April 2017 – markmagpusao.com

Jiu Jitsu in Chile

Cohab Equipo in Vina Del Mar.

I spent most of my time here. A exciting group of competition players. The higher colored belts put me through the ringer as soon as I first stepped on the mat the first night. Andres Perez is the head Black Belt and coach of Cohab. He spoke English to me and was very welcoming. I enjoyed the training environment and schedule. On average there are 3 classes a day with open mat sessions on Saturday and Sunday. I was able to train everyday when I wasn’t working at my hostel.

Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Valparaiso, Chile. This gym was about two blocks from my hostel. So it was very convenient. It was the first gym I visited when I recovered from my cold. The blonde haired purple belt, Nico, really put it on me when I was there. He was also preparing for competition the next day in Santiago. Samir was the Black Belt there. A friendly fellow and waived my mat fee. I would have trained more if their schedule was than three times a week.

Raul Valencia- Cicero Costha- Vina Del Mar

Raul Valencia Cicero Costha- in Vina Del Mar.

There is a good training here. I trained here twice. It’s one of those places where the white belts get taught to bypass the opponents guards fast rather than play into it. I was x passed many times by white belts. I like to go easy on white belts until they start using strength. They train hard here, an hour of training after drilling. I enjoy that kind of training. I didn’t train that long at any other gym in Chile. Raul Valencia was the head instructor there, Brown Belt. Big Ups to Francisca Floras for showing me around my last day.

Cohab- Reneca.

Andres Perez has a brother, that’s also a Black Belt, Fernando Perez. I went to visit him but he was out that day. I met Guillermo, purple belt, instructor. It was a small group with all white belts except Guillermo and I. Only white belts, but they were strong and quick. I had a white belt really tried to tap me with strength. He had good submissions on me but kept using his grip to pull, rather than adjusting position or abandon and try something else. Other than that it was a good time.

Here’s a good discussion questions. How do you roll when you travel? Hard or smooth? Do you give up position to lower belts?

I learned that I still don’t know anything about Jiu Jitsu. What I know is few drops in a water bucket. It’s never ending.

Day 60. Valparaiso El Fin.

A month in Valparaiso, Chile.

I spent a month in Valparaiso, Chile. I did a work exchange at a hostel. I worked in exchange for a bed and some food. It was actually a lot easier than I thought, despite everything being in Spanish. It is said that Chilean Spanish is difficult to understand because they talk to fast and they have different slang. I got along fine though. Before Chile I spent the prior month backpacking through Peru. It was too fast for me, a week here and a week there. I found this gig through, Workaway, check it out. I have another gig in August in Scotland. It was great to relax and not have to worry about traveling.

Valparaiso is the cultural capital of Chile. There are 42 hills, cerros, in the city. There are many incredible murals all over the city. It has one of the three homes of famous Chilean Poet, Pablo Neruda. It used to be one of the premier ports in the 1800s. With the creation of the Panama Canal. Its stopped receiving as many visitors. I saw a video that showed the city and immediately I wanted to visit the city.

I don’t know who this artist is but I dig the character style and colors.

Red Bull Valparaiso Abajo

Who I met. The first people I met were my co-workers, Hernan. He was the manager of the hostel. He was very friendly and welcoming. I learned a lot about Chilean culture from him. Lucas, a young Brazilian kid, who is from Sao Paulo. He is traveling all over South America. He will be in Chile until July. Pierre, a French traveler, who is from Marseilles. He has a travel visa for a year. He left to travel south after a week I arrived.

Pierre made crepes as his last meal with us.

What I got from the experience. Traveling slow is a much more enjoyable experience. I was able to spend more time to meet people and learn about their culture and country. One of the traditions at the hostel was to have lunch together with all the workers. It will be something that I’m going to miss. I believe breaking bread with strangers is one of the best ways to get to know people. The last lunch I had with Hernan and Lucas, I made Filipino chicken adobo. I believe knowing how to cook is an essential adult skill. I’m thankful for living on my own, it helped with my knowledge around the kitchen.

My last lunch with the guys. Food brings people together.

I had a lot of down time to train Jiu Jitsu, read, cook, walk around the city, enjoy a wine tour and take in the Chilean culture. I will miss the weather, empanadas, murals, food, wine, and speaking spanish but not the terremotos. I will go to South Korea for a week.

Travel slow.

Day 41. Valparaiso

One of my favorite parts of my stay. Eating together with my Hostel.

I finished Christian Graugart’s book this week while working reception at my hostel. One take away from the book is that it’s easy for me to be self conscious of my skills and compare myself to other purple belts around the world. By the end of my trip I will roll with over hundred different strangers from countries all over the world. It’s ridiculous to compare each other. We walk our own Camino, our on path.

I have to enjoy to process, the journey. With the example of the Camino. The most enjoyable part was the day of walking. The getting up early and packing your bag. The walk by yourself or with people. The evening meals with other pilgrims. Those are my favorite memories. When I got to Santiago, the final destination. I got this meh feeling. That’s it. I was just sad that it was over.

“If you’re an asshole when you start out and you’re an asshole when you get back,”- Yvon Chounard.

I spend most mornings going for a walk and exploring the city. I sit at a cafe and I write in my journal. It’s very meditative. I enjoy this slow pace of travel. I’m reading a lot more. I have time to really immerse myself here.

I trained last Friday at Gracie Jiu Jitsu on Pedro Montt. Which is the picture above. Samir was the Black Belt. He is very welcoming. First time back since my URI(Upper Respiratory Infection). I rolled mainly with Nico, a purple belt who is competing in a tournament the next day in Santiago. He submitted me many times, with many different submissions.

Currently reading: The Portrait of Dorian Gray.

I will try to blog every week.