A home at last! . . . for now

Before we start . . . some unfinished business. In the last post "Go Forth and Explore" there was one video missing. It was of the Cueca dance and is now there along with a little history of the dance.

Now . . . on with the show . . .

Well, here it is.....home sweet home. We moved in on Monday afternoon. We are on the 12th floor with a lovely view of the ocean and beach.

This is our living room and balcony.....

This is the view from our balcony....the photos just don't allow you to experience what a live view is like. We can hear the ocean quite clearly, and sometimes we are shocked by just how loud the crashing of the waves can be. No matter what time of day it is, there are always people on the beach, and there is a boardwalk that goes for quite a distance. The sun sets around here about 6:45 these days, so we can watch the sky changing color. We can't see the full sun set from our balcony, but if we walk down to the beach, we can watch the whole show. It is beautiful!!

Kitchen....and yes, those are pictures of home on the fridge. The kitchen is very tiny with a "moving around" area of about 8x3. (less than a sheet of plywood!)

If you were to turn slightly to the right in the kitchen, this is what you would see.......

Then another slight turn, and here´s the sink. Note the box above the draining tray. This is a gas heater for our hot water. Each time we turn on the hot water tap, the pilot light fires up, and we have hot water. We are having a bit of a problem with getting enough hot water for a shower in the morning. So at this point, showers are not the pleasant experience they once were and tend to be quite short. Norm isn´t risking a cold shower each morning and has opted for the every-other-day approach.

This is the door to the apartment and our dining area. We have decided not to get television hook up as it is just too expensive. We will make do with internet and Scrabble games for now!

Our bedroom...

Can't move in without a trip to the grocery store for some essentials....

This was an unexpected surprise in the grocery store. "Safeway Select" maple syrup, made in Canada.....a little touch of home!

Here we are sharing our first meal in our new home. The Chileans certainly know how to make good wine. There is an incredible selection at every grocery store, even the small stores in the neighborhood. We aren´t sure what the legal drinking age is here, but we haven´t noticed them asking for ID at the check out.





This is the Dominoes Pizza shop right down the street from us. They do their deliveries on motor bikes or bicycles. A little different than in Canada!

It's nice to have a place to call home at the end of the day. We have an address, a phone number and internet hook up. It's all good! Now that we are settled, we have had some time to go on a couple of "day trips" around Vina del Mar. Details of these to follow.

Until then....all the best, love, Norm and Charlene