Christine's Despedidas

I'm approaching my final days in the English Opens Doors program. We have final ceremonies this coming week and then the program is officially over on Friday, November 27th. To mark the ending of this chapter in my life, some fellow coworkers as well as my family threw me a "despedida" or farewell gathering.

My fellow co-teachers are a fun group of people and they took me to a local pub to celebrate. We talked, laughed and ate some traditional greasy food. They also surprised me with a trinket to remember Antofagasta by. It's a small model of La Portada, the famous rock formation close to the city. The dish below has beef, chorizo (sausage), eggs, and french fries.

It was very nice of them to throw me a despedida and I had a great time, though i will miss everyone.

Then, my host family threw me a despedida asado. Here my host parents are preparing the chicken, chorizo, and beef on the grill while a family friend and my cousin watch. Bread, pebre (salsa), and some "punch" await on the table.

This is my great family as we all gather around the table to eat the fabulous feast in front of us. Alongside the meat, we had many different types of salads (many of which i have blogged about before) and potatoes. We sat down around 1:30 or 2 and left the table after 4pm. I've come accustomed to sitting at the table for awhile after the meal is finished. I like that in the culture here. It makes time for enjoying the meal and conversing with the friends or family that surround you. Now, if I have to get up from the table 5 minutes after I'm finished, my stomach feels weird and I feel like the time has passed to rapidly.

"Saying goodbye doesn't mean anything. It's the time we spent together that matters, not how we left it."
Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park, Tweek Vs. Craig, 1999

CW