Feeling The Love!!!

I'm not sure if I already wrote about the people here.  Our first Sunday at church was awesome!  None of us realized how touchy feely the Chilean people are!!!  The custom is to kiss on the right cheeks.  I'm still trying to figure out who is allowed to kiss whom.  Some men don't kiss, others do.  Women kiss all the time or wait- maybe not.  Can't figure it out.  The kids kiss all the time and they kiss everybody.  They kiss when they first see you and they kiss when they leave you.  It's lots of lip smacking love!  So they say hello by shaking hands, and then still holding your hand they hug and reach in for a kiss on the cheek.
Wes thought he died and went to heaven!  That kid couldn't stop smiling.  I watched everybody kiss and hug Caleb over and over.  After church Caleb walked up to me as we were leaving and said, "I feel loved!"  Ash, on the other hand, felt pretty invaded.  She has a very large personal bubble but I was really happy with her ability to let people in.
She has changed quite a bit since that first Sunday.  Geoff and I went out for a date the other night and the kids had friends over while we were gone.  When we arrived home this is what we found.

Emily--- Yes!  That's really Ashlyn.  I know you can't believe it!

Thanksgiving Chilean Style

Happy Thanksgiving, family and friends!

Last week I remembered that Thanksgiving was today so I started to make my menu.  I was excited about a feast in a different country.  I didn't expect so many bumps along my way to a Thanksgiving meal.

My ideal Thanksgiving menu:
Roasted turkey
Holiday potatoes
Mashed potatoes & gravy
Raspberry pretzel jello
Homemade rolls
Steamed asparagus
Green salad
Dessert:
Pumpkin pie
Banana cream pie
Strawberry mango pie
Key lime pie

The Chilean kitchens are unbelievably small!  And the ovens are half the size of my old oven at home.  So..... we could not find turkeys anywhere and even if we did it wouldn't fit in the oven.  They don't sell cheddar cheese or cream of anything soup for holiday potatoes.  They don't have pretzel for raspberry jello.  No shortening, no pumpkins, no mixer, no dishes, not enough plates or silverware, no baking pans, no rolling pin, no measuring spoons, no measuring cups, no mixing bowls.
No Thanksgiving for us....today, anyway.  We have invited over some friends for our Thanksgiving meal on Sunday since Geoff worked today.
Kindof frustrating for this traditional girl.  I will let you know how Sunday goes!

You know what they DO have is a beautiful beach and we are right on it!  Today was a gorgeous day!
This is a photo of Coquimbo which is just across the bay from us.  This is taken right out of our apartment window overlooking the ocean to Coquimbo.

Earthquake!!!

When we were researching Chile for our move we knew it was pretty active with earthquakes.  I bet there is a really great scientific way of saying that.  I knew we might have a few.  We experienced our very first earthquake today while we were out grocery shopping.  It was kindof exciting.  The actual quake happened about 50 miles to our north and is said to have been a 6.3 magnitude. 
I had left the boys in the car while me and Ash ran in for a few things.  The boys were driving me crazy from the previous store.  So me and ash were standing in the milk isle trying to figure out which boxed cream we wanted when everything around us started shaking!  Things hanging were starting to fall.  People around us dropped everything they were doing, left their shopping carts where they were and headed out of the building.  One lady I passed was crying.  Clearly we should have taken it more seriously.
Me and Ash pretty much just stood there watching each other and the people around us leave the store.  In hindsight we should have dropped everything and left also.  Although to be honest, I'm not sure that is the best thing to do.   When we got back to the car all the car alarms were going off and Tyler and Caleb were telling us that the car was shaking around.  I'm going to have to study up on what to do in an earthquake!
Anybody know?

Messing around with the camera

Si, Si, Si

Ok- so I am actually starting to resemble a completo (Chilean hotdog) because we have eaten so many of them.  I was doing so well on my body renovation before we left and i need to get back to it.
I pulled out my food scale to discover that it didn't work.  Something happened while it was smashed in the luggage on the way over, I think.  Assuming it was the battery, I set out on my own, while Geoff has been gone, to find a new battery.
I visited a few grocery stores and they all said to try the mall.  Or that's what I think they said.  So I visited several shops in the mall.  Everybody said no.  At least that's one word in Spanish that I understand.
The last shop I visited had a really nice guy there trying to help me.   The nice man and I were trying our best to have a conversation.  I discovered that he knew of a place in downtown La Serena.  We went back and forth over directions.  I still wasn't getting it.  Then he pulled out his phone to show me a map.  Just when I thought I got it I figured out, he was also trying to tell me to be careful of the one-way roads. So I was back to mega confused when he said, "I with you go, yes?"  I thought about it for 1 second and said, "SI, SI, SI!!!
So me and this very kind, stranger Chilean man I have never met got in my rental car and away we went to downtown.  With lots of turns and tons of people to navigate through we made our way to a battery store and got my battery!  I was so excited!
I returned the man to the mall and went to grab some dinero and handed it over and he wouldn't take it!  He said he was my friend and just trying to help me.
But come to think of it, there is no way in heck that I would ever think about having a stranger man get in the car with me by myself to take me somewhere, even in Utah!

These people are awesome!!!

ps
I know what some of you are probably thinking.
Nancy is thinking.....what the &*%* were you thinking getting in a car with a stranger man?
My mom is probably thinking..... just try to leave us a clue so we know where to find your body
My dad would say.....well, you gotta do what you gotta do
Katie is saying....you're crazy, girl!
And I absolutely know what Geoff would say.....well, did you remember where the battery store is so we can get there the next time we need batteries?

pss
my scale still didn't work.  I had to go on another hunt to find a food scale.  This time I took Boo with me.  Safe as can be.

Housing

I didn't think it would be so difficult to find a house for 6 months but this has turned out to be so frustrating!!!
La Serena is the resort getaway for the entire country of Chile, or so we have been told.  What that means is that there are tons of huge condos and apartments on the main drag, Avenida Del Mar.  They are really pretty and the view is beautiful!  BUT... they are very expensive (3-4 bedroom about $4000-$6000 per month not including utilities) AND Jan and Feb are apparently the busiest months of the year and this place is packed.  Condo owners don't want to rent for a 6 month amount of time because they can make mucho bucks in Jan and Feb. 
We have called and called on property after property trying to find something.  Here is another factor in this house hunting.  We are kindof stuck with the vacation rentals because those are the furnished houses.  We can't afford to furnish an entire house and then have the worry of trying to sell furniture before we leave.
We have looked at houses away from the beach up in the barrios but have the same problem.  People don't want to rent for 6 months at a time and then we have to find furnished houses.  The houses away from the beach feel a little less safe and don't have quite the amenities that the condos on the beach have.

Our hunt continues.....when Geoff gets back from Argentina next week.

Observing La Serena, Chile

Here are some photos of the city of La Serena, Chile.  Geoff told me before we left that it was a "small fishing village".  It's not.  This place is huge, I think.

Downtown

 

Some Condos on the beach just north of La Serena

 

The coastline just north of La Serena with Ty and Boo

This is a photo of Elqui Valley.  We took a drive out there on Sat.  The valley was beautiful.  The Andes mountains not so pretty from here.

These last 3 photos are all of the Elqui Valley.  Here is where I need to say that at the turnaround point of this trip Geoff found 3 hitchhikers and picked them up.  They seemed to be pretty happy about riding in the back until we stopped a little ways down the road to pick up 1 more.  Seriously--- not sure what Geoff was thinking but it made the trip home much more fun!  Thanks Ocho!

A typical village in Elqui Valley

 

Ash was pretty impressed with the mall in Santiago.  I think there are 5 levels.

A quick catch up

Thank you, Inthinc for the laptops for the kids.  There really was no other solution for school with all of this moving around and being unsettled.  They can log on anywhere there is internet connection and get to work.  Thank you!

We all woke up a little grouchy today!  I think being unsettled and moving around so much is starting to wear on everybody.  We have moved to our third hotel and will be here for a little over a week.  We think we have found housing but not 100%.

Geoff left just a little while ago for Argentina and will return in a week.  It's a little scarey being without him!  I think I better get a better feel for the money, among other things.  I'm worried they will ask me for cuatro mil and I will hand over the whole paycheck because I don't know how much that is!!!  I just had my first solo espanol experience without Geoff standing close.  I had to figure out which numbered parking space I was supposed to be in.  The parking attendant was really patient and I am getting good at sign/body language.  I better get good at espanol though!

The standards of cleanliness is not quite the same as what we are used to and the thing that really gets me though!  We are trying to be good sports about being out of our comfort zones but crusty, gunky silverware and dishes just about throws us over the edge!  The city itself is pretty clean.  I am surprised at that.  I was thinking it might be similar to Mexico.  It's not.  The streets and community areas are pretty clean, for the most part.  But the house cleaning is a little lacking.  There just seems to be gunk on everything!  Door handles, kitchen cupboards, sink faucets, windows, etc.  I admit that I am a little sensitive to smells and cleanliness.  I have had to get out the bleach and clean all the dishes, cupboards, kitchens and bathrooms everywhere we go.

As for driving, well, I am left to myself this week so it will be interesante que si?  I'm getting a little better at blending in with the native drivers but once they pass me and see a blonde gringa they just shake their heads at me.  And I love how you can just stop anywhere in the middle of the road and you are just fine as long as you turn on your hazards.

Ok- we have got to find something different to eat besides completos!  My system has had too much, I think.  But the food here is SO SO SO  expensive!!!!!!!  I'm really totally surprised by how high the cost of living is here.  I can't figure out how these Chileans can afford to live here!  For a quick example, $8. /gallon of milk and $8./gallon of gas!  We would use paper plates, cups and utensils if those were less expensive!  6 plastic cups for $2.  Paper towels are about $3 per roll.  Cheap shampoo is $3.  I'm wishing I had packed more of the things I thought we would be without!

Ash and Boo having some fun

Ty having.....not so much fun

He's so stinkin' handsome!  Even in his "dirty" shirt.  Love it ocho!

Boo made a new invention, he said.  It's a booger sucker upper.

But he's so sweet!

Ash & Ty

Our favorite completo stand.  Ok- here's a quick story about this completo stand.  Geoff and I were out house shopping (that's all we have done for a week!) and stopped by here for the first time to have some completos.  We left to carry on with the house shopping and 20 minutes later I realized that I didn't have my purse with me.  It had all of our passports, birth certificates and $800 US dollars in it!!!  I was in panick mode and we headed as fast as we could back over.  They had my purse for me all safe and untouched!!!

Boo, me and Ash enjoying some completos and jugos natural.  Ok- well we eat so many of these darn things because they are the cheapest things we can find!