Santiago II

my Spanish is improving rapidly, but I can't understand a thing if it is spoken. Apparently Chileans drop syllables and use lots of slang phrases though, so it is hard for even graduate level speakers to get it all. I've been staying in a nice hostel (~$15 a night, which isn't that cheap but it's easier than moving). It's so confusing because sunset is actually 9pm here whereas it was 4:15pm when I was at home on Friday -- it's almost exhausting to have so many more hours of daylight. I wish I had some more of them back in Portland. Saturday night I made friends with my Austrian roommate and two Australians and hit up a huge local club. Apparently things don't really get started until midnight. A live band came on at 1am and we ended up back at home around 6am -- wasn't exactly the way I had planned to spend my first night in Chilean (/any night in Chile for that matter), but I made some friends and got to see a good bit of Santiago.
Sunday I slept in late -- I had slept about 6 hours thursday and friday nights combined -- and I just wondered around the city parks nearby. Monday, the Australians and I rented bikes and saw a bit more of the downtown. We had lunch in the giant seafood market (Mercado Central) -- had a great seafood soup -- it wasn't gourmet but it would have cost at least $25 at home but was just $5 and was full of clams, mussels, fish, and crab with no filler material (i.e. potatoes, corn) just the good stuff. Justin gets in today at 8pm and I'm supposed to meet him at the airport and escort him back to the hostel. I feel fairly confident navigating the city during the day, but I'm not super thrilled about finding my way after dark--I'm not sure I'll recognize things as well. As two guys we should be pretty safe though I still have yet to use the metro (which is supposed to be very safe, mom). We'll spend tonight in Santiago, and fly to Coyhaique on Wendnesday. It will be nice to have a buddy, but I think it has been good for my Spanish to get my feet wet alone.