Hola a todos!
You may be wondering what exactly the title of this post is referring to. Well, like most words of Chilean Spanish, carrete is another chilean exclusive idiom for parties or fiestas. The activity of going out with friends and taking on Chilean dance parties have become another integral part of my experience here thus far. Chileans indeed know how to party and have a good time, despite their schedules being perpetually behind and later than the hours of partying in America.
A couple mid-carrete selfies
For example, to Chileans it is completely normal to show up at a party at 2am and go until 6am. In America, 12am is usually a strong upper bound for me when it comes to going out. Nevertheless, all of the carretes I have attended here in Santiago have been quite fun and demonstrated to me the all-so-relatable vibrant nature and energy of youth here in Chile. No matter the nationality or ethnicity, youth all around the world simply want to have a good time. This expands upon a great learning pillar I have found here in Chile: we, as people of the world, are all much more similar than we are different. This idea, if considered more widely and openly, I believe could make the world a much more caring and empathetic place! Nevertheless, my time in Chile is hastefully running down as I approach the 2 weeks left mark. I continue to press on and soak up the moments that remain, focusing primarily on the good and circumventing all else (a mindset I hope to retain far after this trip). Lastly, the process of learning Spanish has continued to be really fun, despite frustrating at times. It reminded me of the too often forgotten notion of enjoying the process and not being so fixated on the destination that you miss all of the great nuanced things happening around you.
Hasta luego,
Chris