Home at last

So, yesterday was the big day that I moved into my new apartment. If you think moving is hard, try doing it in a foreign country, where you only know 5 people, and you don't have a car. After making two trips from the hotel to the new apartment, walking 2 miles to a mall to buy Snickers a new fancy litter box and some litter (which weighed 5 kg), I thought I was finally settled with all of my belongings...at least for the day. Then, I realized, I left the most imporant thing of all at the hotel. (No, not Snickers.) My pillows! I had plans to meet some new friends for dinner at 7:30, and since it was 6:25, I figured, I could hop on the subway back to the hotel, run back to the new apartment, and make it to dinner right on "Santiago" time. For those of you that are not familiar with the timeliness of South Americans, I will advise you that if you ever venture down south, expect your guests to arrive approximately 20-30 minutes later than the designated time. This goes for everything from social gatherings to business meetings. It's a practice I like to call "The Mañana Attitude." Fortunately, my friends were only 10 minutes late, and I met them right "on time."

We went to a really great place for dinner that slightly resembles Dean & Deluca (according to their websites proclamations). For me, Dean & Deluca really just brings to mind the blueberry donuts one of the partners would get for breakfast every time we went to New York for one of my former Deloitte engagements. Nonetheless, the food and the ambience were both great. Coquinaria http://www.coquinaria.cl/) gets my full approval. They had a beatiful display of yummy deserts, home made gelato and an array of fine cheese and wine throughout the market within the restaurant. I dined on an Ensalada Peruana, which was made up of chicken wrapped shrimp (a first for me), Chile's finest avocado, some fried choclo which resembled cornnuts, and a delicious dressing that they called Asian (but there was nothing Asian about it).

After dinner, it was off to the new apartment, where my pillows were waiting for me to crash. I don't know what it is, but I have been exhausted since the day I got here. Maybe there is something in the pollution that makes you sleepy. It could also have something to do with the fact that Chileans typically eat dinner around 9 PM and it takes several hours. Not to mention that their night-life goes into the wee morning hours. I didn't get home until 5:30 on Friday night (or do you call that Saturday morning). I guess there is not a closing time for bars in Santiago. Woohoo!