Realistic mannequins, how odd...

Sunday Feast

Bingo Winner

My host dad sure had some good luck today, during a high school fund raiser he won 600 bucks playing bingo! It was so much fun to be there for it since he had never won anything like that before in his life =) Today was another leisurely day, I'm starting to get my gifts and cards together, which is taking a while. I don't mind though because it means that I have met a bunch of great people here. I want to make sure that I leave Chile knowing that I've really said a hearty goodbye to Valdivia and the people I care about. It will be so much fun to give these gifts I have been working on =)

Hanging out with the Fam

I think that Marco my host brother knew I was taking a picture based on the slight glaring action...oh well I've been getting more sentimental lately with less than three weeks to go so he had better get used to it... =)

Things I will miss...

Today it has finally hit me that I'm leaving pretty darn soon and if I want to do this going away thing right, I had better get started! I spent about 2 hours making a five minute slide show to share with my friends and family at my going away party coming up. The trickiest part for me was summing up a year of unique experiences in so little time...I just don't want to bore people and I think the length of "Clocks" by Coldplay with a Buena Vista Club interpretation is about as long as I can push it...I have also decided that I want to receive hand written letters from everyone that I care about, and rather than wait for them to come and possibly be disappointed, I am going to buy myself a notebook today and make it my yearbook of sorts and force people to sign it =) I also want to start getting my gifts together. Rather than buying or making stuff and lugging a whole bunch of stuff back to the US I would rather give some of my personal things away to my friends here, and so far it is working out amazing well! I feel good about leaving parts of me here in Chile and honestly don't need to bring back all the personal belongs I have accumulated here throughout the year. I am planning on using my time to catch up with people and tell them how much I enjoy their company. I just realized that I have a class to teach in about 40 minutes so it's time to hop in the shower and hopefully buy the notebook after that to start getting people signing it! Chau. 

Back in Valdivia

Now that I'm back in Valdivia I can't help but realize how little time is left. There is a new American student from my program living in my house, which means that my clock is ticking down. I am going to keep teaching english classes, but other than that I am focusing on what I want to take with me to the US and what I want to leave behind for people that I care about. I am in the process of knitting a scarf for Pedro, and I want to make sure I have time to see him wear it before I go. 30 days does not seem like enough time to do everything I have planned and that concerns me, but other than sleep less there is no way I can create more time that what I have. 

Santiago: Fantasilandia

I almost forgot to mention that Pedro and I spent a day in Santiago before arriving in Osorno! 

In Osorno

After two weeks of getting to know the north of Chile, Pedro and I have finally arrived in Osorno and have spent the last 2 days with his family. We are actually getting ready to leave for Valdivia in a few minutes, so I dont have time to upload any photos at the moment, but with over 1000 photos waiting for me there is no way that I can avoid putting a few up asap when I have my computer with me in Valdivia. It is hard to believe that I have spent so much time outside of Valdivia because it all went by so fast. Today I officialy begin my one month goodbye countdown, which will be a mix of emotions...I dont see myself sleeping very much when I think about all the things I want to do before I go. I have known for the past year that this moment would be hard, but it does not make it any easier to experience it up close and personal. Well, not much more to say at the moment other than that, the pics should be coming up soon though ;)

San Pedro de Atacama

We have finally arrived in San Pedro de Atacama, the must see destination of northern Chile. It is a bit shocking the number of Europeans...they are everywhere and the town does not even seem Chilean. It is actually quite funny to walk by all the posh restuarants filled with turists eating sushi and chocolate cake considering that we are in the desert. Pedro and I have decided to camp to save some money and we were pretty impressed with how our tent looked after setting it up for the first time in the dark...Tomorrow we are going to hit the town with a pair of rented bikes and break out of the turisty downtown to get a glimpse at some real natural wonders =)

At the moment we are in Calama and preparing to leave for San Pedro de Atacama in a few hours. Calama has pretty much been a resting stop for us. After a 15 hour bus ride we were pretty worn out. We think we have resolved the video camera charger problem, it sparked and burned out a few nights ago so we are killing time in a cyber lounge while an electrician tries to combine new and old parts to make something that works =) It would be really great to have a working video camera before heading out to San Pedro. We are looking up online what kind of new animals we might run across =) Hope to have some pictures of them soon...

Leaving for Calama

So we are wrapping up in La Serena and getting ready to get on a 15 hour bus to Calama...luckily its during the night and we have a portable DVD player ;) I think we are both a little bit ready to have a chance of scenery, we kind of feel like residents here since we know all the streets and businesses after 2 fulls days...Should be exciting to see Calama and after that San Pedro de Atacama!

Valle de Elqui

Pedro and I spent the night in a little town called Pisco Elqui, a quiet little place where we were able to take a stroll around in the middle of the night and feel completely safe and secure =) The town is located in the middle of a valley leading into the Andes, and had a tucked away feel to it. Now we are back in La Serena and planning to spend the tomorrow in this neck of the woods before getting on an overnight bus to Calama tomorrow and heading into the heart of the desert.

Last day in La Serena

We are wrapping up our time in La Serena and getting ready to head off to Valle de Elqui, which is about a 2 hour scenic bus ride heading east towards the Andes. We are looking forward to seeing nature a bit more. La Serena can be a little sketch at night so we have been visiting more open air places...aka the mall, haha. Actually we did have an encounter with nature this morning when a poisonous spider walked across the floor next to our bare feet...luckily I had a shoe nearby and was able to fearlessly (not so much....) squash it into the carpet. Chile has two very poisonous spiders that can kill if one is not careful, this one was an araña rincon, and even though it was a baby Pedro told me that it still had the capacity to do some serious damage if it bit one of us. I am a bit more paranoid now after looking up info on google but it is good be to aware of the consequences to take the measures to lessen the chances. I actually have already killed an araña rincon in the shower in my current house in Valdivia. My house is not an exception, the spiders are everywhere all throughout Chile unfortunately...Oh well, the key is not to disturb them, and shake clothing off before putting it on. Although, now that I that I think about it those two tips seem a bit contradictory....hmm. Ok, I am going to look up some more info about La Serena since I have been googling spider bites while Pedro is working on his thesis charts to not get behind...my defense is that technically I am on summer vacation. Alright that is it for now, and hopefully the next time I will remember to bring the cable up upload some of my pics =)

In La Serena

It has been a bit of traveling and time in a bus, but as a result Pedro and I are all the way up in La Serena, a city that lies about 7 hours north in bus from Santiago. The 12 hour ride up to Santiago during the day was completely enjoyable, we bought a portable DVD player (Pedro thought of that one) and got to watch a bit of a movie and see the surrounding get drier and hotter before our very eyes! La Serena is right on the beach and has more of a tropical feel, which is pretty amazing after all the wintery weather in Valdivia. We plan to stay the night here, then head over to Valle de Elqui tomorrow to spend some time in enjoying the new climate and natural surroundings.

Getting ready to hit the road...

It has been a pretty strange experience packing for this trip and coming into contact with things like sunscreen, bathing suits, shorts...all the things I kissed goodbye after leaving Buenos Aires in February. I'm not exactly sure what to expect weather wise, because the desert can get just as cold as it does hot in a matter of hours during the nighttime. Speaking of packing, I should probably finish that up right about now... 

Traveling Around Chile

Pedro and I are getting ready to go on a Motorcycle Diary of sorts travel around the north of Chile! Valdivia doesn't appear on this map, but by looking at the city of Temuco you'll get an idea of where base camp is located. From there we hope to travel all the way up to the border of Peru near Arica and heading closer to Bolivia. If you have seen the latest James Bond movie when he is in the "Bolivian" desert (filmed in Chile...) you will have an idea of what I'm talking about in terms of what to expect scenery-wise. It will be nice to have a little change of pace and remember what it's like to feel warm sunlight on my face...We leave tomorrow for a city a little south of Valdivia called Osorno where we will spend time with Pedro's family and celebrate his sister's birthday before leaving for Santiago Friday night! Pedro and I both know next to nothing about what lies to the north of Santiago, so this will be new experience for the both of us, and the idea of experiencing it together couldn' t be more fitting : )

Starting out fresh

As some of you may have noticed, I've been a little lame lately in the blog-writing sense. I think after nearly a year of trying to document all of the new things I've done, seen, eaten, etc throughout my time in South America I got to the point where I needed a little breather to just live my life instead of writing it every day. However, I am happy to report that the desire to share my experiences in this final stage has returned, and I don't want to let the last 50 days slip by without a bit of reflection, observation, and photos of course...I have thoroughly enjoyed the rush of inspiration that comes from a fresh start and new perspective and am looking forward to filling this blog with all that comes my way in the next 2 months =)