then, throw the soaked slices onto a hot, greased griddle or non stick pan. Once they are golden brown, serve them warm with coconut palm syrup or your favorite jam. And that's it. Simple, fast and tasty, my favorite type of food.

I tried to get a picture of the finished product, but the vultures beat me to it! They were gone in 5 minutes. :D

What's the Difference between Chileans and Americans?

I get asked this question a lot. I hate it. It's right up there with "Can you translate this song for me?" After a few months of living here, I came up with the following answer:

If I decided tomorrow that I wanted to climb Mt. Everest, an American friend would say, "Awesome! Go for it! Keep me posted!" A Chilean friend, on the other hand, would say, "Why in the world would you want to do that?! You better be careful, you might get hurt. Are you sure they'll even let you into the country?"

¿Cuál es la diferencia entre los chilenos y los gringos? Ni se imaginan cuantas veces he oído esta pregunta. Al principio no supe que contestar. Pero al cabo de un par de meses en Chile, surgió la siguiente repuesta. A mi juicio, ilustra a cabalidad la diferencia.

Si mañana se me ocurriera escalar el Everest, un gringo me diría "-Bacan, te deseo lo mejor! Cuando regreses, me tienes que contar todo!" Un chileno, en cambio, me diría "-Para que queri hacer algo así? Teni que tener cuidado, te podi lastimar. Estai segura que es algo que quieres hacer?"

(fyi, the italicized words are Chilean slang. You probably won't find them in a translation dictionary.)