The Professor

I don't think a study abroad experience should primarily be about the pictures that you take or even what you learn in class- at least mine isn’t. Its cheesy, but it really is about the people. I haven’t taken a single photo in the past two weeks (terrible, I know) but I have some great stories, and I’ve met some interesting individuals. I’ll tell you about one- the Professor.

I sitting at an outdoor table with friends from my program late one night, and desperately in need of entertainment- we were at a bar, which had no water, no food, just booze. This worked very well for my friend, but not nearly as well for me since I don’t drink. I believe I occupied my mind by thinking about exactly why people seem to have a much better time if they inebriated- jokes that made little sense to me seemed uproariously funny to a lot of other people. But just as I had been observing everyone else, someone else had been observing us. He came over and at first I though he was a beggar- just because of his hair (think Einstein, but longer, curlier, and only slight better kept). But the first thing he said to me was that I might want to keep a better eye on the duffle bag at my feet, since there area was known for crime. (He was right about the neighborhood being a bit gritty- this particular neighborhood has the same feel as that strip of St. Marks Place with all the tattoo parlors; its just seedier, and has five bars on every block, each of which had fifteen tables on the sidewalk, and chairs that balanced on the edge of the sidewalk and threatened to fall into the street) He assured me that he knew what he was talking about- “Really. You should be careful. I’m friends with the local pickpockets.” ….reassuring, trust inspiring statement, no?

But then he went on to talk with me.

He used to be a professor of Botany at the University of Chile, and had studied in Chicago and D.C.. A few years ago, he stopped teaching- I didn’t ask way ‘cause I didn’t want to be rude. But most of his time now is spent in observation, mostly of plants, but also of people. (The latter isn’t quite as creepy as it sounds.) We talked for a while, during which he gave me two important suggestions for my stay here. I hope I never forget his point, which I think is important enough to be the close of this entry:

I asked the Professor what I should remember the most while studying in Chile. In response, he pointed to the pavement next to the doorway that led inside the bar, and said “remember that the perspective from (the beggar) down there, is different from the one from here,” pointing to a seat at our the table, “which is different from the perspective of the waiter bringing you drinks, or the vendor, or the person just walking by these tables. All are experiencing the same exact moment very differently.” He said that while here, he strongly suggested that I try to see what Chile looks like from a perspective outside of the American students drinking at a bar.