Sorry it has been so long since I updated. Being without a computer here is a lot harder than I thought it would be, and when I do have access I spend all my time finishing homework and answering emails that I never have time to blog.

The last few weeks have been quite busy with lots of exciting things happening. About two weeks ago we celebrated Fiestas Patrias, which is like the Chilean independence day. It was very interesting to see the tremendous pride that chileans have for their country. In the weeks leading up to Fiestas Patrias all the busses and collectivos and many cars had chilean flags or ribbons decorating them. There were lots of flags for sale on the streets and everyone was getting excited.

The Chileans celebrate their independence for several days. They started their fiestas the night of the 17th, and don't stop celebrating until the 20th or the 21st. It was nice because we had several days off of classes and got to do a lot of exploring around Viña and the surrounding areas. I went to several festivals, some barbecues and even did a hike up a mountain. The mountain hike was by far my favorite part. We went to a national park about an hour from Viña and spent 4 hours hiking to the summit of this mountain. It was at about 6000 feet of elevation and it was very physically demanding. Towards the end were were practically crawling up these huge rock piles to get to the top. I don't think I have ever sweat quite as much as I did that day. But the view at the top wa so worth it. We had the view of the ocean on one side and the view of the snow capped Andes mountains on the other side. It was one of the most gorgeous sites I've ever seen.

Due to many factors after the robbery, I have switched host families for the remainder of the semester. It was a very difficult decision for me, but in the end I think I made the right choice. As much as I liked and got along with my old family, things were just not going very well in the week after we got robbed, and I was not as comfortable living there as I had been. I moved only a few blocks from my old house, so I still know the aread, but I am much closer to other students from my program and the area is significantly safer. Already I love my new host family. I have a host mother, who is an elementary teacher, and a father who works in radio and is also a speech professor at a university here. He is going to teach me a lot about pronunciation of spanish words, including how to roll my r's. I also have a fifteen year old host brother, who is pretty nice and friendly. Not quite as good as Nate, but he is a good make shift brother until I get home.

This past weekend we went to Santiago. On Friday we went to a CNN en español sponsored viewing of the McCain Obama debate which included a discussion afterwards and a series of opinion questions which we all answered with clickers. It was really interesting to compare North American opinions of politics to the Chilean opinion. It was also cool to see how closely Chileans follow our politics, because in the U.S. the average person knows next to nothing about Chilean politics.

After the debate a few of us stayed in Santiago on our own. It was really fun to explore the city by ourselves and was our first really independent travel experience. On Saturday we walked for almost 40 minutes to find a Starbucks coffee shop. It was just like in the U.S. which was amazing, because it is impossible to find a cup of coffee in Chile that is not made from instant coffee powder.

I hope that you are all doing well and enjoying your fall. I will try to keep you updated as best I can. Only a few more weeks and I will have a computer again. Miss you all lots!