Getting to Know You (Santiago Version)

I arrived in Chile on May 17th at about 7:45 in the morning. Even though it landed fifteen minutes early, our red-eye flight from Dallas had to wait on the tarmac before taxiing into the gate because of a thick fog over the airport. Visas and customs went smoothly enough, though one girl was stopped because she didn't have a student visa, only a traveler's visa. Our program is only for 70 days, and a traveler's visa is good for 90, whereas a student visa is meant for those who are staying an entire school year.She was able to get it sorted out, luckily, and we were on our way.

Our first night, we stayed at the Hotel Acacias de Vitacura so everyone could attend the orientation in one of the meeting rooms. The class schedules were handed out, and the director reviewed the schedule for the next few days concerning meeting our host families and etc. Afterward, the assistant directors put us through a crash course in Chilean culture. 

Picture of the front entrance of the hotel from http://www.hotelacacias.cl/ .

The following day, Saturday, everyone was loaded on a tour bus to take us on a quick trip around the city. The director acted as a guide, pointing out things on our left or right that were of historical or cultural importance. We stopped only twice, once at the Andres Bello University, where we will have our classes, and  once at the Plaza de Armas, where there was a Catholic church that we could visit. The church was very beautiful and grand. My mom, as a fourth grade teacher in California, always dragged my family around to the different missions established by Father Junipero Sierra along El Camino Real; the fancier churches of these had painted plaster on the walls, and a painted wooden pulpit for the preacher to stand in. The one at the Plaza was beautifully ornate and enormous compared to any that I had seen in the missions, and blew me away at first. 

Picture of the Plaza de Armas, facing the church, from http://www.arqhys.com/construccion/plaza-armas-santiago.html .

Yes, I know I am lame for not taking my own photos, but at the time I had no batteries for my camera. I promise I will be better!