tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-141874852024-03-06T23:03:02.611-08:00Maiken's BlogMaikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-28990138438323821712012-02-27T13:57:00.001-08:002012-02-27T13:57:38.436-08:00<OBJECT classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9" WIDTH="600px" HEIGHT="200px"> <PARAM NAME="movie" VALUE="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?rt=tf_cw&ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fmoellerhansen-20%2F8010%2F90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate"><PARAM NAME="quality" VALUE="high"><PARAM NAME="bgcolor" VALUE="#FFFFFF"><PARAM NAME="allowscriptaccess" VALUE="always"><embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?rt=tf_cw&ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fmoellerhansen-20%2F8010%2F90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="200px" width="600px"></embed></OBJECT> <NOSCRIPT><A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?rt=tf_cw&ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fmoellerhansen-20%2F8010%2F90c5dd08-b632-4658-b3f5-ec9d8bff07e9&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A></NOSCRIPT>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-25616704546174934202011-03-10T15:15:00.001-08:002011-03-10T15:15:33.088-08:00<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003P2QCE8/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=moellerhansen-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003P2QCE8">SCRABBLE</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=moellerhansen-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B003P2QCE8" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-61477270324023085202011-02-25T10:10:00.001-08:002011-02-25T10:10:51.470-08:00Yo Word Search<iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=moellerhansen-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B004EVRX1A&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="width:120px;height:240px;" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0"></iframe>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-39598829846886237342011-02-25T09:39:00.000-08:002011-02-25T09:40:15.952-08:00Test Post 2!<iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=moellerhansen-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B004FPZ2KY&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="width:120px;height:240px;" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0"></iframe>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-47766001151424252272011-02-25T09:37:00.000-08:002011-02-25T09:38:27.371-08:00Test Post!<iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=moellerhansen-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B004EP3040&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="width:120px;height:240px;" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0"></iframe>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-44144572821128634002007-08-13T11:06:00.000-07:002007-08-13T19:20:17.542-07:00San Pedro de AtacamaLike a whirlwind my time in Chile is coming to an end and I realize that I have not been keeping up with my postings - shame on me! I am actually flying back to the US today, but fearing that things will get even more chaotic once I get there I have decided to at least post a few pictures.<br /><br />This first set is from a weekend trip to "the driest place on earth" the Atacama desert, situated about 1,300KM north of Santiago. Atacama was on my "must visit" list for Chile and I was not disappointed -- it is for sure the most interesting place I have been to in Chile. Why? I guess because it is a kind of landscape I have never seen anywhere else - although truthfully it is not one landscape, but rather a series of amazingly diverse and unique landscapes all located within ~100KM of the little town of San Pedro. I would have liked to have spent 4-5 days here in order to see them all, but alas this is a working stay! But we did get to see quite a few and below are some of the highlights:<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JopNutRW9GXt20sWi7Y-3kGn7xthaa6X9vd9caCF652t0aH9SmXIHMKCqyBxxqBCGZrmGs562_IhNv4jgIUAfP54JfuwKRC4e0hnveskaZfVg9wbr-CQD0V5PYrB2mVyX7w8/s1600-h/Library+-+0018.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JopNutRW9GXt20sWi7Y-3kGn7xthaa6X9vd9caCF652t0aH9SmXIHMKCqyBxxqBCGZrmGs562_IhNv4jgIUAfP54JfuwKRC4e0hnveskaZfVg9wbr-CQD0V5PYrB2mVyX7w8/s400/Library+-+0018.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098252139401048946" border="0" /></a>The church in San Pedro, notice the detached bell tower something they used to do in this region to respect local customs of female/masculine deities.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYVdRISHdIOkFOE0uNS9OTqQgMj6I2ji3OFAKv6NiM9K5ajqtlJIknjR8_uboswmPvbOqaKIsnJEVo9L2ui3J3z9a5xQDifix5_6gKDXcK_sLxsm12QZ_9uks0B4oJkCFr7-u/s1600-h/Library+-+0036.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYVdRISHdIOkFOE0uNS9OTqQgMj6I2ji3OFAKv6NiM9K5ajqtlJIknjR8_uboswmPvbOqaKIsnJEVo9L2ui3J3z9a5xQDifix5_6gKDXcK_sLxsm12QZ_9uks0B4oJkCFr7-u/s400/Library+-+0036.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098252147990983554" border="0" /></a>Salar de Atacama -- a lagoon in the middle of a salt field.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKP9JVhtopwRNnI93uk0fl7-UYF76LdmMX3Ak3MnKlDiqiZ2fo0wOFmGRj_kbawhMKlovI8xFIZnKs-ku90YMXsQO8NKqQ6kzQtdvndJG0JZMe3UvWgVVVCNk92aH8ZKylToE/s1600-h/Library+-+0047.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKP9JVhtopwRNnI93uk0fl7-UYF76LdmMX3Ak3MnKlDiqiZ2fo0wOFmGRj_kbawhMKlovI8xFIZnKs-ku90YMXsQO8NKqQ6kzQtdvndJG0JZMe3UvWgVVVCNk92aH8ZKylToE/s400/Library+-+0047.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098252156580918162" border="0" /></a>Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfq_jga5KGg6a-jYFZJQlPA7e0lBajizlPYTB5swsn7_uZotsuxQ8fdLb8dxou4zEzActxnUqi0ODMJ_vVXBlvH3N0MFBGo35So0aby-igFoo1J8nstisxdJHcSjQX9sbedh3/s1600-h/Library+-+0072.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfq_jga5KGg6a-jYFZJQlPA7e0lBajizlPYTB5swsn7_uZotsuxQ8fdLb8dxou4zEzActxnUqi0ODMJ_vVXBlvH3N0MFBGo35So0aby-igFoo1J8nstisxdJHcSjQX9sbedh3/s400/Library+-+0072.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098252173760787362" border="0" /></a>Valle de la Luna Sunset.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5-oC87UOtzqxKzSPiLpxVKwYKeGdjLdGDXwQJK1l9IWl5TGkJP6p8n-Um8htvs9hemkVLdk7iuIPFx6Tu5OTmkF0xjYhpJ1nmT03ZaUuNdV9_96YleeNnQNm_MJiU9DZ7N44/s1600-h/Library+-+0121.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5-oC87UOtzqxKzSPiLpxVKwYKeGdjLdGDXwQJK1l9IWl5TGkJP6p8n-Um8htvs9hemkVLdk7iuIPFx6Tu5OTmkF0xjYhpJ1nmT03ZaUuNdV9_96YleeNnQNm_MJiU9DZ7N44/s400/Library+-+0121.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098252190940656562" border="0" /></a>Atacama Cacti.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdSx2z6p7hciMIMzj6272SltGJXV5iyFE02OY7foABXgppHoAONlVKGE8FB1NjAPvhw_8KJa1eJ2MPN9Yq5bI4vtSUmIDKeevEjvTeMswZjZB7jZ5rZx7OBUkSQfOa5eSIjVB/s1600-h/Library+-+0044.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdSx2z6p7hciMIMzj6272SltGJXV5iyFE02OY7foABXgppHoAONlVKGE8FB1NjAPvhw_8KJa1eJ2MPN9Yq5bI4vtSUmIDKeevEjvTeMswZjZB7jZ5rZx7OBUkSQfOa5eSIjVB/s400/Library+-+0044.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098255914677302210" border="0" /></a>Team Endeavor at a local San Pedro hot spot - they had a huge open fireplace so for once it was actually hot -- this is at the end of the day that we began at 6AM, minus 12 Celcius, at 4,300 meters in order to see a geyser field at its sunrise best.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiao5juT9tqR-mmWpEpqSdDxGBWpHLd1KuFORvupWyq-jWXBHrbjPjPdBVYQFggDa_NszY4jlpB-zAYhZcejQ3_hFr1SCzP-dG2rj7QUhXQf4AXNL2kBkFZ5GZFegOdDZ-OCPEO/s1600-h/Library+-+0117.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiao5juT9tqR-mmWpEpqSdDxGBWpHLd1KuFORvupWyq-jWXBHrbjPjPdBVYQFggDa_NszY4jlpB-zAYhZcejQ3_hFr1SCzP-dG2rj7QUhXQf4AXNL2kBkFZ5GZFegOdDZ-OCPEO/s400/Library+-+0117.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098255936152138706" border="0" /></a>Entering Valle de Marte or Muerte...<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEP6j9AVu_GdQDUvKCi4976y38cHS_ORcZOGyJizbGBi9LAkfkuOz-cDQ5CqqmdUaUKlyDfGTTkh5E1s2c9AkhDjFLR2Yj8_78ZasD4J6sVWi6tIEIk9vwV-I-GWtwZhWmRouH/s1600-h/Library+-+0140.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEP6j9AVu_GdQDUvKCi4976y38cHS_ORcZOGyJizbGBi9LAkfkuOz-cDQ5CqqmdUaUKlyDfGTTkh5E1s2c9AkhDjFLR2Yj8_78ZasD4J6sVWi6tIEIk9vwV-I-GWtwZhWmRouH/s400/Library+-+0140.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098255953332007906" border="0" /></a>Beautiful views everywhere<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT0MCIdjq0BKBo0Icab6jOQ8yaJzGLF18HF0PPs3mIFYue5xu_ggvuh6HC5KdMKVUnFKSFhdHZyLcoOEjSlAKtveuWjo4w4DLKyBcVvX95-8NnSTIr19zea3mDyCPMxPyNJ7R3/s1600-h/Library+-+0135.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT0MCIdjq0BKBo0Icab6jOQ8yaJzGLF18HF0PPs3mIFYue5xu_ggvuh6HC5KdMKVUnFKSFhdHZyLcoOEjSlAKtveuWjo4w4DLKyBcVvX95-8NnSTIr19zea3mDyCPMxPyNJ7R3/s400/Library+-+0135.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098255966216909810" border="0" /></a>Local friends: Llamas!<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBJRSWwa7jrHZKJJcwS8fikfje9R3NeuenSCCJvld1B0pBRyIo60Q8n_jSxGsz2PWaViCMJ0QHSA2xgw9BUiKD3agUjuFCHpJqhpY1l4dMoiX8VRJYdFFafZGjl14D5kUpz3Ie/s1600-h/Library+-+0009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBJRSWwa7jrHZKJJcwS8fikfje9R3NeuenSCCJvld1B0pBRyIo60Q8n_jSxGsz2PWaViCMJ0QHSA2xgw9BUiKD3agUjuFCHpJqhpY1l4dMoiX8VRJYdFFafZGjl14D5kUpz3Ie/s400/Library+-+0009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098255979101811714" border="0" /></a>Leaving the valley on Sunday night we had one of the most beautiful sunsets i have ever seen - unfortunately taking pictures out of the window of a moving bus doesn't really work that well.Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-55252266902178815242007-07-21T14:40:00.000-07:002007-07-21T15:15:44.976-07:00Elqui Valley & La Serena<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKo5q_-mucmFPVF2HjuICs3ZAsba-doINwqmdpgcpZOymEahsoXt92lfGB6aMDn7J0DsXsSTfAdB8CqK8CaYCRGRHYNCWM1Sdde-lUN0p9zZGllRAR91QU9AiYr2Xn8SQVdYax/s1600-h/Library+-+0081.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKo5q_-mucmFPVF2HjuICs3ZAsba-doINwqmdpgcpZOymEahsoXt92lfGB6aMDn7J0DsXsSTfAdB8CqK8CaYCRGRHYNCWM1Sdde-lUN0p9zZGllRAR91QU9AiYr2Xn8SQVdYax/s400/Library+-+0081.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089773079389795154" border="0" /></a><br />Monday the 16th was another public holiday in Chile, meaning time for another trip! This time a road trip about 500KM north of Santiago to the coastal town of La Serena and to the Elqui Valley, known for its "spiritual energies", observatories and hippies! The latter in particular won my heart over, because it reminded my of all the crazy, happy people back in Berkeley and because it was everything that grey-clad Santiago is not. Elqui Valley, and in particular its little main town Pisco Elqui are now officially my favorite places in Chile :)<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIq22AcHhbDsHI9kZwEhImUtULd1uC8gGg89rY8JtQ0omTaXRzrWEoPKE1ev1d6G4A1DRQaf8JbU4esSdY0bMkFnvEx65OFLupK4ZZO0Y_5OJsA9yy8Pn_AWGN__EdFWvzhAF/s1600-h/Library+-+0087.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIq22AcHhbDsHI9kZwEhImUtULd1uC8gGg89rY8JtQ0omTaXRzrWEoPKE1ev1d6G4A1DRQaf8JbU4esSdY0bMkFnvEx65OFLupK4ZZO0Y_5OJsA9yy8Pn_AWGN__EdFWvzhAF/s400/Library+-+0087.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089773083684762466" border="0" /></a>Entering Elqui Valley<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48YBCxfwl9Kbf8ErDPM14IsS8WoMN4oekEPro1lvJiBj4jZ_OEdha9KsHERHzen6NEUFz6xvwcFBeOenCpgjdMcLhPu4a4v2PhQpveMgiShIm-Ey74y5O8bAnbmFN95QmXGB6/s1600-h/Library+-+0075.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48YBCxfwl9Kbf8ErDPM14IsS8WoMN4oekEPro1lvJiBj4jZ_OEdha9KsHERHzen6NEUFz6xvwcFBeOenCpgjdMcLhPu4a4v2PhQpveMgiShIm-Ey74y5O8bAnbmFN95QmXGB6/s400/Library+-+0075.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089772482389340978" border="0" /></a>Tololo Observatory<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXZ9fZL68JU4v0jeZ7CUWTVTJ-SXqBabqr41Oy7-HGb2P0UIENdNKBpoUow-PlSqbvwJsPiuEUprjVAjOPsjsp-gRkkKH6LxkiIwODBn0jxSOJmMvINXtA-gpVkTwppc7Cr16C/s1600-h/Library+-+0078.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXZ9fZL68JU4v0jeZ7CUWTVTJ-SXqBabqr41Oy7-HGb2P0UIENdNKBpoUow-PlSqbvwJsPiuEUprjVAjOPsjsp-gRkkKH6LxkiIwODBn0jxSOJmMvINXtA-gpVkTwppc7Cr16C/s400/Library+-+0078.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089772486684308290" border="0" /></a>Gema, Carlos and our gem of a miniature rental car<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggaEzUAptyNa5XfJZLGPstdxQbuvwAi_T5g79Qd1kS7riFd_mDtcGMokcglCzTEpsj-K8akltdYSPjEKuj8TTNsuA73KMgAdTLchvcAqzlWxr2Nxkjjnvoh5mGUvTp3voBbD28/s1600-h/Library+-+0063.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggaEzUAptyNa5XfJZLGPstdxQbuvwAi_T5g79Qd1kS7riFd_mDtcGMokcglCzTEpsj-K8akltdYSPjEKuj8TTNsuA73KMgAdTLchvcAqzlWxr2Nxkjjnvoh5mGUvTp3voBbD28/s400/Library+-+0063.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089772473799406370" border="0" /></a>View from Tololo<br /></div><br />The Elqui Valley is famous for its very dark and clear skies and is thus home to several international observatories. These are only open for visits during the day, as they are used for research at night, nonetheless we decided to tour one of them, Tololo, and the tour was well worth it for the beautiful views provided from the top of the mountain that the observatory is located on. At night we did visit the small Mammalluca observatory that has been built especially for tourist visitors, so we did get the chance to enjoy extraordinarily clear views of the milky way, the southern cross and even 4 of Jupiter's moons!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-AzrwoNkzPUyXsD3lwH6vMJssKXYNLpebWSAtW-Z3Aq4HFdycy0bJnYbC3-BWg57Eyfpx2kwlbFWlo3HNBT2E8XLUgbdrkzUA7kpf6WdqUst-hN1R9VUblSjipS5HAkoxFwpQ/s1600-h/Library+-+0029.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-AzrwoNkzPUyXsD3lwH6vMJssKXYNLpebWSAtW-Z3Aq4HFdycy0bJnYbC3-BWg57Eyfpx2kwlbFWlo3HNBT2E8XLUgbdrkzUA7kpf6WdqUst-hN1R9VUblSjipS5HAkoxFwpQ/s400/Library+-+0029.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089772469504439058" border="0" /></a><br />We spent a bit of time (unfortunately not enough!) hiking around the valley during the day as well, enjoying the views and the dry desert colors that just kept getting better as the day came to a close.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBXzHC6oQtRsrfD2ItgzGXUJNdAv6huedCh1atASFFCxJa_c9C1cBNhEoccrIKaS6MueCf56MsErKGe599YwpwQNPYdd2wapO5CgEdh3b72WfIvAttLFUtdis_vCCOn1eeQ8IA/s1600-h/Library+-+0027.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBXzHC6oQtRsrfD2ItgzGXUJNdAv6huedCh1atASFFCxJa_c9C1cBNhEoccrIKaS6MueCf56MsErKGe599YwpwQNPYdd2wapO5CgEdh3b72WfIvAttLFUtdis_vCCOn1eeQ8IA/s400/Library+-+0027.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089772465209471746" border="0" /></a>Sunset<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqOwGHg-sN-PvPOdqxqLmNqtNCJjYruSm99akBf0Dmu8h_ockNkz4IxpKnyv6Qehx6cHqXYXbrX1LaRw3cMcTEPcEpSFnX-c5AL9hzImyUmv_b0C6olIUGHHil6_VS-OEyWoL/s1600-h/Library+-+0024.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqOwGHg-sN-PvPOdqxqLmNqtNCJjYruSm99akBf0Dmu8h_ockNkz4IxpKnyv6Qehx6cHqXYXbrX1LaRw3cMcTEPcEpSFnX-c5AL9hzImyUmv_b0C6olIUGHHil6_VS-OEyWoL/s400/Library+-+0024.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089771524611633906" border="0" /></a>First stars are coming out, if you find Venus in this picture you win a prize!<br /></div><br />Finally, The Elqui Valley is also known as the home of Pisco (the spirit), so we did go on the obligatory tour of the Capel Pisco distillery and had the distinct pleasure of making friends with Ruperto, Capel's token pisco donkey... (more pictures of that may follow later).<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8HUcfFYqjZa6fUgf-4VOSA-azh1Zmt3WPcXBNn-ZVhPLfty-WDk1WXPNKHS6wKnEm4bYSRU0YhO0pv_SuIgf39UXewnIGuXXlQEt_GMhlSNbLtT60PWv_su9CqpslvWAUmTtA/s1600-h/Library+-+0021.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8HUcfFYqjZa6fUgf-4VOSA-azh1Zmt3WPcXBNn-ZVhPLfty-WDk1WXPNKHS6wKnEm4bYSRU0YhO0pv_SuIgf39UXewnIGuXXlQEt_GMhlSNbLtT60PWv_su9CqpslvWAUmTtA/s400/Library+-+0021.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089771511726731986" border="0" /></a>Our Pisco Elqui Cabaña, night sky views from the deck included<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS1wD_oXROLkS_rTZMV2UF6vDk9UBHcTR-S80m4tYbl7752c7FkN7Axqa_qpBaJ1807tP76NMUdCJ_UjTt1-_R-E8glx2udMJsKGqgip__AHNL-N5m29ulfk1ydMypIgoZGXDz/s1600-h/Library+-+0022.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS1wD_oXROLkS_rTZMV2UF6vDk9UBHcTR-S80m4tYbl7752c7FkN7Axqa_qpBaJ1807tP76NMUdCJ_UjTt1-_R-E8glx2udMJsKGqgip__AHNL-N5m29ulfk1ydMypIgoZGXDz/s400/Library+-+0022.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089771520316666594" border="0" /></a>The Valley, which in summer, during the wine growing season, is covered in green.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzTVjHIorhiRJbPDfABjwlxLd3gBk1pLKeWRW-3NXqUcG9LymHnvHKqy3z3dAnZ5KygdwIbMD7hqzo3oDUvVM-mVLdmP6Ynr17j4XqXmQSV3zK58v-AhK3MpT0oWUl2UDu3wev/s1600-h/Library+-+0013.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzTVjHIorhiRJbPDfABjwlxLd3gBk1pLKeWRW-3NXqUcG9LymHnvHKqy3z3dAnZ5KygdwIbMD7hqzo3oDUvVM-mVLdmP6Ynr17j4XqXmQSV3zK58v-AhK3MpT0oWUl2UDu3wev/s400/Library+-+0013.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089771507431764674" border="0" /></a>The mandatory flower shot - love those colors!<br /></div>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-60348298709636208312007-07-21T14:24:00.000-07:002007-07-21T14:39:01.301-07:00Ski Day!!Sunday, two weeks ago, we (Carlos, Gema & I) set out to test the famous Chilean slopes, heading out for El Colorado, one of the resorts that are within 30 miles of Santiago for a day of snow and fun.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLmHcJ5YTer4j-_Hjj98n_7BawlWi8KwWJogb0EMaMYvaQyd0yEmEQTNU5_Bdgp98dRwHo-PVZnkGpgbklA1SL6iLyq0RkoIQD-QfVKSw3YhQ4OYUvLx85B7igLJX9wssQTf2K/s1600-h/Library+-+0120.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLmHcJ5YTer4j-_Hjj98n_7BawlWi8KwWJogb0EMaMYvaQyd0yEmEQTNU5_Bdgp98dRwHo-PVZnkGpgbklA1SL6iLyq0RkoIQD-QfVKSw3YhQ4OYUvLx85B7igLJX9wssQTf2K/s320/Library+-+0120.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089764708498535074" /></a><br />The weather was sub-optimal, very foggy and cloudy in the morning, but got better later in the day and the snow was amazing. The rumors of abundant, dry, powder are indeed true. We spent most of the morning on the groomed runs, but in the afternoon I ran into Eric, a Canadian from BC, who had already located some of the best powder spots and was looking for company.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgHqL7x6jfQUVFE1WkjMd6__8v_Vuqo11z-HYK9gnpDIhPdWWawPa1bKzLMVmuecPJTm0diabVjggmQ8B3qUYyO24To22jDCcL0q18gtvDunbPsM6XDuUgcxI9tvsz23fmMYBF/s1600-h/Library+-+0111.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgHqL7x6jfQUVFE1WkjMd6__8v_Vuqo11z-HYK9gnpDIhPdWWawPa1bKzLMVmuecPJTm0diabVjggmQ8B3qUYyO24To22jDCcL0q18gtvDunbPsM6XDuUgcxI9tvsz23fmMYBF/s320/Library+-+0111.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089764691318665874" /></a><br />The afternoon was awesome! Most impressive was that we were still getting first tracks at 4PM in the afternoon - probably unthinkable everywhere else, but maybe not quite so surprising in a location where the national minimal wage per month is $90, while the price of a lift ticket is $55 (US dollars), food for thought.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiddVvwPYKRDzqvZjr_93pk6keH1L9kQ_jiaRFhUWbPxiDV1mKH7_DqNaE94WAqvyNHSVMUrHC20I-sJHcjxTnS7Bd_Ixhin_VdfQo8akO3QeyegGKyFGT9pAxCEUiYJLLdiz-u/s1600-h/Library+-+0101.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiddVvwPYKRDzqvZjr_93pk6keH1L9kQ_jiaRFhUWbPxiDV1mKH7_DqNaE94WAqvyNHSVMUrHC20I-sJHcjxTnS7Bd_Ixhin_VdfQo8akO3QeyegGKyFGT9pAxCEUiYJLLdiz-u/s320/Library+-+0101.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089764665548862066" /></a><br />If time allows we might try to get in a day or two at Portillo (the supposedly "bigger and better" resort while we are here) - the snow is certainly worth it, but in all honesty the getting to the mountain part itself was a bit of an ordeal: Imagine a complete chaos of a gazillion mini buses, screaming people selling stuff everywhere - pulling your hair, sleeves, clothes to do so, endless waits for everything -- in the end the 25 mile journey took from 7AM to 11AM! So, for my part I might prefer more classic Chilean sights during the rest of my time here, but I am very glad we went and I would very much recommend the Chilean snow for anyone needing a summer ski fix!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiocT-lrFfoRPGLHHtAfmcbPkdssWNMHsKm0V1DZUG-5eFprKU2Br-ljHZ1WmqLAgzFwM7JzXFMIR-i5qhwAP8rFY2k6l7a0sDrwU1ewQmymXIKzzFkI77f2j8435zXckmhrC7X/s1600-h/Library+-+0107.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiocT-lrFfoRPGLHHtAfmcbPkdssWNMHsKm0V1DZUG-5eFprKU2Br-ljHZ1WmqLAgzFwM7JzXFMIR-i5qhwAP8rFY2k6l7a0sDrwU1ewQmymXIKzzFkI77f2j8435zXckmhrC7X/s320/Library+-+0107.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089764674138796674" /></a>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-73139055573479094082007-07-21T14:19:00.000-07:002007-07-21T14:21:21.735-07:00Back in WhiteGot tired of the rainforrest theme, so the blog is back to my beloved serene white - aaah!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-51219026437190144402007-07-07T10:42:00.000-07:002007-07-07T10:45:40.265-07:00Tango!!What better way to celebrate blog post #100 than with a tango video from Buenos Aires?! I shot this at the Tango show we went to at Cafe Tortoni, and since uploading it to youtube i have discovered that about 525 other people did the same thing, what a waste of bandwidth and information. Oh well, this one is my very personal Tortoni video, which also features the great head of hair of the big texan dude in front of us...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Thqg4xDfYsk"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Thqg4xDfYsk" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-25303846355978995232007-07-04T19:23:00.000-07:002007-07-04T19:47:39.345-07:00Everyone has a friend in... Buenos Aires!Went to Buenos Aires last weekend for a three day weekend with my Endeavor friends Gema and Carlos. The B.A visit turned in to an in-official Endeavor eMBA/BCG-Madrid-Alumni summit, as we met up with two other Spanish MBA students, Antonio and Joan, as well as another Endeavor intern Eric (from John Hopkins) and his class mate Leela... and this was just the beginning as our group kept growing and growing due to the fact that everyone brought a list of must-contact friends of friends, too many for me to list by name (and even remember) but enough to ensure that we were constantly cruising through the city in a group of at least 12 people, diving in to the wonder that is night life in Buenos Aires where people are (still) partying in the streets at 7AM despite it being 0 degrees celcius...<br /><br />I fell in love with Buenos Aires quite rapidly - the city is, as I suspected, to Santiago what Prague is to Budapest or Copenhagen is to Århus: the twice as hip, fun and lively role model. It left me with a with big big smile on my face and desire to come back right away or simply every weekend from now on... aaaah Buenos Aires!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqpyIZoJAddu1SaEgtkmA6xCV_fjIERjT4WyAs84J250WBc28TWRwBXG3ZyQ0yU0EPWCMdEI0g5tAmS3RR-RYvqPkIYUNdbM3iwkDrqQJ1ZVrsEFaUrhOEWaLphKe4LSuMZmnH/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+05.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center; cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqpyIZoJAddu1SaEgtkmA6xCV_fjIERjT4WyAs84J250WBc28TWRwBXG3ZyQ0yU0EPWCMdEI0g5tAmS3RR-RYvqPkIYUNdbM3iwkDrqQJ1ZVrsEFaUrhOEWaLphKe4LSuMZmnH/s320/Last+Roll+-+05.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083536027064791954" /></a>Crossing the Andes, heading two hours west from Santiago to Buenos Aires.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGuGzNv3SpX2MPNdbStfI_BEL0YDrWogit9ruTCZYgX-AGSQg5nby8ng5h7QzvvirxOwwFjvPkj6huRUj3FuJ5v2IlFIxnAYH9tQ3zOt7-iMVryLjdtkhSLx_QH9q6k00gqWuc/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+32.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGuGzNv3SpX2MPNdbStfI_BEL0YDrWogit9ruTCZYgX-AGSQg5nby8ng5h7QzvvirxOwwFjvPkj6huRUj3FuJ5v2IlFIxnAYH9tQ3zOt7-iMVryLjdtkhSLx_QH9q6k00gqWuc/s320/Last+Roll+-+32.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083533673422713714" /></a>Part of the BA sightseeing crew: Joan, Carlos & Gema (not everyone made it out of bed early enough to also see the city by daylight...)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzb1YgkwjJvDoyKZE91RbT9tWy1yV9pA1uW4CcHnwen3mNGhQxWqr5PqII7RWRJReccMSaqlwm7xWs2esBqlIor_2KrpUbEE71cEFZ8zG59HX3crIL6P48PQNFK-KgVNeTcNhP/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+15.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzb1YgkwjJvDoyKZE91RbT9tWy1yV9pA1uW4CcHnwen3mNGhQxWqr5PqII7RWRJReccMSaqlwm7xWs2esBqlIor_2KrpUbEE71cEFZ8zG59HX3crIL6P48PQNFK-KgVNeTcNhP/s320/Last+Roll+-+15.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083533682012648322" /></a>The famous obelisk, somewhere, lost in the background...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE685Js24EYEt_aU-TI7IaegLp9neX_9sRDeC7imVwJbZ_YHn1R84c855UIEPo5ymah7FMRE2ePOtdvgGDCeBqhM2gswANGtsypFVmYjYv4TsJ11PtBUwtJWgiZFhpUF3TvR-H/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+44.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE685Js24EYEt_aU-TI7IaegLp9neX_9sRDeC7imVwJbZ_YHn1R84c855UIEPo5ymah7FMRE2ePOtdvgGDCeBqhM2gswANGtsypFVmYjYv4TsJ11PtBUwtJWgiZFhpUF3TvR-H/s320/Last+Roll+-+44.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083533669127746402" /></a>Tango show at Cafe Tortoni.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1ututBnGcG7vjIlz9BPQz7BDCI_5D65hjNREFiwgZV9C_b5kiEmuOEEhcTIH9DoSQiqAuifTlJ7cSLHReH88rKII-APw6lU8g7iVWGDQeCdUll7i3Qmw1w2Wxd5dDmTrrAH8/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+62.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1ututBnGcG7vjIlz9BPQz7BDCI_5D65hjNREFiwgZV9C_b5kiEmuOEEhcTIH9DoSQiqAuifTlJ7cSLHReH88rKII-APw6lU8g7iVWGDQeCdUll7i3Qmw1w2Wxd5dDmTrrAH8/s320/Last+Roll+-+62.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083533664832779090" /></a>Afternoon in La Boca (where the spanish and italian immigrants used to settle fresh off the boat, also home to the Boca Juniors soccer team).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbNnxNjG0itsHISAB5mrT3rAhjw9UMyO5fvuWL148YIYIyMVSMSlRRGNC9mb9mZbRNRlZhrR0ukz53XxvFlYYARph17Sp1k1cXxZGjNcVeLRIif8Pp1YHnoSeWTTVvH9lFP1l0/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+73.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbNnxNjG0itsHISAB5mrT3rAhjw9UMyO5fvuWL148YIYIyMVSMSlRRGNC9mb9mZbRNRlZhrR0ukz53XxvFlYYARph17Sp1k1cXxZGjNcVeLRIif8Pp1YHnoSeWTTVvH9lFP1l0/s320/Last+Roll+-+73.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5083533660537811778" /></a>La Boca pride.Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-52427369847914437452007-06-26T19:17:00.001-07:002007-06-28T11:53:03.161-07:00Valparaiso & Viña del Mar<p align="left">Went to Val Paraiso and Viña del Mar on a day trip last Sunday. These two cities are situated on the coast (Pacific Ocean) about 1.5 hours from Santiago. Valparaiso used to be an important stop on the route to the US West Coast back in the days before the Panama Canal, needless to say that is a while ago and thus the city is a bit run down these days, albeit full of very charming old houses painted in bright colors, a true camera feast...</p><p align="left"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ZeM6jfQqp6MkbAKC5r4BUpNEDFiUJA9EtRLygaVQxTYQMAgo-nwOJ2krghqOJ_AU-eKtQe6pDRgp59IyUEQZPvg6-HUQKx_vObmKauKMNN9x40rgA-2kVB-lL5Q_m7iRdIbF/s1600-h/DSC02779.JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563119421977346" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ZeM6jfQqp6MkbAKC5r4BUpNEDFiUJA9EtRLygaVQxTYQMAgo-nwOJ2krghqOJ_AU-eKtQe6pDRgp59IyUEQZPvg6-HUQKx_vObmKauKMNN9x40rgA-2kVB-lL5Q_m7iRdIbF/s320/DSC02779.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="left">View towards Viña from the hills in Valparaiso.<br /></p><p align="left"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9mawwB7qqqNI5lvLGHmWMa_ItRNIssiMUeVA2dDTe-KmlM04dIGxYkLXhv5zQaXfPweaJIWESldtjf9t5JC3btPLmIL6dOhBFPAQWJ4XNDcfr_XqAISNgj7aDf7OITGMycd6/s1600-h/DSC02748.JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563102242108098" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9mawwB7qqqNI5lvLGHmWMa_ItRNIssiMUeVA2dDTe-KmlM04dIGxYkLXhv5zQaXfPweaJIWESldtjf9t5JC3btPLmIL6dOhBFPAQWJ4XNDcfr_XqAISNgj7aDf7OITGMycd6/s320/DSC02748.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="left">The harbor.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0FWJ0vLEYk5pBFOPCs3jKaVEC2ttDBmIBZe4X0pyH4K-IIvyTnFvTy2DtAD_TtVB39K_5hl26UHiiVjarowjpFKh7rkzfwoJZTw4lt6H0w4Dy_VN3446WkAmUNkDZT2TJOU5K/s1600-h/DSC02776.JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563110832042722" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0FWJ0vLEYk5pBFOPCs3jKaVEC2ttDBmIBZe4X0pyH4K-IIvyTnFvTy2DtAD_TtVB39K_5hl26UHiiVjarowjpFKh7rkzfwoJZTw4lt6H0w4Dy_VN3446WkAmUNkDZT2TJOU5K/s320/DSC02776.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> </p><div align="left">Faded but colorful local beauties (enlarge to see green eye shadow....)</div><div align="left"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX5BGH31S9XKnFTi8U1-4mG8nvY6tJofIMMRjdgngXpzwioJ7JvjCsuPqCH7SY64nzG11HX6Bsan8Q7fQJFDAQQQlNgu2wFzGQI6S1iLnfn5QT2xjGsvM3UFS_DO6KRGhyphenhyphentEu7/s1600-h/DSC02760.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563531738837778" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX5BGH31S9XKnFTi8U1-4mG8nvY6tJofIMMRjdgngXpzwioJ7JvjCsuPqCH7SY64nzG11HX6Bsan8Q7fQJFDAQQQlNgu2wFzGQI6S1iLnfn5QT2xjGsvM3UFS_DO6KRGhyphenhyphentEu7/s320/DSC02760.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div align="left">Casas coloradas... </div><div align="left"><br /> </div><div align="left"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkE2bU1dr5IzsXW5p3Fr6DLMa59SBsE97ilcix2adNa6WF1giNnu6KhHNAP_cTkvJZyJWoOTUNxsfsTDRapl29q1Otl3o0mQ21a3Bus2EPOlb1GjBDR_any-BqyZ23scYtcNkR/s1600-h/DSC02777.JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563115127010034" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkE2bU1dr5IzsXW5p3Fr6DLMa59SBsE97ilcix2adNa6WF1giNnu6KhHNAP_cTkvJZyJWoOTUNxsfsTDRapl29q1Otl3o0mQ21a3Bus2EPOlb1GjBDR_any-BqyZ23scYtcNkR/s320/DSC02777.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrTA1ZSlgdxhrsEFn38dawh_NDCsW_F69YNaOalLosqY1ecOqtPiOxnN_tPJolkQzxVlar9MvTgZ-H4jqncFZsHZr8kz0Clc1mjIJmAV3l5AnjpolKzZY7oSZlyfqUkJAH_kuh/s1600-h/DSC02763.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563536033805090" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrTA1ZSlgdxhrsEFn38dawh_NDCsW_F69YNaOalLosqY1ecOqtPiOxnN_tPJolkQzxVlar9MvTgZ-H4jqncFZsHZr8kz0Clc1mjIJmAV3l5AnjpolKzZY7oSZlyfqUkJAH_kuh/s320/DSC02763.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div align="left">Carlos, Gema & modern art...</div><div align="left"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ247FHu2ECuUjtiKYYE0E4TcgxPbdl-lsOYYGw7-raFJUKmT_AzHJF0llxSosc49osRxzEKM98DL1s3_VDnQz3qDpK0pnq9Bt8gNCF0NQ5HlyzjtF_Y8yvvGCBk1k2ZIU-OsD/s1600-h/DSC02769.JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080563106537075410" style="CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ247FHu2ECuUjtiKYYE0E4TcgxPbdl-lsOYYGw7-raFJUKmT_AzHJF0llxSosc49osRxzEKM98DL1s3_VDnQz3qDpK0pnq9Bt8gNCF0NQ5HlyzjtF_Y8yvvGCBk1k2ZIU-OsD/s320/DSC02769.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Contrast everywhere.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3YAy6ZZGFGPTVSxPuFg6_zADIfvbcRoDr_Mq13KvSApsW0l7am3JkycvOqL5VrvzQPpBdiGFJtpfQD4bVNFNuTzpHMJ-YtZuR26Wuf6bSG-1STqQJLOAibnvwquI2TxK9PUMR/s1600-h/DSC02817.JPG"></div></a>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-81936044096359524772007-06-19T04:25:00.000-07:002007-06-26T19:41:00.268-07:00¡Hola Chile!The time has come to introduce you all to my new temporary home: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago,_Chile">Santiago de Chile</a>. Founded in 1541, Santiago is situated in Chile's central valley, surrounded by mountains over 5,000 meters tall (-- that's over 16,000 feet) Santiago is about 120KM from the coast on one side and 50KM from the border to Argentina on the other (yes, Chile is that long, narrow country...). Santiago is home to roughly 6 million people (out of a total Chilean population of 15million) and is know for having some of worst smog in the world during fall and winter (aka now).<br /><br />I am in Chile to complete my MBA summer internship. I was sent here by a not-for-profit organzation called <a href="http://www.endeavor.org/">Endeavor</a>, whose goal it is to support high impact entrepreneurs in emerging markets, in order to help of grow/boost local economies. My job is helping an IT resource company named <a href="http://www.kibernum.cl/">Kibernum</a> develop a new business strategy that will help them "grow to the next level".<br /><br />Since I arrived about 10 days ago, so many things have happened that recounting them all would be impossible, but here are the highlights of what I have learned about Santiago, Chile, the Chileans etc. so far:<br /><br /><b>Chile</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgPjaKG2Tx3msNx0VuqK_thIqd6JKj3FpKN36JUxZuZu2fUQCVKf0usxcr5d_HFqiW-jFdnxZau8QThfIaTws-3INwuvibO_tTCft5JXzUUJHO96c5oxsikMX96SIytTdmXzpB/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+34.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgPjaKG2Tx3msNx0VuqK_thIqd6JKj3FpKN36JUxZuZu2fUQCVKf0usxcr5d_HFqiW-jFdnxZau8QThfIaTws-3INwuvibO_tTCft5JXzUUJHO96c5oxsikMX96SIytTdmXzpB/s400/Last+Roll+-+34.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079433698213675330" border="0" /></a>Is at the end of the world. It is strange but it someways it is really noticeable that there is "nowhere else to go from here". The streets of Santiago this past Sunday were showered in an eerie hazy blue light, as the sun was trying to get through the smog and I wandered through several neighbourhoods, that though mentioned in all tourist guides were devoid of people. Coming from tourist mecca SF, it is a bit odd to visit "city highlights" and run into, say, three other people... I speculate that this may be different in the summer but who knows: over lunch I met "Gavin" -- the gay trinidad-tobagan son of an indian engineer & a british homemaker, who comes here regularly for the happening gay district (& with whom I had a log discussing about how bad the smog is for your complexion...) and he claims that it is always like this. While eerie, there is also a certain beauty to it, the same way that Scotland or Vancouver Island are quietly beautiful...<br /><br /><br /><b>Santiago</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi60xhsxQG7S9v0YB01eAv46Lvrn5f7lS37WJXzDJchFjmZiknkBdyByYCKYmXFebwJT-c25Xou2ZTvgjGudCGURbLhpcbcY69vc96z6SmamTieKbZS4UAwWQWZnri6FW7Z5d7U/s1600-h/Library+-+0007.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; float: right;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi60xhsxQG7S9v0YB01eAv46Lvrn5f7lS37WJXzDJchFjmZiknkBdyByYCKYmXFebwJT-c25Xou2ZTvgjGudCGURbLhpcbcY69vc96z6SmamTieKbZS4UAwWQWZnri6FW7Z5d7U/s400/Library+-+0007.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079427242877829378" border="0" /></a>Was beamed here from nothern Italy. The guide books all say it, and they don't lie: Santiago is a lot like cities in nothern Italy. I sometimes feel like I am in Florence on a December day. But the very best comparison I think is Innsbruck (Austrian Alps) which has a similar mountain setting. That said, Santiago is of course entirely its own, which my next point attests to:<br /><br /><br /><b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />"La Contaminacion"</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigEAS5C0gIuoulK3p1G2QAHrR1gbKBIG5pYW3X23dhRKixnfYaw-Jtrww1i1pvYuTkxUBuvm8WVx92F3Q06I-ZY2IdN0wCb5A6GIPoMEwJw-Jfe5yQID0JQM9TVZxvuRMbaAY0/s1600-h/Library+-+0011.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigEAS5C0gIuoulK3p1G2QAHrR1gbKBIG5pYW3X23dhRKixnfYaw-Jtrww1i1pvYuTkxUBuvm8WVx92F3Q06I-ZY2IdN0wCb5A6GIPoMEwJw-Jfe5yQID0JQM9TVZxvuRMbaAY0/s400/Library+-+0011.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079427251467764002" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Smog! Is a serious problem here - seriously - just look at the big yellow blanket hanging over the city in this picture. Asked some people last week what the city/country was planning to do about the problem, and the reply was "well, sometimes we take the bus.... Or when it gets really bad, certain cars aren't allowed to drive." Still trying to find out if there is any kind of long term plan to solve the problem, as it really doesn't do much for Santiago's general level of attractiveness, nor for the health of its population which afterall counts 6 of Chile's 15 million people.<br /><b><br />Weather</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wJwoF9Ae1yb8Lbhfilc_qA2sbJQrVwnw5b2QUXw0gnz0uXMVT3SUhRYrbonWgE-dzQd3UZj45gxLjqDfxOg5EXMUFR_6XfnNqLxJ-lvVzQf0iFCJy4cnyzmw6RCI5JiJ_txk/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+15.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wJwoF9Ae1yb8Lbhfilc_qA2sbJQrVwnw5b2QUXw0gnz0uXMVT3SUhRYrbonWgE-dzQd3UZj45gxLjqDfxOg5EXMUFR_6XfnNqLxJ-lvVzQf0iFCJy4cnyzmw6RCI5JiJ_txk/s400/Last+Roll+-+15.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079493862115557730" border="0" /></a>Chilly! 'tis the winter here after all, that said I think my Danish genes are finally coming to my rescue, I actually don't think it is that cold (it fluctuates between 2-10C/35-50F) despite the fact that several Chileans have explained to me how the Chilean cold is the worst in the world... IMHO, the only reason that they could possibly think that, is because they have never experienced wind-chill. Wind-chill is the Chuck Noris of cold -- all you Scandinavians and Canadians know what I am talking about....<br /><br /><b>Food</b><br />The Chilean kitchen is not well known around the world. There might be a reason for that. I am eating my way through the local specialties and have so far, for my personal taste, encountered more misses than hits. I will note however that I haven't exactly visited any gourmet establishments or eaten seafood yet, so this opinion is subject to change. There is no imminent risk of starvation however, they have wonderful breads, cakes and ice-cream (to be had everywhere even now in the midst of winter - the mall close to my work has no less than 7 largish ice cream parlors...) and there are plenty of US chains.<br /><br />Update: since originally writing this I have discovered what I so far believe to be the best thing about the Chilean kitchen: Italian food. I have to say that that have extraordinarily fine Italian cooking here, which should most certainly tide me over the next 8 weeks...<br /><br /><b>Drinks!</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Se6Jf63zQSAaZ7zuJflOmSJPindGZwKughQab23tPHf6pVuxU0y6D03wdGFGBqtcbLohMrMmaJ_LI6I-al00RjMpy7YR-s-xaAFD4vLjVVGpJOgtB4D-r-EsMge3es3jUdsX/s1600-h/pisco.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Se6Jf63zQSAaZ7zuJflOmSJPindGZwKughQab23tPHf6pVuxU0y6D03wdGFGBqtcbLohMrMmaJ_LI6I-al00RjMpy7YR-s-xaAFD4vLjVVGpJOgtB4D-r-EsMge3es3jUdsX/s400/pisco.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079492303042429266" border="0" /></a>Wine is sublime, cheap and available in large quantities are variety everywhere - yeah!! I confess to not having had a Pisco Sour yet, which probably makes me a looser, but there is something about going out on your own, in a foreign place, to consume a kind of hard liquor you've never had before that just hasn't seemed like a great idea. Thursday however, is our first Endeavor intern happy hour aka Pisco Sour time for me...<br /><br />Update: as obvious from picture to the right, the Pisco Sour enigma has been solved...<br /><br /><b>Muzak</b><br />Long time readers of my blog might remember my entry on "jingles in Tokyo" from last year. No jingles in Santiago, but muzak is omnipresent. In case you ever wondered how artists like Pet Shop Boys or Phil Collins are surving these days, I suspect that their main source of income might be Chilean muzak royalties. The all time winner in this category so far was the pan flute rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "Touger than the rest" that I heard in the metro the other night...<br /><br /><b>Friends</b><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO4MTbWIRCJmhtcOgkS1Bte-DObV1svBIH_n7rZnV2kCl8rxUH6462O6ulBa2tz3PDOmPo98Jt2GzW6QqfvhULYfPRmcNcbnJ15c3c7WKS1ZBEP0M9mz-dnUol-YZeWIWsAJSN/s1600-h/Library+-+0009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; float: left;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO4MTbWIRCJmhtcOgkS1Bte-DObV1svBIH_n7rZnV2kCl8rxUH6462O6ulBa2tz3PDOmPo98Jt2GzW6QqfvhULYfPRmcNcbnJ15c3c7WKS1ZBEP0M9mz-dnUol-YZeWIWsAJSN/s400/Library+-+0009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079427247172796690" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Are few and far between. One of the downsides of doing an internship far from home is that, well, you don't really know anyone... Luckily there are two other Endeavor interns in Santiago, a spanish couple from MIT, Gema and Carlos, who have turned out to be darling and fun people. And of course there are people like "Gavin" who provide random short term entertainment...<br /><br /><b>Sights</b><br />It is almost time to wrap up for today, so without much further ado, I'll leave you with the random Santiago tourist shot. By now I have actually managed to see quite a bit in a few marathon weekend days, such as:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe3b0yjee3JqVe_KQsslW_CNbDVtb5n5NCRhQD7jXjJxeyOiPjBSJ6C0OkB-po4e_k4YEvowmm-bMRSUeMZ-m7WzwTHI14Zr6XlCWuuyqMp88g3igcjuVovDq_jnDAJvfkw1qe/s1600-h/Library+-+0015.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; float: left;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe3b0yjee3JqVe_KQsslW_CNbDVtb5n5NCRhQD7jXjJxeyOiPjBSJ6C0OkB-po4e_k4YEvowmm-bMRSUeMZ-m7WzwTHI14Zr6XlCWuuyqMp88g3igcjuVovDq_jnDAJvfkw1qe/s400/Library+-+0015.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079427255762731314" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Santiago from above - this time with slightly less smog...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCV_bhCREfuAHErcjOOWWPcaH1-m2LCpuNN5hgt3aev4WSPU1hAjf72L-6D-H2GaxUNzhKlodBP9iTYNB66XWOt7EfUE64UkYD45x-zBhjeu_U4WBkgEWED7nECOx_FASn87E/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+04.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077740136774287586" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; float: left; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCV_bhCREfuAHErcjOOWWPcaH1-m2LCpuNN5hgt3aev4WSPU1hAjf72L-6D-H2GaxUNzhKlodBP9iTYNB66XWOt7EfUE64UkYD45x-zBhjeu_U4WBkgEWED7nECOx_FASn87E/s400/Last+Roll+-+04.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Nobel Prize Winner Pablo Neruda's Santiago House.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8j_lhOAMSXyW0QS9RK4YxS_Q0R1otAc4YP_TdYHzhUT_na02kdABI6-JFqHmugRvhCT5meDOEy5hnIpSfGl1BL9YStzEfSVNadklz0bFQFctlOgAyDu4Ldnz5U2GUptDRQIrw/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+37.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077735614173724802" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; float: left; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8j_lhOAMSXyW0QS9RK4YxS_Q0R1otAc4YP_TdYHzhUT_na02kdABI6-JFqHmugRvhCT5meDOEy5hnIpSfGl1BL9YStzEfSVNadklz0bFQFctlOgAyDu4Ldnz5U2GUptDRQIrw/s400/Last+Roll+-+37.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />The odd shot from the San Francisco church garden - this is where the city was founded.<br /></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwp1xKfdoLh8x1R6Mkglmydl2PxSTVtqsjrXvzx_D6H0Ds_rGj5OvXX-TyHLjxkSoHbq7K4eONrqggeArw488bvwYn3-67TWfugxpTDtOmLUrY_Zw1U1TnKzNTCfKUvTl9V4C/s1600-h/Last+Roll+-+35.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077735618468692114" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; float: left; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwp1xKfdoLh8x1R6Mkglmydl2PxSTVtqsjrXvzx_D6H0Ds_rGj5OvXX-TyHLjxkSoHbq7K4eONrqggeArw488bvwYn3-67TWfugxpTDtOmLUrY_Zw1U1TnKzNTCfKUvTl9V4C/s400/Last+Roll+-+35.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The presidential palace at La Moneda and with its Salvador Allende statue (Allende was the Chilean president before the Pinochet coup on Sept. 11 (no joke) 1973.)Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-59416036861878643972007-06-12T09:06:00.000-07:002007-06-12T09:18:45.343-07:00Que Frio! Santiago, Chile, 5:48AM, 3º Celcius, 37º FahrenheitTouched down in Santiago this morning at 5:48AM - it was early, dark and cold, making it seem a bit like landing on another planet after having left Berkeley on a beatiful summer day yesterday. My employer had kindly offered to be there to chauffeur me to where I am now: an "apart hotel" downtown which will be my home for the next 10 weeks. He was also kind enough to suggest that I take the entire day off, to rest and settle in, which I of course (wanting to be "eager beaver intern") have declined.; In a few hours I will be heading to the office for an afternoon meet and greet, first however I am about to venture out under the yellow Santiago sky to locate my nearest Starbucks. Yellow, you may ask, to which I can only say: the smog is real - if you've been to Shanghai, multiple that by 2-3. It adds a nice Blade Runner-ish touch, keeping up the other-world sensation...Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-67967023108139474822007-06-06T15:32:00.000-07:002007-06-06T15:49:30.118-07:00Riding Off Into the Sunset...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLJ-VHh5Cue6BEvCUhXIwqnHlhc5JKb4DLyX9Mq7HG6E1X1UurtBG7lCudb7udGrQ6kbNjol0dafF5cs4DHgamoUs4MJxamgmK4vn7JEaxsRaayN14Sav0w68U4szvzuMrXOh9/s1600-h/maikens-6-4-2007+034.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLJ-VHh5Cue6BEvCUhXIwqnHlhc5JKb4DLyX9Mq7HG6E1X1UurtBG7lCudb7udGrQ6kbNjol0dafF5cs4DHgamoUs4MJxamgmK4vn7JEaxsRaayN14Sav0w68U4szvzuMrXOh9/s400/maikens-6-4-2007+034.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073086621313450098" /></a>We're done. Our project for the <a href="http://www.mamiraua.org.br/">Mamiraua Institute</a> has been completed with what was meant to be a final presentation of our results this afternoon. In sad reality the meeting we had scheduled in order to present to the four key directors of the institute, ended up being canceled last minute, as only one of them was able to attend in the end. We decided to post-pone rather than spend two hours presenting 90 pages of writing and 50 power point slides, in english, to the one person on the management team who speaks only portuguese...<br /><br />Not that I am really all that sad about not being able to present - we were crunching up until the last minute and it is sort of nice to just get to hand over the DVD roms with the final product and relax. Of course it would also be great to get feedback from our clients, since however our expectations for what it will look like are somewhat low (we are not telling them what they want to hear) I don't really mind waiting until later in the year for that part.<br /><br />Feels <b>GREAT</b> to be done and in a few minutes we will head out for a little barbecue/birthday/goodbye celebration that our new-found best friend Cesar (who was our guide when we went to the reserve) has organized for us.<br /><br />This might be the end of our internet access in Brazil -- tomorrow we head back to Manaus (capital of Amazonas state) in order to be able to catch our Saturday flight back to SFO via Miami. [The local Tefe-Manaus flight only operates twice a week which is why we are leaving so early]. Hopefully we'll get to do some last cool sightseeing stuff in/from Manaus, personally I wouldn't mind another river tour as I feel that just haven't gotten to enjoy it quite enough. I know we keep repeating this but it really is AMAZING!<br /><br />Oh well, almost time for the next adventure, I am starting to get mentally prepared for the fact that by this time next week i will be in Santiago, Chile working at my summer internship company Kibernum. Crazy!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-32106199999698244042007-06-06T15:14:00.000-07:002007-06-06T16:02:00.670-07:00Nano vs. BeetleEveryday while we've been here I have gone on two-three daily walks around the (beautiful) compound that surrounds the offices that we have been working in here, in order to get a minimal bit of exercise, as it is not possible to run/walk here otherwise due to the a. the heat and b. the freak show-factor/danger of being a blond foreign woman running around Tefe. <br /><br />The walks have been a great way to observe the abundant local flora and fauna [small aside at this point: one of the coolest thing about this place is how everything just grows everywhere. Out on the river we saw a huge island that had "grown in" over the last few years, the water is that rich with sediments and this gives me quite high hopes that a lot of the deforested Amazon rain forest can and will grow back given the chance to do so.]-- in particular i have developed a keen interest* in this one species that I have lovingly dubbed "the largest beetle I have ever seen"... So when my slacker team mates (no walks for them) refused to believe me, I had to bring back photo evidence, which led to the shot below. See for yourself, it's Nano vs. Beetle!!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXtGyPKSmZPeAFJD8UwcSB1ochlFZQPScF_9hQboR8vcwYbc8EU3K5nwan4aHT-ZWCJvAFfllB0tx9S0o9_yeEWT0rFOueT64u6ZimH6u6FM_j_5RJ1HjIBtmrVRRGegZdKAjQ/s1600-h/maikens-6-5-2007+009.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXtGyPKSmZPeAFJD8UwcSB1ochlFZQPScF_9hQboR8vcwYbc8EU3K5nwan4aHT-ZWCJvAFfllB0tx9S0o9_yeEWT0rFOueT64u6ZimH6u6FM_j_5RJ1HjIBtmrVRRGegZdKAjQ/s400/maikens-6-5-2007+009.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073079603336888418" /></a><br />* In case you are wondering "why the beetle"? The sad answer is that there happened to be a large number of formerly-live ones around - whereas the extraordinarily beautiful blue butterflies for example are extremely hard to get a closer look at due to their fleeting habits...Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-14192874778241704152007-06-05T16:18:00.000-07:002007-06-05T16:29:10.459-07:00Cold ShowersThe little joys of being in Tefe: one of them is the challenge of the ice cold morning shower. Cold showers may sound like a good idea considering the tropical climate, but due to the fact that the air conditioner actually does work (80% of the time at least) our rooms are mostly cold in the morning, which makes jumping from the cold room into the cold shower rather grueling. As it turns out everyone of us has been working on developing the perfect technique for dealing with this problem over the last two weeks. In the video below (which unfortunately is rather dark, so it is really mostly a sound file) shot at Steve's birthday celebration yesterday night, Steve explains, after a few beers, how he developed the perfect approach...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hCRZ8dgieBs"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hCRZ8dgieBs" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-53446359678359204472007-06-03T15:08:00.001-07:002007-06-03T15:23:31.790-07:00Never let Women Cook...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjui5RCk1pSS_tUMJPg01Atu_lp4Aw0DTFT5rj-2hL1URmqmKZbDOXnZYrfc1qTFq-zaPI0_I1TL04YFUHDYqoiKsniuVFw3Z1xykBpIJAYjwDBeZt0Yb-c7j8DvphKXh7zO3K8/s1600-h/steves-06-03-2007+023.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjui5RCk1pSS_tUMJPg01Atu_lp4Aw0DTFT5rj-2hL1URmqmKZbDOXnZYrfc1qTFq-zaPI0_I1TL04YFUHDYqoiKsniuVFw3Z1xykBpIJAYjwDBeZt0Yb-c7j8DvphKXh7zO3K8/s400/steves-06-03-2007+023.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071963884145270178" border="0" /></a>This weekend has been a bit on the dull side as we are essentially just working like crazy, cranking out what is on track to become a 60-100 page report with analysis and recommendations for our clients. We've come up with some good results and are now just trying to survive the tedious typing part - But since this is much too boring to talk about I figured I'd post some more photos from last weekend's reserve adventure instead.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0RkBfDhaePQY0t363ogDvrjL4d1El5FJn3llNQ7Ie7U-EsKQ28u1K6OzP1-9a9oMWsEZymVAVHmKfUEK3hVkJUBjWRmotTDDgIVA2ZGWVSBhuLhZijj3ooc4TSYCNEZuhCtZ/s1600-h/steves-06-03-2007+027.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0RkBfDhaePQY0t363ogDvrjL4d1El5FJn3llNQ7Ie7U-EsKQ28u1K6OzP1-9a9oMWsEZymVAVHmKfUEK3hVkJUBjWRmotTDDgIVA2ZGWVSBhuLhZijj3ooc4TSYCNEZuhCtZ/s400/steves-06-03-2007+027.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071963879850302850" border="0" /></a>More specifically the results of the little cooking adventure Moriah and I went on after the five of us (team course + our guide and new best friend Cesar) had throughly tested (and approved of) the EcoLodge's Caipirinha making abilities. After coming back to our little floating research station (no - we did not get to stay in the fancy lodge) we realized that we were practically out of food and decided to try to make an american classic: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-nw5M4bXFPImFDe7gI7CUKjGYsqv5gF_I0uJc4wJEM4Zcr3OgunHaADoCvmdI1bb_8Jb3p-HxZEo9bbuSypNJ0VINrezPAd4jwhfcslUz_DvhhV0xx3WP3MruH8CL98k7NjK/s1600-h/steves-06-03-2007+025.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-nw5M4bXFPImFDe7gI7CUKjGYsqv5gF_I0uJc4wJEM4Zcr3OgunHaADoCvmdI1bb_8Jb3p-HxZEo9bbuSypNJ0VINrezPAd4jwhfcslUz_DvhhV0xx3WP3MruH8CL98k7NjK/s400/steves-06-03-2007+025.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071963884145270162" border="0" /></a>Easy enough, right? Let's just say that i think there is something different about how toast reacts to butter under certain levels of humidity, cleaness of the air, sei la. The boys were not impressed and as a result they have sworn to never let us cook again. Hooray!!!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-73800851441677479502007-05-29T06:13:00.000-07:002007-06-01T06:24:24.044-07:00Into the Wild -- Entering the Enchanted ForestThe blog is back in business or we are back from business - or... I am not sure I know any more myself... it has been a busy last couple of days, we are getting into the meat of our project and are spending tons of time lost in big spreadsheets rather than lost in the big forest.<br /><br />However, the past weekend - did give us chance to get our there and feel truely lost - in a good way - sort of like being at the end of the world in a magical landscape where everything is just quiet, beautiful and alive at the same time.<br /><br />We sailed up river about an hour or two to get into the actual reserve - passing parts of the river that seemed to "bubble" with the presence of little fish, soon to be followed by hundreds of birds trying to catch said fish, followed by dolphins going in for the clean up.<br /><br />We went to a little village, visiting some of the people the reserve is trying to help and witnessed a very different lifestyle (showers in the river, while cleaning fish at the same for example) and finally got the visit the EcoLodge for drinks and giggles, to canoe 3 kilometers in near complete silence through the Varzea (flooded forest -- the water level here varies by 12meters between wet & dry seasons!) and finally spend the night in a floating research station, waiting for the pet aligator Sophia to join us for breakfast...<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfLheCJm6rOC0jG7yMAFg_nPsw4mpW9q8rW-SGAWTA9mCR0vXo1rqWtSxxmHNDCuuJe6crR-uwSfxrrFMo8S9AeBDWnuwE8TyzEyG7xkN8dqB7E8PUdikFiTPkDaPYEkSFZ6eq/s1600-h/DSC02185.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfLheCJm6rOC0jG7yMAFg_nPsw4mpW9q8rW-SGAWTA9mCR0vXo1rqWtSxxmHNDCuuJe6crR-uwSfxrrFMo8S9AeBDWnuwE8TyzEyG7xkN8dqB7E8PUdikFiTPkDaPYEkSFZ6eq/s400/DSC02185.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069971663565020386" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Entering the Wild...<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoeWjV0IgqC9BsZ7rV51HTYVltMUtseJwrc4GEhvH4aylb6wlTSYymw2K0Ll9HZ0Ai-qn89kCWJJWfSsHBrKyE9NNCjoQV2sTcThKArNMrRfoe2Ot0hBZTNnzAAYC7DNPbuVHT/s1600-h/DSC02275.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoeWjV0IgqC9BsZ7rV51HTYVltMUtseJwrc4GEhvH4aylb6wlTSYymw2K0Ll9HZ0Ai-qn89kCWJJWfSsHBrKyE9NNCjoQV2sTcThKArNMrRfoe2Ot0hBZTNnzAAYC7DNPbuVHT/s400/DSC02275.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069971672154954994" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Ribeirinho ("river-dweller") housing - note how beautiful it is here when the sun comes out -- not to mention the resulting heat and scalp burn!.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoG_PmVtmC3PNY_0xlED09Pf13ZTG4iRogDopV_V1tUGF5dtKfwfWQjO1rW_fF9LZjn0K8DLywTi8Donl29AbGvWJlyo6CPSGBo9ahnqrrKDjh7nIk9hIrfWluWXoGnMh1HksT/s1600-h/DSC02243.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoG_PmVtmC3PNY_0xlED09Pf13ZTG4iRogDopV_V1tUGF5dtKfwfWQjO1rW_fF9LZjn0K8DLywTi8Donl29AbGvWJlyo6CPSGBo9ahnqrrKDjh7nIk9hIrfWluWXoGnMh1HksT/s400/DSC02243.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069971680744889602" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />"Cell phone"???<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjYQUBQmh90jd6-D7YluozRucvEzOeuM22cbm2gSSGTULOkuEulPG7jnwRINrtBZZwPE3UtsPlsC4UMWl39bffIA0lk4bstwhOOfIJ8qNJeg3ooppWTbFumAzB0sjEIg7IeTMj/s1600-h/DSC02328.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjYQUBQmh90jd6-D7YluozRucvEzOeuM22cbm2gSSGTULOkuEulPG7jnwRINrtBZZwPE3UtsPlsC4UMWl39bffIA0lk4bstwhOOfIJ8qNJeg3ooppWTbFumAzB0sjEIg7IeTMj/s400/DSC02328.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069971685039856914" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Never thought the Amazon could be like this - but it was in multiple places - just dead quiet and looking like a big beautiful (green) mirror.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM0M_pJMDGwkLRWzun9gjY_DSdTUj9RBlKMwLoelkjBkVJ4qz7SBcLCvkVFcsGCwFbMGZJhdPbdtI936oEuSMs4A9IbUuDihl1cTba_Rtr9XtAVvbol9B-znWlwNUvmggs6xRx/s1600-h/DSC02322.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM0M_pJMDGwkLRWzun9gjY_DSdTUj9RBlKMwLoelkjBkVJ4qz7SBcLCvkVFcsGCwFbMGZJhdPbdtI936oEuSMs4A9IbUuDihl1cTba_Rtr9XtAVvbol9B-znWlwNUvmggs6xRx/s400/DSC02322.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069971689334824226" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Brazil Nut tree.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieHIa_6p8hUcxXsSdtTBZc4RS2bzlMsLLPy02O17m-ign0hcSfu-Pde4TxdwLwuBSUrQ-aIpDXGD8vcjlCKulYBlCGWGqX4RnC0G4EqPKIsMzCO1657JXcRRndGerfTZQ96zy6/s1600-h/DSC02307.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieHIa_6p8hUcxXsSdtTBZc4RS2bzlMsLLPy02O17m-ign0hcSfu-Pde4TxdwLwuBSUrQ-aIpDXGD8vcjlCKulYBlCGWGqX4RnC0G4EqPKIsMzCO1657JXcRRndGerfTZQ96zy6/s400/DSC02307.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069974158941019442" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Passion Fruit flower.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCAALXgl5XliRlptMXoAe5TsXTYU-N4OTXDxNS7zIKcAa7RZYIPHsAy6xr5PwaJTtKXgpxyWbzDg15kPlC-e0A076zhGeJgJJRIBhD3_ZXU_TcjU4_whiXmKV6SVQxU4GQkU_1/s1600-h/DSC02383.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCAALXgl5XliRlptMXoAe5TsXTYU-N4OTXDxNS7zIKcAa7RZYIPHsAy6xr5PwaJTtKXgpxyWbzDg15kPlC-e0A076zhGeJgJJRIBhD3_ZXU_TcjU4_whiXmKV6SVQxU4GQkU_1/s400/DSC02383.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069974167530954050" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Our Canoe guide Geraldo about to take us into the the Varzea.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji9JbhpCf-vS1zzmdmVzdXsoCRB2_qRVEKX_Fc_1ZjPADqO02DYlj7k_V2G2FBcauaZjeXz7zz7t17BjAo2jQpX6PwWxnlQRfQYBcpfpua2NdK4htzXUWIjsJ4MviZHnUfnVvh/s1600-h/DSC02351.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji9JbhpCf-vS1zzmdmVzdXsoCRB2_qRVEKX_Fc_1ZjPADqO02DYlj7k_V2G2FBcauaZjeXz7zz7t17BjAo2jQpX6PwWxnlQRfQYBcpfpua2NdK4htzXUWIjsJ4MviZHnUfnVvh/s400/DSC02351.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069974176120888658" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzxE5_6sK_Z2hYWm1bJnOnZou5at0vqbgns7DNMLkPQUJv9kuhQVG4M93xEZHr-lmhUrxUazLi0hLEUxL9etIb9WMjfH1ZZNEoIegs02tQ6y9F4Ks9a-ob_DeGtZ8dP-n6iNd/s1600-h/DSC02356.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzxE5_6sK_Z2hYWm1bJnOnZou5at0vqbgns7DNMLkPQUJv9kuhQVG4M93xEZHr-lmhUrxUazLi0hLEUxL9etIb9WMjfH1ZZNEoIegs02tQ6y9F4Ks9a-ob_DeGtZ8dP-n6iNd/s400/DSC02356.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069974184710823266" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Inside the flooded forest - the light is amazing in there, but unfortunately very hard to capture well.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_lGMHSiG-VYs2BPIG-BtCyC4EHGv2iCpbOObrdg_Lqp6LF-yltdbdWAi9u6_sMpBiCFU5ipmE-aLvQUGRobrfDdqyNN1UyiaR50lFHCATwCGjZZIqyENzWJw3fUeGANjagPV/s1600-h/DSC02377.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_lGMHSiG-VYs2BPIG-BtCyC4EHGv2iCpbOObrdg_Lqp6LF-yltdbdWAi9u6_sMpBiCFU5ipmE-aLvQUGRobrfDdqyNN1UyiaR50lFHCATwCGjZZIqyENzWJw3fUeGANjagPV/s400/DSC02377.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069974189005790578" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />A beautiful day coming to an end.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><div style="text-align: left;"></div></div>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-84309850683155567872007-05-24T13:42:00.000-07:002007-05-24T13:49:50.437-07:00Beautiful BandaidsFrustrated with our project today: no-one wants to invest in making money and everyone wants to simply receive money - arg. I've named it the beautiful band-aid approach: refusing to look at the root causes of financial problems in favor of waiting for beautiful monetary presents that will make things work in the short run - double arg!!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-42595528664983448392007-05-23T13:13:00.001-07:002007-05-23T13:19:18.427-07:00Dolphin VideoStevie Ray shot this nice little video of a jumping dolphin when we were out on the river the other day:<br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIP4tHE1W_o">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIP4tHE1W_o</a><br /><br />Coincidentally we have just gotten news that we will be going to the heart of the reserve this week - I am incredibly excited about this opportunity and you should be expecting many more great photos and videos after that...Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-74100529415543446772007-05-23T09:17:00.001-07:002007-05-23T09:45:59.304-07:00Introducing my Partners in Crime<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUGajeJ326a_svaTc6adScizTe0c7XevTwGU-7dBc-sCcr0ZX90AEm4IxYBQ7DojYvIBDQwpsWF3Kdg4q2f4QLnqAZ0nvkLEVzaMJgaASLohKisWRanXWjqlP1xeoCtoLipBbU/s1600-h/steves-05-20-2007+065.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUGajeJ326a_svaTc6adScizTe0c7XevTwGU-7dBc-sCcr0ZX90AEm4IxYBQ7DojYvIBDQwpsWF3Kdg4q2f4QLnqAZ0nvkLEVzaMJgaASLohKisWRanXWjqlP1xeoCtoLipBbU/s320/steves-05-20-2007+065.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067791636949818546" /></a>Figured I should take the time to introduce you to the people who are my "three best friends" over these next couple of weeks. First (pictured left) we have Stephan K. Stephan is our team's "Token Brazilian" - born in Rio and before coming to Haas living in Sao Paulo, he is obviously fluent not only in Portuguese but also in the little nuances of Brazilian office life, negotiations, communications and so forth - all of which has proven invaluable! Stephan also happens to be the President of the Haas Soccer Club and is a master of the "Brazilian way of life" in general -- he keeps the group together and in good spirits at all times, with frequent encouragements to "relax - this is brazil", excellent cocktails and skillful selection of best places to consume grilled meat. On a side note: Stephan has promised to appear on this blog as a ghost writer - stay tuned!!! <br><br><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-0dZ7wY70OBuq3vB3Di2s9gbcRHozP_i9oHVjMaTXF5UWWcEKNGTh1j7zOZT4nXfQrkoqe_gl-fXugPGUW04li3S7y9gA0ZICGrv5EiTQ_J8xtVfPXiqc-18x2wMQ_u5rAbmd/s1600-h/Picture+076.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-0dZ7wY70OBuq3vB3Di2s9gbcRHozP_i9oHVjMaTXF5UWWcEKNGTh1j7zOZT4nXfQrkoqe_gl-fXugPGUW04li3S7y9gA0ZICGrv5EiTQ_J8xtVfPXiqc-18x2wMQ_u5rAbmd/s320/Picture+076.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067791907532758226" /></a>"River Princess" Moriah is a former Ohio native, turned San Francisco native, turned Hawaiian native and our team's "Kim Bassinger in Out of Africa" look-a-like (tropical humidity does magic things to curly hair!). Moriah also has the special honor(?!) of being my room mate as has provided extraordinary services when it comes to tugging in mosquito nets, sanitizing floors (with lavender scent), employing mid-night air condition management, not to mention much laughter and general entertainment. She insists on trying to teach the locals french and is currently stalking our local high school neighbors, not-so-secretly, coveting their cute school uniforms. <br><br><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibqj6dBy9lrE2AX4ozd7_Q_-5DzV4xTMM9nhZCxcztTgx2_DfjEBvmR-SsNfdV47VwMi8d_KwZOJKa7A-wpqRM8Josz3iNEU01v0Pb374iw5zuZCxXOPDCWBbrqWcrpdOcpz09/s1600-h/stephans-05-20-2007+025.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibqj6dBy9lrE2AX4ozd7_Q_-5DzV4xTMM9nhZCxcztTgx2_DfjEBvmR-SsNfdV47VwMi8d_KwZOJKa7A-wpqRM8Josz3iNEU01v0Pb374iw5zuZCxXOPDCWBbrqWcrpdOcpz09/s320/stephans-05-20-2007+025.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067791645539753154" /></a>Last but not least we have Steven, aka Steve, aka Stevo, aka Stevie Ray, aka Stevao. Steve is our secret Illinois weapon, who with tricks and spanish learned from a three year peace corps stint in bolivia, continuously manages to outsmart the locals and cause the rest of the team to drop the chicken (see Moriah's blog for an explanation of this term). Steve will turn 30 (yes the big 3-0) during our trip and is in for a very local style hair-cut and a largish amount of Caipirinhas to celebrate the event. Steve is also married to the lovely Kenia who is currently partying it up in Berkeley with Stephan's wife Fabi...Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-21581641543409045682007-05-22T07:08:00.001-07:002007-05-22T07:32:34.099-07:00Imagens (Pictures)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSDY1YcN-R7LS6y7aGS2C3gQ3m6TIw2HEoHtk7T9jSu8uLStNK7P15PhCHD7gMBABQO_OYd2768Eqf38nqk9HudvyAW3n8BQ1jA35d-y9ILVP2xel3SaNBwT5R7uUpzd7T8Nx/s1600-h/steves-05-20-2007+023.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSDY1YcN-R7LS6y7aGS2C3gQ3m6TIw2HEoHtk7T9jSu8uLStNK7P15PhCHD7gMBABQO_OYd2768Eqf38nqk9HudvyAW3n8BQ1jA35d-y9ILVP2xel3SaNBwT5R7uUpzd7T8Nx/s320/steves-05-20-2007+023.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067387390332951490" /></a><br />Flying in to Tefe - this is the Amazon!<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6L4xS-sBXJjOx7eIfYTE3E_UNCRF5UtfPLavL03vAoV9MAgLLSSD5-PQJPkCF-G-3ktJdi0rtBoqWvHqIo-hXbQk1EavCS7-mtbkujtrW2PX3kTM4o0eazPRvvJs_t5sLNbKv/s1600-h/steves-05-20-2007+040.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6L4xS-sBXJjOx7eIfYTE3E_UNCRF5UtfPLavL03vAoV9MAgLLSSD5-PQJPkCF-G-3ktJdi0rtBoqWvHqIo-hXbQk1EavCS7-mtbkujtrW2PX3kTM4o0eazPRvvJs_t5sLNbKv/s320/steves-05-20-2007+040.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067387390332951506" /></a>View over the town, river and main square from our hotel <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPSCuAhdTzlp5TeOhpz6EbD5xyt1qPI_dU8_aaQIiYV04o39iUjOYWIp34KsxEiMq_yZFCnfCJ1uthyphenhyphenAlKsuDIe_-qIFdq2d8R-9fw0eneCzRK7jnaMN-uuSTVVdnEsKfqPRxk/s1600-h/Picture+007.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPSCuAhdTzlp5TeOhpz6EbD5xyt1qPI_dU8_aaQIiYV04o39iUjOYWIp34KsxEiMq_yZFCnfCJ1uthyphenhyphenAlKsuDIe_-qIFdq2d8R-9fw0eneCzRK7jnaMN-uuSTVVdnEsKfqPRxk/s320/Picture+007.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067387416102755298" /></a>Port of Tefe <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWLnTFlMXnjNjtgLH_F9GzkzU0zQsmTj_Tpcb2ZXLk5ymhAcHF05gp8ci73qaS5-4dfmqKF0xZGwvKvJJbR-vY1P1UIhysVU4jxaEXwhTWbkwbeZjEHf6kNNiYg9QHAlvv_vdr/s1600-h/Picture+092.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWLnTFlMXnjNjtgLH_F9GzkzU0zQsmTj_Tpcb2ZXLk5ymhAcHF05gp8ci73qaS5-4dfmqKF0xZGwvKvJJbR-vY1P1UIhysVU4jxaEXwhTWbkwbeZjEHf6kNNiYg9QHAlvv_vdr/s320/Picture+092.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067387420397722610" /></a>Port of Tefe <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpcp_QeoA2Zt2o8rvUNPYxcIOm15FOHXTmmg_6pkoHZJAa_H-NPQcF8eJUk_X7LYUH9wJtAUqEHSgEZeyUTMGT5eqLNaucDeUCqLkBNvMohCdfa68EqquhqsbYejlP0m-0yurz/s1600-h/steves-05-20-2007+035.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpcp_QeoA2Zt2o8rvUNPYxcIOm15FOHXTmmg_6pkoHZJAa_H-NPQcF8eJUk_X7LYUH9wJtAUqEHSgEZeyUTMGT5eqLNaucDeUCqLkBNvMohCdfa68EqquhqsbYejlP0m-0yurz/s320/steves-05-20-2007+035.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067387437577591810" /></a>Girl in favela housing <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoau8lLQ2Rcj2KLlTGER26i16xtMImZGTqNYckj9THphCoutfcRxNYiA1pBeoXs2v9pPOZkQAWJcuLvwMKA5csh56BefCix0jHeLzklDkMHfbqO_TF_MDJ1y6tmYgUMUDPdxlM/s1600-h/steves-05-20-2007+084.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoau8lLQ2Rcj2KLlTGER26i16xtMImZGTqNYckj9THphCoutfcRxNYiA1pBeoXs2v9pPOZkQAWJcuLvwMKA5csh56BefCix0jHeLzklDkMHfbqO_TF_MDJ1y6tmYgUMUDPdxlM/s320/steves-05-20-2007+084.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067389151269542930" /></a>Hitting the river, Maiken and Moriah, with our local boat driver / guide Eunilson<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDgAVqDVw86ZVAqoWcCFd_doBQXuoXy8pnqMky2JH5XtVVGZrRUzfxW4SGSYFnmEfihzMobzyzD_uI91_dqvBCvzpw7fZJd9koRtszlTcoAvS-3wRq77cp_384FgrJ6nREXPoe/s1600-h/Picture+075.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDgAVqDVw86ZVAqoWcCFd_doBQXuoXy8pnqMky2JH5XtVVGZrRUzfxW4SGSYFnmEfihzMobzyzD_uI91_dqvBCvzpw7fZJd9koRtszlTcoAvS-3wRq77cp_384FgrJ6nREXPoe/s320/Picture+075.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067389172744379426" /></a>Maiken's favorite cloud...<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVOOvXu2AGj3POk6BmY2K_hp_Z3ZDqNQ75-Cw2OOqpkzfmruZ3NdGgUyBDip4VYQ13cbjj-uB73r1-vLl-wQ6tKHiyzvcXy4mM9G3p3fZivutP3Ig-QzkGI45TkOUsjcGmNTw5/s1600-h/Picture+050.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVOOvXu2AGj3POk6BmY2K_hp_Z3ZDqNQ75-Cw2OOqpkzfmruZ3NdGgUyBDip4VYQ13cbjj-uB73r1-vLl-wQ6tKHiyzvcXy4mM9G3p3fZivutP3Ig-QzkGI45TkOUsjcGmNTw5/s320/Picture+050.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067389224283986994" /></a>Ribeirinho ("river dweller") housing <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32Dr-8_PdiMt6Pkc-K6T9BmBZ2eFVC-D3kIsA8EMXtSGw4j8H9gYXU2MmxYs07Yd-I1wBeC0-bPN8lDJx3E0qFqQtCXhN1bhqq_LGb1uAAh3dnzLly0yJXr2w-krZxSQl8-im/s1600-h/Picture+026.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32Dr-8_PdiMt6Pkc-K6T9BmBZ2eFVC-D3kIsA8EMXtSGw4j8H9gYXU2MmxYs07Yd-I1wBeC0-bPN8lDJx3E0qFqQtCXhN1bhqq_LGb1uAAh3dnzLly0yJXr2w-krZxSQl8-im/s320/Picture+026.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067389250053790786" /></a>Amazon style pig farming <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCl-7-k80Ayfpx8sVZkhlQXZU2ECnSYhWcW3Lqc_t_dvXFeuz1TE2Ch6te7jN3G4q2Vjfv0mcIsiLmvGYarf97XapQRffiKX-Ezv0qOoG5vYx_j09fVfixJSVKjmVZeJ92KvpN/s1600-h/Picture+051.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCl-7-k80Ayfpx8sVZkhlQXZU2ECnSYhWcW3Lqc_t_dvXFeuz1TE2Ch6te7jN3G4q2Vjfv0mcIsiLmvGYarf97XapQRffiKX-Ezv0qOoG5vYx_j09fVfixJSVKjmVZeJ92KvpN/s320/Picture+051.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067389280118561874" /></a>De-forestation <br><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikx-5jUSPa67rRptGuztGnu3Q3je_bIDrYsVSIkPQGZvk4lB4UfWkHHsYuapINQHTeVZ-DNp1PaSuxIlogJaMyIJeeDNOA8zS-ZuTS22GRu_0AmHDobUZ3FTRqpTaXWjNurE_k/s1600-h/Picture+021.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikx-5jUSPa67rRptGuztGnu3Q3je_bIDrYsVSIkPQGZvk4lB4UfWkHHsYuapINQHTeVZ-DNp1PaSuxIlogJaMyIJeeDNOA8zS-ZuTS22GRu_0AmHDobUZ3FTRqpTaXWjNurE_k/s320/Picture+021.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067391741134822498" /></a>Local boaters<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif1XBgOte5pNbDke8RcJA5Uas1g19bq-xUFB8mUco3R9UF0Wlfg4oxiL9Q4mv6DTUGtD4h76hgH_PmqAzqMxBt13NC2WNJEADPWthgJe0fCK99ooTQMVr65vWaOC2EWd2dZ1VY/s1600-h/DSC02108.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif1XBgOte5pNbDke8RcJA5Uas1g19bq-xUFB8mUco3R9UF0Wlfg4oxiL9Q4mv6DTUGtD4h76hgH_PmqAzqMxBt13NC2WNJEADPWthgJe0fCK99ooTQMVr65vWaOC2EWd2dZ1VY/s320/DSC02108.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067391762609658994" /></a>View from the Mamiraua institute (over Lake Tefe)<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHDxSgriOP6TMo3ZJCYjt3hey5oO8DnUo7P3gHuzVRynx50GlANJbYSXo4TlkQn88cg23NnEPX6xzU_iddAdOtrcAylhQGpPs-Exq0fUXpqz1WdRZ2PWKpY-pf44UQwiQ-e76/s1600-h/DSC02125.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHDxSgriOP6TMo3ZJCYjt3hey5oO8DnUo7P3gHuzVRynx50GlANJbYSXo4TlkQn88cg23NnEPX6xzU_iddAdOtrcAylhQGpPs-Exq0fUXpqz1WdRZ2PWKpY-pf44UQwiQ-e76/s320/DSC02125.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067391784084495490" /></a>Sunset over lake Tefe<br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSwetiAuBsMy7_fOkKvd5BZR9UTZmo3Uiv-VddKIubNGPof12MY7Sw8n0TseDRxVz7fnRG3PA6XTcHRbqG4qrKkSguspPGkOkeU8Zj1e01Ngp05dOGHMDjHqDIbDx6PWniYxpy/s1600-h/DSC02107.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSwetiAuBsMy7_fOkKvd5BZR9UTZmo3Uiv-VddKIubNGPof12MY7Sw8n0TseDRxVz7fnRG3PA6XTcHRbqG4qrKkSguspPGkOkeU8Zj1e01Ngp05dOGHMDjHqDIbDx6PWniYxpy/s320/DSC02107.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067391814149266578" /></a>Bunking in Tefe style -- Princess Moriah under the mosquito net <br><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgWiGWDE0YzJEVwRScWnh6CQ1Z573VsRMSqBuiQooxJhurN4sIcGALZLpWFmF52C4vW70dWyEaobSn9nkXYMgFeZuW_4wQ94kkJRA1x7YY5E6cat2JkG3adp2vdgCxOA4GjNKO/s1600-h/DSC02131.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgWiGWDE0YzJEVwRScWnh6CQ1Z573VsRMSqBuiQooxJhurN4sIcGALZLpWFmF52C4vW70dWyEaobSn9nkXYMgFeZuW_4wQ94kkJRA1x7YY5E6cat2JkG3adp2vdgCxOA4GjNKO/s320/DSC02131.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067391827034168482" /></a>Team Course still going strong after our first day of work (Stephan, Moriah, Maiken, Steve)<br>Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-32618255346645377012007-05-22T07:05:00.000-07:002007-05-22T07:07:53.574-07:00Our Work begins...We made it to the Mamiraua Reserve offices yesterday afternoon and received our first massive information dump. The research center is very impressive: a series of brand new buildings, situated on a large compound, right by the Lago Tefe (see pictures). The have maybe 50 people working there and to be honest the run a pretty impressive operation, addressing issues everywhere from community development, sustainable agriculture, sustainable fishing, sustainable forest use, health care and education, communication and broadcasting of news (to and from the reserve), ecotourism and and and... The offices themselves are fully inline with any wired, high tech office space I have worked in before and the people working here are highly educated scientists who know their stuff. It was almost a bit of a reverse culture shock to all of a sudden run in to 50 super smart people, in a high tech office, in this very remote place where most of our conversations with the local population so far has revolved around where to get the best rice, beans and beer... I'm feeling quite humble and honored that they are looking to us for help in shaping their future -- however they, admittedly, are scientists and not business people/marketers, and they are currently clearly under selling themselves, so hopefully we can indeed add some value. It will be a tough challenge tough - we heard a lot of "been there, done thats" today - the list of cons seems for everything seems long, while the pro-list is short - alas, I guess that is why we are here!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14187485.post-2918786194403027372007-05-21T07:34:00.000-07:002007-05-21T08:09:43.223-07:00Deep in the Amazon... Arriving in TeféWe are here! We have arrived at our IBD (International Business Development) project destination in <a href="http://maps.google.com/?q=Tef%C3%A9,+Brazil&ie=UTF8&ll=-3.338982,-64.69986&spn=0.151148,0.233459&z=12&iwloc=addr&om=1">Tefé, Amazonas, Brazil [click here for google map...]</a>. Tefé is quite literally in the middle of nowhere - situated about ~500 kilometers up river, west, of Manaus (capital of Brazil´s Amazon province) Tefé is home to about 50,000 people + a significant number of Urubu birds (large trash eating vultures), stray dogs and crazy motor-cyclists. It is also the gateway to the <a href="http://www.mamiraua.org.br/">Mamiraua Reserve</a>, the beneficiaries of our project, which consists in developing a plan for how they can become more financially self-sustaining (and thus reduce their dependency of government funding), through increased monitization of assets like locally produce handi crafts, eco tourism and a variety of fundraising intiatives. <br /><br><br />While there is not much exciting to be said for the town of Tefé, being right on the Amazon in the middle of the rain forest is <b>AMAZING</b>. We chartered a boat yesterday afternoon (Sunday) to take us out on the river and it is simply incredible. The sheer size of the river (width + amount of water in it) and the fact that all you see until the end of the horizon is either water or endless, lush, green is just very, very cool -- made me want to immediately buy a hammock and pitch in in a hut or under a tree somewhere to just get closer to all of it. Hopefully we will get the chance to do something along those lines. While Tefé is the reserve gateway, and where its administration sits, there is a research station in the midst of the reserve (about another hour up river) that we will hopefully be spending some time at while we are here. We took a ton of pictures and movies yesterday, which I will try to post momentarily - currently we have not be able to access the admin office yet, so we are confined to internet cafe web access.<br /><br><br />In other good news - we have been having a lot of fun as a team (I am here with three other Haas students: Moriah, Stephan & Steve). In order to maintain a civilized atmosphere, despite being "in the wild tropics", we have decided to follow the british colonial example and have instituted an end of day cocktail hour for example. And we are doing our utmost to make sure that we try and taste every possible brazilian food delicacy of which there are quite a few (beef and fried stuff being the stables).<br /><br><br />Well - we are off to try to get some work done - we are still getting used to the Brazilian work customs, as such being asked to come to the office at 2.30 in the afternoon on our first day was a bit surprising, but hopefully we can start getting into the "meat" of things soon.<br /><br><br />One last note: make sure to check our Moriah´s blog as well (link posted on the left) as she is also "reporting life from Tefé".<br /><br />Até logo!Maikenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03127830697950198134noreply@blogger.com6