facebook

well its been decided. I'm signing up again. i know its sad, and like 55% of me thinks i'll regret this tomorrow & i'm just better off not... but....

i'm agreeing to participate in the least private, but most watched website program/website in the world -- and for what you ask? just to feel a sense of inclusion?   mmhhhmm maybe. i've thought about that aspect of it, and in part it is true. -- honestly though, never in drunken states did i wish to hear about the news on facebook, neither did i wish on lonely wednesday afternoons or monday monday mornings to see who posted new "food-photos" or pics of the latest/most comfortable pedals & shoes for biking..  I just think signing up now is a good idea -- to actually stay in contact with people (cause no one uses e-mail any more) ... ..

i've just always found my own news worth reading/researching/whatever.. Holy shit this is a stupid post about nothing & i'm terrible sorry   no incredibly      sorry!!!  for subjecting you to this post, -- in all of my Canadian-ness i am truly sorry.  you really should find something better to do to occupy your time with...


i've sign up for facebook again & i already regret it.  if you want to be my "friend" (whatev that means, just search my name i'm sure you'll find me)

-rinn

Sight-seeing

I have been sight-seeing many times, often by myself.. and whenever or wherever I go, its always by mistake but overall its a pleasant experience..

So today i went sight-seeing in Vilches! I went looking for the waterfalls I saw last time but I ended up here instead:

its a beautiful spot, and i usually see the falls from the top, so it was really nice to see them from the bottom today. After seeing them though, i went sight-seeing... which wasn't too fun at first, just a lot of bush-whacking and uncomfortable climbing... then the panic sets in & i think to myself "i have till 17:00 (5pm), then i'm stuck here till morning" ... but then I see this view, and all those worries and concerns dissipate and I stand rapt in awe! 

A great friend of mine told me that whenever he sees this he thinks of Coors Light -- Now every time I see it I think of my Uncle Ron, Paudash Lake, and Coors Light (aka Lake Water) : Good times, great memories! Needless to say, sight-seeing was much more enjoyable once I had this in view.

Being in the mountains is unlike anything else. It makes me think of Henry David Thoreau and his book Walden.. there is a time in everyone's life where you need to get away from it all (whatever that means) and just live in the quiet, stillness.  Once I got back, out of the mountains, I realized that even though I can never predict when i'll go sight-seeing, I always throughly enjoy it.

Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.

Henry David Thoreau

that's all,
-rinn

Canary Yellow

A little while ago I wrote that I was living in a yellow house. I have since moved, and I realized today during a very important conversation, that I truly miss the canary yellow walls -- so much that I think I'm less-happy now than I was previously.

This, as ridiculous as it sounds, is probably pretty accurate. Colour influences mood, energy, and all that.. I miss canary yellow! What a revelation!!

Fortunately, that's not the only new thing I've discovered recently...haha! This past weekend I took a trip up to the mountains, kinda close by, and discovered a very friendly horse, a monkey rock, and a view that will leave you breathless (both meanings intended).

I had a truly wonderful time, and can't believe it took me so long to get there, i mean its almost the end of September already! Aw well, I've still got time..

fallen in love...

I never thought it was possible, and i think i swore it would never happen but, never say never.. & its true:

i have fallen in love with a (singular) small dog.

The family i'm living with has a small lap-dog --can't tell you her name to save my life--but that's not what's important here. I love her. She is probably the sweetest most affectionate being i've met in this country! Every morning, afternoon & evening, whenever i see she her, she literally jumps up to see me. She follows me to the bus, to school -- i guess to make sure i arrive safely, not sure what she would do if i was ever in real trouble, she's a little too little to do anything to help me...regardless, she's a wonderful, gentle and affectionate friend....not entirely surprising, she's is a dog & that's just what dogs do..

Anyways, she's a sweet heart and has forever changed my perspective on tiny dogs.

thats all,
-corinne

September Showers Bring October Flowers..

well, regular life and "back-to-school" season has gotten off to a bumpy start.

with 2 teachers away, one on holidays, one on bed rest due to a snow-boarding accident -- things have been pretty busy here, unexpectedly so -- regardless it's nice to be back in the swing things.

Winter here is vastly different from any other winter i've ever experienced. with so little to do, and so few ways to get warm...lets just say i'm glad its over.

Normal

classes are full and busy, with youngsters getting excited about a language they might never actually need. 

New teachers are here, 2 from the UK and one from the US. All are wonderful people I enjoy spending time with and enjoy planning lessons with.. odd i've never enjoyed the whole "lesson-planning" part of the job, but when you have good company, you can do anything -literally- and it be fun. 

Next

I've been reading and watching a lot of Ann Rynd in my free time. Not sure why I started, although i know now its difficult to stop. Reading has always been an addiction of mine, which won't surprise anyone reading this.. The Fountainhead and Altas Shrugged have been monumental books in the history of literature and philosophical thought, so i thought (during my winter break) it was about time i read them myself. 

I have to admit, they are pretty mind-altering reads. I enjoy Rynd's philosophy on life and appreciate her descriptions of how life ought to be. I hope to apply what i've read into my own life, in my own way. 

Coming up

Dieciocho or Fiestas Patrias! The biggest holiday in all of Chile, just a week away.. and I have no official plans (other than drinking with friends, of course). Everywhere just comes alive in a way that North American can only dream about. The city already is getting ready for the holiday. It's Chilean Independence Day, but it lasts for about a week. teehee, gotta love how things happen down here. 

Talca is one of the places to be for this time of year, so I don't feel too bad about not having a bus ticket outta here, although I do think I'll go to Santiago for a bit, and maybe Santa Cruz, have some wine and go shopping... nothing special, but sometimes those are the best kinda times. 

in the mean time

teaching, planning for teaching and eating amazing pizza... going for walks up to the mountain and drinking good beer are taking up my time, so i have no complaints. 

I plan on climbing a mountain in November, so in true Corinne fashion, i'm going to start training and preparing for that. Hoping that it'll be the start of me returning back to my more active and out-doorsy self. 

Hope your doing well, and the summer has been good to you. More up-dates to come as the summer creeps closer and I become more alive.. .shaking off the dew and damp cold that has been my winter here.

-rinn

Homesickness

well its been awhile since i've written last, and i must admit i haven't known what to write or really how to put down exactly what i've been thinking, but now (at 3:04am, sat 17th of August) i think i've had a few moments of clarity. 

you see i've never considered considered myself to be any good at writing, and i don't think i ever will, but here goes nothing.... please forgive my rambling. 

The last few months have been pretty grey -- literally and figuratively. It's winter here, which always seems to bring out the introvert in me, apologies.

to business then: Teaching has been a treat, I love my job. I won't go into incredible detail. What I will say is that: my students have been eager and my co-workers are the best kind of people anyone could wish to work with.

but, (there's always a but) Its not the same when the truth is you know you really don't belong in the place you find yourself in. 

Truth is as much as i do enjoy my job, and my co-workers, that's about all i enjoy. Its not the same here as it is in Canada/KW/Home. 

What i've learned from my time away so far is that, 

1. never go back on your word. for example: I've signed up for a contract, and i'll see it out >I won't lie, its not the easiest thing i've done (lying is easier, much easier).

2. be honest, (i think number 2 is the same as number 1, but as any teacher will tell you, repetition is the only way to learn) 

3. family, at least being part of one, is the most important thing in life. Everyone here belongs to a family, contributes and receives an amazing amount of love. I feel so far away from mine, & i've learned the hard way that it is possible to make some form of a family wherever you go, but the blood ties you have are well... its much more than anything else I could ever hope to fully express in a stupid blog.

4. a job is a job. doesn't matter where you are or what you do, you put into your work what you want. 

one final thought before i try to get some sleep,

own only what you can always carry with you:

know languages, know countries, know people

let your memories be your travel bag

~Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Settled in.

Been here for almost two months, and I am quite settled in.

New Home

Currently, I'm living in a cookie-cutter neighbourhood right across from the Universidad de Talca. I have never lived in suburbia before, and its not too bad. In all actual fact its more of a student-ghetto than suburbia.. The house i'm living in is canary yellow in colour -- and I do love it. Some back story just so you understand why this is important to me... When I was young my family and I lived in a small condo that Mom decided to paint yellow (not canary yellow mind you, but yellow just the same). After we moved out of that house I told her, no it was more of a command: "never paint yellow on the walls again" (I have always hated yellow because it reminds me of a tiny uncomfortable house). Fast forward a few years later, and what house do I choose to rent in a foreign country? = a yellow house! and not just any type of yellow, canary yellow!! Now you understand... strange eh? but I've found that the yellow makes me smile -- it's really just that simple.

I also have 3 lovely international students as roommates. Two of which are from the south of France, the other is from the south of Spain. We cook, laugh and party together. They are also helping me a great deal with my Spanish. 

Teaching... .. .

Classes started at the beginning of April, and wow has the time flown by! I am teaching morning classes and all English levels, 1 through to 5, and there is a lot of diversity, for example: some students in level two are more confident and talkative than those in level 5. Life lesson: doesn't matter what stage (or level in some cases) of live you're at: confidence in speech comes from your personhood, your character. 

Teaching is not as stressful as I originally thought. Each of my classes are only 30 minutes long, which hardly gives one time to teach a variety of things. I've been learning to keep my instructions short, clear and specific. I've learned also not to bite off more than the class can chew, choosing one activity/topic/subject-matter to discuss has been challenging -- but then, teaching is just a different type of learning. 

Religious holidays:

Here it depends on where are. For example: Palm Sunday, in Curico, the streets were alive with people and full of celebration. The next weekend in Talca however, the streets were vacant, with maybe a small community of worshipers remembering what their Saviour did for them. 

I have learned a very important lesson again: that wherever you go, you cannot take your expectations and stereotypes with you and try to place them on others. Others will not only reject these expectations, but they will shock and amaze you with their true nature their real way of being which ought not to be defined. Life is a journey, yes having destinations along the way, but a journey in which one's identity is always changing, adapting and growing.

Life outside of class

Free time has been pretty full this past month! 

I went to Lollapalooza, a weekend-long concert in Santiago. It was amazing, just really fun!! I stayed at a hostel called Santiago Backpackers -- truly an amazing place, the staff are great, the food was really good, the beds were comfortable and the showers were excellent! 

The concert was wonderful! I listened to so much music, every 2 hours experiencing different bands and meeting new people along the way. I had a really great time.

I meet some fellow Canadians at the hostel and spent Saturday with them. Had a lot of fun and forgot how much I missed hearing "eh?!" 

Sunday I went throughout the concert mostly by myself, which was fun as well seeing the bands I wanted to and just simply enjoying the sun!! 

It was a great weekend!

The next few weekends were much more relaxed and low-key. This past weekend however, April 26th to 28th, I went to the breathtakingly beautiful city of Valparaiso, Chile! 

view from the place I was staying (couchsurfing.org great way to travel)

Valparaiso is a costal city just two hours west of Santiago, 6 hours by bus from my Talca. It was a truly wonderful trip! I throughly enjoyed it, part of me wonders why I didn't just find a job there and stay. Living on the cost has always been a dream of mine, and maybe after I finish teaching here in Talca I'll move there. Valparaiso is the kinda place that at upon arrival you are immediately at ease, amazed by the culture and impressed by the ocean and general atmosphere. I plan on going back in two weeks. 

Up close and almost lost my shoes to the ocean again!! 

This picture is a shot from when I went to touch the water. I was with some lovely German girls that I met through other new friends. We wanted to get right up and close to the water, touching the pacific for the first time was incredible! 

It was amazing to fully experience the power of the ocean, I think I'm addicted to it. The waves were huge! The season is definitely changing, it was amazing to see the waves, hear the sound and just stand rapt in awe of it all. 

Living so far from the ocean is difficult, once you've spent a few days on the coast you never want to leave. It really does something to you..

Well that's all for now, I'll try to write more soon. Hope your all doing well, and if you want more pictures just e-mail me and I can send you the link. 

peace,

-corinne