Day 2: Gringas

Well it feels like we've already learned a lot in the few hours we've been in Santiago. None of us really slept on the overnight plane trip despite our best efforts, so we arrived in Santiago early this morning delirious but excited. Finishing up writing this about 24 hours after we stepped on the plane to Santiago, I can't believe all that has already happened. First off, I'm amazed we didn't fall asleep yet!

So here's the quick version of what we did:

1) Got to lovely Airbnb apartment

2) Dealt with weird wifi issues

3) Took in city views from roof

4) El Clapper Cafe

5) Currency exchange

6) Grocery store

7) Spanish speaking struggles and successes

8A) An went on a walk and met girls from Cornell at a pancake cafe

8B) Ava and I went on a run/walk/adventure, followed by chatting in the rooftop pool

9) "Early" dinner with MIT grad Andrew + his U Chile labmates at a tapas bar

10) Finally sleep!

It was a long day, and I won't bore you with all the details, but here are some selected portions... Feel free to just read the numbers that sounded interesting from above. I tend to ramble on, so consider this a choose your own adventure kind of blog post reading... not that you can't do that anyways as reading these is an elective (and appreciated :) activity.

1,3) Arriving at our Airbnb apartment was quite a nice relief. It was as beautiful as the pictures, and our host Claudia was so thoughtful and kind. We're really lucky to get to stay in such a great apartment in the Providencia neighborhood so close to Universidad Mayor and Manuel Montt metro station. We enjoyed the chance to take the elevator to the top of the apartment complex and stand on the roof overlooking the city. This is where the swimming pool resides, and where I hope that we spend some time floating, relaxing, and taking in the views.

hazy mountains

pool!

4) Excited to finally be in the city, we took the nice map that Claudia had left us and set out. It was so liberating to change into shorts and sandals despite it being January. We were hungry, although they'd served us breakfast around 5 or 6am on the plane. Around 10am, we stopped at a cafe called El Clapper and ordered some food.

Ava had a nice paila de huevos y jamón con tostada (an egg and ham scramble with toast) as well as a coffee in a beautiful glass. We sat outside in the fresh mountain air, enjoying the perfect temperature and sun. Don't worry, I had sunblock on as per usual. An probably ordered the best stuff of any of us. She got a quiche de espinacha (spinach quiche) that was really delicious.

She shared some with me, and I vowed to order it next time. It's an ongoing joke between me and An that I should really always just order after her and get what she gets because I always end up liking what she gets better than my own. She has a talent for picking good food at restaurants. Tired from the plane and feeling very unrisky, I went with... not the most "authentic" chilean food. I got a waffle with chocolate sauce because it sounded good. And it looked beautiful!

6) In a less successful food outing, I made a fool of myself at the grocery store. Well, first I had the victory of finding unsweetened greek yogurt, a main staple in my eating routine.

exploring new places = exploring new yogurts

However, I then made some blunders. I didn't weigh the avocados before bringing them to the counter, and I hit the wrong button on the card reader, and I made some other random mistakes that left me feeling embarrassed. I ended up not buying the avocados and still holding up the line. The truth is I would probably make similar mistakes even at stores back home, but the pressure of being in a new country and feeling like all eyes are on you can make it feel way more intense. However, it's mostly in our heads as everyone we've met has been very welcoming and helpful.

Ava and An, always the encouraging and upbeat travelers, encouraged me to let it go. "You can only focus on doing so much right at once," Ava said. This was a good lesson for me. I can't expect to come to a foreign country and act like a local when I'm not at all an expert on the customs, currency, language, or food. But I'm excited to learn! As we came back from dinner tonight, we passed the same grocery store. An and Ava led me inside and we weighed the avocados, got the label, and finally purchased them. Growing day by day!

8B) Ava wanted to go on a run, and I was tired but she inspired me. So, we set out together aiming for a sculpture garden not too far away. Running along a nice path beside a canal adorned with artsy graffiti, we really started to take in the beauty of the city. I liked the bike graffiti a lot.

I kept yelling out about how lush everything was and noticing all of these different types of trees with each step. Combine that with fountains and people enjoying the open space, and it was a really nice place to be this afternoon.

Even in Chile's busy capital city I am impressed with the nature! I can't even imagine how exciting the Atacama and Patagonia will be. Continuing on our run which turned into a walk and meandering adventure, we checked out the base of Cerro San Cristobal, scoping out a trail we want to take to the top. That'll be a fun future excursion yielding a gorgeous view of Santiago.

While the dry, breezy 85 degree heat is really comfortable while walking around, it definitely made us warm while running. Coming back to the apartment, we stuck our legs in the cool rooftop pool and took in the views as we chatted. It's such a special opportunity to get to come and teach here and really explore over the course of an entire month!

9) MIT undergrad and MEng graduate Andrew invited us out with his new Universidad de Chile labmates to get tapas for dinner.

Check out An's beautiful blog post for pictures of the food. I was really feeling like describing lots of things in overly verbose detail today (ok, most days), but her post will probably be much cleaner and neater to read and full of more pictures. Would recommend!

Ok, back to dinner... we went to Ruca, a nice spot about a 25 minute walk from the apartment. Our lengthy dinner had us all sitting around a long table, sharing plates of delicious and varying tapas as we swapped stories, travel tips, and discussed life in academia. We were able to learn a lot from their experience, but I also appreciated how "adult" it felt to be included in such a gathering. In this context, we weren't seen as naïve 19 or 20 year olds but fellow travelers interested in STEM, Chile, teaching, and adventure. While we were very uncool by Chilean standards since we started eating dinner at 7pm (locals didn't start arriving at the restaurant until past 9), it was nice to set us on a decent track for a reasonable bedtime.

To think that we were on a plane only this morning and on a different continent less than 24 hours ago! Suffice it to say I think we will sleep well tonight!