Adventure Travel Blog Posts

I’m not great at getting gifts. I’m good at spurring my family to embark on epic and immersive experiences, and on occasion will bring home flowers or perform other generous tasks. But when it comes to holidays and anniversaries, I’m the worst offender of procrastination in gift-buying or not buying gifts at all. I decided […]

Katie has previously written about mall culture being alive and well in Chile. We’re now living the Christmas mall miracle. The malls are the center of commercial activity in Santiago. The Christmas decorations are out, inventories are piled high, and people frantically rush through parking lots and stores. It’s such a nostalgic experience. It’s remarkable […]

Katie would tell you I despise waiting in line. I don’t cut lines. I avoid them. When it comes to lines, I often decide I can live without whatever consumer-oriented gratification awaits at the end (e.g. the latest restaurant, a freebie, a game, a celebrity autograph, etc.). I can do without it. In this context, […]

While we were downtown in Santiago, we visited the popular Alice’s tea room, and cafe themed in line with the tale. It was a great experience, with delicious coffee, sandwiches, and treats. I felt I had been there before, as it bore a striking resemblance to Alice’s Teacup in NYC, a cafe with the same […]

We finally made the trip to the Santiago city center to explore Santa Lucia Hill and Plaza de Armas. It reminded us of the true size and density of Santiago, and we enjoyed exploring a part of the city that felt different and more vibrant than our corner of the city in Vitacura.

This kids now have choir practice in a new location, one that is about a ten minute walk from our home, in a direction we don’t normally walk. Between our home and practice, a McDonald’s. I could smell it while I waited for practice to adjourn. I decided to surprise the kids with a pitstop […]

I understood that living in Santiago was not going to be cheap. Chile is not a low rent country, and Santiago is a city larger than Los Angeles. However, I’m taken aback by the high cost of living in Santiago, especially when incomes for average residents are so low. It gives some perspective into the […]

Wilson continues to excel in skateboarding, trying and failing and trying and succeeding. Each time we visit the skate park, which is once or twice a week, he improves. He continues building on the skills he’s developing, even when it means pushing through the pain of a hard fall. Here’s a video of Wilson learning […]

In recent weeks, Spanish is coming more naturally to me and, I think, all of us. When we first arrived, I felt we constantly had to tell people we don’t speak Spanish or understand something they said in Spanish. Now, about four months into our immersion here, we can carry out many daily interactions in […]

Though it didn’t make the news, the sprinkler scandal of Vitacura rocked out little world. Our home has a high wall around it. The wall creates an inner courtyard containing a patio, lawn, pool, and driveway. Outside the wall, there’s still property belonging to this home, and there are strips of grass, bushes and trees. […]