June and July have not been my favorite months here in Chile. I just think it's wrong when I want to spend all day in bed because I can see my breath in the apartment. I had no idea how awesome central heating was until now. Our only salvation is the balcony which gets prime sunshine during the day...however, it's been raining the last couple days so my warm oasis has been taken away from me.
To reiterate:
Katie: "That may have quite possibly been the most difficult thing I've had to do all day!"
Me: "What? Get out of the shower?"
Katie: "Yes."
I.cannot.wait.until.spring.
To reiterate:
Katie: "That may have quite possibly been the most difficult thing I've had to do all day!"
Me: "What? Get out of the shower?"
Katie: "Yes."
I.cannot.wait.until.spring.
Our balcony...don't be deceived by the palm tree. It is truly cold here.
June was consumed by soccer. Friends got together for most important games...the energy during Chile games was intense! People would drive through the streets with Chilean flags and honking horns. All bars were open, even during games at 7 a.m, with big screens! I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of televised sporting events...but it was really fun watching the games (even at 7 am). It took a toll on my students unfortunately, who had access to a "fútbol tent" with a big screen on campus. I confiscated A LOT of soccer schedules and other FIFA paraphernalia and made a rule that they were only allowed to talk about fútbol in English. Obviously that was a bust. Hah.
Chilean Pride for the U.S v.s. England game!
Chile v.s Spain with the roommates and friends...
Katie, Brittaney and I tried to harness some american culinary goodness by making S'mores over our gas stove to celebrate the 4th of July. We couldn't find graham crackers (sad...), but we used a cookie substitute that sufficed. Then we went to a gringo-bar "Cantina California" with a bunch of our American friends to have Sangria and dance. Per usual, there were tons of Americans and also the standard creepy Chileans who search out American girls and typical american shenanigans as-seen-on-tv.
Travels & Sightseeing.
Since Buenos Aires I've been laying low, a.k.a I really just don't make enough money to support my wander-lusting spirit. Katie and I took a day trip out to Pulmaire. We got on a bus headed in that direction and had the driver tell us when to get off. He pulls over on the side of the highway and tells us to get off here, jump over the fence, cross over the exit ramp, walk down a dirt road and look for another bus to take us there. Hah, that's South America for you! Anyways, Pulmaire is a town about an hour outside of Santiago that specializes in artisan pottery. It's unbelievably cheap. I bought a couple of glazed bowls and matching cups for less than $10 USD! Katie bought some larger glazed bowls that we were later told the U.S ambassador had also purchased. It was an overcast day...cold and rainy. For some reason it smelled like Matamoros, Mexico. I think it was the combination of the rain, the smoke from the fire baked pottery, and the mud...I really like that smell. I also really like the smell of burning tires from my stay in Mexico...that's a little weird, I know. We had lunch there and we were served "vino navegado" which to me, tasted like mulled wine. It was excellent...
Since Buenos Aires I've been laying low, a.k.a I really just don't make enough money to support my wander-lusting spirit. Katie and I took a day trip out to Pulmaire. We got on a bus headed in that direction and had the driver tell us when to get off. He pulls over on the side of the highway and tells us to get off here, jump over the fence, cross over the exit ramp, walk down a dirt road and look for another bus to take us there. Hah, that's South America for you! Anyways, Pulmaire is a town about an hour outside of Santiago that specializes in artisan pottery. It's unbelievably cheap. I bought a couple of glazed bowls and matching cups for less than $10 USD! Katie bought some larger glazed bowls that we were later told the U.S ambassador had also purchased. It was an overcast day...cold and rainy. For some reason it smelled like Matamoros, Mexico. I think it was the combination of the rain, the smoke from the fire baked pottery, and the mud...I really like that smell. I also really like the smell of burning tires from my stay in Mexico...that's a little weird, I know. We had lunch there and we were served "vino navegado" which to me, tasted like mulled wine. It was excellent...
Last weekend I went with Jorge and his family to las Sierras de Bellavista. We stayed in a family vacation home up in the mountains (near San Fernando... +/- 2 hours south of Santiago). It seriously felt like I was back in New Hampshire! We went on walks/hikes around the area (down the mountain, to the river, around a lake...standard outdoorsy stuff). The back porch had a great setup for grilling- so as you can imagine, in true Chilean style, we ate a ton of carne asado. In addition, I ate a bite of "Choripan" (essentially a hot dog, but it's nothing like an oscar meyer or anything...). You should know that I have an EXTREME aversion to anything in the hot dog/sausage/chorizo family...in fact, I haven't eaten a hotdog since I was about 6 years old. It's the big joke (aside from my milk allergy) for my friends and family. As you can see, this was a momentous occasion...and I must admit that it wasn't SO bad. I don't think I'll be eating more anytime soon though. Anyways, aside from peer-pressured traumatic hotdog eating experiences, it was a really nice get away from the city! Smog free air, stars at night, quiet, wood stove cooked marshmallows, bilingual pictionary... an all around wonderful weekend!
Click on the picture and get a better look of those mountains! Ok, so it's way better views than in New Hampshire...
Daniela, Francisco, Carolina, Jorge I, Jorge II, me, Nicolas!
Next up:
Wrapping up the semester at Duoc. My kids are in finals now...so I don't have much to do except grade papers, administer finals, and turn in finals grades! 3 out of 5 of my classes want to celebrate the end of semester...so I'm gearing up for that too. They are already a lot to handle during the day (sober...maybe?) so I'm not looking forward what mischief is going to go on out in a bar...
Also, I am going to PERU for winter break. We have a couple of weeks off from work so Celine, Brittaney, Bridget and I are heading to Lima and Cusco from July 30th until Aug. 7th! MACHU PICCHU!!!!
