Advice

Advice comes in many forms, from many places.

From artoftravel.com, I got these interesting factoids:

• traveler: accepts and adjusts to local culture
• tourist: makes culture meet her needs
• giving simple gifts, like postcards, can help others understand where you come from and feel appreciated
• a post office will hold your mail for you if the letter has "post restante" written on it...

From a former ISA student, who studied in Chile last fall, I got this advice:

• the "intercambio de idiomas" (language exchange) is a good way to meet Chilean students, since apparently they are hard to meet
• the ISA lectures at the beginning of the semester are a good way to meet other ISA students
• bringing with a music player (ipod, computer) is very comforting
• July- Oct. it is very cold; a good coat, fleece, and warm, dry clothes are good to have
• Oct. - Dec. is "gorgeous;" but, a light jacket for evenings is good
• in general, jeans, comfy shoes, and scarves will do you well in Chile.

I'm sure she has a lot of good info in her blog too, but it's quite long....

Even with all this advice, I still can't imagine what to expect!