Fall? Maybe? Almost? Nahhh

As the title hints, it's been slightly teasing at a faint change in seasons here in Santiago over the past few days. Yesterday I was able to go all around Santiago running errands to take care of enrollment things without sweating like I had just gone for a 4 mile run! Always a good change. Today it started off cool, but by afternoon was the ever so well known hot Santiago afternoon I've gotten to know so well. Let's hope this is a preview of what's to come, minus the increased smog!

I know I haven't updated since returning from Mendoza, but nothing too horribly exciting has occurred. The week has been spent trying to get enrolled and settled with classes for the semester, figure out some of the ropes of the university, email people about setting up my internship, and start trying to establish what will hopefully become a routine. I'm feeling much more ready for the next 4 months than I had been, but it's still a taunting thing so this routine should be a real blessing!

I am officially enrolled in Political Geography, Population Geography, and a seminar on Chilean Culture. In addition, I am working on setting up an internship teaching English at a French high school in Spanish speaking Chile (I find this whole idea highly entertaining) and am also going to enroll in an extracurricular Salsa and Merengue class. This leaves me with interning on Monday mornings and Salsa Monday afternoons, class all day Tuesday (with a large break), interning wednesday, class all day Thursday (with a large break), and nada on Friday! I'm also getting rid of (hopefully) 2 required classes for my major, which is more than I originally thought to be possible and puts me in great shape for senior year (which is shaping up to have tremendous potential to be the greatest thing ever). This schedule also leaves me being finished with school down here possibly June 22nd, and June 29th at the latest, which leaves me with a little over 2 weeks to travel at the end of my program with friends until meeting my parents in Peru in mid-July to trek Machu Picchu and then return home for summer school. Potential traveling includes: Uruguay, Iguazu Falls, Bolivia, Brazil, and Ecuador. Obviously not all, but a few maybe! Classes seem like they'll be alright, I'm still working on figuring out the whole photocopies instead of books except for one class where the book is on reserve and I have to read it while at the library thing. I have yet to locate where to obtain my Population Geography reading, but hopefully that'll happen either tomorrow or Monday. I never would have guessed that the bookstore would be something I'd miss!

The housing situation is still TBA. Gina and I are going to look at 2 more places tomorrow and if they don't work out then we're just going to go with a place we went to earlier this week that was a little pricier than others but in a great location and very nice (and still way cheaper than LA or what I'm paying right now to stay with my host family). I'll keep you posted, it'll be nice to just have it figured out hopefully by the end of this weekend. We're going to plan on just renting for April, May, and June since most places won't lessen rent for March even though we're already half way through the month and odds are we will be out of Santiago for almost all of July (we can leave our luggage at Gina's cousins house). We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

Besides all of that, this week has been very chill and relaxed. I found out my Daddy is coming to visit and started looking into things we can do while he's here and getting really excited for that! I finally saw Avatar and The Hurt Locker, both of which were incredible films and pretty much polar opposites of each other. I went for a run (which must be repeated tomorrow!), skyped with some people, ran a lot of errands to successfully enroll in classes and turn in my enrollment card, and hung out with Gina a lot. I'm not really sure what is going on with our other friends, we keep inviting them out and they keep not responding or not wanting to go out at all, which is fine I just hope they're doing okay. Our friend Lindsey will be back from BA very soon so I'm sure we'll start doing group things again soon. Saturday our program is going to Pomaire for the day which should be very interesting! Sunday is the day Jess would have come, so that'll probably be difficult but I'll make sure I find something to do that day. It's been a chill, relaxing week full of not much action which has been a nice change but now I sort of feel like I haven't done enough this week. Maybe next week I'll find a happy medium between the two! That and read 174 pages in Spanish. . .school really is back in session!

Other things: Today on the bus there was a Chilean man dressed as a clown yelling about marijuana and drugs. He wasn't scary himself at all, just one of the many people that load buses and do some sort of entertainment and then ask for tips. It was terrifying since I am not the biggest fan of all 3 of those things. Oh, Chile. Also this morning I got cat called at from a man walking, not driving, walking past me from less than a foot away. He was in a business suit. Oh, Chile. Also today: Chilean man answers his phone (that was not on silent when it rang) during the movie and starts talking in his OUTDOOR voice. Oh, Chile. Always providing me with unique experiences and stories.

Miss and love you all!