A snapshot of what its been like since i deplaned

       Got off the plane. tired as all hell. a big beer during my midnight layover in canada whilst reflecting on what i had left behind and what lay ahead. some wine on the plane. and no substantial sleep. i walk out the clouded glass doors to hit the street. booom. im bombarded by so many taxi dudes its rididculous. i wish i could not be so white and blonde for just a moment. i almost get tricked into spending 30 bucks to get to a hostel in santiago, but i escape and snag a bus. i jsut get on. no idea where its going. no idea where im going. we get on the freeway toward Santiago, thats a good start. i open my lonelyplanet chile for the first time, Residencial Londres sounds good and cheap and its downtown. I stumble through my spanish and find out that i can get near to the metro stop for universidad de chile, which is what i need. hostel. chill. unpack some. freshen up. starved, so i head for a late lunch. find a cozy place, empty except for one big family. i sit down, order a beer and some dish with chicken. beer is huge and the chicken is fried with lime rice and potatoes. yum. i dont end up leaving this place until 8pm and i got there at 2ish. I ended up at a table with friends of the owner, drinking beers and chatting it up for hours. i got a salsa lesson and a few email addresses. really cool people. i head to my bed for the night a little drunk. 13 hours later i wake up.
          i have a list of shit to do in santiago. check out. wow! sooo many people everywhere. i get lost many times. get directions over and over to places that may have things i need. no dice. no progress on my list. forget this. im leaving. go to the bus station and buy a ticket for pichilemu, its a 5 hour bus ride. turns into 6.5 because the bus breaks down halfway. typical south american adventure. i get to town and its dark. the bus dropped me off so far from where i needed to be. 4 men walk out of the little store on the corner. One is quite drunk and very friendly, his buddy keeps reminding me of his friends drunkeness and keeps showing me a worn silver dollar he uses as a keychain and saying ¨Chon Ken-e-dee!¨ Drunk dude teases him. they ask me many questions and crack me up and down. and eventually are able to get me a taxi. get to my hotel.check in. and meet the only other gringo there. a canadian. and his name is Colin. and he surfs. we chat. then i go eat out. quick stop by the beach to hear the waves. deep breath. ahhhh. my soul is refreshed and i head for bed with a huge grin on my face. amazed at how deep i already am into my adventure.
        The next morning I get pulled out of a really weird dream to the sound of knocking. then colins voice asking if im up. I meet him downstairs for breakfast and then we head out in his car. I love this town already. small. right on the water. laid back people. half paved and half dirt roads with sidewalks to match. beautiful countryside. We cruise around and i see the surfspots. great surf too. lots of lefts. Then he drops me off at the local surf shop/school. I meet the owner, Elvis. Tell him I need a cheap place to stay and I need to rent a board and suit for a week, I say, because I dont think I´m going to want to leave this place. I can stay at his house. 7 bucks a night, kitchen, and use of his motorcycle and mountain bike, and he ll take me surfing in the mornings. board and suit and booties for 60 bucks for the week. im stoked. And Elvis turns out to be really cool. We´ve shredded two times the last two days. And right now I have to run so I can go thumb a ride to Punto de Lobos to try and snag some big lefts.
More stories and details in the next few days. and please give me feedback. too lengthy? not enough emphasis on the action and too much filler? please let me know. and for coinciding photos see my facebook. later on i hope i can figure out how to get them on to here.
for now.
Ciao!