What did YOU do last Tuesday?

Well I don't know about you, but I went to La Previa Restobar and sang karaoke! Cristian, one of our friends, goes every Tuesday and in fact is probably there getting his voice warmed up as I type! Laura, Ellie and I went for something a little different to do and for an excuse to stay up late on a school night. We may be 20+ years old but that doesn't mean we are irresponsible! We got there 15 minutes after happy hour ended but that did not deter us from having a good time. Cristian so graciously signed us up as the third act of the night, so we had to think on our feet and choose our fate quickly. We ended up going with Gloria Gaynor's-made famous hit, I Will Survive and not only did we win the crowd over instantly with our blond hair, but also with our amusing dance moves and should-be-famous singing voices. Maybe we'll get discovered next Tuesday and can spend the rest of our lives traveling around South America. Or, maybe we'll just go, belt out a couple ditties, embarrass ourselves on stage and wake up smelling like an ashtray the next morning. The latter is certainly more likely.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were pretty standard and fortunately for all of us one of Mama's friends, Verónica, is here visiting from northern Chile and she is a real hoot! I've been able to have lunch and once (own-say - Chilean's version of dinner/tea time) with them a few times and have thoroughly enjoyed every minute. From talking about la Farandula (Chile's version of Hollywood and famous people) to earthquakes to family life I have had a great time cracking jokes with those two ladies. They sure are entertaining and they like to feed the niña (a.k.a. me) way too much! But mama prepares great meals so I suppose I'll take one for the team.

Side note: I really love the Chilean way of eating. It's so basic. Bread for breakfast, big lunch that always consists of (at least in this household): a fresh salad, some sort of main dish, and a dessert which is usually a fruit of some sort and then bread and butter, avocado, or cheese with coffee or tea for dinner. I do love it. When we all have once together mama usually prepares a whole bunch of add-ons for the bread, but my favorite is definitely the palta or this new blueberry marmalade she just opened. Mmmmm.

After spending a great time at Ellie's house on Friday night reliving a little bit of high school days, we got up bright and early and went on our third and final trip with our Michigan-Wisconsin program: Viña Concha y Toro, which is a winery that boasts some world-famous and Chile's best wines. We toured the place, enjoyed samples of two of their finest wines and made our way out before 1 pm. We then were able to enjoy a delicious lunch at Restaurant el Bosque, which is an exquisite restaurant in Cajón del Maipo, the same place where we went to the water reserve last weekend. We all ate just enough to pass out on the way home, or at least I did, and I do not regret it.
Lunch consisted of:
1 pisco sour
1 jugo natural de piña (fresh pineapple juice)
1 roll with pebre (Chilean salsa)
1 small cheese empanadita
1 small empanadita de pino (meat)
1 chicken breast with cheese and red pepper
1 slice of delicious lúcuma ice creamish cake

So you could say we really got our money's worth and aside from it being a great environment, it was just a buena onda as they say here, everybody laughing and enjoying each other's company. After a nap on the bus I finally had the opportunity to bake for the first time since my arrival! For those of you who do not know me, in Wisconsin I had recently taken up a new found appetite for baking, literally. I went over to Casa Suecia, which is the student residence where Steph lives (along with about 30 other international students from all over the world), and her, Kathy and I made cookie sandwiches with manjar (dulce de leche) in the middle. They were gone within the hour but those that were able to enjoy them did and that's where the joy of baking comes in!

Rolling into Sunday and I have definitely saved the best for last. My friend Pablo had told me a while back that he would take me to Los Andes (a little tiny town about an hour north of Santiago), to see Santa Teresita de los Andes. The experience in and of itself was marvelous but just being able to see that part of Chile and really be submersed into the back-country was unforgettable. To paint a picture: on the way there we saw real huasos (a.k.a. Chilean cowboys) riding their horses in their matching hats and panchos along the highway. It. was. awesome. The shrine was tucked up into the mountains and being a Sunday there were quite a few devout Catholics and interested tourists in the neighborhood. After walking around a bit, praying at the tomb of Santa Teresita herself, and being amazed at all of the people who have left her their keys along with a variety of other things for the Santita, we went to mass which lasted no less than an hour and 20 minutes. The priest was talking for a radio broadcast which meant clear and easy-to-understand castellano (what the people here call Spanish). Ergo, I understood nearly everything he said and didn't get sleepy after the first 20 minutes of the homily as has been known to happen (flashback to Epiphany mass with the Pope in Rome...).

After mass we were on a one-track mindset to get some grub. We went to an awesome little locale tucked down a side street in the country called El Chilenazo. I am still not sure what that means so if someone has a clue and would let me know that would be great. In this venue we enjoyed some Chilean traditional folklore, countryside hospitality and the best part: a free bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. We were both extremely impressed with the fine quality of a free wine and pleasantly surprised as well. I was also able to try for the first (and hopefully not last) time one of Chile's famous dishes: pastel de choclo! Here is the recipe, and mom, it may seem difficult, and it is. That's why Mama Maria never makes it. (But I still expect you to practice and have it perfected by the time I get home!) A lot of people that I had talked to have not liked it, but my gut (pun intended) told me that if it is anything like a casserole, I'd be in love. I ate nearly all of it and am already seeking the next opportunity to enjoy it again!
We then made our way even further north and closer to the Argentina border to a pueblito even smaller yet! It is called San Felipe and is made famous for a hill with a large wooden crucifix at the top.

The legend of the crucifix goes like this: there was a huge storm in 1934 and a large pine tree fell down. The city of San Felipe hired German sculptor, Peter Horn, to use the wood from the tree to build a cross at the top of the hill. After getting the wood to the top he worked and camped out for about 50 days on the hill and did not come down until it was finished. The crucifix is magnificent, and on the way up the hill there is a path lined with the stations of the cross which has led this to be a destination of many pilgrimages and retreats. When you get to the top the view is spectacular. The best part: you can keep going. So naturally, we did. Of course this is right up my (v)alley so we stumbled up the next path where we saw yet another peak and continued to ascend. Although slightly dangerous, the views were incredible. It truly was different than anything I had ever seen, full of natural contrasts: mountains all around, farmers' fields, cacti, green pastures, desert, horses, approaching storm clouds, sunshine and tiny San Felipe tucked in the middle of this natural masterpiece. I absolutely loved it.

The quickly approaching fall colors also played their part in making this scenery even more portrait-like, and the weather was absolutely stunning. The forecast for the weekend was rain, rain, rain. All I saw was sunshine, blue skies and happiness which made for some unforgettable experiences with great people.

Tonight I finally decided to crack down and go check out a gym that is about an eight minute walk from my house. I've walked by it before and it seems to be pretty well-known, so I figured I would give their spinning class a try.

Side note #2: When I first got here I was tempted to just go and use my free trial class at all the gyms in the area, but I decided that I shouldn't for a couple of reasons: 1) It's a tad dishonest and 2) How am I supposed to make any friends that way? When I told mama that I was going to try a spinning class at the gym she thought it was the same one Ellie goes to, because I had gone with her in the past. I told her it was a different one and she recited my same idea back to me, "How Chilean of you!" she exclaimed. Oh how great it feels to finally fit in, that is, until I got there and was asked if I was Brazilian. That's a new one!

The class was a lot of fun and extremely hard. The instructor scared me into joining the gym so I am officially a member of something other than the PUC! (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile) Better late than never! And I already made friends with the people at the front desk. Boy, do I love Chile.

Besos a todos,
Kelsey Marie