Santiago is a wonderful place to be.

That is no lie! I was fortunate enough to spend the entire weekend here; that's right, no traveling for me this weekend folks! I love picking up and noticing the little details that make Santiago so great. For example, the weather is still beautiful. Sunshine every single day, knock on wood. I think that may be my favorite part. There is a nice little bench out on our patio and it's right in the sunshine. Of course Mama thinks I'm crazy when I sit out there in the direct sun, but don't worry, I take caution and apply SPF. ;)

Another fun thing about Santiago is surprisingly the stray dogs! While I avoid them every time I approach one on the sidewalk and by avoid I mean I either turn around and walk a different way or cross the street and hope he doesn't follow me, they use the sidewalks and abide by the crossing signals! Of course they like to roam in the parks and whatnot, but for the most part the dogs stay on the sidewalks and even if there are no cars coming, they wait for the "little green man" to cross the street in the crosswalk! It is so funny! I smile everytime I see it.

I think I am also getting used to the buses and the metro more and more each day. This is a definite plus because when you get the hang of how they operate it makes life a whole lot easier! Yesterday I went out to lunch with my friend Karrah and we just sat outside and shared a pizza del huerto, or rather, pizza of the garden. Corn, esparagus, eggplant, tomato, and mozzarella....mmm it was pretty delicious. And it was also my first time actually eating out in Santiago-I am used to Mama always cooking me meals so I don't need to spend my money, but I thought it would be a nice changeup, and a nice way to see some more of Santiago only costing roughly $5 for a full tummy.

Ellie and I have begun taking nightly walks which has also been nice; Las Condes is a really great neighborhood and honestly I'm more afraid of the dogs (although they really are harmless) than I am of the people. Funny story: the other day on the way to school the micro (bus) was really packed and there was a slightly shady man next to Ellie. She said he was acting kind of wierd (which was true) and when he got off the bus she looked and the front pocket of her backpack was unzipped! Luckily we have been warned not to keep valuables there but it was definitely an eye-opener for me because as many may already know, I can be very trusting, especially of the elderly. This reaffirmed me that I need to constantly be aware of the people around me, no matter their age.

It was a great weekend in Santiago for a few reasons, but especially because I was able to spend so much time with Mama and Carlos. If I have failed to mention Carlos he is Mama's younger brother who lives with us. It is actually really nice having him around because he is like my improv Chilean dad/brother. I was able to eat lunch on both Saturday and Sunday with them (which is a treat because I've been gone so often!) and even have once (OWN-say), which is kind of like their dinner but usually consists of bread and some extras, with them. They teased me for not being able to pronounce my r's, but I loved every minute of it. On Sunday, apart from being Divine Mercy Sunday was also the feast day of Quasimodo, which is an age-old tradition in Chile in the Catholic Church where they bring the sick and injured to mass to get a special blessing. I didn´t get to witness any of the traditions, but perhaps another time.

On Friday night was also the birthday party of our friend Kevin. He is a sweetheart from Michigan in our program and we all went to Jess and Alyssa´s house where they threw him a little party. There were a lot more Chileans than gringos which definitely surprised me! It provided a fun atmosphere to practice spanish and learn a little bit more of how young people actually speak, rather than always talking to Mama and Carlos. However, two things that are present in conversation regardless of age is the infamous "¿cachai?" and "po". Cachai is literally thrown in after every 4th or 5th word in most conversations and it translates to "understand?" I love it. And po is added to most, if not all words. I think it is something that although I am accustomed to, I will still smile each time I hear someone say sipo, OBviopo, Chilepo, etc etc.

In school-related news I officially have a tandem conversation partner, which is someone that signs up with the university to practice their English with a student who wants to practice their Spanish. His name is Christian Morales and we meet weekly to practice our respective languages, chit chat about life and whatnot. It's pretty fun and is helping me learn and gain confidence with my speaking. He is also an ayudante, or TA, of one of the classes I was about to take so I had met him before we found out we got paired together. Small world, even here in Santiago!

Lastly, on Friday night was my first night teaching English to Chileans! Belén UC is a volunteer program with the Pastoral UC on the San Joaquin campus and they have a program where they teach adults who either did not finish college, got pregnant, or who simply want to come back and learn a variety of subjects. My friend Yvonne from New Zealand actually signed up to teach as well and we got randomly paired to teach the same class! What are the odds? I repeat, small world. But it was definitely an interesting experience and I am already looking forward to this Friday! The students are mainly between the ages of 17 and 22 so they are my own age, except of course for the nice 60 year old caballero who sat right in the front row.

Overall, it was an enjoyable week in Santiagopo and I am looking forward to what this week has in store! Ciao ciao!