University of Arizona Wine Tour

Last Friday, October 30, the International Students of the University of Viña del Mar at OIIE-UVM settled into the daily routine of attending classes and living with their Chilean families. On last Friday afternoon, they visited the William Cole and Veramonte vineyards. The vineyards are located in one of Chile’s premier wine regions, the Casablanca Valley, which rests between Viña del Mar and Santiago.

The students were impressed by the elegance of the vineyards’ main buildings, and the views of the vineyard they offered. The warm, sunny day was perfect for wandering through the endless rows of ripe grape vines. The students were given tours and shown how the wine is produced. The tours ended with a tasting of the vineyards’ wines. After the tours, the students had lunch in a traditional Chilean restaurant.

See more pics of the Wine Tour in the following link:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=129558&id=537076485&l=bebe101673

Cultures in Contact

“Cultures in contact” is a class where two worlds come together. In here, students from different countries, mostly from the United States, and Chilean students from the University of Viña del Mar come together to exchange ideas, opinions and beliefs from both backgrounds. In the class, students are given the opportunity to do projects and presentations that will allow them to not only introduce interesting things about their culture but also better understand the culture of their fellow classmates. They have had opportunities to exchange ideas that are relevant in their class.

For example, students have learned that there is more than just one point of view when it comes to music, sports, dating, politics, and other topics. In short, it started out as thinking inside the “own county box” and ended by entering into what it means to truly be a Chilean.