and this is how it began.

This has been quite the adventure so far! It was pretty stressful up until today, but things are beginning to relax a lot. We had a few mishaps on the way here. 1) Gannon's luggage getting taken in Minneapolis before entering the plane and being put in Atlanta baggage claim. His bag had both his travel documents (passport, visa info, etc) and boarding pass inside. He had to go get it from Atlanta baggage claim and go through security once again, barely making it in time for boarding. So much for a relaxing layover...not to mention really pathetic customer service. Pretty frustrating. I figured the flight to Santiago wouldn't be too terrible. Bad assumption. 2) I took 2 benadryl to help me sleep on the flight, only to find that my seat was broken and wouldn't recline! I tried a million different ways to sit, but none of them really work when your seat won't move. I sat upright and drowsy for the nine hour flight.

When we got to the airport, we struggled with finding the right place to go...we ended up waiting in the line for Chileans only for a good 20 minutes until a Chilean woman was kind enough to politely ask us if we were Chilean and direct us to the right line. A bunch of people from our group showed up then. It was good to see familiar faces. I got to have my first empanada soon after- pino! It was cold but delicious.

After the group was all together, we left on the bus for Viña. It was a nice bus ride, but we were all freaking out as we approached the museum we would meet our host families at. I saw my host mom, Gladys, pretty much right away. She had on a cute little name tag with my name on it. There were some dancers from Easter Island performing that we watched. My host mom is so adorable and nice! We waited awhile for my host dad, César, to drive us home because he was at an English class. We stopped at the grocery store and picked up some goodies (I found out I'm the first host student they've had that likes Coca-cola?), then headed home. On the way home, I found out there is another exchange student living with them. When we got home, I met Simoné, my 18 year old host sister, and Lauren (or Lauri as they say), the other student. We enjoyed some Coca-cola on the balcony then headed in for dinner. It was delicious food. After dinner I retreated to my room for quite some time for a much needed shower and nap combo.

Afterward, I hung out with Simoné, Lauren, her friend, and her cousin and watched Glee in Spanish. Lauren & her friends told me about the mini excursions they are going on w/their program and welcomed me to join them for any of them. They sound great - zip lining, paint ball (?!), and more. They told me I should come with them to Macchu Piccu too during their break too, but who knows. They have a lot more breaks than we do, which I am jealous of! I am looking forward to Fiestas Patrias in the end of September - it's their 200th birthday!

Today the group met for desayuno (breakfast) at the university, which was really fun. Gladys brought me there on the micro. Everyone was swapping stories in Spanish, which was cool to see. Afterward we got a tour of the campus. It was a lot bigger than I thought. It had a lot of different layers to it. I doubt I'll be able to find my way around right away. Afterward, we had a presentation on Chilean buddies and the many activities we are being offered (camping, ski trips, surfing, etc). It was really exciting, although I didn't understand a lot of what was being said. Afterward I called my host mom for a ride. Simoné ended up coming, and Mara and I rode back with her on the subway. We walked Mara home, which took a surprisingly long time (we're both in Chorillos), but it was a really great opportunity to talk in Spanish. Simoné is so great! She is 18 and in her first year at a different university. On the 20ish minute walk back, we talked a ton. She taught me a lot about the city and surrounding areas, and we talked about how we're both interested in Psychology. She is really interested in dance therapy, which I think is incredibly interesting. It was really great talking to her!

When we got back we had lunch w/the rest of the family including Luna, the older sister who is 25. They all talk so quickly that it can be difficult to understand. Whenever I'm with just one of them it is easy, but when you get them together they speed up a ton! They are really patient though and have taught me a ton already. It already feels sort of instinctual to speak Spanish here, which is crazy considering it's only been a day. I feel like I've known this family for way longer than a day! The mom listens to Radio Disney all day - it's hilarious and so cute. She said it's because her "corazón es joven" :) Today I heard Beyonce's If I were a boy in Spanish - "Si yo fuera un chico" :) Simoné says it's in both Spanish and English here. Pretty much all I hear during meals is Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, and Justin Beiber. It's pretty entertaining.

Tonight I think my group is going out together but I'm not completely sure. I feel pretty out of the loop, because I still don't have a chip for my cell phone, as we haven't gone to the mall yet. Hopefully sometime today or tomorrow?

Chau!

xoxo, Esperanza