Week 14

Day 100 / June 5, 2026

Wow! 100 days in Chile. I am one very very lucky duck! And so so so excited for the next 100+ to come!! :))

Mina and Jula walked to campus with me to see the office and drop me off for the day. They walked home shortly after to allow time for Mina to prepare for an interview. She was on the call from 11:30am until 3:30pm… a very long day indeed!

Meanwhile, I was in the lab planning for next week with Nicolas and Catherine. Nicolas is going to Concepcion to learn BSL3 techniques at a lab with the equipment to do so. So many people in the FuncPoly Lab rely on Nicolas and he is constantly patient, supportive, and kind to everyone. I already know we will feel his absence even if it is just for a few days.

Planning for next week. 5 June 2026

Once the plan was clear, we got busy prepping materials and soon enough, the time came to head home. While the rest of the lab headed over to celebrate Cynthia’s doctorate with a special BBQ (asado), Mina, Jula and I got a head start on the drive to Santiago. We arrived just before 10:00pm, showered, and tucked in for the night.

Day 101 / June 6, 2026

On Saturday, we left the AirBnb (located centrally in Parque Bustamante above the Scorpi clothing store and the Dominos) at around 9:30am to wander around. It was a bit foggy, as is typical for the inland Chilean cities in the autumn, so we opted to save the hiking to a viewpoint for later in the day. First, we headed in the direction of Lasstaria to see the weekend market stalls. As if you had to ask, yes we stopped in every park along the way.

On the way we picked up a host of baked goods including apple cake, a raspberry roll, a cinnamon bun, and raspberry cookie. 

Our wandering took us to the Gabriela Mistral Cultural Center where there was a big vinyl sale. It was just our luck that Revival Vintage was doing a pop-up sale in the CityLab space. We saw an opening time of 12 and opted to circle back after visiting Cerro Santa Lucia. Just as we were approaching the top, the sky started to clear. 

After a brief rest, we went back to the vintage store and sifted through the many racks and shelves on display. This quickly worked up an appetite so I suggested we head in the direction of Bella Vista where there are a number of different restaurants. Viva La Vida caught Mina’s eye and before long we were sat in the courtyard munching on empanadas, sopaipillas con pebre and sipping pisco sours. I was thrilled to see pastel de choclo on the menu which Jula and I both ordered. Mina instead opted for a rack of ribs and potatoes. 

With full bellies we headed back to the Airbnb to rest for a bit. We then headed up to the rooftop to check out the view before going out for an evening gelato.

Though Mina and Jula were full from the big lunch, I couldn’t help the Domino’s temptation beneath the apartment and picked up a medium BBQ Chicken pizza, cinnamon twists, and parmesan bites to snack on for the coming days. 

Tired from city stimulus and walking, we tucked in for the night. 

Day 102 / June 7, 2026

Sunday was another day for exploration! We left the Airbnb at 9:30am and drove to Valparaiso. Jula was on aux and played a host of country songs while Mina steered up route 68. We parked near Plaza Sotomayor and made our way up Cerro Alegre.

The sun shone brightly on the colorful houses, a refreshing change from the recent gray days. We popped into several stores and admired the artisanal stalls on the street before stopping for breakfast at Cafe entre Cerros.

Jula had manjar french toast, Mina avocado and bacon on walnut toast, and I had black bean and avocado on sourdough. All of our meals came with a fresh glass of strawberry (frutilla in Chile) juice and we had a berry crepe to share. 

After our meal, I suggested we head towards the National Maritime Museum (for no reason other than to send a photo to our sailing-obsessed dad) and we intersected hundreds of bikers on the way! There was some kind of motorcycle fair in Valparaiso today and we unintentionally perfectly timed our walk to see the whole parade take off. Old bikes, new bikes, fast bikes, sidecars, and everything in between took to the streets. Such an epic sight!

We made it to the top of the hill by the museum where Jula was approached by a lil pup. She is constantly thinking of our own dog, Joschi, back home and welcomed the chance to say hello to a new furry friend. After a brief hello and goodbye, we headed back to the car and made the 20 minute drive over to the nearby Viña del Mar.

Museo Maritomo Nacional. 7 June 2026

This sister city is a bit newer than Valparaiso and has a long stretch of beach to enjoy. We enjoyed gelato along the way and looked at the various items for sale along Avenida San Martin. Mina found a jewelry dish she liked while I landed on, you guessed it, empanadas. Jula and I split a ham and cheese empanada as we walked back towards the car. We stopped for a quick bathroom trip in the Mall Marina then got in the car and drove back to Santiago. 

Mina was behind the wheel again while Jula napped and I stared out the window. After showering and resting at the AirBnb, we walked towards Avenida Italia again for some dinner.

We passed by Roatán Beach Garden and agreed to give it a go. I had a salmon maki with Sangria, Jula a pizza and lemonade, and Mina, in true Chilean fashion, chorillana (loaded fries) with mechada and cheese and an Austral beer to wash it down. We were sat outside right near a heater and it was excellent. 

Day 103 / June 8, 2026

On our last day together we followed an itinerary picked by Mina. She had decided to go to the Cajon de Maipo, a mountainous region located just southeast of Santiago. We picked up empanadas en route which we inhaled while Drake played in the background (Mina’s choice too).

By 12:30pm we were pulling into the El Yeso parking area. This massive reservoir is a major source of water for the wider Santiago metropolitan area. With a number of protective effects in place, the water is crystal clear and brilliantly blue. We walked 3k each way stopping for photos along the way.

At the end of our visit, we each paid the 1000 CLP ($1 USD) to use the porta potty and 3000 CLP ($3 USD) for parking before heading to our next stop, Cascadas Las Melosas (Honey Waterfall). 

During the descent, I saw a big black shadow above and sure enough… CONDOR!! Mina reminded me I should refrain from scaring the driver… too bad, these guys deserve all the excitement! I gawked from the front seat while Mina and Jula observed. Soon enough we arrived at the falls and they were sweet indeed. The water had completely carved the rock below making for smooth and impressive features.

No trip would be complete without, that’s right, gelato! We ended our Cajon de Maipo adventure at Casa Chocolate.

The drive back to the Airbnb passed by quickly. After a brief stop at Lider to check for Chilean fruits one last time, we were back. 

Mina and Jula ordered take out for dinner while I showered and packed. I said my goodbyes at 8:30pm and hopped in an Uber to the bus station. I slept for most of the three hour journey back to Talca and was back in my bed by 12:30am.

Day 104 / June 9, 2026

On Tuesday I was back at school. The day started with a Dr. Charles lecture on connective tissue. He covered the structure, function, and formation of cartilage and bone in depth. 

After class, I met Cathe in the lab for our first day continuing the antimicrobial activity study to characterize the 40 INACH bacteria from Antarctica (the project Nicolas and I began working on last month). While I was away on Monday, Cathe had kindly inoculated 12 vials of liquid media with the Antarctic bacteria to grow overnight. When we arrived in the lab, we filtered 2mL of the liquid media from these 12 vials to extract the supernatant including smaller metabolites excreted by the bacteria. We packed a box full of supplies including the filtered metabolite supernatant and went upstairs to the BSL2 hood. I obtained our stock of 8 pathogenic bacteria from the fridge and we started by preparing PBS eppendorf tubes with each one. Once the tubes were ready, we used cotton buds to inoculate two plates for each bacteria, 16 plates total, prepared with Mueller Hinton Agar. After the bacteria was spread on, we used the wide end of a P1000 pipette tip to punch 9 holes in each plate, three holes for controls, and 6 holes for the various metabolite samples. We then carefully loaded the holes with 100uL of the respective samples, and sealed the plates to sit in an incubator overnight. The whole process took just under 2 hours. We gathered all of our trash, cleaned the hood, and returned to the lab.

After a week off, I was super excited to get back to the gym. I went for a quick session after my tutoring session with Francisca. She had kindly agreed to reschedule from our usual Monday sessions. Today was our second to last class. We reviewed the components needed to write a US college essay then she started drafting. Next week we will review it!

Day 105 / June 10, 2026

Excited to be returning to routine, I went to lab this morning to proceed with the next day of the experiment with Cathe. We again filtered the media of our 12 ambient bacteria, then brought everything we needed upstairs to the BSL2 hood. Catalina was awesome and offered to come help so she measured the results from the cultures from the day prior while Cathe and I started loading plates. The idea is to compare the difference in antimicrobial activity 24h, 48h, and 72h after inoculation. With more time to grow, the bacteria should in theory produce more metabolites at each step. So if there is an antimicrobial effect, we should see an increase in intensity with an increase in metabolite concentration.

We finished up for the day by 3:00pm at which point I was craving a sweet treat. I went around the corner to Cafe Kaffe and tried the pie de limon and mixed berry tart, both were delicious!

It was time for lab class at 5:00pm and today we were doing more histology work, looking at bones and cartilage under the microscope. Just two more weeks to practice and study histology before our exam!

Trying to keep up the consistency, I went to the climbing gym after school. I was a bit too excited for the new set and tweaked the ring finger on my left hand again. Rest is the best, though it will be hard to go to the gym and do preventative exercises without climbing. We’ll see.

I ran to Lider just before close in search of glutinous rice flour. Unsuccessful. I was still able to get lots of good veggies. I went home and made mediterranean-style bowls with rice and meatballs and fresh hummus and veg.

Day 106 / June 11, 2026

By Thursday, Cathe, Catalina and I had found our groove. Catalina measured the plates from the day prior while Cathe and I plated the final round for the week, the 72h metabolite samples. 

After we wrapped up, I headed home to have a planning call with Tash, Alex, and Lily who will be visiting in July (just one month to go!!) we booked all of the necessary Airbnb’s, rental cars, and ran through a general plan together. I am SO excited!! :)))

I had a quick snack, then had the urge to go on a run. So out the door I went for a 4 mile jog east up Calle 3 Sur then back west down Avenida O’Higgins. I arrived home sufficiently worked and excited for a shower and bed.