Hey everyone!! Sorry it's been so long since my last post. Things here have started getting really busy!!
Ok, so let's continue the San Pedro story...
Saturday, we woke up, ate breakfast, and headed out to the Salar de Atacama, which is this big salt flat. After learning about the ecology behind the salar, its biodiversity, and some geological facts, we got a chance to wander around and shoot pictures of the awesome scenery and, yes...flamingos!!! Who'd a thought that there would be flamingos in one of the world's driest deserts? But there are!
After that, we made a pit stop in Tocanao, a pueblo that is heavily influenced by its primarily aymara residents. We got to see artisan shops, a llama, and a church that showed a very interesting fusion of Catholic and indigenous practices.
We ate lunch back in San Pedro, and then headed back out into the desert for a trip to Death Valley and Valle de la Luna (valley of the moon). The scenery was breathtaking (see below for link to pictures)!! We climbed la Luna (a big sand dune) just in time to watch the sun set...and for things to get REALLY cold!
After that, we headed back to San Pedro for dinner and sleep.
The plan for Sunday was to wake up at 4:00am and travel to some really famous geysers. Unfortunately, at 4:00am on Sunday, I woke up with a 102 fever. Needless to say, I spent that day sleeping and trying to recover for our 3:00pm flight back to Santiago. Hence, no pictures. Good news is everyone I talked to who did go said it was incredibly freezing and not all that exciting, so I didn't miss to much. Better news is I got better and made it home to Santiago in one piece :)
Classes have been going well...won't bore you with the day by day details. I took a test in Poesia Chilena and another one in Antropologia. I feel pretty good about them, but will have to wait to find out my grades. This last week, I went to a seminar with my education class on the current state of Chile's educational system. It was incredibly interesting and I learned a great deal.
I have started volunteering with the church's youth group at a local girls' shelter - el Hogar de Ninas. It's a lovely set up, and the girls are incredibly loving. I spend time playing with different girls and helping them with homework. This last Thursday, the directors of the Hogar put on a party for the girls complete with clown (payasita) and games. The girls all had a great time, topped off by completos (hot dogs loaded with ketchup, mustard, mayo, guacamole, and tomatoes).
On Thursday night I also went to a cueca class. Cueca (not salsa, unfortunately) is the national dance of Chile, and our whole exchange group got a chance to learn the various steps involved. It's a lot harder than salsa...bummer! All in all, we had a good time, and finished it up with empanadas and strawberry wine (yum!)
Tonight, I'm hoping to get together with some of the college students from church to go out for drinks and fellowship. I'm starting to make good friends with one of the girls there who also happens to go to my school. We've gotten to hang out a few times already. Tomorrow night I get to sing with the choir for a wedding, which I'm really looking forward to. And to top the weekend off, Sunday is the parish's anniversary/patronal feast day, celebrating 30 years. The bishop will be serving, and I'm hoping to videotape the service (for those of you who are interested).
I think that catches me up, and I hope to be better this week about writing. As promised, here's the link to the San Pedro pictures:
http://www2.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=242897504/a=30405193_30405193/t_=30405193
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