Friday, January 25, 2008

avocados and ecuadorians

saludos de santiago, chile!

after a cross country journey i have arrived in the capitol of the longest country in the world. as the largest city in one of south america´s most developed countries, it feels like i´m closer to home in the US than to it´s andean neighbors of peru and ecuador in the north. however, i find myself in the home of 4 cuencanos, munching on ecuadorian candy and banana chips and complaining about how damn hot it is down here in the summer. not quite the full chilean experience but hey, i´m having a good time. andres vinueza, the nephew of the baker i briefly worked for in quito, ecuador, has graciously offered me his couch for a few days. it´s really quite amazing how friendships can lead to human connection all over the world. being warmly accepted by a group of people i´ve never met in a country i´ve never visited feels good. better than good.

today i´m getting oriented in the city, visiting parks, museums, and a cemetary with a memorial for the victims of the pinochet dictatorship. tomorrow i´m headed out into the countryside for a wine tour (!!), and on sunday i´ll make a daytrip to valparaiso, a nearby town and birthplace of pablo neruda.

my grandma potter would survive here just fine, avocados get smothered on everything. yummmm.... lunch time

1 comment:

Ursula said...

And I do so love those Chilean avocados I buy this time of year from Costco!
Great blogging Alana! It's so much fun to follow your adventures and it makes us worry less!
Love,
Ursugrandma