Un abrazo

You ever feel like you want to hug something so tight the moment you step off the plane? That's how I feel when I come to Barcelona. I am so happy to be here.

Shanghai in a Day

Thanks to the beauty of jet lag, I woke up at a brilliant 5:00am this morning. Unfortunately our hotel has the crummiest business and fitness center hours, so as I was unable to reap the benefits of an early riser, the morning was largely unproductive...no matter. My dad and I slowly made our way out of bed and out the hotel to scavenge for breakfast in the morning rain. We found a tiny shop down the street selling bao :) yummmmmm...we bought 8 bao and 2 warm soy bean milk pouches for 13 RMB (roughly $2 USD)...we brought everything back to the hotel and I contently sat crosslegged on the window ledge stuffing my face and looking out on a wet and rainy Shanghai. omnomnomnomnom.

Our first stop for the day: Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund. I had the privilege of meeting with Mr. Bruce Ryde, the General Manager of the hotel, to learn some of his insights on the Chinese hotel industry culture and practices, Hotel Indigo's branding in Asia, and working as an ex-pat. Then his assistant Karina kindly gave us a tour of the hotel. Standing at 184 rooms, this hotel is certainly operating at a different scale than Hotel Indigo Chelsea...

Then, my dad and I walked to the Yuyuan Bazaar and the Shanghai Old Street. A great place to shop and see Chinese architecture just like it looks in the movies...

Then, lunch in the Yuyuan Bazaar. Even in the most touristy spots, food here is ridiculously inexpensive...

We then went to visit the Chinese Pavilion on the (deserted) 2010 World Expo grounds. We got there just 10 minutes after they stopped selling tickets, but after being yelled at, stalked, haggled, hassled, and hustled by this obnoxious ticket scalper...we acquired tickets at an inflated, but still reasonable price. In the grand scheme of things, it was still quite worthwhile.

Then, in the evening we walked up and down the Bund (the riverside esplanade) and took a ferry cruise up and down the Huangpou river. In the past 20 years, Pudong has gone from farmlands to a city of neon and chrome...

Tomorrow afternoon we're off to Beijing!
再見!

Shanghai

Just arrived in a rainy Shanghai! (I literally haven't seen the sun in 10 days! No matter where I go, as soon as I get there it starts raining! New York, Dallas, and now Shanghai too...)


Going to sleep soon, more to come tomorrow...

We no speak Americano

Lauren: "Oh my gosh! I just realized I wrote this entire postcard to my sister in Spanish!"

Angela: "Well, does she know Spanish?"

Lauren: "No!" bahahaha

Angela and Lauren on the challenges on traveling in Spanish-speaking countries and forgetting how to speak proper English...we no speak americano.

Our last day in the city, here's to making the most of it!

Me and Lauren did a brief tour of the hotels in Santiago. All of the major branded hotels are in the Las Condes district, the most wealthy area in Santiago. First stop: Ritz-Carlton!

Then, the W...

Then, the Intercontinental

South America's tallest building-to-be:

Then we wandered through th sculpture park. Luckily we went in the morning before all the couples come out and start macking on the grass...

We climbed up Santa Lucia hill to the top! Beautiful view. Then we had to hurry down to make our lunch reservation.

We enjoyed our last meal at Ana Maria, a Chilean restaurant. The front door of this restaurant is locked. You have to ring the doorbell and bang on the door at this place to get in!

Then, it's time to fly home...Saucy loves LAN Airlines!

I would love to stay a bit longer, but it's time to go back to reality. Santiago has been a great experience in broadening my perspectives, but (unfortunately) also in broadening my figure...goodbye Chile, hello seafood-and-pisco rehab!

Abrazos y adios!

Angela

Wined Up

"Don't look at me, I ate my appetizer!"- Making fun of poor Tatum, who was berated by our waiter at dinner for not eating her ceviche appetizer...

Our last meeting on this trip: LAN Airlines! This was a great meeting, I came away with a great impression of the company and a lot of good insights on how emergency management goes down in the airline industry. The people we met with were incredibly sweet, it's definitely a different kind of company than what I perceive airlines in the US to be.

Then, it's off to Concha y Toro, a vineyard located about an hour south of Santiago. We got a little tasting and tour, including the famed "Castillero del Diablo" wine cellar. All in all a beautiful place and a fun experience.

We went to Aquí está Coco for dinner. A very seafood-themed restaurant, boats and whales, and even painted salmon skin for placemats! Not to mention some nifty, but tricky, bathroom fixtures. Plus, we got a little taste of Lucuma in custard/ice cream form!

Abrazos y vinos,

Angela

Playa Playa

"I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too...I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too...I no longer love her, that's certain, but how I loved her...I no longer love her, that's certain, but maybe I love her."- Pablo, our tour guide in a well-intentioned, but unbearably long and painfully hysterical recitation of Pablo Neruda's poem. We're just not mature enough for this stuff.

Morning meeting with the Sheraton in Viña del Mar, a city near Valparaiso. It was so great to be at the shore! We had a great time taking in the beautiful scenery and gorgeous sunshine as we walked up and down the beach :)

Enjoyed a nice patio lunch in a cute little restaurant.

Then, we took a really interesting walk through this neighborhood which was a UN World Heritage site. It's this old neighborhood plastered in graffiti. It's a really interesting place, I've never been anywhere like it.

In the evening, we enjoyed a long dinner at Patagonia with our fabulous waitress, Pica. The waiters and waitresses here are astoudingly patient with us! And we don't know if it was the wine, the traveling musicians, or just overall delirium, but it was a wonderful laughter-filled evening to remember.

Abrazos desde la playa,

Angela

I feel the earth move under my feet

Angela: Is something...shaking? Luigi, do you feel it? I think the room is...moving, right?

Luigi: Oh, I thought I was just swaying a little because I had a little wine earlier.

Tisch Center Scholars by the 12th floor hotel pool feeling the quakes of a 5.3-magnitude earthquake in Valparaiso, 45 miles north. And a testimony to Luigi's alcoholism...(kidding!)

In the morning we met with Un Techo Para Mi País, a non-profit NGO which helps to create temporary housing and provides social inclusion programs for people in need. I LOVE their headquarters! It reminds me of a tree house/maze/playground, there are all sorts of levels and half-levels--super interesting use of the space for sure.

We also saw some samples of the houses they build.

Then, we visited ONEMI, Chile's emergency management organization, where we toured their facilities and underwent an earthquake simulation--a little scary!

Stopped for lunch by the hotel. This was just the most unexpectedly beautiful and yummy café con leche...

Last stop, the Grand Hyatt Santiago. This place just completely blew us away. I was literally exasperated at the level of hospitality they provided us. We began with a tour of the property, highly impressed by their crisis management success stories. The tour was followed by cocktails and a vast array of hors d'oeuvres on the terrace near the pool with the Food and Beverage director, the Director of Sales, and the Director of Human Resources. To top it all off, they sent us away with gift bags. It was a beautiful hotel, delicious food, and incredible staff! Definitely an experience I'll never forget.

Most exciting of all: When we returned to the hotel for the evening, a few of the girls went for a dip. I was sitting on the couch nearby, and suddenly I feel the couch shaking just slightly, but very noticeably. The shaking continued for maybe 10 seconds. I look around me and the plants are moving too. At first I wondered, "Is it just me?...or is it?..." Sure enough, we had felt the tremors of an earthquake! Only later that night online did I discover that it was 5.3 magnitude earthquake in Valparaiso (our destination tomorrow!), just 45 miles north of Santiago. How bizarre is that?

Hugs, shakes, and quakes,

Angela

Colo Colo Colo!

"Open the closet--I'M GAY!"- Our presenter at Lowe Porta advertising on menial Chilean morning news, such as burglaries, illegitimate children, scandals, and coming out of the closet...

An incredible day meeting incredible people and delving into the sports industries of Santiago.

First, a visit to Colo Colo Futbol Club, the most popular team in Chile (50% of Chileans are Colo Colo fans!). Also, something really insightful that he said during the meeting regarding the power of social media: "Everyone is a journalist."

Next, Lowe Porta, an advertising agency, to learn about Chilean sports marketing initiatives. Final stop, the Ministry of Sports, learning the government's incredible initiatives to use sports as a way of addressing socioeconomic crises.

Finally, topping off the night with dinner at Barandiarán, a delicious Peruvian restaurant in Bellavista. The food was surprisingly indistinguishable from Chinese food...nonetheless, positively delicious!

Abrazos y deportes,

Angela

Andando por los Andes!

"Does that sign say that the bridge is in bad condition?"- Luigi, as we're driving down the Andes passing a sign which read, "La puente está mal estado."

Kicking off the day with a breakfast buffet. There is an entire 8-foot table devoted to fruits! And fresh juices. A mí me encanta!

Had a fantastic meeting with the Ministry of Tourism in the morning. Lots of questions answered, plus Lauren met her future husband--she'd let him tour her infrastructures...if you know what I mean ;)

Chile has some unconventional hot dog toppings...Went to Doggis to have a taste! Guacamole, tomatoes, & cheese sauce on a hot dog:

Then it's off to the Andes. It was a long drive up and a long drive down, our brakes started smoking on the way down, we crossed a bridge that was marked as dysfunctional, the bus driver was booking it on those sharp turns--we were basically scared for our lives in general...but the view was spectacular!

After a long day, we headed back to Bellavista for a late dinner at El Galindo. We got parradilla, which is a Chilean barbeque feast of several cuts of various meats and sausages (chicken, pork, beef, etc.). yummm

Abrazos y los Andes,

Angela

READY. SET. santiaGO!

"Globe-trotting, trail-blazing pioneers!"- Luigi, fellow scholar in depicting the NYU Tisch Center Scholars. We are traveling to Santiago to study crisis planning, crisis management and post-crisis recovery as they relate to tourism, hospitality, and sports industries. These are our stories.

Meet Saucy (that's short for sausage) :)

Me and Luigi buckled in for 10 hours o' fun!!!! (LAN Airlines from JFK to SCL)

After a little bit of searching, we were greeted by Pablo, our Chilean tour guide, who took us to our hotel in his Mercedes-Benz tour van. Oh, we fancy. Pablo gives a little intro on his signature in-car PA system.

The weather here is positively beautiful! We are all happy to be in shorts and sandals for the first time in months!

First things first: calling our loved ones from the Movistar phone booths in the shopping center across the street.

We took the metro to the Bellavista district. A three course lunch at La Casa en el Aire--for 7 US dollars! This place is amazing. Then, affogatos at a gelato shop nearby. A big ball of gelato drowning in coffee. That's love, baby.

Then Pablo took us on a tour of the city. I think only tomorrow will we appreciate how peaceful and empty the streets were today. Lots of historic sites, cultural neighborhoods, reminds me of Europe.

Worn out after our day of fun, we head out for a late dinner and drinks! Then we toiled over our run of questions for the Ministry of Economy, Development, and Tourism tomorrow...so exhausted, off to sleep!

Abrazos y affogatos,

Angela