Monday, May 17

Today we left early to go to Santiago. Our first stop was the Bolsa de Comercio de Santiago, where we learned about the exchange and then had a tour. Afterwards, we walked about downtown, seeing the outside of la Moneda (the president's office) and the Plaza de Armas. Next we had an enormous lunch (mostly fish and shellfish except for those who preferred meat) in Mercado Central. Then we took a funicular to the top of a hill, San Cristobal, I think. Unfortunately, despite the recent rain, there was a lot of smog and we could barely see the Andes. Finally we did some shopping in the Bellevista section of the city and headed home. This was our last company visit and most of the rest of the trip will be sightseeing and other relaxing activities.