"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day. And I believe in miracles."
~ Audrey Hepburn

2.11.2011

Political Stuff and All That Jazz

Isn't it weird how, when you're in a foreign place, you end up seeing more of that
 destination than you have probably seen of your own city/state/country? 
This is kind of embarrassing, but, I don't know if I've ever been to the White House. 
I went on a school trip to New York, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania
when I was in eighth grade, but the New York part, of course, completely
overshadowed everything. The only thing I remember from D.C. was visiting 
Mt. Vernon and poking (and denting!) George Washington's fluffy bed. Hehe oops. 

Yesterday my program visited La Moneda, which it like the Chilean White House. 
It is located in "el centro," Santiago's downtown area. I wish I could tell you something
insightful about the palace but my tour guide spoke WAY too fast (in Spanish)
so I just ignored him and took pretty pictures :) 

A few friends and I arrived in El Centro a little early, so we wandered around
and found something to eat. Oh and I had to take a picture of one of the many food stands
one will inevitably encounter all over Santiago. These things are on every corner
and are literally exploding with snacks, sweets, magazines, and drinks. Intense, right?



We stopped a little café to pick up something to eat before the tour.
We ended up trying "completos," which are hot dogs with more toppings than actual hot dog.
They must be Chile's national food because they sell these EVERYWHERE.
The toppings include mayo (Chilenos love them some mayo),
guac, tomatoes, and I am not quite sure what else.
I am not really a fan of hot dogs, but they were better than I had expected.


 

Off to La Moneda!


  
 




We were obsessed with the carabineros (Chilean police). I'm pretty sure every student
in our program got pictures with them, haha. They were totally loving the attention.




El Patio de Naranjas



We were not allowed to eat the oranges from the orange trees, though :(

 


El Patio de Cañiones




Earthquake damage. P.S. Apparently there have already been two earthquakes in Chile
since I've been here!!! Neither I or any of my friends felt them, though. Crazy...



El Patio de... I forgot hahaha


   

We also got to walk around inside of the palace, where
each room is named after political figures in Chile's history. 


 

 


There was a gorgeous statue in one of the rooms... It wasn't until the tour guide 
pointed it out that I realized she had a broken hand, also due to earthquake damage. 

 



As our tour was winding down, it began to rain and the white light
from the sky was so beautiful. I wanted to take more pictures
 but I didn't want to ruin my camera :(




We then walked over to a little café in Plaza de Armas, where I got a café helado
(think root beer float with coffee instead of root beer). Pure bliss.



Well I'm off to enjoy the rest of my evening with some friends! Ciao!
P.S. Chileans totally say ciao instead of adios. Awesome, right? 

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

omg i would totally eat one of those hot dogs. AND the cafe helado!! ...i'm really hungry right now :P

<3 shell

Sarah said...

your adventures make me happy :)

Marcella Alyssa said...

Michelle - There is so much guac on the hot dogs here, that I'm sure you would die from an allergy attack. Not to mention the bun hahah

Sarah - YOU make me happy! Please blog so I can stalk your life :( I miss it :(