First Company Visit

Today started with another long lecture at the University.  A professor named Jose gave us a wonderful synopsis of Chilean culture.  We learned all about how Chileans live, and we also learned about natural disasters in Chile.  Since Chile is located on top of the ring of fire, it is susceptible to earthquakes.  Jose showed us a video made in 2009 that simulated what would happen to Chile if a massive earthquake ever occurred.  They creators of the video predicted a huge earthquake like the one simulated in the video would happen one million years from 2009.  Ironically, a devastating earthquake occurred in Chile the next year, February 27, 2010.  I was sad to find this out because that is my birthday! We watched videos and saw all the terrible damage caused by the earthquake.  We also saw videos of the sever looting that happened because of the earthquake.  We watched a video about Michelle Bachelot’s poor decision not to send out the Chilean military to restore order in the country after the earthquake.  She finally called for Chile to be in a state of emergency.  This meant that personal rights and laws could be broken in Chile in order to keep everyone safe during the devastating tragedy.  I really enjoyed Jose’s lecture!  After the lecture, we left the university to head to our first company visit at LAN Airlines in Santiago, Chile.  When we arrived to the company, we went inside and sat in a boardroom where an employee named Luis gave us a presentation about LAN.  I was surprised to find that LAN has had zero accidents.  I also found it surprising that LAN had increased profits after the September 11^th attacks in the USA.  I always thought that the attacks would have negatively affected all international airlines, but Luis told me it actually benefitted them.  I was excited to learn more about LAN because this is the company I have to make my presentation on.  I am looking forward to adding all the new information I’ve acquired to the first draft of my project.  After our company visit, we went to our second salsa class.  My partner and I tore up the dance floor with our moves.  I got a good laugh out of the dance instructor throwing my friend Carly around.  Finally, it was time to eat some more empanadas and get ready to go out for the night.  We went to Café Journal and danced with many Chileans!  I am really enjoying hanging out with people from a different country and learning all about a different culture.