Day Two: Wake up! School’s in session and there’s lots to learn.

Today I got to spend lots of time with Max since he was home sick. We did a puzzle, painted, raced matchbox cars, took videos on my cameras of us racing cars, watched the videos on my camera of us racing cars, downloaded the videos onto my computer and watched them again over and over. Hilarious! He’s so excited to watch the videos he seems to forget that we have to MAKE the videos before we can watch them!

Xime took me to the Office of Tourism so I could get some mapas and pamphlets about city tours. We also went to downtown Viña to get clips for Bea’s hair for tomorrow. This month Chile is celebrating its 150 years of independence from Spain. There are going to be lots of events and things going on to celebrate and the schools are no exception. Tomorrow Xime and I will go to the kids’ school for a celebration where they will perform a traditional Chilean dance. All the children will dress in traditional Chilean costumes. Max will be a fisherman from the south wearing a wool hat and wool socks. Bea will be Chinita (translation: little Chinese girl), which is what the girls in the countryside are called. She’ll wear a flowery dress with lace trim. The clips we bought are to clip feathers in her hair because the dance is something about a rooster and a chicken courting. I’m not quite clear on the specifics of the song – maybe I can get a copy of the lyrics and spend some time with Google Translate tomorrow after the show.

I’m discovering the wonders of Chilean bread. First type: hallulla (pronounced: ah-yoo-yah). I had the hallulla with cheese from southern Chile and ham while participating in my first Once today. Once (pronounced: ohn-say) is Tea Time! The story goes…

Long ago men that wanted to drink their liquor, or “aguardiente” in Spanish, during the time of day that is now “Once” invented a code to hide the fact that they were drinking at 5:00 in the afternoon. This code was the number of letters in “aguardiente” which is eleven or “once” in Spanish. With the passage of time, tea time became known as “Once.”

INTERESTING FACT: Men in Viña stand in the streets to assist motorists with parking. The streets are packed with cars, so this is a very helpful service. However, these men do not seem to work for an organization. I believe they are just doing this of their own volition. The men get tips from the motorists. They stand in the street, help people park, and get tips. This is their job.

PERSONAL TRIUMPH: Xime promised Max we’d bring him home a treat today after going into town. We’d nearly forgotten and were almost home when I remembered. She asked me a favor as she pulled to the side of the road. I knew immediately and said “Of course I’ll do you a favor. What do I need to say?” So we practiced a few times, “Una bulto de galettas por favor. Una bulto peqeña.” I walked into that corner store nervous and hesitant, but walked out having successfully purchased a small package of cookies. Not only that, when questioned, I was able to respond that yes I wanted cookies with cream in the middle and the flavor I preferred was chocolate. As I triumphantly climbed in the car bearing my pequeña package, Xime exclaimed, “Oh those are Max’s favorite ones! How did you know?!” A boy after my own heart!