My international experience to date is very limited. The only international experience I have is on family vacations. The places I visited on these vacations were tropical islands, including Bermuda and Barbados. The reason I say that my international experience is very limited is because both of these islands are english speaking, and are property of Great Britain, so there are no huge cultural differences.
I want to go to Chile because:
The main reason I want to go to Chile is because I want to have fun. This trip is going to be very fun, there is no doubt about that. Another reason I want to go is because as an engineer this is one of my only opportunities to study abroad due to an intense and rigid academic schedule. One last reason I want to go to Chile is because I believe some international experience can be very valuable later in my potential career and life in general.
I think the main professional work differences I will experience will be:
As we were told in seminar about some of the differing business etiquette that Chilean business people practice, it will be interesting to see some of the differences. I believe the main difference we will see is what I like to call "the time factor". American businesses are all about doing things as quickly as possible, whereas Chilean business people do not like to get right down to business. For example, I am almost positive we will show up for a scheduled meeting and the Chilean business people we will be meeting with will show up late in order to make it seem like they are "in demand".
I think the main cultural differences I will experience will be:
I think the main cultural differences that we will experience reflect my statement above about "the time factor". It seems to me that Chile has a much more laid back and relax culture compared to America. I think that we will see this reflected in their work place and professional etiquette, as well as in our everyday experiences on the streets with the natives. I think it will be refreshing to get away from the hectic, rushed, and structured day of the typical American.
I think the main political differences I will experience will be:
Most people do not know that Chile has a women president. I think this will be the only concrete difference we will see in politics. Chile's political structure is very similar to the United States in that they have elections, a bicameral Congress, and a Supreme Court. Therefore, I think we will experience very little, if any political differences.
I think the students I meet in Chile will be:
If the students reflect Chile's culture in any way, I think they will be great to meet and hang around with. I believe that they will be very accepting, and respectful toward us. Just as most of us will be very interested in finding out how their lives differ from ours, I am sure they will be wondering the same things about us. I most definitely look forward to interacting, and meeting some of the Chilean students.
I predict I will be surprised to find:
I predict that I will be surprised to find that it is not warm this time of year in a country in South America. My pre-conceived notion was that it was going to be a tropical paradise. It's still in my mind that it is going to be, maybe because that is what I want it to be, but I know that when I get there it is going to become very clear that the average temperature this time of year in Chile is about 50 degrees.
I think the major differences in living conditions will be:
Well being as Chile is not as wealthy as the United States I am expecting there to be more slum areas then I am normally accustomed to. Furthermore, I expect the country to be generally not as clean as the United States. And therefore, I expect living conditions to obviously be livable but no where near as nice as the United States or where I live.
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