Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

Tag: USA

Mi Trabajo! Starting the actual internship part of my life here :)

June 12, 2011 / / 1 Comment

Colegio Jorge Williams!

The amazing quiche we made!

Mid-day assembly, the kids get in line and have a routine of “arms up! to the side! in front! at your sides!” to end up standing straight like ladies and gentlemen 🙂

Taller de Cocina (Cooking Class) at Rukantu…Rodrigo is an amazing cook!

Oh hey, it’s been awhile! I have so much to tell! I finally got to start working this week and I absolutely loved my first week in the programs. It was definitely a week of introductions and planning, so this next week is when I really dig into things, but I’ll give you an introduction to what I’m doing and was up to this past week! My time is divided between 5 programs. I really love all the variety in my work schedule, every day is different! (I will add photos ASAP!)

 

On Monday, Tuesday and Friday I work from 9am-1pm in Colegio de Jorge Williams, a school for preschool-8th grade that is sponsored by the YMCA. The YMCA started this school to create a place for kids from troubled homes, whether that is from abuse, lack of money, alcohol abuse or other reasons. They provide free breakfast and lunch to provide more economic help for the families and the staff is really great, all people who have a passion to help these kids create the foundation for a positive future. On Tuesdays I work with the music teacher in his classes for 5th and 7th graders, and on Mondays and Fridays I’m with the third graders. I love the Colegio so far, especially the 3rd graders. I was mostly observing in the music classes, I’ll be teaching part of the class next Tuesday, but there was tons to do with the 3rd graders. One of the difficulties in this school is that discipline is really difficult. Often the kids don’t have a very controlled environment in their homes, and it’s obvious that many of them don’t get enough attention. So the kids want your attention all the time and speak out of turn and interrupt a lot, it can be really hard to get things done. But the 3rd grade teacher is really great with the kids, they obviously adore her, and I’m glad that I can be there to help her keep control and attend to everyone; I don’t know how she does it every day! Helping the kids with their assignments was hilarious, I’ve found that the pattern is this:

1. “Tia Anna, Tia Anna, necesito ayuda, ahora, ahora!!” – “Ms. Anna, Ms. Anna, I need your help, now, now!”

2. Help with question, try to leave and help other student, but get pulled back and asked:

3. “Tia Anna, Tia Anna, como se dice [insert Spanish word] en ingles?!” – “Ms. Anna, Ms. Anna, how do you say [Spanish word] in English?”

4. Tell them the English word.

5. They say “en serio?” (really??!), try and pronounce it and start cracking up and telling all their friends.

6. Receive huge hug!

7. Repeat starting at Step 1 🙂

Haha, I love these kids, I’m pumped to have 2 more months with them! On Wednesday I work at the center in Las Cañas (all the hills have different names). Las Cañas has a soup kitchen and then runs different programs for the community, such as literacy workshops, english classes, bible studies, lifeskills etc… Wednesdays I go to help the soup kitchen cook, I’m definitely getting some good cooking lessons for my apartment next year! About 30-50 people come each day and I help to serve them, sit and eat with them and then clean everything up afterwards. I love interacting with the staff there and the people who come to eat, they are all really excited about the english class that I’m going to be teaching on Mondays (tomorrow, I’m nervous!). This Wednesday I went to the Bible study after lunch and made lesson plans and signs to put in the community for my english class, I’m excited to get started tomorrow! We’re having one for the adults at the center who come for lunch and one for kids and any community member who wants to come.

Thursdays I’m supposed to go to the center in Placeres, eat at the soup kitchen with the community members and afterwards help with two workshops: theatre and women’s empowerment ….perfect fit for me, right?!?!?! The center was closed this Thursday, but I’ll start next week!

Friday afternoons I go to Rukantu, a rehabilitation center for teenage boys who have been arrested for drug usage and/or a minor violent crime. The first time I visited Rukantu I was a bit nervous, but I really enjoy working at this center, the guys are really fun to hang out with and they LOVE having gringas visit, it’s kind of hilarious. Erica and I are going to teach an English class here (The director told us that if he tells the boys that two American girls (gringas) are coming to teach a class, everyone will come for sure, all you need to say is gringa….easy advertising! Haha). After the class they have a cooking class, this week we made pizza and it was DELICIOUS! Rukantu is much more chill, it’s nice to have a different working pace where I’m just talking with the boys and social workers in the center while we cook and eat, and then watching them show off and play ping-pong later…perfect ending to the week! I even got my palm read by one of the guys this Friday, it was hilarious, he told me that I’m going to have 3 children and that they will have a mix of gringa and chileno blood…so I have to stay in Chile to find my true love…smooth, haha 🙂

Finally, I’m involved in the YMCA Leaders program. It’s kind of like a youth group, they hold a Bible study Friday evenings and program Saturday afternoons. There are 2 program levels and you can graduate to become a Leader, but the first level is open to anyone and is a mix of a mini Bible lesson, games, some kind of topic/message to help the youth (for example, this Saturday they were talking about confidence and speaking in front of other people and had lots of activities to practice). The YMCA Leaders are such a fun group of people, they’re the ones that I see at the Y all the time and hang out with and I love the program too, all the teenagers are really friendly and it’s pretty easy to make friends as a gringa, everyone wants to talk to you!

So that’s my work schedule! I’m feeling more and more like a Chilena now, walking around the city on my own, going to work, taking the bus and taxis, having favorite restaurants and foods…I really like having some more independence with my days!! I’m off to work on my lesson plans right now for my 1st English classes tomorrow, wish me luck, I’m a bit nervous! Now that you know about work, my next post will be about night life in Chile, baila, baila, baila!! Besos choros!

International Flights…¿Qué Divertido, no?

May 19, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Estoy in Chile!!! It’s crazy to think that I’ve already been here 2 days! It feels both very short and much longer than that at the same time 🙂

Viajadores a Chile!

But I’m gonna focus on the adventure of getting to Chile for this blog post, because let me tell you, it was quite the adventure. We took a pretty crazy flight because we were able to get it SUPER cheap…but part of the reason for that was that it had 2 layovers in foreign countries and arrived in Santiago at 2:35 in the morning…yikes. We left O’Hare at 10am, arrived in San Salvador, El Salvador at 1:30, had to wait for 2 hours, took a 4 hour flight to Lima, Peru, had to wait for 2 more hours and then took another 4 hour flight to Santiago! Once in Santiago we had to wait until 8 am to get picked up by the people from the Y and then had a 2 hour drive from Santiago to Valparaíso.

So here’s what I learned from this international traveling experience:

ANNA WIERSMA’S DO AND DON’TS OF INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL:

DO talk to the people next to you on the plane, you’ll be amazed by people’s stories!

  • I was a little bit worried about sitting alone (didn’t want to get stuck by a fat man snoring, ya know?) but I actually had really interesting people by me every time! First I had two male dentists who were going to Honduras for a week to volunteer in a dental clinic, second a couple going on their honeymoon to Macchu Picchu and third two Chilean women who I started to call my “mamas chilenas”. My “mamas chilenas” were my favorite becasue they were both my mom’s age with 20 year old daughters and started fussing over me immediately, it was adorable 🙂 They needed to know everything about my life at college and my travels to Chile and gave me as much advice as they could cram into our conversation! I’m very used to the American culture of public transportation where you sit as far away from strangersas possible and don’t talk, but everyone was very kind and eager to tell their story and hear mine, it was a great start to the trip. But you could definitely see the cultural shift with my “Chilean mamas”. Instead of onlytalking for 15-30 minutes, we talked for at least a good hour, in Spanish! It definitely calmed some of my nerves to actually hold an hour long conversation, plus they said my Spanish was really fluid already, so that was encouraging! When they heard that I had to wait in the airport for 5 hours to get picked up they were all worried about me and saying that they wish they knew me beforehand so I could stay and sleep at their house…and I’m finding that this is pretty typical Chilean hospitality, it’s grand 🙂

    Pobrecitas! 🙁 Our makeshift beds in the airport

DON’T choose a flight where you arrive at 2 am and have to wait to get picked up…

  • The only scary/bad part was when we had to wait from 2:30-8:00 in themorning I suck at sleeping on planes…it’s bad. I tried so hard for the last flight, but I can never get comfortable enough, no matter how tired I am!  I probably only really slept for an hour. So my advice would be, don’t bank on getting any sleep in a plane, unless you have a long flight and Tylenol PM! For our wait in the airportwe set up camp on some benches and tried to sleep, but it wasn’t very comfortable and the airport was FREEZING for some reason! Plus, we looked so pathetic, I felt homeless, and it was just odd trying to sleep in public. Again I only really slept for about 2 hours, because we were trading watches over all of our luggage! And THEN, in typical Chilean fashion, they didn’t show up until 8:30! I was freaking out that we were at the wrong gate, because we could only find 1 and not 1a like they had told us, and the telephone number we had for the Y wasn’t working and I was getting SO worried, until all of a sudden these 3 Chileans descended on us and started hugging and kissing and saying “Bienvenidos!”! Phew!

DO fork out the cash to get yourself some real food in the airport!

Estoy in Chile! We found a playground in the Santiago airport...Levi and Erica were very excited 🙂

  • TACA airlines, thank for feeding me on every single flight. Really, that was super nice of you. But already by the second time around, your limp pasta noodles were not making my stomach too happy, sorry to say. Ordering from Subway in San Salvador however, was a lifesaver! Plus, it was hilarious. I had no idea how to ask for oil and vinegar, I had done well up until then, so I apologized and asked for “the salsa rojo y la salsa amarillo” and they started cracking up, but they understood. And then they told me I had done a great job for an American and even clapped for me once I paid successfully in pesos. I took a little bow, which got them laughing all over again, “tontos americanos” (stupid Americans ;D)

Ok, I think that’s all I’m gonna say for the trip. I have some pictures to share of our travels and my past two days have been jam-packed with touring Valparaíso, meeting new people, going out to try Chilean food and speaking in Spanish todo el día!! Valparaíso is an absolutely gorgeous city. I’m right in the center of the city at the Y, but there are humongous hills surrounding the whole city that are stuffed with brightly colored houses as far as the eye can see and I’m also a 5-10 minute walk from the ocean. I’ll describe more in my next post, I’ve already taken so many pictures!!!

As they say in Chile, “Chao!”

A little taste of Valparaíso 🙂

Going Home

May 13, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Well the day has arrived. On my way back to the USA. Last night we had a good-bye celebration which was super bittersweet but still fun.

My travel plans have changed a bit and it looks like I am going by myself to the airport in Mexico City. So, I’ll just confess to the entire world that I’ve been crying since 8:30 this morning. My friend Pat McCoy told me to cry and let it out and to feel sad if I have to.

It’s hard because my experience was more than just two semesters of traveling and seeing cool sites. Because of my lack of money, I really got to dive into the culture. Although my journey consisted of traveling, it was more getting to know the people and how the culture functions. I discovered that I identify more with Mexico than with my own-which makes it ten times more difficult.

However, I am so excited to go home. My friends Amrita, Howard and Erin are coming to pick me up and I am so, so happy to see them and other friends and of course, Mom and Dad.

I just have to let out the tears and have faith that everything work out and to breathe.

It’s hard but I’ll be back in Mexico very soon.

This experience made me realize the beauty of life and to live with more passion and vibrancy. I remember arriving here in August all excited and nervous but now I feel I am leaving with more confidence and a love for life.

I don’t know the future but everything will work out and no matter where I am at, Mexico will always be in my heart.

USA…here I come!

Saludos

Mexico has given me more passion for life.

Premiership Football: The Experience of a Lifetime

September 26, 2010 / / 2 Comments

Everyone has that one experience they’ve always dreamt of and waited what seems like their whole life for. No matter what I’ve seen or done, there has always been that one experience missing from my life. On Saturday I finally realized that dream: watching a live English Premier League match.

Being such an avid English football fan, it would be the world’s biggest crime if I went the entire semester in England without witnessing a live match. Thankfully I made sure that wouldn’t happen by attending the Fulham vs. Everton match at Craven Cottage in south London on Saturday, which, in all honesty, was nothing short of a dream come true.

The day started off with an hour train ride to London before proceeding to head to the city’s Underground. The tube, as it is known by most locals, can appear somewhat terrifying. With so many routes, so many trains, and so little knowledge of where anything in London is, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t slightly nervous about reaching my destination. Thankfully the Tube is not nearly as complicated as it appears and in fact, traveling to south London was much easier than I anticipated.

Upon arrival, I immediately stumbled upon a pub called Eight Bells. I walked in hoping to get a much needed bite to eat and to be able to converse with locals about the big match. To my surprise, the pub offered very little to eat and was filled with supporters from Everton who had traveled down from Liverpool to cheer on their beloved club. The countless stares I received because of my jersey encouraged me to search for another pub with more options for food… and more importantly, more Fulham supporters. Wearing a Clint Dempsey jersey in these parts is very much a common site. Wearing a USA Clint Dempsey shirt? Not so much. After all, he is the one who scored against England in the World Cup!

I walked along the Thames River looking for a pub when I found something else I never expected to see: Six Americans who flew in from Dallas that morning just for the game. Talk about dedication. It was nice to meet some other American Fulham fans, as well as some people who were as clueless as me about where anything in the area was. With the help of a few locals, however, we made our way to the King’s Arms Pub. The sign on the door said: Fulham and foreign supporters ONLY. We were definitely in the right place.

With just under three hours until kick-off, I was amazed at how packed the pub was. Everywhere I looked I saw people wearing Fulham jerseys, both men, women and children, all talking football and drinking pints of beer (except the kids of course). I talked to a handful of die-hard Fulham fans, some of who had only missed five home matches in the last 36 years. Now that’s really dedication.

As it neared closer to kick-off, the pub slowly began to empty out as everyone, including me and my fellow American fans, made our way down the street to Craven Cottage. There was no need for directions anymore. All we had to was follow the thousands of people heading for the stadium. And if that wasn’t enough, we could even hear the noise from the supporters who were already in the stadium. I looked at my watch and there was still 30 minutes until kick-off! Not too long later, I was inside the Cottage and walking down to my seat in the third row in Hammersmith End – the northernmost stand in the stadium and the home of the more vocal Fulham fans. Definitely the ideal place to sit for one’s first Premiership match!

Anyone who saw me could probably tell it was my first match. After all, if my eagerness to snap away at anything and everything with my camera didn’t make it obvious, the star-struck look in my eyes certainly did. In my defense though, Clint Dempsey, who is one of my all-time heroes, plays as a striker for Fulham, and is adored by their supporters as much as he is by me. I even heard several chants about him during the match, confirming my beliefs. Seeing all the players who I watch play on TV every weekend and being less than twenty feet away from some of them was absolutely surreal.

Once the match got underway, the noise only amplified and the excitement of being there only increased with every minute of play. The noise level created by the fans may have fluctuated throughout the match, but the passion of both sets of fans was there for all to see. And despite the match ending scoreless it was still a fantastic match and a phenomenal experience, every bit as amazing as I had hoped it would be. It’s an experience of a lifetime, especially when you’re a die-hard football fan.

After getting my first taste of English football, I already can’t wait to go to another match. With that in mind, I guess it’s a good thing I bought tickets for the West Ham vs. Fulham match this coming Saturday! If I’m in England, the birthplace of football, I might as well make the most of this opportunity and experience as much as I can of the sport most people in this country love more than anything.

© 2024 Valpo Voyager

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑