Chile, day one.

Yesterday was a pretty wonderful day. After I awoke, I explored our little apartment and settled my things into my space. My roommates were hanging out and had no qualms about coming by my room to see what I was up to. It felt pretty nice to have people around.
Eventually, Christian and Isa asked if they could join me in my little downtown exploration, and of course I said I'd love them to come. We set out in the afternoon to walk around the downtown area. We walked through the park across the street, and I started to notice the abundance of small cafes leaking from the buildings as we got closer to the center. The city comforted me, and I couldn't put my finger on what it was that felt so normal. Eventually, I realized that it was the mixture of places I've been before that touched upon the city around me. The cafes of Spain sat quietly on the sides of many buildings while the heat from Mexico loomed at my back, and the sun from Venezuela held my hand. Chile has a European feel, but a South/Central American flair that kept me comforted on my first walk around the city.
My roommates showed me the center and the main cathedral, which was rich in detail and beauty, before we headed to Barrio Bellas Artes (an artsy, diverse neighborhood) to get ice cream from a well known place. After that, they brought me to a park where we climbed the stairs and went to the top to see the view of the city. The mountains enveloped the city below, and I couldnt believe how beautiful the sight was. The wind was cool and lifted the sweat off of us for the moment. On our way down, we sat in a little courtyard area with some water and got to know each other a little more.
We walked all day and already I felt so comfortable with my roommates and the city.
The sun was still not down at 7pm (an odd feeling for me), and we went to the supermarket to pick up some chicken and stuff to cook dinner. We headed back to our place where Isa and I chopped chicken and onions, and then she put it together in a delicious sauce over pasta. We all sat at the table and just hung out with our meal and more conversation.
It was an amazing first day.

I woke up this morning with a little loneliness that creeped in through the balcony doors and past the bright red curtains, but its starting to dissappear as the sun warms the city up. Nevertheless, I continue to miss everyone back home...quite a bit.

For now, I'm gonna eat an orange on my balcony and decide what I want to do for the day.

Keep the hugs flowing.
Send some to me if you get a chance.
love love