Hola!

I have been in Chile for almost a week now, and I'm starting to get the hang of things...although most of the time I'm still a completely confused gringa. Luckily, everyone has been very nice and helpful, and my new Chilean family members do their best to give us explicit directions so we don't get lost. Nevertheless, every time I take the bus, I ask someone who looks nice to help, because the buses here barely stop, they just slow down, so you really have to know where you're getting off and get to the door before it moves on.

I just got back from exploring Cerro Alegre and Cerro Asuncion, which are in Valpo, with my friends. We met up at the market where Manola, our mom, was buying fruits and vegetables. The fish market is right next to it, but the smell doesn't go too far, thank goodness. My family hasn't eaten any seafood yet, and Manola knows that I don't like meat, so I haven't had to eat anything really gross yet.

When we found the Plaza, we walked around a little and then found a cute restaurant/hotel that is very popular. I had a salad with spinach (which was actually just little pieces of spinach on top of iceberg lettuce) cheese, apples and walnuts. Good thing the dressing was on the side because it was pretty much mayonnaise with seasonings in it. they LOVE mayo here.