Thursday, a week ago, was a nationwide protest where students all over the country gathered in cities throughout Chile, in Santiago and here in Valparaíso. Chile's president Sebastián Piñera and the Chilean government did not grant consent for the protests, and government insisted the students did not have permits to protest and warned them of police intervention if they continued. Therefore, the protests were violent, but they were very contained to the area in which they began.
Chile needs your prayers. I am praying that there is an understanding soon between the government and the students. I am praying that the students hearts will be changed, and that they would resort to peace rather than violent protests. It's a tough situation, but God is bigger and He knows what's going on.
Classes for the Chilean university students have not begun due to the protests. So, the international exchange students have been moved from the main university here in Valparaíso to the neighboring city, Viña del Mar in an elemantary school that is undergoing renovations. It's a little further for me to go everyday, but the metro system makes the trip pretty easy. I am so grateful that our classes are continuing. That is such a blessing!
History classes always begin in the second week of the semester here, so today was my first day of history class. The history department at Universidad Católica has its own location, which is also in Viña. It's a beautiful castle-like building built by the Spaniards in the 1800s. Here's some pics...
But, we didn't end up staying there for class. We took a tour of the library then our class of only 5 girls, all exchange students and our awesome professor took us to a café within walking distance. We sipped café cortados while he talked about the class. He's really chill, and I can already tell he will be an awesome teacher. We asked him when our final research paper was due, and he said, "Oh, fechas no son importante." (Oh, dates don't matter.) Yea, I think I will like this class.
Something really interesting happened this week. Since I am a part of the Campus Crusade ministry on LSU's campus, I emailed the director of Campus Crusade's program in Santiago to see if they had any programs in Valparaíso or Viña. And they did! They put me in contact with a university student named Felipe, who is a student intern for Crusade here in Viña. We met this week, and got ice cream. He is one of the most humble people I've ever met. I was inspired by his passion for the Word, and his willingness to serve. He organizes several programs for Campus Crusade with university and highschool students here in Valparaíso, Viña and Santiago, and he wants to be a missionary. He shared his testimony with me, and I was very humbled by his story and how dedicated he is. He was an atheist before he became a Christian, but a some missionaries from a Campus Crusade program in the States came one summer and shared the Gospel with him. After spending time with them, God changed his heart, and he accepted Christ as his savior. It was really cool to hear his testimony, and I was in awe of how God can change someone's heart from something so hard to a heart for Him. It gave me so much hope and praise in my heart for the Lord.
Last night, I went to the Crusade bible study. We met in the food court of the mall because they don't have a facility yet. It was really interesting because a visiting missionary from Colombia gave the message. Colombians are known for their impeccable Spanish. They speak very clearly and properly, so it was a little easier to understand, for me. It was really cool because a professor of astronomy from the Universidad de Valparaíso, who is a missionary and serving here came to the bible study. His name is Martin, and he is originally from England. But, his wife is from the states, and his children were born in the U.S. He came with his family five years ago to Chile as a missionary while working as a professor in the university. He is incredibly sweet, and it was so wonderful to meet him. I am so thankful to meet Felipe, Martin and the other students with Crusade here. God is so good! I can't wait to see how He will use this.
On Monday, I went with my friend, Regina, who is from Germany to volunteer to feed the homeless with a Catholic ministry called Hogar de Cristo. Hogar de Cristo works often with university students from our university here, which is how I heard about it. We met at the shelter, and then went with some Chilean volunteers in a van to make rounds around the city. It was a sad reality, and one that was tough for me to swallow. But, I am so glad that I went, and it made me very thankful. Today, as we were leaving our 'class' from the café, one of the men that we met on the rounds said hello to Regina and I. He had his daughter or some sort of relative, (I'm not really sure) with him, and I just fell in love with her. Her name is Lizna and she couldn't have been more precious. She's six years old, and she liked my pelo rubia (blonde hair), and wanted my bracelet. I just wanted to take her home with me...
Lizna and I...
The ocean is so gorgeous here...
Also, I went with a friend, Sara to a salsa class!! (In case you read my first post, it's the same girl that didn't show up at the air port, Sara Menard. There was some confusion about her arrival time, but it turns out she made it safely to Chile.) The dance teacher was a Chilean woman (obviously), and she was awesome. She had one of those voices that carries really well, and she was an amazing dancer. It was a really fun class, and I learned to salsa!!
Here's Sara and I and two other exchange students after our class...
Well, keep Chile in your prayers!
Love from Chile,
Sophie
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