Settling In

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Well it seems like it has been a while since I have posted anything.  I have been sick for what feels like a week with a sore throat and a cold.  I went to a doctor yesterday and I got some antibiotics that appear to be helping.  My always troublesome tonsils are really struggling with the polluted air here.

On Friday, we took a group trip to the town of Pomaire where they specialize in making the pottery that they sell on their one main road.  It was definitely worth the stroll.  Later we arrived to Pablo Neruda´s ocean front home in Isla Negra.  Neruda is something of an idol here as his poetry is thought very highly of by Chileans.  His home is quite interesting because of his habit of collecting many rare and interesting things like old bottles and centuries old statues of women that had once stood at the front of old sea ships.  That night, several of us parted ways with the organized tour bus and took off for Viña del Mar.  We spent the weekend there and it was fantastic once again.  One of our group of four, Tyler, is staying with a family that owns a condominium in Viña.  They have a room with bunk beds and we were more that happy to occupy them free of charge.  The balcony overlooks a rather modern looking city standing in front of the Pacific Ocean.  That Saturday night we went out on the town and found many great little pubs and bars each with its own character.

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My classes have been fairly easy so far and we have been trying to find things to fill the day when not in school.  Today we found a bowling alley above a grocery store and spent an hour knocking down pins.  Other days are filled by finding new, tucked away restaurants where we can sit and relax for extended periods.  But mostly we just sit outside on a park bench in front of school and watch the many Chilean college students do their thing.  There are dozens of colleges in the neighborhood where our school is located and it seems to be 90% students walking about.

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Tomorrow, five of us are renting a Nissan Sentra and driving to Chiloe. We have a four day weekend due to the Chilean independence.  Everyone else in Chile gets the entire week off!  Chiloe is an island down south that I feel will be extremely interesting.  They apparently have their own mythology that is still very much a part of everyday life.  I have never been much of a seafood lover but I feel that the time has come.  In Chiloe, the dish Curanto, is perfected.  It is a soup of vegetables, meat, and just about every kind of seafood.  From what I have read, it must only rightfully be served after it has been cooked in a hole in the earth.  I will surely let you know how that turns out.