My hands we really sore after we got back, but it was worth it to have tons of fresh food for meals. I've been craving fruits and vegetables since I arrived and had heard about this mythical place were everything is super barato(cheap) and finally I capitalized on it.
Friday night was spent in the house cramped around the tiny kitchen table. There were six of us in the kitchen, and no one mentioned we go into the living room. Oh well. Vinnie came over with a bottle of Pisco after I finished work. We had a little dinner of palta, jamón(ham) and queso. Then my mama, my sister, her pololo(boyfriend), my brother, Vinnie and I hung out till the early morning talking and enjoying our cultural experience of imbibing Chilean drinks and telling stories. It was great. Here's a picture from the that night.
Saturday was the day of eating. I woke up and made a beautiful omelet, then a couple hours later Marie Jose(sister) prepared a wonderful almuerzo(lunch) of humita and veggies, so I couldn't resist the invitation to join her and Juan(her boyfriend). After that feast, I got a text message from one of my Duoc co-workers Veronica, asking if I wanted to come over to her house for an asado(bbq). Of course I'll go to someone's house and probably be the sole gringo. Around 7:00, Vinnie and I took off on the Metro and she picked us up and the next thing we knew we were sipping Heineken with her family and friends. I'm getting comfortable with meeting family members now. Veronica turned 30 on Wednesday, and her husband also had a birthday two weeks ago so it was a big party for them. Strangely enough her husband of 5 years, Casey is from Michigan. We instantly bonded by sharing the same trait of describing our state with our hand. Casey brought two snowboards down and said I can use his old snowboard if I can't figure out how to get mine down here. When we(USA residents) think of BBQ we usually imagine hot dogs/brats/ burgers with chips, maybe a salad and some beer. Here in Chile an asado is an event. We showed up around 7:45 and the charcoal was lit a little after 8:00. When it was all said and done we finished with homemade birthday cake around 12:30am. The order of serving for an asado is the following: appetizers of pretzels, chips, peanuts and beer/wine/or liquor. Then later, the Chilean version of hot dogs are served. After this, you are feeling content only to look at the grill and see the equivalent of a couple chickens, and a sizable portion of a cow sizzling, and then the main dishes are brought outside consisting of a salad, rice/corn dish, tomato dish, and breads. When all the dishes are cleared everyone is full beyond belief and there is usually some food left over. I swear when Chileans plan for an asado, they think, "ok there will be about 15 people at our party, but just to be safe, let's get enough food and alcohol for 30." The guests were a mix of other co-workers, my site coordinator and some family members. Since the majority of the people were Chileans who teach English they were having fun teaching us gringos Spanish verbs, and pronunciation. It was nice because I wasn't the worst Spanish speaker at the party and was able to explain myself when they asked me questions.
One again, my belief that the people here are incredible was reinforced. Good times, food, people, learning. I feel blessed everyday I'm down here, because so far things are working out for me.
(Last night we had our daylight savings, so I believe Chile is now in Eastern Time Zone)
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