First night in town

After eating, I took a nap for a couple hours until we were scheduled to meet, at 5 PM outside the apartment. The reality of my surroundings had definitely not set in yet, but the Andes were definitely still there in the backdrop of the city despite the fading sunlight. We mingled, making the small talk that comes out of 25 or so strangers getting a feel for each other. The only person I vaguely knew was Kelly, who was extending her ticket like myself and whom with I had made plans to travel around afterwards. My roommate Zack definitely seemed cool, as well as the only other 3 guys on the trip, Danny, Josh, and Eddie (compared to some 2o girls or so). Eddie was slightly on the more uptight side, but explained since he was older then all of us/a grad student, ex military on top of it.

We all walked through the neighborhood, on our way to finding a restaraunt that would fit the entire group. The Chilean version of Hard Rock Cafe was our final destination, a Western-style commercialish establishment, complete with kareoke, sombreros on the walls, and funky old pianos in the corner. Meals were on the school's bill, so I ordered quesadillas and a large beer, as well as choosing a unique type of french fry (tiny, miniature potatos, sort of like the potato sticks in a can back from the day...) to share. Dinner was fun, as we all enjoyed a few drinks and getting to know each other. The under 21 year old kids in particular seemed to really enjoy the 18+ drinking age, something I very much fondly remember myself from past travels.

Josh convinced one of the girls to duet with him on a classic Grease song after dinner on the kareoke machine, which had the local Chilean patrons smiling and singing along with him. Some of the girls on our floor had stopped by our apartment to say hello, and had been impressed with our bar, so our spot was suggested for the dinner afterparty. Despite the long traveling we had been through, a decent handful of people showed up, beer and wine was consumed as well as laptop music (I had conveniently forgotten to pack my portable speakers) as we all started to realize we were going to be sleeping in South America for the first night of what looked to be an exciting month. Optimism, adrenaline, happiness were only a few of the emotions I was feeling that evening as I blissfully fell asleep in my 3X rockpaperscissors-won room, enjoying the queen size bed I had won vs. the alternative, a tiny room with bunkbeds that Zack had to take as loser.
Anticipation for the next day was definitely high, Pablo Neruda's house and discos being only a few things on the agenda.