Good God.. Now I’m here. I’m sitting on my bed in the house where I’ll be staying for, well until I find an apartment of my own, looking around but still clearly not capable of grasping the reality of the situation I got myself into.

The amount of confusion rushing through my head is unbelievable. On the flight over I still couldn’t believe where I was going, but as the landing started to approach, I happened to glance at my neighbor’s screen and saw the outline of South America. The feeling that rose in me can’t be described by words because the moment I realized I was about to land in South America just didn’t seem real. It still doesn’t. And now I’m actually here.

Everything seems so normal. I arrived at the airport and Sra. and Sr. Rodriguez were there to greet me (known from now on as Angela and Freddy :P). I jumped into their car still not knowing where I was (don’t do this if you don’t have an agreed pick up appointment, just by the way). We started our journey through Santiago and finally arrived at their house. I was showed to my room which is more a corner of their upstairs living room, taken down to breakfast while I still probably looked like a confused chipmunk. I came into a normal family with a mom, dad, two daughters and a grandma cuter than a puppy, and everything just seems so normal. It throws me off. Of course my chipmunk like activity had continued throughout the morning because hell, I still don’t understand that I’m actually in Chile.

And why am I acting like a chipmunk? The sole reason for my utterly confused look is that most of the time I have no idea what I’m supposed to do. I understand Spanish pretty well and can speak it to an extent, but the way these Latinos speak, their pace – very fast - , and their own distinctive dialect has left me in the dark. I just stand around looking like a fool, asking if I can help but told to always just take it easy and relax. Haha have to add here that you’ll never guess what’s playing downstairs? ABBA! I was told that I’d feel more Finnish here than I had ever in my life before and I think it might be very true. The part of me that is missing is accentuated when I hear, smell or see something relating to Finland. ‘Chiquitita, tell me what’s wrooooooooooooooooooong’?

The answer: nothing’s wrong. Just confusing. These people don’t speak a word of English and after leaving Finland and staying with my mom in the States, being all of a sudden thrown into a world where I do nothing with my English and have to speak and understand Spanish can be very unsettling. Obviously I’m not the most secure person in the world and having to all of a sudden mutter this and that in Spanish to native speakers is terrifying. Especially after a long journey when the simplest words seem to escape my mind. Now as I’m writing this in English, I’m actually quite scared of going downstairs again because I know I’ll have to switch into Spanish again and when I’m this tired it’s not something I look forward to right now especially when I can’t help things with English. And holy craaaap it’s cold inside! I feel like my toes and nose will fall off any minute.

But anyway, my mom gave me a very good piece of advice at the airport: she told me that I will get so frustrated with this language issue every now and then but as time goes by and I learn to communicate with the locals it will get easier. And as sad and pathetic as this sounds, I won’t be surprised if I want to go back home after a few days struggle with communication. But even though I am so very grateful to these people for taking me in, I think it will also get a little easier when I’m living on my own and don’t have to constantly have my chipmunk face on and asking ‘scuuusmiiiii?’. It doesn’t feel good to me and I don’t know, maybe they don’t appreciate it either so much, that someone doesn’t speak their language. But Angela and Freddy are awesome though, they have patience with me. Just wish I had it with myself too. Going to cut me some slack now though – only been here for three hours. It’ll pick up and I can finally decrease my chipmunkness. Now need to go ounder the covers because I’m literally shaking of the cold.. hrrrr…

Later again guys!

Love, yours,

Maria