3-Day Village Study in Nueva Imperial

       I just got back to Temuco from the village study and had an really awesome time! I finally decided where I'm doing my ISP -- Nueva Imperial for sure. So it was really good to have a chance to get to know the town with friends before sending myself off there by myself. The town was even cuter and sweeter than I thought before, and this trip made me even more excited to do my ISP there--I learned so many things and met so many people, so now I literally can't wait to start my ISP and live there for a month!
       I feel like we were in a reality tv show because they dropped us off in a random town, gave us money to pay for food and a palce to stay, and we had a project to do by the time we got back today. There were 4 of us; Marlee, Machi, Katie, and Me. The first thing we had to do was find the police station and let the police know that there are gringas in town (so we know where they are and so they know that there are gringas in town and not to worry) Then we found a hostal to stay in--for 13USD we stayed in this tiny little hostel that you get into from a skinny blue door you wouldn't even notice on the street if you didn't know about it. It's run by a sweet old lady and her family and was like a really really simple bead-and-breakfast. We stayed there for 2 nights, and during the day we had to go into the town center and get information about the town's education, health care, transportation, religion, arts, culture etc.

My group the first day in Nueva Imperial!

A few highlights from our adventures....
     -There were 2 other guys staying there at the same time as us, so we got to know them a bit. They're on the Chilean canoe racing team and they're training on the river in town for the 2012 Olympics...So cool! They're living in the hostel in Imperial while they train for a year, so we can be friends when I go back for my ISP!  :-)
         - The people in Nueva Imperial are unbelievably friendly..like I can't even try to explain how every person is nicer than the next! We went to a bar for a beer and to watch the soccer game, and there was this sweet lady working there who was doing Easter arts & crafts the whole time we were there. She was cutting out eggs and flowers to hang on the walls of the bar. Then she brought us over some chocolate Easter eggs with a big smile...She's a little late for Easter, but I guess it's the thought that counts.
       -We also went to the forestry and agriculture office in town to get info on natural resources and ecology (part of the project we had to do) And they told us they have a Jeep that goes into el campo, the countryside, and they said if I go back on a day they're going into el campo they will take me with them to show me!

This is the hospital I'll be doing my ISP at!
You can see the occidental part (white) and the Mapuche part (the wood hut)

       -We went to the hospital to find out some information about public health care in Nueva Imperial. We were blown away by how easy it was to find someone to talk to--the janitor brought us to the secretary, who brought us to the assistant director of the hospital! We explained they we're study abroad students learning about communities and health care, and he spent a good 45 minutes talking to us about the hospital and how it's set up (It's essentially two hospitals--one for occidental medicine and one for traditional Mapuche medicine) At the end, I asked if there was a chance I could observe some of the therapists for my ISP, and he said absolutely! So now I know that My ISP can actually happen!
       -Yesterday we went to the school in town to find about their education system. The secretary dropped whatever she was doing to talk to us for half an hour and then take us on a tour of the entire school, where she introduced us to all the teachers and faculty. We met the English Teacher,  who said she would let me come back to teach a lesson or two and work with her classes! She also said I could join her to the English classes she teaches at the local jail--that could be quite an experience. I've kind of always wanted to teach English to little Latino kids and now I'm going to be able to! I have to work out some details with her, but I'll probably try to volunteer in the school in the mornings and work on my ISP in the hospital in the afternoons.
     -We also went to a few art shops and talked to some street artists to learn a little bit about the culture and they were all super nice. This one lady making baskets in the plaza says we should be friends when I go back and would wave at me every time I walked by her booth.  :-)
     So basically, the people in Nueva Imperial are awesome, the town is precious, the food is ridiculously cheap, and I already have a few familiar faces and contacts!

Tired, cold, and wet, but happy to be exploring the town

I still have a lot to do to get ready for my ISP--I have to figure out my host family situation, how I'm going to schedule my time, and I have to tweak my proposal because I'm slightly changing my topic. But it's all starting to come together, and I know it will eventually.

Tomorrow we're going to Bariloche, Argentina, to learn about their health system..I'm guessing it's very different from Chile's. And Bariloche is known for its delicious chocolate... It should be a good time!