One of the questions I was sure to hear on a daily basis at school: “¿Tienes confort?” “All of these truths we hold to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty, and toilet paper in public places.” Well, I never was the best at history. However, growing up in the USA one might never think twice about if there will be toilet paper before entering a public bathroom. In fact, I don’t think it is too much to say that it is nearly a social crime to not provide your patrons with a sufficient supply of "decent" toilet paper. I am going to guess that you most likely have either had and/or overheard a conversation much like the following: A: "Can you believe that they still don't have any toilet paper in there?" B: "Uh, I know, so ridiculous. And when they do it is only 1-ply...ug." A: "1-ply? Puh-lease. You mean half-ply?" B: "Mmmmmhhhhhmmmm. True dat." Let’s go back to: “¿Tienes confort?” {tee-en-ehs-cone-fort} Did you figure out what it means yet? Maybe this picture will help: The word Confort could be compared to the USA’s usage of Kleenex…a name brand turned common term. Confort is also a Chileanism so you can imagine my confusion at first when asked this question…wait, do you want to know if I’m comfortable? A confier? Do I have a conifer tree? Is that a way to say gum here in Chile? After a few gestures it became known that the conversation was about toilet paper. Do you have toilet paper? Ahhh, sí…that makes so much more sense…. Something I have learned while traveling and living in other countries is that toilet paper is not a requirement, but rather a luxury…many places do not provide toilet paper so it is safest to always carry a roll with you, or, at the very least, a package of tissues. In conclusion"¿Tienes confort?" can be translated to standard English "Do you have toilet paper?" and if you also speak Seinfeldease you might say "Do you have a square to spare?" Oh, and while we're on the topic, don't flush your confort here. Bathroom wastebins get much more use in Latin America and other places in the world versus the USA. But fear not! If you're traveling and not sure if your used paper should go in the bowl or the bin, someone has taken the time to save you from a potentially awkward social situation: www.wheredoiputthepaper.com. (Not only a practical website, but quite entertaining as well.)
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If you look outside your window, do you see snow? Have you started to layer on the clothes and jackets? Are you currently wearing more than one pair of socks? Have you recently had to shovel your sidewalk or scrape ice off your car? Do your nose hairs freeze themselves together within a few minutes of breathing in that fresh Winter air? Are you craving a day to hide underneath 5 blankets with a mug of warm chocolate? If you answered yes to any (or unfortunately all) of the above questions, then this post is for you! My intentions are not to make you sad nor to make you long for the summertime days that are now only a memory. My hope is that a little talk about a couple of warm things will take your mind off of the blustery days ahead, even if just for a few moments. Uno). It is getting toasty here in central Chile. Nearly Every day the last couple of weeks it has gotten up to about 30-32 degrees…Celsius, that is. In Fahrenheit that’s about 88-91 degrees. Dos). Chileans drink lots of tea. I don’t think I have gone a day without tea since arriving here! Even when it getting warmer, there is still hot tea at breakfast every morning. When referring to tea, please don’t imagine the numerous shelves of flavored tea available in any USA grocery store. When dining at a Chilean’s house you will be served black tea. There are some occasional flavored teas that I have been offered, but the majority of the time, any other herbal tea is reserved as a treatment for some sort of ailment. Tres). I’ve talked before about my lovely gas tank and the amazing things it makes possible. One of those is hot water: Sending warm thoughts and Olaf hugs your way!
This is Choripan {chor-ee-pahn}. It is pronounced it with an "ah"...p-ah-n... It is a delicious grilled sausage (chorizo) on some grilled bread (pan). It is lovely. It is wonderful. It looks so innocent...and then Bam!...you're in love. Your life changed forever. It is one of my favorite things so far in Chile. This is also Choripan. Oh, have I mentioned that I adopted a puppy? (I realized that I made this announcement on Facebook but have withheld this lovely news from my non-Facebook-blog-readers...sorry!) She is about 5 months old, weighs approx. 9 kilos, and loves:
Now, you're probably asking yourself "Why did she name her dog Choripan? She isn't even the same color! I hope she doesn't plan on eating her!" And those are great and valid questions...and I hope you're not disappointed with the answers.
1) I have a history of naming my pets after food...so I wanted to keep the tradition alive! 2) Choripan/Chori sound nice and are easily pronounced in both English & Spanish. 3) It is a great conversation starter! Someday I should record people's faces when I tell them her name...priceless. 4) I can imagine the day when she is in the park or street, playing and running, and I yell "¡Choripan! ¡Choripan!" and everyone looks at me to see if I am selling choripan...ha ha ha....and if I ever adopt another pet, I think I will surely call it: ¡Terremoto! (Which means Earthquake...and is also a delicious drink!) (Let's be honest...you're going to go flush your toilet to check which way it flushes...)
Do you have a lingering question that you would like answered here on my blog? Send me an email or post your question below! Everybody in Chile has gas. No, I am not talking about THAT kind of gas. (And no, we don’t eat frijoles every day. And no, Chile is not even close to Mexico. ~end small rant~) Let’s start again, shall we? Everybody in Chile has gas, needs gas, AND has gas delivered to their house! If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m not referring to the petro you put into your car either...but rather what I believe most people in the states would think of exclusively for a grill in the summertime. This is my gas tank who I have lovingly decided to call Gaspar. He is 15kg and sports a delightful orange color. Life before Gaspar wasn’t unlivable, but it certainly was lacking. Once Gaspar moved in I could do amazing things like cook food on my stove and take a warm shower! And if you aren't lucky enough to have a wood-burning estufa, then you probably want a Gaspar for the chilly winter days to keep your house (or classroom) warm! (I just looked up Gaspar and found out that it means “Keeper of the Treasure”...could there be a more perfect name?!) Gaspar was delivered to me on a truck like this: All someone must do to get their own Gaspar is call one of these companies, ask for some gas, and wa-la! Just a few minutes later someone will be yelling at your gate with a filled Gaspar of whatever size you choose to use for all of your gassy needs!
Wow, I just named my gas tank. I really need to make some more friends... |
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