At home already thanks to Jose

The flight across the Pacific ocean from New Zealand to Chile was to be our longest leg on this big adventure. Steph remembers the look on her students faces when they tried to understand how we could travel so far and still land in South America hours before we set off. We were wondering how such a long flight would be crammed in coach seats on LAN Chile, an airline we never heard of.

Believe it or not, it was the best flight yet. The seats were brand new. Each had a 10 inch widescreen tv with enough new films to rival the best transatlantic carriers. The service was friendly and bordered on telepathic, reading our minds and topping us up with delicious wine.

Another worry for us had been where to stay in Santiago for so long. Luckily our decision to find a short term appartment rental for our stay in Chile was one of the best ones we have made on our trip, up there with wwoofing and camping. From the farm in Blenheim, I had gotten in touch online with a man called Jose who turned out to be a lovely Chilean who would soon do everything he could possibly do to make us at home.

Stunning views from the balcony of the 20th floor apartment (our office). We spent our first weekend getting used to the neighborhood around Plaza d'Itlalia. This turned out to be the epicenter of the city. Noisy, yes, but perfectly located between the old center of town and the spanish school in leafy providencia, 15 minutes in either direction on foot.

Upon arrival, Jose let us use his own apartment for the day to recover from jet lag using his guest room. When we followed a note instructing us to help ourselves to water and snacks in his kitchen, we found what was actually a museum dedicated to Coca Cola in his kitchen - Jose must be Chile's biggest collector of all things coke. Not one surface was left empty with anything but red and white sodapop memorabilia. When Jose then came back from his job in sales at American Airlines, he took us to the modern appartment building where we were to be the first tennants in a studio that he just bought. He had already thought of everything you could need, right down to toothpaste, shower gel, milk, bread and butter. When he realized the wifi was not set up in the room, Jose offered to let us use his larger apartment in the building up on the 20th floor. Needless to say, the reviews in his guest book were as glowing as the ones I had read on the internet. Personally, I loved most his thoughtful write-up to guests explaining his favorite ways to spend time in Santiago.

My checklist of things to see, smell and taste was growing fast. Steph's excitement to pack her school bag for class on Monday was mounting. Let our lives as temporary locals begin!

It was great just to be able to cook our own Sunday dinner - chicken, potatoes, vegetables and gravy. We watched DVDs and did our own laundry. What a treat.