No llores por mí, Argentina--VIVA CHILE!!

This past weekend we had a 4 day weekend so a group of us decided to take our first big trip out of Viña without our director. We hopped a bus early Friday morning headed for Mendoza, Argentina. The drive there is absolutely beautiful, winding through the snowcapped Andes. Those mountains are the definition of majestic. There are these trees here in Chile called gomeros, which have the most ridiculous roots.

This may be cheesy but driving through the mountains made me feel like an ant exploring those roots. Especially when we started driving through tunnels burrowed through the mountains on the Argentina side like in the old roadrunner cartoons.

As beautiful as the drive was we were all happy to be at the bus terminal after more than 10 hours on the bus, including at least two hours at the border getting through customs (literally no man’s land, and it was snowing…). At said bus terminal we had our first experience with travel snags. The bus we thought we could take home Monday morning apparently didn’t exist so we either had to leave Sunday morning or take an overnight bus Monday evening. We opted for the latter, which I was honestly quite alright with because it gave us an extra day to shop!

Mendoza is a lovely city! It’s clean, there aren’t dogs everywhere, the people are so nice and so so much easier to understand! I swear, it was like a whole different world. It was kind of nice to be reassured that I actually can speak Spanish even if I can’t understand half of what is directed to me in Chilean Spanish. Our first night we signed up for a bunch of activities through our hostel set out to explore our neighborhood.

Saturday morning we did some solid window shopping in the swanky boutiques on our street and then headed out on a wine tour. The first winery, Vistandes, was relatively new and super modern. Our tour guide was awesome and we got our first taste of Malbec, a red wine whose grapes can only be found in the Mendoza region. I’m not usually a huge fan of red wine but it was delicious! Next stop was an olive oil farm/factory then on to a much smaller organic winery. Our tour there was literally 75+ people aka I didn’t hear a darn thing but I really liked the interior design which almost made up for the church wine they served us. Last stop on the tour was at one of the many chocolate factories in Mendoza (Mendoza is known for wine, chocolate and leather)—heaven! We got samples of alfajores, two cookies sandwiching dulce de leche (carmel but way better) and then dunked in chocolate. Naturally, I bought a bag of them (and possibly a couple other things too..whoops :) It should be noted that chocolate and peanut butter combos don’t exist in South America, even at a fancy chocolate factory, but my wonderful family sent me some Reeses all the way from Minnesota and they just arrived yesterday. Once again in heaven!

At the second winery. 

My dessert at the buffet we hit up: fresh crepé with apple, dulce de leche
drizzled on top with chocolate chip ice cream. Yummm.

Sunday morning after breakfast a man showed up at the hostel to take me paragliding, I swear I had booked this for Monday so I was caught a little off guard but it’s probably better that I didn’t have time to get nervous for it. So off Molly and I went in the back of this pick-up out of town a ways to this sketchy, half finished building. I thought that maybe we were just turning around but no no, our paragliding instructor told us to get out of the truck and invited us to sit on some camping chairs in a circle. I thought that maybe we would be getting a little orientation or something, no no he took off with another group of tourists and left us at this deserted warehouse. While we waited/wondered if he was ever coming back, Molly and I befriended some other gringos. One was a Canadian in his early 30s with a center part and a Paul Bunyan beard who was working in Santiago but came to Argentina for a couple days to avoid visa issues. He was a gem to say the least. He was accompanied by two college students, one from Texas and the other from Virginia. Their interactions reminded me of some of my bromanced friends back home (cough cough Isaak and Will), quite entertaining J After a good hour we realized that where we were waiting was the landing site for the paragliders as 5 colorful chutes came into view. At this point I was getting pretty pumped.

After the instructors got their chutes repacked Molly and I climbed back into the pickup and started up the mountain. We had been on the ridiculously bumpy road for maybe 10 minutes when we hit a huge rock and lo and behold a wheel fell off the truck. That’s right, we didn’t get a flat, the tire literally fell off.

Well the guys jacked up the truck while another ran back to the base to get us a new truck and soon we were on our way again. The road up the mountain was less than secure and around some of the corners I was sure we would just tip off the mountain but we made it to the top and boy was the view incredible. We paired up with instructors, got suited up, waited for a good gust of wind, ran towards the edge and off we went. Words can’t describe the feeling of flying that high with so little holding you up. The mountains, oh my goodness. We spiraled to gain air and at our highest point were cruising a good 2100 meters (nearly 7000 feet) off the ground in the foothills of the Andes. The ride down lasted about 20 minutes and I loved every second. So so cool.

All suited up!

Take off!

Molly and I got back to the hostel from our grand adventure just in time to head out with everyone on our horseback riding excursion. The last time I was on a horse was last spring when I was in Costa Rica during which time we basically walked along the highway and then crossed this ridiculous marsh, needless to say this time was much different. We snaked through the hills, surrounded by the always awesome mountains. The owner of the horses, whom we like to refer to as the Marlboro man, was a straight up cowboy, we’re pretty sure he shot a dog while we were there. For the most part, the ride was super relaxing and really enjoyable. Afterward we had an asado with really good pork sandwiches and of course a little vino. We watched the sunset behind the mountains and tried to take in where we were. I am truly so blessed.

Monday was full of shopping and exploring the city. I will definitely be returning to Mendoza before I die. We boarded our bus, went through customs around 3am (so fun, not) and got back to Viña around 6am. We all had class at 8:30…I went to two of my classes and then headed back to the bus terminal because two girlies and I were heading to Santiago for the Chile v. Peru soccer game! We got to Santiago, navigated the extensive metro to our hostel, which in reality was an apartment that we rented for the night. It was pretty darn swanky. The oven was shiny and actually worked (more than can be said for mine here in Viña) and came with TP and soap in the bathroom, I know, I could barely believe it myself. We jumped back on the metro to head to the stadium at the edge of town. I guess I kind of pictured a Vikings game at the Metrodome but this can’t even compare. People with full-out face paint, wearing flags as capes and all red and shouting Chile chants packed the streets. It was such a fun atmosphere.

We had purchased our tickets a little late so we ended up paying more and landing in a nicer section right around center field. But it was worth the dough because our seats were great, as were the middle-aged friends we made. We were three of maybe 12 girls in our section and definitely the only ones there unaccompanied by our dads or boyfriends, which created interesting interactions for us with the guys sitting around us. One of our new friends tried to convince me that smoking before the game would bring luck to the Chilean team, sorry bout it, I don’t smoke for anyone. All the other friends taught us many new swear words. The energy in the stadium was indescribable. Anytime the ball neared the goal, everyone was instantly on their feet and when a corner kick turned into a goal headered (?) in, the grown men all around us were hugging with tears in their eyes. Fútbol is serious business here. Further demonstrated by the po-po decked out for a mob head-to-toe (including shields) and the barbed wire preventing fans from reaching the field or other sections of the stadium. The game was beyond fun and Chile won 4-2! I’m so glad that I got to experience such an important aspect of the culture! 

C-H-I! CHI! L-E! LE! CHI CHI CHI LE LE LE! VIVA CHILE!!!

I apologize for the novel but it’s been an exciting few days! I am so looking forward to catching up on my sleep, though.

It has been just over 2 months since I arrived in Chile which means that this journey is officially half-way over. As much as I miss home and all of you I’m not quite ready to leave yet and I have so much more I want to experience! I can’t wait to see what the second half has in store. As always, I’m thinking about and praying for all of you back home.

Cariñas,

Mackenzie

PS, for those of you who haven’t grasped the mayonnaise obsession:

Happy Halloween?

La Vida Real

It’s kind of weird to say but life has been the usual here the past week. Life as usual? Living in Chile? Alright!

Saturday night there was a blackout that affected some 10 million people in Chile (some issue with some grid). It wouldn’t have been that big of a deal except for the fact that I was home alone, minus the tweed man who was really sick, doctors had been in the house all day. So when the lights went out he was convinced I had just shut all of them off. The eeriness was only increased by the talk of the NASA satellite that was supposed to come out of orbit and land on Chile (but apparently landed in the ocean near Canada?). Then there were the stories of the giant earthquake that was supposed to strike when the planets aligned last Tuesday. And to top it off I had been watching the Day After Tomorrow (a movie about the end of the world) when everything went black. Cell phones were only working sporadically since I’m sure that everyone was trying to use theirs. And if you knew my Chilean family you wouldn’t be surprised to hear that I couldn’t find a single candle in the whole house (though there were plenty of cigarettes and matches). Luckily, my friend Molly showed up to rescue me. We ended up finding a lone flashlight and trekking back to her house where we lit candles in the kitchen and ate brownies out of the pan and drank Mango sours, it was pretty darling. The lights came back on before bed and all was fine but I still think it’s a good story.

I ended the weekend on the beach with some girlies watching the sunset and eating churros (sooo delicious!) I seriously don’t think I’ll ever get over how beautiful the sunsets are.

Monday was a pretty great day. My littlest sister Natalie had gone in for a check-up at the oncologist. She was diagnosed with leukemia over 7 years ago when she was not even 3 years old. She’s been in remission for almost 5 years now and after her appointment on Monday my mom sent me an e-mail saying that her doctor said she is officially cured. I read the e-mail at least 10 times to make sure I wasn’t misunderstanding. I haven’t been homesick at all recently but boy did I want to be home to give her a huge hug that afternoon. So here’s a shout out to you buddah, I’m so proud and so happy for you and promise we’ll celebrate big when I get home!

I love you to the moon and back, short stack! 

Wednesday we took the day off from class to take a little trip to Algarrobo, a lovely beach town about an hour and a half south. This town also happens to be the home to the World’s Largest Pool, which we will be returning to in November to celebrate mine and Anna’s 21^st birthdays! Anyway, we had lunch on the beach and had a couple hours to wander and take lots of pictures and of course get some ice cream. So serene and the weather could not have been better. We then took a tour of Pablo Neruda’s house, Isla Negra. He built it to resemble a boat so all of the doorways and staircases were super short and skinny. There were tons of seashells (my mom would’ve been in heaven), ships in a bottle, and creepy bug collections. Neruda also collected figureheads, the statues of women and mermaids found on the front of ships, they were so beautiful and unique. My favorite area of the house was where he would invite guests to sit and interview him (little bit of an ego?). The walls from floor to ceiling were like a mosaic of sea rock including quartz, lapizlazuli (Chile’s national stone) and some gorgeous black stone but of course they wouldn’t let us take pictures. The final room had a 7-foot narwhal tusk, no big deal. We capped off the afternoon with a little shopping at the typical locals and headed home.

Pablo Neruda's symbol for Isla Negra.

Taking in the beauty of Algarrobo. 

The rest of my week was full of realizing deadlines for final projects (November is going to be busy) but balanced out by booking my flights for traveling after my program! I’ll be traveling through Peru and Bolivia for about 10 days! Oh and I’m headed to Mendoza, Argentina next weekend for a long weekend. Yeah, life is pretty good J I hope all if well in your corner of the world as well!

Cariñas,

Mackenzie

Santiago y Fiestas Patrias

First things first, thanks to my wonderful parents who sent a new camera to me I can now share some snapshots of this beautiful place. But I’ve got to be honest, it’s a lot of pressure and quite the task to try to capture the majesty of the snow capped Andes or the sunset on the beach but I’m sure as heck gonna try.

So my camera arrived just in time for our group excursion to Santiago. We spent two nights there and did a lot! We left Viña bright and early Monday morning and got started pretty much as soon as we got to Santiago. A graduate student from our university showed us around the Plaza de Armas, which was surrounded by gorgeous old buildings in stark contrast to the giant skyscrapers of glass rising from the neighboring streets. On the plaza was the National Cathedral, quite stoic in the middle of the bustling city and inside was so peaceful. The shrines and altars were magnificent. You could tell it was built by the Europeans as they developed Santiago but there are distinct elements of Latin American culture like in Mary’s chapel where they hold hourly mass. I love the churches here.

Inside the National Cathedral with the beautiful organ tower.

My favorite chapel in the Cathedral, the chapel of Illumination. 

Monday evening I met up with my friends Carolyn and Beth from high school who are both spending the semester studying in Santiago. Actually, as it turns out, there are 6 Raiders in various parts of Chile this semester, yeah, we’re pretty awesome. Anyway, Carolyn and Beth showed a few friends from my program and I around different parts of Santiago and we ended up in the adorable neighborhood called Bellavista for dinner. It was so cool to me to be sitting at a sidewalk café in Chile catching up with friends from home. As we were paying our bill we spotted Michael Cera as he passed by! Two girls from my program ran into him earlier in August in Viña. I guess he’s studying Spanish in Santiago right now and he just so happened to walk past our café! We tried, quite unsuccessfully, to stalk him until we were totally busted and ran away. But I swear it was him! After the Michael Cera incident we tried 4 different ice cream shops and they were all closed at 9, totally unheard of in Chile. So we ended up going to a crepe stand where we met a girl who went to Moundsview high school in MN! Is that destiny or what!?

Raider reunion in Santiago!

The highlight of Tuesday for me was the Museo Colonial. It’s a museum filled with religious colonial art from Ecuador, Peru and Chile brought here by Europeans to evangelize to the indigenous people. The museum is housed in an old Franciscan convent attached to the first Catholic church of Santiago. Again, magnificent. So serene. While the tour got a little long (pushing 2 ½  hours), I learned a lot. I stopped in the church on our way out, trying my best not to disturb mass. The frescos in the dome of the church were awesome. Tuesday just so happened to be the 7^th anniversary of Natalie’s diagnosis of leukemia so I lit a candle for her and walked out with an overwhelming feeling of peace and gratitude. I’m living in Chile. Wow.

View from San Cristobal hill; a palm tree and the snow-capped Andes.
Welcome to Chile!

Wednesday, on our way home to Viña we stopped at a traditional Chilean restaurant and then at a gorgeous vineyard in the Casa Blanca region called Casas del Bosque. It was a chilly overcast day in the Casa Blanca valley but the vineyard was lovely and I’m not much of a wine person but the Sauvignon Blanc we tasted was delicious!

Mi amiga Bre and I at the wine tasting. Fancy pants.

So we got back to Viña, had one morning of classes and then Fiestas Patrias began! Fiestas Patrias is the Independence Celebration here. Take our 4^th of July plus St. Patrick’s Day times New Years and throw in a couple birthday parties and you’ve got a fraction of Fiestas Patrias. Here are the necessities: an asado which is basically a marathon of eating. Start off with sugared peanuts and some vino de chirimoya (chunky but delicious) then an empanada warm off the parailla soon followed by churipan (upgrade of a brat). By now you’re probably drinking Fanchop (beer and orange Fanta) or some kind of pisco, my new favorite is Mango Sour. Alright, time to move inside for the meal: ribs, steak, chicken, lettuce, corn, tomatoes, potatoes and of course lots and lots of pan. Fiestas Patrias will also include reggaeton, cueca (Chile’s national dance) and also a trip to the Ramdas, similar to a town fair. The one in Viña had rows and rows of restaurants all serving the same things: empanadas, anticuchos (kabobs), chicha (super sweet alcohol with grenadine) and terremotos (the “earthquake” drink, deadly).

I also had the pleasure of joining my friend Bre and her host family in the small beach town of Maitencillo about an hour north of Viña for a night during Patrias. It was so picturesque and relaxing and the shopping was great..my wallet was way lighter when I got home last night. I ate enough to last me a month, literally, learned a new card game and quite a few new Spanish words from my slightly intoxicated hosts. It was a joy.

The view from the cabin in Maitencillo, I could get used to this. 

Well needless to say it’s been a busy week! I hope all is well with you and yours!

Cariñas,

Mackenzie