Vina del Mar/ Valparaiso

So although today I am in Arica and starting the next phase of my trip--the more studious and stationary part--just two days ago I was in Valparaiso and Vina del Mar. Miriam and I in were joined in Santiago by her two friends from Macalster who are also doing the same study abroad program. We showed them some of the city for the first day then we boarded a bus to Vina del Mar. We got into Vina in the afternoon, and after getting lost looking for our hostel, finally made it there to drop off our things before we headed out again.

The main tourist attraction in Vina is a clock made out of flowers. Yeah, its really cool but everyone LOVED it. There were so many people looking for it and then, taking pictures by it.

The amazing reloj de flores. 

After squeezing through the crowd to take our pictures of the clock, we took a peek at the beach, since we actually were headed to Valparaiso for the day (which is only a 10 minute bus ride away). This was a Sunday and the start of the International Song Festival which is in Vina this year and consequentially, the beach was packed. I was actually pretty glad to not have to deal with all the people. 

The stairs down to the beach. 

So we took our 10 minute bus ride over to Valparaiso. Valparaiso is a city located partially on a hill and on more level ground, and to get from the bottom to top they have what are called ascensores. These are like elevators but they move up diagonally, not straight, and you can see the track. So its more like the beginning of a rollarcoaster, except you are just standing in a the car. I didn't get a picture but heres on from online:

Or you could walk up stairs like these.

When you got to the top you exited into a neighborhood or area where there were vendors selling art, jewlery, food. It was super cute. Here are some photos that I took around there

We went back to Vina del Mar for the night and then got up in the morning to enjoy the beach. We got the the beach at 10 and it was pretty empty then. In the next few hours though it started filling up. We had to leave at 12 to catch our bus back to Santiago at 1 and by then most people seemed to be headed to the beach. The water was freezing. It felt like a cup of melting ice. So we mainly stayed on the land. It was beautiful though. And I remember to get a sample of sand. 

I wanted to talk about the Chilean food in this entry but I have to go. But I will soon. We are in Arica now doing orientation things-- meeting people over and over again, going over the rules, things like that. We move into with our host family Saturday and Friday night we meet our hermanos. Can't wait!

Excursion al sur

So, we got back this morning off of an overnight bus from Villarrica where we had our 3 day getaway in the south of Chile. IT WAS AWESOME. There are several towns in the area we stayed in all about 30 minutes away from each other, and they were all so adorable with a lot of German influence in the architecture. We stayed in Villarrica but we went to visit Pucon and Lican Ray. The scenery in the south was breathtaking. Villarrica sits on a lake with a view of a mountain and I don't think I would have ever gotten tired of just sitting by the lake.  Here are some pictures, but again, the pictures don't do the town justice.

Volcan Villarrica

Lago Villarrica

The first day we went to Lican Ray, which is there "beach" town. Its not really a beach because its on a lake but it was still super nice.  It was though extremely crowded. Apparently this is the area where Chileans go to vacation, and seeing as its their summer, it was popping. 

Then the second day we went on a tour of the waterfalls in the area. They were really spectacular. I really wanted to swim in them but just even the spray from the falls was so cold. I asked our guide if there were any that people swam in, but he said they were all too cold. 

Finally on the last day we were there we hiked up Volcan Villarrica and this was what made our trip. The excursion left from Pucon and we were staying in Villarrica so we had to take the earliest but out of Villarrica at 6:55 to make it there by 7:20. We got there at 7:30 and after running with a backpack full of a days worth of food and water, we got to the tour office to find out the excursion we were with had left. Luckily the people were super nice and after they essentially threw our gear at us, we piled into a van and headed to the volcano. 

When we got there there was the option to take a ski lift part of the way up, but Miriam and I had already decided that we were going to tackle the whole thing. Only later did we learn that the ski lift also cost 7.000 pesos which is about $14 US dollars, so we wouldn't have done it anyway. But there were only 3 of us that decided NOT do the ski lift- Miriam, myself, and a pediatrician from Santiago. However, that first part was definitely the most difficult. It was the steepest uphill. 

After that part there was another easier terrain section, and then we were in the snow. The snow was less of a cardiac workout but it felt much more dangerous. We held this stick like tool to with us to steady us as we walked and also in case we slipped and fell, we were supposed to put it in the ground with mucha fuerza, which I kept translating to myself based on the hand gestures and facial expressions as 'as much strength as you can muster'. 

It took us 5 hours to hike up the volcano and once we go to the top it was all worth it. The view was phenomenal.  

The best part of the volcano hike by far: To get down the volcano, we slid down the snow. We had these plastic seats they called 'plasticos' attached to our belt. We were sliding so fast and so much snow was traveling with you. At the bottom you ended up in a pile of snow.  But don't worry, we actually did have a lot of control over our speed with our stick-tool (I forgot the word for it). And there were several of these that we went down. So you would slide down one snow slide then walk over to a different one and then slide down that one. We were one of the last groups down the mountain for the day, too, so the slides were pretty formed. If they had given me the option of hiking back up the mountain at the bottom of the snow to go sliding again, I would have done it in a heartbeart. We didn't get any pictures of that but it was something like this: 

Coming down only took 3 hours. Unfortunately, both Miriam and my cameras were on the brink of life so we didn't get that many pictures (what I uploaded here is all). But luckily doctor from Santiago, Cristian, was nice enough to take some of us and agreed to send them to us later.  I'll add them to a facebook album when I get them. 

Santiago-- Part 1

First of all, I am safe, happy, and healthy in Chile. Hostel living is such an experience. I've met so many different people, and to my surprise, many Canadians. The hostel we're staying is in the Bellas Artes (Fine Arts) district of Santiago so its got many restaurants, parks, and museums. Here's a view from the window next to which I'm writing this. 

The large colorful mural is the backdrop to the subway station. Its quite an entrance. 

Yesterday Miriam and I went to the Museo de Bellas Artes, which is just around the block. I'm terrible at describing museums in words but it was really interesting. There was one exhibit that was particularly unique. It had several different rooms and each room was the artists interpretation of a different section of the body, ie eyes, head, muscles. I tried to capture it but alas, I failed.

Hopefully my photography skills will improve with this. 

We also walked around the park in the Bellas Artes area. There's a chocolate milk river that borders one side. 

 Mmmmmmm... natural nesquick.

Today, we had our first, and far from last, empanada of the trip. Two women were making them on the street right in front of us. I had an empanada de queso. 

 I love hot, fresh, greasy food. 

After this nutritious snack, we went on a bike tour called "Parks and Politics." I learned so much from our tour guide. I actually have somewhat of a grasp of the Chilean politics now. Or at least part of the history. On September 11, 1973, the socialist-bordering-on-communist government was overthrown by a military junta led by Pinochet. During the military attack La Moneda (the building below) was air-raided and many parts were destroyed. 

And now tomorrow, Miriam and I will be taking a 10 hour bus ride to Villarrica. I don't think I've ever been in a vehicle for such an extended period of time.