Mountains:
I've been in Chile for about 5 days now! When I first arrived I was lucky to have gotten here after it rained. The normal everyday smog that characterizes Santiago temporarily is lifted after a winter rain. So, I was able to capture some pretty amazing images of the city with the Andes clearly in the background. Some of the best pictures I took are from the apartment of a Mexican girl Melissa who also just arrived in Santiago and will be studying here for 6 months.
Even though the mountains are breathtakingly beautiful, it was odd because while I was admiring them, I simultaneously thought how sad it is that the ugly city prevents an unobstructed view. I hope to be able to see the Andes at some point just as they are--the way they should be.
Café:
No longer can I see a sign for a Café and assume it is a coffee shop I should enter. There are many places that could be labeled Café con Piernas--coffee with legs. Basically its coffee shops in which women dressed in slutty outfits serve coffee to businessmen--Dad did you ever go in one?!?!
We have passed the same places on our way to orientation for the past few days and I've been able to notice that the outfits of the women change everyday. So far my personal favorite was what they wore in one cafe on the first day: Short skirts, white button down shirts with black ties. A group of girls and I haphazardly went into one of these cafes to get coffee to go during a break on the first day of orientation. Glad I did it for the experience, but I'm sure no self-respecting Chilean woman would ever be caught dead in one. Don't Worry! There are still nice and delicious normal cafes. I went to one yesterday and got a hazelnut cappuccino--yummy. They also have internet so that's always a plus!
Food:
So far the food has been way better than I expected, and kind of better than Spain. I liked the non-Spanish food I had in Spain, but not so much the Spanish cuisine. Of note so far I've had a Churraza completo--HUGE sandwich with strips of steak, sauerkraut and a relish. Delicious but waaaay to big. I've also learned that all of my previous knowledge of Spanish helps only a little when at restaurants because Chileans have their own words for most foods (as well as most nouns).
AVOCADO!!!! They put it with so many things--I might be in heaven! Had a really good sandwich for lunch which was freshly sliced chicken, cheese and avocado. For dinner last night I had sushi, which was also delicious and not expensive at all! I got out about $80 on the first day and still have a good amount of it left. Everything is sooo much cheaper here. Still no wine, but that should change tonight! I also may go on a wine tour this weekend while we still have free time before teaching begins. More to come :-)
