where has the time gone? the weeks have flown by and i dont even know where to begin.

i find myself in a panic to do absolutely everything before i leave in july, and yet at the same time a part of me just wants to sit in santiago on the weekends, hanging out with friends and enjoying the little things that i love so much about my life here. while i love to travel, i have grown attached to this city and the backdrop of the (newly) snow-covered andes. it will, without a doubt, be a tough goodbye.

tonight i had my last session for my chilean culture and politics class. our guest lecturer was a woman named tita parra. she is the niece of violeta parra who is a famous chilean singer/artist that has become a symbol of chilean culture. the whole parra family is very musical and we were priveleged to have her come to our class to sing with her son. as she sang of her love for her country and the simple observations that brought her joy every day, i felt a sense of content. while this trip has been a challenge, i have learned so much about this culture and about myself. i am so happy.

today--like every wednesday--i went to the bus station to get on my bus for the hour and a half bus ride to chinigue el cristo in order to teach english. when i arrived, the bus driver recognized me, led me to the bus, and started bragging about me to his co-workers and the other people on the bus. so great. there is one point in the drive where we cross over a bridge and there are horses and cows drinking from the river where it forms an estuary with a bunch of white cranes---it is spectacular and it takes my breath away every time. while i arrived at the town only to discover that classes had been canceled for the day, that one scene made the whole trip worth it.

when i think about leaving here, a part of me gets extremely excited and the other part of me is terrified. i cannot wait to see my family and relax at home, but i truly love my life here. i love walking to the metro every day, finding my way home on the complicated bus system, looking up randomly at the statue of mary on the top of cerro san cristobal, walking to the theatre to watch ballet, deciding randomly after class to grab a beer with friends, having interesting coversations with cab drivers, all of the things that i never really did in the states and that have really made me grow as a person. i know it sounds so cheesy, pero no se que decir.

my sister comes to visit from ecuador tomorrow. im so stoked---i cannot wait to show her around. im not sure how she will react, seeing as santiago is extremely different from her life in manta. we shall see--im just so excited to spend time with mi nana!!

i know this was kind of a lame attempt at a blog entry, but better than nothing. i will try to be better as this experience comes to a close. i'll have a lot of "deep thoughts" to share im sure. i hope all is well with you...

....beth o!