If you can´t beat them, join them!!

Hola Todos,

I´m back again! This makes 2 days in a row that I´ve blogged, but with lots of time on my hands lately (due to the continued strike) I have a lot more time to email and blog. Speaking of the strike, I have realized that I´ve had the wrong attitude the whole time!! Yeah, I mean what´s the point of fighting an organized strike by teachers all over Chile? Now that we are going on week 4 of the strike I decided that "if you can´t beat them, join them!"

Here are a group of teachers from Copiapó marching around the Plaza.

(notice: the two street dogs participating in the march)

Here are some of the teachers from my school with a fancy new banner. Lookin´good!

Anna and I didn´t know that there was going to be a march downtown. Once again it paid to have my camera on me because I was able to snap a few photos of my collegues. Here they stopped briefly to let me get a better pic of them.



And then I decided to join in! Walter, a really nice teacher at my school, waved at me to come join them. I shook my head "no" because we are volunteers with the Chilean government so we are not allowed to get involved in teacher´s strikes (since the teachers are demanding money owed them by the gov).

But, right after saying no Anna and I thought "what the heck, why not?!" I mean, what are they going to do, kick us out of the program? Yeah right, we only have a few days left! So, here I am marching with my teachers (I was saying "we want money!" or something like that so that is why I have a weird expression).



Another pic of me marching with the teachers.

So, yeah I sort of joined my teachers in their strike. I think my marching with them lasted only a couple of minutes so I guess I can´t say I am one of the die hard strikers. Ironically I got a call today saying we might go back to school tomorrow. That is ironic because the strike has been going almost 4 weeks and tomorrow is technically my last day teaching. I am kind of hoping it works out because I can teach one more time, say good bye to the students and teachers, and give some small gifts to my two co-teachers and director. But, being Chile anything could happen so I am not keeping my fingers crossed. If you get a chance though pray that I get that last chance!! Ok, until next time...