The Final Countdown

My journey here is officially wrapping up! I can't believe it. I only have 12 days left in South America, and I am not ready at all to leave!

I have some fun blog posts to write about my weekend in La Serena, but my photos are taking forever to sync so I am going to give you all a little insight into my thoughts going into my last two weeks! There are many things I am going to miss about Chile, but there are also things I am looking forward to back in the USA! This is also a fun way for you to learn some differences between the US and Chile. So here are three lists that I have been thinking about as I prepare to return to life in the USA. That 7 hour bus ride on Monday gave me a lot of thinking time for this :)

Things I Will Miss About Life in Chile:

Speaking Spanish: I absolutely love the Spanish language and I am really going to miss seeing it, hearing it, and speaking it all the time. I wish I had more opportunities to use it in Grand Forks!
The Food: Empanadas, Sopaipillas, the fresh bread, the amazing fresh fruit, the nectar juice, wonderful fresh seafood, wine, and pisco. US food just can't quite compare.
Riding the metro: As annoying as public transportation can be, I actually really like the metro and all the cute little cities I pass through. It's a nice half hour of reading time or music.
Living two blocks from the beach: DEFINITELY going to miss this! It is so nice to be able to just walk outside and around the corner if I feel like going to the beach.
Beach sunsets: Speaking of the beach, the sunsets here are incredible every day.
Chilean music: I have really fallen in love with the music here and will definitely be downloading some when I leave!
Being called a gringa: Even though this is usually thought of as a negative word, it has really grown on me! Haha. At work we always laugh at the gringa things I do and it's kind of a fun thing I embrace now.
The People: The people here in Chile are absolutely amazing. There is something special about their culture that I love. I am going to miss my great fellow interns and roommates who I have spent a lot of time with, my supervisor and other interns at work, and my Chilean friends who have really shown me what life is like here and taught me how to have a good time!
Runs/Workouts along the beach: Working out is so much easier when the view is amazing.
Giant shower: Our shower here is HUGE and it is so nice.
Being called "meetchell": I don't even remember the last time I introduced myself with an English accent. I love saying my name in Spanish.
The views: I feel like no matter where I am or what I am doing, I am surrounded by natural beauty of palm trees, the ocean, historic buildings, or the mountains.
Walking: I absolutely love that I have to walk everywhere here, and my step counts have been crazy high here!
Living across the street from the grocery store: Most convenient thing EVER.
Having thousands of dollars in my pocket: The bills here are in increments of 20,000 10,000 5,000 2,000 and 1,000 . . . so I always feel so rich. Haha
Estufa: My space heater friend.

Now to switch gears a little bit, here are a few things I will NOT miss about Chile.

Being stared at: Yes, I know I am white. Thanks for reminding me.
Street dogs: They are ALWAYS in the way and always make me feel bad for not petting them.
Gas stove: I would be perfectly content if I never have to light a burner with a match ever again in my life.
Hand washing laundry: Let's be thankful that washing machines exist.
Darkness at 8:30am: Waking up is so hard when it's still dark outside.
Typing on a flip phone: My Chile phone here is a very basic old phone and it takes FOREVER to type things with ABC clicking. NOT going to miss that at all.
Having sand everywhere all the time: Though the sand will probably track back to the US with me and haunt me forever.
Smoking: So many people smoke here, and they are able to smoke in so many public places.
Converting between metric and US: I look forward to the day someone tells me the size or weight of something and I don't have to do math to understand it. Or the temperature.
Getting ID'd: I get ID'd every single time I use a debit/credit card and it is SO annoying.

Kind of on the same note, here is my last list! Things I am looking forward to back in the USA!

Real gum: I miss chewing gum so badly. They only have the hard chiclet type gum here and I hate that stuff.
Free water: I hate having to pay for water here at restaurants and anywhere. But I guess that's what happens when you're in a country with a limited water supply.
Flushing toilet paper: The water pressure in Chile is not very great, so in most places we are supposed to put used TP in the trash, not flush it down. That grosses me out and is such a hard habit to break.
DRIVING: I cannot WAIT to get behind the wheel and just go for a drive. I miss it so much.
Split bills: At restaurants here, the bill always comes added up all together for the table, so splitting it up ourselves is such a hassle.
American radio: I am excited to actually hear new songs! They play a lot of American music here, but it's old music.
Washer and Dryer: I will never take them for granted again. I can't wait to have clothes that actually feel clean and are actually dry. I am probably going to wash everything multiple times.
Brown sugar: This beautiful delicacy does not exist in Chile, which is such a shame.
Target: The greatest store on Earth. They really need to expand worldwide.
Grocery shopping: I am SO excited to be able to go grocery shopping and find all the food I want and actually know where it is in the store.
Real milk: The milk here is so weird. You can store it a room temperature which grosses me out so I don't drink it, I just use it for cooking or on cereal and oatmeal.
Summer Heat: I will probably have a heat stroke when I get back and it's like 90 degrees, but it will definitely be a nice change!
Pandora and Spotify: I depend on these apps for my music and they don't work here!!!
Dishwasher: Such a great invention that I really miss.
Longer days: I am super excited to experience evenings that are still light, and having the sun come up before I leave for work!
Real coffee: Chileans are all about instant coffee, and it's just really not that good.
Different clothes: So pumped to wear clothes that haven't been with me for the past two months.
American outlets: It's going to be so convenient to be able to plug things in without moving my adapter back and forth.
Bonfires: One of my favorite things about summer.

There you have it! Maybe now you will have a better understanding of the little things about life here! Stay tuned for blog posts from La Serena whenever my photos load! My motto for these last two weeks is "You can sleep in America." So I am trying to make the most of every last minute that I have here!