Week 1
- Mar 5
- 6 min read
Updated: Mar 31
Today marks one whole week since my arrival in Chile. So much has happened in such a short time frame so let’s get straight to it!
Day 1 / February 26, 2026
My plane arrived at the Santiago airport at 8am. The descent coincided perfectly with sunrise and I lucked out with an east-facing window seat. The mountains were glowing in the early morning sun… OMG so huge!!! And beautiful!! Below is a photo of my view including the infamous Aconcagua as I saw it:
After gathering all my things on the plane, I booked it towards customs and waited in the line for close to an hour until it was my turn. The document check was smooth and fast (thank you SERMIG!) as I passed through into the baggage claim area I was met with a welcome surprise…DUNKIN! In Chile?! Hadn’t even left the airport and the place was already feeling like home.
Camila, Director of International Relations at University Autónoma, was waiting for me with a sign and a strong driver at the exit. They kindly helped me with my bags and shuttled me to the Central Train Station in Santiago. After confirming ticket details, train times, and that I was indeed allowed to bring my massive ski bag with me, I said goodbye to Camila and waited on the platform with a Mechada Cheese sandwich from Dunkin. The 3-hour train ride down to Talca went by quickly. I was in and out of napping but saw flashes of the wonderful countryside and mountains throughout.
I arrived at the Talca train station at 15:00 and was greeted by Felipe, Director of Experience at University Autónoma. He too helped lug my heavy bags out to a University Autónoma van and we took off towards my Airbnb. He gave me some sweet popcorn to snack on for the ride and began pointing out various landmarks in the city. After dropping my bags off, we headed to the campus for a quick tour and my first introduction to Gonzalo, the Academic Director. It was the final stretch of summer vacations and the campus was empty. It was special to see the open courtyards, blooming flowers, and quiet anticipation for the new school year to begin.
Days 2-4 / February 27-March 1 2026
The following days, Friday-Sunday, I prioritized apartment viewings throughout the city and settled on one located in the city-center. Those days were slow but so necessary to start acclimating. I practiced conversational Spanish where I could at the Airbnb with my lovely host Nayar, at the grocery store (Jumbo), climbing gym, and cafes. As with living in new places, several happy accidents were a part of the process. At the grocery store for example, I went to check out and the cashier was unable to process my bread and fruit selections because I had not tagged the items. Maybe I am exceptionally lazy (and or clueless), but I have never weighed or tagged produce at home and certainly wouldn’t think to do that with bread! However, seeing it done makes so much sense. It’s certainly more efficient for everyone, customers and cashiers alike!
On Saturday I arrived at the climbing gym before opening and had some time to kill. I opted to grab a quick bite and ‘accidentally’ ended up with a papa rellena (pictured below)…the most delicious happy parcel of rice, meat, and potato! I still have yet to try the famous Chilean Completo (sausage in a bun with tomato and avocado topping) or even better, the Talca version ‘completo mojado’ where the bun is steamed and served warm and moist. Though I have my eyes set on the ideal place and will share more when the time comes!
The weekend also provided great time for some running and hiking! On Saturday I also took an evening stroll to Cerro La Virgen and Piedra de Peñon for a panoramic view of the city. I passed over the lively Rio Claro where families and friends were spending time on the water, having picnics on the grass, or playing in the park. As I walked closer to the top it became clear the area was a hot spot for mountain biking! Suddenly cyclists were popping out of every corner, flying over jumps and speeding down the hill. The psych was so rad! I certainly plan to go back very soon!
Day 5 / March 2, 2026
First day of classes!! Professor Aparna collected me from my Airbnb and we headed to campus together. Everything looked so different from my visit a couple days prior! Students and faculty appeared relaxed and refreshed returning from their holidays. With over 8000 students across undergraduate and graduate programs, there is a lot of life taking place at the U. Aparna gave me a tour of the laboratory and an overview of ongoing work… So many amazing things are happening! We then headed out together for lunch around the corner. I opted for the lasagna with a side of ensalada de apio y manzana verde (a Chilean summer salad with celery and green apple)! After wrapping up on campus I headed back to the Airbnb. The sunset was begging for a plod so I went out for a quick run to explore further south in Talca. I made some squash and sausage for dinner and tucked in for the night.
Day 6 / March 3, 2026
Today was my first class, Cellular Biology and Histology with Dr. Charles. The seats were filled! He entered the classroom with a huge smile and warm welcome. After introducing himself, he then took the time to individually greet all 30 of us asking our name, where we were from, and to share something we like. The answers ranged from making music, to cats, to running. The rest of class was spent reviewing the curriculum, confirming examination dates, and understanding grading margins. We wrapped up class at 11:00am and I headed to meet Pedagogía en Inglés student, Amanda, for lunch. With over 200 students enrolled in classes to learn English, I am hoping to connect and facilitate language learning as much as I can! At the same time, these interactions present me with fantastic opportunities to practice Chilean Spanish.
I headed over to the lab at 12:30 where we continued growing our bacteria stock for various experiments. After work, Nayar invited me for dinner with her son Max and his partner Consuelo. Their house is magical! Located in the hills with a view of Talca and the Andes behind, we enjoyed fresh bread, tomatoes, a homemade pie de limón, and sipped some yerba maté. After dining and talking, we took their two dogs for a sunset walk and climbed on their treasured home board. This was such a treat!
Day 7 / March 4, 2026
I woke up and enjoyed the leftovers from the night before for breakfast. At 10:00am I headed to the lab and did more routine culturing work with Catherine. At 13:30 Aparna, Riccardo and I headed to the only Thai restaurant in Talca for lunch. They had so many Thai products! Chan beer, FOCO juices and more! I sipped on Lychee juice and had Tom Kha Khae soup with chicken and Aparna enjoyed the Pananang Curry… everything was delicious! After some brief work in the lab, I headed home and stopped by the climbing gym.
Day 8 / March 5, 2026
This morning was a double header trying to tick off some administrative tasks. At 9:00am I headed to the Talca SERMIG office for finger printing and was redirected to the Civil Registry Office. I still need to wait on a few more documents until I can receive my RUT, but it was a step in the right direction! Then at 10:00am I met my realtor Pablo at a notary office to finalize my rental agreement… I officially have a home for the next few months! From here I quickly dashed to the lab. We prepared new media and changed over cultures as needed. Nicolas, a 2nd year Doctoral candidate, gave a presentation to incoming undergraduate lab members on his work with Copper Nanoparticle encapsulation of Exo-polysaccharides to facilitate whole, efficient delivery of therapeutic bacterial payloads for various health indications. We then headed on a supply run to Lider (the Chilean Walmart if you will…same branding and all!). After returning to campus, Cynthia (Doctoral candidate doing her defense in 3 weeks time!) and I received keys to our office!
All is well!! I am now sitting in the Airbnb snacking on some banana and Nutella, writing this while racing the sunset for another hike up Piedra de Peñon....
Adios for now! Thank you for coming along! :)
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