Aftershocks....

So I know it's been a while since I have been here but as most of you are aware, it has been a busy week in Chile. Last Saturday morning around 3.30am there was one of the biggest earthquakes ever recorded here in Chile. Although the epicenter was closer to Concepcion in the south, it was strong enough to have a deep impact here in Santiago. Having never experienced an earthquake, I suppose it was best at the time for me not to know that they are not normally that strong. I was shaken out of bed and instructed by my host mom to stand in the doorway of my bedroom. I tried as hard as I could but the house was so unstable that I could barely stand up. I just remember there being yelling and crying and trying to focus on looking out my bedroom window and seeing everything outside swaying back and forth. It truly felt like being in a boat during a bad storm. It lasted about 2-3 minutes but felt like much longer. After it was over, my family pulled all of the mattresses down into the living room and begun looking for flashlights, candles, radios and anything else to help comfort. No sleep came and I spent the better part of Saturday wandering around my neighborhood looking for a phone or internet so that I could call my parents and tell them I was ok before they saw it on the news. My host family was extremely supportive and understanding and I am very thankful to have them.

So as one can imagine, this has delayed everything in our program at this point. The offices of our program have been considerably damaged and the roads to most of our placements have been destroyed as well. We are all staying in a hostel in the city center right now, waiting for news of advancement with no avail. There was hope that the 6 people going to Antofagasta would still be leaving on time as there was no damage up there, but lo and behold, a small earthquake struck there while we were packing and now that is uncertain as well. We are all hopeful that the delay is just that and that we will be back on track soon but have not received any news this weekend.

We have been attending many asados (bbqs) and playing card games and trying to keep ourselves entertained in the hostel. We are also all very thankful that Santiago is so resilient and we all are safe.

Here are some pictures from the last week....

Not unlike the endless piles of snow in Chicago, the rubble from the toppled buildings in Santiago.
A little birthday celebration prepared by my family. My face was shoved in to the top. Video exists.
Asado hijinks.