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Ella Svete: Summertime in Talca, Chile

It feels strange that summer is starting in Chile. I’m beginning to get in the mood for cuddling, drinking hot chocolate and watching movies all day, but I doubt I will be doing any of that for some time considering Talca is heating up.

Today I found myself taking off my sheer tights in class because I couldn’t bare the heat. (As a side note, my uniform consists of an unflattering plaid pleated skirt, a white polo shirt, and an itchy wool sweater).

A lot of my friends have pools, so after school we are going to start swimming at people’s houses. {sidebar id=65}

I have been told that in the summer here, the nights are so hot that it is nearly impossible to sleep. I am definitely not looking forward to that. It seems like I have a lot to do in the summer, so maybe I won’t be in Talca that much. My friends told me that they want to go to the ocean for a few days this summer and I cannot wait. I miss the sea so much.

This past weekend I was in Santiago. I really missed the hustle and bustle of big cities. Santiago reminded me of L.A., New York City, and San Francisco but packed into one city. It was awesome!

The day I arrived we went to the zoo with my host mom’s sister and her family. They were all so nice, and the little girls were so excited to see all of the animals. However, zoos make me a little sad because all of the animals seem depressed. This particular zoo had a polar bear and that made me even sadder because it was so hot and definitely not the habitat that endangered animal should be in.

The next day, my family took me sight seeing. We saw La Moneda, which is where the Chilean president works, and Plaza de Armas, which was really pretty but full of people! I had to carry by backpack on my stomach so I felt more secure.

We also went to the fish market, which smelled disgusting. The food looked amazing, but none of us could stand the fishy smell.

We ended up eating lunch at a traditional restaurant in Chile. The dining area was gigantic and seemed as though it was for a huge party. There was a stage where trivia was going on and people from the restaurant came up to answer the questions. There was also a singer while we were eating.

The food was served on a mini grill that still had coals under it. On the grill there were piles and piles of all kinds of meat. I stuck with chicken because I didn’t want to eat something that I would regret, nor did I want to eat something thinking it was meat I’m used to before finding out that it was cow tongue or something gross like that.

The only strange thing about being in Santiago was not getting stared at. In Talca, I am so used to being one of the few tourists and getting stared at or yelled at wherever I go. In Santiago, it was totally normal for me to be there. It was somewhat relaxing to not have all eyes on me, but also strange because I was so accustomed to being stared at.

It was also weird hearing English spoken on the street, because that never happened in Talca. I got really excited knowing there were other Americans in the same place I was. I wanted to ask them what state they were from and why they were there, but I thought that would be a little bit too far on the creepy level.

Next week on Tuesday, I go on a ten-day trip to the south of Chile. We are going to Patagonia and other marvelous places and I cannot wait! I will be taking all three of my cameras, but probably not my computer because I am getting sick of carrying it around when I travel. Macbook Pros are way heavier than they seem.

It will be cool wearing my Patagonia apparel in Patagonia, representing Ventura!

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  • C

    Christopher PobleteFeb 13, 2015 at 9:01 pm

    This city (Talca) is an oven in summer. I want to get out of here!!!

     
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Ella Svete: Summertime in Talca, Chile