Our first night in the new apartment was a little bit like camping: All of us in one room together, a slight draft coming through the window, getting up before sunrise and deciding what’s more important – a trip to the loo or staying under the covers. Nature always wins out against cold floors, every time.
There are little things that help us feel like we’re becoming part of the community here. We were in the Lider shopping and ran into Indiana’s teacher. She’s very nice but speaks less English than our Spanish so the conversation remained very factual.
We also learnt that the people who pack the groceries are usually teenagers on a vey low wage. It’s customary to tip them a few coins. We’ve been reusing our bags and taking a backpack with us and usually receive a bit of a grunt. Talluah gave CH$150 and saw a huge difference. She picked the bags up and held the handles out for us.
During the school pickup, Talluah had five different people remind her that there is a meeting tonight at the school. We know that there’ll be a notice for anything important but the idea of sitting through a school meeting is a little daunting.
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| Ascensor building from our window. |
Some observations about school life in Chile as told by Indiana.
When you start classes you put on a checked shirt to protect your uniform. The teachers wear the same type of shirt. If the teacher tells the class what to do and I don’t understand the teacher says, “Indiana, copia esta.” And then points to the board or the student’s book beside me.
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| Our water views. |
The girls have only been at school for three days and we’ve already seen a difference in their comprehension. Chile is known for it’s slang and not so perfect Spanish. Spanish books teach gracias for thankyou and this is how we taught the girls. In Chile they drop the ‘s’ . Today, one of Truce’s classmates offered her a biscuit and Truce took one and thanked her friend with the Chilean gracia.
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