Day 5: A Lesson in Chilean Culture (8 May 2013)

Today was a much-needed break. Instead of an action-packed day of sightseeing and dancing, we got to sit in a classroom and hear all about Chilean culture. Luckily we got to take many breaks to digest each section that we learned about. Topics covered included history, literature, geography, tourism, art, culture, social issues, natural disasters, advertisements, and music. 

I found the lecture about the differences between the United States and Chile to be the most interesting. The values of each society are different, and this difference manifests in various conflicting perceptions, attitudes, and behavior. For example, Chileans generally accept authority easily whereas we tend to be very quick to question anyone in a position of power. Another interesting difference is that Chileans do not value punctuality as much as we do, often arriving at social gatherings and even official business meetings up to an hour after the agreed upon time. There is much more emphasis on groups and family than there is in the United States, to the point where it is very uncommon to see someone going out alone. In the United States there is more of an individualistic feel, and people seem to isolate themselves as they get older whereas Chileans are very social for their entire lives. When I heard our professor tell us this, I wished that the United States had more of a group emphasis past young adulthood; it seems as though older couples tend to isolate themselves more than they might in Chile. 

We again ate lunch in the dining hall, although this time we were unable to find any seats together because it was so full of students. It was very awkward walking around to look for a spot to sit down since I knew nobody and I am not very good at speaking Spanish. The experience reminded me of being a new student at a new school. This opened my eyes to how difficult it would be to come to another country on my own and try to make a living for myself, and it reminded me how grateful I am to be on an organized trip with students who are able to speak English. 

To round out the day, we crowded back on the public bus and headed to get dinner. I am not sure how, but the empanadas we purchased seemed even more delicious today than those we had on Monday. My favorite part of the day was most certainly the empanadas. If it were up to me, I would eat them for every meal!