What I Know So Far...

So for those of you who don't know, I will be spending the next three months (from September 12-December 13) in Concepcion, Chile. Concepcion is the second-largest city in Chile and is a couple hours south of Santiago. I will be there studying through the University of California study abroad program, which is affiliated with two universities in the city (Universidad de Concepcion and Universidad Santo Tomas). While there, I will be taking primarily intensive Spanish classes, as well as a class in Latin American Studies. For those of you who have been asking, I will not be taking any biology or science classes (my Spanish isn't good enough, and that's not why I wanted to go).

My classes will be with other UC students (from all campuses), but they have set up programs for us to meet local Chilean students. They refer to these programs as the "hermanos" programs, in which we are paired with local students studying English, so that we can both practice our language skills. I have been emailed already by two girls, one from each university, who will be my "hermanas." One I just heard from, and the other I have been chatting with for a while. She is from the Univ de Conce and studies English and German. Her biggest hobby is watching theater (especially Broadway musicals).

While there, I will also be living with a host family. I have been emailed by the daughter in the family, who is also a student at Univ de Conce, studying English and French. She seems extremely nice, and I can't wait to meet her! Her father is a civil engineer and her mom is a stay-at-home mom. She has one sister who is at university in Santiago. They live very close to the university, so that should make my commute easier!

Anyway, I will update this as best I can and hope to hear from all of you! Please feel free to leave comments so that I know someone is reading this!