The airport was an emotional experience. Knowing that I wouldn't see my family for a whole year, my friends, or have any of my home comforts which make me feel safe, it's terrifying to say the least,yet I have never been more excited!
Only having just arrived in the country Wednesday morning, my time so far has been very nice, despite the extreme jet-lag that comes with a day-long flight. I'm currently staying with a friend of mine's family and family friends, and I couldn't be happier. It's a great way to settle in and it feels like I am still at home, despite all the Spanish stuff like everywhere.
My first impressions of Chile were amazing. The plane took a path right over the top of the Andes, and it was ridiculous how high they were! We were way above the clouds, but the mountains pierced them I couldn't believe it! I would show you a picture, but when we passed over them, I had just come out of the toilet, and the stewardesses were in my way giving out coffee and tea so I couldn't get to my seat to get my camera to take a picture. Instead you'll have to make do with the image from Wikipedia until I take my camera out and snap a picture of them. It is crazy, but almost everywhere I turn, I can see the Andes and the snow in the background, it is a beautiful landscape! They are magnificent and I can see why people say it is ideal for skiing! I might have to give it a try, although I'm not sure the Andes would be the greatest place to ski for the first ever time.
Now let me move on to the weather. Since arriving, I have had several people messaging me on Facebook asking "Omg, are you boiling out there!" and"Have you been sunbathing yet?" In truth, I am freezing! It's the middle of winter here unfortunately (should have listened to mum and put more winter clothes in my suitcase). I have been sleeping in my University of Southampton hoody to keep me warm, but it's not thick enough. I think a shopping trip may be on the cards very soon. There's no rain though, so I can't complain too much, but it hasn't helped knowing that it is very hot back in Swansea right now! I would have thought living in Wales all my life I am immune to the cold, but that is not the case. I found it funny when the family I am with told me that I should always have may trainers on in the house. At first I thought I'll take them off as good manners, but they told me I shouldn't otherwise I would be freezing. They were right. The people here wear loads of layers, which I first thought was unnecessary, but I can see why! However, I have been told that when it is hot out here, it is HOT, and the city I am in is very close to some beaches, so ask me if I'm hot in a couple of months, and then I will have stories to make you envious of! That is something for me to look forward to.
Coming off the plane was hilarious too. After getting my bags, it was time to take my first steps out of the airport and into the unknown, and it was a crazy welcoming. You couldn't set foot outside the airport without being bombarded by an army of crazed taxistas (taxi drivers) begging you to pick them to take you wherever you wanted to go. I understand how celebrities feel now when they get swarmed by the press, except the taxi drivers weren't taking pictures of me, at least I don't think so anyway. I heard bad stories about the taxi drivers here, that a lot of them will trick foreigners by lulling them into a false sense of security and robbing them after they get in the taxi, or that they will take very long routes just so they can scrounge more money off you, and not knowing the area at all means it is very easy for them to trick you. I was lucky I had a friend picking me up at the airport so I didn't have to deal with them, and our taxi driver seemed friendly enough, but he was booked in advance from a legitimate company which I have been told is the best thing to do when arranging transport.
Living with a family has so far been great. I have learnt a lot already about Chilean family culture and traditions! Firstly, I thought it would be good manners to take my shoes off in the house like I would in anybody's house in the UK sothat I don't get the floor dirty, but as soon as I took them off here, I was told immediately to put them back on or I would freeze to death, and thinking about it now, I don't know how I'd manage without them.
The food has been quite nice too and I haven't yet had anything I would usually eat back home. The typical Chilean way of eating is similar to a classic European diet. When you wake up you have a very light breakfast (desayuno), a big lunch around 1-4 (almuerzo) and then in the evening you again have a very light meal (once). Las Onces are peculiar because in English, it translates as Elevenses, so you would assume the meal happens around 11, but it really has no correlation with the time at all. Breakfast here seems to consist in something very small, such as a bowl of cereal, a bit of toast (all I have been eating for breakfast) or yoghurt and it tends to occur between 8-10, unless you are lazy and wake up late like myself then you either skip it or have it when you eventually get up. The almuerzo is a big lunch, and can consist in many courses, sometimes up to 4. So far, I have been having 2 course meals. The first course is typically a soup, especially in the winter when it is essential that you have soup to stop you freezing to death. Today (Thursday), for the first course I had butternut squash soup with corriander which was very nice, before going on to have Patatas con Champiñones y Jamón Serrano (Potato cooked with mushrooms and a special concentrated ham). I'm not used to having 2 courses for dinner so it was very satisfying! Then for Once which happens sometime between 6-8, you again have something very light. I had a sandwich with a caramelised ham and cheese on a strange, but delicious type of bread. The worst part of the Chilean diet though is that there is not really any snacking, and if your breakfast is big, some people might skip Once. I'm definitely going to lose weight here!
Finally, let me explain a few of the crazy things I saw on my first day out. All I did today (Thursday) was go to a house viewing in a place called Mal Vespucci, but in my travels I saw the crazy, cheap ways that pay try to make money on the street. Firstly, on the metro headed to the house viewing, a chavvy dude and a girl got on at one of the stops, but there was something off about them. They started setting up a boom box and playing some music. The chavvy guy then started speaking, it was very fast so I didn't understand all of it, but he said something and then pointed at me. I clearly didn't understand what he said, so he said the same thing to someone else. Apparently, he was asking me to give him a word which he could use to start improvising a rap. It was funny, the woman gave him a word, Estrella (Star) and he had only just started rapping when the metro stopped, security got on and kicked him off. It was funny while it lasted! Then on the way back there was another guy on the metro who had this gigantic tube of sweets that he was trying to sell. It wasn't a particularly good way to make money, because nobody wanted any, but it was funny all the same seeing this tiny guy trying to hold a massive tube around an extremely crowded metro. My favourite thing of the day though was at night. I had just come out of the supermarket, and stopped at the traffic lights. Standing next to me was a guy holding a box, some juggling pins, and donning a clown nose. When the cars stopped, he put his box down on the middle of the road, stood on it, and started juggling for money, regardless of the fact that dozens of car drivers were staring at him pissed off. The carelessness of it all was hilarious.
Soon, I will begin seeing the sights of the city, the university and meeting a lot of people, so I look forward to updating you all with all the cool pictures I take and all the funny stories I have very soon! I'm going to end this post, with an awesome picture I took from the plane. Clear skies, and high above the clouds made for a great photo opportunity.
Only having just arrived in the country Wednesday morning, my time so far has been very nice, despite the extreme jet-lag that comes with a day-long flight. I'm currently staying with a friend of mine's family and family friends, and I couldn't be happier. It's a great way to settle in and it feels like I am still at home, despite all the Spanish stuff like everywhere.
My first impressions of Chile were amazing. The plane took a path right over the top of the Andes, and it was ridiculous how high they were! We were way above the clouds, but the mountains pierced them I couldn't believe it! I would show you a picture, but when we passed over them, I had just come out of the toilet, and the stewardesses were in my way giving out coffee and tea so I couldn't get to my seat to get my camera to take a picture. Instead you'll have to make do with the image from Wikipedia until I take my camera out and snap a picture of them. It is crazy, but almost everywhere I turn, I can see the Andes and the snow in the background, it is a beautiful landscape! They are magnificent and I can see why people say it is ideal for skiing! I might have to give it a try, although I'm not sure the Andes would be the greatest place to ski for the first ever time.
Now let me move on to the weather. Since arriving, I have had several people messaging me on Facebook asking "Omg, are you boiling out there!" and"Have you been sunbathing yet?" In truth, I am freezing! It's the middle of winter here unfortunately (should have listened to mum and put more winter clothes in my suitcase). I have been sleeping in my University of Southampton hoody to keep me warm, but it's not thick enough. I think a shopping trip may be on the cards very soon. There's no rain though, so I can't complain too much, but it hasn't helped knowing that it is very hot back in Swansea right now! I would have thought living in Wales all my life I am immune to the cold, but that is not the case. I found it funny when the family I am with told me that I should always have may trainers on in the house. At first I thought I'll take them off as good manners, but they told me I shouldn't otherwise I would be freezing. They were right. The people here wear loads of layers, which I first thought was unnecessary, but I can see why! However, I have been told that when it is hot out here, it is HOT, and the city I am in is very close to some beaches, so ask me if I'm hot in a couple of months, and then I will have stories to make you envious of! That is something for me to look forward to.
Coming off the plane was hilarious too. After getting my bags, it was time to take my first steps out of the airport and into the unknown, and it was a crazy welcoming. You couldn't set foot outside the airport without being bombarded by an army of crazed taxistas (taxi drivers) begging you to pick them to take you wherever you wanted to go. I understand how celebrities feel now when they get swarmed by the press, except the taxi drivers weren't taking pictures of me, at least I don't think so anyway. I heard bad stories about the taxi drivers here, that a lot of them will trick foreigners by lulling them into a false sense of security and robbing them after they get in the taxi, or that they will take very long routes just so they can scrounge more money off you, and not knowing the area at all means it is very easy for them to trick you. I was lucky I had a friend picking me up at the airport so I didn't have to deal with them, and our taxi driver seemed friendly enough, but he was booked in advance from a legitimate company which I have been told is the best thing to do when arranging transport.
Living with a family has so far been great. I have learnt a lot already about Chilean family culture and traditions! Firstly, I thought it would be good manners to take my shoes off in the house like I would in anybody's house in the UK sothat I don't get the floor dirty, but as soon as I took them off here, I was told immediately to put them back on or I would freeze to death, and thinking about it now, I don't know how I'd manage without them.
The food has been quite nice too and I haven't yet had anything I would usually eat back home. The typical Chilean way of eating is similar to a classic European diet. When you wake up you have a very light breakfast (desayuno), a big lunch around 1-4 (almuerzo) and then in the evening you again have a very light meal (once). Las Onces are peculiar because in English, it translates as Elevenses, so you would assume the meal happens around 11, but it really has no correlation with the time at all. Breakfast here seems to consist in something very small, such as a bowl of cereal, a bit of toast (all I have been eating for breakfast) or yoghurt and it tends to occur between 8-10, unless you are lazy and wake up late like myself then you either skip it or have it when you eventually get up. The almuerzo is a big lunch, and can consist in many courses, sometimes up to 4. So far, I have been having 2 course meals. The first course is typically a soup, especially in the winter when it is essential that you have soup to stop you freezing to death. Today (Thursday), for the first course I had butternut squash soup with corriander which was very nice, before going on to have Patatas con Champiñones y Jamón Serrano (Potato cooked with mushrooms and a special concentrated ham). I'm not used to having 2 courses for dinner so it was very satisfying! Then for Once which happens sometime between 6-8, you again have something very light. I had a sandwich with a caramelised ham and cheese on a strange, but delicious type of bread. The worst part of the Chilean diet though is that there is not really any snacking, and if your breakfast is big, some people might skip Once. I'm definitely going to lose weight here!
Finally, let me explain a few of the crazy things I saw on my first day out. All I did today (Thursday) was go to a house viewing in a place called Mal Vespucci, but in my travels I saw the crazy, cheap ways that pay try to make money on the street. Firstly, on the metro headed to the house viewing, a chavvy dude and a girl got on at one of the stops, but there was something off about them. They started setting up a boom box and playing some music. The chavvy guy then started speaking, it was very fast so I didn't understand all of it, but he said something and then pointed at me. I clearly didn't understand what he said, so he said the same thing to someone else. Apparently, he was asking me to give him a word which he could use to start improvising a rap. It was funny, the woman gave him a word, Estrella (Star) and he had only just started rapping when the metro stopped, security got on and kicked him off. It was funny while it lasted! Then on the way back there was another guy on the metro who had this gigantic tube of sweets that he was trying to sell. It wasn't a particularly good way to make money, because nobody wanted any, but it was funny all the same seeing this tiny guy trying to hold a massive tube around an extremely crowded metro. My favourite thing of the day though was at night. I had just come out of the supermarket, and stopped at the traffic lights. Standing next to me was a guy holding a box, some juggling pins, and donning a clown nose. When the cars stopped, he put his box down on the middle of the road, stood on it, and started juggling for money, regardless of the fact that dozens of car drivers were staring at him pissed off. The carelessness of it all was hilarious.
Soon, I will begin seeing the sights of the city, the university and meeting a lot of people, so I look forward to updating you all with all the cool pictures I take and all the funny stories I have very soon! I'm going to end this post, with an awesome picture I took from the plane. Clear skies, and high above the clouds made for a great photo opportunity.