Blogging is a ridiculous word (try saying it aloud). Yet here I am, blogging, and rather than making excuses for why I'm writing a blog (I'm in Chile, I'm a bit lonely, I want to recuerdo this experience), I'll just do it.
Friday, June 18th, 2:55 pm, Hotel Rent a Home in Santiago, Chile
I'm lying in my bed in the living room, listening to the omnipresent sounds of construction. Santiago is a city, as full of brand new buildings, monuments to a rich cultural heritage, and graffiti. The metro is amazing ($450 pesos to go anywhere in Santiago, cars coming every couple minutes, and easy to navigate) the people are warm and friendly (sometimes a bit too friendly)...
We have an orientation in an hour...wah wah wah. How Not To Be A Gringo 101, taught by the perfectly lovely Lizette. Sitting in a room of 25 gringos, being told about how to use common sense, drives me a little crazy. But I do need to get over myself, because I will be getting orientated for the next few days.
The people on the program are mostly quite nice, although I don't talk to everyone. My roommates are like 3 characters from a sitcom. There's Laura, the party-hard sorority girl from Boulder, Brenna, the much chiller girl from Boulder, and Colleen, the no nonsense mommy/English teacher. I was forewarned by Jane about cliques, and she was undoubtedly right. They form quickly, and while I was originally standing back and judging them, I have let go a bit and tried to befriend a few people, with limited degrees of success... To be honest I do not see the point of coming to Chile to befriend a bunch of white, college aged Americans. That said, it's always nice to have a few people you like who will be living in your area.
Today we went to the Presidential Palace, saw the changing of the guards, visited a beautiful cathedral in Plaza de Armas, and had lunch in Mercado Central. Then we chartered a bus to take us back to our hotel, gringo style.
Before this post gets too rambly, I'm going to sign off. It was nice meeting you blog! Hasta pronto!
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