Casi La Navidad

Yes, just 4 more days until Christmas and you can feel it in the air in Santiago. The UV rays are strong, everyone is talking about their beach vacations, and our local grocery store is playing cheesy american christmas music on their soundsystem. Like "Jingle Bell Rock", which I find is actually a better song when you're the only one in the store who can sing all the words. Just like at home the department stores are packed with Christmas decorations and Christmas shoppers, except that they're all shopping for bikinis and tanktops. Some of our neighbors have trees, including the people in the apartment directly across from ours who we always spy on but who never seem to be looking at us. Here's a picture of their tree, which I felt totally sketchy taking (the picture, that is, not the tree). The tree is outside on their balcony, by the way.


The weird thing about Christmas in Santiago (aside from the fact that they sometimes call it Pascua, which is Easter), is not so much that it is hot, but that it keeps getting hotter and the days keep getting longer. So everything is moving in the wrong direction. Although since today is the first day of summer I guess from now on the days will be getting shorter.

My parents arrive tomorrow morning. We are meeting them at the airport, and I have a full day of activities planned in Santiago. Friday we drive to the coast (Valparaiso area), which I haven't visited yet. And then Saturday we fly to the north of Chile for our week-long vacation in the Atacama desert. I can't wait. I don't know if I'll have internet access up there, so just in case, Feliz Navidad to all!