Oh yeah

Yesterday was Chilean labor day and I hooked up with a couple of friends from the institute where I work to "aprovechar" (take advantage of, enjoy) the day off. We rented a car and, with sketchy directions, made it to a national park near Santiago. We hiked for a good three hours and today my legs and butt are SO SORE! Who would've thought a 22% grade would be so killer?! Okay, maybe we should have known. But it was really nice to get out of town and give our hiking boots some use.

Today, I had my first day of a new private class. It's with two lawyers who are preparing for a trip to China and India -- where the common language will obviously be English. It went really well and, although cashing the check was a pain, it's great to have some cash in my pocket that didn't come from my U.S. savings! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to cash my paycheck because the banks close at 2 pm and the check-cashing place wouldn't accept my passport as identification. Gar! So, I had to dip into my savings once again to pay May's rent. If all keeps going well, that will be the last time this year! I also have a private class once a week with three little Japanese girls (5, 7, and 8) who are absolutely adorable. We had our first class on Tuesday and involved coloring body diagrams, doing the hokey pokey, and making animal noises while the others guessed -- in English, of course! -- what we were imitating. It was great fun. For the girls, too.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch ... things are going well with my new apartment. I'm really happy with it. My flatmate and I have totally different schedules, but things are friendly in passing! And it's SO GREAT to have my own space. I haven't had many people over (okay, today's guest will make two), but having the option is worth every peso. I'm also enjoying doing laundry, going grocery shopping, cooking, and doing yoga in the living room! The location is perfect and the rent is reasonable. Really, I lucked out -- except that I take credit rather than handing it wholly over to luck!

I'm already thinking about coming back next year, especially if I can fill up my schedule with the very lucrative private classes. Plus, I found out that after 16 months on the health insurance here, it covers lasik eye surgery. Wow! Might just be worth a trip back down south! Blink.