Love: Messy, Wet, Stinky Love

I am in messy, wet, stinky love with this city. Also I guess this country and continent but I haven't seen the rest of it.

I am so in love with this city that I smile all the time. I walk down the street smiling. Last night I went out to dinner by myself (something I am now comfortable with for the first time in my life). Out on the patio there was a large table of French people and a small table of Germans (possibly Swiss-German but I don't have enough German to tell the difference between German and Swiss German) and another small table of 2 Americans. I eavesdropped on all and picked up a few fun things. And I couldn't stop smiling. I love to watch people. I never imagined I would love a place more than Tokyo - Santiago beats Tokyo by 1,000 miles.

Mostly I think I look horrible. I have far too much extra weight and on the road it is nearly impossible to maintain let alone lose. I have 45.6 years of wrinkles. I have the beginnings of jowls. I feel 25 and then I catch sight of myself in a mirror and it just freaks me out that the person who feels the way I do LOOKS the way I do. I have really bad clothing. But I bought an embroidered summer blouse in Mexico last month and I've been wearing it and when I wear it with my jeans I feel just a bit cuter. I wish I had 10 of them. Also the water here - it is really something. Somehow the water is perfect for my hair and no matter what it always looks cute and curly and wild. And it's so soft. I know above and beyond any makeup or clothing the best thing I can do to look good is to put a smile on my face. A smile is by far the best makeup. All the time I see thin gorgeous girls on the street walking with a scowl and they are not attractive at all. So I figure if I smile I beat them by a mile!

So last night about 8:30 I walked to this restaurant for dinner wearing my cute shirt and sporting my soft curly hair and smiling my fat American ass off and y'all the owner asked if he could take my photo and the waiter took it and they put me on a board with freaking Julio Iglesias and other celebs. So I think I looked cute despite the tonnage. Still the photo I know sucks and I will probably never go to this particular establishment again because I am so ashamed and embarrassed. Also totally flattered.

But it was nice to feel attractive for one night. They do this cheek kiss thing here like in Mexico - everyone cheek kisses and I am totally a handshake girl if I can get away with it but last night I gladly cheek kissed the restaurant owner because he made me feel very special.

So getting back to Friday night with Lety - it was so good to see her. Her driving SUCKS FOR AIR! Drivers here are really bad and she is possibly the WORST. I'm talking going the wrong way down one way streets and running up on curbs and stuff. Which seems to be the norm here by the way but she was JUST AWFUL and it was all I could do to hold on and not pull a gun and tell her to let me drive. If I had a gun I would have. Her girls were tired and so her husband stayed home with them and we went for a light dinner at freaking 10:30 pm (can't get used to that) and sat and shared my ipod earphones and listened to music and talked and ate and then she drove me home which took about 2 hours because she is a really sucky driver and I am lucky to be alive now. In fact I think God Himself was personally sitting beside me. Otherwise I would be dead. For sure. And I loved ever minute. She ran red lights and I sat in the passenger seat with my life flashing before my eyes howling with laughter. I saw parts of Santiago that just made me want to pack up and move. This was by accident because she was totally lost. Also she sucks as a driver (did I mention that)?

So in a nutshell. Santiago is great (except for the horrible smog which is so amazingly bad I want to put in a call to Al Gore). The drivers here suck. Avoid Leticia if she is the "driver." I am as brown as a berry and I own one shirt that makes me look cute. My hair rocks.

A week from now I will be back home for a week before I return for the month of February. Yesterday in ATL it SNOWED. Today at last check it was 26F. I think I will fall into a deep depression. To think I was so upset about giving up my sweatpants and coming here. I have a one year reprieve from seasonal affective disorder.

Did I tell you how much I LOVE Santiago?

Did I mention my tan? Y'all I am so brown!