Too Close to the Devil

What a week it has been! It has gone by so fast. I cannot believe I will be leaving here in just 8 days. It feels like I just arrived. This last week was filled with many exciting adventures, experiences, and lots of food. Some good and some not so good. However, they have all made my Chilean experience unique and memorable.

Places I visited:

Caleta Lenga

Mall Del Centro

University of Concepcion (2^nd time)

Chiflon Del Diablo

Nevados De Chillán

Caleta Lenga is a small fisherman’s town on the Pacific Coast. It is filled with restaurant after restaurant and many popup shops. We ate at the family’s favorite restaurant, Gracilaria. For lunch, at 5 p.m., (yes, I said 5 p.m.) I had ‘Salmon a lo Pobre’. ‘A lo Pobre’ is a combination of fried eggs, onions and fries. It was pretty tasty but the eggs weren’t for me. We walked on the beach after eating, and the sun was setting. The view was beautiful. It was my first time to ever see the Pacific Ocean. And, I did it about as far away from home as possible. Haha The sand was black. I am used to white sand, so this was my favorite part. We did a little shopping, and Mr. Lohan and Ms. Carolina were sweet enough to surprise me with Cotton Candy! I was the biggest spool of Cotton Candy I have ever seen! And, it was mine!

 Left: Am I hanging or standing?

Right: Iva, me, and Ms. Carolina enjoying the beautiful sunset. 

The Mall Del Centro was a mixture of inside of and outside shops. We went because Iva needed a few things for dance. There were so many people! The layout kind of reminded me of New Orleans. There were musicians, food carts, and random performances. Fun fact: at red lights, performers will walk out into the street in front of traffic and juggle, balance objects, etc. My favorite store that we visited was called “Casa Ideas”. It had everything from laundry baskets to cooking pans. Kind of like Bed, Bath and Beyond but better. Before leaving, we got popsicles. Iva thinks the word ‘popsicle’ is hilarious, like most words!

LSU students toured the University of Concepcion as a group. This was my second time seeing the university, but this tour was completely different. We had a tour guide that told about the history and artifacts of the school. The University of Concepcion holds numerous murals and art pieces. The main art was the

Presencia de América Latina painted by Mexican Artist Jorge González Camarena. It is the biggest mural I have ever seen, 300 square meters. Its meaning is unity and brotherhood of Latin America cultures. Each piece of the painting has a specific meaning or symbols that represent important aspects of the cultures.

Concepcion has tons of graffiti and paintings everywhere you look.
This was on one of the campus walls.

Chiflón Del Diablo is as creepy as it sounds. It is an old coal mine in Lota, Chile that closed in 1997. Approximately 3,000 miners worked there. Its tunnels are located under the Pacific Ocean. It is the only naturally ventilated mine the world. Hence, the name translates to “The Breath of the Devil”. All tours are given by miners who actually worked in the mine when it was operating. Our tour guide was a sweet man who told us all about his life, what working here was like, how his family lived, and how the mine operated. Most of the tunnels were only tall enough for a person who is around 5’4” to stand and walk comfortably. One tunnel was only high enough to crawl or duck walk through. While in one of the tunnels, we were asked to cut off our head lights to help make the experience more real. That was as dark and as close the devil as I ever want to be. There was no difference when my eyes were open or when they were closed. One of my biggest questions is why is there wind under the ocean? You tell me.

Our tour guide.

Nevados De Chillán is a group of active volcanos located in the Andes Mountains. It is a ski resort but since it is not winter yet (winter begins in June), we went for the thermal pools. The pools are 5,248 ft above sea level and are natural volcanic waters. The hot springs were 39°C (103°F) and 44­°C (112°F). Words cannot describe the views, so I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

Thursday, May 25, was a very busy day. I began by teaching a lesson on American Pop Artists Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol to my 5^th grade history class. I created the PowerPoint and activity. I presented the lesson and Professor Mora translated throughout the presentation. For the activity, each student colored a small square with the number 5 on it. The 5 represented 5^th grade and the common paintings of numbers by Jasper Johns. When the pieces were complete, we put them altogether on one poster to represent the repetition of Andy Warhol’s work. The lesson went well and the students loved designing their own art.

That night we attended the school music concert. There were many instruments that we topically do not see in school concerts in the U.S. such as the harp, ukulele, a full drum set, and a violin. The concert lasted nearly 2 hours and included about 12 songs and dancers. Iva participated in the dance portion of the concert. I loved seeing the different styles of dance and the wardrobe changes. The large skirts that flowed and grew while the dancer was spinning were my favorite. Almost each band member and dancer played more than one instrument. It was stunning to see the talent that these students possess. This group of students will be traveling to and performing in Europe for one month in September.

We ate Paruvian food after the concert.

I know my last week here will speed by. My host family has been more than welcoming, and I will be sad to leave them. I hope to see more beautiful sights in my last few days in Chile!

The biggest tree I have ever seen.
It is a Cypress Tree in the park near the University.