Chile Qualifies For The World Cup!

Santiago is wild tonight! Chile played Colombia at 6pm in a fight for a seat in the 2010 World Cup. Chile hasn't been to the World Cup since 1998. Chile historically has not played well so making it this far is a huge deal. All Chile had to do was tie to qualify and they won 4-2. Needless to say, Chileans are ecstatic!! Chile now joins Brasil and Paraguay as part of the five qualifying South American teams that will advance. The win tonight reminds me a bit of our beloved Red Sox who won the World Series the first year I moved to Boston after an 86-year losing streak. I MUST be a token of good luck.

I was dying to watch the game somewhere to share in the excitement with the public. None of my girlfriends like soccer, therefore, I called my new Chilean buddy Jorge who I met on Thursday at my language institute's weekly exchange. He's a fanatic as every Chilean, or South American for that matter, is for soccer. All the local hole-in-the-wall joints were full so we popped into a more established bar since it was easy to find a seat and had a nice big screen TV. The score was 3-2 with 12 minutes left in the game. Everyone sat on pins and needles as the timer ticked...THEN...the TV went out!! Boos proceeded. We got the check and booked it to the street. There was no need to ask who had won because horns sounded and "Viva Chile!" chants resonated on the street.

Jorge and I followed the crowd towards Plaza Italia where Chileans gather to celebrate after every soccer win and riot after every loss. Armed police forces lined the street. Chileans jumped up-and-down singing the national anthem and chanting their fight song. The energy built, mosh pits formed, kids lit fireworks, and I decided to retreat to my warm, safe apartment before the police stepped in. I practically was the only person walking away from the rally. Ha!

I Am Alive!!

I'm sorry I have been so out of touch! The last two months have been a whirlwind. I am officially back on board with updating my blog! My personal goal is to update twice per week since my days left here are getting fewer by the second!

Jake was here for two weeks and left Wednesday, the 24th. Since his departure I've been roaming the streets of Santiago, perusing all the menus and salivating at 2-for-1 happy hours wishing I were a party of two to indulge. It's never as fun to drink alone. Do you feel sorry for me yet? It's taken me a week to acclimate back to reality. I'm now trying to figure out how to retire at the age of 31 to travel the world starting by touching every corner of the South American continent. The Latin American language and culture has officially infused my soul. I can't get enough! Therefore, I enrolled in a Spanish institute today. I will be taking 3 hours of classes five days a week for the next month. I'm so excited! Today was my first day. It's great to learn from the Chilean school of thought. It is completely different and much easier than they teach in the U.S.! They teach more practically - as you would speak in your every day life.

Time to reminisce...Jake and I took our two weeks by storm! Where do I even start? From the driest desert in the world in the north; to my girlfriend's farm in the south to celebrate Chile's Independence Day; to the quaint cobble-stone roads of the coastal town Valparaíso; to the hidden San Antonio wine valley, five miles from the ocean, known for its Sauvignon Blancs, Pinot Noirs, and Syrahs.

If you're like me, the desert sounds completely unappealing. I prefer lush greenery and oceans. But, San Pedro de Atacama transformed me. Don't envision Texas or Nevada. Instead, imagine flamenco reserves in the middle of the world's 3rd largest salt flat (the first is in Bolivia and the second is in your truly Utah!), geyser fields, thermal springs, and sunsets of bright hues reflecting off the faces of volcanos.

If a picture is worth a 1,000 words, we have about 800,000 words to bless you with. Jake brought his old school 35 mm super-duper camera and we both had digitals. At the risk of giving you a stigmatism we are in the process of editing. In the meantime, I will roll out small groups of photos in a beautiful chronological order just like I like them. ¡Bienvenido OCD!

We spent the first six days in San Pedro de Atacama. This desert is so dry that nothing can self-sustain - there are no rats, no snakes, no insects...nothing. It is the most popular tourist spot in all of Chile. But, it's not annoyingly touristy. I found it pleasantly touristy - quite the oxymoron - because of the lack of Americans. We met Brasilians, Sweeds, Australians, French and Moroccans. The town of San Pedro is an adorable, quaint town, elevated at about 7,000 ft., with unpaved roads barely wide enough to accommodate a car. The dirt roads are lined with adobe, little stores and restaurants, and most either walk or ride bikes. The climate is perfect - low 70s the entire time we were there. San Pedro instantly transports you to a state of relaxation. And, calls for Pisco Sours... :)

We had initially planned to rent a car until my boss subtly advised otherwise. "Um, you know most of the roads are unpaved and not on the map. If you get lost, you're screwed." The first day we made ourselves at home in our hostal and hit the streets to book tours for the days to follow. We went with Lonely Planet's recommendation of Cosmo Andino and set up a three day back-to-back circuit starting Sunday with Valle de la Muerte (Death Valley) and Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley). Valle de la Muerte was originally named Valle de Marte (Mars Valley). As I've mentioned before, Chileans have terrible pronunciation of words. "Marte" sounded like "muerte" and as they came to realize that "Death Valley" created a bigger tourist attraction, they changed its name.

We started our journey by running down a giant sand dune in the middle of Valle de la Muerte followed by walking through the Cordillera de Sal (salt mountain range). It hasn't rained in San Pedro for eight years, since El Niño. Therefore, the mountain salt range is covered in clay that the high winds have blown through during the night. When the temperature drops in the late afternoon the salt retracts and you can hear it cracking. It was erie! Our guide assured us that although we heard cracking, there would be no landslide.

From there we drove 5 minutes to Valle de la Luna named after its lunar-like landforms eroded by eons of flood and wind. We climbed to the top of a thin mountain range fighting for a spot among other tourists and awaited the unforgettable sunset.

Here is the first mini-album!

First Two Days Of My New Job

Day 1

Intended Means Of Transportation:

Bus

Plan B Transportation:

Taxi. I had to switch buses and my 2nd bus never came!! I ended up sharing cab with a girl heading in the same direction.

Lesson Learned:

Chilean bus system is not reliable.

Day 2:

Means Of Transportation:

Bike

Pros:

I made it to work seamlessly.

The ride got me energized to start my day.

I got to explore the city.

Since I had to ride past my gym on the way home, I had no choice but to go in.

Cons:

The trip took much longer than I thought! It took about 30 minutes.

My legs are not in bike-riding condition. I was exhausted when I got there!

The building I work in does not have an elevator so already exhausted, I had to carry my bike up flights of stairs.

Lessons Learned:

Leave earlier tomorrow.

Always wear my helmet because the Chilean buses are aggressive!

Chileans don't use bike hand signals. Come to think of it, do Americans even use them?? In slight fear for my life I asked myself if I should bring back the hand signals we learned in grade school. Or was that high school driver's ed class?

I moved in to my new apartment this weekend with a friend named Alejandro. Although my bedroom is much smaller, I love the location of my new building! It is much more centrally located than my other apartment - an easy walking distance from great restaurants, bars, and the metro. I did enjoy the last days in my old apartment and took photos of my final beautiful sunset there.

Trip to La Serena: Part 1 (7/17-7/20)

Last Friday, I decided to take a trip to La Serena which is six hours north of Santiago. I wanted to take advantage of my free time during the day these last couple weeks before I start my new job. Therefore, Pio and I met on Thursday, which was another religious holiday, instead of Friday so I depart on Friday. I rented a car, hit the road in the afternoon and arrived to La Serena at 10pm Friday night. It is expensive to travel in Chile compared to other South American countries. There are three levels of accomodations in La Serena – hostal, hostal with your own bathroom, and hotel. I’ve never done the hostal thing and still wasn’t feeling ready to share a restroom with someone. But, my friend Teresa had stayed at the hostal Maria’s Casa recently and said although “budget”, it was clean and Maria was incredibly friendly. Due to my “budget,” I called Maria. She was very nice but unfortunately, had no rooms available. Her sister did have an apartment I could rent but it was twice as much. Lonely Planet has listed them as “our pick” for the last 5 years so Maria has quite the booming business. Her son told me they are looking to get government support (money) so they can add on to the house and have more rooms to rent. I ended up making a reservation at the nicer hostal where I would have my own bathroom. When I pulled up to the hostal, I could not bring myself to stop. It looked scary!! And it was dark, which made it look that much scarier. It’s amazing how the dark adds a dimension of fear to EVERYTHING. Especially, when you are traveling alone.

It was now 10:30pm. In a state of desperation, I headed to Maria’s. I would rent her sister’s apartment. There is something about the name “Maria’s Casa” that is very inviting. It sounds comforting; as if my mom would be the one to open the door and welcome me with open arms. Maria’s son Andrés greeted me at the door. He said some other American girl had come just before me and taken the apartment. They thought she was me. I went to use the restroom, nervous as to where I would go next. When I walked back out, Andrés told me that his mom’s friend Anna lived across the street and had a room she could rent me. Whew! I can’t describe the relief I felt. Anna was SO nice. I would guess Anna is late 60s/70. She is one of 11 children but now, it is only her and three siblings left. She has lived in this house for 50 years. The front door opens into her entryway. To the left is her TV room; to the right her living room and bedroom. At the other end of the entryway is another door that exits into a courtyard. To the left is a door into her dining room and then another door into her kitchen. The courtyard almost felt like the middle of an apartment complex because the upstairs perimeter had four separate rooms, each with its own door. She had four rooms to rent. We walked upstairs to my room. It had two twin beds separated by a night stand, a TV, and a small stand alone closet. The upside was that I had my own bathroom. The downside was that there was no heat.

After I dropped off my stuff, Andrés offered to walk with me into town to get a bite to eat and a drink. The “downtown” area looked a little seedy so I accepted his offer. La Serena is the second-oldest city in Chile. It looks run down with graffiti covering its walls. The city is very small – you can walk from one side to the other in about 10 minutes – so it astonishing to me that it has 29 churches! At the bar, Andrés wrote down sites I should see as he puffed down cigarettes like a mad man after claiming he’d quite three years ago. The conversation turned to politics, which it typically does in Chile. He passionately shared his and his mom’s opinion of Pinochet as a Chilean guy on a stage attempted to sing an American tune. I was exhausted and ready for bed. When I got home, my room was so cold that I couldn’t bring myself to remove the clothing from the upper half of my body. I slept in my shirt, wool sweater, and down-feather filled vest.

It was a rough night of sleep. I heard my neighbors arrive at 3am; more noise at 5am; then a group up and out at 7am. At 9am, my room was surprisingly warm and my bed felt like heaven. My room had revived itself, and in doing so I felt more secure about my surroundings. With the sun pouring in, I peeled myself from my bed. I only had two full days for this vacation and therefore, I wanted to get the most out of them. The beauty of La Serena lies outside its center. Two miles to the west lies the ocean and to the east the Elqui Valley with quaint villages and sprawling pisco vineyards. I was craving the ocean. I had not seen the ocean since I had left California. Half asleep, I drove to the beach, walked out onto the sand, and sat down. It was 11am and there were more people on the beach that I had expected – mostly families, some couples – walking around the non-functional lighthouse; lying in the sand; taking pictures. I stared out into the ocean, listening to the sounds of the waves, admiring the beauty of the mountains to the north, and wrote in my journal. I felt serenity. I took in the fresh air and felt my soul cleansed.

It was about 1pm and I still hadn’t had caffeine. I was in dire need of coffee before my drive through the valley. I drove down the coast and found a cute spot on the beach. Espresso please.

I headed into Elqui Valley, first hitting Vicuña 62 km/38 miles east of La Serena. It is the biggest of the valley’s tiny towns, and after driving around the plaza twice in two minutes without finding a parking spot, I continued on. I was on a mission to Pisco Elqui. When I got to the pastoral village Paihuano, the road turned to cobble stone and stretched an entire 1/8^th of a mile. There is something about cobble stone that is so endearing. I had to stop and take a picture. Next, I hit Monte Grande. This was the birth place of the poet and Nobel Prize winner Gabriela Mistral. She and Pablo Neruda are the two Chilean literary figures to win Nobel Prizes. Both were Communists. Pio’s opinion is that you have to be a Communist to win. I stopped only briefly because my destination for this entire drive through the valley was Pisco Elqui.

Lonely Planet notes that local legend tells that in the 1930s the former president Gabriela González Videla personally changed La Unión’s original name to Pisco Elqui to undermine Peruvian claims to having originated the famous Pisco Sour beverage. The big attraction is the Disteleria Mistral which distributes the premium brand of Mistral pisco. I wanted to do a tour and tasting. Tours ended at 6pm. I FINALLY arrived at 5pm and with a big breath let out a “Eureka!” I got bundled up because it was freezing. We were literally butted up to the mountains so the temperature had dropped by 15 degrees. I walked inside to sign up for my tour. They told the last tour had gone at 5!! Really?! “Qué triste!!” I told the girl. L I hadn’t eaten all day trying to preserve my time for the pisco tour. I was starving. I found a cozy restaurant with a fire and had some warm asado. I took a video.

By the time I got home Saturday night it was 10pm and I was exhausted. I went into Maria’s Casa to check my email and then headed across the street to my bed.

Day Trip to Quintay and Casas del Bosque Vineyard

I got a part-time job offer from Liz Caskey Culinary & Wine Experiences which I am really excited about. She and her husband coordinate trips throughout Chile, Argentina and new this year, Uruguay. To give me a first-hand taste of the type of trips they plan, Liz invited me to join a "Wild Wine Day" tour Wednesday. The clients were two friends flying in from Texas and Arizona. This was their third time touring with Liz. The one started coming to Chile 10 years ago. They met each other for the first time years back on a hunting trip to Argentina. Argentina is the #1 destination for hunting doves. They were scheduled to arrive in Santiago yesterday at 7:45am. We were supposed to leave via van at 9:30am. Unfortunately, their flight was delayed so the day was cut short. Regardless, it was an incredible day of breath-taking ocean views, the freshest seafood I have ever eaten, and wonderful wine.

We left from the Orly Hotel where the clients were staying at 12:30pm to the coast. After an hour and a half drive which ended with a steep decline on a road of switchbacks, we arrived at the bottom of the hill to Quintay - a small fishing town (which was so small you really can't even call it a town) - to have lunch. Liz had shot a show for PBS there in the past and I vividly remembered how quaint and special this place looked. It was an absolutely beautiful day filled with sunshine and warmth. We parked and walked across the sand to the restaurant. This hidden gem serves seafood that is literally fresh off the boat. The boats dock on the beach only steps from the entrance of the restaurant. We started with a delicious Santa Carolina Carmenere and fresh warm bread while taking in the ocean breeze. For lunch we had abalone (locos) served with salad, razor clams (machas), baby eels (angilas) which was a daring choice but I was game, and a rich crab pie (pastel de jaiva) accompanied by a crisp Sauvignon Blanc. I took a little video to catch the cook in action.

At 4:30 we finished lunch and left to Casas del Bosque vineyard for a tasting. The vineyard was very pretty and surprisingly contemporary. We tasted a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot, and Syrah. Everyone liked the Sauvignon Blanc best. The clients were exhausted after a long flight and full day of food and wine but very content. We headed back to Santiago and were home by 6:45pm.

Here is the video I took in the kitchen of the chef preparing our fabulous lunch.

A little plug for Liz: she will be on the Travel Channel on Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" show Monday night at 7pm PST.

Photos Of El Campo

Birthday Weekend at El Campo

I apologize for getting so far behind on my blog entries! Technology can be SO frustrating. For the past week, I have not been able to log into Google and many of its other sites…Blogger being one of them. I do not know the reason but Pio says this is happening now that I’m in Chile because my computer doesn’t understand Spanish. Ha…You have to love his light-hearted attitude.

I must back track to last weekend…my birthday weekend! I was hoping that I would have plans rather than having a “party for one”. Estefa found out it was my birthday one of the first weekends we hung out. She invited me to “el campo” with her and her friends for the weekend. El campo, or farm, is in El Tambo which is 2 hours south of Santiago. Her friend Romina, whose family owns the farm, was also celebrating her birthday. Romina is the cousin of Carolina whom was with Estefa the first time we met. Carolina and Estefa went to high school together. Mario, who also came out the first time I met Estefa, is best friends with Romina’s brother. The two circles overlapped and now everyone is one big happy family. This is when a family tree would come in handy. J

Estefa warned that the farm was going to be very cold, so I woke up early on a mission to the mall to find a casual warm coat and boots. Fortunately, I found a coat; unfortunately, I did not find boots. I was way too overwhelmed with the selection of boots and at 3pm, threw in the towel and raced home. I had been told to avoid taxis because they take advantage of gringos. I was recommended to take a radio cab instead which are typically honest. But, a radio taxi requires a phone call and scheduled pickup. I was behind on time so I flagged down a cab and jumped in. I was nervous and totally on guard. I had my cold American self up, trying not to engage in conversation so he knew I was a gringa. The cab driver knew the second I got in and opened my mouth that I was not Chilean. He asked if I was from Brasil. Oddly enough, this is the second time someone has asked me this. I guess my Spanish accent is somewhat Brasilian. In any case, the taxi driver was really nice and charged me fairly.

Estefa picked me up with Carolina and a now new friend Maria at 4:30pm on Saturday. They were all tired from a late night out so I was happy we were all on the same page. We made a stop at the Plaza in San Vicente, which is the town nearest by, to pick up some goods. Surprisingly, there were a lot of people walking around. It reminded a little of Mexico. There was a big outdoor shopping area with each “shop” separated by a plywood wall. Some sold fruit, others clothing, etc. We arrived to el campo, which really was in the middle of nowhere, at 7pm. We walked through the back and into the kitchen that had a big wood table in the middle. This big wood table would be the center of all festivities during the weekend given Chilean life revolves around food and drink. The kitchen was so warm and cozy! There was a very old, large stove in the corner which was kept burning by literally burning wood. I wish I had taken a picture of it. The fabulous thing about it was that it radiated warmth throughout the kitchen. Next to the stove was a big wood box that was filled with empanadas. Throughout the weekend, Romina’s mom would heat and serve them for snacks, meals, etc. Everyone raved that she made the best empanadas in town.

Saturday night was Romina’s big birthday party. I thought it was just going to be us girls and Mario for the weekend, but as people slowly trickled in, I realized that all of their high schools friends and a multitude of family members were coming. They had built a tarp outdoors since there was forecast of rain. Under the tarp was a huge wood table that sat about 15, which no one sat at; a table with drinks – wine, Pisco, and soda – the drink of choice for the attendees would be Piscolas; and a computer to play music attached to a pretty impressive speaker system.

At 10pm the asado began. Asado means “roast.” They call it a roast and not BBQ because Chileans think BBQ implies too small of a quantity of meat. Chileans buy about .5 kilos (about a pound) of meat per person! The meat takes forever to cook and people are so patient. The asado is the festivity…people eat as the meat cooks and it goes on all night. No one sits down and serves him or herself from a serving plate. Instead, people stand around the massive grill and progressively feed themselves as the different meats cook. And, they have asados all year long – rain or shine. I love it! So, getting back to the asado…it began at 10 and ended around 1. At 10:30, it started to sprinkle which turned to rain and then into a massive down pour and wind. I was freezing and ready to go inside and sit by the fire. But I could see that I was the ONLY one remotely thinking about this. A few minutes before midnight, Carolina and Romina's cousin Marco came up to me with a carnation and said, "Feliz cumpleaños." He was really proud to be the first one to wish me a happy birthday. At exactly midnight, Mario brought me a gift and said, "Am I the first one to wish you a happy birthday?!" I had to break it to him that Marco had just left. He had wrapped me a box of chocolates. One-by-one people walked up to me, wished me happy birthday and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Everyone was so nice and thoughtful!

At 1am, the music was turned up and everyone started to dance. As the rain poured heavier and the wind blew harder, the music got louder and people danced faster. Soon, the entire “dance floor” was a mud puddle. The tarp blew back and forth but stood strong. Water kept accumulating on top so every 10 minutes someone would push the gallons of water off into the grass. I was ready to die. I was freezing and covered in mud. We all laughed at how my white shoes were saturated.

Sunday was my actual birthday day. Because it was still raining we all woke up and spent the entire day in the kitchen playing games, singing, and dancing. They even brought me out a cake and sang happy birthday. I felt so welcomed!

Monday was a holiday in celebration of the Saints Peter and Paul. They have a multitude of religious holidays for Saints and the majority have no idea what they signify…typical Catholics. Ha! This meant a day off for everyone so we spent all Monday lounging; we took a walk to the Aunt’s farm next door – they grow oranges, apples and some grapes – and visited the geese, peacock (their pet who had a cold so kept sneezing in her cage), and dozens of chickens. My camera died so my friend is sending me her pics, which I will share once I get them. To wait out the traffic, we all drove to Kuhn’s (his name is actually Pedro but everyone calls him by his last name) family’s house near by for ANOTHER asado. We stood around the grill for a couple hours while Kuhn roasted pork and chicken. It was delicious. We headed back to the city around 8pm full and happy.