Hola Todos. Today is Thursday 29 of July. As I walked into my orientation in the center of Santiago I couldn’t help but be reminded that this is a country of poets. In fact, Chile has had two Nobel Prize winners, and both have been poets for literature. (Pablo Neruda es uno y no se el otro. Note that I’ll hide my ignorance in my lame Spanish.:) ) Here is my favorite building a mere 3 blocks from our hostel. The streets are a riot of color. Apartment facades are painted wonderful bright colors. Even the graffiti seems to be a touch arty and cosmopolitan. I started to take photos of all the fun colorful sights this morning and I was almost super later for orientation. So here's a fun graffito. As well the Plaza de Brasil, (Common in our neighborhood for you Bostonians) has a kiddie playground that is heaps of visual fun. As well as seeing the color, you safety folks will note the poured concrete. Yes, over-concern about safety is a very North American thing.













All of this color is a surprise given that the man on the street is clothed in a uniform black or navy blue overcoat. Bright colors seem to be reserved for houses and not for winter clothing. This makes it very easy to pick out Mike when he picks me up after orientation to walk home; he is the only one in bright blue and a Red Sox cap.

A side note for you Bostonians...does this pedestrian bridge look like anything you know?
OK, so this is a photo from Thursday morning when the last rain was Saturday. Smog is a real problem in Santiago. The city is situated between the Andes to the east and a 4000 ft ridge to the west and the pacific. Hence, like Mexico City or Denver, pollution settles in the valley until the rains wash it away. Just in case you are not feeling jealous, take a close look at this photo. The foreground is regular old apartment building in Santiago and the background are 10, 000 ft + Andes peaks within one hour of the city.











Sunday when we climbed to a hillside (Cerro San Cristóbol) overlook in Santiago, we could see ski runs and lodges in the mountains. All this while we were enjoying temps in the high 50's. It was the best day since we've been here, and everyone was outside enjoying the sunshine and great views. Here are the photos: