After Puesto Viejo, we went to the centre of Buenos Aires; the area of Puerto Madero. It is an old port, where a canal is lined with refurbished old warehouses that are now occupied by nice restaurants. Really quite a nice area. The downtown area is actually quite spectacular, unlike the downtown of Santiago which I found uninspiring (other areas of Santiago make it much more worthwhile to visit). It is full of old buildings, statues, parks and quaint little cafes, a glimpse of what Argentina was like when it was once one of the wealthiest countries in the world (or so they told me).
We took a city tour that covered most of the more famous areas and took in the feeling of the city on our walk through the neighborhood of San Telmo. Argentines seem to be a different mix of cultures than Chileans - a lot more of an Italian influence in particular. A lot more of a European influence in general, as immigration was high during Argentinas golden age. Lori and I would point out people that dressed in a weird manner (platform shoes seem to be the norm for women) or the large amounts of hair that the men would flaunt. At some point Lori pointed out a guy in very short shorts on a bike, shirtless with sweat dripping from him due to the physical exertion in he heat of Buenos Aires. He was wearing a white bucket hat and looked like he was a model for Abercrombie & Fitch. She said he was "funny". Well that opened the floodgates for me as I was now able to point out how "funny" the girls in Buenos Aires are. The range was from funny to serious, although there was some hilarity. It's not everyday that the person serving you water at a restaurant is Will Ferrel hilarious. We went to a tango show one evening and I've never laughed so much in my life. Now, I don't want to set expectations of Buenos Aires as a Comedy Central, because in truth there is a very sad and serious aspect to the city but I think people don't like to look at that part and instead focus on the funny side of life.
I wonder if my friend GP would say that I'm funny for my people.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Old Spot
We have left Chile and will stay in Argentina for 5 nights. Our first two nights were spent at an Estancia called Puesto Viejo. It's basically a ranch that is also a polo club. I never realized this before, but Argentina is known as a world class polo playing country, or so the Argentines tell me (thats one thing the Argentines are known for in south America - their "humility"; if you want to know how good they are at something, ask them, they will tell you). They offer polo lessons (which I didn't take) and horseback riding. We went on four different rides during the two nights that we were there.
Now, I don't know very much about horses, so the following are just my first impressions of what I thought about the horses.
- The animals are quite powerful and I can't imagine facing a charging cavalry with long wooden poles attempting to win a battle, like William Wallace did in the movie Braveheart.
- They seem to carry humans with ease and are quite gentle. I wondered if they get tired carrying us, but I think they are mostly just lazy.
- They don't look like the most intelligent beasts in the world. They plod along, head hanging, following the horse in front of them, mostly interested in nipping at some grass as they walked through a field. They spook easily, getting startled by small little snakes, and trip over the smallest divots in the ground.
- I wondered how an animal can control four legs, that looks so flimsy compared to their massive bodies, and have the perception and memory to avoid obstacles with their hind hooves. How can they walk on four legs?! I then wondered if the horses thought we were crazy for walking on two legs.
- I talked to the horses I rode and imagined they responded with the voice of Eyeore, the donkey from Winnie the Pooh. Not very intelligent sounding or particularly excited about anything.
- They need blinders, to avoid them from getting too excited about neighboring horses. That's like playing hide'n'go'seek with a child who covers their eyes and thinks they've disappeared.
- They seem to stand around all day, much like teenagers hanging out at a seven-eleven.
- They need to wear shoes, otherwise, they'd wreck their "feet".
- As we got farther and farther from their stables, the walk got slower and slower.
- why is it necessary to say "horseBACK" riding? Where else does one ride the horse? If horsehead riding existed then I could see the necessity to specify how one is riding.
I really liked the horses. I could get into horseback riding as a thing but I don't know what it would replace, as my time is limited.
I talked to one gaucho during one of the rides. I'm sure he laughed at my inability to control the horse and make it do what I wanted to do and how my body flailed around atop the horse when trotting (much like Woody, the toy story cowboy, a marionette, on strings). It came up that I played hockey in Canada, and he was astounded how people could maintain there balance on ice and commented how violent the sport was.
In the end, I rationalized to myself that under different circumstance I could be a gaucho. I would think that ice hockey was a strange sport and that horse manure was a natural smell.
Now, I don't know very much about horses, so the following are just my first impressions of what I thought about the horses.
- The animals are quite powerful and I can't imagine facing a charging cavalry with long wooden poles attempting to win a battle, like William Wallace did in the movie Braveheart.
- They seem to carry humans with ease and are quite gentle. I wondered if they get tired carrying us, but I think they are mostly just lazy.
- They don't look like the most intelligent beasts in the world. They plod along, head hanging, following the horse in front of them, mostly interested in nipping at some grass as they walked through a field. They spook easily, getting startled by small little snakes, and trip over the smallest divots in the ground.
- I wondered how an animal can control four legs, that looks so flimsy compared to their massive bodies, and have the perception and memory to avoid obstacles with their hind hooves. How can they walk on four legs?! I then wondered if the horses thought we were crazy for walking on two legs.
- I talked to the horses I rode and imagined they responded with the voice of Eyeore, the donkey from Winnie the Pooh. Not very intelligent sounding or particularly excited about anything.
- They need blinders, to avoid them from getting too excited about neighboring horses. That's like playing hide'n'go'seek with a child who covers their eyes and thinks they've disappeared.
- They seem to stand around all day, much like teenagers hanging out at a seven-eleven.
- They need to wear shoes, otherwise, they'd wreck their "feet".
- As we got farther and farther from their stables, the walk got slower and slower.
- why is it necessary to say "horseBACK" riding? Where else does one ride the horse? If horsehead riding existed then I could see the necessity to specify how one is riding.
I really liked the horses. I could get into horseback riding as a thing but I don't know what it would replace, as my time is limited.
I talked to one gaucho during one of the rides. I'm sure he laughed at my inability to control the horse and make it do what I wanted to do and how my body flailed around atop the horse when trotting (much like Woody, the toy story cowboy, a marionette, on strings). It came up that I played hockey in Canada, and he was astounded how people could maintain there balance on ice and commented how violent the sport was.
In the end, I rationalized to myself that under different circumstance I could be a gaucho. I would think that ice hockey was a strange sport and that horse manure was a natural smell.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Mosquitoes
I was bitten by mosquitoes one day (I don't exactly know when) and woke up the next morning with red dots on my body. I've been bitten by mosquitoes before, many times in Canada, but it's been quite a while since they have itched as much as these have. The itchiness associated with these bites is quite phenomenal, to the point that putting on a shirt and having the clothing rub against the bite is enough to ignite the raging scratching fury!
I figure I must be more allergic to Chilean mosquitoes than I am to Canadian ones. Perhaps the chilean mosquitoes are unfamiliar with my camping habits of swatting mosquitoes and collecting them in a heap by the fireside table as a warning to the mosquito population that their nemesis is near? Perhaps chilean mosquitoes are unaware of the hatred I bear towards them? Their aren't many things that infuriate me to the point of entering a destructive rage, but mosquito bites are one of them (another is getting hit in the head - leaving a cabinet door open, bending down to pick up a quarter and then standing up only to knock my head against the open cabinet door, turns me into the incredible hulk where I lose my mind and want to destroy everything in the room). These bites are puffy and red and so very difficult to refrain from scratching.
I don't know why, but I tease myself by gently scratching around the bite in an attempt to ease the irritation. The end result is a test of mental fortitude, resisting the temporary satisfaction of a vigorous scratch. I'm pretty sure you can see the strain on my face as my body clenches every muscle in an attempt to fight off the vile temptation of temporary scratching relief. I scratch myself by proxy, using an instrument (like a pen), fooling myself into thinking that the instrument is scratching and that it's not actually me. I "X" the bite with my fingernail, in a ritualistic manner, exorcising the demon itch. I show Lori the physical damage that these foul insects have done to me, yet little does she realize the psychological damage the bites have carried. I lie awake at night wondering when the next bite will come, yearning to catch the next mosquitoes in the act. While in bed, I flail wildly, like a horse tail would, smacking at non-existent mosquitoes that i "feel". I over heat under the bed covers, all in an attempt to shield myself from further attacks. I try to enter a zen like state, going to an itch free place where soothing cool water or aloe vera is covering my body (I don't know why I go to that place in my mind).
It's really a testament of mental strength when I ward off the itch attack. My victory brings a smile to my face. I can do anything I put my mind to! I can probably walk on hot coals and not feel a thing. I can use the force to move objects with my mind!
Then Lori gives me a hug, gently rubbing the mosquito bites again, restarting the process ...
PS. More la silla
I figure I must be more allergic to Chilean mosquitoes than I am to Canadian ones. Perhaps the chilean mosquitoes are unfamiliar with my camping habits of swatting mosquitoes and collecting them in a heap by the fireside table as a warning to the mosquito population that their nemesis is near? Perhaps chilean mosquitoes are unaware of the hatred I bear towards them? Their aren't many things that infuriate me to the point of entering a destructive rage, but mosquito bites are one of them (another is getting hit in the head - leaving a cabinet door open, bending down to pick up a quarter and then standing up only to knock my head against the open cabinet door, turns me into the incredible hulk where I lose my mind and want to destroy everything in the room). These bites are puffy and red and so very difficult to refrain from scratching.
I don't know why, but I tease myself by gently scratching around the bite in an attempt to ease the irritation. The end result is a test of mental fortitude, resisting the temporary satisfaction of a vigorous scratch. I'm pretty sure you can see the strain on my face as my body clenches every muscle in an attempt to fight off the vile temptation of temporary scratching relief. I scratch myself by proxy, using an instrument (like a pen), fooling myself into thinking that the instrument is scratching and that it's not actually me. I "X" the bite with my fingernail, in a ritualistic manner, exorcising the demon itch. I show Lori the physical damage that these foul insects have done to me, yet little does she realize the psychological damage the bites have carried. I lie awake at night wondering when the next bite will come, yearning to catch the next mosquitoes in the act. While in bed, I flail wildly, like a horse tail would, smacking at non-existent mosquitoes that i "feel". I over heat under the bed covers, all in an attempt to shield myself from further attacks. I try to enter a zen like state, going to an itch free place where soothing cool water or aloe vera is covering my body (I don't know why I go to that place in my mind).
It's really a testament of mental strength when I ward off the itch attack. My victory brings a smile to my face. I can do anything I put my mind to! I can probably walk on hot coals and not feel a thing. I can use the force to move objects with my mind!
Then Lori gives me a hug, gently rubbing the mosquito bites again, restarting the process ...
PS. More la silla
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Valle de elqui & the kiss hello
While in La Serena (google map it - ill put a map in later), Lori and I went on a day tour to "Valle de Elqui", the region where chile produces most of their national drink, pisco. Picso is made out of grapes and, from what the tour guide told us, is the equivalent of a grape scotch.
The tour started off with a stop at a dam - a dam that holds barely any water. The valley is part of the atacama desert (driest place on earth) and it has been in a drought for over 5 years. The government had experimented with artificially generating rain (seeding clouds, I believe) but has been unsuccessful in five tries. It's seems like a pretty serious problem for a region that is dependent on agriculture. The valley is quite beautiful, though one can clearly see what the valley would look like once the water runs out.
The next stop of note was for lunch where we had meals made in solar ovens. It took over 4 hours to cook the meal and it was quite delicious. We also stopped at a pisco distillery where we saw the entire pisco making process. Quite interesting, and the pisco was good too! We had some other stops along the way and on the way back and it was quite a good time.
The real thing that I noticed however was the tour guide. He spoke english, and for Lori's sake, he would do the tour in both Spanish and English. It took twice the time for him to go through the tour but he was one of those guys that clearly liked to hear himself talk and so I think he enjoyed doing it. In fact, there were times when he was doing the English version where Lori wasn't even present to listen.
There was about 6 women on the tour and the manner in which he spoke to them was .... interesting. I will list off some of the phrases he used when addressing the ladies along with the (literal) translation.
1. Mi amor - my love
2. Mamita rica - sweet mommy
3. Corazon - heart
4. Mamita linda - pretty mommy
5. Tesoro - treasure
So it would be something like
"any questions? Yes, sweet mommy?"
"mind your step, heart"
"my pleasure, treasure"
My biased view was that it was more concentrated on the better looking girls on the trip to the point where the not so attractive girls weren't even offered a hand getting off the mini-bus. This sort of behavior would certainly not be seen in north America. Maybe it's something I should try to bring back to Canada? That along with the kiss hello. The extent of the kiss hello is amazing too! There is never an inappropriate time for the kiss hello. Bank teller busy with a client? Excuse me for a second for the kiss hello a colleague. Immigration officer dealing with a difficult passport? It's only polite to allow a co-worker kiss. Perhaps you are meeting someone for the first time? Nothing says "nice to meet you" like a kiss hello.
Potential kiss hello scenarios that would become common place in Canada after I import it:
1. Kiss hello your personal trainer
2. Kiss hello your admin assistant
3. Kiss hello security in your work building
4. Kiss hello your dry cleaner
5. Kiss hello your boss
I guess I should point out that there is no man-man kiss hello, and its only on one cheek. Might not seem too bad I guess, but I should mention the large proportion of Chilean men with mustaches. I imagine the hello process would become quite an ordeal after a while.
PS. One more tour guide story - As good as his English was, if he didn't know a word, he would simply English-ify the Spanish version of the word. My favorite was transforming the orca whales into "Orc" whales.
The tour started off with a stop at a dam - a dam that holds barely any water. The valley is part of the atacama desert (driest place on earth) and it has been in a drought for over 5 years. The government had experimented with artificially generating rain (seeding clouds, I believe) but has been unsuccessful in five tries. It's seems like a pretty serious problem for a region that is dependent on agriculture. The valley is quite beautiful, though one can clearly see what the valley would look like once the water runs out.
The next stop of note was for lunch where we had meals made in solar ovens. It took over 4 hours to cook the meal and it was quite delicious. We also stopped at a pisco distillery where we saw the entire pisco making process. Quite interesting, and the pisco was good too! We had some other stops along the way and on the way back and it was quite a good time.
The real thing that I noticed however was the tour guide. He spoke english, and for Lori's sake, he would do the tour in both Spanish and English. It took twice the time for him to go through the tour but he was one of those guys that clearly liked to hear himself talk and so I think he enjoyed doing it. In fact, there were times when he was doing the English version where Lori wasn't even present to listen.
There was about 6 women on the tour and the manner in which he spoke to them was .... interesting. I will list off some of the phrases he used when addressing the ladies along with the (literal) translation.
1. Mi amor - my love
2. Mamita rica - sweet mommy
3. Corazon - heart
4. Mamita linda - pretty mommy
5. Tesoro - treasure
So it would be something like
"any questions? Yes, sweet mommy?"
"mind your step, heart"
"my pleasure, treasure"
My biased view was that it was more concentrated on the better looking girls on the trip to the point where the not so attractive girls weren't even offered a hand getting off the mini-bus. This sort of behavior would certainly not be seen in north America. Maybe it's something I should try to bring back to Canada? That along with the kiss hello. The extent of the kiss hello is amazing too! There is never an inappropriate time for the kiss hello. Bank teller busy with a client? Excuse me for a second for the kiss hello a colleague. Immigration officer dealing with a difficult passport? It's only polite to allow a co-worker kiss. Perhaps you are meeting someone for the first time? Nothing says "nice to meet you" like a kiss hello.
Potential kiss hello scenarios that would become common place in Canada after I import it:
1. Kiss hello your personal trainer
2. Kiss hello your admin assistant
3. Kiss hello security in your work building
4. Kiss hello your dry cleaner
5. Kiss hello your boss
I guess I should point out that there is no man-man kiss hello, and its only on one cheek. Might not seem too bad I guess, but I should mention the large proportion of Chilean men with mustaches. I imagine the hello process would become quite an ordeal after a while.
PS. One more tour guide story - As good as his English was, if he didn't know a word, he would simply English-ify the Spanish version of the word. My favorite was transforming the orca whales into "Orc" whales.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
La Silla
We went north after leaving Viña del Mar and headed to the city of La Serena. There are a couple of things that I wanted to do while up north (it's actually not that north, but from a Santiago-centric perspective it's north) and one of them was to visit observatories. The first one we went to was supposed to be a 2 hour drive from our hotel. It turned out to be a slow winding road. It was also very foggy and the 2 hour drive quickly became a 3 hour drive.
With the amount of fog and cloud cover I was very worried as to the visibility of stars. As we kept driving and climbed the mountain range, it seemed as though there was an invisible line where all clouds were no longer allowed to be and once we crossed that line, it was blue skies ahead!
After about 2.5 hours we finally could see the observatory - at the peak of one of the smaller mountains. The drive up was a sequence of switch backs and it seemed as though we driving to Mars. It was very cool.
The observatory was at an altitude of 2400 meters. I had a bit of tightness in my head, I thought it might be some altitude sickness. I experimented a little bit by exerting myself physically, taking stairs two at a time, holding my breath while walking, clenching my leg muscles while taking the tour, etc. I had no clear scientific evidence that I could control the sickness.
In any case, the telescopes were huge with 8m radius mirrors. The telescopes are there as a part of some European astronomy consortium and this place in Chile was chosen because of the number of cloudless days and lack of light pollution. I was hoping the tour was going to be given by Gunter or Sven, the euro scientist with an awesome accent but instead it was Maria and Juan. Maria would give us the English tour and she would speak for 2 minutes. Juan talked for 15 in Spanish. Lori asked me what the difference was and I couldn't really say. They said the same things, just a bit different.
I wondered what it would be like to work there. Sleeping during the day, working at night, under the natural lights. Isolated with a select few people and a bunch of computers. I think astronomy is cool but I don't think it's that cool. Geophysics sounds pretty good to me in that respect.
With the amount of fog and cloud cover I was very worried as to the visibility of stars. As we kept driving and climbed the mountain range, it seemed as though there was an invisible line where all clouds were no longer allowed to be and once we crossed that line, it was blue skies ahead!
After about 2.5 hours we finally could see the observatory - at the peak of one of the smaller mountains. The drive up was a sequence of switch backs and it seemed as though we driving to Mars. It was very cool.
The observatory was at an altitude of 2400 meters. I had a bit of tightness in my head, I thought it might be some altitude sickness. I experimented a little bit by exerting myself physically, taking stairs two at a time, holding my breath while walking, clenching my leg muscles while taking the tour, etc. I had no clear scientific evidence that I could control the sickness.
In any case, the telescopes were huge with 8m radius mirrors. The telescopes are there as a part of some European astronomy consortium and this place in Chile was chosen because of the number of cloudless days and lack of light pollution. I was hoping the tour was going to be given by Gunter or Sven, the euro scientist with an awesome accent but instead it was Maria and Juan. Maria would give us the English tour and she would speak for 2 minutes. Juan talked for 15 in Spanish. Lori asked me what the difference was and I couldn't really say. They said the same things, just a bit different.
I wondered what it would be like to work there. Sleeping during the day, working at night, under the natural lights. Isolated with a select few people and a bunch of computers. I think astronomy is cool but I don't think it's that cool. Geophysics sounds pretty good to me in that respect.
Monday, February 18, 2013
Second breakfast
Meal times in Chile are quite different from Canada. Breakfast seems to be at a normal time while lunch is between 1-3 pm. Next comes "las once" (elevensies) at 5-7 pm. Dinner is then around 10 pm. It's quite something to see kids a a restaurant, wide awake, at 10:30 while the other half of me is barely awake. It has been quite an ordeal to go to dinner at a somewhat reasonable hour (7 pm) when restaurants don't even open till 8:30. We often arrive at the restaurant too early and pace outside the restaurant doors, peeking through the windows. The waiters act like cockroaches that have had a light turned on, scurrying madly to get away from "our" gaze. I imagine Lori is like a zombie, banging at restaurant doors trying to get in, frantically trying to get something to eat. She turns into mindless creature, caring for nothing else except the next meal. I've gotten into the habit of ordering a fresh fruit juice for Lori as the waiter seats us, to buy the waiter some time in delivering the main course.
I don't know how much longer I can last before she starts eating me. I'm mostly just ecstatic that I wake up the next morning. If i dont make it back ... Tell my family I love them... Tell them I tried my best...
I don't know how much longer I can last before she starts eating me. I'm mostly just ecstatic that I wake up the next morning. If i dont make it back ... Tell my family I love them... Tell them I tried my best...
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Love in the time of Chile-ra
There were times when my mom would ask me why I was never more affectionate with my girlfriends. There was never enough handholding or hugging or displays of affection. I never thought I was stand-offish or cold or against physical contact at all, so it always seemed kinda weird to me that my mom would say that.
After a couple of days in Santiago, it suddenly dawned on me of how the "courting rituals" actually happen in Chile. I've never seen such open displays, and I felt like I was walking into a private situation, even though it was in a clearly public place. I had an internal war of not wanting to stare yet at the same time, catalog the proceedings for scientific (sociology) purposes. I had to put myself in the shoes, figuratively, of Diane Fossey, trying to live amongst the "gorillas" in their natural habitat, not disturbing them as they act as they would, naturally. Making no eye contact!
Turns out it wouldn't have mattered as the "lovers" would act as is if there was no one around. Pretty fair to say that in Canada, the "lovers" would have to be intoxicated to act as the Chileans did. Lori saw it as "romantic" - I explained that the romance was probably just a way of getting back in the good books as there was probably some transgressions : )
Since kids live with their parents till they marry, perhaps this is there way of getting away, getting some intimate "alone" time. Get to know each other better, as it were. Trespass where no one has trespassed before!
It appears there is a sense of anonymity in public places. Or maybe since most of the time they are lying down, they may think we can't see them.
In the end I wondered what it must be like to move to a different country and raise children in a culture different than the one you grew up in. What would it be like to move to Korea, have your children speak Korean and have them think Gangam style is the greatest song ever, without ever knowing about Wayne Gretzky, the Calgary stampede, Tim Hortons or having your children speak English with an accent. Hmmmmm
After a couple of days in Santiago, it suddenly dawned on me of how the "courting rituals" actually happen in Chile. I've never seen such open displays, and I felt like I was walking into a private situation, even though it was in a clearly public place. I had an internal war of not wanting to stare yet at the same time, catalog the proceedings for scientific (sociology) purposes. I had to put myself in the shoes, figuratively, of Diane Fossey, trying to live amongst the "gorillas" in their natural habitat, not disturbing them as they act as they would, naturally. Making no eye contact!
Turns out it wouldn't have mattered as the "lovers" would act as is if there was no one around. Pretty fair to say that in Canada, the "lovers" would have to be intoxicated to act as the Chileans did. Lori saw it as "romantic" - I explained that the romance was probably just a way of getting back in the good books as there was probably some transgressions : )
Since kids live with their parents till they marry, perhaps this is there way of getting away, getting some intimate "alone" time. Get to know each other better, as it were. Trespass where no one has trespassed before!
It appears there is a sense of anonymity in public places. Or maybe since most of the time they are lying down, they may think we can't see them.
In the end I wondered what it must be like to move to a different country and raise children in a culture different than the one you grew up in. What would it be like to move to Korea, have your children speak Korean and have them think Gangam style is the greatest song ever, without ever knowing about Wayne Gretzky, the Calgary stampede, Tim Hortons or having your children speak English with an accent. Hmmmmm
Marco the giant
Not quite the same ring to it as Andre the giant but it's quite valid in Chile.
My friend GP would say to me "don't worry Marco, I'm sure you're
handsome in your country", trying to make me feel better about myself
(in some way it felt like failing a test badly but being graded on a
bell curve so that i barely pass). I haven't noticed anything like
that but in this case it turns out its true in terms of height - I am
vertically exaggerated in my country. Its a bit hard to believe but
imagine this: Lori likes to go around pointing out all the "little
people" (not dwarves or children) and when she says it that way, it
makes me think that she's somewhere in middle earth with strange
creatures.
It is true though, there a lot of little people (under 5 feet). My
grandmother was under 5 feet - I was taller than her by grade 7. And
since I was the oldest of the brothers I was tallest for a long time,
especially since when I went to boarding school and came back during
holidays I was only reminded infrequently that I wasn't the tallest
anymore.
During university, my roommates were all under 6' - in fact I'd say
all under 5'10". I lived in a land where that height was the norm. It
was only when I moved to Calgary that I had moved from the land of
hobbits and realized what the real height distribution was.
Anyways, all that to say its been quite different to suddenly be on
the tall end of the spectrum. Maybe I walk around a little more
confidently; maybe I don't have to stand on my tippy toes to see over
people and watch the street performer. Maybe I have to duck to get
into the art store whose entrance is only 5'5" tall; maybe when I get
in the rental car, I have to move the seat back. Maybe I notice that
the coffee I ordered was for "the tall guy", or that all my cousins
are shorter than me (the ones I've seen so far). Maybe... But I don't
judge people by how tall they are. That's beneath me.
PS. I'm not actually a giant here, but definitely above average.
My friend GP would say to me "don't worry Marco, I'm sure you're
handsome in your country", trying to make me feel better about myself
(in some way it felt like failing a test badly but being graded on a
bell curve so that i barely pass). I haven't noticed anything like
that but in this case it turns out its true in terms of height - I am
vertically exaggerated in my country. Its a bit hard to believe but
imagine this: Lori likes to go around pointing out all the "little
people" (not dwarves or children) and when she says it that way, it
makes me think that she's somewhere in middle earth with strange
creatures.
It is true though, there a lot of little people (under 5 feet). My
grandmother was under 5 feet - I was taller than her by grade 7. And
since I was the oldest of the brothers I was tallest for a long time,
especially since when I went to boarding school and came back during
holidays I was only reminded infrequently that I wasn't the tallest
anymore.
During university, my roommates were all under 6' - in fact I'd say
all under 5'10". I lived in a land where that height was the norm. It
was only when I moved to Calgary that I had moved from the land of
hobbits and realized what the real height distribution was.
Anyways, all that to say its been quite different to suddenly be on
the tall end of the spectrum. Maybe I walk around a little more
confidently; maybe I don't have to stand on my tippy toes to see over
people and watch the street performer. Maybe I have to duck to get
into the art store whose entrance is only 5'5" tall; maybe when I get
in the rental car, I have to move the seat back. Maybe I notice that
the coffee I ordered was for "the tall guy", or that all my cousins
are shorter than me (the ones I've seen so far). Maybe... But I don't
judge people by how tall they are. That's beneath me.
PS. I'm not actually a giant here, but definitely above average.
Weird things about chile...
There are some weird things about Chile, and I say that trying to account normal cultural differences.
One weird thing about chile is the playgrounds. There are the normal swings and slides, but there are also things that you'd expect to see from Dr Seuss. The googly-jazboodle, that oodles and doozles... Or something.
It doesn't stop with that though. It seems like Stephen King is also in charge of playgrounds.
Exhibit A: a wooden slide?
Who wants to slide down that????
Another weird thing
There are people selling almost anything on the street. People lay out a blanket and sell their trinkets. Trinkets could mean almost anything. Lipstick, knitting needles, noise makers, comic books, hair scrunchies, matches, forks, shoe glue, etc. all of it unpackaged in piles on a blanket. It's almost as if they took the stuff, unwrapped it, tried it out for a couple of days then decided that it was ready to go out to the market. The funniest thing to me was the selling of tape. They were the skinniest rolls of tape I had ever seen - "end-of-the-roll tape"!
PS. Also, a picture of Lori, evidence she is having a good time!
One weird thing about chile is the playgrounds. There are the normal swings and slides, but there are also things that you'd expect to see from Dr Seuss. The googly-jazboodle, that oodles and doozles... Or something.
It doesn't stop with that though. It seems like Stephen King is also in charge of playgrounds.
Exhibit A: a wooden slide?
Who wants to slide down that????
Another weird thing
There are people selling almost anything on the street. People lay out a blanket and sell their trinkets. Trinkets could mean almost anything. Lipstick, knitting needles, noise makers, comic books, hair scrunchies, matches, forks, shoe glue, etc. all of it unpackaged in piles on a blanket. It's almost as if they took the stuff, unwrapped it, tried it out for a couple of days then decided that it was ready to go out to the market. The funniest thing to me was the selling of tape. They were the skinniest rolls of tape I had ever seen - "end-of-the-roll tape"!
PS. Also, a picture of Lori, evidence she is having a good time!
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Beautiful "cha-moo-yo"
Note: "cha-moo-yo" is basically BS. Someone who BS's is a "cha-moo-yen-toe" or "cha-moo-yen-ta".
Listening to a lady sing some romantic songs at a valentines day dinner. Her singing is quite good actually, and shes not bad to look at (from a distance and after some wine but not as good as my date). The funny thing is that when she sings in English, she doesn't quite know all the words. So "true colors" by Cindy "Lauder" becomes
"I see Jo too callers, chining tru, And dats why I blub Jew"
Or from shania twain, (looks like we made it)
"Lou lie we may eet, Lou ow far we come now bay bee. We might av too da Lon way, we noo we get Dere sum day"
Or from wham (careless whisper)
"Blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah"
Or No Doubt
"Donne spick, i know jas wat jur sayin Donne tell me cuz it urtz
I know wat jur tinkin no tell mee cuz it urtz"
It's almost like she's one of the cirque de soleil singers where you don't know exactly what language she's speaking in. Hints of something, but nothing concrete.
Completely awesome.
Listening to a lady sing some romantic songs at a valentines day dinner. Her singing is quite good actually, and shes not bad to look at (from a distance and after some wine but not as good as my date). The funny thing is that when she sings in English, she doesn't quite know all the words. So "true colors" by Cindy "Lauder" becomes
"I see Jo too callers, chining tru, And dats why I blub Jew"
Or from shania twain, (looks like we made it)
"Lou lie we may eet, Lou ow far we come now bay bee. We might av too da Lon way, we noo we get Dere sum day"
Or from wham (careless whisper)
"Blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah"
Or No Doubt
"Donne spick, i know jas wat jur sayin Donne tell me cuz it urtz
I know wat jur tinkin no tell mee cuz it urtz"
It's almost like she's one of the cirque de soleil singers where you don't know exactly what language she's speaking in. Hints of something, but nothing concrete.
Completely awesome.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Tale of two cities.... Literally
Went for a city tour of vina del mar and valparaiso. Both amazing cities in completely different ways.
Vina del mar is a touristy city with many beaches and plenty of ocean front or ocean view properties. It has winding roads that caress the various beaches that line the eastern part of the city. There are boardwalks with playgrounds and various forms of beach environment activities. Cafes and ice cream shops are in abundance. The coast is known for is large waves and hilly topography. In vina, the hills are dotted with high rise apartment buildings and condos. They look like small country clubs.
Valparaiso is also a hilly city and unlike vina, it is a working town as it houses chiles main port. Up on the hills, houses are packed together likes decks of cards, one on top of each other trying to reach for the sun, much like vegetation would in the jungle. We went to see one of the more famous houses, that of Pablo Neruda. It had five stories with each floor not having more than 200 sq ft. More on this house later, but it shows an example of what people lived like. I imagine that others not as fortunate would have a similar house with a family occupying each floor.
A series of ~33 hills make up the communities of valparaiso. The hill boundaries are outlined by the drainage fans that spill towards the bay. The roads of the town stretched up the hills away from the bay like vines, twisting and turning, trying to make their way up to the summit. The roads were narrow and had no structure to them. They provided the main transportation routes for man, car and many dogs. Yet even in the nest of people, roads and multi-colored houses, there were small parks, public terraces or community squares with breathtaking views of the surrounding hills and the bay below.
I've included some pictures, hopefully you get a sense of what I'm talking about. ONe of them is a map of the valparaiso hills.
Vina del mar is a touristy city with many beaches and plenty of ocean front or ocean view properties. It has winding roads that caress the various beaches that line the eastern part of the city. There are boardwalks with playgrounds and various forms of beach environment activities. Cafes and ice cream shops are in abundance. The coast is known for is large waves and hilly topography. In vina, the hills are dotted with high rise apartment buildings and condos. They look like small country clubs.
Valparaiso is also a hilly city and unlike vina, it is a working town as it houses chiles main port. Up on the hills, houses are packed together likes decks of cards, one on top of each other trying to reach for the sun, much like vegetation would in the jungle. We went to see one of the more famous houses, that of Pablo Neruda. It had five stories with each floor not having more than 200 sq ft. More on this house later, but it shows an example of what people lived like. I imagine that others not as fortunate would have a similar house with a family occupying each floor.
A series of ~33 hills make up the communities of valparaiso. The hill boundaries are outlined by the drainage fans that spill towards the bay. The roads of the town stretched up the hills away from the bay like vines, twisting and turning, trying to make their way up to the summit. The roads were narrow and had no structure to them. They provided the main transportation routes for man, car and many dogs. Yet even in the nest of people, roads and multi-colored houses, there were small parks, public terraces or community squares with breathtaking views of the surrounding hills and the bay below.
I've included some pictures, hopefully you get a sense of what I'm talking about. ONe of them is a map of the valparaiso hills.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Secret Avis location
On Monday we checked out of our apartment rental, and made our way to the rental car facility. My cousin Victor Hugo has gone out of his way to make us feel welcome and it's been amazing to have family, that I haven't seen for over 20 years, to be so giving and generous. When we first met he gave me a long hug, as if he had missed seeing me for all this time. It was pretty amazing.
Anyways, we made our way to the rental car. Lori is very organized and has printed off all our reservations with maps and confirmation numbers. My cousin VH drove for 20 minutes to drop us off. And when we get there, it was an abandoned building.
When someone has the illusion of control, not having something in place as planned can be stressful. A scramble of phone calls and google mapping ensued as we tried to find out where the car was. Then Lori said "I wonder if we even have a car reservation in place?"
After getting a hold of Avis, we got an address; an incorrect address and it took us over an hour and a half to finally find the rental centre, hidden away between apartment buildings. Weird place to placed. The lack of visibility is poor advertising.
Avis did at least have a car for us and we found out that the location we first went to had been closed for 2 years!
Five hours after we were expecting to be on our way we finally took the Mazda 2 and drove about an hour to the coast.
Part two of the quest begins!
Anyways, we made our way to the rental car. Lori is very organized and has printed off all our reservations with maps and confirmation numbers. My cousin VH drove for 20 minutes to drop us off. And when we get there, it was an abandoned building.
When someone has the illusion of control, not having something in place as planned can be stressful. A scramble of phone calls and google mapping ensued as we tried to find out where the car was. Then Lori said "I wonder if we even have a car reservation in place?"
After getting a hold of Avis, we got an address; an incorrect address and it took us over an hour and a half to finally find the rental centre, hidden away between apartment buildings. Weird place to placed. The lack of visibility is poor advertising.
Avis did at least have a car for us and we found out that the location we first went to had been closed for 2 years!
Five hours after we were expecting to be on our way we finally took the Mazda 2 and drove about an hour to the coast.
Part two of the quest begins!
In Viña del Mar
Great view from hotel. Very very awesome. The ocean is humbling - the waves crashing against the hotel at night sounds very nice when trying to sleep, but being caught in them would be perilous, to be sure.
A couple of things I've noticed.
1. Old dudes & very young women. I must have not gotten the memo ;)
2. Skimpy swimming costumes - on the men.
3. Big Chilean guy who trains at the gym. Lots of muscles. Don't normally see fit Chileans - Lori said it was the nicest "gym" she's ever seen... I'm sure.
4. Lots of seafood (duh). I've been eating ceviche more times here than ever.
A couple of things I've noticed.
1. Old dudes & very young women. I must have not gotten the memo ;)
2. Skimpy swimming costumes - on the men.
3. Big Chilean guy who trains at the gym. Lots of muscles. Don't normally see fit Chileans - Lori said it was the nicest "gym" she's ever seen... I'm sure.
4. Lots of seafood (duh). I've been eating ceviche more times here than ever.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
A disturbance in the force
Today at 5pm local time there was some swaying back and forth in the building we are staying in. Nature was taking its course, releasing pent up energy in a decisive and climatic manner.
It was an earthquake. Offshore chile near the city of valparaiso about ~150km from Santiago (I'm guessing).
I wasn't in the building when it happened but Lori said she could feel it quite distinctively. I asked if she could feel the "up-down" motion first and then the "side-to-side". She only felt the side-to-side.
And that's about it. Nothing broke, everything seemed to continue normally. In fact, talking to relatives about it, anything under a 7 is not even considered and earthquake. (Reminds me of very picky guys at a bar - not even considered a girl unless shes a 7). It apparently happens so often that people don't even blink when it does happen. The buildings are all "anti-seismic" so there's "no worry" although anti-seismic means that buildings are designed to go with the flow and not resist the shaking. Quite scary, but safer than the alternative.
My cousin was saying how powerful the most recent earthquake was (~8.8) and how devastating the damage was. There seemed to be a sense of pride in terms of how resilient the Chilean people are. It was quite amazing to hear the stories.
I asked if there was an emergency procedure - he said "survive". I said that Chileans must be pretty good at that. He responded with "yes, though the Japanese took out glory with the 9.1!"
It was an earthquake. Offshore chile near the city of valparaiso about ~150km from Santiago (I'm guessing).
I wasn't in the building when it happened but Lori said she could feel it quite distinctively. I asked if she could feel the "up-down" motion first and then the "side-to-side". She only felt the side-to-side.
And that's about it. Nothing broke, everything seemed to continue normally. In fact, talking to relatives about it, anything under a 7 is not even considered and earthquake. (Reminds me of very picky guys at a bar - not even considered a girl unless shes a 7). It apparently happens so often that people don't even blink when it does happen. The buildings are all "anti-seismic" so there's "no worry" although anti-seismic means that buildings are designed to go with the flow and not resist the shaking. Quite scary, but safer than the alternative.
My cousin was saying how powerful the most recent earthquake was (~8.8) and how devastating the damage was. There seemed to be a sense of pride in terms of how resilient the Chilean people are. It was quite amazing to hear the stories.
I asked if there was an emergency procedure - he said "survive". I said that Chileans must be pretty good at that. He responded with "yes, though the Japanese took out glory with the 9.1!"
Saturday, February 9, 2013
2. Whistling and a city tour
Yesterday was a city tour day. Slept in a bit and hand a relaxing breakfast. Caught one of the bus tours where you can get on and off as you please. People were pretty friendly as they noticed that we were looking for the stop closest to our hotel. A whistle at us and they would point to where we had to go. I've adopted the thumbs up signal to say "thanks" or "ok". I assume they are whistling to help me and not just at Lori. There was one specific time when some dude from a balcony was whistling at Lori for sure. I don't know what I'm supposed to do at that point.
1. Shake an angry fist at them, scowling
2. Hold on to Lori's hand to show attachment
3. Grab her butt
4. Take a picture of them - Take back the power, as it were
In this case because we were on the tour bus I adopted Abed and Troy's (community) technique to avoid situations and pretended to be asleep. I'll tell you that Lori smiling and waving at the whistling isn't helping at all.
Had a nice dark beer at lunch. Its called "From the Port - Blackbeard". Pretty good! The bottle of water we got was more expensive than the beer itself. It seems as though Walt Disney is in charge of Chilean beer. Half expect to find Pluto beer or some Minnie mouse champagne.
One last thing. Lots of smoking here. Laziest smoking ever. There's were two people smoking standing beside an ash tray facility. Apparently the ash tray was too far away for them to dispose of the ash in a Canadian manner. With great indignation I took a picture of "Lori", for my personal records.
More later...
1. Shake an angry fist at them, scowling
2. Hold on to Lori's hand to show attachment
3. Grab her butt
4. Take a picture of them - Take back the power, as it were
In this case because we were on the tour bus I adopted Abed and Troy's (community) technique to avoid situations and pretended to be asleep. I'll tell you that Lori smiling and waving at the whistling isn't helping at all.
Had a nice dark beer at lunch. Its called "From the Port - Blackbeard". Pretty good! The bottle of water we got was more expensive than the beer itself. It seems as though Walt Disney is in charge of Chilean beer. Half expect to find Pluto beer or some Minnie mouse champagne.
One last thing. Lots of smoking here. Laziest smoking ever. There's were two people smoking standing beside an ash tray facility. Apparently the ash tray was too far away for them to dispose of the ash in a Canadian manner. With great indignation I took a picture of "Lori", for my personal records.
More later...
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Day 1. BS machine and maple leafs
About to commence the epic quest (operation honeymoon)!
Flight got delayed for half an hour because the baggage scanning machine (has to be called the BS machine right?) was broken. Lamest excuse ever. Fortunately, Lori booked the flights with enough time in between that it wasn't an issue.
I did get sleepy while waiting and Lori asked if I wanted to use her horseshoe pillow sleeping device. It's promises to give the user a relaxing sleep, supporting ones head and giving the neck a chance to relax. You see, the horseshoe gives the illusion that should your head bob, the soft pillowy goodness will catch your head allowing the neck to relax. Turns out it doesn't. Either that or my head weighs way too much. In any case, all the horshshoe pillow did was give me a neck strain. Should have put the pillow through the bs machine!
One of the things I wanna do is pretend like I don't speak Spanish. I want to determine whether people here will be able to see past my Latino-ness and see that I feel Canadian, inside. Will the Chileans be able to see my maple-leafiness?
Time will tell!
Flight got delayed for half an hour because the baggage scanning machine (has to be called the BS machine right?) was broken. Lamest excuse ever. Fortunately, Lori booked the flights with enough time in between that it wasn't an issue.
I did get sleepy while waiting and Lori asked if I wanted to use her horseshoe pillow sleeping device. It's promises to give the user a relaxing sleep, supporting ones head and giving the neck a chance to relax. You see, the horseshoe gives the illusion that should your head bob, the soft pillowy goodness will catch your head allowing the neck to relax. Turns out it doesn't. Either that or my head weighs way too much. In any case, all the horshshoe pillow did was give me a neck strain. Should have put the pillow through the bs machine!
One of the things I wanna do is pretend like I don't speak Spanish. I want to determine whether people here will be able to see past my Latino-ness and see that I feel Canadian, inside. Will the Chileans be able to see my maple-leafiness?
Time will tell!
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