Contradictions

From afar, Santiago looks like a big cloud of reddish-brown smog. While skiing, we had an amazing view of the city in the morning, with what appeared to be a little bit of morning fog covering it. But I knew better. By the end of the day, the city wasn't visible at all. The valley was filled with dark smog that made it impossible to see that there was even a city in the mess. This is in contrast to a city that, for the most part, is impeccably clean. The metro trains and stations are clean and free of any sort of trash. There are no street corners that always smell of garbage, and relatively few homeless people begging for money and sleeping on street corners.

It's a city full of paradoxes. The people can be some of the nicest in the world. My family makes me feel at home. Students are more than patient with foreign students who struggle with their Spanish (luckily, I don't fall into this category, but more on that later) and are more than welcoming. Just today a kid from my soccer class invited me to play with his intramural team and then out for a drink afterwards. But on the streets of Santiago, things are much different. This may have a great deal to do with the transportation system. The Transantiago buses (las micros) and metro are overwhelmed with people during rush hour. But the micros are infrequent at best, I've waited 20 minutes for a bus only to have three come at once, which still weren't enough to pick up all the people waiting for them on the way to the metro station. Metros are packed during rush hour, so much so that even packed so tightly that you can't move, people often still have to let trains pass before they get on. As a result, people are pushy (literally) and impatient. Getting on and off trains often becomes a pushing match, and often people don't follow the instructions "dejan bajar antes de subir" (let others off before boarding). So one must fight the inflow while getting on. People will often start sneaking towards the door and expect you to let go of poles before the train comes to a stop. If you don't get off fast enough, expect them to push you in the back. Boarding is also a skill that must be honed. The best place to be when the door opens is just to the side of it so you can sneak on first after everyone gets off. If you're directly in front of the door, forget about it. You have to dodge your way away from the people getting off, while everyone else is jockeying for position to get on. It's really a mess you have to experience to understand.

My Spanish continues to improve. I've gotten a lot of compliments from native speakers about how well I speak, and at some points it flows almost as well as English. But from time to time, depending on my energy level, mood, or amount of communication in a day, I find myself struggling to ask someone's name. There are always plenty of Chileans around to humble me as well. Today while playing soccer I could barely understand a word of what my teammates were saying around me. Chilean really should be classified as another language it's so difficult to understand.

One strange thing about the foreign students here is the way people from different countries. Or more specifically, the way Americans interact with everyone else. People from the same country or people who speak the same language tend to be drawn to one another, but none more strongly than my fellow gringos. I really haven't made many friends with Americans and tend to hang out in a mixed group that includes people from Germany, France, Austria, Australia, and Brazil. But it's easy to pick out the groups of Americans because they're always speaking English and struggle when someone from another country tries to speak Spanish to them.

Unfortunately, this just adds to the stereotypes that are thrust upon us by many other foreign students. Being from the U.S. certainly carries a stigma around the world. It was a fun night when I tried to explain why my country is the way it is in Spanish to two German-speakers. I've also felt at times that telling people I'm from the U.S. is an obstacle I have to overcome in order to earn their respect (most of all when it comes to French students).

But other than my few complaints and rants everything is going well here. Thanks to everyone who sent me an e-mail, it's always nice to hear from home.