Activities in Santiago

Our second week in Chile was busy again with many other activities like Papudo, wine tasting, visiting the Pueblo de los Dominicos, dinner at my cousin's house, and American football. I made a whole blog about Papudo and wine tasting, so here's the rest of the activities:
On Sunday January 3rd, there was an important game being played by the Eagles and Cowboys. It was not for a playoff spot (both were already in), but rather for pride. I really wanted to see the game, so I asked my cousin if there was a way to watch it, or a sports bar we could go to. Luckily for us, a California had moved down to Chile and opened up a American Football themed bar. There were two other Eagles fans there (however they sat at the bar, not with us), and unfortunately for me - about 30-40 Cowboy fans. There just happened to be a study abroad program from Texas visiting and studying in Santiago at the time, and the teachers were giving extra credit for the students to come visit the bar and watch part of the game. It was a bloodbath, and if you remember - the Eagles didn't even score a single point. However, the food was great and my company was good.
One of the signature dishes there were the "gringo burgers," which were giant, delicious hamburgers made American style with American style french fries - just like what you would get at any bar here, but different from what they eat there. They were really good, and a nice taste of home halfway through our trip.
"Gringo" burger - yum! Gringo is the term used for Americans (used to be derogatory but now is just teasingly fun).

Later that week, we also visited the "Pueblito" which means little town. It is actually called El Pueblo de los Dominicos, but most Chileans call it simply the Pueblito. This little town is made up of a bunch of small shops and a few open air, fast-food type restaurants that are full of handmade goods and souveniors of typical Chilean goods. There are lots of items made from copper (Chile's largest export), lapis lazuli (a beautiful blue stone found naturally there), and other wood, ceramic, wool items. It is a great place to find beautiful souvenirs and Nick and I even made it onto Chilean news TV (as seen by my Grandmother) for our five minutes of fame there.

There's a bird cage in the Pueblo with a feisty peacock sporting his feathers and strutting his stuff. :-)
Flowers for sale along the fountain
Some of the shops nestled among beautiful flowers, plants, and trees.
My cousins Max and Milan (with her hair all curled and protected for the wedding that night)
The lovely little church in the Pueblo.

On our last night in Chile, we visited my cousin and his new wife in their apartment for a delicious dinner. They have a fabulous apartment on the 14th floor of a lovely high rise which is only 2 blocks away from his mother and our grandparents. Also, our other Aunt, Claudia lives only 3 more blocks away from them both. It is nice to have your family all very close as it makes it easy to get together. The views from their apartment also face the Andes - a beautiful site in the sunset.
Overall, it was a wonderful two weeks that felt so short because we weren't able to do nearly all we wanted to, but we'll have to go back again sometime in the future.