Spanish - what seems at the moment the most unreachable task of my life, becoming fluent.
Although I have to admit Spanish is one of the more easier languages to learn, because it's no Japanese or Thai with its own alphabet. Although I have started to notice how I'm beginning to understand more during the conversations of others. It also really helps when people slow down when they are talking (my host-family is amazing at the slow and simple words with actions) because the Spanish here is muy rápido! It's one thing to understand the conversation and what is going on/being talked about but it's a whole different ball game when it comes to speaking and responding!

Being here for 3.5 weeks there has been improvement in my Spanish especially since I came with nothing! My goal was at 3 weeks to be able to form some sentences, and I'm partially there. I have been able to ask for permission for things and make some points in which my host family or classmates can somewhat understand me. It's coming along, slowly but surely, and I've been learning new Spanish words daily - some that are useless and some that I will eventually be able to create sentences with.

Chile's national holiday, Vacaciones de Septiembre, is coming up next week and its the celebration of 200 years! It's a really big holiday and pretty much lasts a week. I've been told there is typically a lot of dancing, food, drink, and more food. Next week I have classes from Monday-Wednesday but they're only half days. Also my school is having a little fiesta and the classes are dancing, and guess who will be joining?! Yep - I volunteered to dance with my class, the only thing is that I need to find a typical Chilean style dress so I can look the part. The dance that my class is doing is really simple (I forget the name) but it also depends on your partner... I was the last girl to join in... enough said. But it'll be fun anyways - look for hilarious pictures coming soon!

The weather here is starting to warm up thankfully, even the last few days the temperature in Canada and here have been the same... and we're just starting to enter spring! On the days when the sun is out I swear I can feel myself getting a tan during break, but then i come back in, rosy cheeks and I'm still the white girl!

I'm also starting to constantly say or think "Hey, this is Chile" in so many situations. Whether its the kissy sounds that follow me around, the crowded buses where I almost couldn't get off of this morning and had to push myself through, the supermarket that is half under construction but is still a supermarket, how I never know what class I have or what to do, or the the bags of mayo and ketchup in place of jars, things are just different here - and I like it. I've already memorized the pattern of the one car alarm that seems to go off daily somewhere, and the dogs that never stop barking or sound like they want to kill each other are becoming normal background noise.

Mañana is the first orientation for all the 4340 Inbounds!