2009-05-15T10:42:00.000-07:00

So far Chile has been an awesome experience. The first week was half work, half play, and no sleep. The company visits were very interesting. The visit to LanAirlines was my favorite company visit. It was pretty cool to see an airplane at very close range. The lectures were, well, lectures, but I learned some very important information about Chile. The lectures about Chilean culture were very helpful when trying to interact with Chilean people. It was completely impossible to blend in with the Chileans. Every person we pass either stairs at us or laughs. I don’t think they laugh in a bad way, because Chileans really do love Americans. They love to try to help you in any way they can. For example, on Friday when we went to a spa, we wanted to find an atm. When we flagged down a driver he was eager to help us, and explained to us every detail of the directions, even though another driver was behind him beeping. I know if I was driving in America and someone was flagging me down, I wouldn’t even think about stopping. The food in Chile is not bad, but there is definitely some cultural difference. In Chile fries go with mayonnaise, not with ketchup. Also, In Chile, they put guacamole and mayonnaise on almost everything. So far I have had a Hotdog, a cheeseburger, and a chicken sandwich, all covered with mayonnaise and guacamole. It might be surprising that the chicken sandwich was from McDonalds. I’ve played basketball, Fútbol (soccer), and Bowling with Chilean people since I have arrived. It is easy to see why soccer is Chile’s national sport, because literally everyone plays soccer, and everyone is pretty good. The Chilean students crushed us in a soccer game. It seemed like we were better in basketball, and the Chilean students sucked as bad as we did at bowling. The weather in Chile isn’t bad. Although it is technically winter, I usually wear a short sleeve shirt and pants, but I also am usually cold at some point during the day. There were a few illnesses, but nothing too serious. Horseback riding was my favorite activity of the trip. Horseback riding showed me the many different landscapes of Chile. We rode through desert, forest, and next to the ocean within a few hours. Chile has been great. I would love to make a second visit to Chile someday.

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