Bucket List Item #22…Check

by Rebecca Ruh, Foster School Undergraduate, Foster Exchange in Chile

This past weekend Diego, my Peruvian friend, and Lisbeth, my Spanish amiga, accompanied me to Valparaíso, a port city about an hour and a half from Santiago. Amongst our exploring of the city filled with the brightest walls, an interesting stay at a hostel, visiting one of Pablo Neruda’s houses, and sampling anticuchos (cow heart) and sopapillas from street vendors, we made our way a little further up the coast to Con Con to take a whirl at sandboarding

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When we arrived I was shocked to see such a view – sand dunes towering high above the ocean with its majestic blue waters directly below us. With only three other small groups there, it felt like we had the land to ourselves, all the better so fewer people could gape at our amateur boarding skills and smirk at our clumsy wipeouts (even though I found great pleasure in laughing at my ineptness). Our first attempts down the massive dunes culminated in trips and spills, becoming very familiar with the rough sand. But soon, paving our way down the dunes became more natural and my confidence in my sandboarding abilities grew. As we descended the hills and the sun cast its rays on the water, I soaked in the skyline, ingraining it on my mind, vowing to never forget this moment directly before my eyes. I couldn’t believe it – crossing bucket list item #22, sand-boarding, from my list for a grand total of $3 with some of the most breathtaking scenery halfway around the world and great company. You could say I am one lucky girl.