HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
I hope you all had a great day together. I'm sorry I couldn't be there to celebrate with everyone :(
But, I'm off to Algarrobo tomorrow (a Chilean beach town). We changed our plans because Mendoza was turning out to be a little too expensive.
Until next week- que esten muy muy bien!!
I love and miss you guys!!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
VIVA ARGENTINA!
Hola todos!!
I'm ready to share some photos from Argentina!! I honestly didn't take very many because on the second day a pick-pocket tried to steal my camera on the metro and I was nervous about bringing my camera out after that. Luckily, a man saw the girl in the process and slapped her hand away from my bag. Then he started yelling at her and everyone was staring. I barely had time to react before she slinked off and got off the metro completely. Thank god for that man or I may not have had a camera anymore!
Except for that instance, Buenos Aires was fabulous. Probably my favorite city in South America thus far. Its so big and beautiful- the color and the architecture is so eye catching and different. Plus, its cheap and the food is to die for! The only thing I didn't like was the Argentinian accent. To me, they have some of the worst Spanish I have ever heard. I know Chilean Spanish is certainly nothing to brag about but in my opinion it is better than Argentinian Spanish. I couldn't understand half of what they were saying because the accent is so different. They also use "vos" instead of "tu" which changes all the conjugations I've gotten used to over the past 3 months. I really just didn't like it at all.
Anyways, we pretty much took the normal tourist track during out time there: we saw the government buildings (including La Casa Rosada), we traveled to different "posh" neighborhoods such as San Telmo, Recoleta, Palermo, etc. We also visited La Plaza Italia and the Zoo. We mostly just spent a lot of time walking around and discovering new places, etc. We also visited quite a few markets. Unfortunately, we never made it down to Puerto Madero or up to Tigre, so I would definitely love to return to Argentina some day and do a lot more sightseeing and traveling. Plus, I'd love to visit Cordoba, Salta and Iguazu Falls. The girls and I actually have plans to head over to Mendoza next weekend as a sort of good-bye trip/Thanksgiving celebration. Its only a 6 hour bus ride from Santiago and I've heard Mendoza is great.
On to the pictures!
A beautiful tree in Barrio Recoleta
La Casa Rosada
El Congreso
Statue in Plaza Italia
Another statue in Plaza Italia
Entrace to Zoologico Buenos Aires
Couple dancing the Tango in San Telmo
I'm sorry I don't have more to share with everyone!! I will try to get some pictures this weekend in Mendoza.
Today there is an asado to celebrate Franco's 6th birthday. Since most of you don't know, Franco is the grandson in my host family. His mother is my host sister, Lorena. So we are going to be celebrating with him this afternoon. The girls and I have also been invited to a party tonight by a friend of a friend. Next weekend we will be in Mendoza and the week after that its time to pack and get ready for finals. They will be leaving on Dec 10th and 11th to return to the US. And I will be staying here to begin my next adventure! They have been amazing friends to me and I know we will all keep in touch when we get back to the US. We've had so much fun here together and I am going to miss them a lot. But, I am already looking forward to a reunion with them sometime next year!
Tomorrow I will be getting back to work to finish the last of my assignments before finals. Que esten muy bien!!
I'm ready to share some photos from Argentina!! I honestly didn't take very many because on the second day a pick-pocket tried to steal my camera on the metro and I was nervous about bringing my camera out after that. Luckily, a man saw the girl in the process and slapped her hand away from my bag. Then he started yelling at her and everyone was staring. I barely had time to react before she slinked off and got off the metro completely. Thank god for that man or I may not have had a camera anymore!
Except for that instance, Buenos Aires was fabulous. Probably my favorite city in South America thus far. Its so big and beautiful- the color and the architecture is so eye catching and different. Plus, its cheap and the food is to die for! The only thing I didn't like was the Argentinian accent. To me, they have some of the worst Spanish I have ever heard. I know Chilean Spanish is certainly nothing to brag about but in my opinion it is better than Argentinian Spanish. I couldn't understand half of what they were saying because the accent is so different. They also use "vos" instead of "tu" which changes all the conjugations I've gotten used to over the past 3 months. I really just didn't like it at all.
Anyways, we pretty much took the normal tourist track during out time there: we saw the government buildings (including La Casa Rosada), we traveled to different "posh" neighborhoods such as San Telmo, Recoleta, Palermo, etc. We also visited La Plaza Italia and the Zoo. We mostly just spent a lot of time walking around and discovering new places, etc. We also visited quite a few markets. Unfortunately, we never made it down to Puerto Madero or up to Tigre, so I would definitely love to return to Argentina some day and do a lot more sightseeing and traveling. Plus, I'd love to visit Cordoba, Salta and Iguazu Falls. The girls and I actually have plans to head over to Mendoza next weekend as a sort of good-bye trip/Thanksgiving celebration. Its only a 6 hour bus ride from Santiago and I've heard Mendoza is great.
On to the pictures!
A beautiful tree in Barrio Recoleta
La Casa Rosada
El Congreso
Statue in Plaza Italia
Another statue in Plaza Italia
Entrace to Zoologico Buenos Aires
Couple dancing the Tango in San Telmo
I'm sorry I don't have more to share with everyone!! I will try to get some pictures this weekend in Mendoza.
Today there is an asado to celebrate Franco's 6th birthday. Since most of you don't know, Franco is the grandson in my host family. His mother is my host sister, Lorena. So we are going to be celebrating with him this afternoon. The girls and I have also been invited to a party tonight by a friend of a friend. Next weekend we will be in Mendoza and the week after that its time to pack and get ready for finals. They will be leaving on Dec 10th and 11th to return to the US. And I will be staying here to begin my next adventure! They have been amazing friends to me and I know we will all keep in touch when we get back to the US. We've had so much fun here together and I am going to miss them a lot. But, I am already looking forward to a reunion with them sometime next year!
Tomorrow I will be getting back to work to finish the last of my assignments before finals. Que esten muy bien!!
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Past due for an update . . .
I'm sorry for keeping ya'll waiting for so long with this update. Things have been crazy busy since I got back. Seems like my teachers saved all my homework and assignments for the last month!! I am still in shock that I only have 2 more weeks of class left before finals. I can't even believe how fast the time has gone by!! Everything here is still going really well. I've been feeling a little bored and stir-crazy lately though. Probably because I've been stuck in the apartment working more than I would like to. Plus, I'm honestly just getting sick of Santiago. Its so expensive and everyone just does all the same things here that you can do anywhere else in the world- movies, restaurants, clubs, etc. I'm definitely ready to go and see some of Chile's real treasures aka Patagonia, Easter Island, and La Serena! Less than a month now until Colin comes and we start our adventure!! YAY :)
Meanwhile, I've got FOTOS to share. I'm going to share my fotos from San Pedro today and later on this week I will post my pics from Buenos Aires (which I have a lot less of), deal?!
So, a little bit about San Pedro de Atacama: this town and commune is located in El Loa Province east of Antofogasta and southeast of Calama. It has grown, over centures, around an oasis in the Atacama desert. The Atacama is one of the driest places on Earth, and is virtually sterile because it is blocked from moisture on both sides by the Andes mountains and the Chilean Coast Range. The town lies at an average altitude of 7,900 ft and visitors often experience mild altitude sickness (I didn't have any problems except shortness of breath while climbing). In the past it was found that the town's water supply is naturally contaminated with high levels of arsenic (60 times the WHO recommended maximum for any ET peeps reading this)! Many people say the indigenous people have developed a tolerance to this metal and drink the water with little to no ill effects. Not really sure I believe that though. This area is also home to some of the largest volcanoes of the Los Andes cordillera.
Today, San Pedro's population is about 2,500. The main economic activity is tourism followed by small farming. The town itself is a very small area of restaurants, shops, tourist agencies and hotels/hostels. There is also a small archaelogical museum, a small central plaza, a clinic as well as a church and a few banks as well. The town is the main "hopping off" point to see many of the most popular sights in the north of Chile including El Tatio geyser field, La Valle de la Luna, el Salar de Atacama, Chaxa Lagoon, Puritama Hot Springs and many others.
Our first excursion was to see Quitor, a beautiful pre-hispanic fort and the breathtaking Valle de la Luna afterwards.
We also visited the small towns of Toconao and Camar, as well as Los Flamencos National Reserve (where Chaxca Lagoon is located). We also visited a small monument in the middle of the desert that marks the Tropic of Capricorn and part of the Inca Trail.
We also happened to be visiting this area when the Day of the Dead was being celebrated. These pictures are from the cementary in Camar. As you can see, it is a very special day and a lot of time and energy goes into decorating before the celebration. It was really beautiful to see!
During my trip we also visited the Puritama Hot Springs which was quite a treat. But, I didn't even dare bring my camera there for fear of it getting wet.
Meanwhile, I will post pics from Buenos Aires soon. Enjoy these for now!
Meanwhile, I've got FOTOS to share. I'm going to share my fotos from San Pedro today and later on this week I will post my pics from Buenos Aires (which I have a lot less of), deal?!
So, a little bit about San Pedro de Atacama: this town and commune is located in El Loa Province east of Antofogasta and southeast of Calama. It has grown, over centures, around an oasis in the Atacama desert. The Atacama is one of the driest places on Earth, and is virtually sterile because it is blocked from moisture on both sides by the Andes mountains and the Chilean Coast Range. The town lies at an average altitude of 7,900 ft and visitors often experience mild altitude sickness (I didn't have any problems except shortness of breath while climbing). In the past it was found that the town's water supply is naturally contaminated with high levels of arsenic (60 times the WHO recommended maximum for any ET peeps reading this)! Many people say the indigenous people have developed a tolerance to this metal and drink the water with little to no ill effects. Not really sure I believe that though. This area is also home to some of the largest volcanoes of the Los Andes cordillera.
Today, San Pedro's population is about 2,500. The main economic activity is tourism followed by small farming. The town itself is a very small area of restaurants, shops, tourist agencies and hotels/hostels. There is also a small archaelogical museum, a small central plaza, a clinic as well as a church and a few banks as well. The town is the main "hopping off" point to see many of the most popular sights in the north of Chile including El Tatio geyser field, La Valle de la Luna, el Salar de Atacama, Chaxa Lagoon, Puritama Hot Springs and many others.
Our first excursion was to see Quitor, a beautiful pre-hispanic fort and the breathtaking Valle de la Luna afterwards.
We also visited the small towns of Toconao and Camar, as well as Los Flamencos National Reserve (where Chaxca Lagoon is located). We also visited a small monument in the middle of the desert that marks the Tropic of Capricorn and part of the Inca Trail.
We also happened to be visiting this area when the Day of the Dead was being celebrated. These pictures are from the cementary in Camar. As you can see, it is a very special day and a lot of time and energy goes into decorating before the celebration. It was really beautiful to see!
During my trip we also visited the Puritama Hot Springs which was quite a treat. But, I didn't even dare bring my camera there for fear of it getting wet.
Meanwhile, I will post pics from Buenos Aires soon. Enjoy these for now!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
I'm back!
Just letting you all know I made it back to Santiago, safe and sound (in case you were wondering).
This week is going to be crazy busy for me so I will have to update you on everything a little bit later. Sorry!! But you can definitely look forward to pictures!! :)
Hope all is well! Hugs!
This week is going to be crazy busy for me so I will have to update you on everything a little bit later. Sorry!! But you can definitely look forward to pictures!! :)
Hope all is well! Hugs!
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