Aaahh, exam week in Chile.  Suffocating under mountains of papers, books, and to-do lists, I felt it was time to do like any conscientious college student and throw a party (at my elderly host mother`s suggestion!)  The menu:  Chilean beer, Argentinian wine, at least 20 varieties of cookies, and-the highlight-lomitos!  Though several of my friends were previously unfamiliar with the lomito (a delectable grilled beef sandwich,) last night served as the perfect introduction.  Smothered in cheese, tomato, gobs of "mayonesa" and "palta" (avocado,) the lomitos disappeared as fast as they were served.  After 6+ hours of festivities, (including a game of charades-leading me to conclude that at 20 and 21 we have reached the age of party games once again,) we called it a night and returned to our books.

     There were definitely no books involved today as my colegio class threw me a going away party.  They were thrilled with our first opportunity to converse completely in Spanish, (and, not surprisingly, much more talkative than in previous classes.)  Though I admit I expected the discussion to revolve mainly around music, movies, and teen relationships, I was unexpectedly educated regarding the politics between Perù, Chile, and Bolivia after mentioning our upcoming trip.  The refreshments were tasty, (though I also learned several new words for kitchen accidents as one girl presented her first baking attempt, supposedly a cake.)

   Thanks to my colegio students, I now feel prepared to intelligently discuss the Chilean/Peruvian border disputes as we embark on our final journey to Perù this Saturday.  Since I am accustomed to "spontaneous travel" (i.e. bus to Maipu) this is the extent of the itinerary:

   -Final CIEE party Friday night, carreteando (clubs, discos, possibly more lomitos...) 

   -Quick stop for the luggage, flight to Lima-6:50am Sat morning

   -Less than 24 hours of frantic Lima exploration

   -Flight to Cuzco-6:10am the following day (who needs sleep anyway?)

   -Machu Picchu (probably on the top 10 list of world tourist attractions; I have heard numerous scary stories involving pickpockets and stampeding tour groups clad in matching shirts)

   -A few nights in Puno on the shores of Lago Titticaca, (T-shirt!) and hopefully a homestay with the locals on one of Titticaca`s numerous man-made reed islands

   -San Pedro de Atacama, home to the world`s oldest mummies, sunrise-triggered geysers, and unbelievably expensive completos. 

   -(Collectively)45+ hours of bus time through rainforest, desert, and mountains en route south to Santiago

   Equipped with bottled water and disposable cameras, we are ready to brave customs, stampeding tour groups, and consecutive bus journeys and explore The North.