Here are a few things to keep in mind as you’re reading my blog that will help everything else make sense:
I’m rooming with two guys named Eric and Jason. They’re pretty cool so far. We live on the 12th floor.
It is winter here. And yes, Gibby, Chile is quite Chilly. It’s colder in the classroom than anywhere else. Both men and women wear scarves here, and I am enjoying mine. I need to buy some wool socks from a street vendor soon.
The subway, or metro line, is needed to go to pretty much anywhere in Santiago, considering we don’t have cars. We were given cards for the metro. They’re RFID cards (I think) which you just wave over the sensor. You hear a BIP and then you’re allowed to go through the gate. It only costs about a dollar every time you are admitted.
Traffic has the right of way over pedestrians, and so many people walk anyway when the crossing light is red that it MUST be legal. My group still doesn’t, though, and I have to stick with them whenever I’m out… darn.
Money here is Chilean Pesos. There are no cents or fractions, just pesos. One US Standard Dollar is worth around 540 pesos at the present time. We are given 40,000 pesos (about $75) at the beginning of each week to buy more credit for our metro passes and groceries. Anything left we are free to spend.
Chilean restaurants give one drink, with no refills. Better pace yourself!
Our classes are taught by our Lee professors that accompany us throughout the trip. Classes are held at the Church of God Theological Seminary across town. You need to use two metro lines to get there, passing about 10 stops.
Class is from 9:00 am through 1:00 pm, Monday through Friday, and it’s impossible to get there on time unless you leave at about 8:15. We have “tea time” for fifteen minutes in the middle, where we go get a cup of coffee or tea and chat with the seminary students (in Spanish, of course). That fifteen minutes makes all the difference in the world!
Have I mentioned the metro yet? It’s very important. I think I might upload a metro map of Santiago soon so that you can see all of the places I will be talking about. I know that a map always helps me visualize places in books, but maybe that’s just me.
There is an AMAZING ice cream place (technically, it is helado, but it’s similar enough to say ice cream) right around the corner of my apartment. There are round tables outside of it with umbrellas and lit candles, a doorman, granite tables to sit at inside, and all of the employees wear vests and dress shirts. Oh, and thirty-two flavors. If I had a different one every day I would not have enough time to try them all. They also sell coffee and cake, and probably more.
I miss my friends and family at home, so they should send me lots of emails and call me on Skype. My internet is working well now (hopefully for good) so I’ll be able to reply quickly
There is a lot more to say, but hopefully this is enough for now. ¡Adios!
