The first Sunday of my study abroad session, I borrowed one of my home-stay family's bikes and rode around the city with my host father. I had thought it might be an hour long trip at the most, but we didn't arrive back home until almost three hours later! Boy was I pooped. However, I did get to see a lot of the city and a general idea of where everything was.
One of the first places we passed by was one of the campuses of Universidad Catolica, which both of my host sisters attend. Before it became a school, the building was originally a nunnery; now it houses the Arts and Music Department, and the many rooms are often filled with small ensembles giving performances.
Along the way, we passed by a house that had this really cool spider sculpture out front! My host-dad, Jorge, said that the house belonged to a professional sculptor. Peeking in through the front gate, you can see many other rock-bug sculptures in the front yard!
I took some pictures of the old-style houses that remain from the colonial era. There is a lot of German and Spanish influence in the architecture here. If you look closely, you can see the gargoyles ornamenting the house! The awesome gate behind me is not original, however.
La Escuela de Carabineros de Chile del General Carlos Ibanez del Campo (or the Carabinero Academy) was established in 1908 simply as Escuela de Carabineros. It wasn't until 1927 that they officially became "de Chile". This is a picture from out in front of the academy, which almost covers a whole city block or more. All Carabineros are trained to ride horses, and it is not uncommon to see them riding through the parks!
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