Excursions

Every day here is extremely busy between classes and excursions. Every day after school we explore the city with a graduate of the University as our guide. He’s given us walking tours of the different districts of Santiago, taken us out to popular coffee shops, and brought us to historical sights. We’re always exhausted by the time classes end but these trips are definitely worth losing a bit of sleep! However, my two favorite trips were full day excursions on the weekend. The first trip was a private tour to “Palacio de La Moneda”, which is the building that the President works in. And she was in the office while we were touring! Unlike the White House, she only works there while continuing to live in her own home. The building itself was beautiful and contained historical artwork and artifacts but what I found most interesting was the story of the building’s origin. It began as a coin mint factory and served as one for fifteen years before being converted to the President’s place of operations. Hence the name “La Monenda” (moneda is coin in Spanish). We then learned about the dictatorship which ruled Chile for seventeen years, ending in 1990. In 1973 the Pinochet’s (the dictator’s) military forces staged a coup d’etat in La Moneda against the current president. During the attack, the President died in the building. As the majority of Chilean citizens lived under this regime for some portion of their lives, the effects are still highly visible in the city. This tour was not only an interesting excursion but it also helped me to understand more about the country’s social and political background. My other favorite excursion was hiking a “hill” called Manquehue. The Chilean definition of hill and mountain and very different than mine. Personally, I would argue that an upwards hike for 2.5 hours would be larger than a hill. Regardless, the hike was absolutely stunning. Once we made it to the top we could see the entire city. The mountains surrounding Santiago make it the most picturesque city (at least when the smog is at a minimum). These are my favorite excursions so far but we are going to a town on Saturday called Valparaiso. We’ll be doing cultural activities and sandboarding and I’ve got a feeling it’ll be at the top of my list!