Lauren: Onemi meeting video.

Below is the viral internet video of the Onemi meeting (think FEMA, but in Chile) immediately after the 8.8 earthquake on Feb. 27.

This video captures the breakdown in communication between the Navy, Shoa, Onemi, and the former-President Michelle Bachelet, who is shown saying she received intel from the Navy that there was no threat of a tsunami in Constitucion. Carmen Fernandez, the former head of Onemi who left the position days later, is shown saying that scientifically there was no threat of tsunami. Clearly, someone was misinformed.

There were about 350 deaths in Constitucion as a result of Feb. 27 earthquake and following tsunamis and flooding of the Maule river in Constitucion, and when I left there were still about 90 "disappearances," people whose bodies hadn't been found but were still missing. This was over a month after the earthquake. The waves of the tsunami were said to be about 10-11 meters tall.

The video is a pretty clear illustration of the chaos and breakdown in communication after the earthquake.

-- Lauren

Aneya & Lauren: Bars.

Aneya: Here's the Clinic, with their tiny sign.
Aneya: Inside the Clinic, cool colors and wall art.
Aneya: Retro bras and panties are draped over all the lamps.
Aneya: Wacky doll heads hang above the bar.
Aneya: The lovely Bar Cathedral.
Aneya: The tiny Bar El Diablito.
Aneya: Inside El Diablo.
Aneya: The delicious Victorino, with their funky off center mirror.
Aneya: Bajo Llave, which looks like a house, but is in fact, a cool underground bar.
Aneya: And, finally, the always lovely Cafe Escondido.

Lauren: Since it's the weekend (almost) Aneya and I decided to share some of our favorite places to hang out on the weekends (or weekdays) and get a drink. These are a few bars, pubs, and restaurants that are within walking distance of our apartment and are excellent. All these bars are either in Barrio Lastarria or Bellas Artes.

Aneya: We figure if anyone reading this lives in Santiago, we'd give them a heads up on cool places in the area. If not, you guys can read (and click on the links) to check out all the cool bars and restaurants we've discovered in our almost 4 months of living here.

Bar The Clinic--

Lauren: If I owned a bar, I would want it to look a lot like this. It has retro adverts, literary quotes written in cursive on the ceiling, an adorable patio with trees and Christmas lights outside , and the decor is black, white, and red -- like our apartment. The drink selection here is really impressive, with pages devoted only to their variety of reds and they have nice dinners, but excellent lunches. Aneya and I went here for lunch the other day and got their fixed menu which is probably better than their dinners. They also own a super anti-government, popular newspaper, have a lounge upstairs, and own a nearby boutique.

Aneya: The Clinic is just too cool for school, man. Everything about it, the hidden sign, the long hallway leading to the pleasant patio (complete with fountain and outside bar) to the quirky, old fashioned lingerie hanging from the lamps. It's just a damn cool place, completely retro and sophisticated. It's a local hangout for businessmen, whether it be 12 noon or 12am, the place is always packed. It definitely has a better lunch than dinner, lots of cocktails and a great wine selection.

Catedral--

Lauren: This place is amazing. It has really wonderful food, and excellent atmosphere. Low lighting, and green-wood paneled walls give it a very cool ambiance. I had probably the best caprese sandwich I've ever had here. Good mixed drink and wine selection, this place has a huge bar. After about 10 p.m. (when everyone starts to have dinner) they have live music on a decent stage, and you have to walk up a winding staircase to get to the restaurant which is on the second floor, giving it the feeling of being kind of hidden.

Aneya: Another great find, just a block or two away from our apartment. A long, winding staircase leads to upstairs (there are three levels) which features a nice big bar, and a stage, for the live music they have every night. Great food selection, and drinks, as always, are divine.

El Diablito--

Lauren: I love this place. They have all sorts of vintage gadgets stuck on the walls, with old photos, and the walls are clearly the walls of a building that have been torn down so that their frame is exposed and chotchkies sit on the wooden beams. They have appetizers, but this place has a really good beer selection. This was where I found one of my new favorite beers, Paceña. It is small and a bit cramped though, but super cute and the majority of people who go here seem to be college kids.

Aneya:I haven't actually been to this one, but we did go inside the other day so I could take pictures, and it looks super funky and cool. Old pictures of Marilyn Monroe and the Beatles hanging from the walls, exposed beams and cool gadgets are everywhere. It's super tiny though, so get there early before all the good spots are taken!

Victorino--

Lauren: Aneya and I love this place. It's cute, with a patio and upstairs area, little wooden tables, and amazing food. I got the chicken rissoto, but substituted the chicken for mushrooms and had the first wild mushrooms in months. I feel like they were morel, but I could be mistaken. Whatever they were, they were tasty and mushrooms so naturally this place was an instant love for me. It's really small, and cute, with dark blue lighting. The one thing I hate about this place is that the smoking section seems to be every section, and I feel like I can't taste my food beyond the smoky air.

Aneya: We found this place on one of our many strolls through Lastrarria and instantly loved it. We shared a bottle of white wine (super cheap) and I had camembert crab ravioli, which may sound disgusting but is in fact delicious! Yes, people do smoke everywhere, it's hard to avoid here. This is a great place for dinner and drinks, at any hour.

Bajo Llave--

Lauren: Literally meaning "low key" you have to walk down the stairs of what feels like someone's house before finding this place. It's in a stone basement, and really feels hidden. Although the pictures on this website show a well-lit place, it's really dimly lit and has a very intimate setting.

Aneya: This place is really cool, but kinda scary. You're walking into what looks like someone's house, and there's no light in the staircase, leading down to the bar. But once you get there, it feels like you're in a cave. An awesome cave, with loveseats and a bar and cool art hung on the walls. Not to mention you're underground! They make a nice, strong tequila sunrise, too.

Cafe Escondido--

Lauren: Cafe Escondido had to be someone's house at one time. It's tucked away in the corner of a small residential area down a narrow cobblestone street and you can eat in the different rooms of the house. Upstairs is the smoking section, which I'm increasingly discovering seems to be the rule around here, but the small coral-colored rooms are very intimate. Great wine and beer and the apitizers are great. Aneya and I shared a delicious potato tortilla and cheese, pickle, olive platter which was fantastic.

Aneya: Oh, this was definitely someone's house. You can tell because when you go to the bathroom, you not only get toilets, but a shower as well! That's an odd thing to see in a restaurant. But in any case, this place has great music, good food, and cheap bottles of wine. And it's tucked away (right next to Bajo Llave) in a cute little residential street.

And these are only a few of the countless bars tucked away in our city. There are many more to discover, I'm sure. But this is what we've found so far. Not bad, huh?

-- Aneya & Lauren

Aneya: Old People Party

The other day I was invited to the birthday party of someone in the over 40 crowd. I was curious, what would this party be like? Would it be subdued, people sitting around eating, maybe a glass of wine, some light conversation? I had no idea. But I was about to find out.

My friend who invited me informed me that "it was a boring party, just a bunch of old people" but that we would go, make an appearance, and we could leave if it was no fun. I obliged. But now I was nervous. Was I gonna be introduced to bunch of skeptical relatives? Was I going to have to make conversation....in Spanish? Oh Dios no! I was getting nervous now. We had a previous engagement, to see a friend in a band perform, so we were there until maybe 12:30 when we decided to leave. I was exhausted already, and now this? Crashing an old relative's party at 1 am? This couldn't be good....

We got to the house and the music was blaring, we could hear it from down the street! Cars lined the sidewalk, and we knocked but no one heard us it was so loud. It was a small house, filled to the brim with people, most of them over 50 and dancing their socks off! The impromptu dance party was in the living room, outside was the barbecue and in the kitchen a 10 year old was making cocktails for the crowd. I couldn't believe it. Everyone was super friendly and nice, giving me a besos on the cheek and asking about me (my friend told me "you're like their new toy!")

At one point a man came out with a carving board with cut up meat on it, asking me to take one. With what? My bare hands? I did, not knowing where to put it. There was no plates, no silverware, nothing. Just the meat in your hand. That's a Chilean bbq for you! Take the meat, pop it in your mouth, and you're done with it!

After a few piscomangos I was ready to dance, and we joined the crowd, shaking it to salsa beats, old school American classics and the occasional. reggaeton song. I was having so much fun, I couldn't get over how laid back and relaxed everyone was. They were all smoking, most people were on their 5th piscocola and yet- they were going strong, creating a samba line at one point and getting low for the "Twist and Shout".

Even the 10 year old was still in the middle of the dance floor, by the time we left, at 3 am. I later heard that the party went on until 10 the next day. Oh and it had started at 9 pm. You do the math. It was honestly the most fun I've had at a party since I've been here. And most of the people there were twice my age, maybe more! In any case, I will never again question whether Chileans know how to have a good time. At any age, these people know how to party.

Aneya & Lauren: La Cueca.

Aneya: So many people! This is the dance floor at the cueca festival, but you really can't tell who's dancing and who's standing around watching. You can spot some of the men in the ponchos and flat hats.
Aneya: For those who found the dancefloor too constricting- there's always outside! People were cueca-ing anywhere they could! These two were especially cute.
Aneya: The band was incredibly loud, but the people seemed to love every song they played.
Aneya: Daniela got her own cueca handkerchief! She's ready to dance!
Aneya: Not a very good shot, but this is an example of one of the many beautiful dresses the women had on. Check out the guy next to her in the hat!
Aneya: Oh my god, these kids were too cute! Check out how intensely he's looking at her!

Lauren: There's this dance here that is considered Chile's national dance called the cueca. It's a traditional dance from the countryside where people wave handkerchiefs in the air and circle each other, replicating the mating dance between a rooster and a hen. Everyone is taught how to cueca in grade school.

Aneya: We saw Daniela's amazing Aunt and Uncle perform the cueca on tango night. It's such a fun dance, the couple eyeing each other seductively as they circle each other, the women waving their white handkerchiefs, the men stomping their feet with pride. It's a dance with attitude, and I like that.

Lauren: We recently went to this bicentennial cueca marathon in a park far away, we had to take the train, but when we got there everyone, everyone, everyone was cueca-ing. The goal was to get to 1,000 cuecas and I thought surely they would not be able to reach that goal. But by the time we got there they had already done 820-something. The other 180 seemed pretty obtainable by that time.

Aneya: The cueca festival was crazy! So many people walking through the park, where artisinal stands had been set up, selling everything from popcorn and chocolate to jewerly, woodwork,jams, books, toys, posters and of course, the traditional white handkerchief. It was a a Sunday and lots of kids and families were making their way through the crowds, eager to see the dancers perform.

Lauren: The songs are short, only lasting about 1-2 minutes each. Usually men wear traditional flat waso hats with a poncho and cowboy boots. Women wear these really fancy dresses with some kind of ruffly something underneath, and the dance usually starts with the "exhibition" where dancers show the audience their partner. When the singing stops, you lock arms with your dance partner to show that you've "chosen" them. Below is a cueca, courtesy of YouTube.

Aneya: I love love love the outfits! I want to wear those dresses everyday! The women all looked beautiful, even the little girls were all dolled up for the occasion, their skirts enormous, their hair in elegant updos. The men were in ponchos and those funny flat hats. It was a sight to see. Afterwards we walked over to the food tent, which consisted of hunks of meat on a stick (enormous hunks, I couldn't even finish all of mine) and a terremoto- a dangerous drink of pineapple ice cream and leftover wine called pipeno. After one of those, I almost started an impromptu cueca dance myself!

-- Aneya & Lauren

Aneya & Lauren: Curly Hair in Chile.

Lauren and I, showing off our fabulous curls.

Aneya: Having naturally curly hair is both a burden and a blessing. It's a handful to work with, it gets knotty and tangly within minutes, you can't run your hands through it, and you can only brush it when it's wet. It's also something many women envy, and pay good money to obtain.

Lauren: That's the truth. It can really be a pain. If someone tries to touch or brush it, it is just painful, but curly hair can just add a lot to someone's face. I feel like my crazy, knotty hair is an extension of my personality if that makes sense. I just don't look like myself without my frizzy head of hair. Aneya and I are among the group of women who have curly hair and embrace it.

Aneya: Then there's the other women. The ones that shun their curls, and spend hours painstakingly straightening their hair every morning. This is such a common thing in the States, you'll hear many women say "Oh, I have naturally curly hair, but it looks horrible that way." Well that's kind of an insult to those who wear their curls loud and proud. But that's the States for you. Whatever's in, is what's important. Right now, for instance, Hollywood is going through the "Miley Cyrus" wave, which is so fake looking it kills me.

Lauren: I know more about straighteners than I do about any other product just because I've had so many friends who have straightened or wanted to straighten my hair. There's the ceramic-plated ones, which are said not to burn your hair as much, the "gold"-plated ones. Women in the States will spend hours (and loads of money) trying to take the kink out of their hair.

Aneya: Here in Chile, Lauren and I have already noted the lack of vanity. Yes, there are women who wear lots of makeup and do crazy things with their hair. But the majority of women go au naturale, and the same goes with their hair. I've seen more dark curly hair here than anywhere in the U.S. And it's really quite pleasing to see. You'll see long, natural waves, short, tight curls, a mixture of both. The comforting thing is that you know it's all natural, and they are embracing what God gave them. I like that.

Lauren: There something about curly hair that forms a kinship between people, at least women for sure. It was something that Aneya and I instantly bonded over when we first met (Oh, the Daily Forty-Niner). You know that the person goes through some grueling morning routine, that no man will ever be able her touch her hair without her wincing or grimacing, and that she still would rather embrace what God gave her rather than create an artificial look.

Here in Chile there are so many women with curly hair, and I love it. For me it means 1.) I will be able to go to a hairdresser that knows how to "work with" curly hair and 2.) there are a litany of curly-hair products. Both those things are so hard to come by in the U.S. If you have curly hair and go to get your hair cut, the hairdresser always wants to straighten it or cut it for a straight look because that's what's popular.

Aneya: People here are just more relaxed about everything, including their hair, it's almost a relief, really. Coming from L.A., where everyone looks perfect and put together all the time, you feel pressure to look a certain way too. There were times when I wished my hair was more "normal" or easier to maintain. But then I think about the women, especially black women, who spend thousands of dollars and countless hours getting weaves put in just to have hair like mine. And that's when I realize how lucky I am. Cause it's all natural, baby. No chemicals, no weaves, no fake, curling iron ringlets. Just what's on my head. And that's good enough for me.

Lauren: There's definitely no pressure from anyone to change how your hair is here. So many women embrace their curl it actually feels liberating.

-- Aneya & Lauren

Lauren: Chivalry.

There are so many ways that Chile resembles 1950s America that really bother Aneya and I, which we've gone into a bit (people smoke everywhere, men decide how much and what you drink), but there is a bright side to this. Men are chivalrous, much more than in the United States.

Here are some examples of things men do that would never happen in the U.S.:

-- Men always hold your hand, helping you down out of the large charter buses (not so much out of the speeding municipal ones).

-- If a man sees you carrying groceries he will definitely help you carry them, even just holding them in the elevator for you.

-- A man never sets foot in an elevator if there's a woman waiting to get on. I would almost think this was a law or something because I have never seen a man get on an elevator before a woman. It doesn't matter if a man is carrying furniture, 80 years old, holding your groceries, anything. If you are in line for the elevator, he will definitely wait for you to get on first.

-- At times, men will help you cross the street, no matter what your age is.

-- AND they always hold the door open for women.

It is really sweet and something you definitely don't see as much in the States.

-- Lauren

Aneya: Seasons in the Southern Hemisphere

Let's hope our apartment never looks like this.

Obviously Lauren and I knew that, moving to Chile, we'd be in the Southern Hemisphere, and the seasons would be reversed. I've been to Australia multiple times, so I've experienced this firsthand. The craziest weather in Sydney was on Christmas day. It was so hot, we spent it at the beach! On New Year's Eve I was in a tiny little dress, walking along the Sydney Harbour with thousands of others in bikinis and shorts. It was surreal. Now, I never actually lived in Australia, and as I've come to realize living in a new country is a completely different experience that visiting.

We got to Chile at the end of January, on possibly the hottest day of the year. It was scorching, Lauren and I were sweating profusely under our layers of clothing, coming from rainy, cold L.A. That in-itself was a shock. The heat was humid, like in New York, and our hostel had no air-conditioning and was unbelievably loud. We were officially in hell. Of course, things got better. We moved into our lovely apartment, the weather (sort of) cooled down. And yet. For months, it remained so hot that taking a leisurely stroll resulted in a need for shade and a glass of water. I was kind of liking it though. Lauren and I are both Southern California girls, and we love sunshine. The nights started getting cooler and then suddenly, one day, everything changed.

I understood that we were supposed to be getting into "fall". The leaves were falling from the trees, the colors were changing. And it yet, the weather seemed to go from extremely hot to downright freezing. Suddenly, we were closing our windows, pulling out the blankets, trying desperately to get our heaters to work. The change was so drastic, and so sudden, neither of us were prepared. I'd brought with me probably 10 dresses and 4 sweaters, (what can I say? I like to be prepared for any occasion) and I was getting sick of wearing the same thing every day. So we both had to go shopping, for winter wear (a welcome activity, for me anyway).

Lauren and I are both cry babies when it comes to the cold. You'll see us now, curled up in a blanket, cup of tea and book in hand, not wanting to move an inch, savoring the warmth. And it's not even that cold! Actually, we can't tell how cold it is, because everything is in Celsius, and therefore sounds even worse than it is. "It's gonna be 9 degrees tomorrow!" Lauren informs me. "9?! What does that mean?!" (It in fact means around 48 degrees Fahrenheit, not that bad. But still cold!).

Our apartment seems to be way colder than outside, for some reason. We're both quite worried, because apparently this is nothing. It's gonna get colder. Way colder. And we are so not prepared. Lauren especially has been freaking out, saying things such as "I can't live like this!" and "I'm gonna die!" I keep telling her, "We have to adapt! It will all be fine, we'll get used to it." Here's hoping we survive the winter, and that we do indeed, get used to it. Because I get the feeling we'll go into hibernation otherwise.