Friends,

I just got in from a crazy 48 hours of travel (Montevideo- bus to Colonia- boat to Buenos Aires- plane to Santiago de Chile- plane to Toronto-plane to Denver –bus to Boulder) finally brought me home. This is my last update "from the road." Thanks for all of the support along the way; composing my thoughts to share the experiences with you somehow made them more comprehensible for me.

After a weekend of kayaking big water on the Rio Maipo, I attacked another week of interviews. Santiago was in full swing of spring with perfect weather. The week I was in the capital coincided with a renewable energy conference that was perfect for me to meet people in the field and get a grasp of the Chilean electricity market. The last night of the conference, I was invited at the last minute to a formal dinner with some of the attendees at the horse track private club. Without time to change (and with no nice clothes to change into), I crashed the dinner in fleece and backpack in tote (see pic).

I headed to the coast the next weekend to check out the famous "asensores" or elevators of the port town of Valparaiso. Two perfectly clear days made the trip well worth while. The graffiti around Valpo is better described as mural art. It is detailed and tackles surreal themes (see pic). I hit the town with some new hostel friends and found that the night life in Chile just gets started around one in the morning. I found myself in a 4 AM salsa class on a rooftop bar and slept until 1 the next day. I had time to take a bus north on the coast and walk along a rugged coast line full of fishing towns, sea lions, and Swiss-looking chalets overlooking the water.

Chile is like a misplaced European country. The people speak with a more Spanish accent, look European, do the double kiss on the cheeks, have 220-volt outlets with funky plugs, and have adopted the Spanish dinner hour of 10 PM. The Euro mullet still thrives here too. The countryside is probably different, but there was absolutely nothing third world about the cities I saw.

The next week in Buenos Aires also brought amazing spring weather with everything in bloom and light until 9 PM. I loved this city with its impressive statues, quaint cafes on cobblestone streets, and buzz that reminded me of New York City. I stayed with the sister of a friend from graduate school on the biggest street I have ever seen with nine lanes, all of which headed into town in the morning. The busy city has its drawbacks too, though. The cars and buses made it very noisy in most parts and there were 6,100 pedestrian deaths from crossing streets last year.

The weekend in Buenos Aires brought a dinner of amazing meat and a polo match. Most of the polo fans were from England and had come over for an important tournament. The sport of polo in Argentina is only for the privileged. And, often the players are of the same select families. The match I saw consisted of one team of only four brothers and the other team had two brothers.

I took a boat from Buenos Aires to Montevideo, Uruguay for two quick days of interviews in the capital. I found that even though it is just across the Rio de la Plata, the people of Uruguay are very different. The city had a provincial feel, and everyone from young to old toted thermoses of hot water and gourds full of loose mate leaves that they sip through silver straws with holes. This national drink is so prevalent that there was a sign in the city bus warning against drinking mate while in route so as not to injure oneself with the straw (see pic). Coffees also have a particular ceremony in Uruguay as they are always served with a shot of o.j. and water.

Queridos amigos, thanks for reading my ramblings of adventures (assuming you made it this far!). Now comes the less glamorous part of trying to make sense of all of my research and create a coherent dissertation and hopefully investor's guide to renewable energy project in Latin America. I will miss my days on the road, but a few exciting job leads make me think that it may not be too long before I am back down there.

Peace and good cheer this December. ¡Que les vayan bien! (May you go well on your journeys.)

Lizzie