For the weekend of September 18th (Chilean Indpendence Day) a group of COPA students, including me, went to La Serena, Chile. La Serena is the third oldest city in Chile after Santiago and Arica. I had class on Wednesday, September 17th, unlike most of my fellow students, so I went to my geography class at 8:30am and then I went straight to the bus terminal after class to meet Sarah Reingold, a COPA student who was riding on the same bus as me.
The bus ride was long, but definitely not the longest bus ride I have ever been on. It was 7 hours to La Serena and supposedly by personal car it was suppose to be about 4, so that was irritating, but the ride was beautiful. Especially when the panamerican highway went along the coast and you could see the beautiful Pacific Ocean and the amazing waves crashing along side the coast. It was absolutely gorgeous.
We arrived in La Serena and grabbed a taxi to our hostel. The hostel was very nice and in a part of town that seemed very safe, which was good. After we got to the hostel we called our other friends who were going to meet us in La Serena. We met Carla, Dorien, Amy, and Ruth at the Plaza de Armas after we grabbed some dinner at a little restaurant in town.
La Serena reminded me a lot of the center part of Lublin, Poland or Vilinus, Lithuania. Especially since in these cities like in La Serena the center was extremely developed and European looking, however the outskirts of the town were a little more sketchy/non-developed. Overall, it has been interesting to see the extreme influence of Europe in many of the places I have traveled to in Chile.
We met up with the group and went out to a bar to hang out for a little while because it was pretty early (by Chilean standards). Carla and Dorien knew a Chilean, who was taking a Law classes on Human Rights with them, and lived in La Serena. He got into contact with some of his friends in La Serena and we arranged to go out with them that night. Which was interesting, especially since I didn´t know them (and neither did the girls), but we got together with them and they took us to one of their friends house. It was a good time as we got to know Chileans and such.
We left their house later and went to meet Carla and Dorien´s Law school friend at the bus station since his bus got in around midnight (yeah midnight--- I don´t know how I survive all these Chilean shinanigans.) After that we went to a town nearby called Coquimbo which had a lot of bars, etc. We went to one that was very special because it had dancing.
The Chileans have a national dance named the Cueca. The bar that we went to had people dancing cueca which was fun to watch, however very, very difficult to learn (especially since you all probably know that I am the worst dancer in the world). You can see the cueca in this youtube video. It is quite the sultury dance if I say so myself. The man and woman are not suppose to stop looking into each other´s eyes unless they are turning, creating some very 'hot' moments.
At the bar we also tried Chica a very sweet drink that is taken during the Chilean Independence Day weekend. I definitely tried it, but at the same time was scared to beacuse many people had told me that it was dangerous!! Supposedly, the reason it is so dangerous is because you think that it is just a sweet drink and it is actually a very potent drink. Thus, you end up getting tan barracho muy rapido (very durnk very fast). I had one drink glass and thought I would die (due to the warnings), so I didn't have anymore. Other people just kept drinking it and never did get sick... so I guess its just another thing Chileans get really scared about, but really don't know what they are talking about.
We closed the bar (something I didn't think I would ever do in my life and something I will probably never do again) but it was fun. We then went to the beach and hung out there and watched the sunrise over the mountains on the 18th of September (the Chilean Independence Day). I can now say that I have gone 24 hours without sleeping, which again, I thought I never could do. After we saw the sun rise, we returned to the hostel and promptly went to bed althogh I wasn´t really that tired at the moment. It was good to get some sleep though for the next day.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
Wait? I met Boy George? Sweet!
My program director does everything and anything. She quite talented. She has been the official translator for Kofi Annan (the former UN Secretary General) and the Rolling Stones. Not only does she translate, she runs the COPA-IFSA program in Santiago, Chile and Valparaiso, Chile. On top of that, she use to be a professional ice skater, and now she is a judge on a Chilean TV program called, Stars on Ice (a type of program like Dancing with the Stars).
As you can imagine we were all interested to see this in action. The first night of the TV program, we went to a bar and watched it. It was pretty cool and we all decided that we wanted to see it live. Katty arranged for us to go to the program on the 11th of September. We got there really early and we got to hang out and watch them do some pre-recording for the show. Since the Chilean independence day was coming up on the 18th, they had a group of traditional dancers and a popular singer perform. It was neat to see exactly how all of this television magic was done. Later on as the recording was going on, Katty came over and said that we were really lucky and that Boy George was going to be coming to the show to play for the program. It was exciting because we were going to meet some really famous person.
Boy George came and he performed his songs. One of them being "Yes We Can" a song he wrote that gave me chills up my back. (Check out a link to a youtube video of the song.)It was a great song that really reminded me that this election really is about Hope v. The Past. It reminded me of why I am voting for Obama in this election. After he was done recording he came over to the audience and we started talking to him telling him that we were for Obama and that we were gonna vote for him. His response was "Is there really a choice?" It was great fun and a few of us got pictures with him (not me). It was a cool experience.
Being on Dancing with the Stars was fun, but it got boring pretty quickly. We were in the TV studio between 7:30pm and 1:00am. It was a very long night.
As you can imagine we were all interested to see this in action. The first night of the TV program, we went to a bar and watched it. It was pretty cool and we all decided that we wanted to see it live. Katty arranged for us to go to the program on the 11th of September. We got there really early and we got to hang out and watch them do some pre-recording for the show. Since the Chilean independence day was coming up on the 18th, they had a group of traditional dancers and a popular singer perform. It was neat to see exactly how all of this television magic was done. Later on as the recording was going on, Katty came over and said that we were really lucky and that Boy George was going to be coming to the show to play for the program. It was exciting because we were going to meet some really famous person.
Boy George came and he performed his songs. One of them being "Yes We Can" a song he wrote that gave me chills up my back. (Check out a link to a youtube video of the song.)It was a great song that really reminded me that this election really is about Hope v. The Past. It reminded me of why I am voting for Obama in this election. After he was done recording he came over to the audience and we started talking to him telling him that we were for Obama and that we were gonna vote for him. His response was "Is there really a choice?" It was great fun and a few of us got pictures with him (not me). It was a cool experience.
Being on Dancing with the Stars was fun, but it got boring pretty quickly. We were in the TV studio between 7:30pm and 1:00am. It was a very long night.
Remembering the 1973 Military Coup
Well, its a topic that I have to write about, but to be totally honest, it is a topic that I am quite embarrassed to say my country was involved in.
In 1970, Salvador Allende was elected the President of Chile. This was extremely important because Salvador Allende was a member of the Socialist Party and a Marxist. Thus he was the first democratically elected communist president in world history. The United States was not happy with this outcome because they were worried that it could cause an "epidemic" of communist regimes in South America and because the consequences were great for American companies and interests in Chile.
It also needs to be said that this election was a fairly close one. The only reason Allende won the election was because he represented a coalition of three political parties: the communists, the socialists, radicals, and social democrats. This coalition was called the Popular Unity Party (UP). The vote in 1970 was split in three ways between the UP coalition, the Christian Democrats, and the Conservatives. Allende did not win a plurality of votes instead only 36% of the population actually supported the UP coalition. As you can imagine winning only 35% of the population through a coalition of 4 parties makes governing very difficult. He was confirmed by the Chilean Parliament because they worked with the Christian Democrats to gain the votes needed in the confirmation vote.
Part of these negotiations was that all now 5 parties would share in the governing process. Allende was required to have a certain number of people in his administration from each party. This created an administration which was not unified and did not work cohesively. Allende immediately worked to instill his political policies, including land reform (taking land from wealthy land owners and giving it to the poor) and also nationalizing the copper industry (especially the copper mines that were controlled by American companies).
Not surprisingly the United States immediately denounced the new Chilean government and started to raise economic sanctions against the country.
At first the Allende policies had a very good effect on the economy including increased industrial and GDP growth. This did not however sustain itself and by 1972, Chile experienced inflation equivilent to 140%. This coupled with mandated prices set by the government created a huge economic mess. Literally the Chilean system looked to be falling apart at the seams.
If you believe that the country was polarized in 1970 during the election, then in 1973 after the economic crisis you would believe that the country looked super, super polarized. With a stalemate between the three parties and no answer to the economic crisis. The military deposed Allende, who committed suicicde, during a brutal attack on the Presidential Palace on September 11, 1973. Here is a CBS news report from September 11, 1973.
Today, after CIA and White House documents have been released we see that the US was involved in the planning and aid of the military coup de'tat lead by the Chilean military. Here is a good youtube video about the US involvement of the Coup.
This coup de'tat eventually yielded the rule of Augusto Pinochet who became dictator and served as the leader of Chile until 1990. His administration and rule is marked by an application of extremely conservative neo-liberal economic policies and a total disregard for human rights.
Every year on September 11, the country has numerous protests around the city and around the country. In many years Chilean police forces are killed by protesters. Many colleges, high schools, etc. close for the day because the threat of protests are too high to legitimize a normal day.
I did leave the apartment on September 11, 2008 and everything during the day was normal. It wasn't until that night that we saw on television the protests. It looked extremely scary with fires and barricades. It was quite the site to see. When we ask everyone about the protests and why exactly these people protest, they really don't have an answer. The people that are protesting are not protesting the Pinochet government (Pinochet is now dead) or protesting to remember their lost loved ones. Instead these people seem to be protesting for the simple reason that they can. This year 3 Chilean police officers were in the hospital with severe wounds, however I don't think anyone died.
If you want to read more about the Chilean Coup of 1973 here is a link to wikipedia.
In this article you will find quotations by American leaders who helped fund, plan, and aid the Chilean Coup. I included two of my favorite here:
"I don't see why we need to stand by and watch a country go communist due to the irresponsibility of its own people. The issues are much too important for the Chilean voters to be left to decide for themselves." - Henry Kissinger (Nixon Secretary of State)
"Make the economy scream [in Chile to] prevent Allende from coming to power or to unseat him" — Richard Nixon (US President to the CIA)
In 1970, Salvador Allende was elected the President of Chile. This was extremely important because Salvador Allende was a member of the Socialist Party and a Marxist. Thus he was the first democratically elected communist president in world history. The United States was not happy with this outcome because they were worried that it could cause an "epidemic" of communist regimes in South America and because the consequences were great for American companies and interests in Chile.
It also needs to be said that this election was a fairly close one. The only reason Allende won the election was because he represented a coalition of three political parties: the communists, the socialists, radicals, and social democrats. This coalition was called the Popular Unity Party (UP). The vote in 1970 was split in three ways between the UP coalition, the Christian Democrats, and the Conservatives. Allende did not win a plurality of votes instead only 36% of the population actually supported the UP coalition. As you can imagine winning only 35% of the population through a coalition of 4 parties makes governing very difficult. He was confirmed by the Chilean Parliament because they worked with the Christian Democrats to gain the votes needed in the confirmation vote.
Part of these negotiations was that all now 5 parties would share in the governing process. Allende was required to have a certain number of people in his administration from each party. This created an administration which was not unified and did not work cohesively. Allende immediately worked to instill his political policies, including land reform (taking land from wealthy land owners and giving it to the poor) and also nationalizing the copper industry (especially the copper mines that were controlled by American companies).
Not surprisingly the United States immediately denounced the new Chilean government and started to raise economic sanctions against the country.
At first the Allende policies had a very good effect on the economy including increased industrial and GDP growth. This did not however sustain itself and by 1972, Chile experienced inflation equivilent to 140%. This coupled with mandated prices set by the government created a huge economic mess. Literally the Chilean system looked to be falling apart at the seams.
If you believe that the country was polarized in 1970 during the election, then in 1973 after the economic crisis you would believe that the country looked super, super polarized. With a stalemate between the three parties and no answer to the economic crisis. The military deposed Allende, who committed suicicde, during a brutal attack on the Presidential Palace on September 11, 1973. Here is a CBS news report from September 11, 1973.
Today, after CIA and White House documents have been released we see that the US was involved in the planning and aid of the military coup de'tat lead by the Chilean military. Here is a good youtube video about the US involvement of the Coup.
This coup de'tat eventually yielded the rule of Augusto Pinochet who became dictator and served as the leader of Chile until 1990. His administration and rule is marked by an application of extremely conservative neo-liberal economic policies and a total disregard for human rights.
Every year on September 11, the country has numerous protests around the city and around the country. In many years Chilean police forces are killed by protesters. Many colleges, high schools, etc. close for the day because the threat of protests are too high to legitimize a normal day.
I did leave the apartment on September 11, 2008 and everything during the day was normal. It wasn't until that night that we saw on television the protests. It looked extremely scary with fires and barricades. It was quite the site to see. When we ask everyone about the protests and why exactly these people protest, they really don't have an answer. The people that are protesting are not protesting the Pinochet government (Pinochet is now dead) or protesting to remember their lost loved ones. Instead these people seem to be protesting for the simple reason that they can. This year 3 Chilean police officers were in the hospital with severe wounds, however I don't think anyone died.
If you want to read more about the Chilean Coup of 1973 here is a link to wikipedia.
In this article you will find quotations by American leaders who helped fund, plan, and aid the Chilean Coup. I included two of my favorite here:
"I don't see why we need to stand by and watch a country go communist due to the irresponsibility of its own people. The issues are much too important for the Chilean voters to be left to decide for themselves." - Henry Kissinger (Nixon Secretary of State)
"Make the economy scream [in Chile to] prevent Allende from coming to power or to unseat him" — Richard Nixon (US President to the CIA)
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
You asked for it!
Well, I was asked recently by my Aunt Rose if there was any good desserts/food down here in Chile. My response was that the best food I have had was empanadas de pino and Tres Leches Cake (Milk Cake). I found the recipes for these and I am going to post them on here.
As of September 09, 2008 I only have the Tres Leches Cake recipe but I am looking for an empanada de pino recipe. I will put it on here when I get it.
Torta de Tres Leches (Milk Cake)
INGREDIENTS
5 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups milk
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.) Grease and flour one 9x13 inch baking pan.
3.) Sift flour and baking powder together and set aside.
4.) Cream butter or margarine and 1 cup of the sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla extract, beat well.
5.) Add the flour mixture to the butter or margarine mixture 2 tablespoons at a time, mix until well blended.
6.) Pour batter into prepared pan.
7.) Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.
8.) Pierce cake several times with a fork. (This allows the milk to permeate the cake.)
9.) Combine the whole milk, evaporated milk, and condensed milk together. Pour over the top of the cooled cake.
10.) Whip whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 cup of the sugar together until thick. Spread over the top of cake. Be sure and keep cake refrigerated, enjoy!
Another variation is that you can make two 8" or 9" cakes and stack the two cakes. This is most traditional here. Be careful because both cakes will be "wet" from the milk that they soak up. Put whipping cream in between the two layers, and cover the entire cake with whipping cream. I promise this is amazing. Sometimes a nice strawberry, group of blueberries, or raspberries go well with this cake as well.
As of September 09, 2008 I only have the Tres Leches Cake recipe but I am looking for an empanada de pino recipe. I will put it on here when I get it.
Torta de Tres Leches (Milk Cake)
INGREDIENTS
5 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups milk
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.) Grease and flour one 9x13 inch baking pan.
3.) Sift flour and baking powder together and set aside.
4.) Cream butter or margarine and 1 cup of the sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla extract, beat well.
5.) Add the flour mixture to the butter or margarine mixture 2 tablespoons at a time, mix until well blended.
6.) Pour batter into prepared pan.
7.) Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.
8.) Pierce cake several times with a fork. (This allows the milk to permeate the cake.)
9.) Combine the whole milk, evaporated milk, and condensed milk together. Pour over the top of the cooled cake.
10.) Whip whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 cup of the sugar together until thick. Spread over the top of cake. Be sure and keep cake refrigerated, enjoy!
Another variation is that you can make two 8" or 9" cakes and stack the two cakes. This is most traditional here. Be careful because both cakes will be "wet" from the milk that they soak up. Put whipping cream in between the two layers, and cover the entire cake with whipping cream. I promise this is amazing. Sometimes a nice strawberry, group of blueberries, or raspberries go well with this cake as well.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Meet my newest host family!
My new host family consists of my mom Veronica and her son Rafael. Veronica works at the Catholic University (Universidad Catolica) with the University of California - Berkley exchange students. Because she works in an environment with exchange students she understands very well the difficulties that I am going though and she helps out a lot. It is really nice to be able to talk to her every night over dinner. She can make some really good food too!
Rafael is 24 years old and is attending school for Business and Trade. He is hoping to go to the United States in December to work at a ski resort in Colorado or Utah through a program for 6 months. I am not really sure exactly how that is going, but I think it is on track.
It is a little odd because young people live with their families until they get married, so sometimes you see people that are 35 years old still living with their parents. It makes for saving a lot of money, but at the same time it is something that I am not accustomed to. Especially since most American students go to college after high school and then only return to live with their parents over the summer or in many cases live in their own housing for the rest of their lives. What is even more extreme is that the parents really do treat their kids like kids until they get married and move out. They cook for them, serve them their food, etc. It is pretty intense. I am not 100% sure, but I don't even think Rafael (24) knows how to do laundry because his mom still does it for him.
Overall, this host family is a ton better then my old host family and I am enjoying being here a lot more. I feel more at home and they are much more welcoming.
I will post a picture of my host family when I get a chance.
Rafael is 24 years old and is attending school for Business and Trade. He is hoping to go to the United States in December to work at a ski resort in Colorado or Utah through a program for 6 months. I am not really sure exactly how that is going, but I think it is on track.
It is a little odd because young people live with their families until they get married, so sometimes you see people that are 35 years old still living with their parents. It makes for saving a lot of money, but at the same time it is something that I am not accustomed to. Especially since most American students go to college after high school and then only return to live with their parents over the summer or in many cases live in their own housing for the rest of their lives. What is even more extreme is that the parents really do treat their kids like kids until they get married and move out. They cook for them, serve them their food, etc. It is pretty intense. I am not 100% sure, but I don't even think Rafael (24) knows how to do laundry because his mom still does it for him.
Overall, this host family is a ton better then my old host family and I am enjoying being here a lot more. I feel more at home and they are much more welcoming.
I will post a picture of my host family when I get a chance.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Independent Study Advisor
I met my independent study advisor for the first time the other day and it was quite interesting. Now I am technically involved with four universities here in Chile: the Catholic University, the University of Chile, Diego Portales Univesity, and the University of Santiago, Chile. It is pretty intense getting to know all of the University campuses and systems because each one is different.
My independent study advisor is Patricio and he is a history professor at the University of Santiago, Chile. He has been an immense help through the process of my research project.
I am writing this about a month later then when I actually met the professor and all I can say is that this project is a lot of work. The University of Saint Thomas wants me to cover world history from 1500 to the present and I am attempting to learn world history through the lens of Chilean Copper and Neo-liberal Economic policies. It has been a challenge to say the least. My paper cannot just be a history paper it has to have a thesis, thus my thesis is that Neo-Liberal Economic policies have helped the Chilean Copper Industry and the Chilean economy over the years. In the mean time I am trying to glean information about mercantilism, globalization, colonization, independence movements, the international system, etc. all through this lens. To be honest, I don't know how I could write this paper and keep it under 80+ pages. I am starting the long process of writing it now. It is due December 5th, so I have about a month to write. I think it is going to be a stressful month, but when I have a document that is more then 80 pages in length all in Spanish, it will be quite an accomplishment.
My independent study advisor is Patricio and he is a history professor at the University of Santiago, Chile. He has been an immense help through the process of my research project.
I am writing this about a month later then when I actually met the professor and all I can say is that this project is a lot of work. The University of Saint Thomas wants me to cover world history from 1500 to the present and I am attempting to learn world history through the lens of Chilean Copper and Neo-liberal Economic policies. It has been a challenge to say the least. My paper cannot just be a history paper it has to have a thesis, thus my thesis is that Neo-Liberal Economic policies have helped the Chilean Copper Industry and the Chilean economy over the years. In the mean time I am trying to glean information about mercantilism, globalization, colonization, independence movements, the international system, etc. all through this lens. To be honest, I don't know how I could write this paper and keep it under 80+ pages. I am starting the long process of writing it now. It is due December 5th, so I have about a month to write. I think it is going to be a stressful month, but when I have a document that is more then 80 pages in length all in Spanish, it will be quite an accomplishment.
One Family to the Other
Well you may have heard. I changed host families. There were some bad situations with my last host family and I really didn't feel all that great about them after we first started to live together. Yes, in my earlier posts I exclaimed that my host family was wonderful, but after a little time, it became quite clear that a change was needed.
Basically to explain the situation, my home itself was not the best place (and I am not just being an American who wants a nice house) my room was constantly damp. I would get in my bed at night and my sheets would even be a little wet. My books felt like they had saturated with water and my bath towel was always wet from the day before. This, I believe, probably led to mold or other problems (which I never saw but expected was there). My clothes would come back from the laundry and they would still be damp as well. It just wasn't very much fun. The house had an electronic gate where you could only access the house if you had the electronic button. This button (only 2 of them at a time) would sometimes and randomly stop working. One weekend I was informed that the button stopped working and that I would be unable to leave the house. I was upset because, I am paying to live in the house and I should be able to leave when I want to. When Saturday came, I wanted to go out with my friends and I talked to my host mom on the phone (they were out partying) and said that I wanted to leave. She was upset and told me "I told you about the key this weekend." I got to go out but it was a hassle and did not make me feel very welcomed. They had 4 dogs as well. These dogs were very skinny and every morning I would take my breakfast of (a bun with bread) out with me to the bus stop. The dogs would jump all over me because they wanted the food. They did not get fed enough at all --- to my standards, and they would sometimes get into fights over the food. When they got into fights, they would then go out and kick the dogs. It was not a place that I wanted to be quite frankly.
Another reason was that my host family smoked. Now, my mother smoked, but I believe that I must have some problem with cigarette smoke, because I was sick for quite some time with this family. I believe it may have been connected with this smoking habit. Even their 8 year old kid had a horrible cough all the time and finally they took him to the doctor and the doctor was like --- well perhaps you shouldn't smoke around him, so instead they would put their kid in the living room and close the door to the kitchen and continue to smoke anyways --- with me in the room. I also didn't spend that much time with them because they smoked after dinner and when they lit up, I would leave --- which they later told me was disrespectful, because I did not hold a conversation well. On top of that was told that I was disrespectful because I did not recognize (as in say hello and how was your day) as soon as my host dad came through the door from work. I believe myself to be very respectful person and to be totally honest, I was quite offended by these remarks.
They had a nana or servant, and they pretty much treated her very badly. Sometimes when the host dad was not happy with her he would call her "fatty". Which I did not like very much, because Pamela worked very hard for them. Another time, Pamela asked for Saturday off (she informed me that under their original agreement she would have Saturday and Sunday off, however they changed that when she moved in with them) and they got angry at her for doing so. She worked from approximately 6 am to 12 pm every night. She was a student at a local university studying tourism. I am keeping in contact with her via facebook. Pamela said that she was just going to leave on her Sunday off someday and never return. This was awkward for me because I knew that she was going to leave at a specific date, but she didn't want me to tell the family. Another problem I had one time was that my host mom let her son stay home from school (because he decided he didn't want to go to school --- which is weird) and Pamela was suppose to go to the grocery store. Well she wasn't allowed to take Jaime to the store with her and she wasn't allowed to leave him home, so she couldn't go to the store. When my host mom called to see if she had went to the store she lied to her and said that she did, in the hopes that I would watch Jaime and she could go to the store later. Well, my host mom asked to talk to me on the phone and at the same time Pamela asked me to lie for her. It was really confusing and eventually ended with my host mom yelling at me over the phone. Yeah, Pamela got into trouble and I was stuck in a bad place.
On the note of Jaime and school, he would just randomly decide not to go to school some days. I started counting how many days he missed of school and it ended up being that out of the 3 weeks I counted, he only went to school about 5 times. I was quite confused at this. Often times as well, Jaime would be so "enthralled" with the television, that his mom would have to feed him with his fork to his mouth the food. Mind you Jaime was 8 years old. It was really awkward for me to be in this environment.
Another main problem I had was with the food situation. I was never full when eating at their house and there was never anything to eat if I needed something in between meals. When we ate our meals if I was still hungry after dinner and I asked for more they would tell me there wasn't any more. Nothing ever changed in this respect either. They made a bean soup every Monday that I tried but hated. I told them that I didn't eat beans and they said that if they pureed it that it would be different. I tried this as well and I still didn't like it. Instead of changing the Monday menu, they kept it the same and told me I could have bread and butter. Another time, they made me dinner knowing that I was going out that night with friends. They didn't eat with me because they said they weren't hungry. I left but forgot something and came back about 20 minutes later. I found them eating Sushi that they had ordered. Pamela later told me that they didn't want to buy Sushi for me because it was too expensive, so they waited for me to leave. It just didn't feel, again, like the environment I wanted to experience.
COPA got in touch with the housing coordinator and I toured three houses/families on a Saturday and I picked one that I liked a lot. (More about my new family in another blog.) I was also told that the housing coordinator would come to the house and tell my family the situation and all I would have to say to them was --- thanks for everything and leave.
When the day finally came to move (I didn't tell my family anything before hand because COPA suggested that I not tell them because it would be better if it came as a surprise and they could not treat me worse because of my decision to move) Janette the housing coordinator called my house to let my family know that she was coming to pick me up and move me. My family was obviously surprised because I hadn't said anything. The process did not go as well as I had hoped. Janette took almost an hour and a half to come and pick me up leaving an hour and a half of awkward conversation with my host family (not to mention they had Muriel's mom at the house and Jaime's parents were on their way over. Muriel came into my room and she told me that Janette was going to come pick me up and that I needed to pack my things. I said okay. She was visibly upset and said she wanted to know what happened. I tried to tell her that the situation was not good for me and I needed something different. She didn't understand. She told me that "Christians don't do this to each other, they talk about their problems first" and "we are a family not a hotel". It was awkward, but I just said I was sorry and she said that it was fine --- but obviously it wasn't fine to her.
I finished packing my stuff and she came back into my room and asked me if they could have a minute with me (Janette still hadn't arrived) and I said okay. They started smoking in the kitchen and it was them on one side of the table and me on the other. It was almost like a little inquisition. They wanted more details of things that were wrong and why it wasn't working. I told them it just wasn't a good fit, which they didn't understand. I told them that their smoking was making me sick and that I just needed a different environment. My host dad told me that the reason I was sick all the time was because I didn't wear shoes in the house and because I didn't dress properly for the weather (which I wore the same clothes here I would wear in the winter in Minnesota--- and it never got below 32 degrees F here). I basically said that I disagreed with them. They drew the Christian card again playing off of my religion and spiritual beliefs and I ended up just telling them sorry and returning to my room.
When Janette came, they acted like everything was fine and nothing was wrong. I gave them hugs and said thanks for everything (which I thought I originally would only have to do). It was really weird. Janette and I left and I went to my new home.
Looking back on it, I feel like the Gonzales were using me as a source of income. They didn't care very much about my experience and instead were worried about making sure they could get the money they needed. I think this is why they were so specifically upset that I ended up leaving. I found out that my host family was being paid $700+ a month for me to live there and when I found that out and compared my service I received, I really knew it was time to move on.
I got into contact with the student who stayed with them last semester (who happens to go to Macalester College only a few blocks from Saint Thomas). She said that she really didn't like her host family that much either and that it probably was a good idea that I moved. This made me feel a lot better because it meant that it wasn't just me being a big dork, they really weren't a good host family.
Well, this has been a rambling rant about host families --- sorry if you are still with me and you are missing the exciting climax. It was an interesting situation. I will write more about my new host family in another blog post.
Basically to explain the situation, my home itself was not the best place (and I am not just being an American who wants a nice house) my room was constantly damp. I would get in my bed at night and my sheets would even be a little wet. My books felt like they had saturated with water and my bath towel was always wet from the day before. This, I believe, probably led to mold or other problems (which I never saw but expected was there). My clothes would come back from the laundry and they would still be damp as well. It just wasn't very much fun. The house had an electronic gate where you could only access the house if you had the electronic button. This button (only 2 of them at a time) would sometimes and randomly stop working. One weekend I was informed that the button stopped working and that I would be unable to leave the house. I was upset because, I am paying to live in the house and I should be able to leave when I want to. When Saturday came, I wanted to go out with my friends and I talked to my host mom on the phone (they were out partying) and said that I wanted to leave. She was upset and told me "I told you about the key this weekend." I got to go out but it was a hassle and did not make me feel very welcomed. They had 4 dogs as well. These dogs were very skinny and every morning I would take my breakfast of (a bun with bread) out with me to the bus stop. The dogs would jump all over me because they wanted the food. They did not get fed enough at all --- to my standards, and they would sometimes get into fights over the food. When they got into fights, they would then go out and kick the dogs. It was not a place that I wanted to be quite frankly.
Another reason was that my host family smoked. Now, my mother smoked, but I believe that I must have some problem with cigarette smoke, because I was sick for quite some time with this family. I believe it may have been connected with this smoking habit. Even their 8 year old kid had a horrible cough all the time and finally they took him to the doctor and the doctor was like --- well perhaps you shouldn't smoke around him, so instead they would put their kid in the living room and close the door to the kitchen and continue to smoke anyways --- with me in the room. I also didn't spend that much time with them because they smoked after dinner and when they lit up, I would leave --- which they later told me was disrespectful, because I did not hold a conversation well. On top of that was told that I was disrespectful because I did not recognize (as in say hello and how was your day) as soon as my host dad came through the door from work. I believe myself to be very respectful person and to be totally honest, I was quite offended by these remarks.
They had a nana or servant, and they pretty much treated her very badly. Sometimes when the host dad was not happy with her he would call her "fatty". Which I did not like very much, because Pamela worked very hard for them. Another time, Pamela asked for Saturday off (she informed me that under their original agreement she would have Saturday and Sunday off, however they changed that when she moved in with them) and they got angry at her for doing so. She worked from approximately 6 am to 12 pm every night. She was a student at a local university studying tourism. I am keeping in contact with her via facebook. Pamela said that she was just going to leave on her Sunday off someday and never return. This was awkward for me because I knew that she was going to leave at a specific date, but she didn't want me to tell the family. Another problem I had one time was that my host mom let her son stay home from school (because he decided he didn't want to go to school --- which is weird) and Pamela was suppose to go to the grocery store. Well she wasn't allowed to take Jaime to the store with her and she wasn't allowed to leave him home, so she couldn't go to the store. When my host mom called to see if she had went to the store she lied to her and said that she did, in the hopes that I would watch Jaime and she could go to the store later. Well, my host mom asked to talk to me on the phone and at the same time Pamela asked me to lie for her. It was really confusing and eventually ended with my host mom yelling at me over the phone. Yeah, Pamela got into trouble and I was stuck in a bad place.
On the note of Jaime and school, he would just randomly decide not to go to school some days. I started counting how many days he missed of school and it ended up being that out of the 3 weeks I counted, he only went to school about 5 times. I was quite confused at this. Often times as well, Jaime would be so "enthralled" with the television, that his mom would have to feed him with his fork to his mouth the food. Mind you Jaime was 8 years old. It was really awkward for me to be in this environment.
Another main problem I had was with the food situation. I was never full when eating at their house and there was never anything to eat if I needed something in between meals. When we ate our meals if I was still hungry after dinner and I asked for more they would tell me there wasn't any more. Nothing ever changed in this respect either. They made a bean soup every Monday that I tried but hated. I told them that I didn't eat beans and they said that if they pureed it that it would be different. I tried this as well and I still didn't like it. Instead of changing the Monday menu, they kept it the same and told me I could have bread and butter. Another time, they made me dinner knowing that I was going out that night with friends. They didn't eat with me because they said they weren't hungry. I left but forgot something and came back about 20 minutes later. I found them eating Sushi that they had ordered. Pamela later told me that they didn't want to buy Sushi for me because it was too expensive, so they waited for me to leave. It just didn't feel, again, like the environment I wanted to experience.
COPA got in touch with the housing coordinator and I toured three houses/families on a Saturday and I picked one that I liked a lot. (More about my new family in another blog.) I was also told that the housing coordinator would come to the house and tell my family the situation and all I would have to say to them was --- thanks for everything and leave.
When the day finally came to move (I didn't tell my family anything before hand because COPA suggested that I not tell them because it would be better if it came as a surprise and they could not treat me worse because of my decision to move) Janette the housing coordinator called my house to let my family know that she was coming to pick me up and move me. My family was obviously surprised because I hadn't said anything. The process did not go as well as I had hoped. Janette took almost an hour and a half to come and pick me up leaving an hour and a half of awkward conversation with my host family (not to mention they had Muriel's mom at the house and Jaime's parents were on their way over. Muriel came into my room and she told me that Janette was going to come pick me up and that I needed to pack my things. I said okay. She was visibly upset and said she wanted to know what happened. I tried to tell her that the situation was not good for me and I needed something different. She didn't understand. She told me that "Christians don't do this to each other, they talk about their problems first" and "we are a family not a hotel". It was awkward, but I just said I was sorry and she said that it was fine --- but obviously it wasn't fine to her.
I finished packing my stuff and she came back into my room and asked me if they could have a minute with me (Janette still hadn't arrived) and I said okay. They started smoking in the kitchen and it was them on one side of the table and me on the other. It was almost like a little inquisition. They wanted more details of things that were wrong and why it wasn't working. I told them it just wasn't a good fit, which they didn't understand. I told them that their smoking was making me sick and that I just needed a different environment. My host dad told me that the reason I was sick all the time was because I didn't wear shoes in the house and because I didn't dress properly for the weather (which I wore the same clothes here I would wear in the winter in Minnesota--- and it never got below 32 degrees F here). I basically said that I disagreed with them. They drew the Christian card again playing off of my religion and spiritual beliefs and I ended up just telling them sorry and returning to my room.
When Janette came, they acted like everything was fine and nothing was wrong. I gave them hugs and said thanks for everything (which I thought I originally would only have to do). It was really weird. Janette and I left and I went to my new home.
Looking back on it, I feel like the Gonzales were using me as a source of income. They didn't care very much about my experience and instead were worried about making sure they could get the money they needed. I think this is why they were so specifically upset that I ended up leaving. I found out that my host family was being paid $700+ a month for me to live there and when I found that out and compared my service I received, I really knew it was time to move on.
I got into contact with the student who stayed with them last semester (who happens to go to Macalester College only a few blocks from Saint Thomas). She said that she really didn't like her host family that much either and that it probably was a good idea that I moved. This made me feel a lot better because it meant that it wasn't just me being a big dork, they really weren't a good host family.
Well, this has been a rambling rant about host families --- sorry if you are still with me and you are missing the exciting climax. It was an interesting situation. I will write more about my new host family in another blog post.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Mountain Resort!
Yesterday... Saturday, August 23, 2008, the COPA program took all of the students who wanted to go to a Mountain Resort called Hacienda Santa Martina. The resort, about a half hour up the mountains from Santiago, is absolutely amazing. Its a lot like a country club where wealthy Chileans pay 5,000 dollars a season to be a member. The resort has pools, hot tubs, tennis courts, basketball courts, a gym, exercise classes, saunas, massages, etc.
I first went to the locker room, which was interesting because everyone was quite... "free" if you know what I mean. Everyone really treated this place as a sanctuary and donned their birthday suits whenever they could. I got ready to spend the day at the resort by changing into my workout gear. They had a scale at the resort and I got on and I thought it was broken because it said that I was 25 pounds lighter then when I left the United States. I told the guys from my group and they tried the scale and said it was right for them. So in other words in the last (almost) 2 months, I have lost 25 pounds. I was quite pleased, I need to keep up whatever I am doing... I guess. I spent a little bit of time in the gym and then I went to a spinning class (cycling class) with some of the other people from my group. Spinning classes are where you are on a stationary bicycle, there is music, and a trainer who tells you how fast to go, how much tension to put on your bike, and pushes you to work harder and stay on beat with the music. If you know me very well you can assume that the instructor was often telling me to work harder and I was always off beat, so he kept trying to get me on beat... which didn't turn out to well in the long run.
After spinning class, I took a shower in the locker room ---- which was amazing. They had extremely hot water (a luxury I don't have at my host family's home) and really good pressure. It was fantastic. Afterward, I got dressed and went down to the restaurant where COPA had paid for a buffet lunch for us --- that was to die for. I had a plate full of some of the best food I have eaten here in Chile. Then we got to go to the dessert bar, which also had fantastic deserts, I had a little bit of a lot of them because they all looked so good. So much for losing 25 pounds. I am lucky this is the only dessert bar they had had on my trip and probably my last. :)
The best was the tres leches cake. I really want to learn how to make it so I can share it with people at home.
After lunch, I changed into my swim trunks and went with the group to the hot tub. I spent the entire afternoon in the hot tub. It was so relaxing and wonderful. The only bad part was that a dense fog had plagued the mountain side resort all day. So we could not see any of the views. We were lucky though because later on in the afternoon the fog began to break and we could see all of the amazing mountains that surrounded us. It was beautiful and stunning. After the hot tub, I took another shower and got ready to go home. It was a wonderful day and so relaxing!
I first went to the locker room, which was interesting because everyone was quite... "free" if you know what I mean. Everyone really treated this place as a sanctuary and donned their birthday suits whenever they could. I got ready to spend the day at the resort by changing into my workout gear. They had a scale at the resort and I got on and I thought it was broken because it said that I was 25 pounds lighter then when I left the United States. I told the guys from my group and they tried the scale and said it was right for them. So in other words in the last (almost) 2 months, I have lost 25 pounds. I was quite pleased, I need to keep up whatever I am doing... I guess. I spent a little bit of time in the gym and then I went to a spinning class (cycling class) with some of the other people from my group. Spinning classes are where you are on a stationary bicycle, there is music, and a trainer who tells you how fast to go, how much tension to put on your bike, and pushes you to work harder and stay on beat with the music. If you know me very well you can assume that the instructor was often telling me to work harder and I was always off beat, so he kept trying to get me on beat... which didn't turn out to well in the long run.
After spinning class, I took a shower in the locker room ---- which was amazing. They had extremely hot water (a luxury I don't have at my host family's home) and really good pressure. It was fantastic. Afterward, I got dressed and went down to the restaurant where COPA had paid for a buffet lunch for us --- that was to die for. I had a plate full of some of the best food I have eaten here in Chile. Then we got to go to the dessert bar, which also had fantastic deserts, I had a little bit of a lot of them because they all looked so good. So much for losing 25 pounds. I am lucky this is the only dessert bar they had had on my trip and probably my last. :)
The best was the tres leches cake. I really want to learn how to make it so I can share it with people at home.
After lunch, I changed into my swim trunks and went with the group to the hot tub. I spent the entire afternoon in the hot tub. It was so relaxing and wonderful. The only bad part was that a dense fog had plagued the mountain side resort all day. So we could not see any of the views. We were lucky though because later on in the afternoon the fog began to break and we could see all of the amazing mountains that surrounded us. It was beautiful and stunning. After the hot tub, I took another shower and got ready to go home. It was a wonderful day and so relaxing!
A Discussion about Summer 2009
Since I am on the topics kick now, I am starting to put up the blog titles before I get the blogs done, so I know that I want to talk about. It is like a foretaste of the amazing blogs you can read when I am done!!! This blog is very important however, because I need advice on future plans. I have talked to my Mom and Carrie about this, but I want some more perspectives. So here it goes.
The Summer of 2009 has a lot of possibilities for me and right now I am having a difficult time deciding what to do.
1.) I have the opportunity to earn 8 Political Science Credits through the University of Minnesota's SPAN program. This program works with a qualified professor, in this case: Dr. Cris Toffolo, former director of the Justice and Peace Studies Program at UST and a Political Science Professor, now she is the director of the Justice and Peace Studies Program at a Illinois Public University. The program would include classes during the spring of 2009 to prepare by reading materials, participating in discussions, and doing preparatory homework for an 8-10 week personal, independent research project in South Africa during the summer of 2009. The course teaches you methods of research, advises you on your research and topic, and ultimately you spend 8-10 weeks in South Africa gathering data and analyzing situations for your research. Then you return and in the fall of 2009 you write a 50+ page research paper which is graded. The cost of the program is $4,000 which is just about equivalent to a 4 UST credits, so essentially I would be getting 4 credits free. The catch is I still have to pay for my airfare, food, lodging, and travel in South Africa which I would budget between 4 and 6 thousand dollars. So, in total, I would get 8 credits, a trip to South Africa, and an amazing research opportunity for about the same cost as going to St. Thomas for the same amount of credits. I could also possibly present this research at conferences around the United States with the help of UST through grants as well. I am pretty much a guarantee in for this program because I have worked with Dr. Toffolo in the past and it would undoubtedly work out.
2.) There is a program on campus for students interested in research. The program pays students $4000 over the summer to spend 40 hours a week researching and working with a professor of their choice on campus. If I kept my schedule at work, I could essentially work during the summer at the City of Prior Lake, earning more money, and also have an amazing research experience on campus. Through this program, I would present my research on campus and I could possibly present my research at other conferences around the region and the US. The catch for this one is I don't receive credit, most likely hampering my ability to graduate a semester early in December of 2009, which means I would need to stay at UST until spring of 2010. In the end I would be ahead financially and also I would have an amazing research opportunity. I would also be able to spend more time with my family compared to this summer. Another catch to this program is that I would need to be selected to get the $4000 grant and to perform research over the summer. I am not sure what my chances are at this, I like to believe I have a good chance, but it is much less certain compared to the SPAN program.
Both opportunities have negatives and positives. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place to choose. Any advice you can give me would be excellent. I don't have to make a choice right away, but I want to spend some time thinking about my options!
Thanks for you input in advance. If you haven't commented on my blogs in the past it is really easy to do!
1.) Click on the comment link at the bottom of this blog.
2.) Write your comment on the right hand side of the next screen.
3.) Choose the "Name/URL" button and type in your name.
4.) Sometimes you have to type what a picture says to ensure original comments.
5.) Finally hit Publish Your Comment.
6.) YOUR DONE! YOU SENT A COMMENT ON MY BLOG! CONGRATULATIONS!
*** This is a disclaimer for those who maybe are not so sure about the internet. Everything currently on the internet is being cataloged by GOOGLE. So everything that you write or put on the internet is being catalog and could be brought back to life in the future. Remember that what you write on a blog is not confidential (if you want to leave something like this you can choose Anonymous instead of the "Name/URL" button in step 3. This is important, for example, if I were to run for office in the future, someone in 50 years could pull up this blog and say I said something that was inappropriate or whatever... just be careful, because I would be terribly sorry if my blog hurt someone in the future! ***
The Summer of 2009 has a lot of possibilities for me and right now I am having a difficult time deciding what to do.
1.) I have the opportunity to earn 8 Political Science Credits through the University of Minnesota's SPAN program. This program works with a qualified professor, in this case: Dr. Cris Toffolo, former director of the Justice and Peace Studies Program at UST and a Political Science Professor, now she is the director of the Justice and Peace Studies Program at a Illinois Public University. The program would include classes during the spring of 2009 to prepare by reading materials, participating in discussions, and doing preparatory homework for an 8-10 week personal, independent research project in South Africa during the summer of 2009. The course teaches you methods of research, advises you on your research and topic, and ultimately you spend 8-10 weeks in South Africa gathering data and analyzing situations for your research. Then you return and in the fall of 2009 you write a 50+ page research paper which is graded. The cost of the program is $4,000 which is just about equivalent to a 4 UST credits, so essentially I would be getting 4 credits free. The catch is I still have to pay for my airfare, food, lodging, and travel in South Africa which I would budget between 4 and 6 thousand dollars. So, in total, I would get 8 credits, a trip to South Africa, and an amazing research opportunity for about the same cost as going to St. Thomas for the same amount of credits. I could also possibly present this research at conferences around the United States with the help of UST through grants as well. I am pretty much a guarantee in for this program because I have worked with Dr. Toffolo in the past and it would undoubtedly work out.
2.) There is a program on campus for students interested in research. The program pays students $4000 over the summer to spend 40 hours a week researching and working with a professor of their choice on campus. If I kept my schedule at work, I could essentially work during the summer at the City of Prior Lake, earning more money, and also have an amazing research experience on campus. Through this program, I would present my research on campus and I could possibly present my research at other conferences around the region and the US. The catch for this one is I don't receive credit, most likely hampering my ability to graduate a semester early in December of 2009, which means I would need to stay at UST until spring of 2010. In the end I would be ahead financially and also I would have an amazing research opportunity. I would also be able to spend more time with my family compared to this summer. Another catch to this program is that I would need to be selected to get the $4000 grant and to perform research over the summer. I am not sure what my chances are at this, I like to believe I have a good chance, but it is much less certain compared to the SPAN program.
Both opportunities have negatives and positives. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place to choose. Any advice you can give me would be excellent. I don't have to make a choice right away, but I want to spend some time thinking about my options!
Thanks for you input in advance. If you haven't commented on my blogs in the past it is really easy to do!
1.) Click on the comment link at the bottom of this blog.
2.) Write your comment on the right hand side of the next screen.
3.) Choose the "Name/URL" button and type in your name.
4.) Sometimes you have to type what a picture says to ensure original comments.
5.) Finally hit Publish Your Comment.
6.) YOUR DONE! YOU SENT A COMMENT ON MY BLOG! CONGRATULATIONS!
*** This is a disclaimer for those who maybe are not so sure about the internet. Everything currently on the internet is being cataloged by GOOGLE. So everything that you write or put on the internet is being catalog and could be brought back to life in the future. Remember that what you write on a blog is not confidential (if you want to leave something like this you can choose Anonymous instead of the "Name/URL" button in step 3. This is important, for example, if I were to run for office in the future, someone in 50 years could pull up this blog and say I said something that was inappropriate or whatever... just be careful, because I would be terribly sorry if my blog hurt someone in the future! ***
Ballet and Opera Plans
I am so excited because I have been researching different things to do around Santiago and I came upon the metropolitan theater is going to be doing some amazing shows while I am here in Santiago. The ballet is doing Sleeping Beauty, by Tchaikovsky --- one of my favorites, the opera is doing Marriage of Figaro, by Mozart. I am so excited and I am going to go with some of the students from COPA. These tickets are a little more expensive for here, but comparatively to the US they are very cheap... around $18-24 bucks for decent seats.
There are also a lot of other arts events around the city. I am going to probably go to a lot of these because you can get seats for around 4 bucks, which in comparison to the Minnesota Orchestra is very, very cheap. It should be pretty amazing and I am going to keep you updated as I go to them on how they were.
I first went to a ballet with Carrie in the twin cities when we saw the Nutcracker, two Christmases ago. I also went to Sleeping Beauty with Sarah, my friend from college, in Vilinus, Lithuania. It was probably the best arts event I have ever attended and was excellent. I hope that the ballet here in Santiago is as good, but I don't know if you can ever beat those Russian and Eastern European dancers, they are so good!
There are also a lot of other arts events around the city. I am going to probably go to a lot of these because you can get seats for around 4 bucks, which in comparison to the Minnesota Orchestra is very, very cheap. It should be pretty amazing and I am going to keep you updated as I go to them on how they were.
I first went to a ballet with Carrie in the twin cities when we saw the Nutcracker, two Christmases ago. I also went to Sleeping Beauty with Sarah, my friend from college, in Vilinus, Lithuania. It was probably the best arts event I have ever attended and was excellent. I hope that the ballet here in Santiago is as good, but I don't know if you can ever beat those Russian and Eastern European dancers, they are so good!
Logic Games and LSAT Prep
Well, I brought my LSAT prep book and Logic Games book to Chile with me in the hopes that in some free moments I would start studying. As you can probably guess, I am having trouble finding the time to do that between studying for my other classes, traveling, and going out with friends, but I have found some time.
I am enjoying the logic games, but I am pretty scared in general for this test. I can do everything in this book very well, the only problem is time. I hope that I can study for this test enough so that by the time I take it, I have become so fast with the logic games --- etc. that I just can wiz through them... but I don't know if that will happen.
I have also decided to take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) which if I decide to drop the law school thing (not planning on doing that now mom), but if I do, I can use my GRE score for the Graduate School applications.
Actually the logic games are kind of fun and I wish that I would have played them when I was younger... something I plan on telling my kids to do when they are growing up. Its a lot about organizing information and short term memory.
Here is an example... (this is a great time for you to take an extra break at work and see if you can get the problem done in the 9 minutes allowed per set of questions.
An amusement park roller coaster includes five cars, numbered 1 through 5 from front to back. Each car accommodates up to two riders, seated side by side. Six people—Tom, Gwen, Laurie, Mark, Paul and Jack—are riding the coaster at the same time.
* Laurie is sharing a car.
* Mark is not sharing a car and is seated immediately behind an empty car.
* Tom is not sharing a car with either Gwen or Paul.
* Gwen is riding in either the third or fourth car.
Which of the following groups of riders could occupy the second car?
(A) Laurie only
(B) Tom and Gwen
(C) Laurie and Mark
(D) Jack and Tom
(E) Jack, Gwen, and Paul
If Gwen is riding immediately behind Laurie's car and immediately ahead of Tom's car, all of the following must be true EXCEPT:
(A) Gwen is riding in the fourth car.
(B) Paul is riding in the third car.
(C) Tom is riding in the fifth car.
(D) Laurie is riding in the third car.
(E) The first car is empty.
Which one of the following statements CANNOT be true?
(A) Neither Tom nor Gwen is sharing a car with another rider
(B) Neither Mark nor Jack is sharing a car with another rider.
(C) Tom is sharing a car, and Jack is sharing a car.
(D) Gwen is sharing a car, and Paul is sharing a car.
(E) Tom is sharing a car, and Gwen is sharing a car.
If Paul is riding in the second car, how many different combinations of riders are possible for the third car?
(A) one
(B) two
(C) three
(D) four
(E) five
Assume that a seventh rider is riding with Jack in the first car, but that all other rules remain unchanged. Which of the following is a complete and accurate list of the riders who might be riding in the fifth car?
(A) Mark
(B) Gwen, Paul
(C) Tom, Laurie, Paul
(D) Tom, Laurie, Mark
(E) Tom, Paul, Laurie, Mark
I am enjoying the logic games, but I am pretty scared in general for this test. I can do everything in this book very well, the only problem is time. I hope that I can study for this test enough so that by the time I take it, I have become so fast with the logic games --- etc. that I just can wiz through them... but I don't know if that will happen.
I have also decided to take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) which if I decide to drop the law school thing (not planning on doing that now mom), but if I do, I can use my GRE score for the Graduate School applications.
Actually the logic games are kind of fun and I wish that I would have played them when I was younger... something I plan on telling my kids to do when they are growing up. Its a lot about organizing information and short term memory.
Here is an example... (this is a great time for you to take an extra break at work and see if you can get the problem done in the 9 minutes allowed per set of questions.
An amusement park roller coaster includes five cars, numbered 1 through 5 from front to back. Each car accommodates up to two riders, seated side by side. Six people—Tom, Gwen, Laurie, Mark, Paul and Jack—are riding the coaster at the same time.
* Laurie is sharing a car.
* Mark is not sharing a car and is seated immediately behind an empty car.
* Tom is not sharing a car with either Gwen or Paul.
* Gwen is riding in either the third or fourth car.
Which of the following groups of riders could occupy the second car?
(A) Laurie only
(B) Tom and Gwen
(C) Laurie and Mark
(D) Jack and Tom
(E) Jack, Gwen, and Paul
If Gwen is riding immediately behind Laurie's car and immediately ahead of Tom's car, all of the following must be true EXCEPT:
(A) Gwen is riding in the fourth car.
(B) Paul is riding in the third car.
(C) Tom is riding in the fifth car.
(D) Laurie is riding in the third car.
(E) The first car is empty.
Which one of the following statements CANNOT be true?
(A) Neither Tom nor Gwen is sharing a car with another rider
(B) Neither Mark nor Jack is sharing a car with another rider.
(C) Tom is sharing a car, and Jack is sharing a car.
(D) Gwen is sharing a car, and Paul is sharing a car.
(E) Tom is sharing a car, and Gwen is sharing a car.
If Paul is riding in the second car, how many different combinations of riders are possible for the third car?
(A) one
(B) two
(C) three
(D) four
(E) five
Assume that a seventh rider is riding with Jack in the first car, but that all other rules remain unchanged. Which of the following is a complete and accurate list of the riders who might be riding in the fifth car?
(A) Mark
(B) Gwen, Paul
(C) Tom, Laurie, Paul
(D) Tom, Laurie, Mark
(E) Tom, Paul, Laurie, Mark
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