Hey everyone, my name is Amily, I am a theatre designer and artist from the UK. On the 29th of March, I flew to Antofagasta, Chile to start working with the ritual theatre company La Favorecedora. Antofagasta is in the north of Chile by the Atacama Desert. This is an extract about how I've been feeling, my mental health and what I have been doing over the last few weeks,
When I first arrived I was introduced to the whole crew of La Favorecedora, Jugglers, musicians, and performers, they were all go calm and genial! I was excited about all the experiences, the amazing art/performances that were upcoming and the exchange we can make together! But I don't yet speak Spanish, and I was feeling quite lost and misunderstood sometimes, my friend said it is important to keep being kind to yourself and know that losing control in this kind of experience is going to happen! The newness of all things around me has been great for my inspiration, I’ve been able to create and write with a focus and force that I’ve never seen before. I have also faced old memories which came up, this has made me contact old friends I have not seen for a long time like my artist friend Luna who lives in Beijing. Luckily I'm living with Arlette the director of La Favorecedora and her lovely and naughty cat Sofi who won't leave my side which has been a blessing!
This weekend we had such a wonderful time! We went to the desert corporation GEN 'Hen' with everyone around! It was such an amazing time driving into the desert and working there, I was sewing some stuff and trying on some cowboy costumes, and they had a gun! I made some cool movies with the guns, and we played with these funny kazoo Mariachi band instruments they had 'DIY' together. I met a Swiss artist who could speak English and that was so fulfilling to be able to express what I was feeling fully to someone experiencing similar things. On the night we sat in Veronica's house another desert landowner and had a picnic, her house is so beautiful and full of lights, and she had made it all herself! What a lovely woman. After that I snuck off and lay on the sand in the night I’ve never seen anything like it, it wasn’t just stars, it was the whole Milky Way! I could not believe what I just saw, I have been in the desert before in Mongolia the Gobi Desert, but it was not like that. I lay there and understood how it must feel to be human before all this stuff we made like cities. Why the earth is so beautiful I hope everyone can see and feel that! Now I understand why they call this desert the eyes of the world, what I saw was like something from national geographic...
Solo travel and working abroad is always a battle, but the rewards are beyond anything I have ever experienced. I think viewing every day as a new day is great and making friends with the people around you, finding nice places to go where you feel comfortable and treating yourself when you are feeling low is definitely one of my favourite practices!
Love and just one kiss
Amily Galhand
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