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Christmas!!! It's quite strange waking up in Chile today for Christmas as all our celebrations and opening of presents was yesterday. My big thing today is to talk to my family which I am sure have had a wonderful day with lots of good food, drinks and good times. At 9am I walked around to Loretos house and jumped straight on Skype to call my family. It was really nice talking to everyone as its very rare we all are together and able to communicate via Skype. To say I was a little homesick after our conversation was an understatement but once again I was lucky to still be able to be celebrating Christmas with my adopted Chilean family. I guess as time goes by I realize how much of my families life I am missing and I guess the day will come when the need to be with my family will overweigh my desire and need to travel. After my Skype call I joined Loreto for a late breakfast of fruit salad and Christmas cake before helping clean up and doing a few things around the house. It turns out we were still doing a Christmas lunch even after the big Christmas dinner lastnight. Monica was madly cooking and preparing salads all morning in preparation of Christmas lunch. At around 12pm myself and Loreto walked around to her other Grandmothers house to pick her and her Aunt up for lunch at Loretos family home. I met some more of Loretos Mums family which was really nice and then we made our way back to the house. Lunch was served at about 2pm and once again not to disappoint an absolute feast was presented; Roast beef and mushrooms, corn salad, potato salad, lettuce/avocado/prawn salad, bean salad, salsas, dips and everything else in-between. Today a bottle of Argentinian red wine was brought out and everyone shared in a toast of the special day. We ate and ate and ate some more until there was no room left and then desert was brought out but I really had to decline as I was ready to pop. As always after Christmas dinner and a lunchtime wine we were all tired so I went and fell asleep in the spare room - waking up nearly 2 hours later. Loretos Father had offered to take us all on a drive out into the surrounding mountains to show me the copper mine (where all of Chiles wealth comes from) and the surrounding valleys and vineyards. The drive was really nice and we got to see traditional country folk celebrating Christmas along the river. After our drive I went back to Pablo's to have a shower and get my things before heading back to Loretos house where we had Once (similar to afternoon tea and replacement of dinner) before the family drive me to the bus station. I really didn't have the Spanish words to thank them all for the wonderful hospitality and welcoming into their homes and life's for such a special day - I got a little emotional saying goodbye and realizing how blessed I have been. Monica had said that I had been sent to them from the heavens as she and her husband had both lost their fathers in the last few months and I had filled there places - such beautiful words and heart felt. Loreto is such a caring, giving and beautiful girl that i was so lucky to have met and I hope I get to see her again one day. My bus arrived and it looked really nice so the 12 hour bus ride shouldn't be too bad and straight away they gave everyone on board a snack-pack - a nice little bonus often afforded on Chilean buses. There was the end of a film playing which I watched until falling asleep.
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