An Unforgettable Couple Days

I definitely won't miss this sight.

I had the craziest/most challenging/most memorable day of my life yesterday. I woke up at 7 am and started studying again for my bioarchaeology final certamen. I studied all the way up until the class at 2:30 but decided to get there early to talk to the TAs about my finger. I fell when I was running and my pinky might have a hair-line fracture because it is super swollen up. I ask them if I could please use my computer for the test and they said yes which was a miracle. I then proceeded to take a two hour test where I wrote 4 computer pages on the importance of the analysis of metabolic diseases, indicators of stress in bones, indicators of diets in ancient populations, etc. The second part was when everyone got their own box with a skeleton inside and had to make an analysis of it in terms of those themes listed. When I think about that test and tell people about it, neither I nor them can believe it. I find myself asking myself more and more as its about to be over: Rosey, what were you thinking girl? haha I mean, I am making it through and my grade is sufficient but really?! A bioarchaeology class with LAB while you are in Chile and the entire class is in Spanish and all the 15 other kids have then the bioarchaeology class for the first semester so are all up in the know-all while Rose is the extranjera. haha This has been a ridiculously crazy experience.

After the test, I gave Addy the present I got her and the 2 page letter I wrote her--thanking her for being my lab partner throughout the course and especially for being my friend. Then me, Addy, Sonia, Pachi, and Rocio all hung out and talked about California, grades, and life, but the whole time I was so happy inside because the people in this class have finally accepted me. It sounds weird but at the beginning, only Addy talked to me. Everyone else didn't say a word to me. So now to have people come up to me before class and greet me...or to give me articles they printed out for me that they thought would help me in my trabajo final...well, it makes me feel like I have really beat-and-won in a situation that was easily the CRAZIEST of my entire life. After talking with the girls, Addy and I walked through campus talking and there was a moment that I will always remember. We passed by a group of Chileans sitting in a circle on the grass...probably like 10...and 3 of them knew Addy so they waved at her and she greeted them and for a minute they looked at me like the extrajera. Then they realized that I was with Addy and they greeted me with an HOLA too...but it was much more than the hola that struck me. It was this sense I felt that because of Addy's kindness, I finally felt like I belonged.

Our lovely Thanksgiving feast!

Mi hermano, mi hermana y yo

Then mama Maggie got home and decided to
revolutionize self-timer picture taking...

The whole family at the dinner table

Even Chiquita decided to grace us
with her presence. Yes, this is little
inappropriate for the dinner table,
but Chiquita never seems to mind.
Oh that cat!

I got home and Jeremy, Hannah, and I whipped up a nice Thanksgiving dinner. Well, I'm not gonna lie, they did the cooking and I brought the wine. haha But when Maggie got home we had everything set up and got to have a nice family dinner. Of course, it was the best of both worlds because I had gotten to Skype with the whole family before I had dinner with my family in Chile. After dinner, we all fell into the appropriate after-thanksgiving-dinner coma and I didn't wake up until 10 am the next day! I woke up thinking that not matter what happens with this bioarchaeology class...I did it. I took that test that I was so scared about. I wrote the 15 page paper (and found out that I think I got a B on it!!! yay!) and took all the in-class tests and wrote informes and even spoke outloud a number of times about the evidence of trauma (for example) in the skeleton. I've done it all, and I've done it with flying colors considering I am a extranjera. After this experience, I can say that I have always been a humble person but in terms of my accomplishments in this class, I will always consider myself a bad-ass. And don't be surprised if I toot my horn from time to time when you see me in January...but I now know that there's not many people who would have made it through this course. And I am crazy for doing it but it has given me the sweetest satisfaction imaginable.

OK back to 10 am, I went for a run and got ready for Meg to come over. She rang the bell right on time and we spent the day working and planning out Buenos Aires and especially Patagonia! I can't believe we are leaving a week! And more importantly, I can 't believe that I am going to be doing tests and my presentations right up until that point. This trip is the hardest thing I have ever had to earn! lol but we all know that my work these past 5 months have earned me this trip! I'm sooooo excited!! :) At 3 pm we had a nice family lunch that didn't differ much from the rest considering everything about the world was still "rico" according to my Chilean mama and well...I guess you just had to be there. Then I worked a little more on my med. anth. essay and sang Rascal Flatts and Carrie Underwood and at 6 pm Hannah, Jeremy, and I left for Bella Vista for our final dinner together. Hannah leaves tomorrow for Vina del Mar for two weeks and I will be gone on my trip when she gets back. But we sure did have a great time and we enjoyed happy hour at a cute restaurant with seats out on the patio and drank our mojitos or pineapple daquaris or what-have-you as we talked about awesome topics and then switched over to Spanish from time to time. I love my siblings and I am gonna miss them a ton!

Did someone say Daquari?

La despedida de Hannah

I made some friends. That happens when they
find out a gringa can speak Spanish. hehe

Rose & Hannah: Ooooh Jeremy got a call.
Let's tease him & put bunny ears on him. hehe
We're goofy but we love it.

I will say this about my discovery process...Chile has made me a lot more capable to say what I want to say without thinking that I am talking too much. I have sooo much that I want to say and I am getting better at formulating it and expressing it to people and I like that. Also, it has made me even more of an observer I must say. I told them last night: wow maybe I should be an author. lol I just can't stop absorbing situatoins and people and life...hope its all for a reason because my brain is exhausted haha. OK well for now I must work on my essay because my friend Chris is going to correct it with me tonight. Oh one more thing, yesterday in Bella Vista I ran into my friend Carissa from church on the street and then made friends with the waiters and both restaurants we went to and then on the way back to the house ran into my friend Fred from the mini-mart and it was hilarious because Hannah and Jeremy were like: "Geez Rose do you know everyone in Santiago?! You are so popular." haha Chao for now. Love, Rosey

Santiago in Summer. Love the burgundy theme

of this picture. Our power color, right mama??