I think my body is finally recovering from the past two months of living out of my backpack.. I have been trying to recover with plenty of sleep, good Korean food, catching up with people and of course, entertainment. Saw an excellent performance at BAM the other day. Then neutralized it with an annoying film last night Landmark. The only highlight was seeing Joseph Gordon-Levitt sitting a few rows down. He's such a talented young actor - I want to eat him.

While in Santiago one evening I met this young woman. What started off as an act of kindness on her part (I was lost and she offered to find my hotel with me) ended up being an all night event. We grabbed a few drinks and began to talk about life. I promised her that I would visit Valparaiso before I left Chile, apparently her favorite place. Next day I jumped on a 2 hour bus ride to this unfamiliar city. I was dropped off in the middle of town. For the next 45 minutes I walked around town with only one thought in mind - WHY?? why was she so adamant that I visit this city? It was like any other city.. No, if anything, it was less attractive than other cities I had seen. I started to get annoyed.. Was I missing something?! That is when I looked up... literally. Perched up in the hills I saw hundreds of colorful little houses linked by these old funiculars (cliff rails). How cute, I thought.. Why not?! I decided..

The cerros of Valparaiso is the first place in South America I thought, "I could live here". Actually.. more like I can run away here should I ever want to live a quiet hermit existence. I felt like I was transported to a little magical city full of pastel color homes. Strolling through the labyrinth of cobblestone streets and hidden alleyways, I couldn't help but wonder about all the other little gems out there hidden behind the trees and facade of the big city lights.. Life is much more enjoyable when you find the beauty often hidden behind the surface of things..