TGIW

Long weekend!! We don't have spanish class tomorrow or friday so we're off for the weekend. A bunch of the gringos from our group talked about going out tonight. I'm relying on Mathias to call me since I don't have a celular yet.

This morning I went for a long walk around my comuna (which means district, kind of) before catching the metro to school. (Barb Rose in case you're reading this, I was holding my "WALK" stone the whole time and it was very soothing. I got a little sad thinking about missing you but that's okay.) I found el Parque Araucano, which Lily had told me about before. It was beaUTIFUL. So beautiful that I was willing to go the extra mile and take a few pictures (one is on the right there>). I am going to go running there tomorrow if I don't have too much of la caña (hangover). This park has three SWEET playgrounds for the little ones, a bunch of basketball courts, tennis courts, and a really nice path for walking and running. Aaaand some soccer goals that were chained up, unfortunately. Then I went walking down two of the main avenues - Americo Vespucio and Apoquindo. Americo Vespucio has a median like summit only with a man-made walking path. AND Apoquindo seems like the Michigan Avenue of Santiago and I even found a building that looks like a mini Sears Tower. Or Hancock Tower. Whatever.

Coolest thing (or most bacán - chilean for cool - thing) I found while looking around my campus today: SOCCERRRR HEAVENNNNNN. There are at least three full sized grass fields and two smaller hard top courts. Super bacán.

One of the most valuable things I have learned so far is how to politely say "excuse me." It is very necessary and useful on the metro. "Permiso" is how everyone seems to go about it. Such a gringita.

Fin de semana!