Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Small differences

Life has changed somewhat for me, us rather, since we moved here. I mean, it's modern, it's a big city. There are nearly 6 million people living in Santiago. It's fast paced. I have everything that I could possibly need here. It's just different.

For one thing, we have chosen to live in an apartment building. I used to think of apartment buildings as 2 or 3 stories. (Except of course if you live in New York). But here in Chile, that is not the case. Ours is a shorter building, the floors go into the teens. Many of those around us are much taller.

When we go outside to play, it looks something like this. Sometimes we take the motos (motorcycle), sometimes we take other toys.


This elevator isn't very big. I'm glad it has a window. It keeps the kids occupied.


Both of my kids have been begging me for a dog. Why? Because it's in their nature. Don't all kids ask for dogs? Well, could you imagine trying to train the puppy to go outside? Grab the dog, wait for the elevator....... and then ride xx number of floors down, walk outside.... yeah right. The poor puppy would have already finished on your leg, in the hallway, and in the elevator. That would be horrible. But somehow, people do it. My kids want a dog so bad, they even pretend to be dogs. My brother and I used to do this too when we were little. Here is a picture of Alexa being a dog. She corrects me sometimes and tells me that she is a puppy, not Alexa. *sigh* So no. I don't want to even think about what life would be like with a dog in this apartment building.

I am not sure that I have even spoken about our incredibly small ovens. But here is a picture of mine. I was baking some muffins. And yes, it's just a little wider than a 12 count muffin pan. I have some larger bake ware, and some other things that won't even fit. It's also been fun trying to convert Fahrenheit temps to Celsius.


Another thing I've had to get used to is seeing an actual grocery cart inside my home. We use it to bring the groceries up from the parking area, which is below the building. I'm thankful for it, because it would be a pain to lug up so many bags, back and forth. It's just weird.

While on Twitter the other night, @themomjen was talking about Oreos. I was desperate for some, thinking that I wouldn't be able to get any here. When we went to the store, this is what I found. A small package of Oreos. I used the pen as a reference for size. They were very good.

Now, I'm not going to go into the milk again. I've already discussed that in another post all of it's own. So if you are interested in finding out why I don't eat cereal while I am here, please click on this link and read all about the kind of milk they have here.

One last little bit. We don't take the trash out. Anywhere. We have a trash shoot inside of our apartment. Sometimes I worry that when I open the door, someone from the floors above me will be dumping some garbage, and it will come into my apartment if I open the door. Probably not, but I don't really want to take that chance. I always open and close our door very quickly. And it always makes a loud noise when going down and banging and clanging it's way all the way down to the bottom. You can hear the noise of the people above you throwing out their garbage as well. It's just a bit weird.


So there you have it. A peek into my life. I will be here for another year.

10 comments:

Patrice said...

It's been awhile since i've been over here... love the new look! Very cute! :) That's cute your kids are acting like dogs lol we used to do that too! Good luck with everything, what a crazy change!

Blythe said...

When I was 3, we lived in Mexico City. I begged and begged and BEGGED for a dog, and finally my parents told me I could get one... when we moved back to the US. A year or so later I had a puppy. Evidently it was a long wait to 3-year-old me, but telling me I could have one, just in the future, helped a bit. You could try that with your kids, if you are a) planning to live in a house in the predictable future and b) if you actually want a dog...

Casey (@ Chaos and Cardboard) said...

I'm with you on the oven! The rest of the stuff not so much :) The only thing I can think is how much we will appreciate the states when we move back.

Melissa said...

Kendra's been asking for a dog too. It's for sure a kid thing. I never had to ask for one, cause we always had one when I was a kid. I'd love to get a dog for the kids, but that won't be for another few years.

They have small ovens like that in Europe as well. A friend of mine just married a Belgian guy, and has moved over there, and she's been really frustrated with teeny tiny appliances.

Too funny about the grocery cart! That's a good idea though.

Yah, that would be nasty if someone's garbage from above fell on your head! LOL!

Laural Out Loud said...

Our apartment in Brasil is on the 14th floor. It was really weird for me to get used to all the tall apartment buildings, too. Seems so normal now!

Is that your own personal shopping cart, or do you share with the building? Lol.

I'm so jealous of your garbage shute! I'd love to have that.

Angie's Spot said...

Wow, that oven is something else! And I can't imagine having a garbage chute right there in my apartment. I'm not sure I would be as adaptable to living in a foreign country as you are. I'm impressed! :-)

Melissa ♥ Spoiled Mommy said...

wow-thats crazy but funny!
sorry my love...you should do that about more of the differences.

Sybila said...

Hi Les;
Loved the photos, especially the one of Alexa being a puppy.
Didn't realize the oven was so small. Looks like it bakes unevenly too. ?
The American Express folks sent me a one hundred dollar gift to apply on my next Coach purchase of 300 or more dollars--for Mother's day, maybe they will send you one too. I will keep an eye out for it.
Time to take your car for a spin--you have a spider web in your antenae. Vicki pointed it out to us today.
Love ya;
Mom

Caitlin said...

Aw, love the pics of the kiddos!! We miss them and you too! :-) Wow, that is interesting how different it is down there! That is pretty funny about the garbage shoot thing! LOL!
Hugs to you all!
Cait

Amy W said...

I wish I had a trash chute in my house! It sounds heavenly to just open a little door, drop it in and then it is just gone forever.... :)

Good luck riding out the puppy craze!