I have a lot of more depthful things on my mind that I want to write about soon (as well as a strong desire to tell everyone I know about my gym here because it’s hilarious) so that stuff is coming. For now, something pretty superficial but that was running through my head and I wanted to record.
Ways people will know you’re not chilean
You carry a waterbottle
You drink water at all when juice, soda, or alcohol is available
You wear shorts ever (even at the gym)
You dress as if it’s spring when it’s 60-70 degrees outside instead of wearing a parka
You smile at people on the metro
You say “salud” when someone sneezes
You abstain from any of the following: any type of meat, alcohol, cigarettes
Your skin falls outside the color range of white to medium brown
You seek out coffee that isn’t nescafe and isn’t instant
You still get excited every time you see manjar
You don’t know what a chirimoya is
Your digestive system can’t handle white bread for breakfast, white bread for onces, and white bread with lunch, every single day
You say “adios” instead of “ciao”
You’re in a rush or look for a schedule
You don’t know how to light a gas powered hot water heater and/or ever forget to do this before you shower
You expect hot water for washing dishes
You leave the lights on in rooms you’re not occupying
You try to go out clubbing within the same day that you started getting ready (aka before midnight)
You are a stylish young man and your hair is not in one of the following conditions: rat tail, mullet, mullet in the front and three to seven thick dread locks in the back, one rat dread lock, dreads
You drink your coffee black
You don’t add salt to everything you eat, or you sometimes think things have too much salt in them
You go for runs outside (or worse, use an agility ladder in the park)
You’ve never heard of Colocolo
Ways I know I’m becoming more Chilean
I drink a shit ton of lipton yellow label tea
I’m not hungry for a real dinner at dinner time
I no longer say salud when someone sneezes
When I see someone wearing shorts I think “gringo!”
Streets dogs no longer phase me
I can almost say “cachai” without smirking
Hearing someone say “po” every other word no longer detracts from my comprehension of what they’re saying.
I no longer use the word “salir” to mean “to leave” but rather “to go out” as in partay
I can push my way onto the metro with the best of them
